Decided to head south in search of the Yellow-headed Blackbird with my
birthday bud, Mark Shaver. Deerfield Ave and Withrich Rd yielded a monstrous
mass of blackbirds. We arrived in the morning for attempt #1 and after
looking through a few groups that easily totaled 15,000+ we got cold toes
and fingers after 30+ minutes. It was difficult as there was a steady stream
of birds that browsed the field or continued south and the snow made viewing
difficult.
After stops at Funk, Kidron and the gravel pits we decided to give it
another go around noon-thirty. Numbers were astonishing. I would not be
surprised if we looked through nearly 100,000 birds. There were segregated
groups in the afternoon. In the trees up Winrich from Deerfield there was a
large group of Common Grackles numbering 2,500 easily. The blackbird number
was SICK! Mark and I estimated the males outnumbered the females over 500:1.
We also identified a dozen-ish Rusty Blackbirds. Many birds were settled in
the trees on Winrich (although there continued to be a steady  stream of
birds that fed in the fields or simply continues south and it didn't slow in
the hour+ we were there). We even went 3/4 of a mile down the road to see
where the birds were moving to - just a nice stand of trees, but the birds
just used it as a stop on their continued course south. In the end, we did
not locate any Yellow-headed Blackbirds. With numbers that high there has to
be some lost souls, but the task was/will be formidable.
buster

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