Birding in the Rain

I don't recall doing any rainy day birding before, but today we had a reason to drive near Saskatoon so we combined it with a search for birds. Specifically, shorebirds.  I'd heard of shorebird sightings so expected we would see some. And we did.  Avocets and a killdeer.  There were a few others that we were unable to ID because they were a blur as we drove by or simply too far away when we stopped, but no where near the number I expected to see.  It was still a good birding day, however.

Ever seen round swallows?  This is what Tree Swallows and Barn Swallows look like when it is cold.  They are probably wishing they'd stayed south a little longer.

We saw Common Loons,

pink-tinged Franklin's Gulls,

and headless Double-crested Cormorants.

More than 40 species altogether, not counting the mystery hawks.

My last bird is one of the quintessential Saskatchewan birds.  The Western Meadowlark.

The sparrows are coming! The sparrows are coming!

We are a small oasis of trees in the middle of a lot of grainland so it is always a concern that the birds will simply fly right over top of us and never drop by even for a visit.  But inevitably some of them do.  And this week it was the White-throated and White-crowned Sparrows.  And they brought their songs with them.  (This is the White-crowned here, looking quite cute, I think.)

It is still unseasonably cold here, and rainy, which despite the proverb (April showers bring...) is very rare for us.  Normally we are seeding into dry ground and fervently praying for rain to make the crops grow.  This winter was cold and lengthy, but the snow melted quickly which allowed most of the moisture to run off. Now, though it means we have cold, cloudy days, at least the rain will be sinking the moisture into the soil where we need it. And, we hope, in a couple of days it will warm up and even more spring birds will drop in and check us out.

Spring!

Yes, I know we are still breaking records for cold weather. There is still snow in places, not so much where we are but that is not unusual, even in the middle of winter. On a walk yesterday we did not see any crocuses, but it is still spring.

Proof:
A pair of Canada Geese is checking out the dam.  The frozen dam, but they are apparently optimists.

Snow Geese are flying overhead

and landing on a nearby slough in numbers not normally seen in our area in the spring.

Lots of white and blue geese here. I saw one Northern Pintail along the edge of the slough, but didn't particularly notice any Canadas with them.