A few American avocets are showing up in eastern Idaho

While birding at Camas National Wildlife Refuge this week, I observed 11 American avocets feeding in the shallows of Big Pond. Then while fishing on Ririe Reservoir I observed a flock of non-breeding avocets working on a mud flat as the water has dropped exposing areas for them to feed on.

With the lack of flooded marshlands of Camas NWR, Mud Lake and Market Lake Wildlife Management Areas this past spring, I have missed the large flocks of these beautiful birds as they migrate to their breeding grounds. These small flocks of avocets have become a very welcome sight as I continued searching for wildlife to view and photograph.

During their spring migration during May through southeastern Idaho, we used to see flocks of over a thousand drop into Mud Lake WMA or Market Lake WMA. In May 2021, I photographed large flocks of them and even wrote a story about breeding pairs on those bodies of water. Since then, I have not seen more than small flocks of them migrating through this area.

So, when I saw the 11 at Camas, I spent a lot of time watching them feeding in the shallows. There are three ways that they feed on aquatic bugs, small fish and aquatic veggies. The first is called “scything,” that is done with the birds getting in a group or a line, walking slowly with their bill about half open to capture prey spooked by their shuffling feet. The second way is done by walking slowly and pecking at prey or veggies as they move together in unison.

The third way is called “plunging.” This is done when the water is about eight inches deep and they work the bottom mud, by plunging their head into the water exposing their white bottoms-up. This was what the 11 were doing most of the time while I watched them. Occasionally they would take off, fly around the Big Pond and then land in some scattered aquatic weeds to plunge before flying around again.

It appeared that both small flocks were the beginning of the fall migrations as they were headed back to winter in Oregon, Washington or California. They probably had spent the spring and summer in Montana, the Dakotas, Wyoming or New Mexico marshes. Traditionally the fall migration season begins in mid-July for some shorebirds and even some songbirds.

By the way, if you have not been to Island Park in the last two weeks and have not seen the Mormon cricket infestation, it is a site to behold. During some days, U.S. Highway 20, is a sloppy mess and the Henrys Fork of the Snake River is a floating sea of crickets, not unlike Moses’ time. Not a great time to be camping out, up there! The experts tell us we need a very hard winter to get rid of them. I don’t think chocolate-covered crickets would be as yummy as chocolate-covered gummy bears.

If you are heading up to Yellowstone Park, be careful as July is also when the bison bulls begin their rutting season and they can get pretty ornery. I understand one man learned the hard reality of a bad-tempered one but lived to tell his grandkids about being launched by an angry bull.

Stay cool, don’t build fires and be safe out there ; fall is just around corner.

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