In typical years, we should be within the peak of Spring bird migration at Cheyenne Bottoms.  While many of the early migrants seemed to be 2-3 weeks early this year, shorebirds seem to be coming through about when expected.  We hope to see a big push of shorebirds in the next couple weeks.  Either way, this is the time to come to Cheyenne Bottoms for some excellent bird watching.

There is a great diversity of all birds present at Cheyenne Bottoms right now: everything from ducks to pelicans and cormorants, to wading birds and shorebirds, and even song birds.

For shorebirds, their presence is definitely tied to available habitat.  Many of the pools on the Willdlife Area that were perfect shorebird habitat have now dried up.  Shorebirds can still be found in pockets throughout the area and along the water’s edge of most pools.  However, habitat is changing relatively quickly with the dry down and wind direction.

We are very glad to have water this year at Cheyenne Bottoms after a few years of drought and less than significant water available.  Most pools have at least some isolated pools of water, with Pool 1a, 1b, and 1c holding quite a bit of stored water.  Pool 2 and Pool 3a are probably the best for shorebirds.  There is also water available in the permanent marshes on TNC’s Preserve.

Quivira NWR water levels remain very good as well, and bird activity has been great.  Check out http://fws.gov/refuge/Quivira or call the Quivira NWR Headquarters at 620-410-4011 for updated conditions.

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 of birds that have been reported over the last couple weeks:

• Black-bellied Whistling Duck
• Snow Goose
• Ross’s Goose
• Greater White-fronted Goose
• Canada Goose
• Wood Duck
• Blue-winged Teal
• Cinnamon Teal
• Norther Shoveler
• Gadwall
• American Wigeon
• Mallard
• Northern Pintail
• Green-winged Teal
• Canvasback
• Redhead
• Ring-necked Duck
• Greater Scaup
• Lesser Scaup
• Bufflehead
• Common Goldeneye
• Hooded Merganser
• Red-breasted Merganser
• Ruddy Duck
• Northern Bobwhite
• Wild Turkey
• Greater Prairie-chicken
• Ring-necked Pheasant
• Rock Pigeon
• Eurasian Collared-Dove
• Mourning Dove
• Virginia Rail
• Sora
• Common Gallinule
• American Coot
• Black-necked Stilt
• American Avocet
• Black-bellied Plover
• American Golden Plover
• Killdeer
• Semipalmated Plover
• Piping Plover
• Snowy Plover
• Upland Sandpiper
• Long-billed Curlew
• Hudsonian Godwit
• Marbled Godwit
• Short-billed Dowitcher
• Long-billed Dowitcher
• Wilson’s Snipe
• Wilson’s Phalarope
• Spotted Sandpiper
• Solitary Sandpiper
• Lesser Yellowlegs
• Willet
• Greater Yellowlegs
• Stilt Sandpiper
• Sanderling
• Dunlin
• Baird’s Sandpiper
• Least Sandpiper
• Pectoral Sandpiper
• Western Sandpiper
• Semipalmated Sandpiper
• Bonaparte’s Gull
• Franklin’s Gull
• Ring-billed Gull
• American Herring Gull
• Lesser Black-backed Gull
• Forster’s Tern
• Pied-billed Grebe
• Horned Grebe
• Eared Grebe
• Western Grebe
• Double-crested Cormorant
• Neotropic Cormorant
• Glossy Ibis
• White-faced Ibis
• American Bittern
• Black-crowned Night Heron
• Little Blue Heron
• Snowy Egret
• Western Cattle Egret
• Great Egret
• Great Blue Heron
• American White Pelican
• Turkey Vulture
• Osprey
• Cooper’s Hawk
• Northern Harrier
• Bald Eagle
• Swainson’s Hawk
• Red-tailed Hawk
• American Barn Owl
• Great Horned Owl
• Burrowing Owl
• Barred Owl
• Belted Kingfisher
• Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
• Red-bellied Woodpecker
• Downy Woodpecker
• Hairy Woodpecker
• Northern Flicker
• American Kestrel
• Peregrine Falcon
• Eastern Phoebe
• Say’s Phoebe
• Western Kingbird
• Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
• Loggerhead Shrike
• Blue Jay
• American Crow
• Horned Lark
• Bank Swallow
• Tree Swallow
• Purple Martin
• Northern Rough-winged Swallow
• Barn Swallow
• Cliff Swallow
• Ruby-crowned Kinglet
• White-breasted Nuthatch
• Red-breasted Nuthatch
• Northern House Wren
• Marsh Wren
• European Starling
• Brown Thrasher
• Eastern Bluebird
• American Robin
• House Sparrow
• American Pipit
• House Finch
• American Goldfinch
• Grasshopper Sparrow
• Chipping Sparrow
• Lark Sparrow
• White-crowned Sparrow
• Harris’s Sparrow
• White-throated Sparrow
• Vesper Sparrow
• Savannah Sparrow
• Song Sparrow
• Swamp Sparrow
• Yellow-headed Blackbird
• Western Meadowlark
• Eastern Meadlowlark
• Red-winged Blackbird
• Brown-headed Cowbird
• Brewer’s Blackbird
• Common Grackle
• Great-tailed Grackle
• Yellow-rumped Warbler
• Northern Cardinal