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. 
 

Bird Ramblings - Woodpecker

This is a female Acorn Woodpecker that I photographed while Jeanette and I were birding in the Dallas City Park on June 14th. We were sitting on a bench with a perfect view of Rickreall Creek when we noticed a woodpecker fly to the top of this old snag. As we watched, she made several trips to nearby trees and then to a circular hole in another nearby snag. It was her cavity nest, and we are convinced that she was feeding some babies! I wasn't quick enough with the camera to photograph her going in and out of the nest, but believe me when I say, "We will be returning to this lovely bench again for more observations ".
 

Bird Ramblings - Scrub-Jay

 California Scrub-Jays are one of the most dependable birds to be seen on a daily basis here at Dallas Retirement Village. They are year-round residents. I sometimes hear people incorrectly refer to them as "Blue Jays". Technically, Blue Jays, with few exceptions, are only found east of the Rockies. We do have a smattering of Steller's Jays, but the most common, and the one that thrives in urban areas is the California Scrub-Jay. This one was photographed here at DRV on June 11th, perched on the back of a sitting bench.

Bird Ramblings - Swallows

It's been a busy Spring for Violet-green Swallows at Dallas Retirement Village. They seem to be constantly in the air with their swooping flights catching insects. A big thank you to Lodge Resident Karen Sewell who [provided this photo of a Violet-green Swallow bringing a feather to a nesting site built in a dryer vent. She took this photo from their balcony in The Lodge on June 4th.
 

Bird Ramblings - Mergansers

Last Thursday, May 28th, Jeanette and I went for a birdwalk at Riverview Park in Independence and were rewarded with this little family of Common Mergansers. If you look closely you can count six babies being led by their mother up the Willamette River. There is a nice concrete walkway that funs from the Independence City Hall to the Independence Hotel. We also enjoyed hearing and seeing Oprey and Bald Eagles. Here is the link to our Checklist.
 

Alder Island Revisited

We love the circling trail on Alder Island at the Siletz Bay National Wildlife Refuge near Lincoln City. Jeanette is shown here on the trail alongside of this towering Cow Parsnip plant, which is the largest member of the Carrot Family in North America at 10 feet in height. This birding Hot Spot was the highlight of our daytrip to the Oregon Coast yesterday which involved stops at five different Hot Spots. Here is the link to our Checklist at Alder Island.
 

Brid Ramblings - Sparrows

White-crowned Sparrows are having a successful nesting season in the Central Courtyard of The Lodge here at Dallas Retirement Village. This photo shows a mama feeding her new juvenile. This photo was taken on Saturday the 23rd in front of resident Liz McClues's patio, who has thoughtfully put out a ground level seed feeder. Th juvenile makes demands to have the seed placed right in its mouth. Meanwhile the father in a nearby tree proudly sings out his familiar song. Liz is thrilled to have what she calls a "whole family".
 

Bird Ramblings - Bluebirds

 Western Bluebirds are busy feeding babies! This location is at the Community Garden here at Dallas Retirement Village where a nesting box is located in a corner of the chain link fence. This is the mother bird, ready with an insect in her beak to fly up to the nesting box. You have to watch closely to catch the parents doing this feeding because they are in and out of the box so quickly. This photo was taken on Tuesday, May 12th.

UPDATE: During lunch at the Red House Bistro on May 19th, I noticed House Sparrows around the Bluebird's nesting box. I was immediately concerned because I know from experience that House Sparrows, given the opportunity, will kill baby Bluebirds. I went to check the nest and was pleased to find the nest empty, indicating that the juvenile Bluebirds have fledged, meaning that they have left the nest. I took the nest box down to prevent the House Sparrows from nesting.