Photo by Doug Backlund. Used with permission.

An unusual and truly unexpected bird has been sighted in Spearfish Canyon. One that even the most optimistic of birding enthusiasts would never expect to see in the United States, let alone South Dakota.

It’s a male Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush that typically only lives in Mexico, Central America and northern South America. This wayward bird is about 1,500 miles farther north than its species has ever been documented. So, this little feller is a long way from home!

It’s so unusual, in fact, that there have only been two, count ‘em TWO, other Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrushes ever recorded in the U.S. The American Birding Association reports that the only other two sightings occurred in southern Texas, one in 1996 and the other in 2004.

This Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush was first discovered in Spearfish Canyon, along Iron Creek, by Eric Ripma on July 10. Ripma is a field technician with the Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory. The theory among local birders is that this bird probably ducked in with a bunch of somewhat similar Swainson’s Thrushes as they migrated north to their usual breeding sites in Spearfish Canyon for the summer.

A couple days ago I decided to try to catch a glimpse of the rare bird myself. I headed out into Spearfish Canyon and parked at the Iron Creek parking area – about two miles north of Spearfish Canyon Lodge at Savoy. I was only about 30 yards or so from my car when I came across several other birders on the trail – all with binoculars aimed towards the creek.

One of the women introduced herself as Jen Fowler. Fowler is a science teacher in the Rapid City school system and, like Eric Ripma, also works with the Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory.

Ripma, who originally sighted the bird, lives out of state and had to move on after a few days in Spearfish Canyon. Jen Fowler, however, lives here in the hills and has taken a big interest in the Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush. She’s spent a lot of time out along Iron Creek since the bird was first reported and was a huge help in knowing what to listen and look for.

We would all quietly stand in a group, just waiting to hear the Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush sing. It’s a beautiful three-toned song that is distinctly different from any other birds that you’ll hear in Spearfish Canyon.

We would hear him sing in the trees straight in front of us. Binoculars up! We’d slowly scan the trees from eye level on up. He’d sing again, but nobody would spot him. Next thing you know, we’d hear him sing 15 or 20 yards downstream.

Everybody would tilt their ears, listen and point in unison. All at once, we’d move on down the stream towards the sound. Pause. Hear bird sing. Binoculars up! Scan. Wait. Repeat.

It was like looking for a needle in the proverbial haystack – except this “needle” could be easily heard and has a bill that’s almost florescent orange in color. Even though I could easily hear the evasive bird singing over and over, I never did get to see him with my own eyes.

It was definitely an interesting process and I can see why this bird is causing such a hubbub in the national birding community. More than 200 folks from 20+ different states and 2 Canadian provinces have already made the trip to the Black Hills in hopes of seeing the once in a lifetime Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush.

There’s no telling how long this out of place little visitor will remain here in the hills, but Fowler told me that if he doesn’t migrate back south once the cold weather arrives, he won’t survive the region’s often harsh winter.

Recent sightings of the bird indicate that the best times to view him are in the early morning hours, from sunrise to around 8:00 a.m – the earlier in the morning the better. He has been sighted most frequently in the poplar trees along Iron Creek, within the first couple hundred yards of the parking area along Hwy 14A.

For more information about the Spearfish Canyon Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush and for updates about ongoing sightings, visit Birdingonthe.net.