Wanting to beat the warmth, I landed at Eagle Bluffs Conservation Area soon after dawn; sketchy haze covered the Missouri River floodplain, restricting perceivability for a half hour or somewhere in the vicinity. Regardless of the fog, I could see huge herds of red-winged blackbirds, wheeling over the pools, bunching on the roadways or sinking into the harvest fields; no less than 3000 graced the asylum on this moist summer morning.
Once the solid July sun heated away the mist, the perspectives expanded. While the red-wings commanded the scene (joined by substantial groups of normal grackles and starlings), a better than average assortment of flying creatures was experienced. Vagrant shorebirds (counting lone sandpipers, slightest sandpipers, pectoral sandpipers and semi-palmated plovers) joined the inhabitant killdeer and spotted sandpipers on the growing mudflats. Sought after by a rush of fish crows, an expansive winged sell fled to the riverside woods. Among the numerous avian inhabitants and guests (45 species were watched today), green herons and belted kingfishers were uncommonly basic.
Inside two hours the warmth had escalated, avian action had decreased and I pointed my pickup for the asylum exit. All things considered, I'm no masochist; on the off chance that I hate the climate, I can't appreciate the birding!
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