92 Northern Pintail

• A group of ducks are called a; Brace / Flush / Paddling / Raft / Team.
• This duck has the largest tail of any freshwater foul.
• It has a very long neck and flies with it extended.
• It has a pale chocolate brown head, with a intricate pattern of back feathers.  It has a band of green on its wings with a fringe bar of buff.
• It eats grain, rice, seeds, aquatic weeds, insect larvae, crustaceans and snails.
• It is one of the first ducks to nest, right after the ice thaws.
• It has a very harsh Quack amoung other sounds like a Wheeee, and Prreep. 
• Its numbers have been on the decline over the last 30 years due to habitat loss.

91 Western Grebe

• A group of Grebes are called a; Water Dance.
• The western Grebe is different from the Clarke's Grebe in that the Black Crown extends down past the eye.  And what an eye, red a very intense.
• The other distinguishing feature is the greenish yellow bill.
• The Western Grebe has 9 vocalizations that are used in different circumstances.  Alarm, begging, matting, are a few different calls.  They build a floating nest and attach it to reeds and coattails.   They lay 2-3 eggs and have one brood.   The babies can be seen often riding on their parents back.  How cool.
• This is one of the birds that is not afraid to defend itself.  No doubt with those red eyes.
• It is known for its artful water dance in matting ritual.  It is a great swimmer with its bulbous toes like all grebes, and can stay submerged for 30 or more seconds.
• It eats crustaceans, worms, insects and fish, large fish it will crush their heads before swallowing.

90 Horned Grebe

• A group of Grebes are called a; Water Dance.
• We found this one in a pond with 3 of the other types of Grebes.  It gets its name from the feathers behind the eyes that it can puff up to make it look intimidating. Add in those red eyes and yes it is a scary sight.
• Like all grebes they have bulbous toes instead of webbed feet.  It is a very good swimmer.
• Its nests are made of floating material that it attaches to reeds or cattails.  They lay 3-9 eggs.  Often they are seen with their chicks riding on their backs.  A common thing for Grebes and Loons.
• These birds will stay late in the fall until the pond is frozen over, then fly south.
• They eat crustaceans, insects, fish amphibians, and some aquatic plants.  It eats some of its own feathers, probably to help carry out bones from the gut.
• This is a very cautious bird.  In Blackfeet lore the Old Man Trickster would put to sleep the ducks then kill them but not the Horned Grebe he saw through this trick and warned the other birds.  Cool story.

89 Wilson's Snipe

• A group of snipes are called a; Leash / Walk / Whisper / Winnowing / Volley.
• Wilson's Snipe is still a shore bird that is hunted.  It is a fast flyer and very elusive to hunt.  Hunters who became good at hunting Snipes became known as Snipers. Sharpshooters of the 19th century and the term has stuck.
• The male makes a non-vocal sound known as Winnowing or drumming the sound is made by Vibrating outer tail feathers that are spread wide when diving.  This he does to impress the females.
• He has 16 tail feathers compared to 14 in the Common Snipe.
• Insects worms and plant material are its food.
• I took a picture of this guy in flight and it was just a blur. 

88 Pied-billed Grebe

• A group of Grebes are called a; Water Dance.
• This little grebe compared to the 4 other types I've seen is the smallest.  It avoids predators by diving under water.  It can also compress its feathers changing its specific gravity allowing it to swim with only its head showing.  "Up para-scope".  In fact it is very rarely seen flying at all.  During migration it will fly at night.  Try that without lights. Yikes. 
• The bill looks quite different than most water birds.  It reminds me of a hawk bill.
• It doesn't have webbed feet but bulbous toes and does quite well in swimming.
• It can swim for great distances underwater and has been given the nickname "Hell-diver".  Other names include; Dabchick, Devil-diver, Dive-dapper and Water-witch.
• It eats tadpoles, shrimps, aquatic insects, and other water food.
• It builds a floating nest and attaches it to reed or cattails.

87 Ruddy Duck

• A group of ducks are called a; Brace / Flush / Raft / Paddling / Team.
• This colorful duck is found in ponds ad marshes. 
• It has a chestnut colored body black neck, chest and head can have white cheeks like this one and a large blunt "beautiful blue" as Eve would say bill.
• During breeding the males will puff themselves up bill to chest tail erect and stiff, quite a show.  After the eggs are hatched they then go off and leave mom to do all the raising.
• They nest in wet boggy ground to avoid predators.  The only way to get to the nest is by air or water.

•  They are a member of the 'stiff tailed Ducks'.

86 Greater Yellowlegs

• A group of Yellowlegs are called a; Incontinence.
• These shore birds are active feeders seen running along catching fish and other fast moving aquatic prey.
• They breed in mosquito infested muskegs so they aren't studied much.  Go figure.
• They have a swift direct flight, sometimes at great heights.
• The bill is slightly turned up compared to the lesser and the vocalization is different as well 2 quick whistles for the lesser and  3 or 4 piercing notes.

85 Eared Grebe

• A group of Grebe are called a; Water Dance.
• This peculiar bird is often ignored, living in ponds and marshes most of the year.
• Feeds on fish, insects and Crustaceans by diving and swimming under water.
• It holds the record for the longest flightless period of a migratory bird of 9 to 10 months.  Yes months.  Then south it goes.
• Although I think I have ever noticed one before, they are the most prolific Grebe in the world.  Who Knew?
• This strange bird during a cold day will raise its dark rump to the sun to absorb the heat it gives.  Kind of like warming your butt by the fire.
• Kind of a cool mating call; "Poo-ee-chk".
• This bird will dive under the water to avoid predators.

84 Redhead Duck

• A group of ducks are called a; Brace / Flush / Paddling / Raft / Team.
• They are a diving duck with a Rufus-brown neck and head, blue grey bill with a black tip and bright yellow eyes.  They are a very striking bird.  I could not get a close picture but will add one later as summer comes.
•  Feeds mostly on aquatic vegetation.
• Lays eggs in other Redhead's nests or other ducks especially Canvasbacks.
• It has a rapid direct flight and will fly in V shaped formation.
• They have a very long molting period, up to a month where they are flightless.  During this time they will travel to big bodies of water.

83 Black-crowned Night Heron

• A group of Herons are called a; Battery / Hedge / Pose / Rookery / Scattering. 
• This was such a cool find.  I am not sure I have ever seen them before.  They are the most wide spread heron, living on 5 continents.  They feed at dusk or at night.
• They are patent hunter waiting for prey to come by or vibrating bill in the water to get something that comes to investigate.  Nice Trick.
• When attacked or disrupted they will disgorge their stomach contents leaving it to its attacker.  Disgustingly effective escape plan.
• It grasps its prey in its bill not stabbing it.  It eats invertebrates, amphibians, small males, birds young, eggs, lizards, snakes and other food.
• Builds a platform to nest in a tree or in cattails.  May have up to a dozen nests in one tree.
• I love the cool feather tag at the back of its head and the red eye.

82 Bonaparte's Gull

• A group of Gulls are called a; Flotilla / Gullery / Screech / Scavenging / Squabble.
• This is one of the smallest gulls seen on the prairie.
• One of the only gulls that nest in trees.
• It got its name from Charles Bonaparte the nephew of Napoleon in  the 18th century, who was and avid ornithologist.
• The only other black-head gull I can think of is the Black-headed Gull that only lives on the far east coast line.  This makes it easily identified.  It also has a distinct black bill.  Winter coloring is quite different in that it is mostly white with a small dot of black on the head.
• Catches fish by wading and diving.  Good swimmer.  They fly a bit like a tern with rapid wing movement and a light direct flight pattern.

81 American Avocet

• This is a big water bird about 18 inches tall.  I has a unique curved bill for foraging under the water for food.   
• They are easily photographed, this guy was close to our home.
• During the breeding season the neck and breast are a cinnamon color.  Later the neck and breast will turn a pale blue grey.  The legs are the same blue grey where the nickname "Blue stockings" comes from.
• These birds also have webbed feet and can swim, dive and even tip upside down like marsh ducks.
• During courtship they will be seen crossing bills and draping their wings over each other like in a hug.  I like a good hug myself so why not.
• The nests are depressions in the sand or floating platforms.
• The parents aggressively protect their young from predators and stay with them until they can fly.

80 Killdeer

• A group of Killdeer are known as a; Season.
• Although these birds are shorebirds they are found far away from water in fields, meadows and pastures.  They are very adapt to agriculture and semi-urban areas.
• They nest right out in the open on the ground.  The eggs are camouflaged and hard to see.
• This is one of the birds remembered in my childhood.  My brothers and I would chase this bird to catch it.  It would appear to have a broken wing and would put up quite a fuss.  Its vocalization sounds like "My Baby" .  Later as we got older, smarter or just by chance we found out that this broken wing act meant it was leading us from the nest or from the young.  finding the nest or young was really cool. The eggs were speckled brown and could easily be stepped on if you weren't careful when looking.  The chicks were fluffy and fast, if you did catch them there was a chance that the parents would abandon them, so this was mostly a lets see what she's hiding search.

• See the four eggs right behind her.  This is from last year.  She is about to go into the broken wing act.

 

•  Here is a couple of chicks and one unhatched egg.  See how well both blend in.

• Here a parent goes into its broken wing display to lead danger away from the nest.
• They group together in the fall as a Season an d migrate south.

79 Purple Martin

• A group of Purple Martin are called a; Collony.
• I have yet to take a picture they are so fast and have yet started to nest.
• These birds nest in man made structures. Many patterns can be found on line.  Even the early Native Americans would hang hollowed gourds to nest in.  In The west they can be still found nesting in rocky crevices.
• Large vocal swallow with dark wings and blue-purple body with a split tail.
• It catches and eats insects in the air and will also forage on the ground.
• This is the largest North American Swallow. 
• This smart bird winters in the tropics.

• I like this design because it has a catch or fence to keep the young from falling out.  These Martin houses have to be cleaned out eat year. 

78 Yellow-headed Blackbird

• A group of Yellow-headed Blackbirds are called a; Cluster / Cloud / Merl.
• Depending on his territory a male may hve up to 6 females and defend off any other male in that territory.  Even if he defends off a male that has sired a brood he will not kill or hurt the chicks.
• In the winter Clouds of rolling all males or all females will gather and fly bakc to front in a rolling fashion.  Sounds Cool.  Some say it sounds like a rusty gate opening.
• They have one of the most unique vocalizations.  It is a combination of honking, gurgling and strangling noises.  No it does not sound nice.  When a whole Cluster of them appear and are singing it is scary.
• They nest in prairie wetlands and marshes.  They eat what they can find there insects and seeds.
• The male will also have a white patch on his wing.

77 Oregon Junco

• A group of Oregon Junco are called a; Crew / Flutter / Meinie / Quarrel / Ubiquity.
• We have had up to 120 Dark-eyed Junco at the feeder some days but only seen this one Oregon.  He really stood out with his dark head and brown body.  The Slate colored ones we see here seem vry different.
• Junco have a pair of white feathers and when there is danger they fly off signalling the others.
• This species of junco is normally found in the mountains and on to the pacific coast.  It was really gerat to have a visit here in Hamiota MB.
•  These birds are also known as Snow Birds because they are the first birds to return to the feeder each fall.  Canadians that travel to Florida in the fall have been given this name from the Junco.
• They have two clutches and 4 eggs in each.  They eat seeds and insects.

76 Ring-necked Duck

• A group of Ring-necked Ducks are called a; Brace / Flush / Raft / Team / Paddling.
• I had a hard time taking a good picture, this one is seen with a couple of Coots.  I will add more pictures when I get them.
• The name comes from the brown rings on its neck.  Funny thing is you can't see these rings unless you are really close but the white ring at base of the bill is easily found.  It also has a ring farther down on the bill and a black tip.  The female is brown with a more pronounced white ring at the base of its bill and the same white ring farther down and black tip.
• These birds don't flock up for migrations north but do migrate in the fall when they gather by the thousands further than most diving ducks and are fast flyers.
• They get chased by loons, and grebes in which they share ponds and  bogs.
• Ring-necked Ducks eat submerged aquatic plants and invertebrates.  The plants they eat include leaves, stems, seeds and tubers of pond-weed, water lilies, wild celery, wild rice, millet, sedges, and arrowhead.  They also eat mollusks, swallowing whole and having the gizzard crush them, snails, caddisflies, dragonfly nymphs, midges, earthworms and leeches. Protein rich diet is important during breeding and when they raise their young.  They dive for their food rather than bob with theirtail in the air like most ducks do.

75 Red-Winged Blackbird

• A group of Red-winged Blackbirds are called a; Cloud / Cluster / Merl.
• It is great to see them back this spring.  They have such a cheerful song. I stopped and listened to this one and took a few pictures.  These birds love to sing.  Notably after a rain and on through mating season.  Well they have 2 or 3 clutches a year so mating season is on going, no wonder he is singing.
• The Red-winged Blackbird is polygamous, meaning he mates with more than one female and she will mate with another if he is busy.  He will have a territory with up to 10 females that he defends and sings for.
• The female, with a bit of help from the male, will build a new cup shaped nest for each clutch in reeds or cattails, willows and grasses.
• They eat insects, seeds, fruit and nuts.
• In the spring a Cloud of them appear and then a Cloud again in the fall before heading south.  In the fall this is one of the first signs of the coming of winter is the Cluster of Blackbirds getting ready to head south.
• The nests are victim to snakes, mink, raccoons, skunks, and birds.  They also fall victim to brood parasites like Brown-headed Cowbird who lays their eggs in the nest for the Blackbird to raise.
• They will chase away large predator birds.  This is very common.

74 Brewer's Blackbird

• A group of Brewer's Blackbirds are called a; Keg.
• They were named after the ornithologist Thomas Mayo Brewer.
• Blackbirds are know as sexually dimorphic, meaning the male plumage is completely different then the female.
• The song is well known and considered a favorite by most.  It likes to sing after a rain.
• They eat insets, earth worms, seeds and fruit.
• They build a cup shaped nest.
• Their bill is black and the eyes are white with black pupil.

73 American White Pelican

• A group of American White Pelicans are called a; Brief / Pod / Pouch / Scoop / Squadron.
• This one we saw near Rivers.  Note that it still has its bill horn, this it will shed after breeding.
• These are one of the largest of the Boreal forest birds.  Weighing in at 30 pounds and having a wing span of up to 9 feet.  These big birds just seem wrong on the prairie and Boreal forest.
• This bird is on the decline over the 60 and 70 decades.  Draining of wet land, human disturbance and pesticides are among the problems.  But over the last 30 years they have regained their numbers.
• Their incredible bill can hold 3 gallons of water, yikes.  When it catches a fish it will drain the bill by pointing it downward and then tilting it back to eat the fish it caught.
• They are beautiful gliders.  This is one way when you see a Squadron of them in the air what the white birds are.
• White Pelicans are not divers, they are dippers, working in groups to channel or herd the fish. 
• They nest on the ground and when possible on an island.
• They migrate to the Pacific or the Gulf of Mexico for the winter. 

•  This group is in the snow on April 30th, you can see the snow in the air.  They don't seem impressed.

72 Northern Shrike

• A group of Northern shrike are called a; Abattoir / Watch.
• The Latin words for this bird means Butcher Watchman.
• They make nest so deep that all that can be seen is the tip of their tail.
• They do not have talons so they stun or cut the throats of their pray impala them on thorns or a barb wire fence and then eat them.
• This bird has a tooth, yes a tooth, that it uses to cut down their prey.
• They are a beautiful grey bird that looks so peaceful until they strike.  It can be mistaken for a mocking bird but does not have the black mask.  They are also larger then the Loggerhead Shrike and have a larger hoke at the end of the bill.
• We saw this one a block from the house.
• These are song birds even though they are carnivorous.  They are said to be one of the oldest breeds of song birds.  They have a nice warbling type song dispersed with whistles.
• They lay 7 eggs and can have a second smaller clutch later in the year.
• They are seen in larger groups but usually pair up for breeding.

71 American Coot

•  A group of American Coots are called a: Codgery / Commotion / Fleet / Shoal / Swarm.
• Coots are kleptoparasitic, meaning when they don't want to hunt for food they will steal it from another.
• They are very social, you will see them in groups. A Swarm are a Commotion both good discriptions of a group.
• They are nick named Marsh or Mud Hens, because of their constant bobbing of their heads both in water and on land.
• Even though they swim like a duck they don't have webbed feet.  Their feet are blobbed and work quite well.
• They are not good at taking off and require a long run to get airborne.
• They have 9 -12 eggs and nest along marsh land and wet areas.
• They are protected and do not have a great fear of man.

70 Lesser Scaup

• A group are called; Brace / Flush / Raft / Team / Paddling.
• This is one of many we see.  This spring I would say Canada Geese, Mallard ducks then Lesser Scaup have been most popular this early spring.
• They have a beautiful silver bill that at time can look blue.  A back coloring similar to a Canvasback. 
• They birds are divers and feed on Scalp, mollusk, mussels and clams found in the muddy bottoms.
• These ducks have a particular survival trick, they play dead when attacked by foxes. 
• The chicks can dive even on their hatch day.
• They aren't very vocal.  The female has a scaup type call that their name may have come from.