Yep, he's back. Probably never left, even though I haven't heard any reports recently. I decided to go out to Jackson SP to poke around a bit this afternoon, and came up with mostly the usual suspects. I timed my departure to arrive at Latham a half hour before sunset in hopes of spotting a short-eared owl (which, predictably enough, I did not). What I did get, however, was another run-in with the infamous (named by me, for lack of a better option) Golf Cart Boy, the fellow who comes out onto WCR 48 (which passes through the marsh at the south end of the reservoir) in his ATV and harasses birders, takes down license numbers and other such nonsense. To avoid the speeding traffic on 48 (some cars were passing at more than 60 mph by my estimate), I pulled off into the far east end (away from the oil equipment) of the south side oil pad and was busily observing a merlin (aside from the lack of owls and presence of GCB, the visit was quite productive) when I heard the approach of a vehicle with some serious valve problems. Ignoring the vehicle in the hope of avoiding a confrontation, I busied myself with a great view of the merlin until I was hailed and informed that I was trespassing. I inquired if I were speaking to a representative of the oil company, and was told no, that the sheriff had stopped by and specifically requested that this yayhoo chase people off the oil pad. Well, having long ago had enough of this guy's act, I went back to ignoring him, whereupon he called the sheriff's office, phone on speaker so I could here the conversation and be appropriately intimidated. He told the office that I was trespassing, arguing and refusing to leave; I plead guilty to the latter two. Based on his demeanor, I interpreted that each of these was a felony that carried the death penalty, or worse, and that I was toast. I asked him if the sheriff was on his way and he said yes, and sped off in a shower of gravel and epithets cast my way. Yes, Dave, I think they were aspersions......I actually waited around for a half hour, on the shaky pretext of looking for owls, but no law enforcement officials appeared. Apparently trespassing, arguing and refusing to leave are not offenses which are high on their priority list.
Anyway, I wish that I would get to report a rarity or something every now and then. I'm not sure when I was appointed Official Jerk Magnet of the birding community, but I'd be delighted to pass along the mantle if anyone wants it.
And on a birding note, other than the lack of short-eared owls, Latham was delightful, with the merlin, several red-tails, multiple harriers of all sexes and ages, a few great-tailed grackles, and assorted other typicals. There is a large open area on the south side of the otherwise-frozen reservoir, and there was a truly spectacular "fly out" of Canada Geese (surprisingly, no white geese), consisting of at least 10,000 birds in numerous skeins heading off in various directions. Couple that with a spectacular sunset over the marshes, and it was a worthwhile, if somewhat annoying, stop.
To sum up, Latham is a great place for a brief sunset stop if you don't mind threats and intimidation.
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