A few pics from the last couple weeks. Highlight was a Leucitic Marbled Godwit.

Great photos! Any idea what happened to the Magpies? Have not seen one in many years.

I’m not sure, I’ve heard the same thing from guys in the Pierre area and up and down the river. Strangely we have been getting more out east in spots they never used to exist.
Going back to the earlier Turkey thread….birds are disappearing at a very fast rate right now. From songbirds and warblers, to shorebirds and as you have seen even Magpies. Populations of bees and butterflies are also in serious decline.
I hate to be negative but I’m really worried about many of the trends that are showing up our wild populations.

Great Pictures!!!! Thank You for sharing them please keep them coming.

Nice pictures. Your magpies are all in north Idaho. I never saw one for the first 50 years of my life they are all over now. You can come take all of them back and we will throw in the cormarants for free(another recent arrival).

Songbirds, shorebirds, insects, amphibians, are all indicator species of the health of things in the wild………and it ain’t looking too great!

Tray, how do the potholes look as far as water?
Reckon we’ll get a duck hatch your way?

Magpies or do you mean Holstein pheasants ?
as a carrion consumer bird flu rings a death button. they do die within 12 hours of WNV when infected
nice picture of a Marble nit-wite godwit is it based on call notes.t least you were in the field to confirm the ID

Incredible photos. Thank you for sharing.
That leucistic godwit is awesome.

I help out the barn swallows around my place every year trying to get more of them; as I like them so much. They are on their second clutch now and have 4 active nests. The first clutch they had, one of the young was leucistic. It had an orange breast, but white with a dull blue tinge on top. One of the coolest birds I ever seen fly. Looked like shiny star when the sun hit it just right.

great pic, thanks for sharing

Excellent pictures as usual Tray. Jonathon would be happy.

This cycle here started many years ago they were thick 40 years ago now I’ve not seen any in their prime habitat for 20 years.

I thought of that last night when I saw a dozen lightning bugs. Remember when they used to cover fields and fields for as far as you could see?

Great pictures, I really enjoy them.

Agree and agree!

Bird was paired up with another, and they were both calling with a fairly distinctive call for that species. Also not much else here looks like that.

Claycreek, duck hatch should be very good this year. Never seen so many nesting Spoonies, will make sure they all get down to you guys. LOL

Couple more shots of rain and we will be sitting really good for brooding water.

I’ve seen magpies in Central far northern MN as of late. Never had before. I also see plenty from say miles city Montana on west. The places I’m seeing them now are the places farthest from serious agriculture.
Great pics Tray.

Osky

I’m sure both West Nile and insecticides are playing somewhat of a roll in their disappearance. We’ve had a bunch of bad grasshopper years and guys are aerial spraying them, magpies are scavenging the dead grasshoppers.
Could be a bunch of other factors at play as well.

Lugnut I was thinking the same thing. Doing Jonathon proud.

wws

Cool!
Bring on the shovelers!
I am not a duck snob.
Sure hope those blue wings get a good hatch off. Love the early teal season.