I just got a phone call from Pete Ernzen who relocated the Townsend Solitaire reported on December 20th, 2025, in the same or similar location in Gotch State Park in Humboldt County, so it appears to be hunkered down for the long haul at least. The location continues to be on the north side of the property between the main driving road and the foot trail on the northern edge of the property. This area is interspersed with small water ponds and lots of juniper thickets.
Date: 1/11/26 12:07 pm From: 'Art Check' via IA-BIRD <ia-bird...> Subject: [ia-bird] Pine Siskins
After being notably absent for most of the winter so far I’ve had about a dozen Pine Siskins visiting my feeders the last couple days which helps “break up” the usual suspects along with a continuing Red Breasted Nuthatch.
Art Check
Nevada
Sent from my iPhone
Date: 1/10/26 12:10 pm From: 'Tucker Lutter' via IA-BIRD <ia-bird...> Subject: [ia-bird] Townsend's Solitaire and Golden Eagle at Broken Kettle
Hello Birders, Bill Huser reports that the Loess Hills Audubon Society field trip relocated the Townsend's Solitaire and found a Golden Eagle at Broken Kettle Grasslands this morning. They were both seen along the lower portion of Butcher Road near the pond.
Good Birding,
Tucker Lutter
Date: 1/10/26 6:32 am From: Aaron Brees <aebrees...> Subject: Re: [ia-bird] Not a sighting, eBird email request for more documentation being misinterpreted.
I am one of several eBird reviewers for Iowa. Clayton is correct that many
of the request for detail emails that are sent are because the observer has
not provided an adequate response to the eBird prompt asking for comments
when submitting their checklist. There are two distinct types of flags
that can come up when submitting a checklist. One is the "R" symbol. This
is for when a bird is rare for the location or rare for the date. For this
flag, the observer needs to describe the bird to support the
identification. We often get comments like "Sitting in a tree" or "At my
feeder" which are fine to include if you want to, but are not of much value
in supporting an identification. What is useful is supporting field marks
and/or an explanation of why it wasn't a more common, similar species. The
second flag type is the "!" symbol. This is the "high count" flag. This
is saying that the bird is not necessarily rare for the date/location, but
that you are reporting a larger number than is expected for that
date/location. This flag is asking you to briefly explain how you arrived
at the number. Did you make an exact count of each bird? Did you take a
wild guess at a large flock? Did you count 10 and then use that block of
10 to estimate the rest of the flock? This flag is generally not asking
about the identification unless it is a species that has similar, more
likely similar species. This flag catches data entry errors (ex. you
intended 10 but typed 100) and gives others an idea of the accuracy of the
count.
The eBird app highlights any species that is flagged on your checklist and
prompts you add comments before it will let you submit the checklist. If
you can't remember what exactly is being asked for, you can just tap the
"R" or "!" symbol and an explanatory text box pops up.
On Sat, Jan 10, 2026 at 7:56 AM Clayton Will <willcfish...> wrote:
> Not a sighting, eBird <ebird-review...> email request for
> more information by eBird reviewers being misinterpreted.
> Twice in the last week I have had birders new to entering birds they had
> seen and entered into eBird express frustration that they were
> receiving emails from reviewers questioning the sighting. I explained that
> this is an automatically generated email based not only on the rarity of
> the bird but also by time of year for that species or number of birds seen.
> I told them it is not personal as the reviewer doesn't single them out and
> reviewers are all volunteers devoted to the compiling of accurate
> information. I explained that I get those notifications all the time. Also,
> I like to post photos for those birds or give a good description of the
> birds seen along with a reply to the reviewer that I corrected or deleted
> the observation.
> Hats off to our eBird reviewers.
> If anyone else has any input I'm missing please respond.
>
> Sincerely,
> Clayton Will
> Madrid
>
>
>
> --
> Post by sending an email to <ia-bird...>
> To search for an unfamiliar location, go to
> https://iowabirds.org/Places/FindLocation.aspx > This list is sponsored by the Iowa Ornithologists' Union -
> https://iowabirds.org/ - with membership open to all people interested in
> the birds of Iowa. Join today at https://iowabirds.org/IOU/Membership.aspx.
>
> IOU Code of Birding Ethics - https://iowabirds.org/Pages.aspx?pg=6 > ---
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> "IA-BIRD" group.
> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
> email to ia-bird+<unsubscribe...>
> To view this discussion visit
> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/CAHX11sgcaTNZvf2BaCA5j2mLQ8yG88SO4L_cTSXo0D_Hc4E%<2BJA...> > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/CAHX11sgcaTNZvf2BaCA5j2mLQ8yG88SO4L_cTSXo0D_Hc4E%<2BJA...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > .
>
Date: 1/10/26 5:56 am From: Clayton Will <willcfish...> Subject: [ia-bird] Not a sighting, eBird email request for more documentation being misinterpreted.
Not a sighting, eBird <ebird-review...> email request for more information by eBird reviewers being misinterpreted. Twice in the last week I have had birders new to entering birds they had seen and entered into eBird express frustration that they were receiving emails from reviewers questioning the sighting. I explained that this is an automatically generated email based not only on the rarity of the bird but also by time of year for that species or number of birds seen. I told them it is not personal as the reviewer doesn't single them out and reviewers are all volunteers devoted to the compiling of accurate information. I explained that I get those notifications all the time. Also, I like to post photos for those birds or give a good description of the birds seen along with a reply to the reviewer that I corrected or deleted the observation. Hats off to our eBird reviewers. If anyone else has any input I'm missing please respond.
Date: 1/8/26 10:51 am From: John and Anna Bissell <john.annabissell...> Subject: [ia-bird] Iowa RBA: 1-8-26
Iowa RBA birds reported from Saturday, January 3, to Thursday, January 8,
2026
RARE Species Mentioned (documentation required)
ACCIDENTAL
**BARROWS GOLDENEYE**
**SLATY-BACKED GULL**
CASUAL
*MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRD*
Additional Species Mentioned
Long-tailed Duck
Iceland Gull
Townsend’s Solitaire
Redpoll
***NEW!****************
For more up to date information on rarities in the state of Iowa, visit the
Iowa Birds and Birding website at www.Iowabirds.org
<http://www.iowabirds.org>
***********************
Species in ALL CAPS can be classified into three categories in the state of
Iowa: 1) UNRECORDED, ACCIDENTAL or Casual; 2) A RARE but regular species;
or 3) record early or late date or unusual for time of year. Any species
with three asterisks (***species***) would represent a first record for
Iowa (UNRECORDED) and should be observed and documented very carefully.
Species with two asterisks (**species**) are species that are either
ACCIDENTAL, CASUAL, or a rare regular species, and should also be
documented. Species with one asterisk (*species) should have some details
of the observation provided.
Please note this is an UNOFFICIAL compilation of rare bird sightings from
both eBird and the IOU listserve. Data for field reports and early/late
dates should not be taken from this weekly report.
NORTHEAST
DUBUQUE COUNTY
A SLATY-BACKED GULL was seen at Lock and Dam 11 on the 8th.
EAST
SCOTT COUNTY
2 LONG-TAILED DUCKS were seen at Lock and Dam 14 on the 7th.
An ICELAND GULL was seen at Lock and Dam 15 on the 4th.
JOHNSON COUNTY
A TOWNSENDS SOLITAIRE was seen along Blain Cemetery Rd near Swisher on the
3rd.
CENTRAL
DALLAS COUNTY
A BARROWS GOLDENEYE was seen at Maffitt Reservoir on the 8th.
POLK COUNTY
A REDPOLL was seen at Saylorville on the 5th.
NORTHWEST
SIOUX COUNTY
A MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRD was seen at Oak Grove and Big Sioux Park on the 4th.
PLYMOUTH COUNTY
A TOWNSENDS SOLITAIRE was seen at Broken Kettle Grasslands on the 6th.
The next scheduled report of the Iowa Rare Bird Alert will be for Friday,
January 16, 2026 for the weekly report. Should any UNRECORDED or ACCIDENTAL
species be reported, an update will be posted.
Just now walked out to enjoy the pleasant weather I spooked a mass
(flock) of Eurasian Collared Doves from my
gravel drive, presumably collecting grit. We occasionally have a pair
of EUCD gleaning under our BOSS feeders, but never
have I ever seen this many together. They scattered along the tree line
150 feet behind our house and hung out for 5 minutes
before erupting en masse. I counted 15 in flight. Scanning the trees
I found 1 more.
Steve
bird blessed this afternoon in rural Clarke Co.
Date: 1/7/26 2:23 pm From: <wxqisu...> Subject: [ia-bird] American black duck
After 5 years, finally got it closer to home in the Ada Hayden south lake this afternoon, my 276 Iowa lifer, the first in 2026. In the morning, it was too far to get any good shot. Another try after lunch, found it from the southeast side of the Bluff.
Now that the CBC season is over, it is time to reflect on the state of Iowa's winter birds. I've noticed in listserv messages from other states that sparrow numbers have been down considerably.
Since 1937 the IOU has a compiled and published the summary of each year's count data in Iowa Bird Life. That first year there were only nine counts completed and in 2024-25 we were up to 55! These published summaries will continue going forward, but instead of publishing large tables of hard to read information, the data will be available almost immediately as compilers enter their counts. As of today there are still many missing for this year, but you can review the preliminary results on https://iowabirds.org/Connections/CBCReports/ or by clicking on the "Iowa Results" link on the main CBC page. Naturally, weather conditions and the availability of open water impact count totals a great deal, but over time it will be interesting to see the differences year to year in the ten-year summaries. Enjoy!
Date: 1/6/26 10:01 am From: 'Tucker Lutter' via IA-BIRD <ia-bird...> Subject: [ia-bird] Red-shouldered Hawk in Lyon County
Hello Birders, A Red-shouldered Hawk was at the Nelson Tract of the Big Sioux WMA in Lyon County on Saturday, January 3rd. This species is quite rare in this part of the state, especially in winter.
A Hermit Thrush at this location was also a nice suprise.
Good Birding,
Tucker Lutter
Date: 1/6/26 9:33 am From: 'Tucker Lutter' via IA-BIRD <ia-bird...> Subject: [ia-bird] Townsend's Solitaire at Broken Kettle Grasslands
Hello Birders, I found a Townsend's Solitaire at Broken Kettle Grasslands in Plymouth County this morning. It was long Butcher Road at this location.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/UMFC7hbboudupQnT9 Good Birding,
Tucker Lutter
Date: 1/6/26 9:03 am From: Bill Ohde <billohde...> Subject: [ia-bird] yellow-bellied sapsucker
I have a female yellow-bellied sapsucker on my peanut feeder this morning, a first winter sapsucker for me. Located in Winneshiek county, 7.5 miles NE of Decorah.
Date: 1/4/26 12:51 pm From: 'Art Check' via IA-BIRD <ia-bird...> Subject: [ia-bird] Yellow House Finch
Had an interesting variant of house finch visit my feeders today. I’ve seen photos but never had one visit our place looking this yellow.
Art Check
Nevada
Date: 1/4/26 8:50 am From: Jim Durbin <bugmugger187...> Subject: [ia-bird] Birds from North Linn count
I had a Northern Shrike at the intersection of Lillie Road and Indian Bridge Road sitting on the wires. GPS 42.137980 -91.569736. I also had a Merlin on Red Bridge Road at GPS 42.253470 -91.499670. Sorry for the late post. We ended up with 46 species which is good for the count.
Jim Durbin 1460 Douglas Court Marion Ia 52302 319-721-1593
Date: 1/4/26 7:37 am From: Kellie H <xxkhaydenxx...> Subject: [ia-bird] (not a sighting) DeSoto Christmas Bird Count 2025 Results
Hi all, please bear with me--if you belong to the Iowa and Nebraska bird
listservs you may get this email more than once.
The DeSoto NWR Christmas Bird Count this year was held on December 20.
Within our circle includes DeSoto and Boyer Chute, Turkey Creek Preserve,
NP Dodge Park, Hummel Park, Neale Woods, and Hitchcock Nature Center. We
had great coverage with 45 participants, 4 feeder watches, and 1 owling
session! In addition to great volunteers, we had great weather conditions
for birding in the afternoon especially. While our overall individual bird
tally is down with only 22135 birds counted, we have reached an all-time
diversity high in our count’s history with at least 83 species and
subspecies represented between count day and count week (some birds could
only be narrowed down to a family are not included in the diversity tally).
New, notable, or missed sightings within our circle:
-
Ross’ Goose is conspicuously missing from our count this year (please
contact me you participated in this count and you did indeed count
some–mistakes happen during the digitization process!). Overall, our goose
numbers are lackluster compared to previous years.
-
We still had a decent Mallard showing with 8222 individuals counted.
-
No Eurasian Collared Doves were documented, making this the second year
in a row that this species is missing from our tally.
-
Our Mourning Dove count was especially low, with only 10 individuals
counted.
-
Red-shouldered Hawk was documented again this year, making that 3 years
out of the past 4 years that the species has been documented for our CBC.
-
We documented a Red-shafted Flicker for the first time since 2020!
-
Corvid numbers are relatively stable with 125 Blue Jays and 123 American
Crows. AMCR numbers are however still low in proportion to BLJA compared to
years prior to 2011, when some years AMCR could outnumber BLJA 2:1, 3:1, or
even 8:1.
-
After being missed in 2023 and 2024, Red-breasted Nuthatches are finally
back!
-
Brown Creeper numbers have bottomed out again, with only 1 BRCR counted
this year.
-
We counted a record high number of Winter Wrens this year!
-
For the first time ever in our count circle’s history, a Gray Catbird
can be marked as present during count week (I heard one mewling incessantly
within the circle's territory 2 days after our count).
-
While not at 2023’s record high, Eastern Bluebird numbers are back up to
106 this year. This is the fifth time ever in our count circle’s history
that EABLs have surpassed 100 individuals for count day.
-
American Robin numbers hit a record high since 2008 (4018 were counted
in 2008!)
-
Red Crossbills were documented for the second time in our CBC’s history
(the records I have go back to 1997)!
-
American Tree Sparrow numbers are low in again this year, about on par
with 2023’s count of 333 and 2018’s count of 380
-
Spotted Towhee numbers continue to creep up! We tallied 10 SPTO this
year, another record high for our circle.
Thank you to all the folks who participated this year. It truly couldn’t be
done without your continued involvement.
I included a full list below for those interested.
Date: 1/2/26 8:05 pm From: Clayton Will <willcfish...> Subject: Re: [ia-bird] Re: eagle activity below Red Rock Dam
A pair of Eagles in SW Florida survived covid and currently raising two
young after loosing chicks in 2024. They have a flat white eye that is
typical of birds that have survived covid. Tje link is to tje Florida
eagles.
On Fri, Jan 2, 2026, 19:22 <ghr...> <ghr...> wrote:
> Thanks, Paul, and everyone for their newsy comments. Happy birding!
>
> ------------------------------
> *From: *"Paul Brooks" <paulbrooks27944...>
> *To: *"IA-BIRD" <ia-bird...>
> *Sent: *Friday, January 2, 2026 4:10:50 PM
> *Subject: *[ia-bird] Re: eagle activity below Red Rock Dam
>
> The kettling activity is because most of the rivers are still pretty open,
> and there is no snow cover on the ground. They are normally fishing from
> the trees near the dam and dont have much open river. They are likely using
> the trees for rest at night, and then spreading out to search for other
> food sources during the day that would be easier than fishing. Warmer temps
> also slow their metabolism allowing for more "playful flight" opportunities
> than they would normally have, as they aren't burning as many calories
> trying to maintain body temperature. The large numbers are likely because
> of plentiful dead geese and other migratory water species above the dam
> from hunting and avian flu. If we get snow cover, and colder temps to
> freeze the rivers up, they will go back to their normal fishing close to
> the dam with many staying right below the outlet all day. But forecasts
> don't have any long stretches of cold weather in the next 2-3 weeks, so
> this behavior may continue for a while.
>
> On Friday, January 2, 2026 at 3:09:36 PM UTC-6 Martha Jane wrote:
>
>> Anyone else seen the enormous number of eagles "kettling" below Red Rock
>> dam? Sometimes mixing with gulls, and flying very very high? We've been
>> here this time of year before and not seen this behavior, plus this is the
>> most eagles we've seen congregated here in years – and usually the higher
>> numbers correspond with a super hard winter, which this has not been. Any
>> feedback welcome. Good birding in 2026!
>
> --
> Post by sending an email to <ia-bird...>
> To search for an unfamiliar location, go to
> https://iowabirds.org/Places/FindLocation.aspx > This list is sponsored by the Iowa Ornithologists' Union -
> https://iowabirds.org/ - with membership open to all people interested in
> the birds of Iowa. Join today at https://iowabirds.org/IOU/Membership.aspx.
>
> IOU Code of Birding Ethics - https://iowabirds.org/Pages.aspx?pg=6 > ---
> You received this message because you are subscribed to a topic in the
> Google Groups "IA-BIRD" group.
> To unsubscribe from this topic, visit
> https://groups.google.com/d/topic/ia-bird/ICFeSSgQF8A/unsubscribe.
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> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/<a3f4dc54-3d30-42bd-a188-2b3ad8567336n...> > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/<a3f4dc54-3d30-42bd-a188-2b3ad8567336n...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > .
>
> --
> Post by sending an email to <ia-bird...>
> To search for an unfamiliar location, go to
> https://iowabirds.org/Places/FindLocation.aspx > This list is sponsored by the Iowa Ornithologists' Union -
> https://iowabirds.org/ - with membership open to all people interested in
> the birds of Iowa. Join today at https://iowabirds.org/IOU/Membership.aspx.
>
> IOU Code of Birding Ethics - https://iowabirds.org/Pages.aspx?pg=6 > ---
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
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>
Date: 1/2/26 5:22 pm From: <ghr...> <ghr...> Subject: Re: [ia-bird] Re: eagle activity below Red Rock Dam
Thanks, Paul, and everyone for their newsy comments. Happy birding!
From: "Paul Brooks" <paulbrooks27944...>
To: "IA-BIRD" <ia-bird...>
Sent: Friday, January 2, 2026 4:10:50 PM
Subject: [ia-bird] Re: eagle activity below Red Rock Dam
The kettling activity is because most of the rivers are still pretty open, and there is no snow cover on the ground. They are normally fishing from the trees near the dam and dont have much open river. They are likely using the trees for rest at night, and then spreading out to search for other food sources during the day that would be easier than fishing. Warmer temps also slow their metabolism allowing for more "playful flight" opportunities than they would normally have, as they aren't burning as many calories trying to maintain body temperature. The large numbers are likely because of plentiful dead geese and other migratory water species above the dam from hunting and avian flu. If we get snow cover, and colder temps to freeze the rivers up, they will go back to their normal fishing close to the dam with many staying right below the outlet all day. But forecasts don't have any long stretches of cold weather in the next 2-3 weeks, so this behavior may continue for a while.
On Friday, January 2, 2026 at 3:09:36 PM UTC-6 Martha Jane wrote:
Anyone else seen the enormous number of eagles "kettling" below Red Rock dam? Sometimes mixing with gulls, and flying very very high? We've been here this time of year before and not seen this behavior, plus this is the most eagles we've seen congregated here in years – and usually the higher numbers correspond with a super hard winter, which this has not been. Any feedback welcome. Good birding in 2026!
Date: 1/2/26 3:21 pm From: <aj...> Subject: RE: [ia-bird] Re: eagle activity below Red Rock Dam
I just got back from Maffitt Reservoir and they have really cleaned up the carcasses that were there last week, so some are being removed.
Ann Johnson
Norwalk
From: <ia-bird...> <ia-bird...> On Behalf Of Paul Brooks
Sent: Friday, January 2, 2026 5:04 PM
To: IA-BIRD <ia-bird...>
Subject: Re: [ia-bird] Re: eagle activity below Red Rock Dam
No. They are saying that the carcasses are too contagious to be handled. I haven't seen any efforts. There is discussions going on, but the policies right now don't allow them to intervene.
On Friday, January 2, 2026 at 4:57:01 PM UTC-6 <argus......> <mailto:<argus......> wrote:
Is there any plan or effort to collect the carcasses before the eagles can get to them? Might help stop the spread?
On Fri, Jan 2, 2026 at 4:50 PM Paul Brooks <paulbro......> <mailto:<paulbro......> > wrote:
Yes, the can, and do get the flue from ingesting infected birds. USFWS is already reporting a few bald eagle deaths from it in SW Iowa and NW Missouri.
On Friday, January 2, 2026 at 4:37:56 PM UTC-6 <argus......> <mailto:<argus......> wrote:
Hello Paul,
Thank you for that very informative answer to the earlier question. Wanted to follow up with one of my own.
Can Eagles feeding on birds that have died of Avian Flu get the flu that way?
A. Battle
Rural Clarke County
On Fri, Jan 2, 2026 at 4:10 PM Paul Brooks <paulbro......> <mailto:<paulbro......> > wrote:
The kettling activity is because most of the rivers are still pretty open, and there is no snow cover on the ground. They are normally fishing from the trees near the dam and dont have much open river. They are likely using the trees for rest at night, and then spreading out to search for other food sources during the day that would be easier than fishing. Warmer temps also slow their metabolism allowing for more "playful flight" opportunities than they would normally have, as they aren't burning as many calories trying to maintain body temperature. The large numbers are likely because of plentiful dead geese and other migratory water species above the dam from hunting and avian flu. If we get snow cover, and colder temps to freeze the rivers up, they will go back to their normal fishing close to the dam with many staying right below the outlet all day. But forecasts don't have any long stretches of cold weather in the next 2-3 weeks, so this behavior may continue for a while.
On Friday, January 2, 2026 at 3:09:36 PM UTC-6 Martha Jane wrote:
Anyone else seen the enormous number of eagles "kettling" below Red Rock dam? Sometimes mixing with gulls, and flying very very high? We've been here this time of year before and not seen this behavior, plus this is the most eagles we've seen congregated here in years – and usually the higher numbers correspond with a super hard winter, which this has not been. Any feedback welcome. Good birding in 2026!
Date: 1/2/26 3:04 pm From: Paul Brooks <paulbrooks27944...> Subject: Re: [ia-bird] Re: eagle activity below Red Rock Dam
No. They are saying that the carcasses are too contagious to be handled. I
haven't seen any efforts. There is discussions going on, but the policies
right now don't allow them to intervene.
On Friday, January 2, 2026 at 4:57:01 PM UTC-6 <argus......> wrote:
> Is there any plan or effort to collect the carcasses before the eagles can
> get to them? Might help stop the spread?
>
> On Fri, Jan 2, 2026 at 4:50 PM Paul Brooks <paulbro......> wrote:
>
>> Yes, the can, and do get the flue from ingesting infected birds. USFWS is
>> already reporting a few bald eagle deaths from it in SW Iowa and NW
>> Missouri.
>>
>> On Friday, January 2, 2026 at 4:37:56 PM UTC-6 <argus......> wrote:
>>
>>> Hello Paul,
>>>
>>> Thank you for that very informative answer to the earlier question.
>>> Wanted to follow up with one of my own.
>>>
>>> Can Eagles feeding on birds that have died of Avian Flu get the flu that
>>> way?
>>>
>>> A. Battle
>>> Rural Clarke County
>>>
>>> On Fri, Jan 2, 2026 at 4:10 PM Paul Brooks <paulbro......> wrote:
>>>
>>>> The kettling activity is because most of the rivers are still pretty
>>>> open, and there is no snow cover on the ground. They are normally fishing
>>>> from the trees near the dam and dont have much open river. They are likely
>>>> using the trees for rest at night, and then spreading out to search for
>>>> other food sources during the day that would be easier than fishing. Warmer
>>>> temps also slow their metabolism allowing for more "playful flight"
>>>> opportunities than they would normally have, as they aren't burning as many
>>>> calories trying to maintain body temperature. The large numbers are likely
>>>> because of plentiful dead geese and other migratory water species above the
>>>> dam from hunting and avian flu. If we get snow cover, and colder temps to
>>>> freeze the rivers up, they will go back to their normal fishing close to
>>>> the dam with many staying right below the outlet all day. But forecasts
>>>> don't have any long stretches of cold weather in the next 2-3 weeks, so
>>>> this behavior may continue for a while.
>>>>
>>>> On Friday, January 2, 2026 at 3:09:36 PM UTC-6 Martha Jane wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Anyone else seen the enormous number of eagles "kettling" below Red
>>>>> Rock dam? Sometimes mixing with gulls, and flying very very high? We've
>>>>> been here this time of year before and not seen this behavior, plus this is
>>>>> the most eagles we've seen congregated here in years – and usually the
>>>>> higher numbers correspond with a super hard winter, which this has not
>>>>> been. Any feedback welcome. Good birding in 2026!
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> Post by sending an email to <ia-......>
>>>> To search for an unfamiliar location, go to
>>>> https://iowabirds.org/Places/FindLocation.aspx >>>> This list is sponsored by the Iowa Ornithologists' Union -
>>>> https://iowabirds.org/ - with membership open to all people interested
>>>> in the birds of Iowa. Join today at
>>>> https://iowabirds.org/IOU/Membership.aspx.
>>>> IOU Code of Birding Ethics - https://iowabirds.org/Pages.aspx?pg=6 >>>> ---
>>>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google
>>>> Groups "IA-BIRD" group.
>>>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send
>>>> an email to ia-bird+<u......>
>>>> To view this discussion visit
>>>> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/<a3f4dc54-3d30-42bd-a188-2b3ad8567336n...> >>>> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/<a3f4dc54-3d30-42bd-a188-2b3ad8567336n...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >>>> .
>>>>
>>> --
>> Post by sending an email to <ia-......>
>> To search for an unfamiliar location, go to
>> https://iowabirds.org/Places/FindLocation.aspx >> This list is sponsored by the Iowa Ornithologists' Union -
>> https://iowabirds.org/ - with membership open to all people interested
>> in the birds of Iowa. Join today at
>> https://iowabirds.org/IOU/Membership.aspx.
>> IOU Code of Birding Ethics - https://iowabirds.org/Pages.aspx?pg=6 >> ---
>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
>> "IA-BIRD" group.
>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
>> email to ia-bird+<u......>
>>
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>> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/<599d4425-794b-44d7-8438-5567b2228c5bn...> >> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/<599d4425-794b-44d7-8438-5567b2228c5bn...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >> .
>>
>
Date: 1/2/26 2:57 pm From: Angela Battle <argusbee23...> Subject: Re: [ia-bird] Re: eagle activity below Red Rock Dam
Is there any plan or effort to collect the carcasses before the eagles can
get to them? Might help stop the spread?
On Fri, Jan 2, 2026 at 4:50 PM Paul Brooks <paulbrooks27944...>
wrote:
> Yes, the can, and do get the flue from ingesting infected birds. USFWS is
> already reporting a few bald eagle deaths from it in SW Iowa and NW
> Missouri.
>
> On Friday, January 2, 2026 at 4:37:56 PM UTC-6 <argus......> wrote:
>
>> Hello Paul,
>>
>> Thank you for that very informative answer to the earlier question.
>> Wanted to follow up with one of my own.
>>
>> Can Eagles feeding on birds that have died of Avian Flu get the flu that
>> way?
>>
>> A. Battle
>> Rural Clarke County
>>
>> On Fri, Jan 2, 2026 at 4:10 PM Paul Brooks <paulbro......> wrote:
>>
>>> The kettling activity is because most of the rivers are still pretty
>>> open, and there is no snow cover on the ground. They are normally fishing
>>> from the trees near the dam and dont have much open river. They are likely
>>> using the trees for rest at night, and then spreading out to search for
>>> other food sources during the day that would be easier than fishing. Warmer
>>> temps also slow their metabolism allowing for more "playful flight"
>>> opportunities than they would normally have, as they aren't burning as many
>>> calories trying to maintain body temperature. The large numbers are likely
>>> because of plentiful dead geese and other migratory water species above the
>>> dam from hunting and avian flu. If we get snow cover, and colder temps to
>>> freeze the rivers up, they will go back to their normal fishing close to
>>> the dam with many staying right below the outlet all day. But forecasts
>>> don't have any long stretches of cold weather in the next 2-3 weeks, so
>>> this behavior may continue for a while.
>>>
>>> On Friday, January 2, 2026 at 3:09:36 PM UTC-6 Martha Jane wrote:
>>>
>>>> Anyone else seen the enormous number of eagles "kettling" below Red
>>>> Rock dam? Sometimes mixing with gulls, and flying very very high? We've
>>>> been here this time of year before and not seen this behavior, plus this is
>>>> the most eagles we've seen congregated here in years – and usually the
>>>> higher numbers correspond with a super hard winter, which this has not
>>>> been. Any feedback welcome. Good birding in 2026!
>>>
>>> --
>>> Post by sending an email to <ia-......>
>>> To search for an unfamiliar location, go to
>>> https://iowabirds.org/Places/FindLocation.aspx >>> This list is sponsored by the Iowa Ornithologists' Union -
>>> https://iowabirds.org/ - with membership open to all people interested
>>> in the birds of Iowa. Join today at
>>> https://iowabirds.org/IOU/Membership.aspx.
>>> IOU Code of Birding Ethics - https://iowabirds.org/Pages.aspx?pg=6 >>> ---
>>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google
>>> Groups "IA-BIRD" group.
>>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send
>>> an email to ia-bird+<u......>
>>> To view this discussion visit
>>> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/<a3f4dc54-3d30-42bd-a188-2b3ad8567336n...> >>> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/<a3f4dc54-3d30-42bd-a188-2b3ad8567336n...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >>> .
>>>
>> --
> Post by sending an email to <ia-bird...>
> To search for an unfamiliar location, go to
> https://iowabirds.org/Places/FindLocation.aspx > This list is sponsored by the Iowa Ornithologists' Union -
> https://iowabirds.org/ - with membership open to all people interested in
> the birds of Iowa. Join today at https://iowabirds.org/IOU/Membership.aspx.
>
> IOU Code of Birding Ethics - https://iowabirds.org/Pages.aspx?pg=6 > ---
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>
Date: 1/2/26 2:50 pm From: Paul Brooks <paulbrooks27944...> Subject: Re: [ia-bird] Re: eagle activity below Red Rock Dam
Yes, the can, and do get the flue from ingesting infected birds. USFWS is
already reporting a few bald eagle deaths from it in SW Iowa and NW
Missouri.
On Friday, January 2, 2026 at 4:37:56 PM UTC-6 <argus......> wrote:
> Hello Paul,
>
> Thank you for that very informative answer to the earlier question. Wanted
> to follow up with one of my own.
>
> Can Eagles feeding on birds that have died of Avian Flu get the flu that
> way?
>
> A. Battle
> Rural Clarke County
>
> On Fri, Jan 2, 2026 at 4:10 PM Paul Brooks <paulbro......> wrote:
>
>> The kettling activity is because most of the rivers are still pretty
>> open, and there is no snow cover on the ground. They are normally fishing
>> from the trees near the dam and dont have much open river. They are likely
>> using the trees for rest at night, and then spreading out to search for
>> other food sources during the day that would be easier than fishing. Warmer
>> temps also slow their metabolism allowing for more "playful flight"
>> opportunities than they would normally have, as they aren't burning as many
>> calories trying to maintain body temperature. The large numbers are likely
>> because of plentiful dead geese and other migratory water species above the
>> dam from hunting and avian flu. If we get snow cover, and colder temps to
>> freeze the rivers up, they will go back to their normal fishing close to
>> the dam with many staying right below the outlet all day. But forecasts
>> don't have any long stretches of cold weather in the next 2-3 weeks, so
>> this behavior may continue for a while.
>>
>> On Friday, January 2, 2026 at 3:09:36 PM UTC-6 Martha Jane wrote:
>>
>>> Anyone else seen the enormous number of eagles "kettling" below Red Rock
>>> dam? Sometimes mixing with gulls, and flying very very high? We've been
>>> here this time of year before and not seen this behavior, plus this is the
>>> most eagles we've seen congregated here in years – and usually the higher
>>> numbers correspond with a super hard winter, which this has not been. Any
>>> feedback welcome. Good birding in 2026!
>>
>> --
>> Post by sending an email to <ia-......>
>> To search for an unfamiliar location, go to
>> https://iowabirds.org/Places/FindLocation.aspx >> This list is sponsored by the Iowa Ornithologists' Union -
>> https://iowabirds.org/ - with membership open to all people interested
>> in the birds of Iowa. Join today at
>> https://iowabirds.org/IOU/Membership.aspx.
>> IOU Code of Birding Ethics - https://iowabirds.org/Pages.aspx?pg=6 >> ---
>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
>> "IA-BIRD" group.
>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
>> email to ia-bird+<u......>
>> To view this discussion visit
>> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/<a3f4dc54-3d30-42bd-a188-2b3ad8567336n...> >> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/<a3f4dc54-3d30-42bd-a188-2b3ad8567336n...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >> .
>>
>
Date: 1/2/26 2:37 pm From: Angela Battle <argusbee23...> Subject: Re: [ia-bird] Re: eagle activity below Red Rock Dam
Hello Paul,
Thank you for that very informative answer to the earlier question. Wanted
to follow up with one of my own.
Can Eagles feeding on birds that have died of Avian Flu get the flu that
way?
A. Battle
Rural Clarke County
On Fri, Jan 2, 2026 at 4:10 PM Paul Brooks <paulbrooks27944...>
wrote:
> The kettling activity is because most of the rivers are still pretty open,
> and there is no snow cover on the ground. They are normally fishing from
> the trees near the dam and dont have much open river. They are likely using
> the trees for rest at night, and then spreading out to search for other
> food sources during the day that would be easier than fishing. Warmer temps
> also slow their metabolism allowing for more "playful flight" opportunities
> than they would normally have, as they aren't burning as many calories
> trying to maintain body temperature. The large numbers are likely because
> of plentiful dead geese and other migratory water species above the dam
> from hunting and avian flu. If we get snow cover, and colder temps to
> freeze the rivers up, they will go back to their normal fishing close to
> the dam with many staying right below the outlet all day. But forecasts
> don't have any long stretches of cold weather in the next 2-3 weeks, so
> this behavior may continue for a while.
>
> On Friday, January 2, 2026 at 3:09:36 PM UTC-6 Martha Jane wrote:
>
>> Anyone else seen the enormous number of eagles "kettling" below Red Rock
>> dam? Sometimes mixing with gulls, and flying very very high? We've been
>> here this time of year before and not seen this behavior, plus this is the
>> most eagles we've seen congregated here in years – and usually the higher
>> numbers correspond with a super hard winter, which this has not been. Any
>> feedback welcome. Good birding in 2026!
>
> --
> Post by sending an email to <ia-bird...>
> To search for an unfamiliar location, go to
> https://iowabirds.org/Places/FindLocation.aspx > This list is sponsored by the Iowa Ornithologists' Union -
> https://iowabirds.org/ - with membership open to all people interested in
> the birds of Iowa. Join today at https://iowabirds.org/IOU/Membership.aspx.
>
> IOU Code of Birding Ethics - https://iowabirds.org/Pages.aspx?pg=6 > ---
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> "IA-BIRD" group.
> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
> email to ia-bird+<unsubscribe...>
> To view this discussion visit
> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/<a3f4dc54-3d30-42bd-a188-2b3ad8567336n...> > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/<a3f4dc54-3d30-42bd-a188-2b3ad8567336n...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > .
>
Date: 1/2/26 2:21 pm From: Doug & Nina Harr <dnharr...> Subject: [ia-bird] (not a sighting)--Iowa Audubon 2026 small grants
Iowa Audubon is now accepting applications for small grants in 2026. Avian conservation, science, or education applications will be accepted through March 1, then will be reviewed to select winning recipients at our mid-March board meeting. For application forms and instructions, please go to the following webpage: *https://iowaaudubon.org/Pages/IowaAudubon.aspx?pg=9 <https://iowaaudubon.org/Pages/IowaAudubon.aspx?pg=9>*
Doug Harr President [image: IowaAudubonLogoGIFlarge.jpg]
Date: 1/2/26 2:10 pm From: Paul Brooks <paulbrooks27944...> Subject: [ia-bird] Re: eagle activity below Red Rock Dam
The kettling activity is because most of the rivers are still pretty open,
and there is no snow cover on the ground. They are normally fishing from
the trees near the dam and dont have much open river. They are likely using
the trees for rest at night, and then spreading out to search for other
food sources during the day that would be easier than fishing. Warmer temps
also slow their metabolism allowing for more "playful flight" opportunities
than they would normally have, as they aren't burning as many calories
trying to maintain body temperature. The large numbers are likely because
of plentiful dead geese and other migratory water species above the dam
from hunting and avian flu. If we get snow cover, and colder temps to
freeze the rivers up, they will go back to their normal fishing close to
the dam with many staying right below the outlet all day. But forecasts
don't have any long stretches of cold weather in the next 2-3 weeks, so
this behavior may continue for a while.
On Friday, January 2, 2026 at 3:09:36 PM UTC-6 Martha Jane wrote:
> Anyone else seen the enormous number of eagles "kettling" below Red Rock
> dam? Sometimes mixing with gulls, and flying very very high? We've been
> here this time of year before and not seen this behavior, plus this is the
> most eagles we've seen congregated here in years – and usually the higher
> numbers correspond with a super hard winter, which this has not been. Any
> feedback welcome. Good birding in 2026!
Date: 1/2/26 1:09 pm From: Martha Jane <ghr...> Subject: [ia-bird] eagle activity below Red Rock Dam
Anyone else seen the enormous number of eagles "kettling" below Red Rock
dam? Sometimes mixing with gulls, and flying very very high? We've been
here this time of year before and not seen this behavior, plus this is the
most eagles we've seen congregated here in years – and usually the higher
numbers correspond with a super hard winter, which this has not been. Any
feedback welcome. Good birding in 2026!
Date: 1/2/26 10:05 am From: John and Anna Bissell <john.annabissell...> Subject: [ia-bird] Iowa RBA: 1-2-26
Iowa RBA birds reported from Saturday, December 27, to Friday, January 2,
2026
RARE Species Mentioned (documentation required)
ACCIDENTAL
**SLATY-BACKED GULL**
**BARROWS GOLDENEYE**
CASUAL
*MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRD*
Additional Species Mentioned
Long-tailed Duck
Iceland Gull
Townsend’s Solitaire
***NEW!****************
For more up to date information on rarities in the state of Iowa, visit the
Iowa Birds and Birding website at www.Iowabirds.org
<http://www.iowabirds.org>
***********************
Species in ALL CAPS can be classified into three categories in the state of
Iowa: 1) UNRECORDED, ACCIDENTAL or Casual; 2) A RARE but regular species;
or 3) record early or late date or unusual for time of year. Any species
with three asterisks (***species***) would represent a first record for
Iowa (UNRECORDED) and should be observed and documented very carefully.
Species with two asterisks (**species**) are species that are either
ACCIDENTAL, CASUAL, or a rare regular species, and should also be
documented. Species with one asterisk (*species) should have some details
of the observation provided.
Please note this is an UNOFFICIAL compilation of rare bird sightings from
both eBird and the IOU listserve. Data for field reports and early/late
dates should not be taken from this weekly report.
NORTHEAST
DUBUQUE COUNTY
An ICELAND GULL was seen at Lock and Dam 11 on the 28th.
A SLATY-BACKED GULL was seen at Lock and Dam 11 on the 28th.
BLACK HAWK COUNTY
A TOWNSENDS SOLITAIRE was seen at Black Hawk Park on the 28th.
EAST
JOHNSON COUNTY
A TOWNSENDS SOLITAIRE was seen in Swisher along Blain Cemetery Rd NW on the
1st.
SCOTT COUNTY
2 LONG-TAILED DUCKS were seen at Lock and Dam 14 on the1st.
CENTRAL
DALLAS COUNTY
A BARROWS GOLDENEYE was seen at Maffitt Reservoir on the 1st.
NORTHWEST
SIOUX COUNTY
A MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRD was seen at Oak Grove County Park on the 2nd.
The next scheduled report of the Iowa Rare Bird Alert will be for Friday,
January 9, 2026 for the weekly report. Should any UNRECORDED or ACCIDENTAL
species be reported, an update will be posted.
Date: 1/2/26 9:01 am From: 'Tucker Lutter' via IA-BIRD <ia-bird...> Subject: [ia-bird] Mountain Bluebird still present
Hello Birders, The Mountain Bluebird is still present at Oak Grove County Park in Sioux County this morning as of 10:50 am. It is easily seen looking south from the nature center. The lighting is not great but we think it is either a female or potentially a dull/young male. An intergrade Yellow-shafted x Red-shafted Flicker is in the same location with red underwings, some red in the nape, and no facial markings.
Good Birding,
Tucker Lutter
Date: 1/1/26 1:03 pm From: 'Tucker Lutter' via IA-BIRD <ia-bird...> Subject: [ia-bird] Mountain Bluebird - Sioux County
Hello Birders, Nathaniel DeJong reports a Mountain Bluebird from Oak Grove County Park in Sioux County this morning. It was in the ravine south of the nature center. From the photos it appears to be a female. This is the second sighting here within a year, the last was a male in March 2025.
Good Birding,
Tucker Lutter
Dubuque birders--- We have never birded in this area before, and we're thinking of going to Mines of Spain. What are the best spots in the SRA? I know there is a towhee and a few butterbutts somewhere. Or other good patches in or near Dubuque? Thanks for any suggestions! Markus Woolery Waterloo
Date: 12/31/25 3:22 pm From: Kevin Powers <kpowers.ia...> Subject: [ia-bird] Continuing Barrow's Goldeneye – Dallas County
The male Barrow's Goldeneye continues at Dale Maffitt Reservoir in West Des Moines. The bird flew in with an accumulating flock of about 100 Common Goldeneye around 4:30PM today.
Date: 12/31/25 11:15 am From: Karen Fieg <karenlfieg...> Subject: [ia-bird] Brenton Arboretum Dallas County
It was a good day to walk at the arboretum. I did the perimeter and flushed several pheasants and four Northern Bobwhites. I had many American Tree Sparrows along with the usual suspects. A nice treat was a Winter Wren at the far end of the Eddy Woods trail along the creek.
Happy New Year and may 2026 be a good year for birding!
Yesterday (12/29) on a cold evening with temps in the mid-teens I only saw two Merlins at Glendale Cemetery in Des Moines. One sat atop a spruce in Block 21 for at least 39 minutes, while another appeared briefly in the scragly ash in Block G at 5:04 pm, well after sunset (ss 4:53 pm). By contrast, tonight (12/30) there were six Merlins present at the same time from about 4:40 to 4:45 pm (ss 4:54), a high for the season. There were 2 in separate English oaks in Block 37, one atop a spruce in the SW corner of Masonic Block E, one atop the spruce in the NE corner of Block 21, one in the big burr oak in Block H, and one in the Amur cork tree in the SW corner of Block 27. Four stayed around until about 4:55 pm.
Date: 12/28/25 1:11 pm From: Paul Roisen <roisenp1950...> Subject: Re: [ia-bird] Not a sighting - Birding Etiquette in Iowa is Bad
I would concur with David regarding Iowa birders. I have been birding in
Iowa since December 2004. True, there are some people out there who are
more photographers and birdwatchers who are indeed quite selfish and
approach BIRDS, that other people are trying to see to the detriment of
other birders and sometimes scarring off the bird we were watching.
However, generally, very helpful and very caring and sharing often
sharing scopes to allow persons to see the bird.
I find that if I arrive and there are other people there, but if I get out
of my car and introduce myself and ask some questions about what they're
doing or what they're seeing or if they're willing to help me see the bird
that that often helps.
I would say that 99% of all my interactions with Iowa birdwatching
people have been positive with many people going out of their way to help
us see and get a good look at the bird or help us understand where the bird
is located.
You mentioned being on the dam, but being on the edge with your scope
off the road, does that mean you were at one of the pullouts or were you
actually on the road itself even though close to the very edge. If you were
on the road itself you were in violation of proper parking and or viewing
from the correct side of the road had to pull out instead of on the road
itself. I am not suggesting that's where you were. I'm just trying to
figure out why someone would get mad at you for being at a pull out. I'm
trying to get in front of you. I'm not sure how they could get in front of
you if you're right up to the edge anyway I would just suggest introducing
myself being pleasant and doing your best to get along with even people who
are a little bit touchy.
Again, I am sorry that you had such a terrible time and I hope that
things go better that more enough people read this letter too go out of
their way to help you out when they meet you. This is why I suggest that
you introduce yourself be friendly ignore people who are being jerks. There
are all kinds of people in this world. Some are very good birdwatchers who
should never be allowed to be around other people. Yes there are
self-centered people that people who think too much of themselves in any
community, but that would less than 1% in my opinion in Iowa.
May you have a blessed rest of this year and a happy new year my name is
Paul Roisen if you ever run across me, I'll be more than happy to help you
out. God bless.
*Paul O. Roisen*
*Sioux City, IA 51106 **Woodbury County, IA*
*Mobile 712-301-2817 **<roisenp1950...> <roisenp1950...>*
On Sun, Dec 28, 2025 at 8:58 AM David Steil <bluewingcarvings...>
wrote:
> Robert,
>
> Sorry for your experience.
>
> But it not has been mine. I am just starting out birding but it has been
> my experience that the birders in Iowa are very helpful and courteous. Two
> birders helped my wife and I find the best spot to observe the Swallow
> tailed Kite south of Indianola this year. We in turn showed others when
> they showed up. We even talked and shared our binoculars with the farmer
> whose property we were close to so he could see the Kite. I have had other
> IA birders help me find numerous other birds on my outings and si far I
> never had a bad experience.
>
> I know this is going to be a good hobby for me once I retire.
>
> Cheers, David.
>
> On Sat, Dec 27, 2025, 8:39 PM Robert Hibbitts <hibbittsrhh...>
> wrote:
>
>> This is my second year birding in Iowa. I have been all over epic places
>> in past and rarely ran into any attitudes or had issues. Costa Rica,
>> pelagic, and Alaska with lifers that we missed, people didn’t have issues.
>>
>> Iowa, folk are aggressive.
>>
>> In past two years I have run into numerous folk who just ignored
>> etiquette or were just mean. Most just ignore another birder to get camera
>> shots but I don’t attribute those to being a birder. Some are birders that
>> try to park in front of you or tell you off of being near them.
>>
>> In past month, I have had two people deliberately pull in front of my
>> scope to set up theirs. I have had one person yell at me to get out of his
>> way on Saylorville dam when I was parked at edge and scope was off
>> pavement, then pull in front of my truck and never get out. Window birders.
>>
>> I don’t know what it is about Iowa birders, they don’t want to talk or
>> are so envious about others seeing something when they are late. A lot of
>> folk I encounter never get out of car. Case in point was parasitic jaeger
>> on Saylorville. People set up scopes in car and never got out, then yelled
>> if we were in their view frame. Sorry to those again.
>>
>> What happened to birding as a community?
>>
>> -Robert
>> Des Moines
>>
>>
>> --
>> Post by sending an email to <ia-bird...>
>> To search for an unfamiliar location, go to
>> https://iowabirds.org/Places/FindLocation.aspx >> This list is sponsored by the Iowa Ornithologists' Union -
>> https://iowabirds.org/ - with membership open to all people interested
>> in the birds of Iowa. Join today at
>> https://iowabirds.org/IOU/Membership.aspx.
>> IOU Code of Birding Ethics - https://iowabirds.org/Pages.aspx?pg=6 >> ---
>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
>> "IA-BIRD" group.
>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
>> email to ia-bird+<unsubscribe...>
>> To view this discussion visit
>> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/CAECoFwVv8_bTZ%3DbNO8Ucz7-SVZUTsYkxf%<2BdY__dj2VGs9J6Mfg...> >> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/CAECoFwVv8_bTZ%3DbNO8Ucz7-SVZUTsYkxf%<2BdY__dj2VGs9J6Mfg...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >> .
>>
> --
> Post by sending an email to <ia-bird...>
> To search for an unfamiliar location, go to
> https://iowabirds.org/Places/FindLocation.aspx > This list is sponsored by the Iowa Ornithologists' Union -
> https://iowabirds.org/ - with membership open to all people interested in
> the birds of Iowa. Join today at https://iowabirds.org/IOU/Membership.aspx.
>
> IOU Code of Birding Ethics - https://iowabirds.org/Pages.aspx?pg=6 > ---
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> "IA-BIRD" group.
> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
> email to ia-bird+<unsubscribe...>
> To view this discussion visit
> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/CALkShD%<3DmLzGNeVEkNGxYkqA1aucb97rz6Zx9Xk7bxY59H4BV_w...> > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/CALkShD%<3DmLzGNeVEkNGxYkqA1aucb97rz6Zx9Xk7bxY59H4BV_w...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > .
>
Date: 12/28/25 12:30 pm From: Tommy Stone <tomtazzstone...> Subject: [ia-bird] Slaty-backed Gull continues
I watched the Slaty-backed Gull on the ice, and flying below the dam, along with several other birders. This was a lifer for me. The ad. Iceland Gull was also there.
Date: 12/28/25 8:36 am From: Dan Cohen <dwcohen81...> Subject: [ia-bird] December 26 Townsend's solitaire
A Townsend's solitaire was hanging out about 0.7 mile north on the trail
past the shooting range at Black Hawk Oark in Black Hawk County on December
27.
Date: 12/28/25 6:58 am From: David Steil <bluewingcarvings...> Subject: Re: [ia-bird] Not a sighting - Birding Etiquette in Iowa is Bad
Robert,
Sorry for your experience.
But it not has been mine. I am just starting out birding but it has been
my experience that the birders in Iowa are very helpful and courteous. Two
birders helped my wife and I find the best spot to observe the Swallow
tailed Kite south of Indianola this year. We in turn showed others when
they showed up. We even talked and shared our binoculars with the farmer
whose property we were close to so he could see the Kite. I have had other
IA birders help me find numerous other birds on my outings and si far I
never had a bad experience.
I know this is going to be a good hobby for me once I retire.
Cheers, David.
On Sat, Dec 27, 2025, 8:39 PM Robert Hibbitts <hibbittsrhh...> wrote:
> This is my second year birding in Iowa. I have been all over epic places
> in past and rarely ran into any attitudes or had issues. Costa Rica,
> pelagic, and Alaska with lifers that we missed, people didn’t have issues.
>
> Iowa, folk are aggressive.
>
> In past two years I have run into numerous folk who just ignored etiquette
> or were just mean. Most just ignore another birder to get camera shots but
> I don’t attribute those to being a birder. Some are birders that try to
> park in front of you or tell you off of being near them.
>
> In past month, I have had two people deliberately pull in front of my
> scope to set up theirs. I have had one person yell at me to get out of his
> way on Saylorville dam when I was parked at edge and scope was off
> pavement, then pull in front of my truck and never get out. Window birders.
>
> I don’t know what it is about Iowa birders, they don’t want to talk or are
> so envious about others seeing something when they are late. A lot of folk
> I encounter never get out of car. Case in point was parasitic jaeger on
> Saylorville. People set up scopes in car and never got out, then yelled if
> we were in their view frame. Sorry to those again.
>
> What happened to birding as a community?
>
> -Robert
> Des Moines
>
>
> --
> Post by sending an email to <ia-bird...>
> To search for an unfamiliar location, go to
> https://iowabirds.org/Places/FindLocation.aspx > This list is sponsored by the Iowa Ornithologists' Union -
> https://iowabirds.org/ - with membership open to all people interested in
> the birds of Iowa. Join today at https://iowabirds.org/IOU/Membership.aspx.
>
> IOU Code of Birding Ethics - https://iowabirds.org/Pages.aspx?pg=6 > ---
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> "IA-BIRD" group.
> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
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> To view this discussion visit
> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/CAECoFwVv8_bTZ%3DbNO8Ucz7-SVZUTsYkxf%<2BdY__dj2VGs9J6Mfg...> > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/CAECoFwVv8_bTZ%3DbNO8Ucz7-SVZUTsYkxf%<2BdY__dj2VGs9J6Mfg...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > .
>
Date: 12/27/25 6:39 pm From: Robert Hibbitts <hibbittsrhh...> Subject: [ia-bird] Not a sighting - Birding Etiquette in Iowa is Bad
This is my second year birding in Iowa. I have been all over epic places in
past and rarely ran into any attitudes or had issues. Costa Rica, pelagic,
and Alaska with lifers that we missed, people didn’t have issues.
Iowa, folk are aggressive.
In past two years I have run into numerous folk who just ignored etiquette
or were just mean. Most just ignore another birder to get camera shots but
I don’t attribute those to being a birder. Some are birders that try to
park in front of you or tell you off of being near them.
In past month, I have had two people deliberately pull in front of my scope
to set up theirs. I have had one person yell at me to get out of his way on
Saylorville dam when I was parked at edge and scope was off pavement, then
pull in front of my truck and never get out. Window birders.
I don’t know what it is about Iowa birders, they don’t want to talk or are
so envious about others seeing something when they are late. A lot of folk
I encounter never get out of car. Case in point was parasitic jaeger on
Saylorville. People set up scopes in car and never got out, then yelled if
we were in their view frame. Sorry to those again.
Date: 12/27/25 6:19 pm From: Tommy Stone <tomtazzstone...> Subject: [ia-bird] Iceland Gull - Dubuque
I went to look for the Slaty-backed Gull at L&D 11 at around 3:30 with no luck. I did see one adult Iceland Gull (Kumlien's). This bird had very pale primaries, with very little gray.
Date: 12/26/25 8:47 pm From: Roy Adolphson <roydjoy47...> Subject: [ia-bird] Five Merlins
Tonight (12/26) around sunset (ss 4:50 pm) five Merlins were seen at the same time at Glendale Cemetery in Des Moines. Between 4:43 and 4:50 there was one each perched in different trees in Block 21, 27, 32B, G, and Masonic E. On Christmas Day I did not find any Merlins showing around sunset under heavily overcast skies and persistent drizzle. The overcast continued today with light fog, but the Merlins showed up.
The moderate temps and low wind made birding at Owego a truly enjoyable experience late today.
More Rough-Legged hawks were hovering, flying, and perching than I have ever found here previously, including at least two dark morphs. Widespread. I put down 8 in my checklist, but there were more.
Three Short-Eared owls popped up after (unfortunately) sunset. They were close and one flew right over my head. Another I only heard.
Has anyone looked for the Barrow's Goldeneye at Maffitt Reservoir in the past few days? I was contemplating a trip tomorrow, but the last report I saw was Tuesday morning. Thanks.
Date: 12/26/25 9:46 am From: John and Anna Bissell <john.annabissell...> Subject: [ia-bird] Iowa RBA: 12-26-25
Iowa RBA birds reported from Saturday, December 20, to Friday, December 26,
2025
RARE Species Mentioned (documentation required)
ACCIDENTAL
**BARROWS GOLDENEYE**
CASUAL
*FERRUGINOUS HAWK*
Additional Species Mentioned
American Barn Owl
Townsend’s Solitaire
***NEW!****************
For more up to date information on rarities in the state of Iowa, visit the
Iowa Birds and Birding website at www.Iowabirds.org
<http://www.iowabirds.org>
***********************
Species in ALL CAPS can be classified into three categories in the state of
Iowa: 1) UNRECORDED, ACCIDENTAL or Casual; 2) A RARE but regular species;
or 3) record early or late date or unusual for time of year. Any species
with three asterisks (***species***) would represent a first record for
Iowa (UNRECORDED) and should be observed and documented very carefully.
Species with two asterisks (**species**) are species that are either
ACCIDENTAL, CASUAL, or a rare regular species, and should also be
documented. Species with one asterisk (*species) should have some details
of the observation provided.
Please note this is an UNOFFICIAL compilation of rare bird sightings from
both eBird and the IOU listserve. Data for field reports and early/late
dates should not be taken from this weekly report.
NORTH CENTRAL
CERRO GORDO COUNTY
A TOWNSENDS SOLITAIRE was seen at Mike Zack WA on the 20th.
EAST
JOHNSON COUNTY
A TOWNSENDS SOLITAIRE was seen along Seneca Rd on the 22nd.
CENTRAL
DALLAS COUNTY
A BARROWS GOLDENEYE was seen at Maffitt Reservoir on the 23rd.
SOUTH CENTRAL
RINGGOLD COUNTY
An AMERICAN BARN OWL was seen at Kellerton WMA on the 21st.
NORTHWEST
HUMBOLDT COUNTY
A TOWNSENDS SOLITAIRE was seen at Gotch SP on the 20th.
BUENA VISTA COUNTY
A FERRUGINOUS HAWK was seen in Storm Lake near the wastewater treatment
plant on the 24th.
The next scheduled report of the Iowa Rare Bird Alert will be for Friday,
January 2, 2026 for the weekly report. Should any UNRECORDED or ACCIDENTAL
species be reported, an update will be posted.
Date: 12/25/25 3:47 am From: <ritag...> Subject: RE: [ia-bird] the reason for Not a Sighting, Habitat destruction at Big Creek State Park for cropland
I am sure that the DNR knows more about habitat and what needs to be done to preserve it in Iowa than the general public. I just wish when they did disturb a site that they would then post a sign with the icon that you scan that would explain what they did and why. This would be so helpful to the public to then understand why their favorite spot for birding is gone.
Rita Goranson
From: 'Dinsmore, Stephen J [NREM]' via IA-BIRD <ia-bird...>
Sent: Tuesday, December 23, 2025 1:47 PM
To: IA-BIRD <ia-bird...>
Subject: RE: [ia-bird] the reason for Not a Sighting, Habitat destruction at Big Creek State Park for cropland
I’ll second everything Kevin says. Clayton’s message is full of errors and misinterpretation – this won’t be turned into cropland, “habitat” is a vague term and what is being created will be better “habitat” for some birds (and other wildlife) and worse for others, much of what is being removed is invasive honeysuckle and eastern red cedar, etc. Plant succession is a natural part of managing “habitat”. If left unmanaged, this early successional habitat will quickly disappear. The edges Clayton mentions are maintained by disturbance. As I’ve mentioned on this list previously, many of the local and uncommon bird species we enjoy benefit from this disturbance – Yellow- and Black-billed cuckoos, Willow Flycatcher, White-eyed and Bell’s vireos, Yellow-breasted Chat, Orchard Oriole, Blue-winged Warbler, and others plus all of the common birds using this habitat. Remove this disturbance and these species will disappear. Period. A great example is the east side of Big Creek State Park where it progressed from mostly grassland in the 1970s and 1980s to a scrubby and brushy area with small trees in the 1990s and 2000s, then to its current state of a much taller forest with a honeysuckle understory. Several of the birds I just mentioned used to breed here in small numbers and are now absent. Disturbance in the area noted by Clayton may create habitat for some of these species in the near future. This is a good thing. Disturbance thus has many benefits and should not always be viewed as a negative.
Thanks for taking the time to read this note.
Steve
**********
Stephen J. Dinsmore
Professor and Chair
Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management
Interim Director, Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture
From: <ia-bird...> <mailto:<ia-bird...> <ia-bird...> <mailto:<ia-bird...> > On Behalf Of Kevin Murphy
Sent: Tuesday, December 23, 2025 12:23 PM
To: Clayton Will <willcfish...> <mailto:<willcfish...> >
Cc: IA-BIRD <ia-bird...> <mailto:<ia-bird...> >
Subject: Re: [ia-bird] the reason for Not a Sighting, Habitat destruction at Big Creek State Park for cropland
Clayton,
There's a whole lot of nuance missing from your perception of habitat management. First and foremost, the area you are describing is NOT part of Big Creek State Park, it is part of Big Creek Wildlife Management Area. State Parks and WMA's have distinct/separate management goals and staff from each other. Areas around Army Corps reservoirs often have a complicated matrix of management organizations (Corps, DNR parks, DNR Wildlife, County) and goals/constraints, and it's vital to understand that structure to understand why things may be the way they are. Criticism of a management decision/plan is also different than a personal attack on agency staff that don't even have the management responsibility for the area in question, please do better going forward.
There's a lot of things that used to be true in the world of wildlife management that I'm quite grateful no longer are. Our understanding of the natural world and best habitat management practices changes constantly with the passage of time. In fact, there are lots of things that at one point were promoted in the name of habitat improvement or erosion control that in hindsight were profoundly bad ideas.....Autumn Olive, Multiflora Rose, Bush Honeysuckle, Buckthorn, and the list goes on. I'm guessing that the people involved in those decisions basically a century ago would choose differently if they saw the long term consequences of the introduction/spread of those invasive species. Historically some state and federal governments paid bounties for the persecution of predators including raptors in some places (a Red-tailed Hawk was worth 50 cents to the state of Maryland when their bounty program was active)...I'm pretty grateful wildlife management has changed since those times.
Promotion of edge habitat historically definitely was a benefit to recovering our White-tailed Deer population (the first modern hunting season was a limited effort in 1953 after basically total extirpation from the state by early settlement). During that same time period Iowa's landscape was fundamentally different from today with much smaller agricultural fields in constant rotation that included lots of pasture and small grains that were also beneficial to wildlife. The world around us is fundamentally different today than it was decades ago with a whole suite of new constantly evolving challenges and priorities for conservation, ignoring this fact is at our own peril.
There are definitely a suite of species that benefit greatly from early successional edges between woodland and grassland...Brown Thrashers, White-tailed Deer, Baltimore Oriole, Raccoons, and many more edge-loving habitat generalists. The other side of that coin is that other species are harmed by the presence of this same habitat type like Henslow's Sparrow, Bobolink, Northern Harrier, and a whole suite of other species that are grassland specialists. There is lots of published research on landscape habitat associations for birds, including work done right here in Iowa, that repeatedly demonstrate these relationships.
There are winners and losers in every single habitat management decision, and if we have to make choices about those winners and losers I'm quite comfortable with public land managers choosing to focus on the most imperiled habitat types for their efforts. Iowa doesn't lack edge habitat, but has lost functionally all of its historical grasslands. Iowa also ranks 49th (out of 50 for those keeping score) in the United States for availability of public land...with such a limited public resource it makes sense to try to manage for the most imperiled habitat types. I am not anti-edge-habitat, and happily spend a lot of time birding/hunting lots of scrubby edges. I am just able to recognize that our public resources need to be managed for long-term sustainability and preservation of entire imperiled ecosystems and not just my favorite activity to do on that public parcel. Do I like or agree with every decision made by the Iowa DNR? Definitely not. In spite of this do I also think that the Iowa DNR needs every bit of support and help we can muster? Resoundingly YES.
Good Birding,
Kevin Murphy, Boone
On Tue, Dec 23, 2025 at 9:18 AM Clayton Will <willcfish...> <mailto:<willcfish...> > wrote:
This didn't make my Christmas jolly. A quarter to half mile of hedgerow torn out along NW Madrid Drive between the two NW 100th st accesses. Ironic there is their own sign at that location that reads "Habitat is Key" when they tear out habitat to turn it back to cropland. This was a very popular access and dog walking area at a parking lot. The naturalist manager is a young 25 year old that has no idea what she is doing and I've told her that. For years I've said Big Creek State Park will be the first Treeless state park in Iowa. And so it continues. I have no idea what they are thinking. It's sure not rational.
It always used to be that edges were critical and they still are. Prairie and treeline edges are compatible but that's not what is being taught in college.
Date: 12/24/25 8:08 am From: Dana Siefer <danasiefer...> Subject: [ia-bird] Ferruginous Hawk
There is a Ferruginous Hawk hanging around the Storm Lake wastewater treatment plant in Buena Vista County this morning. I was watching it on a utility pole at the intersection of 640th st and 120th ave and it flew towards the sewage lagoons.
Date: 12/23/25 11:46 am From: 'Dinsmore, Stephen J [NREM]' via IA-BIRD <ia-bird...> Subject: RE: [ia-bird] the reason for Not a Sighting, Habitat destruction at Big Creek State Park for cropland
I’ll second everything Kevin says. Clayton’s message is full of errors and misinterpretation – this won’t be turned into cropland, “habitat” is a vague term and what is being created will be better “habitat” for some birds (and other wildlife) and worse for others, much of what is being removed is invasive honeysuckle and eastern red cedar, etc. Plant succession is a natural part of managing “habitat”. If left unmanaged, this early successional habitat will quickly disappear. The edges Clayton mentions are maintained by disturbance. As I’ve mentioned on this list previously, many of the local and uncommon bird species we enjoy benefit from this disturbance – Yellow- and Black-billed cuckoos, Willow Flycatcher, White-eyed and Bell’s vireos, Yellow-breasted Chat, Orchard Oriole, Blue-winged Warbler, and others plus all of the common birds using this habitat. Remove this disturbance and these species will disappear. Period. A great example is the east side of Big Creek State Park where it progressed from mostly grassland in the 1970s and 1980s to a scrubby and brushy area with small trees in the 1990s and 2000s, then to its current state of a much taller forest with a honeysuckle understory. Several of the birds I just mentioned used to breed here in small numbers and are now absent. Disturbance in the area noted by Clayton may create habitat for some of these species in the near future. This is a good thing. Disturbance thus has many benefits and should not always be viewed as a negative.
Thanks for taking the time to read this note.
Steve
**********
Stephen J. Dinsmore
Professor and Chair
Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management
Interim Director, Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture
Iowa State University
209 Science II
Ames, IA 50011
Phone: 515-294-1348
E-mail: <cootjr...><mailto:<cootjr...> Web: https://faculty.sites.iastate.edu/cootjr/
From: <ia-bird...> <ia-bird...> On Behalf Of Kevin Murphy
Sent: Tuesday, December 23, 2025 12:23 PM
To: Clayton Will <willcfish...>
Cc: IA-BIRD <ia-bird...>
Subject: Re: [ia-bird] the reason for Not a Sighting, Habitat destruction at Big Creek State Park for cropland
Clayton,
There's a whole lot of nuance missing from your perception of habitat management. First and foremost, the area you are describing is NOT part of Big Creek State Park, it is part of Big Creek Wildlife Management Area. State Parks and WMA's have distinct/separate management goals and staff from each other. Areas around Army Corps reservoirs often have a complicated matrix of management organizations (Corps, DNR parks, DNR Wildlife, County) and goals/constraints, and it's vital to understand that structure to understand why things may be the way they are. Criticism of a management decision/plan is also different than a personal attack on agency staff that don't even have the management responsibility for the area in question, please do better going forward.
There's a lot of things that used to be true in the world of wildlife management that I'm quite grateful no longer are. Our understanding of the natural world and best habitat management practices changes constantly with the passage of time. In fact, there are lots of things that at one point were promoted in the name of habitat improvement or erosion control that in hindsight were profoundly bad ideas.....Autumn Olive, Multiflora Rose, Bush Honeysuckle, Buckthorn, and the list goes on. I'm guessing that the people involved in those decisions basically a century ago would choose differently if they saw the long term consequences of the introduction/spread of those invasive species. Historically some state and federal governments paid bounties for the persecution of predators including raptors in some places (a Red-tailed Hawk was worth 50 cents to the state of Maryland when their bounty program was active)...I'm pretty grateful wildlife management has changed since those times.
Promotion of edge habitat historically definitely was a benefit to recovering our White-tailed Deer population (the first modern hunting season was a limited effort in 1953 after basically total extirpation from the state by early settlement). During that same time period Iowa's landscape was fundamentally different from today with much smaller agricultural fields in constant rotation that included lots of pasture and small grains that were also beneficial to wildlife. The world around us is fundamentally different today than it was decades ago with a whole suite of new constantly evolving challenges and priorities for conservation, ignoring this fact is at our own peril.
There are definitely a suite of species that benefit greatly from early successional edges between woodland and grassland...Brown Thrashers, White-tailed Deer, Baltimore Oriole, Raccoons, and many more edge-loving habitat generalists. The other side of that coin is that other species are harmed by the presence of this same habitat type like Henslow's Sparrow, Bobolink, Northern Harrier, and a whole suite of other species that are grassland specialists. There is lots of published research on landscape habitat associations for birds, including work done right here in Iowa, that repeatedly demonstrate these relationships.
There are winners and losers in every single habitat management decision, and if we have to make choices about those winners and losers I'm quite comfortable with public land managers choosing to focus on the most imperiled habitat types for their efforts. Iowa doesn't lack edge habitat, but has lost functionally all of its historical grasslands. Iowa also ranks 49th (out of 50 for those keeping score) in the United States for availability of public land...with such a limited public resource it makes sense to try to manage for the most imperiled habitat types. I am not anti-edge-habitat, and happily spend a lot of time birding/hunting lots of scrubby edges. I am just able to recognize that our public resources need to be managed for long-term sustainability and preservation of entire imperiled ecosystems and not just my favorite activity to do on that public parcel. Do I like or agree with every decision made by the Iowa DNR? Definitely not. In spite of this do I also think that the Iowa DNR needs every bit of support and help we can muster? Resoundingly YES.
Good Birding,
Kevin Murphy, Boone
On Tue, Dec 23, 2025 at 9:18 AM Clayton Will <willcfish...><mailto:<willcfish...>> wrote:
This didn't make my Christmas jolly. A quarter to half mile of hedgerow torn out along NW Madrid Drive between the two NW 100th st accesses. Ironic there is their own sign at that location that reads "Habitat is Key" when they tear out habitat to turn it back to cropland. This was a very popular access and dog walking area at a parking lot. The naturalist manager is a young 25 year old that has no idea what she is doing and I've told her that. For years I've said Big Creek State Park will be the first Treeless state park in Iowa. And so it continues. I have no idea what they are thinking. It's sure not rational.
It always used to be that edges were critical and they still are. Prairie and treeline edges are compatible but that's not what is being taught in college.
I walked around Springbrook State Park (Guthrie County) lake late morning.
At far north end there was one vocal but secretive Swamp Sparrow and
another quiet but photogenic one. Photo attached. I'm pretty sure the ID is
correct. Also a Belted Kingfisher who was chattering away. A couple of
hawks, Canada Geese at north end that flew off as I approached on the
trail. Beautiful day to be outdoors! On a sad note, several dead Canada
Geese at Bay's Branch. 😟
Date: 12/23/25 10:23 am From: Kevin Murphy <kevin.murphy39...> Subject: Re: [ia-bird] the reason for Not a Sighting, Habitat destruction at Big Creek State Park for cropland
Clayton,
There's a whole lot of nuance missing from your perception of habitat
management. First and foremost, the area you are describing is NOT part of
Big Creek State Park, it is part of Big Creek Wildlife Management Area.
State Parks and WMA's have distinct/separate management goals and staff
from each other. Areas around Army Corps reservoirs often have a
complicated matrix of management organizations (Corps, DNR parks, DNR
Wildlife, County) and goals/constraints, and it's vital to understand that
structure to understand why things may be the way they are. Criticism of a
management decision/plan is also different than a personal attack on agency
staff that don't even have the management responsibility for the area in
question, please do better going forward.
There's a lot of things that used to be true in the world of wildlife
management that I'm quite grateful no longer are. Our understanding of the
natural world and best habitat management practices changes constantly with
the passage of time. In fact, there are lots of things that at one point
were promoted in the name of habitat improvement or erosion control
that in hindsight were profoundly bad ideas.....Autumn Olive, Multiflora
Rose, Bush Honeysuckle, Buckthorn, and the list goes on. I'm guessing that
the people involved in those decisions basically a century ago would choose
differently if they saw the long term consequences of the
introduction/spread of those invasive species. Historically some state and
federal governments paid bounties for the persecution of predators
including raptors in some places (a Red-tailed Hawk was worth 50 cents to
the state of Maryland when their bounty program was active)...I'm pretty
grateful wildlife management has changed since those times.
Promotion of edge habitat historically definitely was a benefit to
recovering our White-tailed Deer population (the first modern hunting
season was a limited effort in 1953 after basically total extirpation from
the state by early settlement). During that same time period Iowa's
landscape was fundamentally different from today with much smaller
agricultural fields in constant rotation that included lots of pasture and
small grains that were also beneficial to wildlife. The world around us is
fundamentally different today than it was decades ago with a whole suite of
new constantly evolving challenges and priorities for conservation,
ignoring this fact is at our own peril.
There are definitely a suite of species that benefit greatly from early
successional edges between woodland and grassland...Brown Thrashers,
White-tailed Deer, Baltimore Oriole, Raccoons, and many more edge-loving
habitat generalists. The other side of that coin is that other species are
harmed by the presence of this same habitat type like Henslow's Sparrow,
Bobolink, Northern Harrier, and a whole suite of other species that are
grassland specialists. There is lots of published research on landscape
habitat associations for birds, including work done right here in Iowa,
that repeatedly demonstrate these relationships.
There are winners and losers in every single habitat management decision,
and if we have to make choices about those winners and losers I'm quite
comfortable with public land managers choosing to focus on the most
imperiled habitat types for their efforts. Iowa doesn't lack edge habitat,
but has lost functionally all of its historical grasslands. Iowa also ranks
49th (out of 50 for those keeping score) in the United States for
availability of public land...with such a limited public resource it makes
sense to try to manage for the most imperiled habitat types. I am not
anti-edge-habitat, and happily spend a lot of time birding/hunting lots of
scrubby edges. I am just able to recognize that our public resources need
to be managed for long-term sustainability and preservation of entire
imperiled ecosystems and not just my favorite activity to do on that public
parcel. Do I like or agree with every decision made by the Iowa DNR?
Definitely not. In spite of this do I also think that the Iowa DNR needs
every bit of support and help we can muster? Resoundingly YES.
Good Birding,
Kevin Murphy, Boone
On Tue, Dec 23, 2025 at 9:18 AM Clayton Will <willcfish...> wrote:
> This didn't make my Christmas jolly. A quarter to half mile of hedgerow
> torn out along NW Madrid Drive between the two NW 100th st accesses. Ironic
> there is their own sign at that location that reads "Habitat is Key" when
> they tear out habitat to turn it back to cropland. This was a very popular
> access and dog walking area at a parking lot. The naturalist manager is a
> young 25 year old that has no idea what she is doing and I've told her
> that. For years I've said Big Creek State Park will be the first Treeless state
> park in Iowa. And so it continues. I have no idea what they are thinking.
> It's sure not rational.
> It always used to be that edges were critical and they still are. Prairie
> and treeline edges are compatible but that's not what is being taught in
> college.
>
> Clayton Will
> Madrid
>
> --
> Post by sending an email to <ia-bird...>
> To search for an unfamiliar location, go to
> https://iowabirds.org/Places/FindLocation.aspx > This list is sponsored by the Iowa Ornithologists' Union -
> https://iowabirds.org/ - with membership open to all people interested in
> the birds of Iowa. Join today at https://iowabirds.org/IOU/Membership.aspx.
>
> IOU Code of Birding Ethics - https://iowabirds.org/Pages.aspx?pg=6 > ---
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> "IA-BIRD" group.
> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
> email to ia-bird+<unsubscribe...>
> To view this discussion visit
> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/CAHX11sgwA5D09StDr7PZsgJLmC6t%2Bpk%<2Bgo5cXUsywNUEV0mPnw...> > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ia-bird/CAHX11sgwA5D09StDr7PZsgJLmC6t%2Bpk%<2Bgo5cXUsywNUEV0mPnw...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > .
>
Date: 12/23/25 7:18 am From: Clayton Will <willcfish...> Subject: [ia-bird] the reason for Not a Sighting, Habitat destruction at Big Creek State Park for cropland
This didn't make my Christmas jolly. A quarter to half mile of hedgerow torn out along NW Madrid Drive between the two NW 100th st accesses. Ironic there is their own sign at that location that reads "Habitat is Key" when they tear out habitat to turn it back to cropland. This was a very popular access and dog walking area at a parking lot. The naturalist manager is a young 25 year old that has no idea what she is doing and I've told her that. For years I've said Big Creek State Park will be the first Treeless state park in Iowa. And so it continues. I have no idea what they are thinking. It's sure not rational. It always used to be that edges were critical and they still are. Prairie and treeline edges are compatible but that's not what is being taught in college.
Date: 12/22/25 3:28 pm From: Osness <ravenbuddhanow...> Subject: [ia-bird] Redpolls, Story County
I saw 8 Redpolls feeding in birch trees near Moore Park in Ames this afternoon. It had been many years since I had seen any. A very nice treat. I remember seeing them for the first time feeding in birch trees in Byrnes Park Waterloo about 60 years ago! Nick Osness Ames
Date: 12/22/25 11:19 am From: Angela Battle <argusbee23...> Subject: [ia-bird] A New Hawk Sighting For Me
Thought I would share that I just had a Rough Legged Hawk stop by. Not here for long but easy to identify as it must be one of the more distinctive hawks around. I have never seen one before and so can add this striking hawk to my life list! Not sure how rare they are to see?
Date: 12/21/25 3:07 pm From: Ryan Shackleton <shack357...> Subject: [ia-bird] Peregrine falcon near Mason City
Spotted a peregrine east of Mason City about 4:15 this afternoon, along Highway 18. It was perched on a sign near mile marker 191, on the south side of the eastbound lane.
Immature brd, and it looked a bit underfed. Figured there could be a slim chance it's the lost falconry bird that was posted about a while back. A long flight might explain being underweight.
It was stretching, got a good look at the side of the head and the underside of a wing.
The Burlington CBC was Saturday and thanks to our participants we had a good day. We ended with 84 species. which included: Tundra swan, N. Pintail, Red-breasted Merganser, killdeer, snipe, Short-eared Owl, Merlin, Peregrine Falcon, N. Mockingbird, Hermit Thrush, Fox Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow, Yellow-rumped Warbler Chuck Fuller Burlington
Date: 12/20/25 8:08 pm From: newtja84 <newtja84...> Subject: [ia-bird] Not a sighting, Lizard Lake/Humboldt County
To anyone that has access to edit to the various bits of the website. Lizard Lake should be removed from the Humboldt county list of 'areas'. It is in Pocahontas County and there is no Lizard Lake in Humboldt County. I think I've talked in the past with some people that edit the website about this but I noticed it tonight when doing some paper work on the website.
Oh gosh, I am deeply sorry to say I completely forgot to thank Pete Enzen
who also was out today. I can only blame myself for this oversight. But
he deserves thanks as well.
On Saturday, December 20, 2025 at 8:30:45 PM UTC-6 newtja84 wrote:
> Preliminary Humboldt County CBC results (waiting for some final lists etc
> but based on what I think is the vast majority species list).
> As it stands we had 38 species today. Which is above the average species
> (As of 2024) of 32 (I suspect this will be revised up).
> It was a weird energy day. Lots of species that should have been an easy
> lock, like American Tree Sparrow, were very deficient. A species that given
> the context of other finds today I would guarantee is in the circle was not
> detected, IE the American Robin. We had no Rough-legged Hawk which
> considering I had two in the circle this Wednesday was a bit frustrating.
> No blackbird icterids were seen today. It was also a very slow waterfowl
> day though a pair of Trumpeter Swans were found in a cornfield, but
> otherwise it was Canada Geese and Mallards.
> But on the other side of the weird energy equation we had a lot of species
> that are typically hit or miss...hit... Brown Creeper, Northern Flicker,
> Belted Kingfisher, Northern Harrier, Cooper's Hawk Harris's Sparrow,
> Meadowlark spp, American Kestrel. We were touched with the tiniest crumb of
> boreal irruptive magic and found Purple Finch (two open country instances),
> Red-breasted Nuthatch and Pine Siskin.
> We got some Count circle records this years, one being in the form of a
> small flock of Eastern Bluebirds, and the other being also a County Record
> in the form of the previously reported TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE found at Gotch
> State Park.
> I would like to thank those that helped today, particularly Kevin Murphy
> and Russell Rice. And I really have to say, I appreciate it. This is not a
> very heavily birded county, we don't get lots of attention, and both Dan
> Gifford and I have done this circle alone a few times since it was started
> in 2002. A CBC circle constitutes about 177 square miles of road time, and
> it clear in the data records when I started getting more help from the
> likes of Kevin and Russell, Tyler Harms and Paul Skrade and several others
> who have leant their time and gas, and effort to do this little bit of
> avian frivolity at the solstice over the years.
> And I just want to say...this may not be the most impressive county in the
> state...but there are still places to explore and more now with the
> purchase of the Boone Valley WMA, as well Three Rivers WMA near Thor on the
> eastern frontier of the county and new private wetlands due to FINALLY
> closing the last of the drainage wells along Highway 3 east of Gilmore
> City. We literally have had three county records in the last three weeks
> (and being underbirded means more chances to be the one to find a county
> record).
>
> AS TO THE TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE. It was found in Gotch State Park south of
> Humboldt/Dakota City on Gotch Park Road near the confluence of the E and W
> Des Moines River. The Solitaire was found on the north side of the park in
> an area that is largely left over sand quarry pits. The area is off trail
> hiking, and suffuse with interconnected ponds and marshy areas with
> steepish, narrow hills covered in various underbrush including junipers.
> The gates of the park are currently locked due to snow events of the
> previous month(s). So one must park at the gates (where it is icy), you can
> walk the main road for a few yards (the main road is as of today icy) there
> is a small pull in area that has a pile of logs on it, from there you just
> have to navigate the area. Good news is the park is fairly small, but as
> stated the ground is fairly uneven and in places quite wet, and while a lot
> of the ponds and interconnecting marshes/sloughs are partially frozen over,
> with the increasing warm weather be aware that such conditions
> are...potentially ephemeral. One in theory could try and duck in from a
> trail that cuts along the north side of the park, but if I remember
> correctly that is quite hedgy and under-brushy.
>
> Jacob Newton
>
> Ottosen, Humboldt County, IA
>
Preliminary Humboldt County CBC results (waiting for some final lists etc but based on what I think is the vast majority species list). As it stands we had 38 species today. Which is above the average species (As of 2024) of 32 (I suspect this will be revised up). It was a weird energy day. Lots of species that should have been an easy lock, like American Tree Sparrow, were very deficient. A species that given the context of other finds today I would guarantee is in the circle was not detected, IE the American Robin. We had no Rough-legged Hawk which considering I had two in the circle this Wednesday was a bit frustrating. No blackbird icterids were seen today. It was also a very slow waterfowl day though a pair of Trumpeter Swans were found in a cornfield, but otherwise it was Canada Geese and Mallards. But on the other side of the weird energy equation we had a lot of species that are typically hit or miss...hit... Brown Creeper, Northern Flicker, Belted Kingfisher, Northern Harrier, Cooper's Hawk Harris's Sparrow, Meadowlark spp, American Kestrel. We were touched with the tiniest crumb of boreal irruptive magic and found Purple Finch (two open country instances), Red-breasted Nuthatch and Pine Siskin. We got some Count circle records this years, one being in the form of a small flock of Eastern Bluebirds, and the other being also a County Record in the form of the previously reported TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE found at Gotch State Park. I would like to thank those that helped today, particularly Kevin Murphy and Russell Rice. And I really have to say, I appreciate it. This is not a very heavily birded county, we don't get lots of attention, and both Dan Gifford and I have done this circle alone a few times since it was started in 2002. A CBC circle constitutes about 177 square miles of road time, and it clear in the data records when I started getting more help from the likes of Kevin and Russell, Tyler Harms and Paul Skrade and several others who have leant their time and gas, and effort to do this little bit of avian frivolity at the solstice over the years. And I just want to say...this may not be the most impressive county in the state...but there are still places to explore and more now with the purchase of the Boone Valley WMA, as well Three Rivers WMA near Thor on the eastern frontier of the county and new private wetlands due to FINALLY closing the last of the drainage wells along Highway 3 east of Gilmore City. We literally have had three county records in the last three weeks (and being underbirded means more chances to be the one to find a county record).
AS TO THE TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE. It was found in Gotch State Park south of Humboldt/Dakota City on Gotch Park Road near the confluence of the E and W Des Moines River. The Solitaire was found on the north side of the park in an area that is largely left over sand quarry pits. The area is off trail hiking, and suffuse with interconnected ponds and marshy areas with steepish, narrow hills covered in various underbrush including junipers. The gates of the park are currently locked due to snow events of the previous month(s). So one must park at the gates (where it is icy), you can walk the main road for a few yards (the main road is as of today icy) there is a small pull in area that has a pile of logs on it, from there you just have to navigate the area. Good news is the park is fairly small, but as stated the ground is fairly uneven and in places quite wet, and while a lot of the ponds and interconnecting marshes/sloughs are partially frozen over, with the increasing warm weather be aware that such conditions are...potentially ephemeral. One in theory could try and duck in from a trail that cuts along the north side of the park, but if I remember correctly that is quite hedgy and under-brushy.
Date: 12/20/25 7:54 am From: Doug & Nina Harr <dnharr...> Subject: [ia-bird] Pinse Siskins iuncreasing fast!
We've had Pine Siskins in our yard for about 3 weeks now, but the number keeps increasing. This morning we have at least 13, the most ever in our backyard.
After lunch and read the email of Iowa rare bird alert of John and Jay’s ebird reports, I drove 1 hour to the site, Dale Maffitt reservoir, Dallas County. Two hours passed no luck. One more look before heading back home, there it is.
Thanks John’s tips, his ebird pictures help me identify the bird. It was found by RJ earlier in the morning.
This past Tuesday, I viewed a Krider's Red-Tailed Hawk and a dark morph Rough-legged Hawk in Greene County. I had help with ID from FB Raptor ID page. Photos attached.
Date: 12/19/25 7:05 am From: John and Anna Bissell <john.annabissell...> Subject: [ia-bird] Iowa RBA: 12-19-25
Iowa RBA birds reported from Saturday, December 13, to Friday, December 19, 2025:
RARE Species Mentioned (documentation required)
ACCIDENTAL
**BARROWS GOLDENEYE**
CASUAL
*HARLEQUIN DUCK*
Additional Species Mentioned
Long-tailed Duck
Iceland Gull
Snowy Owl
Golden Eagle
***NEW!**************** For more up to date information on rarities in the state of Iowa, visit the Iowa Birds and Birding website at www.Iowabirds.org <http://www.iowabirds.org>
***********************
Species in ALL CAPS can be classified into three categories in the state of Iowa: 1) UNRECORDED, ACCIDENTAL or Casual; 2) A RARE but regular species; or 3) record early or late date or unusual for time of year. Any species with three asterisks (***species***) would represent a first record for Iowa (UNRECORDED) and should be observed and documented very carefully. Species with two asterisks (**species**) are species that are either ACCIDENTAL, CASUAL, or a rare regular species, and should also be documented. Species with one asterisk (*species) should have some details of the observation provided.
Please note this is an UNOFFICIAL compilation of rare bird sightings from both eBird and the IOU listserve. Data for field reports and early/late dates should not be taken from this weekly report.
EAST
SCOTT COUNTY
An ICELAND GULL was seen at Lock and Dam 14 on the 14th.
A LONG-TAILED DUCK was seen along West Canal Shore Dr in Le Clair on the 18th.
NORTHEAST
ALLAMAKEE COUNTY
A GOLDEN EAGLE was seen at Iverson Bottoms WMA on the 17th.
HOWARD COUNTY
A SNOWY OWL was seen at the intersection of 70th St and Lilac Avenue on the 17th.
CENTRAL
POLK COUNTY
A GOLDEN EAGLE was seen at Mosquito Creek at Saylorville WMA on the 14th.
A BARROWS GOLDENEYE was seen at Maffitt Reservoir on the 19th.
SOUTH CENTRAL
MARION COUNTY
A HARLEQUIN DUCK continues below the dam at Red Rock on the 13th.
The next scheduled report of the Iowa Rare Bird Alert will be for Friday, December 26, 2025 for the weekly report. Should any UNRECORDED or ACCIDENTAL species be reported, an update will be posted.
Date: 12/15/25 2:47 pm From: 'Art Check' via IA-BIRD <ia-bird...> Subject: [ia-bird] Non bird sighting—bird feeder bandits
I’m guessing with the cold temperatures and all the snow pack other animals are feeling a little desperate for food as well. My youngest came home from school today and called me and said there were two opossums in the tree right next to our house with all of our birdfeeders. I came home an hour later and they’re still perched out on the branches, apparently waiting for their moment! Photos, courtesy of my crummy iPhone
Art Check
Nevada
The Scott's Oriole observed in Calhoun County has not been since
Saturday afternoon. We are hoping that she was able to survive the
brutal cold. I will let you all know if it is seen again.
Thanks,
Liz
On 12/15/2025 3:36 PM, 'Art Check' via IA-BIRD wrote:
> Was curious if any further word on the Oriole seen in Calhoun Co a few days ago
> Thanks
> Art Check
> Nevada
> Sent from my iPhone
>
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