Fall Field Report, August–November 2010

This was a pretty routine fall for the most part, although there were scattered early and late dates and high counts as in most seasons. Decidedly non-routine, though, was the appearance of two rarities, Ross\u27s Gull and Brown-headed Nuthatch, both enjoyed by many. A surprising 15 gull species were reported, this without much help from L McConaughy! Also notable were the sea-ducks, scoters, and Long-tailed Duck, which were in good numbers. Tom Labedz, collections manager at the University of Nebraska State Museum, is an excellent source; he contributed greatly to discussions herein on Greater Prairie-Chicken and Fox Sparrow. A clarification: in the Spring Report I misleadingly implied that Eurasian Collared-Doves in Papillion were mostly feral, but I was referring only to a specific small group near Phil Swanson\u27s house. As pointed out by Loren and Babs Padelford, there are increasing numbers of wild birds in Papillion. Generally, though, their presence in larger cities is lagging behind their rural small town ubiquity, especially in the west. I have expanded the Routine Reports statement to indicate what indeed is the routine status for such species. Generally, routine implies no early or late dates or high counts were reported for the particular season. I list all regularly occurring species for each season, the vast majority of which do indeed have reports of interest. Of the remainder, some have Routine Reports, while the few remaining have None were reported ; for these latter species I generally include a brief comment on their status as well