Bright (bright) bright (bright) sunshiny day – Freezeout Lake

Is the song stuck in your head now?  Good.  It was stuck in my head all day yesterday as I could see clearly – so much more clearly – than my previous visit to Freezeout Lake in freezing fog.  The air was crystal clear, the sun was shining, and only friendly clouds floated in the sky above.

I started my birding day at the boat launch, from where I could observe 20 or more species of birds, including several personal FOY’s (first-of-year birds) including American avocet, black-necked stilt, American white pelican, Franklin’s Gull, and marbled godwit.  Canada geese loudly protested the presence of a coyote patrolling the opposite shore.

Some of the American white pelicans were bunched up for group fish herding / hunting.  This is an interesting behavior to observe.

Later in the afternoon I parked along a stretch of road where I had seen a black-crowned night heron (another FOY) fly over a couple times, hoping for another look and maybe even a photo.  I was stymied in that goal.  However, while there, I watched double-crested cormorants, one after another, collect nesting material and fly back to their nest colony with it.

Then, a big surprise!  An American avocet landed about 25-30 yards away and caught a minnow.  Fun stuff!

On the way home from Freezeout Lake, I took a little detour to Brown’s Lake where I added a couple birds to the day list and then through Pattee Canyon, where I added a couple more.  Back at home it was still too nice to be indoors, so I downloaded photos on the back deck while enjoying a beer watching pine siskins, red-breasted nuthatches, and house finches on my feeder while an American robin serenaded and a downy woodpecker played percussion.  Ah… spring!!!!

Here’s the bird list for the day with location where I first saw that species yesterday.  Those marked with an * were a FOY for me.

More photos from the day can be viewed here: http://www.bigskycountry.net/freezeoutlake_april2012