GREEN BREASTED MANGO !!

My wife took a trip to Beloit yesterday, accompanied by Dan Belter, one of the Wausau area's most outstanding birders. They went to see the Green Breasted Mango which had been reported showing up at a feeder in the Beloit area. These are birds which seldom venture into the United States, let alone Wisconsin. There were six birders there during the day, some from as far away as Indiana and Illinois. Most had camera equipment which put my wife's gear to shame. The photos in this blog are copywrited shots by two of the guys there, which they quickly posted to the Internet. My wife's photos are good but not of the quality of these shots.

This bird is in the hummingbird family and is about half again as big as the Ruby-Throated variety that show up at Wisconsin feeders. It also has a long curved bill which makes the bird easily identifiable.

Mrs. Joan Salzberg whose feeder the bird has been coming to was very personable. She recorded the names of all the birders who have come to see the rare bird. Her patience may be tried this weekend as it is expected that hoards of birders will be descending on her back yard, including an expected busload who are attending a birding festival in Rockford, Illinois this weekend.

The Journal Sentinal ran a good article on the bird on 9/20. This can be viewed at http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=665321

My wife felt very fortunate to be able to add this bird to her life list, as it is unlikely she would ever have seen one, except for this little guy who some feel got blown up here by Hurricane Dean.