As the summer doldrums settle across the Midwest, that seemingly endless period of hot, hazy, humid weather, we often feel that nature's cycle has shut down. But, as usual, this perception arises from our own, narrow view of the world, tied as we are to our various habits and obligations.
In fact, the seasons continue to unfold and the first fall migrants are already moving south through the Heartland. Having bred on the Arctic tundra, some shorebirds depart for southern coasts by early to mid July; enroute, they stop to rest and feed on the mudflats and sandbars that line our lakes and rivers. Among these early travelers are least, semipalmated and pectoral sandpipers, which often mingle with the killdeer and spotted sandpipers that summer and breed in the Midwest.
While songbirds will not migrate until September and most waterfowl head south in October and November, migrant shorebirds grace our landscape from July through early November, usually peaking in number and variety by late August. For those of us who love autumn, their presence is always a welcome sign of coming change.
