Yesterday, Gary and I went out birding on the western shore of Lake Winnebago in bays at Oshkosh and Neenah. We found flocks of coots, buffleheads and tundra swans along with the usual mallards and Canada geese. We wondered why they were still hanging around Wisconsin after Thanksgiving. We've heard there are still flocks of sandhill cranes west of here, too. As we watched the swans, they suddenly took off, heading south. We won't see them again until the end of March.
This got us to thinking about what I will see when I travel to the western states. Once past the Mississippi, there are many species I've yet to observe. California condors have been sighted in Utah, for instance. My copy of The Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Eastern North America will be useless. I'll order a western version before the trip. My binoculars are always in my car, no extra packing there.
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