Date: 4/12/25 4:27 pm From: Mark and Mary Peterson <markandmarypeterson...> Subject: Re: Suggestions
I had a Henslow's sparrow yesterday about 3 miles south of the junction to
Pawhuska on the south side of the TallgrassPrairie. 2 years ago, while
doing the breeding bird atlas block north of the Tallgrass Prairie
headquarters, I had 6 singing males in a 1 mile stretch. To get to this
area, go north of the headquarters 2-3 miles and take the road to the NE
for a mile or so. The road dips down to a stream bed and goes north. One
thing about Henslow's sparrows, they are usually not found in the same
place from year to year, because areas where they are are frequently burned
from year to year. They like tall grassy areas with old previous year's
grass. They usually sing from a tall weed. Also, they usually stop singing
shortly after sunrise.
On Fri, Apr 11, 2025, 11:25 AM drhal2 Yocum <drhal2...> wrote:
> Hi Brent,
> I used a slightly different due to my loss of hearing at the higher
> frequencies. I found the Henslow sparrow there at the Tall Grass Prairie
> by driving at 100 yard intervals , stopping for 5 minutes and using
> “Merlin to hear for me”. Then just 1-2 calls brought several right to the
> fence for excellent viewing and photos. That way I could cover more areas.
> No motor noise to compete.
> Hope you succeed.
> Hal A. Yocum , MD
> Sent from my iPhone
>
> On Apr 11, 2025, at 8:15 AM, Jesse Pline <jessepline...> wrote:
>
>
>
> Hi Brent,
>
> Your best bet for Henslow's Sparrow will be by avoiding driving and
> instead walking the roads and trails. I had the same difficulty when
> working on finding them for my OK Big Year, the easiest way to find them is
> when they're singing and their song is very short and high-pitched,
> something that you'll have a very hard time hearing over a car engine.
>
> When I got mine, I parked at the headquarters and just walked north along
> the 4201 road until I got it around (36.8696013, -96.4190080).
> https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://ebird.org/checklist/S140017177__;!!GNU8KkXDZlD12Q!4XlGQBVxy70MrfSwR2mzHn0i5NDQcYeNlpwpynQWbzzGwrH6JWszSeyVADph3b_aeJzB4oIRV8V8KT797kap38DDdAyx7g$ [ebird[.]org]
> <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://ebird.org/checklist/S140017177__;!!GNU8KkXDZlD12Q!7xUmgWeE7m6di3KDpie5c_v7pVBYUuKkjMBV26WII2LoQqyrysHkkJu9h8NC-FpTHYW9rIQTREssdOpw79P9vQ$> >
> Best of luck,
> ~Jesse Pline, CWR
> Eugene, OR
>
> On Fri, Apr 11, 2025, 1:02 AM Brent Barnes <
> <00000113f4c02191-dmarc-request...> wrote:
>
>> Hello birders of Oklahoma!
>>
>> I have finally broken down this year and am reaching out to the many
>> Oklahoma birding experts on this list serve for suggestions on finding and
>> photographing a bird that has become a real nemesis of mine - the Henslow's
>> Sparrow. Obviously, the best place to find this species in Oklahoma is the
>> Tall Grass Prairie Preserve, but after six half-day trips in April and May
>> during the past two years, I have continued to strike out.
>>
>> I know Henslow's Sparrow is a secretive bird of the sparse grassland, but
>> reportedly males can be seen perched and singing during breeding season. I
>> have slowly driven many miles at the Tall Grass preserve looking along
>> grass areas and have walked the trails many times. I have found many great
>> birds such as Upland Sandpiper, American Golden Plover, roosting Common
>> Nighthawk in the mid-day, American Pipit and can usually find Savannah
>> Sparrow and Field Sparrow and in May can easily find dozens of Dickissels,
>> but no Henslow's Sparrows.
>>
>> Do any of you have suggestions for finding and photographing this species
>> at the Tall Grass Prairie Preserve? For those who have seen this species
>> there, is it usually by slowly driving the grassy areas and searching the
>> grassland or by walking the trails or headquarter areas? Is there an area
>> of the large preserve where you have had better luck finding this species?
>>
>> Thanks for any tips, I will likely try and get up there in the next two
>> weeks and was hoping for suggestions.
>>
>> Brent Barnes
>>
>
