June 27 Email & Photo Reply: "I will see Mike's kingfisher (June 23 below) and raise him a Merlin (taken in Ottawa County)." - Charlie DeWitt
June 27: A walk on the south Wastewater properties provided some close encounters with deer and 45 species of birds early this morning. A few Upland Sandpipers called and flew northwest of the Seba-Laketon intersection, Grasshopper Sparrows called from every field, five Sandhill Cranes grazed and flew around, House Wrens were in most of the woodlots, an Orchard Oriole male defended the lone tree at the intersection and a Yellow-billed Cuckoo sang regularly southwest of the intersection. Unfortunately no pheasants called this morning. - Ric Pedler
June 23 Email & Photos: "Both shots are from a scenic overlook between Acadia and Frankfort. The Bald Eagle really caught me by surprise! It flew out from the trees ten feet behind me, twenty feet above me. Hello! So, it took me (I know it's hard to believe) a few seconds to compose the shot. Hey, Mike and Charlie would have missed it completely! :) The second bird is not a sushi chef; it's a Belted Kingfisher." - Mike VanderStelt
June 20: " I visited the Wastewater today briefly from 6:15 PM - 7:30 PM and had the following: Black Tern- 1 high over west lagoon- my first for the wastewater ... White-rumped Sandpiper- 1 adult in 2nd aerator to east- only migratory shorebird present ... Melanistic (apparently) Ruddy Duck - in the west lagoon (photo below from west dike) ... Horned Grebe- 1 in west lagoon (south dike), but no Eared Grebes ... Canvasback- 1 lingering in east lagoon ... Redhead- 4 ... Gadwall- 11 ... Shoveler- 10 ... Blue-winged Teal- 9 ... Green-winged Teal- 1 ... Bufflehead- 2 ... Wood Duck- 2 ... Lesser Scaup- 6 ... Common Goldeneye- 1 hen ... American Black Duck- 1. Good Birding!" - Caleb Putnam
June 20 Email: "Yesterday my buddy Peter Braswell from Florida and I birded Lane's Landing, the Muskegon State Game Area Headquarters and the Wastewater. We counted 92 species in a half day. Highlights: LL: Prothonotary Warbler, Chestnut-sided Warbler, Palm Warbler, Yellow-throated Vireo, Kinglets, Pileated Woodpecker, Willow Flycatcher and Least Flycatcher. SGA: Swainson's Thrush, Wood Thrush, Scarlet Tanager. WW: Peter's lifer Bobolinks (19 both north and south sides, mostly breeding plumage males) and Upland Sandpipers (6, both sides), my year list Dickcissels (2) and Orchard Oriole . The shorebird aeration cells were off-limits so very few of those, but many Grasshopper Sparrows (24), some Savannah Sparrows (12) a pair of Vesper Sparrows and also a Baltimore Oriole at their headquarters. Neither of the Dickcissels were good-looking males. I think an immature and a female. The Orchard Oriole was by far my highlight. It was a first-year male with a really cool mix from yellow to burnt orange and a long ways to go on that black hood. It was all the way at the end of Laketon on the south side. It looks like the fields they used to hunt last year here were cut down. And also the Bobolinks, which Marlene Cook and I enjoyed last week Tuesday as well. Really sharp. The picture (below) does it NO justice. They were dominating three cells of field on the north side and were also abundant at the junction of Swanson and Laketon. Still at Lane's Landing, I'm a sucker for those Willow Flycatchers that hog the pathway and am always willing to risk being carried away by the Mosquitoes back by the bend in the path where the Prothonotary prefers those trees in standing water. Attached is a cropped male breeding-plumange Bobolink (below), an Upland Sandpiper through Peter's binocs (not posted because of Mike Vanderstelt's same-day not-through-binocs photos further below) and a nice Savannah Sparrow, again through Peter's binocs. Not great, but we weren't really focusing on photography ....(woulda been nice for that Orchard Oriole though.....). Blessed birding be with you!" - Phil Vreeman
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June 19: " I took these Upland Sandpiper pictures right to the east of the Rocket Field entrance today. I walked out to shoot momma and when she abruptly walked towards me I knew I had just walked into her own pediatrics department and was trying to get me to chase her to protect junior. I stood still for about 30 seconds and out popped the toddler. I took a couple shots and let them alone." - Mike VanderStelt
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June 13: I went over to Hoffmaster this morning hoping to add Hooded Warbler to my Year List. After walking from the Nature Center up to the Quiet Trail and then past the blow-out through the homestead meadow to the Four Corners and west toward the Lake I had 25 species including a few very vocal Veeries, but no Hoodeds until I was 70 yards east of where the dune sand is invading the main east-west trail (old Black Lake to Lake Michigan horse trail). The bird sang mostly from north of the trail but once from the south never showing himself for 25 minutes until finally I pished and he appeared for two seconds. As I drove out of the park I heard a second Hooded Warbler singing along the west side of the park road a tenth of a mile south of the three-arrowed sign for Picnic Area - Visitor Center - Group Use Area. - Ric Pedler
June 11: "During an Ottawa County Parks birding trip today we saw a decent variety of waterfowl on the east lagoon at the Wastewater. Wood Duck female with young, Gadwall, several Mallard broods, Blue-winged Teal, Northern Shoveler, Northern Pintail, Canvasback, Redhead, Lesser Scaup, Hooded Merganser and Ruddy Duck. Couldn't find the Red-necked Phalarope or the Eared Grebe. Also had Upland Sandpipers with young in the fields south of Apple." - Chip Francke
June 8 Email: "Hi Ric, I live in Grand Rapids but check your website often. My family and I bird the Muskegon area as often as we can. Yesterday (Sunday, June 7) we were at the Wastewater and found the Red-necked Phalarope (see previous post) along the edge of one of the large lagoons. This is a photo that my husband (Mort Harwood) took of the bird. You are welcome to post it on the website if you'd like." - Kathy Harwood
June 6 to Mich-Chat: "Chatters, today at the Muskegon Wastewater was 1 Red-necked Phalarope with 5 Semipalmated Sandpipers in the east end of the East Lagoon and 1 Eared Grebe and 1 Horned Grebe in the East Lagoon seen from the north side." - Carolyn Weng