The big prize for me was stumbling across a flock of Smith's Longspurs in the grassland. I have only seen one of these birds which wandered to Stone Harbor Point a few years ago. My friend Harvey actually discovered that bird. Seeing this flock in natural habitat was really cool. Here are a few of them landing on the barbed-wire fence. You can see the "long spurs" on the middle bird.
Smith's Longspurs |
Here is one perched. This little guy/gal let me get really close. Others were in the grass practically at my feet. You can see the orange wash on the belly which is a good field mark to separate Smith's from other longspurs.
Smith's Longspur |
Close up view. You can see how they would disappear in the grass due to their great camouflage.
Smith's Longspur |
The crazy thing about this trip is that we were in "Tornado Alley" with beautiful weather while the east coast was getting hammered with tornadoes. Crazy.
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