Recent USA and North American Trips 7/4/21 to 7/5/21

6/30/21 – 7/11/21 We headed out west to see family and also did some birding! We hit CO, NV, ID, MT, ND before heading home once again. We loved seeing the Gunnison Sage-Grouse, Calliope Hummingbird, and Mountain Plover, while the Eared Grebes feeding and carrying their tiny chicks on their backs in ND was a definite highlight!

7/5/21 Henderson Bird Preserve, Las Vegas, NV: Costa’s Hummingbird study, distant Clark’s Grebe , Black Phoebe , Mallard (chicks,f) , Black-tailed Gnatcatcher nest, and Crissal Thrasher .

7/5/21 Henderson Bird Preserve, Las Vegas, NV: Woodduck , Western Grebe , Verdin , Ruddy Duck , and Green-winged Teal in molt.

7/4/21 Lake Mead NP and Clark County Wetlands, Las Vegas, NV: At Lake Mead, we caught Snowy Egret , Say’s Phoebe , Great Egret , and Brown-headed Cowbird . At the wetlands, we saw Abert’s Towhee , a molting Blue Gorsbeak , Cooper’s Hawk/Sharp-shinned Hawk , and quite a few Greater Roadrunner individuals (always fun), Lucy’s Warbler , Western Kingbird , and a Yellow-breasted Chat carrying food for young’uns.