(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . The Daily Bucket: Birds Seen Around Willow Beach, Lake Mead National Recreation Area. [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags'] Date: 2023-02-16 The Colorado River as seen from Willow Beach, Lake Mead National Recreational Area. On February 7, 2023, I went to Willow Beach in Lake Mead National Recreation Area, located in Northwestern Arizona. The beach is approximately 12 miles south of Hoover Dam by water along the Colorado River. Here is a link to the National Park Service website www.nps.gov/… . The main purpose of the trip was to see Bald Eagles, which have been reported in the area. eBird checklist indict that 150 bird species have been report at this location, but only 18 Bald Eagles have been reported in check lists ebird.org/... . I did see a Bald Eagle here in March, 2019, which was my last visit to Willow Beach. This map shows the general location of Willow Beach: Willow Beach in relation to surrounding area. zoom A second map, showing Willow Beach proper and the area where the bird sighting occurred. Colorado River at Willow Beach with the bird sightings inside the yellow outline. zoom . The Daily Bucket is a nature refuge. We amicably discuss animals, weather, climate, soil, plants, waters and note life’s patterns spinning around us. We invite you to note what you are seeing around you in your own part of the world, and to share your observations in the comments below. On this visit to Willow Beach I saw 22 species of birds, but alas, no Bald Eagles. Maybe next time. The most numerus bird seen, with 385 individuals, was the American Coot. American Coot zoom Number two in bird numbers was the Ruddy Duck, with 195 individuals sighted. Ruddy Duck zoom Seven other species of waterfowl were seen, but in much lower numbers, ranging from 1 to 16 individuals. These species included Bufflehead, Ring-necked Duck, Lesser Scaup, Common Goldeneye, Redhead, Canvasback and Mallard. Common Goldeneye zoom Ring-necked Ducks zoom Other birds seen included White-throated Swift, Double-crested Cormorant, Great Blue Heron, Eared Grebe, Pied-billed Grebe, Northern Rough-winged Swallow, Black Phoebe, Say’s Phoebe, Common Raven, Verdin, Mountain Bluebird, House Sparrow and Yellow-rumped Warbler. Double-crested Cormorants in the distance. zoom Black Phoebe zoom Say’s Phoebe zoom Besides the recreational opportunities at Willow Beach there is also a U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service Fish Hatchery that raises Rainbow Trout and endangered Razorback Suckers (Xyrauchen texanus) Bonytail Chub (Oncorhynchus mykiss). The fish are released into the Colorado River at the fish hatchery. The trout are released for sport fishing, while the suckers and chubs are released as part of an endangered species management program. Now It's Your Turn. What have you noted happening in your area or travels? As usual post your observations as well as their general location in the comments. Thank you. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/2/16/2152993/-The-Daily-Bucket-Birds-Seen-Around-Willow-Beach-Lake-Mead-National-Recreation-Area Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/