[Birdtalk] reservoirs

[Dave Hanscom]

I drove by Deer Creek Sunday on my way to Utah Lake and was amazed that 
all of the ice has melted.  A week ago Deer Creek had only a few hundred 
yards of open water, and the rest was still frozen.  Now all the loons I 
reported seeing last week were spread over the entire reservoir, rather 
than being concentrated in a small area.  They're still there, but harder 
to find.

Utah Lake was also quite a surprise to me.  I drove around the south end 
of the lake looking for shorebirds, but the water is so high that there's 
little habitat left for those guys.  Swede Lane and River Lane end at the 
water line, so it's not possible to get far enough to be able to see along 
the shoreline without a boat.  Guess I should have gone around the airport 
dike instead.  Certainly a pretty day to be out and a pretty drive, tho.

Yesterday I went over to Rockport to see if that was also melted, but it's 
still mostly iced over.  The south end was open, however, and there was a 
nice concentration of waterfowl to see, including quite a bunch of loons 
and ducks.  Nothing unusual, but three Franklin's gulls with their pink 
breasts were a nice indicator of spring.

Good birding.

Dave Hanscom