Date: 6/26/26 10:48 pm From: Yang, Bobinyu <000011d835fbb54b-dmarc-request...> Subject: Three Sites One Day
I chanced upon Jeff Witters' May 22, 2026 photos of a painted bunting in the eBird photo library. The location, near Atmos Energy Corporation Olathe, of his sighting intrigued me. I had not been able to find a bird there since 2024. For the past couple of years, there was much road work and office construction. I went back there today to find a serene place (38.928180, -94.873898). Quite a bit of habitat has been lost. However, all the heavy equipment and building materials were gone. Amazingly, two beautiful male painted buntings soon showed up. This seems to be a case of birds lost and found. I could not be more pleased. A photo taken at 4:38 p.m., 6/26/2026 may be viewed here:
https://ebird.org/checklist/S363902971 While I was at it, I decided to try my luck at finding new painted bunting sites. At the newly created northeast end of S. Clare Rd.( 38.933358, -94.869351) - some 2,300 feet from the first site, I did find a bird. This time, it was a olive-plumage female/immature individual. A photo taken at 5:00 p.m. may be viewed here:
https://ebird.org/checklist/S363908859 A new subdivision called Prairie Canyon beckoned me. It was just south of College Blvd. New houses were everywhere. Bulldozers and excavators dotted the bare ground. I pulled to the head of a new road to be (38.924843, -94.860217) facing a broad field with only thin and short brush. Much to my pleasant surprise, a male bird, with his colorful feathers aglow in the setting sun, appeared before me. Two photos, taken at 7:28 p.m. may be viewed here:
https://ebird.org/checklist/S363915943 Three painted bunting sites, two heretofore unreported, made my day.
Bob I. Yang
<yangb...>
Overland Park, Johnson County
