Central Kansas Trip Report

This past weekend I visited central Kansas with a Burroughs's Audubon Society field trip with approximately 20 participants. We focused on finding birds at Cheyenne Bottoms Wildlife Area and Quivira National Wildlife Refuge.

A view from the road along the northwest side of Cheyenne Bottoms during a past family visit.

My first trip to central Kansas was five and a half years ago. I was the chauffeur with no prior knowledge, with no expectations, and merely an interest in visiting the locations that others talked about.  That initial trip with Mike Hudson and Nick Varvel created many wonderful memories. I added 5 lifers. I saw my first Massasauga on the trip (it is a snake for those that don't know). We camped under a family of Great Horned Owls and I could easily see why others hold these locations in high regard.

Sunrise over Pool 23 across from the Environmental Education Classroom at Quivira NWR..

Since that initial visit, I have driven the 4 hours one-way to return many times. I've taken family trips that are relatively laid back and less structured, one-day mad dashes with friends to get our fill of birds, and everything in between with stops at these locations on my way further west. Occasionally I take pictures (yes there are snake pictures linked here too) yet more often I don't. Sometimes I am alone, sometimes I am with a friend or two, and sometimes I am with large groups.

This past weekend was the third time I've organized and led an overnight field trip to these locations. The group of birders had a wide range of experience. For some, it was the maiden voyage to these locations and many of the birds we were about to see would be lifers. My simply strategy for the handful of cars was to drive until we found a pocket of birds, stop and get out of the vehicles, and scope everything we could see. I attempted to balance seeing as many birds as possible with a laid-back and relaxed agenda.  Here is a rambling account of this past weekend's adventure. 

 

Jill Bell's photo of Friday's Rock Wren (left) and a King Rail from a previous Burrough's Field Trip.

Early in the year I looked at the calendar and coordinated with Joseph Miller to set the dates for this trip. Little did I know that my work schedule, set 5 months later, would require a later departure than I initially hoped. I modified the initial itinerary and the field trip started at Cheyenne Bottoms late Friday evening. Not included in my great wisdom of date selection was any referral to hunting seasons. The Cheyenne Bottoms parking lots were full of camouflage wearing hunters scouting for duck opener the next morning. We pulled into the full campground with the intent of listening for Owls and left speculating what the hunters thought of birders (and mostly a group of women this night) stopping in before dusk. A Rock Wren was the at the Headquarters was the evening avian highlight.

Saturday morning we left the hotel and arrived at Quivira National Wildlife Refuge shortly after daybreak. Our first stop was unit 49 along 140th Ave. As we scanned the shorebirds, herons, and ducks a KING RAIL walked out from the reeds on the far shore. This little pond has been good to me as it held a Red Phalarope in 2016 as well! Our drive around the Wildlife Loop included a juvenile SABINE'S GULL flying close by and we found roughly 50 species in a couple of hours.

Field trip participants walking a field for Sprague's Pipits.

With the gracious assistance of the Millers, the field trip walked a private field and observed SPRAGUE'S PIPITS. The group was smitten with Joseph, Andrew, and Anthony and I think the trio have many new fans. The group enjoyed their friendliness, their knowledge, and their ability to hear and point out the birds. We said our goodbyes to the Millers and returned to Quivira in the afternoon. We scoped birds at Little Salt Marsh and heading back to Wildlife Drive and Big Salt Marsh. Sandhill Cranes flew in to roost north of 170th near the end of the day. We called it day after seeing over 80 species and went out to eat to enjoy new friendships and talk smart.

A different Barton County Clark's Grebe from earlier in 2019.

Sunday we visited Cheyenne Bottoms Wildlife Area. The wooded trail near the Kansas Wetlands Education Center contained a few passerines in the brisk calm morning hour. By the time we drove around the loop many of the hunters were packing up and the number of shots was significantly less than those heard at daybreak. Four SABINE'S GULLS, a leucistic AMERICAN COOT, and our only AMERICAN BITTERN of the trip were found near the north end of Pool 1A. In Pool 2 a large flock of Western Grebes contained a CLARK'S GREBE. With many miles to drive for most in the group, we finished the trip shortly afternoon and headed our separate ways. 

The trip contained many birds. I think we had more than our fair share of notable sightings (vaguely made up of unexpected species listed above) and many in the group saw multiple new species for the first time. The joy of the trip however was time observing birds with others. A huge thankyou to friends for land access and local guiding, for friends that drove and allowed me to hop between multiple cars, and for new friends that assisted in geting everyone on birds. 

Can a Larophile be confused by a bird?

A couple of months back a friend identified as a Larophile. My first thought was to console her, as that long of a scientific word usually reveals a short-life span and some obscure illness. Using the physical cues she gave while mentioning this I was afraid that a high-five to celebrate the accomplishment might be more appropriate though. This was a situation where my bluntness and directness came in quite handy; I simply asked "What the heck is a Larophile?" The basic premise is a Larophile is some one that gulls. I somehow managed to avoid an even more embarrassing situation by not going with either of my first thoughts. I was surprised to find that there are even gifts for the Larophile in your group of friends and family!

Adult Laughing Gull - Madison Wisconsin June 2007

The first gull on my life list is an adult Laughing Gull from Madison Wisconsin in June 2007, a rarity visitor to the state of Wisconsin and a bird that is usually found further south. In 2007 we were taking photos of all birds and going home trying to identify them after the walk. This bird is on my lifelist only because of Peter Fissel. Peter describe the field marks of this bird at and let us look through his scope. We snapped a quick photo of the bird but were actually more interested in the Mallards than the gull even though Peter's enthusiasm for this bird was contagious. He shared the knowledge and scope with a complete stranger. It was one of many kind gestures from Madison Wisconsin birders when I first got started in birding.

I've been looking at birds for over a decade, but still remember that experience. In the winter of 2007-2008 I receive my first of three Sibley Guide to Birds and spent many nights trying to understand North American birds. I hope that I left the first two copies at someone's house or in someone's car but fear I likely left them on top of my car and drove away in the field. They both treated me well and had significantly torn covers, but alas RIP beloved books.

After five years I slowly started to expand my knowledge of different bird families with specialty guides but those included Shorebirds, Hawks, Warblers, but no Gulls. Each winter I spend a bit of time looking at gulls but didn't really care that I was missing maybe one or two species. Where I've lived in Wisconsin and Minnesota it was fairly easy to differentiate Bonaparte's Gull, Franklin's Gull, Ring-billed Gull, and Herring Gull. Of course there were different species around where I lived but I didn't know them.

During my first 5 years of birding I tried to differentiate between Iceland Gull, Thayer's Gull, and Herring Gull but without studying that time is more accurately described as a self-imposed frustration. Rather than jump in the deep end and read specialty guides I took a more conservative approach a few years back and starting reading the Anything Larus blog and following posts on the North American Gull Facebook Page. A dear friend gave me a copy of Gulls of the Americas and I think I'm officially hooked. So I accept any apparent good-nature ribbing or questions regarding my sanity, as I am a Larophile with limited experience in the Midwest. I feel comfortable with some Gull species but know that there is still a long ways for me to go; specifically I have a ways to go before I can go out in the field and correctly identifying gulls.

Immature Ivory Gull - Duluth Minnesota January 2016

It is likely that I have muddied the lines on what a Larophile is but that was not my intention. Rather, I am confused by a gull! My thoughts on identification of that specific gull will be in the next blog post. The answer to this blog posts title question is unequivocally yes in my opinion. Many birders I know accept that birds in the field can be confusing, some are living in denial and don't admit confusion, some of the happiest people I know enjoy birds but don't care about identification, and then unfortunately there are too many that don't appreciate birds or nature.

I've had help from many to identify gull species in my past and look forward to opportunities yet to come. Arriving home and sharing excellent photos of most species remind me of the day and even inflate my ego through social media a bit, but blurry photos represent time lost that I could have spent studying the bird. Generally I prefer to use binoculars and identify bird in the field. With Gulls I still rely on photos as blurry distant photos often provide fuel for studying. If you like gull photos here is a link to my Flickr album of Gulls. Click the slideshow option in the top right of the screen to see them easily.