Latah Co. Long-billed Curlew, etc. 4/3/2010

This afternoon I found a Long-billed Curlew out along Little Bear Ridge Rd. southeast of Troy (which is east of Moscow). It was in a seasonally wet field depression just before the farm at 1550 Little Bear Ridge which is about 6.5 miles from Troy and .5 mile north of the cemetery. It was foraging at the back of the wet area in a fairly tall grass and I watched it eat several large earthworms. At times it was hard to see in the grass especially while resting. 

This is a species that I had wondered about occurring in Latah Co. (probably nested formerly) but wasn't really on my radar until several were seen around this time last year (just north of Moscow and near Genesee). I presume these are migrants heading northeast to w. MT or Alberta from the west coast. It was kind of a fluke that I was out birding this afternoon, I had a small person (my daughter) who would not settle down for a nap at home so I was forced to take her for a drive and do some birding! 

I've attached an out of focus digiscoped image of the curlew.

At the bottom of Little Bear Ridge Rd. at the confluence of Little and Big Bear Rd. near Kendrick there was a nice collection of birds that had either retreated or were just backed up down at lower elevations w/ the unsettled weather up higher (low 40's and very windy up on the Palouse; Kendrick at ~1200 ft. lower was calm and about 49 F). I've seen this happen at this locale several times in the past couple of years. This group included ~50 Mountain Bluebirds, ~20 Western Bluebirds, a couple each Townsend's Solitaires and Say's Phoebes, and a Spotted Towhee. The bluebirds (especially Mountains) were very flighty. There was also a nice flock of Lesser Goldfinches here (20+) and a bunch of Violet-green Swallows (50+). 

Elsewhere I found a couple Ruddy Ducks at a pond near the curlew spot, and a number of Turkey Vultures both east and west of Troy. All told I picked up 4 year birds and the LB Curlew is a new county bird. A nice few hours out in the field on this chilly Easter weekend!

These pictures were sent with Picasa, from Google.
Try it out here: http://picasa.google.com/

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com

South Carolina trip list

Final species list for my South Carolina trip (12/29/09 - 1/6/10) showing date and location of first sighting of each. Total species seen 95. Data from ebird.

  
   
Species
   
Count
   
Location
  
  
   
Canada Goose
   
5
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Wood Duck
   
2
   
Palmetto Island County Park
  
  
   
Mallard
   
25
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Green-winged Teal
   
5
   
Huntington Beach SP
  
  
   
Redhead
   
6
   
Huntington Beach SP
  
  
   
Bufflehead
   
1
   
Mount Pleasant Memorial Waterfront Park
  
  
   
Hooded Merganser
   
1
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Red-breasted Merganser
   
3
   
Mount Pleasant Memorial Waterfront Park
  
  
   
Ruddy Duck
   
50
   
Huntington Beach SP
  
  
   
Red-throated Loon
   
15
   
Atlantic Beach -- south end
  
  
   
Common Loon
   
2
   
Mount Pleasant Memorial Waterfront Park
  
  
   
Pied-billed Grebe
   
1
   
Mount Pleasant
  
  
   
Horned Grebe
   
2
   
Mount Pleasant Memorial Waterfront Park
  
  
   
Northern Gannet
   
3
   
Atlantic Beach -- south end
  
  
   
Brown Pelican
   

   
Mount Pleasant
  
  
   
Double-crested Cormorant
   
15
   
Mount Pleasant Memorial Waterfront Park
  
  
   
Anhinga
   
1
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Great Blue Heron
   
1
   
Isle of Palms - Breach Inlet
  
  
   
Great Egret
   
1
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Snowy Egret
   
3
   
Mount Pleasant Memorial Waterfront Park
  
  
   
Little Blue Heron
   
1
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Tricolored Heron
   
3
   
Mount Pleasant Memorial Waterfront Park
  
  
   
White Ibis
   
1
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Black Vulture
   

   
Mount Pleasant
  
  
   
Turkey Vulture
   

   
Mount Pleasant
  
  
   
Osprey
   
1
   
Palmetto Island County Park
  
  
   
Bald Eagle
   
1
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Northern Harrier
   
1
   
Huntington Beach SP
  
  
   
Red-shouldered Hawk
   
1
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Red-tailed Hawk
   

   
Mount Pleasant
  
  
   
American Kestrel
   
1
   
Myrtle Beach
  
  
   
Clapper Rail
   
2
   
Mount Pleasant Memorial Waterfront Park
  
  
   
Common Moorhen
   
2
   
Atlantic Beach -- Marsh Oaks area
  
  
   
American Coot
   
2
   
Myrtle Beach
  
  
   
Black-bellied Plover
   
1
   
Pitt Street Causeway
  
  
   
Semipalmated Plover
   
50
   
Pitt Street Causeway
  
  
   
Killdeer
   
1
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
American Oystercatcher
   
2
   
Mount Pleasant Memorial Waterfront Park
  
  
   
Spotted Sandpiper
   
1
   
Palmetto Island County Park
  
  
   
Greater Yellowlegs
   
3
   
Atlantic Beach -- Marsh Oaks area
  
  
   
Willet
   
30
   
Isle of Palms - Breach Inlet
  
  
   
Lesser Yellowlegs
   
1
   
Atlantic Beach -- Marsh Oaks area
  
  
   
Marbled Godwit
   
5
   
Pitt Street Causeway
  
  
   
Ruddy Turnstone
   
3
   
Isle of Palms - Breach Inlet
  
  
   
Sanderling
   
20
   
Isle of Palms County Park & Beach
  
  
   
Western Sandpiper
   
20
   
Pitt Street Causeway
  
  
   
Dunlin
   
5
   
Pitt Street Causeway
  
  
   
Short-billed Dowitcher
   
1
   
Pitt Street Causeway
  
  
   
Wilson's Snipe
   
1
   
Atlantic Beach -- Marsh Oaks area
  
  
   
Bonaparte's Gull
   
6
   
Huntington Beach SP
  
  
   
Laughing Gull
   
2
   
Patriot's Point
  
  
   
Ring-billed Gull
   
130
   
Isle of Palms County Park & Beach
  
  
   
Herring Gull
   
1
   
Isle of Palms County Park & Beach
  
  
   
Forster's Tern
   
1
   
Isle of Palms County Park & Beach
  
  
   
Royal Tern
   
1
   
Isle of Palms County Park & Beach
  
  
   
Black Skimmer
   
7
   
Isle of Palms - Breach Inlet
  
  
   
Rock Pigeon
   
20
   
Isle of Palms County Park & Beach
  
  
   
Eurasian Collared-Dove
   

   
Mount Pleasant
  
  
   
Mourning Dove
   
1
   
Isle of Palms County Park & Beach
  
  
   
Belted Kingfisher
   
1
   
Mount Pleasant Memorial Waterfront Park
  
  
   
Red-bellied Woodpecker
   
2
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
   
1
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Downy Woodpecker
   
4
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Northern Flicker
   
2
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Pileated Woodpecker
   
2
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Eastern Phoebe
   
1
   
Mount Pleasant Memorial Waterfront Park
  
  
   
Loggerhead Shrike
   
1
   
Isle of Palms County Park & Beach
  
  
   
Blue-headed Vireo
   
1
   
Palmetto Island County Park
  
  
   
Blue Jay
   
7
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
American Crow
   

   
Mount Pleasant
  
  
   
Tree Swallow
   

   
Myrtle Beach
  
  
   
Carolina Chickadee
   
8
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Tufted Titmouse
   
2
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Brown-headed Nuthatch
   
1
   
Palmetto Island County Park
  
  
   
Carolina Wren
   
4
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
   
5
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Eastern Bluebird
   
5
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Northern Mockingbird
   

   
Mount Pleasant
  
  
   
European Starling
   
50
   
Patriot's Point
  
  
   
Cedar Waxwing
   

   
Mount Pleasant
  
  
   
Yellow-rumped Warbler
   
1
   
Isle of Palms County Park & Beach
  
  
   
Pine Warbler
   
1
   
Palmetto Island County Park
  
  
   
Palm Warbler
   
1
   
Mount Pleasant Memorial Waterfront Park
  
  
   
Eastern Towhee
   

   
Mount Pleasant
  
  
   
Chipping Sparrow
   
6
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Song Sparrow
   
1
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Swamp Sparrow
   
5
   
Mount Pleasant Memorial Waterfront Park
  
  
   
White-throated Sparrow
   

   
Mount Pleasant
  
  
   
Dark-eyed Junco
   
6
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Northern Cardinal
   

   
Mount Pleasant
  
  
   
Red-winged Blackbird
   
10
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
Boat-tailed Grackle
   
100
   
Isle of Palms County Park & Beach
  
  
   
House Finch
   
2
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
American Goldfinch
   
4
   
Mt. Pleasant -- Brickyard Plantation
  
  
   
House Sparrow
   
25
   
N. Myrtle Beach Wal-Mart
  
 

eBird Report - Brickyard Subdivision, Mt. Pleasant, SC

Location:     Brickyard Subdivision

Observation date:     1/1/10

Notes:     New Year's Day walk around my brother Kevin's neighborhood in Mt. Pleasant, SC w/ Kevin & Deb. A nice variety of typical birds on a cool and cloudy afternoon. Loads of Myrtle Warblers are in the area for the winter. With a bit more effort I could have had 40 species. Happy New Year to all!!

Number of species:     37

Canada Goose     5
Mallard     25
Common Loon     1
Pied-billed Grebe     1
Brown Pelican     4
Double-crested Cormorant     3
Anhinga     1
Great Blue Heron     2
Great Egret     3
Little Blue Heron     1
Black Vulture     8
Turkey Vulture     30
Bald Eagle     1
Red-shouldered Hawk     1
Ring-billed Gull     15
Herring Gull     2
Belted Kingfisher     1
Red-bellied Woodpecker     1
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker     1
Northern Flicker     2
Pileated Woodpecker     2
Blue Jay     2
American Crow     15
Carolina Chickadee     7
Tufted Titmouse     1
Carolina Wren     2
Ruby-crowned Kinglet     1
Eastern Bluebird     6
Northern Mockingbird     3
Yellow-rumped Warbler     300
Chipping Sparrow     6
White-throated Sparrow     4
Dark-eyed Junco     6
Northern Cardinal     4
Red-winged Blackbird     10
House Finch     6
American Goldfinch     4

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com

Fall Season Report for North American Birds

Here is my fall season (August 1 - November 30) for North American Birds (http://www.aba.org/nab/). Dave Trochlell (dtrochlell@verizon.net) is the editor for Idaho and western Montana.

Greater White-fronted Goose - 10/6 @ UI Dairy, discovered by Terry, quite hard to find in Latah Co. although annual in Nez Perce Co. (usually Mann Lake)

Cackling Goose - 11/13, 9 @ UI Dairy, Moscow, presumed Taverner's race, see photos at http://tinyurl.com/yhylt9k, Terry discovered 3 earlier in the day, I went later and found the 9 (5 are in the photos), will be submitted to IBRC (perhaps a record count for Idaho?)

Western Grebe - 150 on 9/10 @ Cascade Res. Sugraloaf area, probably many hundreds total (according IDFG up to 4000 nest here which I can believe, it would be great to do some more complete surveys here)

Clark's Grebe - 9/7 @ Dworshak Res., Clearwater Co, quite uncommon up here

White Pelican - 150 on 9/10 @ Cascade Res. Sugraloaf area (probably more elsewhere) and 150 on 9/13 at the south end of Cascade Res.

Broad-winged Hawk - 1 on 9/12 @ Lucky Peak, I think they had a pretty good number this season, hope you will get a report from Jay on that

Gray Flycatcher - 9/21 @ UI Arboretum, still trying to figure out the status of this species here in migration (and still getting familiar with it!), appears to be regular in e. WA late Aug through Sep. at migrant traps (as is Least FC which I'm still trying to figure out how to identify when silent!)

Bohemian Waxwing - 7 on 11/1 @ UI Arboretum, I had small numbers on 2 other dates in early November. Probably about the earliest they regularly occur in n. ID but not unusually early. Some were near Spokane in late October. (a cool October may have helped)

American Redstart - seen in migration in Moscow on 8/16 and 8/20, rarely detected in migration here. These dates suggest they are early migrants so perhaps they are easily overlooked (really need to start looking for migrants earlier in August). Also being at the ~southwest edge of their breeding range I've always assumed they are migrate east then south but perhaps there is a western migration corridor as well. (There is much still to learn about migration in the western U.S. I think.)

Lark Sparrow - 9/5 north of Moscow, very uncommon migrant here (where are these coming from??)

White-throated Sparrow - 10/20 @ UI Arboretum (present several days, presume same bird)

American Tree Sparrow - 10/20 @ UI Arboretum, rarely detected in migration (by me) in fact quite uncommon overall in our area, Terry has a discovered a couple small groups that winter in the area

Common Redpoll - 11/15 @ UI Parker Farm (Moscow) with about 40 A. Goldfinches, I doubt this is unusually early, just nobody looks much in November.

East Moscow neighborhood birds, 11/14/09

Location:     Moscow - East City Area (centered on E. City Park)
Observation date:     11/14/09
Notes:     Beautiful, sunny, cold, snowy fall morning. About 2" fresh snow, temp. 36-38 F, sunny w/ broken cloud. Roads fairly slick. Many birds right in our block w/ a nice group of robins, starlings, and juncos w/ 3 Varied Thrushs.
Number of species:     15

Canada Goose     X
Rough-legged Hawk     1     dark morph, dark carpal patches visible, dusky white undertail coverts and dark sub-terminal tail band
Northern Flicker     6
American Crow     4
Black-capped Chickadee     2
Red-breasted Nuthatch     6
Golden-crowned Kinglet     1
American Robin     15
Varied Thrush     3
European Starling     30
Cedar Waxwing     30
Dark-eyed Junco     35
House Finch     20
American Goldfinch     1
House Sparrow     5

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

These pictures were sent with Picasa, from Google.
Try it out here: http://picasa.google.com/

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com

fall birding at the University of Idaho Arboretum

I had 7 Bohemian Waxwings this morning at the UI Arboretum w/ about 70 Cedar Waxwings (total 150 for my morning walk). This is about the earliest I've had them in Moscow although I'm sure it's not unprecedented. I had a flock of ~300 Cedar Waxwings on campus Thursday (10/29) and was looking carefully for them then but no luck. There have been reports of Bohemians in southern British Columbia and w/ the unsettled and at times cold October weather I figured there was a good chance we'd get some early ones here. Also this morning among 26 species were 2 Cooper's Hawks, 1 Sharp-shinned Hawk, Belted Kingfisher and Great Blue Heron (both present Thursday), flock of 5 Townsend's Solitaires (always nice!), ~10 Black-capped Chickadees, a Ruby-crowned Kinglet, and others.

I haven't had much of a chance to put together a report but have covered the UI arboretum complex 6 times now in the past 2 weeks and birding has continued to be quite good (20+ species on all visits and a good diversity overall). Seems like I usually curtail my fall migration birding here after mid October but this is clearly a mistake! I'll try to post a summary in the next few days but here are a few items of interest.

On Tuesday (10/27) I had an immature Northern Goshawk flying south through/over the arb. (this is a good time for migrating Goshawks). The Goshawk initially gave the impression of a Sharpie until it got closer and I realized it was much too large to be a Sharpie. "Hawks in Flight" (Dunne et al.) notes that Goshawk and Sharp-shinned Hawk have very similar wing and tail proportions and this is useful (among other things) in separating immature Goshawks and Cooper's Hawk in the field. (According to Dunne et al. "If Sharp-shinned Hawks were the size of Cooper's Hawks, distinguishing between them and Goshawks would border on the impossible". It also notes that high flying Goshawks at hawk watches are likely to be initially mis-identified as Sharpies - until they flap that is.) 

The past couple of weeks (but not today) I've been observing a flock of ~15 or so Yellow-rumped Warblers - I presume mostly the same birds - frequenting the same general part of the arb. It turns out there are a couple of "Myrtle Warblers" in this group but my post a couple weeks ago was wrong (sort of) in pointing to pale throats as a key feature in separating Myrtles from Audubon's. In actuality basic (fall plumage) Audubon's can have fairly pale throats (most probably 1st fall females). However, with basic plumage Myrtle Warblers the white throat extends in thin arcs under the auriculars (cheek area) and this along w/ several other features makes the face pattern fairly distinctive from Audubon's. This is pointed out well in the big Sibley and in more detail in Dunn and Garret's "Peterson Field Guide to Warblers". Fortunately I was able to study the guides at home and then study this flock further on successive visits. It also turns out after some study there were a good number of adult (after hatch year) male Audubon's Warblers in the group as evidence by the gray streaking on their backs. It may well be that there were both male and female 1st year (hatch year in banding lingo) and adult (after hatch year) Audubon's in this group. According to Dunn and Garret the dullest pale throated birds likely are 1st year (hy) females and the brightest, distinctly marked, yellow-throated birds are adult (ahy) males with the others hard to separate (this is typical of many passerines and often only these 2 plumages are depicted in the major field guides). BTW this may be of more than just academic interest as there is recent research on this species complex that may result in Myrtle and Audubon's Warblers being un-lumped (Dunn and Garret seem to be of the opinion that the split was incorrect and indeed if you look at these 2 they are quite different in appearance although their similarities certainly point to a common ancestor species, and yes they do hybridize in a narrow zone in British Columbia.)

It's always nice to go out and learn new things in your own backyard and to have cooperative birds stay around to be studied on successive visits! More later (hopefully) on my recent UI Arboretum birding - time to go do some raking!

thanks, Charles.

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com

West Mountain, Valley Co., Idaho (9/13/09)

Cascade Reservoir from West Mountain, looking northeast

I explored up West Mountain (Valley Co.) a bit on my way home from Boise a couple weeks ago. This is a very attractive area and it seems to me birding could be quite good along the road up to the ridge in breeding season. The road is actually in pretty good shape although narrow in spots due to encroaching vegetation. I only went as far as the main West Mountain ridge but one could continue further west into the mountain range and eventually all the way to Council. There is a lookout on a bald further west that also looks interesting. There was a Dusky Grouse carcass at the saddle/road intersection. Complete eBird list is below.

More photos of area here: http://tinyurl.com/ydhy5qy

---------- Forwarded message ----------

Location: West Mountain Saddle
Observation date: 9/13/09
Notes: This is the first main (West Mountain) ridge line up USFS Road #435 - about 20 minutes from the west side of Cascade Lake (West Mountain Rd.) A nice area of mixed conifers w/ jeep tracks going north and south from the saddle. The road up looks like it could be quite good in the breeding season w/ lot of deciduous understory. Also some great views of Cascade Res. along the way. A Dusky Grouse carcass was near the saddle. There is also a warming hut for snow mobilers.
Number of species: 12

Hairy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 2
Steller's Jay 1
Clark's Nutcracker 3
Common Raven 2
Mountain Chickadee 1
Red-breasted Nuthatch 1
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 1
American Robin 2
Yellow-rumped Warbler 10
Chipping Sparrow 20
Dark-eyed Junco 2

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

Fwd: eBird Report - Moscow - UI Arboretum and Botanical Gardens , 9/17/09

University of Idaho Arboretum & Botanical Gardens, from north entrance

It was pretty birdy in the UI Arboretum at noon today w/ lots of YR Warblers and Cedar Waxwings and smattering of others. A bunch of waxwings were scattered around feeding and then a flock of ~150 and another of ~50 flew over. Many Yellow-rumps were feeding on the ground and low in an open oak grove and of course doing lots of fly catching. Also of interest were a couple each of both kinglets, a Hermit Thrush (responded to owl imitations, fist alerted to its presence by 'chuk' call notes), and a few juncos. Also a lingering House Wren (same area it's been in for several weeks now) and smattering of migrants other than YRWA. I wonder if it will be cool enough this weekend to clear out some of the lingering breeders?

Complete eBird list is below.

Charles.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: <do-not-reply@ebird.org>
Date: Thu, Sep 17, 2009 at 2:48 PM
Subject: eBird Report - Moscow - UI Arboretum and Botanical Gardens , 9/17/09
To: chaetura@gmail.com


Location: Moscow - UI Arboretum and Botanical Gardens
Observation date: 9/17/09
Notes: Very birdy lunch hour walk through Arboretum. Most notable large number of Yellow-rumped Warblers and Cedar Waxwing and a smattering of other migrants. Hermit Thrush responded to my owl imitation. Most birds were below the lower pond and in the oak grove. Many Yellow-rumps were feeding on the ground. First RCKI and DEJU of fall locally for me.
Number of species: 26

Canada Goose 8
Mallard 2
Swainson's Hawk 1
Red-tailed Hawk 2
Belted Kingfisher 1
Northern Flicker 6
Warbling Vireo 1
Black-billed Magpie 3
Common Raven 2
Barn Swallow 5
Black-capped Chickadee 2
Mountain Chickadee 1
Red-breasted Nuthatch 1
House Wren 1
Golden-crowned Kinglet 2
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 2
Hermit Thrush 1
American Robin 2
Cedar Waxwing 250
Orange-crowned Warbler 2
Yellow-rumped Warbler 70
Western Tanager 1
Song Sparrow 1
White-crowned Sparrow 10
Dark-eyed Junco 3
American Goldfinch 1

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com

Hatter Creek Rd.

I had a nice mixed flock of up to 100 birds in the field pictured above (complete list below). Included in this flock was a Lark Sparrow, seen initially perched on the barbed wire fence and then later foraging on the ground with Chipping Sparrows etc.. A pretty uncommon species in Idaho north of the Palouse as far as we can tell.

The location was along Hatter Creek Rd. on the north side of Moscow Mountain accessed from ID-6 at the small town of Princeton. The birds were working a weedy field w/ nearby shrub cover and scattered Ponderosa Pines where they would retreat when spooked. I presume these fields are full of insects at this time. This type of habitat seems quite good in fall migration for bluebirds, YR Warblers, and Chippies and other species that may attracted to the gathering.

Location: Hatter Creek Rd.
Observation date: 9/5/09
Notes: A nice mixed flock included a single well seen Lark Sparrow. Distinctive face pattern and white tail corners well seen and larger size than Chipping Sparrows it was found with noted. Probably a fairly uncommon fall migrants in this region.
Number of species: 12

Turkey Vulture 2
American Kestrel 1
Mountain Chickadee 1
Pygmy Nuthatch 2
Western Bluebird 10
American Robin 4
Cedar Waxwing 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler 20
Chipping Sparrow 40
Lark Sparrow 1
Red Crossbill 4
Pine Siskin 10

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

Fwd: eBird Report - Moscow - UI Arboretum and Botanical Gardens , 8/30/09

I had a great couple of hours at the UI Arboretum this morning (complete eBird list below). Lots of birds moving through with activity increasing as the morning progressed (presumably arriving migrants, some of which may continue moving for some time after dawn under good flight conditions). With so much going on I'm sure I missed more than a few birds and a good number of empidonax flycatchers went unidentified (although Hammond's seemed to be the dominant species). Also a good number of pewees and at least 2 Olive-sided Flycatchers were present. The highlight was probably a Gray Catbird which although a fairly common breeder nearby seems to be quite uncommon in migration. I think this is my first record for Moscow proper.

I checked the Spokane radar loop last evening using http://www.rap.ucar.edu/weather/radar/ and it appeared to be showing a good flight early in the evening. I've been interested in Colby Neuman's nocturnal migration monitoring and he's given me some help on reading the radar loops for migrating birds. Cool stuff.

thanks, Charles.

---------- Forwarded message ----------

Location: Moscow - UI Arboretum and Botanical Gardens
Observation date: 8/30/09
Notes: Great morning at Arboretum a day and half after a cold front. Started out slowly but birds arriving migrants moved in as it warmed up. Lots of squabbling and chasing was observed. A large flock of Cedar Waxwings was spread out and actively feeding. A good # of empids went unidentified although Hammond's seemed the dominant species. Warbling Vireos probably underestimated, some in small flocks. Warblers were a bit tricky to pick out of all the other birds presents. The Gray Catbird was probably the best bird - probably my first for Moscow and hard to find as a migrant (which this one presumably was).
Number of species: 35

Mallard 5
California Quail 10
Swainson's Hawk 3
Mourning Dove 10
Northern Flicker 4
Olive-sided Flycatcher 2
Western Wood-Pewee 6
Hammond's Flycatcher 8
Dusky Flycatcher 2
Cassin's Vireo 1
Warbling Vireo 12
Common Raven 3
Barn Swallow 4
Black-capped Chickadee 2
Red-breasted Nuthatch 2
House Wren 1
American Robin 1
Gray Catbird 1
European Starling 5
Cedar Waxwing 60
Orange-crowned Warbler 1
Nashville Warbler 1
Yellow Warbler 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler 5
Townsend's Warbler 2
MacGillivray's Warbler 2
Wilson's Warbler 5
Western Tanager 8
Chipping Sparrow 10
Song Sparrow 2
Lazuli Bunting 2
House Finch 5
Pine Siskin 8
American Goldfinch 5
Evening Grosbeak 2

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com

Moscow migrants, Am. Redstart etc., 8/16/09

I had a nice group of migrants coming through Moscow this morning highlighted by a female American Redstart (complete eBird list follows). Most were seen on a walk through the small Heron's Hideout Park in southeast Moscow. This is a nice little linear park along Paradise Creek that includes some nice willow stands, weedy/seedy fields, and cattails, a great combination for fall migrants. The urban location also accounts for the large number of urban species (quail, starlings, house sparrows, etc.) The weedy areas were loaded w/ Pine Siskins working the seed heads this morning.

Also in my yard this morning were MacGillivray's, Townsend's, and a couple Wilson's Warblers, and Warbling Vireo.

Charles.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: <do-not-reply@ebird.org>
Date: Sun, Aug 16, 2009 at 9:45 PM
Subject: eBird Report - Moscow - Heron's Hideout/Brink Park , 8/16/09
To: chaetura@gmail.com

Location:     Moscow - Heron's Hideout/Brink Park
Observation date:     8/16/09
Notes:     Morning walk through just Heron's HIdeout was very rewarding w/ a nice diversity of migrants, residents, and local breeders. Highlight was a female American Redstart flitting in the Willows at the north end of the park (behind houses).
Number of species:     32

Mallard     2
California Quail     20
Killdeer     2
Mourning Dove     1
Black-chinned Hummingbird     1
Calliope Hummingbird     1
Rufous Hummingbird     1
Downy Woodpecker     3
Northern Flicker     3
Western Wood-Pewee     5
Western Kingbird     1
American Crow     8
Barn Swallow     5
Black-capped Chickadee     3
Red-breasted Nuthatch     1
Bewick's Wren     1
American Robin     5
European Starling     40
Cedar Waxwing     2
Nashville Warbler     1
Yellow Warbler     3
American Redstart     1
Common Yellowthroat     1
Wilson's Warbler     2
Chipping Sparrow     10
Song Sparrow     5
Lazuli Bunting     5
Red-winged Blackbird     50
House Finch     20
Pine Siskin     40
American Goldfinch     5
House Sparrow     30

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com

Little Butte area, eastern Whitman Co., WA, 7/17/09

images of Little Butte - more at http://tinyurl.com/kv4nrg

On Friday morning I beat the heat and took a short hike up to Little Butte from Woods Rd. (off Snow Rd.) just across the ID/WA border in eastern Whitman Co. and about 5 miles south of Moscow. Back in early June I got to the access point at the end of Woods Rd. but was unable to get very far up on the butte (w/ Iris in tow). This time I hiked w/ Sam Hunter about ~1.5 miles up onto Little Butte and then south and west to within about .5 miles of Bald Butte. Around Little Butte is extensive, varied, and interesting habitat interspersed within a matrix of cropland. Habitat present includes cropland (in various states, mostly un-planted on top), disturbed weedy grassland, remnant Palouse prairie (bunch grass/forb mixture), lights to extensive shrub cover, scattered Ponderosa Pine, and some impressive looking Aspen clones. Native habitat types were well represented. Several shrubby north and east aspect draws have extensive and dense cover and were busy with a lot of bird activity. There are some exposed rocky areas on the south side (hence the Rock Wren). The habitat is very similar to what is found on western Paradise Ridge but much more extensive especially in terms of undisturbed areas.

There was still (at this date) plenty of bird vocalization evident especially among the most common species: Lazuli Buntings, House Wrens, and Spotted Towhees. Several weedy long grass areas had Grasshopper Sparrows including at least 4 singing males. This is pretty interesting and based on other recent reports it seems that territorial Grasshopper Sparrows are fairly easy to find well into summer. Also of interest were several Vesper Sparrows (still singing), several Dusky Flycatchers in the shrubby area, a Rock Wren (fairly local up on the Palouse compared to in the canyons), and several small flocks of Chipping Sparrows which were presumably migrants. With regard to the latter there is evidence (from Colorado) that Chipping Sparrows undergo a molt migration after nesting and before their usual southbound fall migration. I also detected at least half a dozen hummingbirds which I assume were migrating but was unable to identify any of them as they zipped by. My complete eBird list is below.

This was a fairly quick hike and we only just scratched the surface in terms of exploring the area. I can't wait to get back up there next spring and do a more extensive exploration. As well explorations at other times of the year may be fairly rewarding. I suspect Clay-colored and Brewer's Sparrows may well be here and there are historical records for both. The homestead area at the south end of Woods Rd. which we used to access Little Butte remains un-posted at this time.

complete bird list, approximately 3 miles round trip hike

Ring-necked Pheasant 1
Red-tailed Hawk 1
Mourning Dove 1
Great Horned Owl 1
Northern Flicker 2
Western Wood-Pewee 3
Dusky Flycatcher 3
Pacific-slope/Cordilleran Flycatcher (Western) 1
Eastern Kingbird 1
Black-billed Magpie 4
Common Raven 2
Horned Lark 5
Barn Swallow 1
Black-capped Chickadee 1
Rock Wren 1
House Wren 10
American Robin 8
Gray Catbird 3
Cedar Waxwing 5
Yellow Warbler 3
Western Tanager 1
Spotted Towhee 15
Chipping Sparrow 15
Vesper Sparrow 4
Grasshopper Sparrow 6
Song Sparrow 1
Black-headed Grosbeak 4
Lazuli Bunting 20
Western Meadowlark 2
Brown-headed Cowbird 3
Bullock's Oriole 2
House Finch 3
American Goldfinch 1

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

Palouse River - Eden Valley to Elberton (by canoe), Whitman Co., WA, 5/29/09

Hi All -

I'm finally getting around to finishing and posting this report.

In late May I canoed an 8 mile stretch of the Palouse R. in eastern Whitman Co., WA with my daughter Iris and a friend. We floated from Altergott Rd. (a few miles west of the town of Palouse) to Elberton Rd. This stretch is a real gem and as it is surrounded by farm land (mostly wheat fields) is accessible only by boat except for 3 road crossings (the put-in, take-out, and Lange Rd.) . Along the river is a variable strip of riparian vegetation and (mostly) Ponderosa Pine forest. The shrub cover is quite good in places and basalt outcrops are readily visible including several impressive cliffs. The river corridor creates a greenbelt or linear oasis in the midst of the extensive Palouse wheat fields in eastern Whitman Co.

And there were *lots* of birds along the river, always audible and in view. (Complete eBird list is below.) The most common species were Cliff Swallow (130 - in several large hard to count colonies),  and 3 very common landbird species (never out of hearing range for very long) - Yellow Warbler (64), House Wren (54), and Western Wood-Pewee (28) - and these are most certainly undercounts due to the difficulty of counting birds from a canoe due to stream noise etc. Most birds were detected by ear except for more visible species such as swallows, Spotted Sandpipers, a few waterfowl, and Red-tailed Hawks. Some other interesting species totals were Willow Flycatcher (9),  Western Flycatcher (7),  Gray Catbird (9), Black-headed Grosbeak (15), and Bullock's Oriole (11). Some of  these (Willow & Western Flycatcher, Gray Catbird) are fairly local in Whitman Co. but apparently not uncommon along the river. I also found 1 Veery (very local in Whitman Co.) below Lange Rd. and was actually surprised not to find more as the habitat looked great for them in many places. We did start rather late in the day which may account for missing some birds but there was plenty of bird song and activity all through the afternoon.

Although this may be the best bird habitat along the Palouse R. in Whitman Co., there are many more miles of river to explore upstream to the ID/WA border (and into Idaho for that matter) and down to Colfax and beyond (and there is also the South Fork Palouse to explore). I'm hoping to explore this and other sections in future years. In most years the river is easily runnable only until late May/early June (unless you want to do a lot of boat dragging) so there is a narrow window to survey most of the breeding species.

For eBird  purposes I broke the trip into 5 segments and georeferenced starting points (w/ gps) but still need to plot these on google earth and determine segment lengths. The list below is cumulative for the trip.

Location:     Palouse R. - Eden Valley
Observation date:     5/29/09
Notes:     Palouse R. canoe trip from Altergott Rd. (Eden Valley) to Elberton. About 8 river miles. I have the trip split into 5 segments and will submit those to eBird when I can figure out distances.
Number of species:     40

Canada Goose     4
Wood Duck     1
Mallard     4
Ring-necked Pheasant     1
Osprey     1
Red-tailed Hawk     16
Spotted Sandpiper     17
Mourning Dove     6
Belted Kingfisher     2
Red-naped Sapsucker     1
Hairy Woodpecker     1
Western Wood-Pewee     28
Willow Flycatcher     9
Hammond's Flycatcher     2
Pacific-slope/Cordilleran Flycatcher (Western)     7
Eastern Kingbird     7
Warbling Vireo     2
Common Raven     4
Violet-green Swallow     4
Northern Rough-winged Swallow     20
Cliff Swallow     130
Barn Swallow     2
Black-capped Chickadee     2
Pygmy Nuthatch     5
Rock Wren     1
House Wren     53
Veery     1
American Robin     23
Gray Catbird     9
European Starling     15
Cedar Waxwing     X
Orange-crowned Warbler     5
Yellow Warbler     64
Western Tanager     2
Spotted Towhee     4
Chipping Sparrow     8
Song Sparrow     10
Black-headed Grosbeak     15
Bullock's Oriole     11
American Goldfinch     10

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com

Latah Co. Grasshopper Sparrow, etc., 7/12/09

This afternoon a Grasshopper Sparrow was singing along Foothill Rd. just across the street from the upper foothill pond a bit north of Moscow. Interesting to find one singing mid-afternoon on a warm day. The habitat looks pretty good here for them. I also did a bit of birding earlier at Laird Park east of Potlatch with a good amount of activity of the usual species. Returning we did a quick check of Big Creek/Old River Rd. and Garden Gulch Rd. for Bobolinks with no luck (but noted plenty of good habitat). They could be done nesting or just out of site in the grown up fields on a warm afternoon.

thanks, Charles.

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com

nesting American Kestrels on UI Campus

An adult and young American Kestrel waiting for food in a cavity on the side of the Art and Architecture Building on the University of Idaho Moscow campus. Shortly after taking this photo the female arrived with food so this must be the adult male w/ a young bird in the nest. Another young bird had already fledged and was waiting for food nearby. They nest most years somewhere on campus (I've found them on a number of buildings over the years) and are fairly common breeders in town. As cavity nesters they will readily use man-made structures. Along with Red-tailed Hawks they are the most common diurnal raptors on the Palouse and year round residents.

recent U. of Idaho, Moscow sightings, 6/24/09

Hi All -

I've got a Cordilleran Flycatcher calling (suwheet suwheet!) outside my office window right now and it's been wandering around this side of campus since Monday. I presume it's an un-mated male as I haven't heard it before this week. They are regular though and have probably nested on campus in the past. A Warbling Vireo was also singing nearby on Monday although not since and I presume the same story. They have nested in the UI Arboretum but probably this bird was not a local breeder.

Local breeders of interest include Western Wood Pewees and Yellow Warblers which are on territory along Paradise Creek and elsewhere in the case of the pewees. I haven't walked through the Shattuck Arboretum recently but have heard a House Wren calling there from the peripherary and heard that Mountain Chickadees were nesting there again. Violet-green Swallows, Barn Swallows, and Vaux's Swifts are also a regular features of campus avifauna in June.

Raptors on campus include Red-tailed and Swainson's Hawks and the Red-tails have noisy young on the southeast side of campus. I don't know where the Swainson's are nesting this year but there must be a pair nearby. American Kestrels have apparently nested in the Art and Architecture building and I heard food begging young there yesterday which I will check out again later today.

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com

Lower Granite Dam & vicinity, Whitman/Garfield Counties, WA., 6/21/09

We wandered over to L. Granite Dam on the Snake R. in the rain yesterday afternoon to see what was happening. This is an area we haven't been to in quite some time but is not that far from Moscow/Pullman. Most notable were American White Pelicans, California Gulls, and several Caspian Terns with the 3 species seen in both counties (although it's not entirely clear from the map where the county line runs along the Snake R., it's mostly a trivial matter as these birds wander back and forth and up and down the river.)

American White Pelican - total of ~70 with most loafing on an island just downstream of Boyer Park, there were as many as 10 or 15 near or just downstream of the dam and a few scattered elsewhere along the river from Almota to the dam.

California Gull - total of ~40-50 with most loafing w/ pelicans on island, and a few others at the base of the dam

Caspian Tern - 2 flew upstream right over the middle of the dam and later a single calling bird flew high above the river near Boyer Park

They are firing a propane canon at the base of the dam presumably to haze the White Pelicans (and other piscavores) away from the area. It didn't seem to have too much effect on the pelicans. Interestingly there were no cormorants in the area although they could be elsewhere up or down stream, perhaps closer to their breeding colonies wherever those are (does anybody know??). The area above the dam and immediately below the dam is not visible or accessible from the Whitman Co. side as there are no dam crossings allowed on Sundays.

Despite the time and perhaps because of the rain and cool temps there was a fair amount of other bird activity. There were lots of swallows over the river with all species except Tree observed. Boyer Park had mostly A. Robins but also Western Kingbird, Yellow Warbler, and Bullock's Oriole among others. Boyer Pk. is irrigated w/ tall trees and looks like it could be a decent migrant trap but is fairly manicured w/o much undergrowth. The bottom of the grade from Almota up to the hairpin turn has a pretty nice strip of riparian habitat. Birding it requires stopping in the emergency pullouts which didn't seem a big problem w/ very little traffic. This area had among others Western Wood-Pewee, Yellow Warbler, Yellow-breasted Chat, Lazuli Bunting, Black-headed Grosbeak, and Bullock's Oriole.

Union Flat Creek could also be checked out on a trip here which is an interesting area and is mentioned frequently in Larrison and Weber's, "Birds of Southeastern WA" including a possible location for breeding Veery. The little bit one passes on the way to Lower Granite looks pretty good.

west Moscow Mountain (Foothill Rd., Headwaters Trail), 6/15-16/09

photo Sam Hunter (more here http://picasaweb.google.com/shunter/0616BirdingTrip2#)

Last evening and this morning I took groups attending the Evolution Meetings here in Moscow up to the west end of Moscow Mountain (north of Moscow) for some birding. Foothill Rd. dead ends at a gated logging road (known locally as the Headwaters Trail area) which provides some great foot/bike access to the west side of Moscow Mountain. A parking area is provided about .25 miles before the gate as this area is heavily used on weekends by locals. The road and lower part of trail pass through typical mixed conifer forest w/ good shrub understory and some riparian deciduous vegetation along a creek. This provides for a nice variety of the typical nesting songbirds in our area. A sampling of species of interest include Calliope Hummingbird (common), Dusky, Hammond's, and Cordilleran Flycatchers, Western Wood-Pewee (common), Cassin's and Red-eyed Vireos (local but regular here), Swainson's Thrush (common), Gray Catbird, Orange-crowned, Yellow, Yellow-rumped, Townsend's, and MacGillivray's Warbler (I've had Nashville Warbler here in previous years which is an uncommon breeder in Latah Co.), Western Tanager, Spotted Towhee, and Black-headed Grosbeaks. I've never made it up very high on this side of the mountain in breeding season but I'm sure it would be well worth the trip. In fact a traverse of Moscow Mountain on foot ot bike to survey breeding bird would probably be very interesting.

This location is on my Latah Co. birding sites Google Map here - http://tinyurl.com/8q54ys. An eBird lits of this morning's trip is below:

Location: Pond 9 Area
Observation date: 6/16/09
Notes: Evolution meeting field trip w/ ~30 participants. Walked from parking lot up just above Pond 9 and back. Good variety of species.
Number of species: 28

California Quail 2
Mourning Dove 2
Calliope Hummingbird 5
Western Wood-Pewee 6
Hammond's Flycatcher 4
Dusky Flycatcher 1
Cordilleran Flycatcher 3
Cassin's Vireo 2
Red-eyed Vireo 2
Common Raven 1
Violet-green Swallow X
Black-capped Chickadee 1
Chestnut-backed Chickadee 1
Red-breasted Nuthatch 3
White-breasted Nuthatch 1
House Wren 2
Swainson's Thrush 8
American Robin 4
Orange-crowned Warbler 2
Yellow Warbler 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler 2
Townsend's Warbler 2
MacGillivray's Warbler 2
Western Tanager 6
Spotted Towhee 4
Chipping Sparrow 6
Black-headed Grosbeak 4
Brown-headed Cowbird 4

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)


--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com

Paradise Ridge, Latah Co., sparrows, 6/13/09

Paradise Ridge, photo Sam Hunter

I took a group from the UI Evolution meetings up to Kas's place on the west end of Paradise Ridge. We had good looks at Grasshopper, Clay-colored (pair), and Vesper Sparrows and I heard at least 1 Brewer's Sparrow. The main crowd-pleasers (not all present were keen birders) were Eastern Kingbirds, Bullock's Orioles, the Violet-green Swallows and Mountain Bluebirds around Kas's house, and of course the Palouse wild flowers currently in peak form and great views of the Palouse to the north and west. What a great way to introduce the Palouse to this group of mostly out-of-town visitors! The Mountain Bluebirds near Kas's house were carrying food around (confirms breeding) and the Clay-colored Sparrows have to be strongly suspected of breeding at this point. This would be nice to confirm as there are very few confirmed breeding records for Idaho.

Here is a link to a slideshow of images taken by one of the participants:

http://picasaweb.google.com/shunter/0613_Birding_with_Charles_and_Evolution2009#

Location: Paradise Ridge West
Observation date: 6/13/09
Notes: Evolution mtg field trip to Kas's. A pretty good showing of birds despite breezy conditions and large (~20) suze of group. Clay-colored Sparrow pair were seen well.
Number of species: 34

Ring-necked Pheasant 2
California Quail 1
Red-tailed Hawk 1
American Kestrel 1
Mourning Dove 5
Western Wood-Pewee 3
Willow Flycatcher 1
Western Kingbird 1
Eastern Kingbird 3
Black-billed Magpie 3
Violet-green Swallow 4
Pygmy Nuthatch X
House Wren 4
Mountain Bluebird 2
American Robin 4
Cedar Waxwing 2
Orange-crowned Warbler 3
Yellow Warbler 2
Spotted Towhee 2
Chipping Sparrow 4
Clay-colored Sparrow 2
Brewer's Sparrow 1
Vesper Sparrow 2
Grasshopper Sparrow 2
Song Sparrow 2
Black-headed Grosbeak 1
Lazuli Bunting 2
Western Meadowlark 3
Yellow-headed Blackbird 1
Brown-headed Cowbird 6
Bullock's Oriole 3
House Finch 3
Pine Siskin 4
American Goldfinch 4

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com

eastern Whitman Co., Little Butte area, 6/7/09

Acting on a tip from Dick Johnson I explored an area a few miles south of Moscow and just a bit into Whitman Co. In an uncultivated shrubby draw and hillside I found a nice variety of typical upland Palouse songbirds (complete list below) with a Veery singing away in their midst. It was also nice to find several Gray Catbirds here. The draw had quite nice shrub growth with running water and was mostly on a north or northeast aspect slope which I'm sure helps keep it lush. The Veery was singing a bit up the hill from the draw in an area that had some scattered pines. (This is my second recent Whitman Co. Veery w/ another on 5/29 on a float trip along the Palouse R. west of Palouse, WA - report to come.)

I didn't get very far up hill (hard to do w/ a 3 year old in tow!) but it looks very interesting higher up and from the satellite images on google maps. I thought I was near the base of Bald Butte but it actually appears to be an eastward extension of the Bald Butte ridge line. I ran into the tenant farmer on the way out and he called it "Little Butte" or something like that. The area is currently unposted and at the end of a public road (Woods Rd.) but the farmer told me it is soon to be posted and gated due to off-roading but will be accessible w/ permission (he didn't have any problem w/ people hiking around and birding). Contact me for information on how to get permission if you're interested.

It looks like Bald Butte may be accessible over land from here but may be better accessed from the west (although there may may be access issues from the west according to Dick Johnson). This whole area looks very interesting and Bald Butte in particular is mentioned frequently in Weber and Larrison ("Birds of Southeastern WA") for among other things Clay-colored and Brewer's Sparrows. (Burleigh also mentioned Paradise Ridge for Clay-colored Sparrows and both of these publications are now ~30 years old.)

Hopefully more exploration to come. It's always nice to discover (or in this case rediscover) a nearby location w/ birding potential and natural features.

thanks, Charles.


Location: Little Butte
Observation date: 6/7/09
Notes: A nice discovery of a shrubby draw (w/ audible flowing water) at the end of Woods Rd. south of Moscow (although actually in Whitman Co.). It is visible from Paradise Ridge to the east and may provide access overland to Bald Butte.
Number of species: 22

Red-tailed Hawk 1
Mourning Dove 2
Great Horned Owl 1
Northern Flicker 1
Western Wood-Pewee 1
Horned Lark 1
Black-capped Chickadee 2
House Wren 10
Veery 1
American Robin 6
Gray Catbird 2
European Starling 1
Yellow Warbler 6
Spotted Towhee 2
Chipping Sparrow 2
Savannah Sparrow 3
Song Sparrow 4
Black-headed Grosbeak 5
Lazuli Bunting 2
Western Meadowlark 3
Brown-headed Cowbird 10
American Goldfinch 5

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com