A Northern Harrier sent the birds scurrying, but soon after it left, the birds returned and resumed displaying.
We left the northeastern part of the state and headed for the extreme southwestern corner. Midway between, we stopped at the Cheyenne Bottoms Wildlife Area near Great Bend. American Avocets and Western Grebes were just two of the many species seen there.
The long list of additional species noted there included Eared and Pied-billed Grebe, Double-crested Cormorant, Little Blue Heron, Great and Snowy Egret, Black-crowned Night-Heron, American White Pelican, White-faced Ibis, Gadwall, Northern Pintail, Green-winged and Blue-winged Teal, Northern Shoveler, American Wigeon, Ring-necked Duck, Bufflehead, Ruddy Duck, Swainson's Hawk, Northern Harrier, Peregrine Falcon, American Kestrel, Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, Baird's Sandpiper, Long-billed Dowitcher, Hudsonian Godwit, Wilson's Phalarope, Black-necked Stilt, California and Franklin's Gull, Forster's Tern, Marsh Wren, Eastern Meadowlark, Yellow-headed and Brewer's Blackbird, Great-tailed Grackle, and Vesper and Savannah Sparrow.
We tore ourselves away from this birdy spot and continued southwest to the Cimarron National Grasslands.
We had enough time left to make a test-drive up to the lek. Although no free-roaming birds were present, a female was inside one of the cages used to trap and band the birds. We headed back to the town of Elkhart where we spent the night at the El Rancho Motel.
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