kansas – A Thousand Acres of Silphiums

2022 Kansas Trip – Ferruginous Hawk

I was definitely on the lookout for Ferruginous Hawks during our visit to western Kansas last year and we were fortunate to have one fly directly over us as we visited a badlands monument. What I didn’t expect is to be able to see an active nest. This was at a private ranch where we had the opportunity to see and photograph Lesser Prairie Chicken leks. The rancher was understandably weary of getting too close or staying too long, so we took our shots from a good distance from the vehicle windows.

Active Ferruginous Hawk nest on cliff’s edge

2022 Kansas Trip – American Coot

birds, Quivira National Wildlife Refuge, wildlife, wildlife photography

2022 Kansas Trip – Long-billed Dowitcher

birds, Quivira National Wildlife Refuge, wildlife, wildlife photography

We didn’t have a great deal of diversity in the shorebirds during this early season trip to the “central coast,” but, we had great numbers in the early migrating species like the Long-billed Dowitcher. There may have been some Short-billed Dowitchers mixed in here but none that we could confirm identity. The LBDO uses the central flyway predominantly while the SBDO primarily moves along the coasts during spring migration.

2022 Kansas Trip – Lesser Prairie Chickens Part 2

Bird Species of Conservation Concern, birds, wildlife, wildlife photography

2022 Kansas Trip – Lesser Prairie Chickens

Bird Species of Conservation Concern, birds, wildlife, wildlife photography

With this crazy summer, full of a time-consuming work project and trying to keep establishing plants alive in the yard, there has been very little time for birding trips. Casey organized this trip from mid April of 2022 and it was definitely memorable. I still have hundreds of photos to process, but here are a few from our first stop, a couple of Lesser Prairie Chicken Leks in western Kansas.

Birds of Quivira – Blue-winged Teal

Quivira National Wildlife Refuge, wildlife photography

Blue-winged Teal - Quivira NWR, Kansas — Blue-winged Teal – Quivira NWR, Kansas

The Blue-winged Teal is the most common nesting duck at Quivira NWR.

Blue-winged Teal - 6A1A8856 — Blue-winged Teal – Quivira NWR, Kansas

Blue-winged Teal - 6A1A8844 — Blue-winged Teal – Quivira NWR, Kansas

Return to the Kingdom of Quivira

Quivira National Wildlife Refuge, wildlife

I have previously discussed and shared a number of our photos from previous trips to Quivira NWR. Steve and I recently returned from a short trip to central Kansas and I wanted to share a quick photo. Last year we had sure looks and photos of Hudsonian Godwits. This year one of the highlights of the trip was finding a group of 23 Marbled Godwits.

We were a bit earlier this year than last and this combined with a longer, cooler spring, bird species diversity and overall numbers were a tad lower. Constant abusing winds made the cool temperatures nearly unbearable to sustain for long, especially with two dudes who dressed for spring. But, we just worked a little harder and made the best use of good light, higher temps and calmer winds when we could find them. Another unforgettable trip.

Birds of Quivira – Final Thoughts

birds, Quivira National Wildlife Refuge, wildlife

Today I am presenting the final images that I plan on sharing from the trip that Steve and I made to Quivira NWR way back this past May.

These Hudsonian Godwits were a pleasure to watch. See below for a shot of them in rest.

Surprisingly, we seemed to have more Yellow-headed Blackbirds than Red-winged, but we did have plenty of Red-winged to watch as well.

No trip to the grasslands is complete without a Quail…

We watched this female/juvenile Yellow Warbler take a bath in one of the creeks that run through the reserve.

What a collection of birds, photos and memories these few days in the Kingdom of Quivira provided. We can’t wait to visit again.

-OZB

Birds of Quivira – Belted Kingfisher

birds, Quivira National Wildlife Refuge, wildlife

While at Quivira, Steve and I happened upon one of the most patient, cooperative wild birds I have ever come across, this male Belted Kingfisher. It stayed perched, except when taking off to grab a prey item, as we slowly crept closer in the car.