It appears that we are on the downswing of Spring migration.  However, there are still plenty of birds to see at Cheyenne Bottoms.  While it seems to vary day-to-day, bird numbers and diversity are still good, but not as good as it was 2-3 weeks ago.  Shorebird numbers can be good if you find them.  There are still quite a few ducks on the area, but diversity is not quite as high (with mostly Blue-winged teal and Northern Shovelers present).  Summer resident birds, including most wading birds, have increased in number.  Songbird diversity has been great in the surrounding forested areas.

All roads are currently open through Cheyenne Bottoms.  Even after recent rains, the roads in and around the area have held up well. Travel with some caution immediately after spring rains.

Several pools of Cheyenne Bottoms Wildlife Area have been drawn down (i.e. Pools 3a, 4a, and 4b), and a couple of them appear mostly dry.  Look for the small pockets and puddles of water in these pools to find great shorebird activity.  Also, water in the inlet canal has been drained to allow work on one of the dikes.  This has created perfect mudflat habitat in the inlet canal and shorebirds have been numerous.  Other pools are quite full and are where wading birds and ducks can be found.  There is a wide variety of water depths throughout the area, creating some diversity of great habitat for many different species of water birds.  Be sure to also check out The Nature Conservancy’s Cheyenne Bottoms Preserve.  Their permanent marshes have held many birds of all kinds and the grassland areas have produced some excellent birds as well.

Birding at Quivira NWR has remained very good as well.  The most activity has been on the north end of the refuge around NE 170^th St and the Wildlife Driving Loop.  Check out http://fws.gov/refuge/Quivira.

Give us your reports.  We rely heavily on other birders to know what is being seen at Cheyenne Bottoms.  Submit reports to Ebird, or email your observations to wetlandscenter@fhsu.edu.

Here is a list birds that have been reported over the last couple weeks:

• Snow Goose
• Canada Goose
• Wood Duck
• Blue-winged Teal
• Northern Shoveler
• Gadwall
• American Wigeon
• Mallard
• Northern Pintail
• Green-winged Teal
• Redhead
• Ruddy Duck
• Northern Bobwhite
• Ring-necked Pheasant
• Pied-billed Grebe
• Eared Grebe
• Western Grebe
• Eurasian Collared Dove
• Mourning Dove
• Common Nighthawk
• Virginia Rail
• Sora
• American Coot
• Black-necked Stilt
• American Avocet
• Black-bellied Plover
• American Golden-Plover
• Snowy Plover
• Semipalmated Plover
• Piping Plover
• Killdeer
• Upland Sandpiper
• Hudsonian Godwit
• Marbled Godwit
• Ruddy Turnstone
• Stilt Sandpiper
• Sanderling
• Baird’s Sandpiper
• Least Sandpiper
• White-rumped Sandpiper
• Pectoral Sandpiper
• Semipalmated Sandpiper
• Western Sandpiper
• Short-billed Dowitcher
• Long-billed Dowitcher
• Wilson’s Snipe
• Wilson’s Phalarope
• Spotted Sandpiper
• Greater Yellowlegs
• Willet
• Lesser Yellowlegs
• Franklin’s Gull
• Ring-billed Gull
• Herring Gull
• Black Tern
• Forster’s Tern
• Neotropic Cormorant
• Double-crested Cormorant
• American White Pelican
• American Bittern
• Great Blue Heron
• Great Egret
• Snowy Egret
• Little Blue Heron
• Cattle Egret
• Green Heron
• Black-crowned Night-Heron
• White-faced Ibis
• Turkey Vulture
• Bald Eagle
• Swainson’s Hawk
• Red-tailed Hawk
• Great Horned Owl
• Red-headed Woodpecker
• Red-bellied Woodpecker
• Northern Flicker
• Peregrine Falcon
• Eastern Phoebe
• Great Crested Flycatcher
• Western Kingbird
• Eastern Kingbird
• Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
• Bell’s Vireo
• Warbling Vireo
• Loggerhead Shrike
• Blue Jay
• Horned Lark
• Northern Rough-winged Swallow
• Purple Martin
• Tree Swallow
• Bank Swallow
• Barn Swallow
• Cliff Swallow
• House Wren
• Marsh Wren
• European Starling
• Gray Catbird
• Brown Thrasher
• American Robin
• House Sparrow
• American Goldfinch
• Grasshopper Sparrow
• Chipping Sparrow
• Clay-colored Sparrow
• Lark Sparrow
• Lark Bunting
• White-crowned Sparrow
• Vesper Sparrow
• Savannah Sparrow
• Yellow-headed Blackbird
• Bobolink
• Western Meadowlark
• Eastern Meadowlark
• Orchard Oriole
• Baltimore Oriole
• Red-winged Blackbird
• Brown-headed Cowbird
• Common Grackle
• Great-tailed Grackle
• Nashville Warbler
• Common Yellowthroat
• Yellow Warbler
• Northern Cardinal
• Dickcissel