Towheeblog

We had it all today on a Klamath Bird Observatory (KBO) birding trip that was slated to go to Agate Lake. We did that, but the freezing fog and very low visibility led us to move above the winter inversion layer to the warm sunshine at a higher elevation. At 2400′ we birded the wooded ranch of one of our birders. Her feeders were busy, busy, busy:
The Purple Finches were most plentiful around the feeders. One pair of Lesser Goldfinch joined them.

This Purple Finch will crush the seed cover and swallow the kernel whole. Smaller birds like the chickadees have to peck at each kernel, taking only bits with each bite.

Other feeder birds at 2400 on the northern foothills of Grizzly Peak: Steller’s Jay, Spotted Towhee, many Juncos, Chestnut-backed and Black-capped Chickadee. I missed the Oak Titmouse when he flitted past. Behind the house in darkest shade was a Pacific Wren.
Then we walked up into the forest, dominated by ponderosa and Doug-fir: GC Kinglets, more chickadees and a Hairy Woodpecker.
As we drove back down onto the prairie a small group of meadowlarks were fencing along the edge of Antelope Road, in the persistent fog.

Note meadowlark behind is a ghost in the fog.

In the dense fog near Agate Lake this Bald Eagle (likely third year bird) was sit atop an Osprey nest platform. Made us do a double-take as Osprey are not often seen here in mid-winter.

Agate Lake, Jackson, US-OR
Jan 18, 2014 9:30 AM. 11 species

Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) 1
Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) 1
American Coot (Fulica americana) X
Lewis’s Woodpecker (Melanerpes lewis) 10—bad light allowed for no photos
Acorn Woodpecker at Agate Lake
Common Raven (Corvus corax) 2
American Robin (Turdus migratorius) 1
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) 1
Golden-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia atricapilla) X
Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis) X
Western Meadowlark (Sturnella neglecta) 8

Antelope Road, Jackson, US-OR
Jan 18, 2014 10:15 AM. 4 species

Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) 2
Lewis’s Woodpecker (Melanerpes lewis) 2
American Kestrel (Falco sparverius) 3
Western Bluebird (Sialia mexicana) 1

Fleming Ranch, Jackson, US-OR
Jan 18, 2014 10:45 AM. 11 species

Hairy Woodpecker (Picoides villosus) 1
Steller’s Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri) 2
Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus) 2
Chestnut-backed Chickadee (Poecile rufescens) 1
Oak Titmouse (Baeolophus inornatus) 1
Pacific Wren (Troglodytes pacificus) 1
Golden-crowned Kinglet (Regulus satrapa) X
Spotted Towhee (Pipilo maculatus) 1
Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis) 15
Purple Finch (Haemorhous purpureus) 20
Lesser Goldfinch (Spinus psaltria) 2