Yellow-crowned Night Heron in Wetlands

A Yellow-crowned Night Heron was seen on the snag in the center of the Wetlands on Friday (5/27/11). To my knowledge this the first heron of this species seen at the Museum. It was probably on migration and was brought down by the severe thunderstorms of the day. A Black-crowned Night Heron in immature plumage was seen in the Wetlands in May of 2008 and was in the area for a couple of days. I would have gotten a photoRead more

Looking Back: Birds

With the closing of the year it’s perhaps time to look back and see what we’ve observed on the Explore the Wild/Catch the Wind Loop. Below, in the appropriate segments, I give totals for some of the species seen since January of last year. There were 101 species of bird observed during 2008 at the Museum including such unlikely species as Double-crested Cormorant, Black-crowned Night-heron, Killdeer, Spotted Sandpiper, Osprey, Bald Eagle (3), and Northern Harrier. All of those species wereRead more

A Night Heron, Birds on the Move

Top Photo: Green heron eyes blue dasher (dragonfly). A Black-crowned Night Heron was seen on two separate days at the beginning of the period. The bird was in immature plumage and had not yet acquired the “black crown” of its common name. It may take 3 years to acquire full adult plumage. Black-crowned Night Herons are active at night and sleep the day away, so it may still be about tucked in out of sight amongst the willows. This isRead more