SEASONAL DISTRIBUTION OF BIRDS
AT THE BAKER UNIVERSITY WETLANDS
The Baker University Wetlands Research and Natural Area is a 573-acre area 11 miles northwest of Baldwin and south of Lawrence in the Wakarusa River floodplain. The area contains 45 acres of native wetland prairie. It also includes many acres of restored meadows, marshes, open water, shrubby and secondary growth and mature riparian woodlands.
The area was acquired by Baker University from the federal government in 1968 and is used for education and research on a variety of ecological phenomena and for preservation of the native wetland prairie. The area was identified as a National Natural Landmark by the National Park Service in 1969 and a Natural and Scientific Area by the state of Kansas in 1987.
This tremendous habitat has produced more diversity of birds than any other area of comparable size in the entire Midwest.
KEY:
C = common
U = uncommon
O = occasional
R = rare
* = confirmed nesting
** = probable nesters
† = threatened/endangered species
Winter = Dec.-Feb.
Spring = Mar.-May
Summer = June-Aug.
Fall = Sept.-Nov.
Species |
W |
Sp |
Su |
F |
| Pied-billed Grebe* | O | C | U | U |
| White Pelican | |
R | |
R |
| Double-crested Cormorant | |
O | |
O |
| American Bittern** | R | O | |
O |
| Least Bittern* | |
O | R | R |
| Great Blue Heron | R | C | C | U |
| Great Egret | |
C | C | C |
| Snowy Egret | |
U | O | O |
| Little Blue Heron | |
C | C | O |
| Tri-colored Heron | |
R | R | |
| Cattle Egret | |
O | O | |
| Green Heron* | |
C | C | U |
| Black-crowned Night Heron | |
O | O | R |
Species |
W |
Sp |
Su |
F |
| Yellow-crowned Night Heron** | |
U | U | R |
| White-faced Ibis | |
O | R | R |
| Turkey Vulture | |
U | U | O |
| Tundra Swan | |
|
|
R |
| Greater White-fronted Goose | R | U | |
R |
| Snow Goose | O | O | |
O |
| Ross’s Goose | R | R | |
|
| Canada Goose* | C | C | C | C |
| Wood Duck* | O | C | C | C |
| Gadwall | U | C | O | C |
| American Wigeon | R | C | O | U |
| Mallard* | C | C | U | C |
| Black Duck | R | |
|
R |
| Cinnamon Teal | |
R | |
|
| Blue-winged Teal* | R | C | C | U |
| Northern Shoveler | O | C | O | O |
| Northern Pintail | U | U | R | U |
| Green-winged Teal | R | C | O | U |
| Redhead | |
O | |
O |
| Ring-necked Duck | O | O | |
R |
| Great Scaup | |
R | |
|
| Lesser Scaup | O | O | |
|
| Bufflehead | O | O | |
|
| Common Goldeneye | O | O | |
|
| Hooded Merganser | O | O | O | R |
| Common Merganser | U | O | |
|
| Ruddy Duck | |
O | |
R |
| Osprey | R | R | |
R |
| Mississippi Kite | |
R | O | R |
| Bald Eagle† | O | O | |
O |
| Northern Harrier* | C | C | R | C |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk* | U | U | U | U |
| Cooper's Hawk | O | O | O | O |
| Northern Goshawk | R | R | |
R |
| Red-shouldered Hawk | |
R | R | R |
| Broad-winged Hawk | |
R | |
|
| Swainson’s Hawk | |
O | |
O |
| Red-tailed Hawk* | C | C | C | C |
| Ferruginous Hawk | R | |
|
|
| Rough-legged Hawk | O | R | |
O |
| Golden Eagle | R | |
|
|
| American Kestrel* | U | U | U | U |
| Merlin | R | R | |
R |
| Prairie Falcon | R | R | |
R |
Species |
W |
Sp |
Su |
F |
| Peregrine Falcon† | R | R | |
R |
| Ring-necked Pheasant | R | R | R | R |
| Wild Turkey* | U | U | U | U |
| Northern Bobwhite* | C | C | C | C |
| Yellow Rail | |
R | |
R |
| Black Rail | |
O | |
|
| King Rail* | |
O | R | |
| Virginia Rail* | |
U | O | O |
| Sora* | |
C | R | U |
| Common Moorhen* | |
R | R | |
| American Coot* | O | C | U | U |
| Sandhill Crane | R | R | |
R |
| Black-bellied Plover | |
R | |
|
| American Golden Plover | |
R | |
|
| Semipalmated Plover | |
R | |
|
| Killdeer* | O | C | C | U |
| Greater Yellowlegs | |
C | O | O |
| Lesser Yellowlegs | |
C | O | O |
| Solitary Sandpiper | |
U | O | U |
| Willet | |
O | |
|
| Spotted Sandpiper | |
U | O | |
| Upland Sandpiper | |
O | |
R |
| Hudsonian Godwit | |
R | |
|
| Sanderling | |
R | |
|
| Semipalmated Sandpiper | |
O | R | R |
| Least Sandpiper | |
O | O | R |
| White-rumped Sandpiper | |
U | |
|
| Baird's Sandpiper | |
U | |
|
| Pectoral Sandpiper | |
U | O | O |
| Dunlin | |
R | |
|
| Stilt Sandpiper | U | |
|
|
| Long-billed Dowitcher | |
O | |
R |
| Common Snipe | O | C | U | U |
| American Woodcock* | |
U | |
|
| Wilsons' Phalarope | |
O | |
|