Date: 6/16/25 11:07 am From: Shirley Maas via groups.io <dtmsem2006...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] Crescent Lake Breeding Bird Survey
Thanks for sharing your BBS Reports.
I ran the Dundy County one for several yearwith my able assistant Shirley.
Finally quit when I couldn’t be sure of my hearings any more.
Don MaasMaricopa County Arizona
“If you do not take an interest in the affairs of your government then you are doomed to live under the rules of fools. Plato“You can ignore reality, but you cannot ignore the consequences of reality.”
Don & Shirley MaasThe Maas’s have migrated to the Valley of the Sun in Mesa, AZ from Choctaw, Ok for the winter.
On Monday, June 16, 2025, 9:09 AM, Tobin Brown via groups.io <tobinjbrown...> wrote:
Nebraska Birders,
Inspired by Jason Thiele's reports, I figured I'd share my experience as well!
On Friday I conducted my first breeding bird survey at Crescent Lake. Having never done a survey before, I was a little worried about the rushed nature of a 3 minute count, but I think I did pretty well! I counted just over 1000 individuals of 57 species (plus a non-count Sora and domestic Peafowl)! 20 species were only found at a single stop. The weather was clear and cool, with very little wind, I don't think I could have asked for better. Here are some of the overall highlights of the day.
- Dawn Song. The Dawn song at the marsh was overwhelming (see the stilt recording below). Probably hundreds of birds, I did my best to parse out what I was hearing, but I suspect I underestimated Marsh Wrens, blackbirds, and calling coots/ducks by quite a bit. (I think I may have missed a Least bittern there too)
- Black-necked Stilt: I had 2 Black-necked Stilts at my first stop at the northwest corner of Goose Lake. They were very vocal (probably scolding me). I'm not sure when the last time this route was run, but this may be a new species for the route.
- Cinnamon Teal: I came across one single drake Cinnamon Teal at stop 18. It was in a pond with some Blue-winged teals. I did not note a hen, but I think it's likely one was hiding in the marsh.
- Meadowlarks! Meadowlarks dominated my count, noted at 46 stops (and probably missed at the others). Almost all were Western, but I did hear one singing Eastern Meadowlark.
- American Bittern: I was hoping to hear a displaying Bittern on my route, and I did on stop 10! I stopped briefly after my 3 minute count to take a recording.
- Prairie Chickens: I thought I was well into Sharp-tailed Grouse territory, but I heard a few late Prairie Chickens still booming at stops 5-7
- Weasel! The non-bird highlight of my route was a Long-tailed Weasel at stop 30.
Trip report: https://ebird.org/tripreport/384758
It was a long day, but I'm looking forward to running it again next year to see what changes.
