Jasper Mountain Field Trip

 

May 22 was was a cold and it was windy, but 12 of us ventured out with Mike and MerryLynn Denny for a great day of birding.  Our first stop was South Fork Coppei Creek where a warbling vireo, yellow warblers, black-headed grosbeaks and  a western tanager gave us the best views.  Several western bluebirds, a Hammond's flycatcher, a Cooper's hawk and a northern harrier were very cooperative on the road up to the "T"  Once at the junction we found a very nice MacGillivray's warbler and a noisy house wren.  We ate lunch overlooking a spectacular view of the South Fork of the Touchet River.  Further up the road we ran into a feeding flock of birds that included mountain and black-capped chickadees, ruby-crowned kinglets, orange-crowned warblers, yellow-rumped warblers, red-breasted nuthatches and a crippling view of a Townsend's warbler near the base of a tree that was surrounded by beautiful blue camus.  A hermit thrush hopped around on the side of the road at another stop and a red-naped sapsucker worked a tree in front of us.  We saw or heard a total of 63 species. We could see the snow from the top, but we had no rain or snow all day. Some of the early wildflowers were blooming, but many are waiting for us to see on Priscilla's Wildflower Field Trip June 19.

 

The Summer Birds Are Back!

Today was a great birding day at Bennington Lake.  All of the birds that nest there are back now, and we also had some nice migrants that are just stopping by on their way up to the mountains.  And the nicest part about this morning was the fact that we got to see the birds and not just hear them.  Hearing the summer birds sing is part of the magic at the lake, but seeing them is an added bonus.  Here are the highlights of the morning walk.....time to get out there and see the birds.    Ginger

Cinnamon teal - 3

Greater scaup - 3

Spotted sandpiper - 1

Bullock's oriole - 12

Western tanager - 7

Black-headed grosbeak - 5

Cedar waxwing - 3

Great horned owl - 2

Calliope hummingbird - 2

Tree swallow - 4

Rough-winged swallow - 13

Cliff swallow - 45

Barn swallow - 1

House wren - 14

Yellow-rumped warbler - 3

Yellow warbler - 30

Warbling vireo - 3

Western wood peewee - 6

Gray catbird - 1

Western kingbird - 4

Eastern kingbird - 2

Yellow-breasted chat - 2

Lazuli bunting - 5

Chipping sparrow - 2

Still waiting for spring birds

We walked Bennington Lake this morning with great anticipation of seeing some new arrivals such as Bullock's orioles, black-headed grosbeaks,yellow-breasted chats, gray catbirds....but we were disappointed.  However, all wasn't lost because house wrens and yellow warblers were singing all around the lake.  We were able to see a couple orange-crowned warblers, and MerryLynn saw a MacGillivray's warbler.  We heard a western tanager and a western wood peewee, so hopefully by next week they will show themselves.  The osprey was fishing and its beauty was noted by all.  We saw a young kestrel peeking out of one of the kestrel boxes, and two very busy parents feeding. Male calliope hummingbirds were pretty easy to spot, and a male downy woodpecker was diligently drilling a hole in a snag along the canal. There was finally a little bit of mud along the dam shore, and the cliff swallows were busy collecting housing material. At the diversion dam by Rooks Park a pair of tree swallows were nesting in a wood duck box. By next week things should be hopping!

Ginger 

Bennington Lake today

It was cold and it was windy, but it didn't seem to bother the birds.  The birds seemed to be concentrated along the canal where they were out of the wind and had access to water in the canal.  We counted 27 yellow-rumped warblers along this stretch and at least 45 white-crowned sparrows.  There were several orange crowned warblers and two Nashville warblers in the mix plus 8 yellow warblers.  We heard a Townsend's warbler and a Cassin's vireo, but couldn't find either.  However we were able to find a singing a warbling vireo.  House wrens were around in good numbers.  There were several western kingbirds, three osprey, and a surprising number of ducks - shovelers, buffleheads, wigeons, mallards and ring-necked ducks.  Swallows were abundant - all species with the exception of barn.  We saw a total of 50 species this morning - a good day despite the "wintery" weather.        Ginger