nature – Memos for Me

Marbled Godwits

April 16, 2025

I rarely visit Two Rivers Park in Little Rock. When I do, it’s usually to the side that is closest to Pinnacle Mountain. But, I made an exception yesterday after an eBird rare bird alert reported 9 Marbled Godwits at Two Rivers Park in a section closest to Two Rivers Park Bridge near I-430.

It wasn’t long before I spotted them. Marbled Godwits are large, speckled brown shorebirds with and long, slightly upturned bills that are yellow closest to the face and then turn black. The nine godwits were feeding in the water.

Marbled Godwits are typically found along the coast and breed in the northern Great Plains. There are smaller populations that breed along the southwest coast of James Bay in Canada and on the Alaska Peninsula. While rare to Arkansas, there are still 256 observations of them within the state over the years.

Western Grebe

March 5, 2025

On Monday, a fellow birder discovered a Western Grebe and Pacific Loon at Bufflehead Bay, which is part of Lake Maumelle on the outskirts of Little Rock.

While I have already seen both, I decided it’d be interesting to try and relocate them. I never found the Pacific Loon. But I eventually relocated the Western Grebe at a nearby yacht club.

I’ve now learned there is a debate happening on whether this grebe could actually be a Clark’s Grebe – which would be a first for Arkansas.

Clark’s Grebes have brighter yellow bills with a dark line along the top. The black cap of the Clark’s does not extend down to surround the eye, as it does on the Western, according to All About Birds.

Once considered the same grebe, the Clark’s and Western were separated into two different species in 19985 after scientists learned the two “rarely interbreed (despite sometimes living on the same lakes), make different calls, and have substantial DNA differences,” All About Birds reported.

For now, we’re treating the grebe as a Western. Western Grebes are still rare to Arkansas (typically found west of the state), but birdwatchers typically find one or two within the state each year.

A Lesser Goldfinch

February 22, 2025

A friend and I traveled to Pope County on Friday to find a Lesser Goldfinch that’s been visiting a birder’s feeder for the past few days. It was a lifer for me.

Lesser Goldfinches are rare to Arkansas, although some are found within the state each year. They are typically found in the western United States (most common in California and Texas). They are smaller than an American Goldfinch, typically have a darker back that can be olive green or black depending on its location, and have a fully black crown. The American Goldfinch has a partial black crown and a bright yellow back.

The Pope County bird mingled with American Goldfinches, Juncos, House Finches and Cardinals at the feeders, while various sparrows and mourning doves were below on the ground. They scattered at various points, such as when the below Red-shouldered Hawk flew by.

Healing Springs Natural Area

January 22, 2025

While in Northwest Arkansas on Tuesday, I decided to search for American Tree Sparrows. These small sparrows have gray faces with rusty caps and eyeline marks along with a bicolored bill.

While found each year in Arkansas, the American Tree Sparrow is not a common sparrow you find just anywhere within the state. Their population is in steep decline. It took us a bit, but we eventually ran across four of these sparrows as they steadily made their way through a brushy area. One neat fact I learned through All About Birds is the American Tree Sparrow has to eat 30% of its weight each day.

We found these sparrows – as well as lots of Eastern Bluebirds – at the Healing Springs Natural Area maintained by the Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission since 2020. I wasn’t sure what to expect from the natural area. It is located within the Ozark Highlands of the Springfield Plateau Ecoregion where Oak-hickory forests, oak-hickory-pine forests and, before the 19th century, savanna or tall grass prairies are common and maintained by fire. The small entrance to the natural area from the highway is just large enough to park about two vehicles. A locked gate and fence keeps people from driving into the natural area, which at first sight, contains several large fields that are being restored to native grassland and woodland habitat.

The natural area consists of several large fields separated by high fences with no gates so you can wander for nearly a mile to the springs and spring-fed streams at the back of the property. These springs and spring-fed streams support several fish and crayfish species of conservation concern, including the Arkansas Darter and Least Darter. Both are very rare to Arkansas and require a specific habitat type that is disappearing.

We couldn’t find a map of the property so we initially walked a wooded path the width of the natural area, before traveling further back into the natural area in search of the springs. We weren’t too impressed with the place until we got further back into the area where we began seeing white-tailed deer and an abundance of birds, including our target bird – the American Tree Sparrow. One surprise was the rusty blackbirds discovered in a tree near water.

Gray-cheeked Thrush

May 16, 2024

One issue I’ve always had while birding is that I have trouble distinguishing among certain species, such as thrushes. Despite this hiccup, I recently got lucky and spotted my first Gray-cheeked Thrush without an issue.

This little guy was not bothered by me at all. It was foraging on the ground near the entrance to the boardwalk at Lorance Creek Natural Area in Little Rock, and later flew to a nearby limb where I had an excellent view of it through my camera.

I identified it through its call and eBird reviewers have since confirmed my photo. Gray-cheeked Thrushes are medium-sized, without a prominent eyeing and has a grayish face with no buffy coloring. Its belly is whitish. The eyering and coloring – gray vs Buffy – are two ways to distinguish the Gray-cheeked from other thrushes.

The spotting had perfect timing. I’d just spoken to someone the day before about the ideal time to see the species. In North America, Gray-cheeked Thrushes are currently migrating through Arkansas from their wintering grounds east of the Andes from Venezuela and Colombia to their breeding grounds in western Alaska.

Picture it: 300 bird species in Arkansas

April 27, 2024

I finally saw the elusive-to-me Hooded Warbler this morning, and photographed my 300th bird species in Arkansas.

I actually got my first great look at a Hooded Warbler in Marion over 10 years ago. I was walking down the steps of my aunt’s back patio and came face to face with one. I think it shocked both of us because I just stood there with the bird fluttering just inches from my face.

But I never got a photo of it. That remained true, even after I took up birdwatching in 2012 and began my attempt to photograph as many bird species in Arkansas as I could. I heard it, but never saw it.

That luck changed Friday when a friend mentioned seeing it at the entrance of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission headquarters. Around 7:30 a.m., I made it to the AGFC entrance and I didn’t even have to get out of my car to hear two calling to each other. While I never saw one, the second was constantly on the move and easy to spot.

Hooded Warblers breed in Arkansas and most of eastern United States, and winters in Central America. It generally hands out in the understory of forests, according to AllAboutBirds.org. While I do not see them often, the Hooded Warbler is pretty common with low conservation concern.

It’s the same for Yellow Warblers, which also breeds in Arkansas in the northern part of the state. It’s not uncommon for me to see these warblers, but today did mark the first time I saw one at home. They eat mostly insects and don’t come to backyard feeders, but it seemed perfectly happy in the large oak tree in my front yard.

Blue-headed Vireo

March 23, 2024

It took two years of actively searching for the Blue-headed Vireo before I finally found one. Although I must admit, I stumbled across this sighting. I was recently in Pine Bluff with five other birders for the monthly field trip of the Audubon Society of Central Arkansas. Our final stop was the William (Bill) G. Layer Nature Trail in Bayou Bartholomew, which is the longest bayou in the world.

We were over half way through the shorter loop when our field trip leader suddenly spotted the Blue-headed Vireo flitting among the trees. As we all watched, it came closer and closer until it was nearly within arms reach at one point.

Blue-headed Vireos are songbirds with thick bills, a blue-gray head, olive-green back and bold white “spectacles.” It has yellow flanks and a white breast and belly. They pass through Arkansas during migration on their way to breeding grounds in eastern North America.

Ferruginous Hawk

February 28, 2024

A rare-to-Arkansas Ferruginous Hawk has been staying around Stuttgart recently. This hawk, the largest of North American hawks, is more commonly found in the prairies, deserts, and open range of the West.

I finally caught up with it on Goldman Sunshine Road in a spot I had driven past three times before. I was headed home when I finally spotted it.

Iceland Gull

February 14, 2024

Another rare gull has been spotted at the Lake Dardanelle Lock and Dam, although this time on the Russellville side.

The latest find is a first-year Iceland Gull – Thayer’s (second from right in photo). This gull has first-cycle plumage, a dirty white color, and is smaller than a Herring Gull with an all black bill. It looks like a smaller Glaucous Gull, another rare-to-Arkansas gull that was recently spotted at the same location.

The Iceland Gull breeds in the Arctic and mostly winter in the Arctic waters and the Northeast, Great Lakes and West Coast regions. The gull has three subspecies (Iceland, Thayer’s and Kumlien’s) and the main difference between the three is in how dark the wingtips are in adults. Thankfully, a local birder who initially spotted the Iceland Gull met me at the lock and dam to help me find the Iceland Gull.

The Iceland Gull marked my 300th bird species spotted in Arkansas, and my 296th photo-wise.

Glaucous Gull

February 12, 2024

A Glaucous Gull – the second largest gull in the world – was spotted recently at the Lake Dardanelle Lock and Dam. A first winter, the gull was mottled tan and white, and quite larger than the Ring-billed Gulls surrounding it. It also has a pinkish bill with black at the tip.

The Glaucous Gull is in a steep decline, conservation wise. They mostly migrate along coasts and are common in New England and the Pacific Northwest. They nest in the arctic. Needless to say it’s not often you find a Glaucous Gull in Arkansas. But according to AllAboutBirds.org, first- and second-year Glaucous Gulls tend to move farther southward than adults. That makes sense – the one spotted recently was a first-year.

It was fun watching this Glaucous Gull. It had no issue battling over fish with the other gulls and an American White Pelican. It caught one fish and was then chased around by others.