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April Bird Migration Information

Thursday, April 1, 2021

The following is a partial list of birds that migrate through our area and approximate times to see them. Arrival times can be affected by weather patterns.

Waterfowl:
- Common Loons, Horned and Eared Grebes, Red-necked Grebe (rare), American White Pelican, and Double-crested Cormorant (Omaha dam sites; Lake Manawa in Council Bluffs)

Raptors:
- Osprey, Turkey Vulture, Broad-winged Hawk, Swainson's Hawks (large numbers around mid month), and Peregrine Falcon (Neale Woods Nature Center; Waubonsie State Park in southwest Iowa)

Shorebirds:
- All Month: American Woodcock (Southeast corner, Lake Manawa at dawn & dusk)
- Mid Month: Piping Plover, Lesser Golden Plover, Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, Willet, Hudsonian and Marbled Godwits, Semi-palmated Sandpiper, Baird's Sandpiper, Pectoral Sandpiper, Long-billed Dowitcher, Wilson's Phalarope (Jack Sinn Wildlife Area, north Lancaster County; Rainwater Basins; flooded fields)
- Late Month: Solitary Sandpiper, Spotted Sandpiper, Upland Sandpiper, Least Sandpiper (Jack Sinn Wildlife Area, north Lancaster County; Rainwater Basins; flooded fields)

Gulls:
- Early Month: Bonaparte's Gull
- Mid Month: Franklin's Gull

Other
- All Month: Ruby-crowned Kinglet
- Early Month: Swallows: Purple Martin, Tree Swallow; Hermit Thrush; Sparrows: Chipping, Field, Savannah, Fox (leaves by middle of month)
- Mid Month: Forster's Terns; Greater Prairie Chicken (Burchard Lake Special Use Area, Pawnee County: Two blinds for public use, contact NE Game & Parks); Swallows: Barn and Northern Rough-winged; Wrens: House and Winter (leaves by end of the month); Brown Thrasher; Warblers: Yellow-rumped, Yellow-throated (Fontenelle Forest in Sycamore trees), and Louisiana Waterthrush (streams in Fontenelle Forest, Schramm; Platte River State Park); Longspurs: Smith's and Chestnut-collared (Omaha dam sites during or after snow storms. Both are rare, but migrate regularly through our area.); Sparrows: Vesper, Lark, and Grasshopper
- Late Month: Eastern Kingbird Flycatcher; Bank Swallow; Blue-gray Gnatcatcher; Warblers: Orange-crowned, Northern Parula, Black and White, and Prothonotary; Sparrows: Clay-colored, Lincoln's, White-throated, and White-crowned

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