Dan, Tatyanna, and I went out on the Gasconade for a couple of hours on Saturday in Dan’s canoe. About a quarter of a mile upstream from the Kinchloe access in Wright County we saw a Black Vulture. I’ve visited several times each year since my family moved to Missouri 13 years ago but had never seen a Black Vulture in the area. Dan and I were excited about the sighting; Tatyanna was less enthusiastic.
There were several butterfly species along Kinchloe Rd. on Sunday, including Red-banded Hairstreak (which was a life butterfly for me), Orange Sulphur, and Red-spotted Purple.
It wasn’t an especially birdy weekend; most of what I saw I saw on the river. Species seen or heard include the following:
- Great Blue Heron
- Wood Duck
- Turkey Vulture
- Black Vulture
- Red-tailed Hawk
- Broad-winged Hawk
- Pileated Woodpecker
- Eastern Phoebe
- Eastern Wood Pewee
- White-breasted Nuthatch
- Carolina Wren
- American Crow
- Cedar Waxwing
- Eastern Bluebird
- American Goldfinch
- Eastern Meadowlark
The waxwings were at the Jerktail access. They are always a treat, and these were putting on a show, sallying out over the river. My mother was thrilled to see her favorite bird.