This morning our McMinnville Parks birding class met for a field trip at Willamette Mission. That is, the intrped met…the re were seven of us. The Oregon “sunshine” was intermittent–rain on and off. The birds were definitely on, though most small songbirds stayed in seclusion. In just over two hours we saw dozens of flocks of geese overhead, a large flock of robins feeding on esrthworms, interspersed with flickers. Sapsuckers going through the usual drill. A male kingfisher ate a fish as we watched. Shovelers seined the water at Willamette Slough. The only harrier we saw was an adult male.
Show me your colors, oh sapsucker:
A bit of porteyfrom Barb Settles:
“Sucking sap, sucking sap
Put on my best red clothes and go
Sucking sap, hurray!”
Click on an image for larger version.
The trees had their own ideas about color. A slight breeze would begin a golden leaf-fall…onto the slough, onto the grass, onto your shoulder.
How the day began…sunrise, a crow on the chimney, a crow in the air:
The most recurring sight–Cackler flight:
Willamette Mission SP, Marion, Oregon, US
Oct 23, 2021
19 species
Cackling Goose 400
Canada Goose X
Northern Shoveler 10
Mallard 6
Pied-billed Grebe 3
Greater Yellowlegs 1
Great Blue Heron 1
Northern Harrier 1
Red-tailed Hawk 2
Belted Kingfisher 1
Red-breasted Sapsucker 2
Northern Flicker 4
American Kestrel 1
California Scrub-Jay 8
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 1
European Starling X
American Robin 120
House Finch 10
Purple Finch 1
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