It rained on Monday! Not a lot, but it did rain! My friend John stopped by for a surprise visit Sunday night. He is a man of many talents, including photography and natural science. We toured the Bottoms at sunrise and as it happens so frequently — an amazing thing happened.

We saw the gulls dancing! They danced with joy in the fresh wind and clean, cool air! The mosquitoes have essentially disappeared with the freeze last week, so it became a perfect morning of unexpected activity that just adds vitality to our lives. It is a special treat to share a morning with a dear friend of many years. 

There are several different species of gulls here. Right now, Franklin Gulls is the most numerous. Ring-billed Gulls and Bonaparts Gulls are here. I have also seen a few Herring gulls. There are thousands of gulls in pool one. Let that sink in — THOUSANDS of gulls are in the Cheyenne Bottoms right now! They dance in the wind, swooping and diving and feeding and sleeping. They don’t pay any attention to vehicles or people on the dikes. Duck season is open and there are very few hunters due to limited water. It is easy for those flat-bellied young hunters to scramble out to the middle of Pool 3 where most of the water and ducks are. They are far away from pool one and the birds in that pool pay no attention to the activity in 3. We also have a bonus of White Pelicans using the marsh. The geese have also started. You will see White-fronts in the photos.

If you look carefully on your drive around to the south-east side of Pool One where the gulls are, you will see some very busy sparrows in the underbrush. My favorite of these is the Savannah Sparrow. It is hard to get a good shot. They are quick, twitchy, and nervous! I was lucky on Monday.

The Sandhill Cranes are starting to show up. Dan Soeken and Mike Blair live closer to Quivira and they share the huge flocks migrating through the area with me and my cell phone. It is worthwhile to visit their sites on FB. No Whooping Cranes have arrived, but I don’t think they are very far away.

My favorite bird (my license plate) is really pale and washed out from his struggles up north. Avocets are so pretty when they fly low on the water with a reflection underneath. Takes my breath every time!

As you can tell, the activity is picking up! Go dance with the gulls before their card fills up. You will be glad you did!

Doc

Doctor Dan Witt is a retired physician and nature enthusiast. He can be reached at danwitt01@gmail.com.