While counting waterfowl at Cowan Lake this evening, I swept the scope
across a large blocky shape standing on the ice.  I figured at once that it
had to be a Bald Eagle, obviously a sub-adult because it did not have a
white head or tail.  After about two minutes, the bird took flight,
revealing a whitish tail tip with a broad dark terminal band.  However, the
underwing lacked the extensive white patches that would have made it a
Golden Eagle.  Then it disappeared over the horizon.  I figure it was a
first-cycle bird.
As for the waterfowl, the migration has cranked up.  I counted 1009
waterfowl of 16 species.  Nothing special, except that we seem to be having
an extraordinary flight of Common Goldeneye.  I had 10 today, 46 total on
five counts so far this year.  Of the three previous years of systematic
counts, the high count for the entire season was 22 (2008).

There were also about 500 Ring-billed Gulls present, as there have been for
the past week or ten days.

Cheers,

Bob

--
Robert D Powell
Congress Farm Research Institute
Wilmington, OH, USA
[log in to unmask]
http://rdp1710.wordpress.com

Nulla dies sine aves

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