Date: 12/10/24 7:43 am From: Jeff Keating <jffkeats...> Subject: Geary County LeConte's sparrow
I'm teaching my new pup to be a pheasant hunting dog and took him to a field that used to hold pheasants south of Milford Lake for a controlled field training test (December 9). Hunting this field in prior years with a seasoned dog often resulted in one or more LeConte's sparrows, so it seemed like a good first field for the pup, as I hadn't yet found a LeConte's this year. The field appeared to have been an early hayfield with a modest amount of regrowth, so I had no trouble maintaining constant eye contact with the puppy as his early playfulness wore off and he began intently tracking a scent in the grass, leading to a single sparrow flush. The sparrow flew very weakly about 5 feet off the ground, for about twenty yards before landing in a taller clump of grass and then dropping back down to the ground. Having seen many of the species in prior years, the behavior, flight characteristics, location and time of year gave me no hesitation to identify it as a LeConte's, but I didn't get a second look at the bird. This field is on public hunting ground, just west of Milford Lake Road on Highway 244, south side of road, 39.059533, -96.949957 appears to be the pin. A short walk up the hill towards a small brush patch has always been the sweet spot for LeConte's sparrow. If you actually want a pheasant, go elsewhere; since the milo plots were discontinued, larger, colorful birds aren't found there.
