It was 3:30 am, and any hopes I had of actually falling asleep and not sleeping the entire day away were just pipe dreams anyway. So, I decided to call Dustin (Welch) to see if he was still planning on heading to Middle Creek WMA in Lancaster to try and find the MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRD that had been reported there for the past week. Though I'm not much for chasing these days, and though the Mountain Bluebird wouldn't be a lifer, just a state bird, I decided to tag along and maybe get some birding in besides my daily checks of Lakes Echo and Minsi. We arrived at Middle Creek before dawn, and as it slowly got lighter I began to prepare myself for a potentially boring, long wait for this western mountain species to show itself. Dustin had hoped to photograph the bird as well, although thus far it hadn't come any closer than 50 yards to the road and viewing area. As the sun broke the horizon, it became evident that Middle Creek would provide us with plenty to keep us entertained until the Bluebird decided to show itself (if it did at all). It was quite brisk out, but as we stood outside the car Dustin caught sight of first one, then another SHORT-EARED OWL. The two birds made several close passes, and also perched up for several shots (Dustin, with his much larger lens was able to capture several decent photos in the dim light). We watched them as it got lighter, getting chased around by a Northern Harrier and chasing after the 20 or so Ring-necked Pheasants that were calling all over the place. Not since North Dakota had I heard so many of these comical birds. Owl activity slowed a bit as the sun finally shone across the fields and heated us up a bit. We decided to walk down the road a bit further to where the Bluebird had been seen, but not before a Great Egret, 5 Tundra Swans ans several Green-winged Teal passed overhead. There were many Tree Swallows jockeying for nest boxes, and Field Sparrows and Eastern Meadowlarks were calling from the grassy fields across from the Bluebird's hang out. Before we made it too far, we were stopped in our tracks by the loud and unmistakable call of a SANDHILL CRANE coming from back near our car. We did a quick about-face and soon located the large bird across the field that the Shorties had been cruising earlier. The crane called several more times before making a breif flight across the field to join some grazing Canada Geese further down the road. We continued back down the road, and set up shop near some of the other birders that were present, scopes pointed at the corn-stubble that the Bluebird was frequenting. We had seen and heard several Eastern Bluebirds thus far, though no sign of the Mountain-yet. As we waited, other expected species made their presence known, like Horned Larks and Savannah Sparrows, and Dustin spotted 4 WILSON'S SNIPE loafing out in the corn. Around 9, the MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRD finally decided to pop up, about 100 yards out into the fields. Scope views were had by all, and as we watched he slowly worked his way closer to where we stood. In all of my photos the bird appears as just a dot on a cornstalk, but Dustin managed a few documentary worthy shots. Satisfied with the looks we had gotten, we decided to head on after watching the bird for a short while. A bit further down the road, one of the day's 10+ American Kestrels flushed a nice-sized flock of 100+ American Pipits. We also found a few RUSTY BLACKBIRDS feeding in the lawn near the visitor center, and found more Northern Shoveler, Ring-necked Ducks and a male Greater Scaup on our way out of the complex. Without even trying, and not covering an exceptionally large area, we had totalled 65 species of birds before 11 am. The Bluebird chase, in essence, had simply become the catalyst for getting us out on a beautiful and productive day of birding. With a little effort and planning, 100+ species could have been attained on this early day in April. Though I missed the Snow Goose spectacle here at Middle Creek a few weeks ago, it was still an enjoyable day and great place to spend the morning birding.
