Hi All -
Iris and I took a drive this afternoon east of Moscow to Troy and down Little Bear Ridge Rd. to Kendrick and Juliaetta along the Potlatch R. (elevation ~1200' about 1300' lower than Moscow) and then back up via American Ridge Rd.. We had ~4 " of heavy, wet snow up on top and there were scads of American Robins in the fields along with lesser scads of Red-winged Blackbirds and Starlings, a few W. Meadowlarks, etc.
There was a lot of standing water in the fields (and the Potlatch R. was bank full) but few waterfowl - perhaps spread out a bit all the standing water. There were 5 Bufflehead at Little Bear Pond (along w/ Mallards, pintail, and wigeon) and 11 at Kendrick sewage ponds, and 10 Ring-necked Ducks at the Syringa ponds.
Of most interest was a nice size flock of Savannah Sparrows just up American Ridge Rd. out of Juliaetta. It was hard to get a count estimate as they kept flushing ahead of me but there must have been 30 birds in the group - perhaps more. These birds were presumably hanging down at lower elevations due to the weather. Also in the group were a couple of White-crowned Sparrows - hard to know if these were migrants (a bit early) or local wintering birds.
Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Fwd: Moscow White-winged Crossbills & misc area sightings, 3/27/09
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Charles Swift <chaetura@gmail.com>
Date: Fri, Mar 27, 2009 at 9:35 PM
Subject: Moscow White-winged Crossbills & misc area sightings, 3/27/09
To: inland birders <inland-nw-birders@uidaho.edu>
Howdy -
I had a small flock of White-winged Crossbills fly over my house mid-morning today. They were giving their rapid-fire dry chet-chet flight calls, although not well seen I'd guess there were around 20 or so birds.
Later this afternoon I did a couple hours of birding in e. Whitman Co and w. Latah Co. and found a few birds. It was very windy in most parts except down along the Palouse R. east of Palouse which was somewhat sheltered. In addition to birds listed below I noted a number of large junco flocks which appear to be moving through in good number at the moment (many are singing right now which is pretty cool to hear). There were also Killdeer widely scattered including right in Pullman near the Palouse Science Center.
Whitman Co.:
Western Bluebird - near Kamiak Butte
Spotted Towhee - 2 just east of Palouse aong the Palouse R.
Latah Co.:
Along the Palouse R. floodplain east of Palouse are many flooded low lying fields and seasonal wetlands, easily accessible from North and South River Rds. out of Palouse.
Canada Goose 30
Wood Duck 4
Mallard 100
Northern Pintail 20
Green-winged Teal 10
Hooded Merganser 2
Killdeer 1
Say's Phoebe 1
Viola Sewage Ponds:
Gadwall 2 (a pair)
Common Goldeneye 2
Barrow's Goldeneye 1
Mountainview & Darby (just north of Moscow) - still at least 15 Tundra Swans present with about 20 Canada Geese in the fields here.
thanks, Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
From: Charles Swift <chaetura@gmail.com>
Date: Fri, Mar 27, 2009 at 9:35 PM
Subject: Moscow White-winged Crossbills & misc area sightings, 3/27/09
To: inland birders <inland-nw-birders@uidaho.edu>
Howdy -
I had a small flock of White-winged Crossbills fly over my house mid-morning today. They were giving their rapid-fire dry chet-chet flight calls, although not well seen I'd guess there were around 20 or so birds.
Later this afternoon I did a couple hours of birding in e. Whitman Co and w. Latah Co. and found a few birds. It was very windy in most parts except down along the Palouse R. east of Palouse which was somewhat sheltered. In addition to birds listed below I noted a number of large junco flocks which appear to be moving through in good number at the moment (many are singing right now which is pretty cool to hear). There were also Killdeer widely scattered including right in Pullman near the Palouse Science Center.
Whitman Co.:
Western Bluebird - near Kamiak Butte
Spotted Towhee - 2 just east of Palouse aong the Palouse R.
Latah Co.:
Along the Palouse R. floodplain east of Palouse are many flooded low lying fields and seasonal wetlands, easily accessible from North and South River Rds. out of Palouse.
Canada Goose 30
Wood Duck 4
Mallard 100
Northern Pintail 20
Green-winged Teal 10
Hooded Merganser 2
Killdeer 1
Say's Phoebe 1
Viola Sewage Ponds:
Gadwall 2 (a pair)
Common Goldeneye 2
Barrow's Goldeneye 1
Mountainview & Darby (just north of Moscow) - still at least 15 Tundra Swans present with about 20 Canada Geese in the fields here.
thanks, Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Monday, March 23, 2009
Fwd: Moscow area waterfowl (incl. Cackling Geese), 3/22/09
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Charles Swift <chaetura@gmail.com>
Date: Sun, Mar 22, 2009 at 10:16 PM
Subject: Moscow area waterfowl (incl. Cackling Geese), 3/22/09
To: inland birders <inland-nw-birders@uidaho.edu>
Hi All -
I was able to get out this afternoon for a quick trip and retraced Terry's route north of Moscow. The field at the intersection of Mountainview & Darby Rds. just north of town had the bulk of the birds including the Eurasian Wigeon as well as 5 Cackling Geese. I've attached a digiscoped image of 3 of the Cackling Geese. I think these are Taverner's Cackling Geese (subspecies taverneri) but this is just hunch - not based on careful analysis. The complete eBird list from this location is below. The 6 Ring-billed Gulls were still present a bit north of this location - a species I haven't seen in Latah Co. in several years.
thanks, Charles.
Location: Latah - Darby & Mountainview fields
Observation date: 3/22/09
Notes: All waterfowl in field southeast of intersection. Cackling Geese were probably "Taverners" .
Number of species: 12
Cackling Goose 5
Canada Goose 25
Tundra Swan 16
Eurasian Wigeon 1
American Wigeon 40
Mallard 50
Northern Pintail 1
Red-tailed Hawk 1
Rough-legged Hawk 1
Killdeer 3
Horned Lark 2
American Robin 30
Red-winged Blackbird X
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
From: Charles Swift <chaetura@gmail.com>
Date: Sun, Mar 22, 2009 at 10:16 PM
Subject: Moscow area waterfowl (incl. Cackling Geese), 3/22/09
To: inland birders <inland-nw-birders@uidaho.edu>
Hi All -
I was able to get out this afternoon for a quick trip and retraced Terry's route north of Moscow. The field at the intersection of Mountainview & Darby Rds. just north of town had the bulk of the birds including the Eurasian Wigeon as well as 5 Cackling Geese. I've attached a digiscoped image of 3 of the Cackling Geese. I think these are Taverner's Cackling Geese (subspecies taverneri) but this is just hunch - not based on careful analysis. The complete eBird list from this location is below. The 6 Ring-billed Gulls were still present a bit north of this location - a species I haven't seen in Latah Co. in several years.
thanks, Charles.
Location: Latah - Darby & Mountainview fields
Observation date: 3/22/09
Notes: All waterfowl in field southeast of intersection. Cackling Geese were probably "Taverners" .
Number of species: 12
Cackling Goose 5
Canada Goose 25
Tundra Swan 16
Eurasian Wigeon 1
American Wigeon 40
Mallard 50
Northern Pintail 1
Red-tailed Hawk 1
Rough-legged Hawk 1
Killdeer 3
Horned Lark 2
American Robin 30
Red-winged Blackbird X
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Latah Co. Tundra Swans & N. Pintail, 2/27/09
Hi All -
On Friday afternoon I found 11 Tundra Swans, ~20 Canada Geese, ~150 Mallards, and ~20 Northern Pintails along the Palouse R. in Latah Co., ID a few miles east of town of Palouse, WA. The broad floodplain here has standing water in low areas and is attractive to waterfowl. There isn't much else in the way of open water except the rivers which are flowing fast and full w/ snow melt at the moment. This area should continue to be attractive to waterbirds until these ephemeral ponds dry up later in the spring. The best way to access this area is from the town of Palouse along North or South River Rd.
thanks, Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
On Friday afternoon I found 11 Tundra Swans, ~20 Canada Geese, ~150 Mallards, and ~20 Northern Pintails along the Palouse R. in Latah Co., ID a few miles east of town of Palouse, WA. The broad floodplain here has standing water in low areas and is attractive to waterfowl. There isn't much else in the way of open water except the rivers which are flowing fast and full w/ snow melt at the moment. This area should continue to be attractive to waterbirds until these ephemeral ponds dry up later in the spring. The best way to access this area is from the town of Palouse along North or South River Rd.
thanks, Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Monday, February 23, 2009
Fwd: eBird Report - Moscow - East Side (My Home) , 2/23/09
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: <do-not-reply@ebird.org>
Date: Mon, Feb 23, 2009 at 7:28 AM
Subject: eBird Report - Moscow - East Side (My Home) , 2/23/09
To: chaetura@gmail.com
Location: Moscow - East Side (My Home)
Observation date: 2/23/09
Notes: Lots of bird song from the porch this morning. Brown Creeper was on the southwest corner maple, first detected it singing. Also juncos and flickers singing. A pair of crows wandering around probably checking out potential nest sites.
Number of species: 10
Northern Flicker 1
American Crow 2
Black-capped Chickadee 1
Red-breasted Nuthatch 2
Brown Creeper 1
Bewick's Wren 1
American Robin 1
Dark-eyed Junco 2
House Finch 2
House Sparrow 1
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
From: <do-not-reply@ebird.org>
Date: Mon, Feb 23, 2009 at 7:28 AM
Subject: eBird Report - Moscow - East Side (My Home) , 2/23/09
To: chaetura@gmail.com
Location: Moscow - East Side (My Home)
Observation date: 2/23/09
Notes: Lots of bird song from the porch this morning. Brown Creeper was on the southwest corner maple, first detected it singing. Also juncos and flickers singing. A pair of crows wandering around probably checking out potential nest sites.
Number of species: 10
Northern Flicker 1
American Crow 2
Black-capped Chickadee 1
Red-breasted Nuthatch 2
Brown Creeper 1
Bewick's Wren 1
American Robin 1
Dark-eyed Junco 2
House Finch 2
House Sparrow 1
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Tuesday, February 03, 2009
Moscow Yellow-rumped Warbler (& Pine Grosbeaks), 2/3/09
Hi All -
I had a Yellow-rumped Warbler at noon along Paradise Ck. on the east side of the UI Campus. This is in the general area of Moscow where I have found a few YRWA the past few winters. I wonder if this bird has been around all winter, surviving the severe Dec. cold snap, or has moved here recently w/ the milder weather. It's a balmy 45 F in Moscow right now.
I also tracked down the Pine Grosbeaks in the "Heritage Grove" east of the UI Admin. Bldg. There was a group of as many as 10 and some were feeding on buds on the maple trees in the area. Pine Grosbeaks have been pretty consistent in this area the past few weeks so would be a good bet for anyone still looking.
thanks, Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
I had a Yellow-rumped Warbler at noon along Paradise Ck. on the east side of the UI Campus. This is in the general area of Moscow where I have found a few YRWA the past few winters. I wonder if this bird has been around all winter, surviving the severe Dec. cold snap, or has moved here recently w/ the milder weather. It's a balmy 45 F in Moscow right now.
I also tracked down the Pine Grosbeaks in the "Heritage Grove" east of the UI Admin. Bldg. There was a group of as many as 10 and some were feeding on buds on the maple trees in the area. Pine Grosbeaks have been pretty consistent in this area the past few weeks so would be a good bet for anyone still looking.
thanks, Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Moscow finch & Mann Lake report, 1/29/09
Just catching up on a few things:
On Tuesday, 1/27 I did a winter bird survey on private property along the Snake R. south of Lewiston which I will report on later (hopefully!). Afterwards I did a bit of birding around Mann Lake, Nez Perce Co., ID. It was frozen and fairly quiet but I found 3 Rough-legged Hawks, a "singing" immature Northern Shrike, and many hundreds of Horned Larks (both white and yellow faced forms). I searched the Horned Larks but could not find any buntings of longspurs however the weather was deteriorating making viewing difficult. The biggest group was near the intersection of Lapwai (also called Soldiers Canyon Rd.) and Wagner Rd. (It occurred to me that it would be worth searching Lewiston for winter finches but I didn't have time, I was thinking the area around LCSC would be worth a look.)
On returning home to Moscow I heard the familiar cheedle calls of Pine Grosbeaks. I also flushed a Mourning Dove from my yard which I consider to be a sign a spring as they are very early nesters and we often get one and then later 2 (a pair I presume) later in January.
On the morning of 1/28 while heading out the door I heard a singke White-winged Crossbill fly by - they have been reported over the past few days from my neighborhood but this is first for my yard (so a new yard bird!).
thanks, Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
On Tuesday, 1/27 I did a winter bird survey on private property along the Snake R. south of Lewiston which I will report on later (hopefully!). Afterwards I did a bit of birding around Mann Lake, Nez Perce Co., ID. It was frozen and fairly quiet but I found 3 Rough-legged Hawks, a "singing" immature Northern Shrike, and many hundreds of Horned Larks (both white and yellow faced forms). I searched the Horned Larks but could not find any buntings of longspurs however the weather was deteriorating making viewing difficult. The biggest group was near the intersection of Lapwai (also called Soldiers Canyon Rd.) and Wagner Rd. (It occurred to me that it would be worth searching Lewiston for winter finches but I didn't have time, I was thinking the area around LCSC would be worth a look.)
On returning home to Moscow I heard the familiar cheedle calls of Pine Grosbeaks. I also flushed a Mourning Dove from my yard which I consider to be a sign a spring as they are very early nesters and we often get one and then later 2 (a pair I presume) later in January.
On the morning of 1/28 while heading out the door I heard a singke White-winged Crossbill fly by - they have been reported over the past few days from my neighborhood but this is first for my yard (so a new yard bird!).
thanks, Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Monday, January 26, 2009
Moscow Pine Grosbeak update, 1/26/09
I had ~45 Pine Grosbeaks on my walk into work this morning (on a sub-zero degree but beautifully clear morning!). There was a group of ~25 grosbeaks (including at least 1 nice adult male) at the intersection of 7th & Adams, many of which were feeding on a deciduous tree w/ bunches of dry, hanging seeds. I had PIGR on a similar tree in a different part of town several weeks ago. Still haven't figured out what kind of tree this is - I'll try to get a photo next time - it's probably an ornamental of some kind. I also had a group of ~20 Pine Grosbeaks in the tops of spruces just outside my building on the central part of the UI Campus.
Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Saturday, January 24, 2009
more Moscow WW Crossbills, 1/24/09
Hi All -
I had a nice walk around my neighborhood this morning with loads of birds. A flock of mostly White-winged Crossbills flew over and landed briefly just south of 6th & Lincoln Sts. There were at least 30 probably more, most White-winged by calls but at least 1 Red Crossbill by call and brief views. These birds were on the move. I estimated 700 A. Robins in a many roving flocks near Blaine & 7th Streets. Also a pair of Bewick's Wrens on Lynn St.
Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
I had a nice walk around my neighborhood this morning with loads of birds. A flock of mostly White-winged Crossbills flew over and landed briefly just south of 6th & Lincoln Sts. There were at least 30 probably more, most White-winged by calls but at least 1 Red Crossbill by call and brief views. These birds were on the move. I estimated 700 A. Robins in a many roving flocks near Blaine & 7th Streets. Also a pair of Bewick's Wrens on Lynn St.
Charles.
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: <do-not-reply@ebird.org>
Date: Sat, Jan 24, 2009 at 10:48 AM
Subject: eBird Report - Moscow - Southeast (south of 1st Street) , 1/24/09
To: chaetura@gmail.com
Location: Moscow - Southeast (south of 1st Street)
Observation date: 1/24/09
Notes: Walking loop south and east across Blaine and then back on 7th. and Lynn. Robins & waxwings were mostly east of Blaine. Pine Grosbeaks were in several locations. Crossbill flock flew over and landed briefly just south of 6th & Lincoln - at least 30 mostly White-winged by call and brief views but with at least a few Red Crossbills mixed in.
Number of species: 18
California Quail 1
Eurasian Collared-Dove 2
Northern Flicker 2
Common Raven 1
Black-capped Chickadee 5
Red-breasted Nuthatch 1
Bewick's Wren 2
American Robin 500
European Starling 10
Bohemian Waxwing 100
Cedar Waxwing 10
Dark-eyed Junco 8
Pine Grosbeak 17
House Finch 20
Red Crossbill 1
White-winged Crossbill 30
Pine Siskin 2
House Sparrow X
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
From: <do-not-reply@ebird.org>
Date: Sat, Jan 24, 2009 at 10:48 AM
Subject: eBird Report - Moscow - Southeast (south of 1st Street) , 1/24/09
To: chaetura@gmail.com
Location: Moscow - Southeast (south of 1st Street)
Observation date: 1/24/09
Notes: Walking loop south and east across Blaine and then back on 7th. and Lynn. Robins & waxwings were mostly east of Blaine. Pine Grosbeaks were in several locations. Crossbill flock flew over and landed briefly just south of 6th & Lincoln - at least 30 mostly White-winged by call and brief views but with at least a few Red Crossbills mixed in.
Number of species: 18
California Quail 1
Eurasian Collared-Dove 2
Northern Flicker 2
Common Raven 1
Black-capped Chickadee 5
Red-breasted Nuthatch 1
Bewick's Wren 2
American Robin 500
European Starling 10
Bohemian Waxwing 100
Cedar Waxwing 10
Dark-eyed Junco 8
Pine Grosbeak 17
House Finch 20
Red Crossbill 1
White-winged Crossbill 30
Pine Siskin 2
House Sparrow X
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Moscow update - Pine Grosbeaks, White-winged Crossbill, American Robins, 1/24/09
Hi All -
Plenty of Pine Grosbeaks around town still - hardly worth commenting on anymore! Anytime I walk at least a few blocks I run into some. Yesterday I had them at several locations on the east side of Moscow and on the UI Campus near the admin. bldg. At the 7th & Hayes location mentioned by Nancy Miller I had a flyover White-winged Crossbill on the 23rd - this is only several blocks from my house but I haven't detected any for my yard list yet. There are also *lots* of American Robins around Moscow right now - certainly many hundreds if not more. On Thursday I had ~250 robins feeding on frozen crab apples near the UI Music School, yesterday I had several hundred fly over my house and several hundred more at 7th & Hayes. Still no major invasion of Bohemian Waxwings yet although there have been some flocks of several hundred around (major invasions bring several thousand into the area).
Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Plenty of Pine Grosbeaks around town still - hardly worth commenting on anymore! Anytime I walk at least a few blocks I run into some. Yesterday I had them at several locations on the east side of Moscow and on the UI Campus near the admin. bldg. At the 7th & Hayes location mentioned by Nancy Miller I had a flyover White-winged Crossbill on the 23rd - this is only several blocks from my house but I haven't detected any for my yard list yet. There are also *lots* of American Robins around Moscow right now - certainly many hundreds if not more. On Thursday I had ~250 robins feeding on frozen crab apples near the UI Music School, yesterday I had several hundred fly over my house and several hundred more at 7th & Hayes. Still no major invasion of Bohemian Waxwings yet although there have been some flocks of several hundred around (major invasions bring several thousand into the area).
Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Monday, January 19, 2009
Fwd: Moscow White-winged Crossbill & Pine Grobseaks, 1/19/09
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Charles Swift <chaetura@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, Jan 19, 2009 at 7:44 PM
Subject: Moscow White-winged Crossbill & Pine Grobseaks, 1/19/09
To: inland birders <inland-nw-birders@uidaho.edu>
Cc: IBLE <ible@yahoogroups.com>, David Trochlell <dtrochlell@verizon.net>
Hi All -
Along the lines of other reports, I found a female White-winged Crossbill on the east side Moscow this afternoon. It was at the top of a spruce tree near the intersection of Homestead & Moore Street in the Ft Russell district of Moscow (east side of town north of East City Park). After I got a good look at its wing bars It flew off to the west. I initially heard the harsh jip notes and suspected WW Crossbill and was ecstatic to get a good look at the bird before it flew. I had another 4 crossbills fly by that could have also been White-wings.
I also had a flock of ~10 Pine Grosbeaks feeding on a Crab Apple on the west side of East City Park and heard several others elsewhere. (Pine Grosbeaks have now been around Moscow since at least Friday, Jan. 9.) In this same area on the edge of E. City Park I had ~300 Bohemian Waxings on Friday (1/16). Also yesterday I had a Bewick's Wren singing near the house.
I don't think I ever would have imagined seeing Pine Grobeaks and a White-winged Crossbill on the same day within a few blocks of my house!
thanks,
Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
From: Charles Swift <chaetura@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, Jan 19, 2009 at 7:44 PM
Subject: Moscow White-winged Crossbill & Pine Grobseaks, 1/19/09
To: inland birders <inland-nw-birders@uidaho.edu>
Cc: IBLE <ible@yahoogroups.com>, David Trochlell <dtrochlell@verizon.net>
Hi All -
Along the lines of other reports, I found a female White-winged Crossbill on the east side Moscow this afternoon. It was at the top of a spruce tree near the intersection of Homestead & Moore Street in the Ft Russell district of Moscow (east side of town north of East City Park). After I got a good look at its wing bars It flew off to the west. I initially heard the harsh jip notes and suspected WW Crossbill and was ecstatic to get a good look at the bird before it flew. I had another 4 crossbills fly by that could have also been White-wings.
I also had a flock of ~10 Pine Grosbeaks feeding on a Crab Apple on the west side of East City Park and heard several others elsewhere. (Pine Grosbeaks have now been around Moscow since at least Friday, Jan. 9.) In this same area on the edge of E. City Park I had ~300 Bohemian Waxings on Friday (1/16). Also yesterday I had a Bewick's Wren singing near the house.
I don't think I ever would have imagined seeing Pine Grobeaks and a White-winged Crossbill on the same day within a few blocks of my house!
thanks,
Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Palouse, WA Pine Grosbeaks, 1/11/09
Hi again -
More Pine Grosbeaks today this time a flock of ~15 in the town of Palouse in eastern Whitman Co. I kind of had a feeling that Palouse would be a good place to look for them being fairly close to Latah Co. Idaho and therefore fairly close to forest. Although Pine Grosbeaks are showing up widely in suburban areas they are still mostly in or close to forested areas. It will be interesting to see if they do show up further west into the Columbia basin. I found this flock just by driving through town w/ windows down listening for birds. They were on the north side of Palouse near the intersection of Beach & Mohr Streets.
Also in the area were a couple Rough-legged Hawks, a Cooper's Hawk, and a bunch of robins among others. At the Palouse Cemetery on the south side of town I found a Bewick's Wren among others. On the way home along the Palouse R. on N. River Rd. I found an adult Bald Eagle just into Latah Co.flying down the river and then later standing in a flooded field. There was a lot of standing water in fields along the Palouse R. but no ducks.
thanks, Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
More Pine Grosbeaks today this time a flock of ~15 in the town of Palouse in eastern Whitman Co. I kind of had a feeling that Palouse would be a good place to look for them being fairly close to Latah Co. Idaho and therefore fairly close to forest. Although Pine Grosbeaks are showing up widely in suburban areas they are still mostly in or close to forested areas. It will be interesting to see if they do show up further west into the Columbia basin. I found this flock just by driving through town w/ windows down listening for birds. They were on the north side of Palouse near the intersection of Beach & Mohr Streets.
Also in the area were a couple Rough-legged Hawks, a Cooper's Hawk, and a bunch of robins among others. At the Palouse Cemetery on the south side of town I found a Bewick's Wren among others. On the way home along the Palouse R. on N. River Rd. I found an adult Bald Eagle just into Latah Co.flying down the river and then later standing in a flooded field. There was a lot of standing water in fields along the Palouse R. but no ducks.
thanks, Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Friday, January 09, 2009
Moscow Pine Grosbeaks, 1/9/09
Hi All -
I just now had a flock of ~20 Pine Grosbeaks in the treetops just across the street from my east Moscow home. It appears that there is a wide spread irruption under way in northern Idaho and birders should be on the lookout throughout the inland northwest. I suspect they might show up in some of the lowland e. WA counties. It's helpful to be familiar w/ their lilting flight and contact calls - I found some especially good examples on Cornell's Birds of NA Online web site (subscription required). I'm actually pretty sure I heard some while skiing just north of Moscow last Saturday and perhaps one other time but couldn't be certain (one reason I went and found some calls to listen to!). This is my second record in town although they are more or less annual in winter in small numbers in the forested areas east of Moscow. With the large number of birds appearing over such a broad area I suspect these birds may be coming from outside of our region. I believe western Montana is also experiencing an influx of Pine Grosbeaks.
Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
I just now had a flock of ~20 Pine Grosbeaks in the treetops just across the street from my east Moscow home. It appears that there is a wide spread irruption under way in northern Idaho and birders should be on the lookout throughout the inland northwest. I suspect they might show up in some of the lowland e. WA counties. It's helpful to be familiar w/ their lilting flight and contact calls - I found some especially good examples on Cornell's Birds of NA Online web site (subscription required). I'm actually pretty sure I heard some while skiing just north of Moscow last Saturday and perhaps one other time but couldn't be certain (one reason I went and found some calls to listen to!). This is my second record in town although they are more or less annual in winter in small numbers in the forested areas east of Moscow. With the large number of birds appearing over such a broad area I suspect these birds may be coming from outside of our region. I believe western Montana is also experiencing an influx of Pine Grosbeaks.
Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Tuesday, January 06, 2009
Fwd: "double-breasted" cormorant article (AP article)
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Charles Swift <chaetura@gmail.com>
Date: Tue, Jan 6, 2009 at 1:48 PM
Subject: "double-breasted" cormorant article (AP article)
To: inland birders <inland-nw-birders@uidaho.edu>
Hi All -
This AP article was run in our local paper yesterday. I almost laughed out loud when I saw the reference to "double-breasted" cormorant. Unfortunately the rest of the article is no laughing matter. Seems to me if the US Army Corps exercises their permit to take 60 Cormorants between Lower Granite Dam and Lewiston that will effectively reduce the local population considerably (assuming this can be called a local population). Apparently stomach contents from some (how many??) cormorants analyzed last winter indicated they were eating primarily American Schad (a non-native fish species in the Columbia R. system) but they want to try again later in the winter. There are some other eyebrow raising points made in this article.
http://www.komonews.com/outdoors/featured/37058399.html
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
From: Charles Swift <chaetura@gmail.com>
Date: Tue, Jan 6, 2009 at 1:48 PM
Subject: "double-breasted" cormorant article (AP article)
To: inland birders <inland-nw-birders@uidaho.edu>
Hi All -
This AP article was run in our local paper yesterday. I almost laughed out loud when I saw the reference to "double-breasted" cormorant. Unfortunately the rest of the article is no laughing matter. Seems to me if the US Army Corps exercises their permit to take 60 Cormorants between Lower Granite Dam and Lewiston that will effectively reduce the local population considerably (assuming this can be called a local population). Apparently stomach contents from some (how many??) cormorants analyzed last winter indicated they were eating primarily American Schad (a non-native fish species in the Columbia R. system) but they want to try again later in the winter. There are some other eyebrow raising points made in this article.
http://www.komonews.com/outdoors/featured/37058399.html
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Friday, January 02, 2009
Fwd: southbound geese
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Charles Swift <chaetura@gmail.com>
Date: Fri, Jan 2, 2009 at 3:11 PM
Subject: southbound geese
To: inland birders <inland-nw-birders@uidaho.edu>
While I was outside shoveling snow (off my roof!) this afternoon I had about 400 or so Canada Geese in ~5 flocks fly over heading south in a period of about 10 minutes.There were 2 large flocks of about 150 geese and several smaller flocks. These could have been local wintering geese but I was also wondering if they were heading south from points farther north to find some clear ground (perhaps from Lake Coeur d'Alene).
Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
From: Charles Swift <chaetura@gmail.com>
Date: Fri, Jan 2, 2009 at 3:11 PM
Subject: southbound geese
To: inland birders <inland-nw-birders@uidaho.edu>
While I was outside shoveling snow (off my roof!) this afternoon I had about 400 or so Canada Geese in ~5 flocks fly over heading south in a period of about 10 minutes.There were 2 large flocks of about 150 geese and several smaller flocks. These could have been local wintering geese but I was also wondering if they were heading south from points farther north to find some clear ground (perhaps from Lake Coeur d'Alene).
Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Sunday, December 07, 2008
Latah Co. Gray-crowned Rosy-Finches, 12/5/08 (& a few other sightings)
Hi All -
I found a flock of Gray-crowned Rosy-Finches along Eikum Rd. about 15 miles south of Moscow around 2:45 PM Friday afternoon. There were probably 60-80 birds present although flock size was somewhat hard to estimate. Shortly after I arrived a swirling flock of birds appeared and started checking out the tractor shed where they (presumably) roost. They were still active around the tractor shed and barn when I left 5-10 minutes later. I ran into the owner and told her what I was doing and there was no problem. I've added the location to my Latah Co. birding google map here - http://tinyurl.com/6amabs
I checked this location probably 5 or more times last winter w/o any success so either there is a short time window for observing birds coming into roost or they are changing roost sites during the winter. Birds generally arrive 1.5 hrs. or so before dusk, perhaps earlier on cloudy (dark) afternoons. There is another tractor shed at a farm along Martinson Rd. several miles west of this location that has been used in the past but apparently not in the past couple years. There is also a house w/ feeders a bit to the east on Berger Rd. which sometimes has rosy-finches but on Friday only a large flock of House Finches was present.
I believe Kas Dumroese discovered the Martinson Rd. roost site some years ago on the Moscow-Pullman CBC and Terry Gray found the Eikum Rd. roost site just a couple years ago.
Other sightings -
On Friday afternoon I had a couple Rough-legged Hawks along Swenson Rd. a bit north of Eikum Rd. Not much else although there is a lot of interesting habitat along Swenson Rd, Campbell Loop Rd., and Lonestar Rd. (an area I'd really like to visit in breeding season!).
Saturday evening and early Sunday this morning a pair of Great Horned Owls were calling in my east Moscow neighborhood. Nice to know they continue as a breeding species in town.
Mid-day today I found a female Lesser Scaup at the UI Dairy Ponds w/ a small group of Mallards (geese had apparently departed for the day). This bird threw me for a loop initially as it was on the bank w/ the Mallards!
thanks, Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
I found a flock of Gray-crowned Rosy-Finches along Eikum Rd. about 15 miles south of Moscow around 2:45 PM Friday afternoon. There were probably 60-80 birds present although flock size was somewhat hard to estimate. Shortly after I arrived a swirling flock of birds appeared and started checking out the tractor shed where they (presumably) roost. They were still active around the tractor shed and barn when I left 5-10 minutes later. I ran into the owner and told her what I was doing and there was no problem. I've added the location to my Latah Co. birding google map here - http://tinyurl.com/6amabs
I checked this location probably 5 or more times last winter w/o any success so either there is a short time window for observing birds coming into roost or they are changing roost sites during the winter. Birds generally arrive 1.5 hrs. or so before dusk, perhaps earlier on cloudy (dark) afternoons. There is another tractor shed at a farm along Martinson Rd. several miles west of this location that has been used in the past but apparently not in the past couple years. There is also a house w/ feeders a bit to the east on Berger Rd. which sometimes has rosy-finches but on Friday only a large flock of House Finches was present.
I believe Kas Dumroese discovered the Martinson Rd. roost site some years ago on the Moscow-Pullman CBC and Terry Gray found the Eikum Rd. roost site just a couple years ago.
Other sightings -
On Friday afternoon I had a couple Rough-legged Hawks along Swenson Rd. a bit north of Eikum Rd. Not much else although there is a lot of interesting habitat along Swenson Rd, Campbell Loop Rd., and Lonestar Rd. (an area I'd really like to visit in breeding season!).
Saturday evening and early Sunday this morning a pair of Great Horned Owls were calling in my east Moscow neighborhood. Nice to know they continue as a breeding species in town.
Mid-day today I found a female Lesser Scaup at the UI Dairy Ponds w/ a small group of Mallards (geese had apparently departed for the day). This bird threw me for a loop initially as it was on the bank w/ the Mallards!
thanks, Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Monday, December 01, 2008
Fwd: eBird Report - U. of Idaho, Moscow Main Campus , 12/1/08
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Charles Swift <chaetura@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, Dec 1, 2008 at 3:42 PM
Subject: Fwd: eBird Report - U. of Idaho, Moscow Main Campus , 12/1/08
To: inland birders <inland-nw-birders@uidaho.edu>
Hi All -
I had a pleasant walk around campus at noon today. It felt more like mid-October than 1st of December and it looks like Pullman is about 1 deg. F off the record high for this date (and Winchester, ID set a record for highest low temp. for this date). Most notable was a Hairy Woodpecker at the Arboretum and a big flock of goldfinches feeding in ornamental birches and willows. I looked carefully through this group for redpolls but no luck. Results are below.
Charles.
============================================
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
From: Charles Swift <chaetura@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, Dec 1, 2008 at 3:42 PM
Subject: Fwd: eBird Report - U. of Idaho, Moscow Main Campus , 12/1/08
To: inland birders <inland-nw-birders@uidaho.edu>
Hi All -
I had a pleasant walk around campus at noon today. It felt more like mid-October than 1st of December and it looks like Pullman is about 1 deg. F off the record high for this date (and Winchester, ID set a record for highest low temp. for this date). Most notable was a Hairy Woodpecker at the Arboretum and a big flock of goldfinches feeding in ornamental birches and willows. I looked carefully through this group for redpolls but no luck. Results are below.
Charles.
============================================
Location: U. of Idaho, Moscow Main Campus
Observation date: 12/1/08
Number of species: 18
Mallard 4
Sharp-shinned Hawk 1
American Kestrel 1
Downy Woodpecker 2
Hairy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 2
Black-billed Magpie 1
Common Raven 1
Black-capped Chickadee 2
Mountain Chickadee 1
Golden-crowned Kinglet 2
American Robin 1
European Starling 60
Cedar Waxwing 30
Dark-eyed Junco 10
House Finch 30
Pine Siskin X
American Goldfinch 50
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
Observation date: 12/1/08
Number of species: 18
Mallard 4
Sharp-shinned Hawk 1
American Kestrel 1
Downy Woodpecker 2
Hairy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 2
Black-billed Magpie 1
Common Raven 1
Black-capped Chickadee 2
Mountain Chickadee 1
Golden-crowned Kinglet 2
American Robin 1
European Starling 60
Cedar Waxwing 30
Dark-eyed Junco 10
House Finch 30
Pine Siskin X
American Goldfinch 50
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Moscow area birds, 11/22-23/2008
Hi All -
There was a N. Shoveler at the UI Dairy on Saturday. Pretty late for here but consistent w/ other recent reports from the region. Otherwise the dairy ponds have been largely abandonded by waterfowl in the past couple weeks w/ only a handful of C. Geese and 50 Mallards present yesterday. I suppose they might be out in the fields feeding on winter wheat. At Syringa Ponds there were 2 Ring-necked Ducks (f) and about 8 Bufflehead. Neither of these locations have been as good for waterfowl this fall as they were last fall.
Today (Sunday) we went for a short hike at the UI Plant Science Farm (aka Parker Farm) on a pleasant but chilly morning. Most notable were diurnal raptors with a Cooper's Hawk, a Rough-legged Hawk, 3+ Red-tailed Hawks, and 2 adult Bald Eagles which drifted lazily south as we were leaving.
Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
There was a N. Shoveler at the UI Dairy on Saturday. Pretty late for here but consistent w/ other recent reports from the region. Otherwise the dairy ponds have been largely abandonded by waterfowl in the past couple weeks w/ only a handful of C. Geese and 50 Mallards present yesterday. I suppose they might be out in the fields feeding on winter wheat. At Syringa Ponds there were 2 Ring-necked Ducks (f) and about 8 Bufflehead. Neither of these locations have been as good for waterfowl this fall as they were last fall.
Today (Sunday) we went for a short hike at the UI Plant Science Farm (aka Parker Farm) on a pleasant but chilly morning. Most notable were diurnal raptors with a Cooper's Hawk, a Rough-legged Hawk, 3+ Red-tailed Hawks, and 2 adult Bald Eagles which drifted lazily south as we were leaving.
Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Fwd: Moscow Golden Eagle
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Charles Swift <chaetura@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Nov 19, 2008 at 1:59 PM
Subject: Moscow Golden Eagle
To: inland birders <inland-nw-birders@uidaho.edu>
Hi All -
I had an adult Golden Eagle in steady, flapping, southbound flight over the UI Arboretum at about 1:00 this afternoon. It took less than a minute to pass my position on the west ridge of the Arb. Still no Blue Jays - they must take a siesta right around noon. I also had among others, a Townsend's Solitaire tooting away, a kingfisher in the lower pond, and robins and Cedar Waxwings in the Crab Apple grove near the north entrance.
Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
From: Charles Swift <chaetura@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Nov 19, 2008 at 1:59 PM
Subject: Moscow Golden Eagle
To: inland birders <inland-nw-birders@uidaho.edu>
Hi All -
I had an adult Golden Eagle in steady, flapping, southbound flight over the UI Arboretum at about 1:00 this afternoon. It took less than a minute to pass my position on the west ridge of the Arb. Still no Blue Jays - they must take a siesta right around noon. I also had among others, a Townsend's Solitaire tooting away, a kingfisher in the lower pond, and robins and Cedar Waxwings in the Crab Apple grove near the north entrance.
Charles.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
Monday, September 01, 2008
Latah Co. shorebirds, Viola Sewage Ponds, 8/31/08
Howdy -
I finally found a few species of shorebirds (4 to be exact) in Latah Co. at the Viola Sewage Ponds yesterday afternoon. They were Killdeer (~6), Least Sandpiper (2), Western Sandpiper (1), and Red-necked Phalarope (4). I may have missed a Spotted Sandpiper which I think I heard but didn't see (would have brought my total to 5 shorebird species!).
Also present were ~150 Canada Geese, ~20 Mallards, 2 Green-winged Teal, Barn, Bank, and Rough-winged Swallows (seemed to be a lot of swallows migrating yesterday), a bunch of Cedar Waxwings, Savannah and Chipping Sparrows and the usual blackbirds, starling, doves & pigeons.
The Viola sewage ponds are just west of US 95 off Trestle Rd. a bit south of the small burg of Viola which is about 8 miles north of Moscow. This would be a pretty good location if not for the fact that one has to peer through a chain-linked fence from the weedy, rocked embankment of the ponds. The 2 main ponds are rock lined and the peeps and Killdeer foraged from the rocks w/ the phalaropes of course swimming around in the ponds (I've now found RN Phalaropes over the years at the Viola, Deary, Genesee, and Syringa sewage ponds, and UI Dairy). Least Sandpipers are actually not all that unusual at rock lined sewage ponds despite being the classic "mudpipers".
Chas.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
I finally found a few species of shorebirds (4 to be exact) in Latah Co. at the Viola Sewage Ponds yesterday afternoon. They were Killdeer (~6), Least Sandpiper (2), Western Sandpiper (1), and Red-necked Phalarope (4). I may have missed a Spotted Sandpiper which I think I heard but didn't see (would have brought my total to 5 shorebird species!).
Also present were ~150 Canada Geese, ~20 Mallards, 2 Green-winged Teal, Barn, Bank, and Rough-winged Swallows (seemed to be a lot of swallows migrating yesterday), a bunch of Cedar Waxwings, Savannah and Chipping Sparrows and the usual blackbirds, starling, doves & pigeons.
The Viola sewage ponds are just west of US 95 off Trestle Rd. a bit south of the small burg of Viola which is about 8 miles north of Moscow. This would be a pretty good location if not for the fact that one has to peer through a chain-linked fence from the weedy, rocked embankment of the ponds. The 2 main ponds are rock lined and the peeps and Killdeer foraged from the rocks w/ the phalaropes of course swimming around in the ponds (I've now found RN Phalaropes over the years at the Viola, Deary, Genesee, and Syringa sewage ponds, and UI Dairy). Least Sandpipers are actually not all that unusual at rock lined sewage ponds despite being the classic "mudpipers".
Chas.
--
Charles Swift
Moscow, ID
chaetura@gmail.com
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