Towheeblog

Peter Thiemann, John Bullock and I headed up into the Cascades with hopes of finding a Great Gray Owl.  What we found was a gorgeous mountain meadow at about 4500′ north of Highway 140 a few miles.  And thousands of thirsty mosquitoes.  And some pretty good birding.  How about this character who shound hundreds of miles away? This Greater White-fronted Goose was hanging around with a quartet of local Canada Geese in the meadow. We saw the bird fly so its healthy enough, just not migrating this year, I guess. Look carefully to find the head of the Sandhill Crane moving slowly through tall grass while watching our movements across the meadow. This single bird might have a mate on the a nest hidden somewhere in Willow Prairie.
We had the accipiter trifecta, one of each species including a Goshawk with its white tail puffs showing. One of the Pileated Woodpeckers gave us a couple views and many loud calls. The Wilson’s Snipe were chipping at dusk in the meadow. Both the Virginia Rail and Sora were also calling from the wettest part of the marsh.
Click on landscape image to get full screen view. That’s Mt. McLaughlin in the background, nearly 10,000 feet high and an active volcano.
On the way home John and I passed more snipe and another Sandhill on the meadow just west of the intersection if Dead Indian Mem. Rd. (DIMR) and Forest Service 37. This is around Milepost 22 on DIMR.

Willow Prairie, Jackson, US-OR May 16, 2012 4:15 PM. 23 species

Greater White-fronted Goose (Anser albifrons)  1. Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)  4 Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)  2. Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura)  1 Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus)  1 Cooper’s Hawk (Accipiter cooperii)  1 Northern Goshawk (Accipiter gentilis)  1. Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis)  1. Virginia Rail (Rallus limicola)  1     heard. Sora (Porzana carolina)  1     heard. Sandhill Crane (Grus canadensis)  1. Wilson’s Snipe 4. Red-breasted Sapsucker (Sphyrapicus ruber)  1. Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus)  1 Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus)  2. Cassin’s Vireo (Vireo cassinii)  1. Common Raven (Corvus corax)  2. Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor)  3. Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis)  2 House Wren (Troglodytes aedon)  1. American Robin (Turdus migratorius)  4 Yellow-rumped Warbler (Setophaga coronata)  1 Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)  1. Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus)  12.