March 2020 Volume 87, No. 1

The Missouri Birding Society Missouri’s Ornithological Society Since 1901 The Missouri Birding Society

Officers Regional Directors

Bill Eddleman*+, President (2020); Charles Burwick+ (2020) 608 Teton Lane, Cape Girardeau, MO Springfield (417) 860-9505 63701, (573) 579-7978 Lottie Bushmann+ (2021) [email protected] Columbia (573) 445-3942 Dana Ripper*+, Vice President (2020); 27331 Highway WW, Marshall, MO Jeff Cantrell+ (2020) 65340-0000, (660) 837-3888 Neosho (471) 476-3311 [email protected] Mike Doyen+ (2020) Rolla (573) 364-0020 Phil Wire*+, Secretary (2020) Sherry Leonardo+ (2021) 1245 Boone St., Troy, MO 63379-2471 Grandview (816) 763-1393 (314) 960-0370 [email protected] Brent Galliart+ (2021) St. Joseph (816) 232-6038 Tommy Goodwin*, Treasurer (2020) 321 Blanche Dr., St. Charles, MO Greg Leonard+ (2022) 63303; (417) 241-9189 Columbia (573) 443-8263 [email protected] Terry McNeely+ (2022) Honorary Directors Jameson (660) 828-4215 Richard A. Anderson, St. Louis** Mike Grant+ (2022) Nathan Fay, Ozark** Chesterfield (314) 779-8032 Leo Galloway, St. Joseph** Jim Jackson, Marthasville** Chairs Lisle Jeffrey, Columbia** Floyd Lawhon, St. Joseph** Bill Clark, Historian Patrick Mahnkey, Forsyth** 3906 Grace Ellen Dr. Rebecca Matthews, Springfield** Columbia, MO 65202 Sydney Wade, Jefferson City** (573) 474-4510

Dave Witten, Columbia**

John Wylie, Jefferson City** Kevin Wehner, Membership

Brad Jacobs, 2016 Recipient of the 510 Ridgeway Ave. Rudolf Bennitt Award Columbia, MO 65203 (573) 815-0352 Jim Jackson**, 2012 Recipient of the [email protected] Rudolf Bennitt Award

Dr. David Easterla, 2006 Recipient of the Rudolf Bennitt Award + Board Position * Executive Committee Member Paul E. Bauer**, 2004 Recipient of **Deceased the Rudolf Bennitt Award

Page i THE BLUEBIRD The Bluebird

The Bluebird Editor: Allen Gathman*+, PO Box 1, Pocahontas, MO 63779, (573) 579-5464, [email protected] Christmas Bird Count Compiler: Randy Korotev, 800 Oakbrook Lane, St. Louis, MO 63132, (314) 884-2189, [email protected] Communication Services: Kevin Wehner+, Webmaster, http://mobirds.org, Susan Hazelwood and David Scheu, Co-owners Listserve, [email protected],edu MBS Scholarship Committee: Sue Gustafson, Chair, 429 Belleview Ave., Webster Groves, MO 63119 (314) 882-8006, [email protected] MO Bird Records Committee: Paul McKenzie+—Chair, 2311 Grandview Circle, Columbia, MO 65203-7240, (573) 445-3019, [email protected] Bill Rowe—Secretary, 7414 Kenrick Valley Drive, St Louis, MO 63119- 5726 (314) 962-0544, [email protected] Seasonal Survey Editors: Spring: Lisa Berger, 1947 South Kings Avenue, Springfield, MO 65807- 2733, (417) 860-9108, [email protected] Summer: Allen Gathman, PO Box 1, Pocahontas, MO 63779, (573) 579- 5464; [email protected] Fall: Mary Nemecek, 7807 N. Merimac Ct, Kansas City MO 64151, (816) 210-5148; [email protected] Winter: Pete Monacell, 2324 West Main Street, Jefferson City MO 65109, (573) 289-8116; [email protected]

* Executive Committee Member + Board Position

Deadlines for submission of material for publication in The Bluebird Manuscripts for The Bluebird—to the editor by: Feb. 1 for March issue; May 1 for June issue; Aug. 1 for Sept. issue; Nov. 1 for Dec. issue Deadlines for submissions to the Seasonal Survey Editors Winter (Dec. 1-Feb. 28)—to Pete Monacell by Mar. 10 Spring (Mar. 1-May 31)—to Lisa Berger by June 10 Summer (June 1-July. 31)—to Allen Gathman by Aug 10 Fall (Aug. 1-Nov. 30)—to Mary Nemecek by Dec. 10

Page ii THE BLUEBIRD Table of Contents

March 2020 Volume 87, No. 1

1 President’s Corner — Bill Eddleman 3 Spring Meeting May 1-3 Cape Girardeau, MO 4 We Welcome Our New MBS Members—Kevin Wehner 5 Policies and Procedures for Non-Renewed Members 6 In Memoriam Jim Jackson — Don Hays 9 The Legislative Action Center — Michelle Gabelsberger 10 The Flood of 2019: Havoc on Agriculture Provides Unique Irruption of Migratory Birds — Tim Kavan 13 Reintroduction of Brown-headed Nuthatch in Missouri —Sarah Kendrick 15 An Unexpected Visitor: Anna’s Hummingbird, November 2019 —Jean Leonatti 21 Bird Safe Kansas City 2019 Report — Dana Ripper 27 Missouri Green Big Year: An Invitation — Andy Reago 29 Thirty-second Annual Report of the Missouri Bird Records Committee — William C. Rowe 43 Summer Seasonal Report June 1—July 31, 2019 —Allen Gathman

Front Cover— American Flamingo, CR 733 New Madrid, 20 Jul 2019. Photo Tim Kavan

Yellow-rumped Warbler, Jackson Cape Girardeau

20 Jan 2020. Photo Mark Haas

THE BLUEBIRD is published quarterly by The Missouri Birding Society. The submission of articles, photographs, and artwork is welcomed and encouraged. The views and opinions expressed in this journal are those of each contributing writer and do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of The Missouri Birding Society or its officers, Board of Directors, or editors. Send address corrections to MBS, 2101 W. Broadway, PMB 122, Columbia, MO 65203-1261.

Page iii THE BLUEBIRD President’s Corner—Bill Eddleman

First of all, I was remiss last time in not pointing out that we have a new Vice-President and President-Elect. Dana Ripper has graciously agreed to take on that role, and the membership confirmed her election at the Fall Meeting. Second, Pat Lueders has served us very well for quite some time as Treasur- er. She has expressed a desire to step down from that role. Tommy Goodwin stepped forward to succeed her, and the official changeover occurred in January. Thanks Dana and Tommy! As I stated before, we received a generous bequest from Christy Lundy. The Board had asked for ideas for using the money in Sep- tember, and members also agreed they would seek such input over the next year. However, the opportunity to support the Motus Wild- life Tracking Network came up in November. The Board voted $9000 to that effort (just over a quarter of the total amount). We will get a chance to hear more about the Motus Network at the Spring Meet- ing, but many of us are delighted that we have contributed. Even with the existing towers, a few migrating birds have been detected crossing Missouri last fall, so the full network should give ornithologists a great deal of data on movements of our birds during migration. It has struck me this winter that we seem to have more unusual bird records than normal, almost all of which are of species wintering farther north than we expect. Species that as recently as 20 years ago were considered accidental or casual in winter in south- ernmost Missouri (such as House Wren, Orange-crowned Warbler, and Palm Warbler) are now appearing in winter in central Missouri, and are considered expected in small numbers in the south. Others that have fewer than 10 winter records are popping up this year. All of this is consistent with a warming climate. Detection of these birds also points out the valuable service birders provide for documenting

Page 1 THE BLUEBIRD bird distributional changes. Keep it up! I have seen a number of studies reported in the news recently that suggest children are spending less and less time outdoors. Much of the slack is spent in “screen time,” unfortunately. True, most of us spend a lot of time on computers, but nowhere near as much as some youngsters. If kids spend less time outside, it can have a lot of rami- fications for conservation. They will value the outdoors less. They will not understand the need for conservation programs that will require their political support. At its worst, they won’t even understand that human life is inexorably linked to healthy natural habitats. MBS supports the Missouri Young Birders’ club as a small way of counteracting this. It is up to all the rest of us to get those children we know and love outside. Take your children or grandchildren outside, whether it is birding or other activities. Aldo Leopold said it best, whether children or adults. He may have put it in terms of owning a farm, but knowledge of the outdoors is really what is behind it:

“There are two spiritual dangers in not owning a farm. One is the danger of supposing that breakfast comes from the grocery, and the other that heat comes from the furnace.”

----Aldo Leopold, “Good Oak,” A Sand County Almanac.

Good Birding!

----Bill Eddleman

Page 2 THE BLUEBIRD Spring Meeting May 1-3

Cape Girardeau, MO

The Spring Meeting of the Missouri Birding Society is shaping up to be a super weekend. This year’s event will be in Cape Girardeau, which is always a great part of the state to bird in spring. The weekend starts with a presentation by Margy Terpstra, “Why Our Yards Are So Important to the Full Life-cycle Conservation of Our Native Birds.” Mary of you will recognize Margy from her postings to Mo- BIRDS during migration, and the gorgeous photos of birds she takes in her Shady Oaks Yard. Check-in and the presentation will be on Friday at the Missouri Conservation Nature Center in the County Park North in Cape Girardeau, beginning at 3 with the presentation at 7 p.m.

We have reserved a block of rooms at the Drury Plaza Hotel and Conference Center. However, there are numerous other hotels in Cape Girardeau, and campsites are available at Trail of Tears State Park 8 miles north of Cape.

Field trips to a wide variety of local sites will occur Friday afternoon, Saturday, and Sunday morning. Most notable in the area are a variety of wetland habitats, including cypress swamp, bottomland hardwood forest, and emergent wetland, although you can also visit mature forests, open habitats, sand prairie, and river hills. Most trips will leave from the Drury Plaza, or meet at the sites. Details for trips will be available at the MBS website: mobirds.org.

The Saturday evening banquet and program will be at the Drury Plaza. We are fortunate to have as our speaker Sarah Kendrick, Missouri’s State Ornithologist. She will discuss the project we recently donated to help support, Missouri’s Wildlife Tracking Motus Towers. Learn about the goals of this tracking network and how it will make a major contribution to a knowledge of migratory bird biology and conservation.

This meeting should be an outstanding one. Hope to see you there!

Page 3 THE BLUEBIRD WE WELCOME OUR NEW MBS MEMBERS!

Kevin Wehner

Remember, new members are our future. If a new member lives near you, say, “Howdy and welcome to MBS.” In addition, recruit another new member. Welcome to these 16 new MBS members in the 1st quarter of 2020!

Steve & Terry Coyle Weldon Spring, MO Doug Hommert Kirkwood, MO Ricky Hostetler El Dorado Springs, MO Sara Collazo & Craig Kunde Augusta, MO Lisa & Britt McClendon Sikeston, MO Jay McEntee & Family Springfield, MO Lisa Mobley Rogersville, MO Dennis & Suzanne Rush Farley, MO Mimi Ryan St. Louis, MO Erik Ost El Dorado Springs, MO Michael Stein Bridgeton, MO Debbie Wortman Nevada, MO

Page 4 THE BLUEBIRD MISSOURI BIRDING SOCIETY

POLICIES AND PROCEDURES FOR NON-RENEWED MEMBERS

The by-laws specify that notices of delinquency shall be sent within sixty (60) days after the start of the membership year (that is, on or before March 1). Everyone delinquent in membership renewal, i.e., hasn’t paid dues for this membership year, will have received two delinquency notices by now.

You can help by reminding fellow MBS members to send in their dues. Those who have not paid their dues will be removed from membership the first week of April.

To renew online, go to MBS’s website, www.mobirds.org/ASM/ Membership.aspx or use the membership renewal form on the back cover of any recent Bluebird.

Your membership is important. Membership dues support MBS’s mission of conservation and education, and the services to enhance your birding experience in Missouri.

If you have any questions or problems with the renewal process, please feel free to contact me.

Sincerely,

Kevin Wehner Membership Chair The Missouri Birding Society 2101 W. Broadway, PMB 122 Columbia, MO 65203-1261 [email protected] (573) 815 -0352

Page 5 THE BLUEBIRD IN MEMORIAM

JIM JACKSON Don Hays

James (Jim) Pierre Jackson, aged 94, passed away on Decem- ber 28, 2019, in Washington, MO. A memorial service will be held on Saturday, January 18th, at 11 A.M. at the Presbyterian Church, Washington, Missouri.

Jim served as conservation editor of the Bluebird for many years. He received the MBS’s Rudolf Bennitt Award in 2012. Jim married Charlene Duncan on August 8, 1957 in Washing- ton, MO, and is survived by his wife, son Keith and his wife Narcisa of Naples, FL, son Glenn and his wife Evelyn of Wichita, KS, and their two grandsons, Nicolas Jackson and Aaron Jackson of Kansas City. He was preceded in death by his sisters, Helen Lipton of Viejo, CA, and Nina Nicholson of Grand Junction, CO.

Jim was born in Paris, France, on December 10, 1925, to American father Kenneth Morgan Jackson and French mother Germaine Mad- eleine Jackson (nee Henry-Lepaute). His parents met while his father was in the US Army in France during WWI. Ten days after Jim’s birth his mother died suddenly, leaving him in the care of his French grandparents in Paris, France. He loved spending time at his grandparent’s country home on the Oise River where he could swim and play outside in the woods behind their house. When he was 8 years old, Jim’s father brought him back to live in St. Louis with his two older sisters.

Jim had a passion for nature and the outdoors and for sharing these with other people. Jim spent many summers at the YMCA summer camp on the Meramec River fostering his lifelong interest in the out-

Page 6 THE BLUEBIRD doors. As a teenager in St. Louis he started bird watching and joined the Webster Groves Nature Study Society. He was very knowledge- able about Missouri birds and could identify them by sight, sound, and observing their flight patterns. On birding trips he could call birds in by imitating their songs.

He kept collections of butterflies and of leaves from Missouri trees, and took many natural history photographs. After graduating from Maplewood High School in 1944 he served in the US Navy during World War II. He attended the University of Missouri, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in biology and wildlife management, and a master’s in education in 1957. Later he served on the U. of MO. Ad- visory Council to the School of Forestry Fisheries and Wildlife. For ten years he worked as an educational consultant for the Missouri Department of Conservation. In this role he visited rural schools in the Ozarks to teach kids about conservation, and in the summer went to county fairs with a truck pulling an exhibit trailer to promote good conservation practices.

Jim settled in Washington, MO and began a long career as a biology teacher. While at Washington Public High school he and several other teachers collaborated to lead a school-sponsored extracurricular club called Students Afield Today (SAT) in which they took students on trips to study natural history and geography. They led students on trips to Wyoming, the Grand Canyon, and Big Bend National Park, in addition to numerous canoeing, camping, hiking, and cave exploration outings in Missouri. His family was fortunate to have him take them on trips around the country to parks and forests and share his enthusiasm for the natural world. He especially loved traveling to the western United States.

Jim wrote five books and numerous magazine articles in publica- tions such as Missouri Conservationist, American Forests, American West, National Parks, National Wildlife, and Backpacker. At the end of his life he was working on another book about a forester who gets old and has to move into a senior citizen care facility.

After retiring from Washington High School, he stayed very active and was involved in many charitable and educational endeavors. He was active with the Optimist Club and Future Farmers of America (FFA) selling Christmas trees to raise funds for the FFA. He was involved with the Washington Historical Society for over 20 years, played Daniel Boone as a historical re-enactor, and assisted in main- taining Daniel Boone’s grave site near Marthasville. He volunteered

Page 7 THE BLUEBIRD at Shaw Nature Reserve in Gray Summit serving as a natural history guide, participating in Pioneer Days, and assisting with various projects.

Jim and his wife Charlene took numerous trips through the Elder- hostel Program, now called Road Scholar, and he served as a seasonal instructor from 1992-2015. Also, Jim competed in Senior Olympic swimming events throughout the St Louis area YMCAs, with many medals to show for his efforts. In 2016 he was honored with the Community Contributor Award by the School District of Washington WINGS Educational Foundation.

Donations can be made in lieu of flowers to the Washington Historical Society or the Presbyterian Church of Washington.

White-rumped Sandpiper Buchanan 27 May 2019. Photo Tom Nagel

Page 8 THE BLUEBIRD The Legislative Action Center

and Your Conservation Voice Michelle Gabelsberger Conservation Federation of Missouri

In 1935, sportsmen from throughout Missouri came together to form the Conservation Federation of Missouri (CFM). They organized with the purpose of taking conservation out of politics. Their initiative petition campaign resulted in the creation of the Missouri De- partment of Conservation, a non-political conservation agency that has been a model for other states. Since then, the Federation has undertaken many successful battles to ensure Missouri continues to be the leading state in conservation policies and funding. In 1976, CFM spearheaded successful passage of the conservation sales tax to create stable broad-based funding for Missouri’s forests, fauna and fish. Today CFM is the largest and most representative conservation group in Missouri. It is a citizen’s organization with over 100 affili- ate organizations and thousands of members. To bolster our collective voice regarding advocacy and legislative issues in the Capitol for the 2020 session, The Conservation Federa- tion of Missouri has a new online legislative action center. It’s a tool to keep us informed and communicate more effectively directly with your elected officials on issues that are important to us all. We all want our powerful voices to be heard so that we may have a lasting impact for generations to come. In order to upload your information to the system, all they need is your name, address and email address. You can submit your information by going to www.confedmo.org/lac and click on the “Sign Up.” Your information will not be shared with any outside parties, and it’s only used to communicate with you on legislative issues. Thanks for your consideration and making our collective voices be heard loud and clear.

Page 9 THE BLUEBIRD The Flood of 2019: Havoc on Agriculture Provides Unique Irruption of Migratory Birds Tim Kavan

Farms across southeast Missouri, other parts of the state, and much of the country have experienced years of significant flooding. However, the flooding of 2019 was unprecedented. The 2019 flood lasted well into the summer months, with the Mississippi above flood stage at the Caruthersville gauge a record 151 days ending July 11. Backwater filled fields that would typically have been covered with rice, corn and soybeans. In response to flooding in Mis- souri and across the country this year, USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) announced the availability of $9 million to fund conservation easements in 69 Missouri counties dam- aged by flooding and other natural disasters. This disaster, however, was not unmitigated doom and gloom. Wild- life, in the form of migratory birds, made this area their temporary home while they could, whether for an overnight stop during their journey to their nesting headquarters or for the entire summer. The land within the River Bends Priority Geography (Black Island in Pemiscot County, and portions of the Bird’s Point-New Madrid Spill- way and St. Johns Basin in New Madrid and Mississippi counties) was filled with a unique irruption of birds. Species normally common in summer, such as American Bitterns, Great Egrets, Great Blue and Little Blue Herons, Mallards, Canada Geese, and Black-necked Stilts were unusually abundant. Normally uncommon species including American Golden-Plover; Least, Black, and Caspian Terns; and Long- and Short-billed Dowitchers were relatively common this year. Fulvous and Black-bellied Whistling- Ducks, Blue-winged Teal, and Marbled Godwits, all listed by the Missouri Bird Records Committee as rare in summer in the area, were reported, and even Green-winged Teal, casual in summer, were found in the backwaters or islands of habitat in the flooded area. However, one bird trumped them all by far. On Friday, July 19, I received a text from Andrew Heckemeyer, whom I know through my job as a Private Land Conservationist

Page 10 THE BLUEBIRD with the Missouri Department of Conservation. He said that Matt LaValle had spotted an American Flamingo in New Madrid County in Section 14 of the Bird’s Point-New Madrid Floodway. I have worked with Matt on occasion through his involvement with the Natural Resource Conservation Service Wetland Reserve Easement program, so I knew the location well. I woke up at 5 a.m. on July 20 and headed to the area. I arrived around 5:50 a.m., and once I passed a fence row I immediately saw the bird feeding in a very shallow brackish water field. The sun was rising in the background, so I thought I had better get on the other side of the bird if I wanted any chance of catching a decent image of it. Still, I was nervous to drive past it and take the risk of flushing it without catching an image. I proceeded cautiously to the next field entrance and turned around to park my vehicle at a reasonable distance. I turned off my truck and rolled down my window to place my scope on it. I easily found the bird, but then EVERYTHING fogged up; my iPhone, binoculars, scope and even my windows were all useless. I’d been running the AC in my truck, and the humidity and temperature that day were awful. I waited (impatiently, I might add) as I wiped and wiped the lenses to get what clarity I possibly could. Finally, after what felt like 30 minutes (probably only 5), I was able to capture several decent images of one of the first ever documented American Flamingos in Missouri. The long legged, vibrant pink and white bird with its pink and black decurved bill was only 100 yards from the county road, feeding in very shallow mud puddles as eager-

Fulvous Whistling-Ducks, Whipple Park Mississippi 14 May 2019. Photo Mark Haas

Page 11 THE BLUEBIRD ly as it could go. After I felt comfortable with at least one good photo, I immediately switched gears to social media to inform the birders around the area that in fact the American Flamingo was in Missouri. I quickly began getting texts, Facebook, and email messages asking its location and how to get there, along with several congratu- lations. I observed the bird for rough- ly 90 minutes, watching as the flamingo eagerly fed in remaining evidence of the prolonged flood event. Then, suddenly it and all the other American Flamingo, CR 733 New Madrid, shorebirds abruptly vacated 20 Jul 2019. Photo Tim Kavan the area as if the 5 o’clock whistle went off at the local factory. I saw the black primaries in flight, but didn't capture any flight photos as I was more interested in what caused the rapid departure of all the birds in the area. I watched the bird sail way off to the south until it was out of my sight. I left the scene in case the flamingo wanted to return to the same spot, and provide anyone else a chance to observe it as well, and they came! I spent the rest of the day relaying information for more than twen- ty people who were eager to get a decent look at the bird. It was later relocated by Allen Gathman and confirmed by Timothy Barksdale just south of Hubbard Lake in New Madrid County. People flocked to the area from as far as Jefferson City to observe the American Flamingo. The bird didn’t cooperate as well as it had for me for pho- to taking purposes, but nonetheless the folks who came on Saturday still got the opportunity to check it off of their life lists or Missouri lists. It was an exciting weekend for birders and it was really exciting for me to share that information with so many others interested in birds. Go Birds!

Page 12 THE BLUEBIRD Reintroduction of

Brown-headed Nuthatch in Missouri

Sarah Kendrick

I am excited to announce/confirm that the Department, U.S. Forest Service, Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, and the University of Missouri are partnering to reintroduce Brown-headed Nuthatches to Missouri in August 2020 and August 2021!

Brown-headed Nuthatches are pine-woodland obligates that were extirpated from the state around the 1940s; they are common across their current range. With the removal of extensive shortleaf pine woodlands across Missouri’s Ozarks in the late 1800s/early 1900s, the species disappeared from the state. Now, after extensive restoration of pine woodlands in Mark Twain National For- est, the necessary habitat ex- Brown-headed Nuthatch, Hal Scott ists to bring the birds back. Regional Preserve, FL. 15 Feb 2002. These birds are resident (non- Photo Andy Reago and Chrissy McClarren migratory), fairly sedentary, and weak fliers, so their dispersal north without connecting shortleaf pine habitat is highly unlikely. Also, Forest Service staff and Mizzou’s School of Natural Resources have shown that climate change will further favor pine woodlands in the Missouri Ozarks and even farther north.

The Department, Forest Service, and Mizzou will reintroduce about 100 birds total from Ouachita National Forest in Arkansas to sites in Mark Twain National Forest that have been managed with tree thinning and prescribed fire for up to 20 years. This effort has been two years in the making, communicating with state and federal partners in Arkansas and Missouri, and the Central Hardwoods Joint Venture, but the idea of Brown-headed Nuthatch reintroduction has been discussed for a decade. The excitement of federal and

Page 13 THE BLUEBIRD state partners in Arkansas and Missouri and their willingness to listen to our ideas and offer assistance wherever needed through this process has been so appreciated, and we would not be moving forward without it.

Nuthatch reintroduction is an option because of shortleaf pine woodland restoration – an ecosystem that was almost removed by human hands in Missouri. This reintroduction is a relatively low-risk, low- cost step toward part of this ecosystem’s recovery and one way that we can continue working to repair a heavily impacted landscape.

We’re going to bring the squeak back to Missouri! (Seriously, they sound like rubber duckies: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/ Brown-headed_Nuthatch/overview.)

Brown-headed Nuthatch, Georgia, 1 Nov 2013. Photo Anne Davis

Page 14 THE BLUEBIRD An Unexpected Visitor:

Anna’s Hummingbird, November 2019 Jean Leonatti

Monday, November 11, 2019 It was mid-November and an early season snowstorm was in full swing. By 9 AM, the ground was covered, and strong winds were whipping the snow around. Bird feeders were very active, and I was enjoying the scene outside my patio door window with a cup of hot tea in my hand. All the normal suspects were there – juncos, gold- finches, chickadees, cardinals fighting the snow for a morsel of nour- ishment. Oh, dear, what was that? Did I just see a hummingbird circle my suet feeder and dash away? It just couldn’t be. I raced into the garage and grabbed a hummingbird feeder that had been stashed away for the winter. Quickly made up a batch of sugar water. Filled the feeder. Grabbed my boots and headed outside. Took down the suet feeder, replaced it with the hummingbird feeder. Ran back inside. Then I sat and watched. And watched. And watched. For about 45 minutes nothing happened. No hummingbird. The drinking holes filled up with snow, and the liquid turned to slush. I trudged back outside, took the feeder down, and replaced it with the suet feeder. I brought the hummer feeder in so it could thaw out, sat back down at my viewing chair, and unbelievably, the hummer circled the suet feeder again. Dang! I grabbed the feeder, brushed the snow off, and ran back outside. Slowly swinging the feeder around like an old-fashioned lantern-keeper showing the path, I was hoping against hope that wherever the bird was roosting he might catch sight of the red plastic. I put the feeder up, took several steps back, and BANG! the hummer found the feeder and began sipping. What a thrill! Snow falling, wind blowing, temperatures dropping, mid-November, and I had a hummer in my Columbia, MO backyard. Running back into the house, I decided I had to get a little smarter about this. The sugar water was freezing up too quickly. I made up a bigger batch of sugar water and got my second feeder out of the garage. This began a process of rotating the feeders every 45 minutes -- taking one out and bringing the other one in to thaw. The hummer continued to come back to the feeder. He looked pretty lethargic, drinking slowly and resting between drinks, beak pointed

Page 15 THE BLUEBIRD upward, feathers in disarray, wet and puffed up. Now that I had the feeder rotation worked out, it was time to concentrate on identification. Lighting was so poor in the swirling snow that it was mono- chromatic, like seeing a black and white photo. I could tell it was not rufous, but other than that I couldn’t see much. The beak looked smaller and thinner than a ruby-throated, but who knows, maybe I was overlooking something. It was probably a male, as I thought I could see the beginnings of a chin gorget, but could not make out any color. Time to call in help. I called Paul McKenzie and told him I was watching a hummer at my house; probably a Ruby-throated, but I didn’t know for sure. Through my scope using my phone, I took a couple of grainy photos with the snow blurring most details and texted those photos to Paul and Brad Jacobs. Paul said he would get here as soon as he could – mind you, it was still snowing, with ice underneath that. I sent an alert out on MoBirds that I had an out-of-season hummer. Paul and I watched the bird most of the afternoon as it made period- ic forays to the feeder. Paul, with a much better camera than my phone, took numerous photos. On one of my trips to switch out the feeders, I could see the bird perching in the nearby lilac bush. Paul, who did not come equipped to stand outside, nonetheless ventured out into the snow to get additional photos of the perching bird. About 4 PM, I made a run to a local hardware store to buy a heating system. Paul went home to enlarge his photos to see more detail. At this point he thought it might be an aberrant immature ruby- throated. I made it to the hardware store and rushed up to the clerk, saying “I need help, and you are not going to believe my story.” Lucky for me, a customer overheard me, and he turned out to be a Anna’s Hummingbird, Columbia Boone 1 Dec 2019. Photo Paul McKenzie retired wildlife biologist. The

Page 16 THE BLUEBIRD customer says “I know exactly what you need … follow me.” He pointed out a large heat deflector with a bulb socket and a clamp and told me I needed to get a 100 watt incandescent light bulb, not an LED – the LED would not generate enough heat. Of course, this store didn’t sell incandescent bulbs any more. I drove to the grocery store to get the light bulbs and pick up some more sugar. At home, I grabbed an extension cord, electric tape, and every woman’s favorite repair tool – duct tape. I raced back outside in the snow to rig up the light, setting it about a foot away from the feeder as advised by Lanny Chambers. I taped it solidly in place. Before I could even back away, the hummer flew right under my up- stretched arms to get to the feeder. Such a relief to see that the light didn’t affect his use of the feeder -- in fact, he was choosing the feeder perches closest to the light, exposing his rump and back to the warmth. Kind of like me when I’m cold and back up to the fire- place. I headed back inside, and my cell phone rang. It was Paul. “Jean, I’ve reviewed the photos in detail. I think you have an immature male Anna’s Hummingbird. I’m going to do more research and check with a few others, but you’d better get ready.” Holy cow. I knew what that meant: I was going to have lots of visitors. I’d been to rare bird stake-outs at private homes - I knew what to expect. I had to immediately decide viewing rules and post those on MoBirds. Notify neighbors so they wouldn’t be alarmed by the increased activity and people staring at their property through binoculars. Clear out a viewing area and set up chairs. Cover carpet to protect from foot traffic. Shovel snow from driveway and sidewalk. Salt the driveway to improve traction. Remove outside window screens so photographers would have a clear view. Get a notebook to record sightings. The cell phone started ringing and the emails started pinging, all while I was trying to get ready. Oh, and don’t forget to keep an eye on the bird. My next task was to set up a schedule of trusted friends who could be at the house when I would not be there so more visitors could see the hummer – many thanks to all of them. By then it was late at night and the outside temperature was in single digits. The feeder was freezing despite the heating system, and I finally pulled the feeder inside. This meant I would have to be up at least an hour before dawn to get the feeder outside so the bird would have immediate access if and when it woke up from torpor.

Later that evening, Paul called again to tell me that the bird was

Page 17 THE BLUEBIRD definitely an Anna’s. He mentioned that the dark gray and greenish sides are good field marks for Anna’s, but it was imperative to see if any feathers on the face behind the eye and/or on the crown reflect any color. Paul noted that some immature male Ruby-throated or Black-chinned Hummingbirds can show a lot of grayish green along the sides and flanks. Anna’s in all plumages generally show more grayish green along the sides, but that can be hard to judge in poor light. When Paul went outside to get better photos he had noticed somewhat darker feathers on the side of the face behind the eye and on the crown of my bird. He was not sure if these feathers were wet from the snow or would reflect color in better light, so he took an extensive series of photographs. The gorgets on Anna’s, Ruby- throated, and Black-chinned Hummingbirds usually reflect different colors: Ruby-red on Ruby-throated, purple (at bottom of gorget) on Black-chinned, and rose-red on Anna’s. Depending on the light, feathers on Anna’s that reflect light may appear ruby-red, rose-red, strawberry red or magenta. When Paul reviewed his photos he noticed that one of the feathers on the side of the face and two on the crown reflected rose-pink. That clinched the ID; the bird was an immature male Anna’s. Paul discussed how the call notes of Anna’s are much different from those of other hummers, and you can often hear a very high pitched, Anna’s Hummingbird Columbia Boone scratchy song from individu- 13 Nov 2019. Photo Paul McKenzie als on their wintering grounds. Unfortunately, the bird at my house was silent.

Tuesday, November 12, 2019 6:15 AM -- four birding friends arrived to see if hummer would re- appear. Waiting. Waiting. Waiting. THERE IT IS! 6:30 AM – it put its back to the heat lamp and took a long drink. Mentally I had prepared myself that it would be nearly impossible for the hummer to live through the frigid night. I was thrilled to the point of tears to know it had survived this first big hurdle. He didn’t re-appear until 7 AM. Paul returned to take more photographs for further documentation. For the remainder of the day the hummer came in every 5 –

Page 18 THE BLUEBIRD 10 minutes for a drink. By afternoon he was getting stronger and started making small forays around the yard, checking out the birds at the seed and suet feeders. He made his last stop of the day at the feeder at 4:38 PM.

Wednesday, November 13, 2019 The temperature “only” got down to 18 degrees – the lamp was able to keep the sugar water from freezing. I was ready at 5:30 AM to rotate out the feeder with warmer liquid. Hummer came in at 6:26 AM. This day he spent longer times away from the feeder, averag- ing 10 – 30 minutes between appearances. He was more energetic, hover feeding more often than perching; exploring the yard and checking out the seed feeders. He even had a few squabbles with a junco and goldfinch. At 7:30 AM, he approached the sliding door window, hovered and looked in at us. I thought maybe that was my “thank you”. About 10:30 AM, he spent several minutes approach- ing the unscreened windows, lightly touching them with his tongue and tapping them with his beak, moving back and forth between the three windows. He looked at the screened windows but made no attempt to touch them. He eventually began tapping much harder and we realized he was “attacking” his reflection. Before he could injure himself, I went outside and replaced all the outside screens. This stopped the aggressive behavior. I vowed screens would stay up from now on. There were no visitors in the late afternoon. I was able to spend some quiet time observing the hummer. I thought to myself “when you leave, little guy, my wish is you will not leave during the night. I hope you first come in for a morning drink so I know you survived the night. Then you can go.” He came in for his last drink of the day at 4:30 PM.

Thursday, November 14, 2019 A much warmer night, a low of 30 degrees. I switched out the feeder at 6 AM. At 7:41 I saw the hummer fly into the maple tree and perch for a second. Then he moved to the lilac bush perch and finally to the feeder. He took a brief drink and flew off. He was not seen the rest of the day nor seen at all on Friday. A total of 24 people saw the bird. Probably a thousand photos were taken. I’ll never know why the hummer chose my yard or how it found its way to Missouri. I’ll never know why I looked up at the

Page 19 THE BLUEBIRD precise moment it flew by. I’ll never know if the hummer made it safely to a warmer climate. I do know it was a thrill to host the bird. Thank you, little guy, for granting my wish.

Postscript: Through a MoBirds posting I later learned the Anna’s had re-located just one block south of my home. That homeowner set up two feeders with heating systems. The hummer stayed at that home until December 11, 2019, when he was last seen sipping at the feeder at 7:45a. Paul subsequently submitted documentation with photographs to the Missouri Birds Records Committee (MBRC) as this was only the second Columbia, Missouri record. The record was accepted by a unanimous 7-0 vote.

Acknowledgments: I thank Paul McKenzie for taking the time to identify the bird, document with photographs, submit the record to the MBRC for review, and review the document.

Anna’s Hummingbird Columbia Boone 13 Nov 2019. Photo Paul McKenzie

Page 20 THE BLUEBIRD Bird Safe Kansas City 2019 Report

Dana Ripper

It has long been known that the glass of both residential and commercial buildings poses a significant risk to birds, particularly migrants (e.g., Banks 1976, Ogden 1996). Transparent glass causes birds to attempt to fly “through” to the other side, while reflective glass can provide a disorienting view of vegetation that, to a bird, looks like a real object they desire to reach for foraging or shelter. As a taxonomic group, birds had literally millions of years of exist- ence prior to the proliferation of glass across the planet – and our most densely populated cities are often right in the middle of migratory pathways. The proximity of birds to potential window-strike zones is compounded by the fact that many species migrate at night. The illuminated glow of urban and suburban areas can disorient migrants, particularly on nights with a low cloud ceiling, causing them to descend into developed areas (Parkins et al. 2016).

While avian collisions with windows have been studied intermittently across the US and Canada, studies were typically small-scale and results were not widely published. However, over the past few years, researchers have been able to extrapolate the results of hundreds of such studies to estimate the nationwide rates of avian mortality from collisions with Yellow-bellied Sapsucker windows (Loss et al. 2014). Estimates range from 365 to 988 million bird mortalities each year in the US. This is in addition to large numbers of mortalities caused by birds colliding with vehicles, communications towers and energy infrastructure, which are significant but not as numerous as window collisions (Loss et al. 2015).

Recent data, extensively publicized by many media outlets in 2019, indicate that North America has lost almost 30% of its birds in the past 50 years (Rosenberg et al. 2019). While there are many causes of this significant decline, one of the most straightforward ways to contribute to bird conservation is to implement minor collision-

Page 21 THE BLUEBIRD reducing structural changes to windows on commercial and residential buildings.

Based on an extensive examination of avian migratory and survey data along with the relative illumination levels of urban areas and their geographic locations in migratory pathways, it was recently determined that Kansas City ranks 7th in the top 10 most dangerous cities in the country for migrating birds in terms of window collisions (Horton et al. 2019). This information, along with a variety of anecdotal reports from Kansas City residents regarding bird strikes, inspired the Missouri River Bird Observatory and Burroughs Audu- bon Society to launch the BirdSafeKC initiative in early 2019. The survey arm of BirdSafeKC, wherein local volunteers survey for bird carcasses resulting from building collisions, is referred to as BirdStrikesKC and provides the basis for this report. Site Selection For the preliminary season of spring 2019, volunteer surveyors chose buildings to survey. Buildings were selected based on two factors: 1) numerous anecdotal reports of bird carcasses being spotted outside the building and 2) building and landscaping factors that are known to result in window strikes. These factors include window area, transparency and/or reflectivity and proximity and height of surrounding vegetation (Klem Jr. et al. 2009; Hager et al. 2013).

In the fall, sites were selected in a similar fashion. We also established survey routes in situations where survey sites were clustered. Permission to survey individual buildings was requested from management staff and/or surveyors walked only on public sidewalks. Volunteer effort and the number of sites surveyed increased significantly during the fall season relative to spring.

Survey methods Spring and fall migration were selected as the survey seasons due to the significantly higher number of window strikes that occur during these timeframes. Surveys were conducted from 1 April to 31 May and from 1 September to 15 November. Since the pilot year of this project was focused on documenting birds that had struck windows during their typical morning activities (as opposed to the cata- strophic but infrequent collision events that occur when a flock of migrants strikes a building during the night; see https:// www.houstonchronicle.com/neighborhood/bayarea/news/article/ Houston -news-11125529.php, for example), surveys occurred during the mid-morning to early-afternoon hours.

Page 22 THE BLUEBIRD

BirdStrikesKC surveys followed methodology established by John- son County Community College (K. Anton 2018, unpub.), Hager and Cosentino (2014) and the American Bird Conservancy (B. Lenz 2019, pers. comm). Surveyors walked the perimeter of buildings or walked area routes and scanned within 30 feet of buildings for bird carcasses. Once a carcass was located, the surveyor used the application iNaturalist to photograph the bird and take a context photo showing a wide-angle view of the bird and the side of the building. The context photo allowed us to identify the window with which the bird collided. Daily survey data were also entered into an Excel spread- sheet to indicate whether any carcasses were found at a building or on a route, and if so, the number, species and location.

Birds pictured were all window-strike mortalities from the morning of October 20, 2019 on the downtown KC route.

Data were compiled by building to display the number of strikes, the species affected and the average number of strikes per survey day. Because there are a number of factors that affect whether or not a carcass remains in place – such as removal by maintenance or street -sweeping crews or scavenging by other wildlife species – our estimates of the number of bird strikes are extremely conservative. Results

In spring 2019, volunteers conducted a total of 122 surveys of 12 buildings and associated structures such as pedestrian skybridges.

Page 23 THE BLUEBIRD During April and May, 51 bird carcasses were documented repre- senting 19 species, plus specimens that were unidentifiable due to carcass condition.

Fall 2019 surveys included several of the same buildings, plus the establishment several new routes (e.g., downtown, Longview Com- munity College) and the consolidation of clusters of sites into logical routes (e.g., Crown Center, Ward Parkway). Volunteers conducted more than 200 surveys of six routes and an additional four individual buildings. A total of 228 bird carcasses were recorded represent- ing 54 species plus those unidentifiable. Thirteen window-struck birds were also reported to BirdSafeKC from buildings that were not regularly surveyed, which we term incidental reports.

We also note that surveyors documented 13 bats that had likely struck windows. None of these were mortalities but all were either stunned or torpid due to temperature. They were taken to Lakeside Nature Center for recovery.

Based on the 2019 dataset, some patterns have emerged regarding the windows that are particularly strike-prone. 2020 surveys will further elucidate these trends and allow us to target windows for mitigation in partnership with building owners and managers. Solutions There are actions that can be taken to reduce avian window strikes, as well as many window treatment products available to discourage collisions. One of the easiest and most cost-effective mitigation tech- niques is to use bird-safe glass in the construction of new buildings. This is a popular trend among commercial architects and bird-safe glass carries its own Leadership in Energy and Environmental De- sign (LEED) certification credits. However, if you have an existing structure, there are still many options for reducing bird strikes. Lights Out: By simply extinguishing exterior, and some interior, lighting at night – particularly during migration – you will greatly reduce the possibility that birds will be at- tracted to your building while in flight. Closing curtains and blinds: Window transparency and sometimes reflectivity can be mitigated by engaging interior window coverings.

Consider the placement of landscaping: Often, birds are trying

Page 24 THE BLUEBIRD to fly from one tree or bush to the one they “see” reflected in your window. Vegetation that is extremely close to a building poses less of an opportunity for flying birds to reach window-strike speed than vegetation located 10-30 feet from a window. Window treatments: Numerous after-market products and artis- tic possibilities exist for treating problematic windows. Some building owners have chosen to engage artists to create murals on particular windows (above right). Others chose to place patterned tape (left) to disrupt birds’ visual perception of a window. Most window treatments are either attractive or almost unnoticeable to the human eye, and to be effective, only the most collision-prone windows need to be treated. BirdSafeKC project staff can provide guidance on these solutions.

References Banks, RC. Reflective plate glass - a hazard to migrating birds. BioScience 1976; 26(6):414. Hager S, Cosentino BJ. Surveying for bird carcasses resulting from window collisions: a standardized protocol. PeerJPrePrints 2014; 2:e406v1

Hager SB, Cosentino BJ, McKay KJ, Monson C, Zuurdeeg W, Blevins B. Window area and development drive spatial variation in bird-window collisions in an urban landscape. PLoS ONE 2013; 8(1): e53371.

Horton KG, Nilsson C, Van Doren BM, La Sore FA, Dokter AM, Farnsworth A. Bright lights in the big cities: migratory birds’ exposure to artificial light. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 2019; 17(4): 209-214.

Klem Jr., D, Farmer CJ, Delacretaz N, Gelb Y, Saenger PG. Architectural and landscape risk factors associated with bird-glass collisions in an urban environment. Wilson Bulletin 2009; 121(1):126-134.

Loss SR, Will T, Loss SS, Marra PP. Bird-building collisions in the United States: Estimates of annual mortality and species vulnerability. Condor 2014; 116: 8–23.

Loss SR, Will T, Marra PP. Direct mortality of birds from anthropogenic causes. Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution and Systematics 2015; 46: 99– 125.

Loss SR, Lao S, Eckles JW, Anderson AW, Blair RB, Turner RJ. Factors influencing bird-building collisions in the downtown area of a major North

Page 25 THE BLUEBIRD American city. PloS ONE 2019; 14(11): e0224164.

Parkins KL, Elbin SB, Barnes E. Light, glass, and bird—building collisions in an urban park. Northeast Naturalist 2016; 22: 84–94 Rosenberg KV, Dokter AM, Blancher PJ, Sauer JR, Smith AC, Smith PA, Stanton JC, Panjabi A, Helft L, Parr M, Marra PP. Decline of the North American avifauna. Science 2019; 366(6461): 120-124.

Seewagen CL and Sheppard C. Bird collisions with windows: An annotated bibliography. American Bird Conservancy 2017; https://abcbirds.org/wp- content/uploads/2017/02/Window_Collision_Bibliography-February-2017.pdf

Feather Friendly Dots, a window treatment to reduce bird collisions.

Page 26 THE BLUEBIRD Missouri Green Big Year:

An Invitation Andy Reago

Some of us drive over 60 miles round trip for a single bird outing. Chrissy and I often drive such mileage for a single birding outing, say to Riverlands or Busch CA, and that's what is inspiring us to do this. We'd like to reduce our own carbon footprint for the birds' sake, the sake of the whole wild world and the sake of the climate change emergency we're all faced with. We'd like to start by making fewer such trips, birding near home more often, and by walking.

What if, as an alternative to individual state big years, folks engaged in a different kind of Missouri big year? What if we pooled our local sightings from our patches across the state on eBird under a Green Collective Missouri Big Year category/name? What if we birded carbon free and collectively?

What if we only contributed sightings to the Green Collective Mis- souri Big Year that we found walking, biking, taking the bus or other type of 'green' travel - no use of a car? To be a little less restric- tive, if you are disabled or hindered in some way I'm not thinking about, what if you contributed sightings where you only drove a car a 5-10 mile radius at most? What if for those who carpooled (4 people per car at the least), their radius could be 15 miles, but limited to two reports a month? And what if once a month, you could contribute a "special treat" report where you used a car for whatever distance you choose, no limits?

The ideal would be to generate reports/sightings from carbon-free birding with no car or fossil-fuel use at all, with car-birding mini- mized. In the comments on the eBird report, you could note if you walked, biked, bused, drove (if disabled) or carpooled (and how much mileage). Car-birding (within a 5-15 mile radius) and carpooling sightings would be self-limited to once a month. Some possible benefits:

This could be collective and cooperative. We could get excited about what everyone was finding and contributing across the state and how folks were finding innovative ways to bird green and how that

Page 27 THE BLUEBIRD was promoting more of a sense of place.

This could be green - low carbon footprint.

This could mentor a new kind of birding for young folks.

We could bird where we could walk, run, bike, take a bus, carpool a short distance.

We could get to know each other in a new way.

We could, as a birding community, respond to the climate change emergency in a collective and fun way.

To this end, we've created the Green Collective Missouri Big Year on eBird. Here are the two simple steps on how to add your sightings:

1. Share your checklist on eBird with username "greenmissouri" 2. Please note in the checklist comments how you determined the report you are sharing is from a birding outing that was 'green' for you.

(REMEMBER: What will be green for one person is going to be different for another. We are each somewhere on a spectrum of a light to heavy carbon footprint when it comes to our birding - some of us drive a lot, some very little, some none. If you want to lessen your carbon footprint in any way, or already do so, please contribute to this effort!)

That's it! What makes your birding 'green' and/or 'greener' will be up to you! Make it fun, not a chore. There are no rules about this.

Page 28 THE BLUEBIRD Thirty-second Annual Report of the

Missouri Bird Records Committee William C. Rowe, Secretary

This report summarizes records reviewed by the Committee between 1 January and 31 December 2019. It is divided into two sections, Accepted and Not Accepted, with birds listed in phylogenetic order under each of these two categories. Taxonomy and nomenclature follow the American Ornithologists' Union's Check-list of North American Birds, Seventh Edition (1998), and subsequent supple- ments. The latest American Ornithological Society (AOS) list of North and Middle American birds is available on line at http:// checklist.aou.org/taxa. See "Note on organizations" below, for the change from AOU to AOS.

Accepted records in this report include the names of observers who submitted documentation and/or photographs, or were present with those who documented, along with comments to indicate the record’s significance. For Not Accepted records, observers’ names are omit- ted, and a brief explanation is provided as to why the record was not accepted. Statements on the status and distribution within Missouri for each species are based primarily on Robbins, The Status and Dis- tribution of Birds in Missouri (2018, University of Kansas Librar- ies), a free, downloadable reference ( https:// doi.org/10.17161/1808.26287).

Online documentation of records is the norm, and submission is easy. The observer posts documentation to a secure web site, where the secretary prepares it for review. To get started, go to www.mobirds.org and click on Documentation Form in the “MBRC” pull-down menu. Photographs in .jpg format, audio recordings in .wav format, and written notes in .pdf format, with a size limit of 4 MB, can be uploaded to accompany documentations. Observers are strongly urged to use the online system for both the report and any accompanying media, but if this proves unworkable for some reason, any part of the documentation can be mailed or emailed to the secretary. All recent records have been electronically archived. The Com- mittee once again thanks Ann Johnson for creating and improving this system. In addition, the Missouri eBird team (Lisa Berger, Di- ane Bricmont, Ryan Douglas, Pete Monacell, Mary Nemecek, and

Page 29 THE BLUEBIRD Josh Uffman) deserves great thanks for the long hours they put in as reviewers for our state and for their careful coordination with this Committee, both in requesting documentation from observers when needed and in initiating discussion on various points of bird distribution and identification.

Of the 73 records reviewed during this period, 59 were accepted and 14 were not accepted, for an acceptance rate of 81%. Members participating in these decisions were Lisa Berger, Joe Eades, Brad Ja- cobs (Chair), Paul McKenzie, Pete Monacell, Mary Nemecek, Mark Robbins, and Josh Uffman. Bill Rowe served as non-voting Secre- tary. One record (Neotropic Cormorant, 2019-46) received comments from an outside reviewer; see that account.

There were no observations of new species for Missouri this year, and so the state continues to have 423 fully-accepted species as of December 2019; these include three formerly-occurring species that have been extirpated from the state and five extinct species. There are an additional 12 Provisional species on the list, for a total of 435 species. The Annotated Checklist of Missouri Birds, which receives regular updates to reflect changes in Missouri status and distribution as well as the latest taxonomic and nomenclatural changes by the AOS, can be viewed at www.mobirds.org in either the "Birds" or the "MBRC" menu.

The Committee reviews records of species that are considered “casual” (5-14 records) or “accidental” (1-4 records) statewide. It also reviews records of species that are casual or accidental for the season when reported (example: Least Flycatcher in summer); records of species that are casual or accidental in the part of Missouri where reported (example: Painted Bunting in eastern Missouri); and other records of unusual interest, including first nesting records and extreme arrival and departure dates. The Review List, also main- tained at www.mobirds.org ("MBRC" menu), lists all species that require review due to their year-round casual or accidental status in all or part of the state, plus a few for which the Committee still wishes to receive documentation despite their status as only “rare” (example: California Gull). The Review List does not cover out-of- season status; for general information on seasonal occurrence, consult the Annotated Checklist, and for specific earliest and latest dates and other data, consult Robbins (2018).

Page 30 THE BLUEBIRD Note on photographic and audio documentation: Photographs, and in many cases audio recordings, are extremely helpful, and all observers are encouraged to carry a camera and/or a smart phone in the field; using smart phones, both images and audio can often be obtained with relative ease. In some cases (as noted in a few entries below) the absence of a photograph or an audio recording can be a problem for acceptance of a record. On the other hand, photographs can sometimes be misleading as to colors and patterns, and they may or may not show all of a bird’s key characters. For this reason, it remains important for the observer to describe what he or she saw and heard as accurately as possible.

Note on organizations: In December 2016, the American Ornithol- ogists' Union (AOU) completed a merger with the Cooper Ornitho- logical Society to form the American Ornithological Society (AOS). The AOU's North American Classification Committee, its Birds of North and Middle America Checklist, its journal The Auk, and all of its other activities and resources are now those of the AOS, along with the journal The Condor and other functions of the Cooper Orni- thological Society. The new society's web site is at www.americanornithology.org.

The Committee extends thanks to the many birders throughout Mis- souri who submitted their observations, and to the Missouri Birding Society for its continued support and funding of the Committee’s efforts. Observers who would like a status report on their current submissions can email the Secretary at [email protected]. The next report will appear in the March 2021 issue of The Bluebird.

RMBS = Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary, St. Charles Co. LBNWR = Loess Bluffs (formerly Squaw Creek) National Wildlife Refuge, Holt Co. MNWR = Mingo National Wildlife Refuge, Bol- linger/Stoddard/Wayne cos. CBC = Christmas Bird Count CA = Conservation Area SP = State Park NWR = National Wildlife Refuge

Page 31 THE BLUEBIRD RECORDS ACCEPTED

BLACK-BELLIED WHISTLING-DUCK (Dendrocygna autum- nalis), 2019-44: Two adults with seven young, 14-15 August 2019, MNWR, Stoddard Co. Brad Pendley of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Ser- vice (documentation with photographs), Ben Mense, Debbie Koenigs. Third nesting record for Missouri.

BLACK-BELLIED WHISTLING-DUCK, 2019-48: Adult with five young, 15 August 2019, private property, Stoddard Co. Nicole Walk- er of the Missouri Department of Conservation submitted documentation with photographs on behalf of landowner. Fourth nesting record.

BLACK-BELLIED WHISTLING-DUCK, 2019-45: Two to three adults with nine young, 14-18 August 2019, retention pond near Jef- ferson Barracks Park, St. Louis Co. Mike Thelen, Kendell Loyd, Jes- sie Goodwin (documentations with photographs), Tommy Goodwin. Fifth nesting record, moving this species to casual as a breeding resident.

BLACK-BELLIED WHISTLING-DUCK, 2019-50: One or two adults with nine young, 26 August 2019, Duck Creek CA, Wayne Co. Nicole Walker of the Missouri Department of Conservation submitted documentation with photographs on behalf of other MDC staff. Sixth nesting record.

BLACK-BELLIED WHISTLING-DUCK, 2019-51: Two adults with seven young, 31 August to 13 September 2019, Little Creve Coeur Marsh, St. Louis Co. Anne Kirkpatrick (documentation), Mike Thelen (documentation with photographs). Seventh nesting record. This family was associating with a flock of up to 25 additional adults, one of which was traced by banding number to an origin in Louisiana in 2018, as discovered by photographer Doug Hommert.

CINNAMON TEAL (Spatula cyanoptera), 2019-66: Adult male, 27 October 2019, RMBS. Kelly Smith (documentation with photographs). Casual transient in fall; ninth record.

AMERICAN WIGEON (Mareca americana), 2019-34: Female, 12 June 2018, LBNWR. Brad Jacobs (documentation with photo-

Page 32 THE BLUEBIRD graphs). Casual summer visitant.

GREEN-WINGED TEAL (Anas crecca), 2019-41: Adult male, 7 Ju- ly 2019, county road 713/716, New Madrid Co. Tim Kavan. Casual in summer in southern Missouri.

AMERICAN FLAMINGO (Phoenicopterus ruber), 2019-42: One, 20-21 July 2019, mostly near Donaldson Point CA, New Madrid Co. Tim Kavan, Mike Thelen, Brad Jacobs, Paul McKenzie (documentations with photographs). Accidental; third record. From photographs, it seemed likely that this was the same bird previously in residence for months at St. Marks NWR in Florida, then presum- ably carried north by Hurricane Barry across western Tennessee, where it was observed on 13 July, and into Missouri. There is, however, no evidence of where the St. Marks bird originated—i.e., whether it came from a natural population in the Caribbean or from a captive population. This means that the species will remain on the Missouri list as Provisional.

INCA DOVE (Columbina inca), 2019-68: One, 30 October to 3 De- cember 2019, Loberg residence, Holt, Clay Co. Stefanie Loberg (documentation with photographs). Casual transient and winter resident; eleventh record.

WHITE-WINGED DOVE (Zenaida asiatica), 2019-13: One, 5 Feb- ruary 2019, Freeman residence, Kennett, Dunklin Co. Kent Free- man. Casual in winter; about the ninth record.

ANNA'S HUMMINGBIRD (Calypte anna), 2019-70: Immature male, 11 November to 10 December 2019, private residences in Co- lumbia, Boone Co. Paul McKenzie (documentation with photographs), Jean Leonatti. Casual transient and winter visitant; ninth record.

PURPLE GALLINULE (Porphyrio martinica), 2019-62: Juvenile, 9 September 2015, near Buckner, Jackson Co. Rod Lentz (documentation with photographs), Josiah Redfearn. Casual transient outside of southeastern Missouri.

RUFF ( Calidris pugnax), 2019-21: One (apparent female by size), 12 March 2019, County Road 722, Dunklin Co. Kent Freeman

Page 33 THE BLUEBIRD (documentation with photographs). Earliest spring record.

BUFF-BREASTED SANDPIPER (Calidris subruficollis), 2019-33: Adult, 19-20 May 2019, Mokane Road, Callaway Co. Peter Kon- drashov. Casual spring transient in eastern Missouri.

SPOTTED SANDPIPER (Actitis macularius), 2019-3: One, 19 De- cember 2018, Table Rock Lake, Stone Co. Steve Martin (documentation with photographs), Debbie Martin. Accidental in winter; third record.

CALIFORNIA GULL (Larus californicus), 2019-6: Adult, 1-2 Janu- ary 2019, Smithville Lake, Clay Co. Mary Nemecek (documentation with photographs). Rare transient and winter visitant; retained on the Review List due to difficulty of identification.

CALIFORNIA GULL, 2019-16: Adult, 13 February 2019, Longview Lake, Jackson Co. Karen Davis (documentation with photographs). See status, above.

CALIFORNIA GULL, 2019-53: Adult, 20-27 September 2019, Tru- man Reservoir, Benton Co. Pete Monacell, Kendell Loyd, Brad Ja- cobs (documentations with photographs). See status, above.

ICELAND GULL (Larus glaucoides), 2019-24: First-cycle bird, 30 March 2019, Smithville Lake, Clay Co. Mary Nemecek (documentation with photographs). Latest spring record. This individual was not clearly attributable to either thayeri or kumlieni; it was light tan overall with wing coverts and tertials mostly bleached white and primaries pale brown.

LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL (Larus fuscus), 2019-49: Adult, 25 August to 3 September 2019, RMBS. Chrissy McClarren (documentation with photographs), Andy Reago. Earliest fall record.

GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL (Larus marinus), 2019-12: Adult, 3 February 2019, Longview Lake, Jackson Co. Karen Davis (documentation with photographs). Was accidental away from the Mississippi River near St. Louis; this is the fifth record, moving the species to casual.

Page 34 THE BLUEBIRD

GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL, 2019-43: First-cycle bird, 12-19 August 2019, Cora Island Road and RMBS, St. Charles Co. Bill Rowe (documentation), Doug Hommert, Mike Thelen (documentations with photographs). Earliest fall record by three months.

GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL, 2019-73: Second- or third-cycle bird, 27 November 2019, Smithville Lake, Clay Co. Mary Nemecek (documentation with photographs). Casual away from the Mississip- pi River near St. Louis; sixth record.

RED-THROATED LOON (Gavia stellata), 2019-4: Adult, 30 De- cember 2018 to 6 January 2019, Stockton Lake, Cedar Co. Kendell Loyd (documentation with photographs). Was accidental in winter; this is the fifth record, moving the species to casual.

RED-THROATED LOON, 2019-19: Adult, 2-22 March 2019, joined by immature on 22 March, Stockton Lake, Dade Co. Steve Martin (documentation), Paul McKenzie, Brad Jacobs, Pete Monacell (documentations with photographs), Debbie Martin, Reggie Swartzentruber, David Blevins. Casual in spring; twelfth record.

PACIFIC LOON (Gavia pacifica), 2019-11: Adult, 27 January and 2 February 2019, Stockton Lake, Cedar Co. Greg Swick, Kendell Loyd (documentations with photographs). Casual in winter; seventh record.

PACIFIC LOON, 2019-18: Adult, 2 March 2019, Table Rock Lake, Stone Co. Kendell Loyd (documentation with photographs). Casual in spring; eighth record.

PACIFIC LOON, 2019-47: Adult in breeding plumage, 7 May 2019, Longview Lake, Jackson Co. Eric Walters (documentation with photographs). Casual in spring; ninth record.

NEOTROPIC CORMORANT (Phalacrocorax brasilianus), 2019- 46: Immature, 17 August 2019, in and near RMBS. Paul McKenzie (documentation with photograph). Casual in eastern Missouri; seventh record. Initial identification of this bird was provided by Van Remsen of Louisiana State University from the photograph.

Page 35 THE BLUEBIRD

TURKEY VULTURE (Cathartes aura), 2019-2: One, 15 December 2018, near Sunbridge CA, Buchanan Co. Peggy Voltz (documentation), Jim Voltz, Audry Lindsteadt. Accidental in winter in northern Missouri.

SWALLOW-TAILED KITE (Elanoides forficatus), 2019-52: One, 31 August to 15 September 2019, near Deerfield, Vernon Co. Lisa Ber- ger (documentation of late date with photographs). First found by Tony Elliott; became the latest fall record.

OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER (Contopus cooperi), 2019-59: One, 15 October 2019, Stockton Lake, Cedar Co. Ricky Hostetler. Latest fall record.

LEAST FLYCATCHER (Empidonax minimus), 2019-39: One, pre- sumably male (singing), 25 June 2019, Union Ridge CA, Adair Co. Matt Longabaugh (documentation with audio). Casual in summer; seventh record.

VERMILION FLYCATCHER (Pyrocephalus rubinus), 2019-1: Fe- male, 2 October 2018, Hornersville Swamp CA, Dunklin Co. Timo- thy Jones (documentation with photographs). Casual transient; sixth fall record.

VERMILION FLYCATCHER, 2019-22: Adult male, 16 March 2019, Triplett, Chariton Co. Andrea Kipping (documentation with photographs), Lawrence Kipping. Casual transient; fourth spring record.

VERMILION FLYCATCHER, 2019-72: Adult male, 24 November to 8 December 2019, private residence, Independence, Jackson Co. Steve Phillips, Paul McKenzie, Kendell Loyd (documentations with photographs), Lauri Phillips, Sheri and Elijah Redfearn, Doug White, Brad Jacobs, Pete Monacell, Mark Mutchler, Marky Mutch- ler. Casual transient; seventh fall record.

BLUE-HEADED VIREO (Vireo solitarius), 2019-7: One, 6 January 2019, St. Francis River Levee Road, Dunklin Co. Timothy Jones (documentation with photographs). Fifth winter record, moving the species from accidental to casual in winter.

Page 36 THE BLUEBIRD

CAVE SWALLOW (Petrochelidon fulva), 2019-63: Juvenile, 19 Sep- tember 2019, Schell-Osage CA, Vernon Co. Ricky Hostetler. Acci- dental transient; third record.

WINTER WREN (Troglodytes hiemalis), 2019-38: One, 18 June to 3 July 2019, Barrigar residence, Cole Co. Chris Barrigar (documentation with audio and photographs). First summer record. Audio recording of song eliminated the remote possibility of the very similar Pacific Wren (T. pacificus).

SEDGE WREN (Cistothorus platensis), 2019-5: Two, 1 January 2019, Cora Island Unit, Big Muddy National Fish and Wildlife Ref- uge, St. Charles Co. Janet Hoyne, Pat Lueders, Richard Palmer. Casual in winter in north and central Missouri. CBC record.

TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE (Myadestes townsendi), 2019-29: One, 15-17 April 2019, Longview Lake, Jackson Co. Karen Davis (documentation with photographs). Tied for second-latest spring record.

AMERICAN TREE SPARROW (Spizelloides arborea), 2019-57: One, 8 October 2019, RMBS. Mike Thelen. Earliest fall record.

WHITE-THROATED SPARROW (Zonotrichia albicollis), 2019-37: Adult, 16 June 2019, Shaw Nature Reserve, Franklin Co. Yvonne Homeyer (documentation with photographs). Casual in summer; at least the thirteenth record.

YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRD (Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus), 2019-40: Adult male, 28 June 2019, state highway M near Hol- comb, Dunklin Co. Tim Kavan. Casual in summer outside north- western Missouri.

ORCHARD ORIOLE (Icterus spurius), 2019-56: Female, 22-26 September 2019, near Kearney, Clay Co. James Gorski (documentation with photographs). Latest fall record.

WORM- EATING WARBLER (Helmitheros vermivorum), 2019-27: Male singing and seen, 11 April 2019, Katy Trail SP near Schnabel

Page 37 THE BLUEBIRD Woods, Boone Co. Paul McKenzie. Earliest spring record.

SWAINSON'S WARBLER (Limnothlypis swainsonii), 2019-30: One, 4-20 May 2019, Grindstone Nature Area, Boone Co. John Bes- ser, Cara Joos (documentations), Nicholas March, Paul McKenzie (documentations with photographs), Brad Jacobs. Casual outside its breeding range in the southern two tiers of counties.

AMERICAN REDSTART (Setophaga ruticilla), 2019-67: Immature male, 28 October 2019, Carondelet Park, City of St. Louis. Tommy Goodwin (documentation), Chrissy McClarren. At the time, the latest fall record; see next.

AMERICAN REDSTART, 2019-69: Adult male, 31 October 2019, Carondelet Park, City of St. Louis. Chrissy McClarren. Latest fall record.

BLACKBURNIAN WARBLER (Setophaga fusca), 2019-60: Imma- ture female, 25 October 2019, Terpstra residence, Kirkwood, St. Louis Co. Margy Terpstra (documentation with photographs). Lat- est fall record.

BLACKPOLL WARBLER (Setophaga striata), 2019-17: Immature female, 16 September 2018, Tower Grove Park, City of St. Louis. Matthew Winks (documentation with photographs). This species, which is common in spring but follows a much more easterly migration route in fall, was previously listed as accidental in fall. This is the fifth verified record, moving it to casual.

YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER (Setophaga coronata), 2019-35: One, 13 June 2019, El Dorado Springs City Park, Cedar Co. Joseph Mosley (documentation with photographs), Erik Ost, Matt Longa- baugh, Zoe Ward, Matt Spinnenweber. Accidental in summer; third record for that season.

SUMMER TANAGER (Piranga rubra), 2019-8: Female or immature male, 13 January 2019 (but present for about a week prior), Houston residence, Eureka, St. Louis Co. Diane Bricmont (documentation with photographs), Peggy Houston. Accidental in winter; second record.

Page 38 THE BLUEBIRD WESTERN TANAGER (Piranga ludoviciana), 2019-28: Adult male, 14 -17 April 2019, Bricmont residence, Ballwin, St. Louis Co. Diane Bricmont, Mike Thelen (documentations with photographs). Casual spring transient; tenth and earliest record.

ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK (Pheucticus ludovicianus), 2019- 20: Immature male, 7 March 2019, Bricmont residence, Ballwin, St. Louis Co. Diane Bricmont (documentation with photographs). Earli- est spring record by one month.

BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAK (Pheucticus melanocephalus), 2019-26: Adult male, 9-17 April 2019, Abramovitz residence, Cass- ville, Barry Co. Sarah Kendrick (documentation), Francis Abramovitz (photographs). Earliest spring record by eleven days.

PAINTED BUNTING (Passerina ciris), 2019-61: Adult male, 10 June 1998, Katy Trail, Boone Co. Theresa Enderle. At the time, listed as a casual transient outside southwestern Missouri; now listed as rare, with documentation still needed for birds in female- type plumage but no longer required for adult males.

PAINTED BUNTING, 2019-32: Adult male, 18 May to at least 3 June, 2019, private residence and other sites near Emmenegger Na- ture Park, St. Louis Co. Shelly Colatskie (documentation), Chrissy McClarren, Tommy Goodwin (documentation with photographs), Andy Reago, Kyran Leeker. See above record for status notes.

RECORDS NOT ACCEPTED

“Not accepted” does not necessarily mean that the identification was incorrect. In some cases the Committee may indeed believe that the bird was misidentified; in other cases it may seem possible or even likely that the identification was correct, but the information provided is simply insufficient to rule out other possible species. The Com- mittee is unable to accept any record if the description is too sketchy or vague, or if it fails to mention enough critical field marks to eliminate all other species. It is also true that the more extraordinary the report, the stronger the evidence required, and there are some reports that can be accepted only with diagnostic photographs or other physical evidence. Our belief is that a report should go into the permanent scientific record only if it is free of reasonable doubt. This is

Page 39 THE BLUEBIRD the standard approach of bird record committees everywhere. All records that the Committee reviews, whether accepted or not, are permanently archived so that future investigators may examine them.

BARROW'S GOLDENEYE (Bucephala islandica), 2019-15: Fe- male, 9 February 2019, Stockton Lake, Dade Co. This bird was described as showing some characters associated with females of this species, such as an all-yellow bill and a different head shape than a Common Goldeneye's. Bill color, however, cannot be used by itself as an identifying feature, and other characters could not be verified from the photographs provided. Clear photographs with good resolu- tion would be a necessity in order to substantiate a female Barrow's Goldeneye versus a female Common or a possible hybrid.

WHIMBREL (Numenius phaeopus), 2019-36: One, 13 June 2019, rural New Madrid Co. Photographs submitted did not suggest a Whimbrel.

LITTLE GULL (Hydrocoloeus minutus), 2019-58: Two, 13 October 2019, Swan Lake NWR. These birds, apparently in juvenile and possibly adult plumage, were observed at a great distance among Ring- billed and Bonaparte's Gulls. In both cases, parts of the description did not fit the age class, and the Committee believed that Bona- parte's Gull was not clearly eliminated in either case.

PACIFIC LOON, 2019-25: One, 5 April 2019, Smithville Lake, Clay Co. The description provided too little detail to be sure of which loon species was seen, including no mention of bill size and shape and no direct comparison of this bird with a Common Loon. The variability of Common Loon makes this a subtle identification that requires a fully detailed description and preferably a good photograph.

GOLDEN EAGLE (Aquila chrysaetus), 2019-54: Immature, 23-24 September 2019, Wakonda SP, Lewis Co. Details provided did not separate this bird from an immature Bald Eagle with a bicolored tail; in particular, the underwing pattern, a key point, was described as "mottled," suggesting a Bald Eagle.

GOLDEN EAGLE, 2019-55: Immature, 25 September 2019, Fergu- son, St. Louis Co. This may have been a Golden Eagle, but the de-

Page 40 THE BLUEBIRD scription was unclear, including the bird's apparent size; the observer drew comparisons with several different species from Bald Eagle to Broad-winged Hawk.

BROAD-WINGED HAWK (Buteo platypterus), 2019-71: Immature, 18 November 2019, near St. James, Phelps Co. The details provided did not eliminate other hawks, especially an immature Red- shouldered Hawk. Separating immature Broad-winged from Red- shouldered can be quite difficult and may require a view of the un- barred secondaries, as shown in most field guides. Though Broad- winged Hawks are common early-fall migrants in Missouri, they move south to the tropics for the winter; there is no verified record for November. Any record-late report should be accompanied by photographs.

GREAT CRESTED FLYCATCHER (Myiarchus crinitus), 2019-23: One, 29 March 2019, Springfield Nature Center, Greene Co. The description failed to mention some important field marks of Great Crested Flycatcher, raising doubts as to what species was observed, and no photograph was provided.

HOUSE WREN (Troglodytes aedon), 2019-9: One, 16 January 2019, Louisiana, Pike Co. This may have been a House Wren, but the ob- servation was made without binoculars, raising doubts as to the lev- el of detail that could have been seen. To establish a winter record of House Wren this far north, a photograph would be desirable.

BACHMAN'S SPARROW (Peucaea aestivalis), 2019-65: One, 26 October 2019, Lake Jacomo, Jackson Co. This species has essentially disappeared from its former breeding range in southern Missouri and was always very rare outside that range. All reports require review. Aside from the extreme improbability of encountering Bach- man's Sparrow at such a late date and at this location, the details provided did not completely distinguish this bird from other sparrows, including the accidental Cassin's Sparrow. Good photographs, or audio recording of song, would be a necessity for acceptance.

VESPER SPARROW (Pooecetes gramineus), 2019-10: One, 16 De- cember 2018, Busch CA, St. Charles Co. Possibly a Vesper Sparrow, but the observers were unable to determine whether this bird had white outer tail feathers, and the features described could have been duplicated by some Savannah Sparrows.

Page 41 THE BLUEBIRD

BULLOCK'S ORIOLE (Icterus bullockii), 2019-31: Adult male, 18 May 2019, LBNWR. The details provided for this sighting were sufficient to suggest a Bullock's Oriole (an accidental species, recorded only twice in Missouri) but not to establish it fully or to rule out a hybrid Bullock's x Baltimore. This combination is frequent enough, where the breeding ranges overlap in the western Great Plains, to be a concern with any report of Bullock's.

YELLOW-RUMPED "AUDUBON'S" WARBLER (Setophaga coronata auduboni), 2019-14: One, 8-10 February 2019, Jefferson City, Cole Co. This bird appeared at a residential feeder, and the observer rightly noted that it seemed different in having yellow on the throat. The Committee appreciates receiving documentation of it, with ex- cellent photographs. These, however, showed that it was not a pure "Audubon's" but most likely an intergrade between that subspecies and the "Myrtle" Warbler, which is the usual form in Missouri. This bird showed two important characters shown by "Myrtle" and not by "Audubon's": a whitish supercilium (stronger on one side than the other in this bird), and the pale throat color curling up around the side of the neck and framing the auriculars (cheek patch). Also, the throat color was irregular, being whitish on the chin but yellow below that. Intergrades between these two forms occur regularly where the breeding ranges overlap in Alberta. Note: The Committee reviews very few records of subspecies, but "Audubon's" is different from most in having clear field marks that distinguish it from "Myrtle," and also in being a possible candidate for future splitting as a separate species. There are a dozen or more records for Mis- souri.

LAZULI BUNTING (Passerina amoena), 2019-64: Female-type, 26 October 2019, near Prairie SP, Barton Co. Description suggested a possible Lazuli Bunting but lacked sufficient detail, and there was no photograph.

Page 42 THE BLUEBIRD Summer Seasonal Report June 1—July 31, 2019 Allen Gathman

June 2019 was the coolest June in Missouri since 2004, at 0.6 degrees below average, and the state warmed only slightly in July to near-average temperatures. Mild temperatures, however, were off- set by record rainfall. For the country as a whole, 2019 was the wettest January to July period ever recorded. Missouri had its third wettest August to July period on record, with June 1.27 inches above average and July 0.58 inches above average. The long period of above-average rainfall both in the state and in the upstream drain- ages resulted in prolonged flooding in Missouri. The Mississippi Riv- er was above flood stage at Hannibal for 126 days ending July 18; at St. Louis it was above flood stage for 144 days, until August 3; at Caruthersville it was above flood stage for 151 days until July 11. The Missouri River was above flood stage at Kansas City for the first half of June and again for a few days late in the month, resulting in repeated closures of I-29; at Jefferson City it was above flood stage for all of June and the first half of July.

As a result of high river levels, large areas of low-lying land were flooded and inaccessible for much of the summer, if not the entire first half of the year. As flooded areas began to drain in late July, conditions were favorable for waders and shorebirds in many areas that would normally be agricultural fields. Hurricane Barry made landfall in Louisiana on July 13, and moved northward through Ar- kansas until July 19. While its direct impact on the state was minor, it may have pushed some birds northward from the Gulf coast: most notably, an American Flamingo July 21 in New Madrid County.

Waterfowl through Flamingo

This summer had the highest number of reports of Black-bellied Whistling- Ducks ever in a single season, with an exceptional number of breeding records. They were in 11 counties and St. Louis City, spanning the state from Mark Youngdahl Urban CA Buchanan 6 Jun-13 Jul, (m. obs) to Delaney Lake CA Mississippi 12 Jun, 26 Jun and 12 Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks, Jul (MH). The remaining observations Delaney Lake CA Mississippi 12 Jul came from the Bootheel and the St. 2019. Photo Mark Haas

Page 43 THE BLUEBIRD Louis area. The new summer high count of 29 was set from the multi-year continuing flock at Nash Pond Scott 7 Jun, (LB). A single Ross’s Goose was at Twin Chimneys St. Charles 19 Jun (Trevor Leitz). Single Trumpeter Swans were at LBNWR 4 Jul (TN) and in Harrisonville Cass 24 Jul (Ed Robinson). Blue-winged Teal, rare in summer, showed up in twelve widespread counties. The highest counts included 10 in New Madrid rice fields 7 Jul (TK), and another 10, including a pair displaying courtship behavior, 21 Jun at Little Creve Coeur Lake St. Louis (CM, JMa). A lone Northern Shoveler was at Eagle Bluffs CA Boone 8 Jul (Josh Mosteller), and 4 were at DCCA Wayne 1 Jun (MH). Gadwall were at DCCA Wayne with 4 present 1 Jun (MH), and a single bird 13 Jun (PMo, BJ). Three Northern Pin- tail were at DCCA Wayne 1 Jun (MH). A Green-winged Teal (acc.), casual in summer, was in the rice fields of New Madrid 7 Jul (†TK). Single Ring- necked Ducks were in Buchanan, Chariton, Howell, and Mississippi counties, with this summer’s high count of 4 off CR333 Scott 11 Jun (LB). A single Lesser Scaup lingered at Binder Lake Cole 2 Jun (PMo, Tom Crabtree), and another at RMBS 30 Jul (MT). Hooded Merganser, rare outside SE Missouri, made appearances in Adair, Boone, Buchanan, Cole, Holt, Howell, Jackson, Jefferson, Lincoln, Shannon, and St. Charles. A Ruddy Duck was spotted in Perry county 6 Jun (Kimberly Henshaw), and another spent much of July in Teal Pond at RMBS 8-31 Jul, (BR, m. obs.). The rare and local Greater Prairie-Chicken was at Taberville Prairie CA St. Clair, where populations have continued to decline despite reintroduction efforts, with 2 males booming and a female in flight 10 Jun (JMo), and a single 14 Jun (MS). Observers at DRP saw a hen in flight (MLs, KC) or heard call notes (SL, MG) 29 Jul.

The summer’s two-day wonder, an American Flamingo (acc.) possibly blown up from the Gulf of Mexico by Hurricane Barry, appeared 20 Jul off CR 733 near Matthews New Madrid (†TK) and then in a flooded field to the south visible from the levee at DPCA, where it was 20-21 Jul (†BJ, PMo, MT, m.obs).

Doves through Sandpipers White-winged Dove populations in the Bootheel continued this summer with sightings in East Prairie Mississippi, where they have been known for over ten years (BJ, TK, PMo), augmented this year with a pair at a residential feeder in Kennett Dunklin 2 Jun-31 Jul (KF, TG). There was only one record outside the Bootheel of a pair at a feeder in Alma Lafayette 5 Jun-15 Jul (Bernard Ross). Single Greater Roadrunners, rare in the Ozarks, occurred in Barry, Ozark, Ripley, Stone, Taney, and Texas counties, all on or near the Arkansas border (m. obs.). Black-billed Cuckoo continued to be found at DRP 2 Jun (m. obs.).

Tim Jones heard the distinctive whinny of 2 Soras, rare in summer, near Bragg City Pemiscot 21 Jul. Common Gallinule was in three locations: 4 at City of Columbia Wetlands Boone 22-25 Jun (Carol Weston, ST, Greg

Leonard), 1 at Little Creve Coeur Marsh St. Louis 14-15 Jul (DB, Bryan Prather), and 2 at Lake Contrary Buchanan 25-30 Jul (TN, ThJ, TMc, JD).

Page 44 THE BLUEBIRD

Black-necked Stilts, in addition to sightings in four Bootheel counties where they are locally common, were in at least two locations in St. Charles. Two were at RMBS 9-15 Jul (MT), 2 near the Marais Temps Clair CA 15 Jul (TP, BR), and 3 in the same area 19 Jul (DHa). Early fall migrant Ameri- can Avocets visited three counties: 17-30 Jul St. Charles (m. obs.), 22 Jul at Bush Landing Rd. Boone (m. obs.), and 28 Jul on County Rd 392 Andrew (TN, Mike Hanson). A single early migrant Black-bellied Plover was at Winfield Lock and Dam Lincoln 29 Jul (TP, BR), and another near BICA 25 Jul as the flood waters receded (TJ). Two American Golden-Plovers were bathing in a flooded field off County Rd 711 Pemiscot 17 Jun (TK), perhaps late migrants. Early migrating Semipalmated Plovers occurred 19-31 Jul in Boone, Callaway, Clay, Lincoln, New Madrid, Pike, St. Charles, and Vernon (m. obs). A Ruddy Turn- stone was on Mokane Rd Callaway 26 Jul (PMo). Two Sanderlings were on Mokane Rd Callaway 27-29 Jul (m. obs.), as well as one at Coo- ley Lake CA Clay 28 Jul (SB). Mo- kane Rd Callaway also hosted an early Baird’s Sandpiper 29 Jul (PMo), and another was on Firma Rd St. Charles 30 Jul (DB, Gail Gag- non). An unusually high summer count, 885 Pectoral Sandpipers were at Mokane Rd Callaway 26 Jul Ruddy Turnstone, Mokane Rd Callaway (PMc). The same location had 2 26 Jul 2019. Photo Pete Monacell Western Sandpipers 26-31 Jul (m. obs.), and Joseph Mosley found one at Schell-Osage CA Vernon 29 Jul. The shorebird cornucopia at Mokane Rd Callaway provided an early Wilson’s Snipe 30 Jul (PMo), and another was near Bragg City Pemiscot 17 Jul (TG). Near Hartsburg Boone a group of up to 4 Wilson’s Phalarope was seen by multiple observers 18-22 Jul, and another early migrant was at RMBS 24 Jul (DBe). Greater Yellowlegs showed up in Boone, Lincoln, New Madrid, Pemiscot, Pike, St. Charles, and Warren counties (m.obs.), with a high count of 40 on County Rd 713/716 New Madrid 10 Jul (Jeremy Webster). BICA (TiJ) and RMBS (CA) hosted Willets.

Gulls to Falcons

A Franklin’s Gull was at RMBS 5-11 Jul (DHo, DBe, BR), and 2 others in Jackson 25 Jun, one at Longview Lake (Karen Davis) and one at Lakeside Nature Center (Cori Hawkins). A Herring Gull was at RMBS 9 Jul and 25 Jul (Janet Hoyne, PL); another was at Red School Rd St. Charles 26 Jul (Brent Schindewolf). The US Army Corps of Engineers tallied 47 Least Tern nests, 74 eggs, and over 60 chicks on nesting barges at RMBS, and found one bird banded as a chick in 2017 that returned to the nesting site as an adult (Ryan Swearingin). A single individual was at Hartsburg Boone 18 Jul (PMo); all the other summer records (m. obs) were in lower river coun-

Page 45 THE BLUEBIRD ties, including numerous New Madrid county reports by flamingo watchers. Black Terns were in Boone, Buchanan, Callaway, New Madrid, St. Charles, and Vernon, with a high count of 59 at Horseshoe Lake Buchanan 27 Jul (TMc). Forster’s Tern occurred in Boone, Callaway, Dade, Daviess, Dunklin, Macon, Phelps, St. Charles, and Vernon.

A rare summer Common Loon was at Stockton Lake Cedar 22 Jun (Ruben Stoll), and another was at RMBS 17-31 Jul (m. obs.). A single American Bittern was recorded in each of three counties, Belcher Branch Lake CA Buchanan 1 Jun (Nic Allen), DPCA 23 Jul (AR), and Hazel Creek Lake Adair 30 Jul (TMi). Single Least Bitterns, uncommon and local in the summer, were at Shelbina Monroe 11 Jun (Matt Spinnenweber) and LBNWR 23 Jun (BJ) and 4 Jul (TN). Little Blue Heron is accidental as a breeder outside SE Missouri, but a large rookery was discovered in St. Louis City. Local birders contacted authorities to stop tree trimming and removal, and surveyed the nests. In addition to many Great Egret, Snowy Egret, and Black-crowned Night-Heron nests, 147 Little Blue Heron nests were found (m.obs.) Two summer visitors were at Settle’s Ford CA Bates 1 Jun (DC, VC), and one each at Camp Runamuck Barry 22 Jun (Jeremy Coleman), and Montrose CA Henry 10 Jul and 27 Jul (DC,VC). Cattle Egrets, uncommon summer visitors, were in 14 counties. Though rare in summer, Ospreys were well represented this year, in 17 counties from 3 Jun to 30 Jul. An all- time high summer count of 45 Missis- sippi Kites was recorded at Little Creve Coeur Lake St. Louis 16 Jun (CM, JMa). A Northern Harrier was at Prairie SP Barton 11 Jun (Anjeanette Levings, Noah Carter), and another at Bradford Farm Boone 17 Jul (ST). Single Sharp-shinned Hawks were reported in Randolph (7 Cattle Egret, Muskrat Lake Buchanan Jun, EW). Cole (10 Jun, EW), and 8 Jul 2019. Photo Tom Nagel. Reynolds (4 Jul, Jill Bryant). While Broad-winged Hawks were numerous across southern and central counties, they are rare in the north, where there were three reports of single birds: 7 Jun at Sugar Creek Subdivision Adair (PK), 24-25 Jul at Thousand Hills SP Adair (PK), and 2 Jul in Westboro Atchison (Jon Hill). Single Swainson’s Hawks, rare summer residents in western Missouri, were in Bates, Christian, Newton, Platte, and St. Clair, and two each in Dade and Greene (m.obs.). Single Barn Owls were in Clinton (12 Jun, TeMi) and Johnson (8-12 Jun, DC, VC). One to 4 Peregrine Falcons were in Jackson, Johnson, Lincoln, Marion, Platte, and

Page 46 THE BLUEBIRD St. Charles counties, as well as St. Louis City.

Flycatchers to Shrike

Single Olive-sided Flycatchers were at Burr Oak Woods CA Jackson 1 Jun (Kyle Snyder), Prairie Home CA Cooper 2 Jun (EW), TGP 2 Jun (MT), and one on a BBS in Cooper county 9 Jun (TMc). A Yellow-bellied Fly- catcher stayed a few days in Ozark Christian 3-6 Jun (Gary Swant, Laura Lee Swant, CL), and others were at Mapleview Park Jackson 1 Jun (Eric Walters), State highway U New Madrid 2 Jun (TK), and TGP 2 Jun (JB). Single Alder Flycatchers remained at three widespread sites 1 Jun, another was in Franklin 6 Jun (Jack and Shirley Foreman), and one heard singing in Clay established a latest spring record by four days 16 June (SB*). A Least Flycatcher (acc.), accidental in summer, was calling at Union Ridge CA Adair 25 Jun (†ML, audio rec.). Western Kingbirds were at numerous locations outside the north and central west: 1-3 Boone (m.obs.), 1-4 Callaway (m.obs.), 2 Audrain (EW, Kathleen Anderson, Rodney Wright), 2-5 Scott (TK; MH reported 2 adults and 3 chicks in nest), 1-2 St. Charles (m.obs.), 1-4 St. Louis (m.obs), 1-7 St. Louis City (including one bird that was apparently catching a game at Busch Stadium) (m.obs.), and 1 Mississippi (BJ, PMo), Pemiscot (TiJ), 2 Jasper (Jeff Cantrell), and 2 New- ton (Jeff Cantrell). Timothy Jones made a point of visiting power substations in the Bootheel, locat- ing WEKI nests at three substations and a power plant in Malden Dunklin, two plus an industrial park in Kennett Dunklin, one near Senath Dunklin, and two at substations in New Madrid New Madrid. Scissor-tailed Fly- catcher is another species that continues to expand its range. Casual in the north and rare in the southeast, but merely uncommon elsewhere in the summer, they were in two northern counties: Daviess 6-8 Jun (*TM) and Harrison 21 Jun (*JMo). They Western Kingbird, Sikeston New Ma- were in 6 southeastern counties drid 30 Jun 2019. Photo Mark Haas as well – Butler 11 Jun, 17 Jul (Joseph McPhail, TG); Cape Girardeau 3 Jun (MH, AG); Carter 3 Jun, 14 Jul (Shelby Timm, TK); Dunklin 19 Jun, 1-6 Jul (TiJ); New Madrid 20 Jun, 30 Jun, 20 Jul, 23 Jul (TiJ, DBr, AR, MH); Ripley 26 Jul (RF); Scott 13 Jun (TK); and Stoddard 3 Jul (TiJ). Three of these STFL sightings were at power substations as well. A Loggerhead Shrike, rare outside the west and southeast, was sighted on Red School Road St. Charles 19 Jul (TC, DHa,

DHo).

Page 47 THE BLUEBIRD Vireos to Meadowlark

Bell’s Vireo, rare in summer outside the northern and western parts of the state, were at DCCA Bollinger 11 Jul (MH), Bangert’s Lake Cape Girardeau 28 Jun (MH), Maintz Wildlife Preserve Cape Girardeau 13 Jul (AG), Horners- ville Swamp CA Dunklin (TiJ), Mat- thews New Madrid 2 Jun (TK), and Otter Slough CA Stoddard 13 Jun, 30 Jun, 2 Jul (BJ, PMo, MH, Cindy Price). Tying the 2nd latest spring record, a Blue-headed Vireo showed up at Binder Lake Cole 5 Jun (PMo). Chris Barrigar found a †Winter Wren (acc.), a remarkable first summer record for Missouri, in his Russellville yard Cole 18-24 Jun. Lake Contrary Buchanan hosted a Marsh Wren 22-30 Jul Pine Siskin, Union Franklin 31 Jul (TMc,TN, JD), as did Weston Bend SP 2019. Photo Danny Brown Platte 15 Jul (Eugene Riggs) and Wel- don Spring CA St. Charles 25 Jul (Trevor Leitz). A Swainson’s Thrush remained at TGP 2 Jun (JB). A Pine Siskin was a surprise visitor at a feeder in Jackson county 11 Jul (Raymond Dake), and one was in Union Franklin 31 Jul (Danny Brown). Grasshopper Sparrow is rare in the southeast, but 2 were heard on a BBS, one in Bollinger county and one in Perry county 3 Jun (MH, AG), and up to four at a time were in the Pocahontas Cape Girardeau area 2 Jun-30 Jul (AG). They were also in Dunklin 27 Jul (TiJ), New Madrid 2 Jun (TK) and 22 Jul (Rhonda Rothrock), and Scott 11 Jun (LB). A White-throated Sparrow (acc.), casual in summer, showed up at Shaw Nature Reserve Franklin 16 Jun (†Yvonne Homeyer, ph.). A rare Vesper Sparrow appeared for a group at DRP 28 Jul (MG, MLs, SL, KC). Song Sparrow is rare in the southwest in summer, with two sightings in Taney, one at the Ruth and Paul Henning CA 8 Jun (Malise Prieto) and one in Hollister (Kathleen Wann). A male Yellow-headed Blackbird (acc.), casual outside the northwest, popped up in Dunklin County 28 Jun (†TK). Rare in the southeast, 2 Bobolinks were at Otter Slough CA Stoddard 7 Jun (RF). Western Meadowlarks are permanent residents in the northwest corner, one each at a couple of spots on US 275 Atchison 7 Jun (David Tønnessen), up to 3 at a time at Muskrat Lake Buchanan 1 Jun-30 Jul (TN), one at Horseshoe Lake Buchanan 7 Jun (TN), 2 at DRP for a Burroughs Audubon field trip 2 Jun (m. obs.) and others at DRP 22 Jun and 29 Jul (MS, MG, SL).

Warblers to Buntings

Ovenbirds, rare in the north in summer, were at three locations in Adair

Page 48 THE BLUEBIRD County: Sugar Creek Subdivision and Sugar Creek CA 7 Jun-6 Jul (PK); Highway F 4 Jun (BJ, PMo); and Thousand Hills SP 5-20 Jul (TMi, PK). They were also in Putnam County 3 Jun, 14 Jun (Nicole Castaneda), Union Ridge CA Sullivan 4 Jun (Sarah Kendrick), Clark CA Clark 9 Jun (ML), and Deer Ridge CA Lewis 10 Jun (ML). Sugar Creek Subdivision Adair seems to be a good place for summer warblers, as it also housed a rare Worm-eating Warbler 7-14 Jun (PK). There were only two sightings this summer of Swainson’s Warbler. One was at Greer Crossing Oregon 1 and 13 Jun (Debbie Martin and Steve Martin, ph., Michael Taylor). A pair were found by flamingo chasers at DPCA 21 Jul (Gary Langell, Amy Kearns, Cathy Meyer). The last Mourning Warbler was in Clinton County 2 Jun (SB). The most northern Pine Warblers were singles at Busch CA St. Charles 1- 20 Jun (m.obs), Camden 5 Jul (Perry Yingling), one Shaw Nature Reserve Franklin (MT), and Rockwoods Reservation St. Louis 23 Jun (CM, JMa). A single male Yellow-rumped Warbler (acc.) was at El Dorado Springs Ce- dar 13 Jun (†JMo), while one at Chert Hollow Farm Boone 8 Jun tied the previous record late spring sighting (*Joanna Reuter). The only Prairie Warbler in the north was at Union Ridge CA Sullivan 4 Jun (SK). Painted Bunting is casual outside the southwest, so two such sightings were amply chased. One adult male first seen near Emmenegger Nature Park St. Louis in May continued as late as 16 Jun (TG, acc., and m. obs.). A group of 3 including an adult male, a female, and an immature male were in Jefferson City Cole 9 Jun-23 Jul (m. obs., ph.).

Observers: Cornelius Alwood (CA), David Becher (DBe), Jay Huila Balvin (JB), Steve Bingham (SB), Leon Book (LB), Diane Bricmont (DBr), Tom Caraway (TC), Kathy Carroll (KC), Dan Cowell (DC), Varick Cowell (VC), Joanne Dial (JD), Rob Francis (RF), Kent Freeman (KF), Allen Gathman (AG), Malcolm Gold (MG), Jessie Goodwin (JG), Tommy Goodwin (TG), Doug Hommert (DHo), Mark Haas (MH), David Haenni (DHa), Brad Jacobs (BJ), Thomas Jones (ThJ), Timothy Jones (TiJ), Tim Kavan (TK), Sarah Kendrick (SK), Peter Kondrashov (PK), Caleb Lashway (CL), Sherry Leonardo (SL), Micky Louis (MLs), Matt Longabaugh (ML), Pat Lueders (PL), Charlene Malone (CM), Jim Malone (JMa), Paul McKenzie (PMc), Terry McNeely (TMc), Terry Mil- ler (TeMi), Todd Miller (TMi), Pete Monacell (PMo), Joseph Mosley (JMo), Tom Nagel (TN), Tom Parmeter (TP), Andrew Rights (AR), Bill Rowe (BR), Matthew Sim (MS), Mike Thelen (MT), Shelby Thomas (ST), Edge Wade (EW).

Areas: Black Island CA Pemiscot (BICA), Donaldson Point CA New Madrid (DPCA), Duck Creek CA Wayne, Bollinger, Stoddard (DCCA), Dunn Ranch Prairie Harrison (DRP), Loess Bluffs NWR Holt (LBNWR), Riverlands Mi- gratory Bird Sanctuary (RMBS), Tower Grove Park St. Louis City (TGP).

† (alt 0134) reported, pending

Page 49 THE BLUEBIRD Acc. Accepted * Documentation needed

Sources: eBird.2018/2019. eBird: An online database of bird distribution and abun- dance [web application]. eBird, Ithaca, New York. Available: http:// www.ebird.org.

Guinan, P. (August 2019). June 2019-July 2019 Weather and Its Impacts on Missouri. Missouri Climate Center. Retrieved from: http:// climate.missouri.edu

Norvell, K. (29 May 2019) Interstate 29 is closed – again – due to flooding in Iowa, Missouri. Des Moines Register. Retrieved from:https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/2019/05/29/iowa- flooding-2019-interstate-29-closed-iowa-missouri-mills-county-fremont- county/1269363001/

US Geological Survey (December 2019) Archived River Gauge Data. Re- trieved from https://waterdata.usgs.gov

Acknowledgments: Thanks to Mary Nemecek for help throughout the process of preparing the report, and to Josh Uffman, Bill Rowe, and Jim Dinsmore for proofreading.

Painted Bunting Willard Greene 31 May 2019. Photo Paul McKenzie

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