Nelson's Sparrow, Finally!

Tuesday, I had the opportunity to see my lifer Le Conte's Sparrow at Sugar Grove Nature Center in Funks Grove. Today I returned to Sugar Grove to look for my first Nelson's Sparrow, but I could not find Nelson's, Le Conte's or Henslow's sparrows. My best birds were Lincoln's. I had 5-6 of them. I also saw Song, White-crowned, and of course Swamp Sparrows. Here is one of the Lincoln's.



After I realized there were no Ammodramus sparrows at Funks, I decided to try the Kenneth L. Schroeder Wildlife Sanctuary for Nelson's. When I got there it was raining, but I walked through the woods to the blind for cover. While I waited in the blind, I saw more Lincoln Sparrows, Song Sparrows, White-crowned Sparrows, and a Nashville Warbler. When the rain stopped, I walked back to the parking area to meet Les Allen and Wes Kolb. Wes needed Le Conte's and Nelson's as lifers, and Les needed Le Conte's as a county bird and Nelson's as a state bird.

We checked for Le Conte's first in the prairie Southwest of the gate. Wes and Les flushed a bird, and I followed it. It was a Le Conte's! It perched in a bush, and sat there until we all got great looks.







Next we headed South along the gravel road to the ponds. We did not see any Nelson's Sparrows there, but we had lots of White-crowneds, Swamps, Songs, and a Marsh Wren.



Here is one of our Song Sparrows . . .



and here is one of our Swamp Sparrows.



Next we decided to check out the brand new wetland Southeast of the blind. It was the first time I had seen it, and it was amazing! To my knowledge, there is nothing like it anywhere in the county. I cannot wait to see what this new habitat brings next Spring. It is perfect habitat for Nelson's Sparrows, and we found one, which was seen first by Wes!



It was not the most cooperative bird, but it was a lifer for Wes and me and a state bird for Les! And we also had Wilson's Snipes, another Marsh Wren, and Savannah Sparrows in the wetland.



With Eastern Towhee and White-throated Sparrow, our sparrow species count at Schroeder totaled at nine. Although the light was not great and the weather could have been better, any day with Le Conte's and Nelson's is a great day, especially when you can share these birds with friends!