Towheeblog

And this morning’s hunting was done entirely with binocs, and cameras. This field trip was sponsored by Polk County Soil & Water Conservation District, our second bird walk there this spring.

The Lazuli Bunting males were cagey, but singing frequently and occasionally appearing in public. Naturally we did not see any of the shy, drab-colored females. The bunting’s big cousin, the Black-headed Grosbeak, was singing and made one streaking flight to prove he was not a recording. Other bird sounds came from: Chipping and Song and White-crowned Sparrows, robins and Swainson’s Thrush, wood-pewee in a treetop, yellowthroat and ravens (unseen in the hilltop Doug-firs).

All but one of the band-tails passed overhead in a single flock. The vultures kettled more than once. The Acorn Woodpecker was in the hilltop oaks. The bluebirds who bred here in May were not in evidence.

Best insect of the day: tiger swallowtail butterflies.

Cornerstone Preserve–Polk Water and Soil Conservation District (restricted access), Polk, Oregon, US
Jun 18, 2022
26 species (+1 other taxa)

Band-tailed Pigeon  9
Rufous Hummingbird  1
Turkey Vulture  10
Bald Eagle  1     adult
Buteo sp.  1
Acorn Woodpecker  1
Western Wood-Pewee  1
Willow Flycatcher  1
California Scrub-Jay  2
Common Raven  X     heard, not seen
Black-capped Chickadee  1
Violet-green Swallow  X
Barn Swallow  X
Cliff Swallow  X
European Starling  X
Swainson’s Thrush  X
American Robin  4
Cedar Waxwing  1
American Goldfinch  2
Chipping Sparrow  X
White-crowned Sparrow  2
Song Sparrow  4
Spotted Towhee  8
Brown-headed Cowbird  1
Common Yellowthroat  X
Black-headed Grosbeak  2
Lazuli Bunting  6