Finding the Gray Flycatcher

Veteran birder Roy Gerig extended an invitation on-line for a couple of people to make a return trip with him to Detroit Flats to see the Gray Flycatcher. Jim Kopitzke and I jumped at the chance to go with him.  Jim is also a very experienced birder, so it was a chance for me to sit in with two very good birders and learn a lot. I learned that the Gray Flycatcher is a bird of the pine forest and sagebrush on the east side of the Cascades, so is a rare bird for Western Oregon.  As it turned out this flycatcher was almost the first bird we saw when we got to Detroit yesterday morning, save for a Wild Turkey roaming the streets. And the next bird we saw was a Long-eared Owl, but that’s a story for another day. Without Roy’s expertise I would never have been able to recognize this Gray Flycatcher.  Flycatchers can be very hard to identify because a number of them look so similar.  This one has a couple of strange behaviors that can tip you off.  It wags its tail differently, something I would have never noticed, and for the most part flicks from bush to bush picking up bugs close to or on the ground.  We reported four sighting of the Gray Flycatcher to eBird, its quiet possible we saw more, but Roy was hesitant to push the envelope.  In all we identified 42 different species of birds, two of which were “lifers” for me, and 15 of which were county firsts for the year for me. It’s going to take a day or two for me to calm down from all this.  

In Search of the Perfect Larkspur

I am reminded of how my friend Bill Geibel conducts an endless search of the perfect Manhattan cocktail. I’m somewhat like that with wildflower photos, in particular the Larkspur.  For some reason to get a photo of the flower completely in focus has been an almost impossible task over the years.  Yesterday while hiking in the Columbia Gorge up the trail to McCall Point, I found a sheltered spot out of the wind with about the right amount of light, and got what I would rate as a “10”. (zoom in to see the detail) To see more photos of the hike click here for the Trip Journal entry. 

Juvenile Anna's Hummingbird

This juvenile hummingbird showed up at our juice feeder on Thursday afternoon with its mother. While the mother drank it sat there with beak straight in the air wanting to be fed like I’m sure it has been use to at the nest.  In the end the mother flew off and the disgruntled juvenile remained as shown here, unable to figure out how to feed out of the metal flower.  It spent some time puzzled at its reflection on the juice feeder glass and when leaving flew over to our window where I’m sure it saw its reflection for a second time. A complicated new world for the poor thing. I think the nest is possibly in our rhododendron bush, but I haven’t been able to find it. 

Osprey Up-date

I went back to the Audubon Nature Reserve yesterday morning to check on the Osprey. Everything was quiet when I got there at 10:00, no sign or sound of the Osprey, so I went to check out the Bushtit’s and Robin’s nests.  Just after taking a photo of the Robins nest I heard the Osprey cry and I hurried back to the platform to see what was going on. A single Osprey was on the perch, which is called a “pilot’s perch”.  The perch is an important accessory to the nest platform to provide a perch for the male to stand guard when the female is on the nest.

A closer look at the bird on the perch indicated it was to my surprise a female. Soon other birds appear and it looks as though we have two pairs competing for the nest.

This photo shows the female still on the perch and a male, no necklace, coming into the nest site with something.  It looks too short to be a stick that they would normally add to the nest.  As best as I can tell it’s possible a small fish minus its head.

Now all hell breaks loose here.  Notice the big female in the center chasing off the male on the left while the first female is still on the perch though visible upset.  By this time there are a total of six birds in the sky swooping and screaming.  It’s all-out war.   ---- hello Lee? Could you call Salem Electric for two more poles and platforms?

Osprey Action

Yesterday for the first time we had Osprey at the nesting platform at the Audubon Nature Reserve. The platform is located next to the parking lot and was donated and erected by Salem Electric at the suggestion of Lee Slattum.  Naysayers, myself included, questioned its feasibility; too close to busy Eola Drive, too close to the parking lot, too far from the river.  But yesterday, Lee and Salem Electric were vindicated with an amazing amount of activity at the platform. In the course of my morning volunteer time I watched and took almost fifty photos trying to capture the experience.  The following photos hopefully tell a story that based on my research seems to be quite plausible. The first photo shows a female descending to the nest site.

Female Osprey can be recognized by the line of dark feathers at the neck line resembling a “necklace”.

This is a male, void of the “necklace”. (All photos can be enlarged by clicking)

                                                    

What we first assumed were a pair of Osprey became three Osprey, and my best guess is that this is one of the two males bringing a “gift” to the female in hopes of winning her approval.

This I believe to be the second male bringing a different “gift” in hopes of winning the contest. I think these are gifts because they are not the large sticks used in the construction of the nest.

This could be the happy couple.  Osprey migrate to Oregon mid-March from as far away as South America. They are monogamous, pairing up for the summer to breed and raise their young.

Reference:  Birds of Oregon by Burrows & Gilligan / The Birders Handbook by Ehrlich, Dobkin & Wheye / The Birds of Bidwell Park by Lederer & Burr

American Robin's Nest

Today while picking up trash at the Salem Audubon Society's Audubon Nature Reserve I spotted this Robin’s nest.  The amazing thing is I walk these trails several times every week, the last time being Monday, and yet this is the first time I have seen the nest.  It's about eye level, and so close to the trail that I think I could probably reach out and touch it while standing on the trail. From what I have read, three to four eggs are the average.  As I have said before, it’s all about nesting right now.  We did not see anything of the Bushtits at the nest they were building last week, but we did see for the first time Ospreys building a nest on the platform by the parking lot.  Lots of excitement there, and I’ll try to have a post put together by tomorrow about the Osprey.

First Ducklings

I checked out the Fairview Wetlands in South Salem yesterday afternoon and was surprised to find a number of Mallard hens with new ducklings. As you can see in the photo these little guys are busy feeding away.  At this stage in life I guess they haven’t learned about predators and they paid no attention to me and continued feeding close to the shore line. In the lower photo is a mother who has better control as she leads her ten little one out of harm’s way.  It’s hard to believe the season has moved along so fast to have new ones hatched, while back in my neighborhood in Salemtowne the swallows have yet to build a nest. (photos can be clicked on to enlarge)