April Bird Walk - Zeloski Marsh


(Photo of Osprey pair ...)
It was a slightly cool and slightly windy but otherwise pleasant day for our first walk of the season. We were lucky as the day before and the day after weren't so pleasant. A group of happy birdwalkers spent over three hours covering the trails at the marsh. There was a wide variety of waterfowl, the resident Osprey kept a careful watch on us, and we found a good variety of songbirds and raptors as well. All in all, this was a very good walk with which to start the season. There's a complete list of species seen below with the usual fantastic field notes from Karen Etter Hale.
If you couldn't be with us for this walk we hope you will join us for a later one. There's always something worth seeing on these walks.

Below is a complete list of bird species identified. 
 

Lake Mills SWA--Zeloski Marsh, Jefferson, Wisconsin, US
Apr 19, 2025 8:16 AM - 11:51 AM
Protocol: Traveling
2.469 mile(s)
Checklist Comments:     45; partly cloudy; NW 5 mph (start) to 50; partly cloudy; NW 5-10 (end). 
Jefferson-Dodge Birding Walk. 
Walk around the south pool clockwise from London Rd. Everyone found some good birds. 
Scoped three impoundments, with many good looks at the numerous duck species. 
Most counts of ducks, coots and others were guesses, not exact counts.
41 species (+1 other taxa)

Canada Goose  20
swan sp.  2     Probably the Trumpeters, but we only saw them flying a long way off.
Wood Duck  4
Blue-winged Teal  20
Northern Shoveler  10
Gadwall  10
American Wigeon  3
Mallard  4
Northern Pintail  10
Green-winged Teal  1
Redhead  20     Or more.
Ring-necked Duck  40     Or more.
Bufflehead  2
Hooded Merganser  2
Ruddy Duck  3
Ring-necked Pheasant  1
Mourning Dove  2
American Coot  160     Rough estimate.
Sandhill Crane  23     Several small groups flying. One on the main impoundment was SWIMMING for quite a distance.
Pied-billed Grebe  15     Counted the ones on the impoundment north of the artesian dike, but may have missed some.
Green Heron  1     Posing for all to see in the scopes.
Great Blue Heron  1     Flying.
American White Pelican  3     Group of 3 flying.
Turkey Vulture  3     Flying.
Osprey  2     Both at the nest platform. Seen carrying long pieces of nest material twice.
Cooper's Hawk  1     Flying past.
Red-tailed Hawk  2     Two different ones soaring.
Belted Kingfisher  1     Perched on a dead stub over the water.
Blue Jay  1     Trying to imitate a Red-tail.
American Crow  2
Tree Swallow  35     Or more.
White Breasted Nuthatch     Heard at start of walk.
Ruby-crowned Kinglet  3
American Robin  12
American Goldfinch  1
American Tree Sparrow  1
Song Sparrow  15
Swamp Sparrow  3
Red-winged Blackbird  100     Very rough estimate. One of our party estimated 200 in a flock along the east side of the marsh before we started.
Brown-headed Cowbird  15
Common Grackle  1
Northern Cardinal  2

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S227218398

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)






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