People that know us at all, know that birdwatching is our passion. Yesterday we escaped the heat by spending the day on the Oregon Coast, and you guessed it, birding. Our first stop, and our biggest effort of the day, was at the Alder Island Trail in the Siletz Bay National Wildlife Refuge. You can see our list here. After lunch in the van, we were looking for some shade for relaxing, and better cell service so I could continue editing photos. We drove over to East Devil's Lake State Recreation Area, backed up to a woodsy trail and opened up the back doors of the van. It was perfect. Jeanette stretched out on the couch with her iPhone to catch-up on e-mail and Facebook. She became distracted, almost to the point of irritated, by the cacophony of bird sounds. Thats when she hit upon the bright idea of using Merlin Sound ID on her phone to record and identify the birds. We use the free phone app Merlin all the time to identify bird sounds while taking bird walks. This however was a new idea. From the comfort of the van, simply identify the birds and make a list. No big effort to take a walk and strain your eyes with your binoculars to make a list. It worked amazingly well, and she was able to identify a dozen different species while she reclined on the couch. Here is her sound only bird list. The sun eventually found us, so we moved on to the Salmon River Estuary Hotspot on Fraser Road. Repeat observation techniques here resulted in a second sound only bird list. Our next move was to the Salmon River Fish Hatchery for another bird walk and dinner. While having dinner we discovered that we could actually identify more birds while we ate our dinner than when we were walking around the hatchery grounds. Here is our combined walking and sitting list. More relaxed birding from the comfort of the van is probably in our future.
Saturday, April 29, 2023
Birding from the Couch
People that know us at all, know that birdwatching is our passion. Yesterday we escaped the heat by spending the day on the Oregon Coast, and you guessed it, birding. Our first stop, and our biggest effort of the day, was at the Alder Island Trail in the Siletz Bay National Wildlife Refuge. You can see our list here. After lunch in the van, we were looking for some shade for relaxing, and better cell service so I could continue editing photos. We drove over to East Devil's Lake State Recreation Area, backed up to a woodsy trail and opened up the back doors of the van. It was perfect. Jeanette stretched out on the couch with her iPhone to catch-up on e-mail and Facebook. She became distracted, almost to the point of irritated, by the cacophony of bird sounds. Thats when she hit upon the bright idea of using Merlin Sound ID on her phone to record and identify the birds. We use the free phone app Merlin all the time to identify bird sounds while taking bird walks. This however was a new idea. From the comfort of the van, simply identify the birds and make a list. No big effort to take a walk and strain your eyes with your binoculars to make a list. It worked amazingly well, and she was able to identify a dozen different species while she reclined on the couch. Here is her sound only bird list. The sun eventually found us, so we moved on to the Salmon River Estuary Hotspot on Fraser Road. Repeat observation techniques here resulted in a second sound only bird list. Our next move was to the Salmon River Fish Hatchery for another bird walk and dinner. While having dinner we discovered that we could actually identify more birds while we ate our dinner than when we were walking around the hatchery grounds. Here is our combined walking and sitting list. More relaxed birding from the comfort of the van is probably in our future.
Thursday, April 27, 2023
Thursday's Bird Watch!
One of the most vocal birds right now in the Dallas Retirement Village is the White-crowned Sparrow. Although they are seen year around here, it is in the Spring that the males draw our attention with their bright high-pitched song. This one, photographed on April 21, greets us every morning when we exit the Jasper Street Entrance. He is doing his best to attract a mate, and in the past, they have nested in the nearby rose bushes.
Thursday, April 20, 2023
Thursday's Bird Watch!
female Rufous Hummingbird
Lots of activity from the Rufous Hummingbirds last week caught the attention of a number of residents here at the Dallas Retirement Village. Many people reported little reddish-brown hummingbirds at their juice feeders. These photos were taken in the Courtyard on Monday April 10th. This gives me a good opportunity to point out the differences between the female and the male. The above photo is a female. The dark area under the chin, known as a gorget, is very small in contrast to the male in the photo below. The back and the head on the female, although hard to see in this photo, are green. The male is reddish-brown on his head and back. The next time you see a Rufous Hummingbird, see if you can tell if it's a female or male.
male Rufous Hummingbird
Tuesday, April 18, 2023
Maud Williamson Bus Birding Trip
The weather forecast was 80% rain, but nine Village Birders braved the cold and lucked out with sunshine to look for birds at Maud Williamson State Park.
The Spotted Towhee gave us some good looks.
An American Robin was collecting mud for its nest.
A Black-throated Gray Warbler was a rare find.
White-Crowned Sparrows were busy feeding.
Here is the link:
Monday, April 17, 2023
Birding with Glenn
Jeanette and Glenn on Siltcoos Beach
A day of birding with Glenn in the Siltcoos National Recreation Area was the highlight of a three-day trip Jeanette and I took to the Oregon Coast. Glenn is just finishing several years of volunteering with the Siltcoos National Forest in a variety of positions, and he will be taking off to points unknown, so this was a chance to bird with him and recall all the great times we have spent together.
nesting Snowy Plover
Least Sandpiper
Osprey with his catch
Glenn is willing to go to great lengths to get a photo
Thursday, April 13, 2023
Thursday's Bird Watch!
The Osprey are back from wintering in Southern California, Mexico or Central America. Various birds have been seen in the greater Polk County area since March 19th. There is only one nesting site in Dallas, which is located at the old Willamette Mill property and I saw only a single bird there on March 22nd. This past Saturday on April 8th, Jeanette and I got the first sighting of the pair together, and I took this photo. If you're interested in having a look at them, the nest can easily be seen from South Main Street. They will spend the summer here, and hopefully raise some babies. Sometime in September they will head South again.
Tuesday, April 4, 2023
Village Birders at Dallas City Park
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