Monmouth Recreational Park

Jeanette looking for birds

Yesterday we went bird watching at a newly constructed boardwalk in the Monmouth Recreational Park. This large multi-purpose park, located in the nearby town of Monmouth, is made up of baseball fields, tennis courts, dog parks, and skate park areas. Most important to us is this new boardwalk and shelter built over a marshy area which is perfect for bird watching! We enjoyed our time there and made the following eBird Observation List. This for sure is high on our list for return visits. 

 

Bird Ramblings - Turkeys

Last Saturday while looking for birds here at Dallas Retirement Village we happened to cross paths with DRV resident Greg Hatton. While showing him the tree on Tilgner Ave that the Red-breasted Sapsuckers like to use, three Wild Turkeys crossed the street and into the parking lot in front of the Assisted Living building. This photo of one of the Turkeys appears to be a young male. Notice the developing red throat wattles and the long breast beard. I know many of our DRV residents enjoy seeing the Wild Turkeys which will continue to hang out here until Spring when they leave to seek out a more secluded area for nesting.
 

Bird Ramblings - Eagle

 On Sunday, September 27th, while attending the Walk to End Alzheimer's event at the Salem Riverfront Park, Jeanette and I did a bit of birdwatching and got this photo of a Bald Eagle. Actually, we identified 30 different species of birds. You can see our observation list here. I know Bald Eagle are a favorite for most people, and coincidentally this was the best photo of the day. Their large size and distinctive white head and tail make for an easy identification. They are year around birds here in the Willamette Valley and love to hang out along the Willamette River where they can prey on fish and ducks. 

Bird Ramblings - Sapsucker

I finally got a photo of a returning, Red-breasted Sapsucker on September 20th, after getting only a couple of quick glimpses during the previous two weeks. This is a seasonal phenomenon. They vanish from Dallas Retirement Village in late April to find a suitable tree with a cavity for nesting. Then, as expected, they return in September to drill holes in their favorite tree on Tigner Ave. They will spend the winter licking up the sap that oozes out of the holes, and also eating hapless insects that get caught in the sticky sap. Anna's Hummingbirds will also make secret visits for a quick bit of sap. 
 

Bird Ramblings - Sparrows

Last Friday, the 18th of September, Jeanette and I went to check the birds at the Salem Riverfront Park. We were pleased to find 29 different species. Here is our checklist. The bird that posed the best for us was this Golden-crowned Sparrow that popped up out the blackberry bushes. You can tell from the red stains on its bill that it has been eating berries. Golden-crowned Sparrows are basically winter sparrows, and we were reminded that it's the time of year they show up. Last year at Dallas Retirement Village they were first seen in the Fall on September 17th, and then last seen in the Spring on May 3rd. Keep an eye out for them this Winter, they are quite often mixed in with White-crowned Sparrows.
 

Bird Ramblings - Woodpeckers

Downy Woodpeckers are the smallest of our Woodpeckers and also one of the more common. While birding in the Delbert Hunter Arboretum on Sunday Sept 13th, our phone app "Merlin" picked up the Downey's call. We searched for 10 minutes before we finally found her on this snag. We know its's a female because it lacks the red patch on the back of the head that so easily identifies the male. We are so fortunate to have the great birding locations of the Arboretlum and Dallas City Park so close to Dallas Retirement Village.

Bird Ramblings - Goldfinches

It's that time of year when American Goldfinches are filling up on Sunflower seeds from the Community Garden adjacent to the Village Apartments here at Dallas Retirement Village. They are a common species here at DRV especially in early September when they can easily be seen in large number when the Sunflowers mature. This Goldfinch looks a little ragged but is simply molting into its non-breeding plumage.

 

Bird Ramblings - Starlings

 This is a European Starling, one of the most common birds to be seen here at Dallas Retirement Village, virtually seen here every month of the year. This photo was taken last Friday, see Checklist. It shows the uniquely heavy spotting of the non-breeding plumage. We are more used to seeing them in their breeding plumage in which they are almost totally black with a bright yellow beak.  This is not a native bird. They were introduced to the United States in New York's Central Park in the 1890's and are now spread throughout the United States.

Bird Ramblings - Vultures

It's a busy time for Turkey Vultures. Recently we counted over 30 of them in some open fields while driving home to Dallas from Salem. They were busy picking up small rodent carcasses exposed from the field harvesting machinery. Think of the Vultures as the clean-up crew. In fact, they have been working all summer at keeping our roads clear of roadkill. Soon they will take flight and head South for the winter. I really haven't taken a good photo of Turkey Vultures this summer, so I dug into my files and found this photo taken in California some years ago. It shows the bare red skin of the head that is so helpful in digging through larger dead carcasses. 

Bird Ramblings - Pelicans

This juvenile American White Pelican was photographed at Cottonwood Pond in nearby Baskett Slough National Wildlife Refuge on August 13th along with a number of other Pelicans. Once an unusual bird to be seen in the Willamette Valley, in the last decade they have become a more common sight. Now is a perfect time to get to see them, come September they will be leaving to migrate South for the winter. Because of the current construction on Highway 22, I would recommend going via Rickreall, taking Highway 99 north, and then west on Coville Rd. to Cottonwood Pond on the right-hand side, also known as Traverner's Marsh. 
 

Beach Birthday Bash

August 18th was Jeanette's Birthday. It was the "Big 80", and at her request we did an overnight at the historic Sylvia Hotel at Nye Beach in Newport with Jeanette's brother Bill, and Jeanette's sister Patty and her husband Kordel. We all met up for lunch at Nana's Irish Pub. After check-in at the hotel, we went for a walk at Nye Beach. 

Of course, I can't walk on the beach without counting and photographing birds. Here is our Check List. After a nice walk on the beach, we walked over to the nearby Allred Hotel for a very nice dinner with a great view of the ocean.

The next morning after breakfast at The Sylvia, we drove over to the South Jetty for a walk on the jetty and the beach, and of course some more birding. Here is our Check List. We finished off our morning with a delightful lunch at Clearwater Restaurant with interesting Sea Lion watching and passing fishing boats.

  

Bird Ramblings - Bluebirds

Last Saturday, August the 8th, was "house cleaning day" at the Western Bluebird nesting box located at the Pavilion in the Dallas Retirement Village. The mother bluebird is shown removing a fecal sac, which is a white coated sack that surrounds the baby bird's waste. Bluebirds keep one of the cleanest nests of songbirds, and this is a daily task necessary to take care of the four baby birds in the nest. Both the male and the female share in the work of bringing food in and carrying out the fecal sacs.  
 

Siletz Bay NWR

Tuesday, August 4th we attempted to escape the extreme heat and smoke of the Willamette Valley with a trip to the Lincoln City area. It was cooler, but still a considerable amount of smoke. We concentrated mainly on the Siletz Bay National Wildlife Refuge area, with this first stop at the Siletz Keys, an easily overlooked location with a small parking lot. 

The first bid I spotted was this Great Blue Heron. Not so sharp looking, it is actually an immature, still lacking the white stripe on top of its head.

Next, I spotted this Great Egret, notable because they have become so much more common in the last two decades as their populations have expanded north.

Here is the link to our Checklist. We also birded at Alder Island, just on the other side of Highway 101. Here is our Checklist for Alder Island.

Bird Ramblings - Doves

On July 30th I photographed this pair of Eurasian Collared-Doves as they were sharing a romantic moment atop the roof of The Lodge. Eurasian Collared-Doves are somewhat unique in that they can breed year-round. They have already bee successful in nesting once this summer and possibly more. The amount of time they are spending in this courtship has me convinced they will soon be setting up another nest site soon. 
 

Bird Ramblings - Sapsucker

 This is a Red-breasted Sapsucker, which is a member of the Woodpecker Family (Picidae). In our recent daily trips to the Dallas City Pyark we became quite familiar with Acorn Woodpeckers, and in fact I have recently feature then three times as you may well remember. During this time, we have been surprised to find Red-breasted Sapsuckers using some of the same trees that the Acorn Woodpeckers were using. This photo of this Red-breasted Sapsucker was taken at Dallas City Park on July 22nd. It can easily be differentiated from the Acorn Woodpeckers by the bold white wing patch.

Bird Ramblings - Bluebirds

Back on the 5th of July, Jeanette and I were doing a bird walk here at Dallas Retirement Village when we stopped to take a breather at The Pavillion. While we were resting on the couch, this male Western Bluebird made an inspection of a nearby nesting box and then stopped right in front of us! We were surprised because it has been a tough year for Western Bluebirds here at DRV. In spite of the fact that there were multiple nesting boxes available, I don't know of any that were actually successful nest sites.
 

Bird Ramblings - Woodpeckers

It's probably apparent that I have become slightly obsessed with the Acorn Woodpeckers in the Dallas City Park. But it's one of those things that the more you know, the more you discover there is to learn. It all began back in the middle of June when Jeanette and I were sitting on a bench in the park and saw an Acorn Woodpecker fly to a wooden snag along the creek. As we watched we saw one fly to a nesting cavity close by. The next week I got a photo of the male bringing a mouth full of bugs to the nest site. We know from past experience that Acorn Woodpeckers live, breed, and nest as a colony, and that they store acorns to use in the wintertime in holes bored in trees and power poles. Look closely at this photo taken on July 9th and notice the small circular hole in front of this Acorn Woodpecker, which will probably receive an acorn sometime this fall. This power pole is located next to the park on Robinhood Drive off of Allgood Street.  
 

Revisiting Darrow Bar

Yesterday Jeanette and I went for a bird walk at Darrow Bar an eBird Hotspot located along the Willamette River Greenway. We first birded here on February 24th of 2014 after moving to Salemtowne. On our revisit yesterday we made a checklist, which I was surprised to find it was our 55th checklist for this location. Here is yesterday's checklist. We took the short loop, stopping at the bench for a rest, skipping the extension to South and the extension to the North. We left determined to return again soon.

 

Bird Ramblings - Hummingbirds

 I have been getting quite a few reports on hummingbird activity here at Dallas Retirement Village recently. Here is a pair of Anna's Hummingbirds taken on the 23rd of June in the Central Courtyard of the Lodge. The male on the left and the female on the right were busy with breeding activities. He appears, based on his plumage, to be an immature male, so not sure how successful their breeding attempt will be, and July generally marks the end of nesting season. We will be keeping an eye out to see what happens,

Bird Ramblings - Woodpecker

In a follow-up of last week's feature of an Acorn Woodpecker in the Dallas City Park, Jeanette and I returned to our favorite creek-side bench on June 20th in hopes of getting a photo of the Acorn Woodpeckers coming and going at their cavity nest site. We lucked out and got this photo of the male bringing a mouthful of insects to their cavity nest. We continued to watch as both the male and the female repeatedly made quick deliveries to the nest site.