After helping my uncle celebrate his 80th birthday, I took a day off hoping to find some of the special birds of Southeast Iowa. After getting a room at historic Hotel Manning in Keosauqua I had a couple of hours to bird Lacey-Keosauqua State Park. There was nothing particularly unusual but it's always fun to watch a pair of Scarlet Tanagers working the tops of the trees and to hear Louisiana Waterthrush along the stream. It was also nice to hear several Wood Thrushes, a bird in trouble. The best birding was at nearby Lake Seguma where some second-growth scrubby stuff help Orchard Oriole, at least two Blue Grosbeaks, and no fewer than three Yellow-breasted Chats. I suspect there were a couple pair in there. The photo's not great but it was as close as I could get.
Then it was back to the hotel for some peaceful river watching from the porch.
With thunderstorms overnight, it was bound to be a sloppy day but I headed for the Croton Unit of Shimek State Forest anyway. I managed to find White-eyed Vireo and another pair of Yellow-breasted Chats before the rain just got too heavy to even have the window open. I explored other units of Shimek and the sun even popped out before I left. It was nice to get out.
