Bennington Lake today

Migrants are beginning to move through.  We saw Wilson's, orange crowned, yellow-rumped and Nashville warblers.  Swallows over the lake included bank, barn, violet green and rough-winged.  There were also several Vaux's swifts.  Waterfowl numbers were up also - canada geese, mallards, northern shovelers, American wigeons, green winged teal and a western grebe.  Shorebirds are still scarce, but we did see a solitary sandpiper and several killdeer. (There are more shorebirds on the Mill Creek trail - lesser and greater yellowlegs, spotted sandpipers, solitary sandpipers). The white-crowned sparrows are beginning to return - we saw five today.  We also saw a Brewer's sparrow and four spotted towhees.  House finches and goldfinches were everywhere - in the sunflower patches, in the Russian olives, and flitting back and forth all around the lake.  All in all it was a good day with 47 species seen by the group.

Ginger