Towheeblog

I checked the Riverfront Park eagle nest on Monday–bird present nearby, no evidence of egg incubation, yet.

Checked again today–one eagle on sentinel duty. Could the female be tucked down below the edge of the nest, incubating?

To do some peaceful, silent sniping at Riverfront, walk south from the eagle nest overlook. Get onto the footbridge between Riverfront and Minto-Brown. Look along the south edge of the gravel bar, itself south of the bridge. The snipe like to probe along the shallow slough water just offshore. Today a busy quartet. The two resident Killdeer ignored them, and snoozed on. Likely the Killdeer will nest down there this spring. Can they conceal their nest from crows and heron? Here’s my lousy pic of the snipe:

Minto-Brown: covet that covey. I counted thirty-two. No housecats nearby.

There was a male Anna’s up even though the air temp was only 35 degrees.

There was a highly colorful moment in our garden this week. I had my binocs on the male Varied Thrush and he fed in an open area where we’ve removed plants and ground cover. I admire his brilliant bright orange and black outfit. Suddenly, an even bolder color combo passed before my view. Dark black and deeper orange. It was the local male towhee. There they were for several seconds less than two feet apart, sharing the scene in front of my binoculars. If you had asked, I would not have known which had the deeper colors. I know now–seen it with my own eyes.

One species has gone from occasional visitor to plague level–all since September. Mourning Doves. I counted 32 in our garden on Monday. I rarely seem them nearby I summer–this isn’t really their breeding habitat. So in doveland, we must have a five-star rating on our birdfood. Almost never see collared-doves here.

RINGTAIL’S RETURN…from Lee French’s home trailcam in Ashland:

Ready for some Brazilian birding? Check this one out:

Join KBO’s dynamic duo Director of Conservation Jaime Stephens and Board President Shannon Rio for a memorable 9-day trip to Brazil, April 12th – 20th, 2023. This trip will be guided by past KBO intern and co-founder of Mantiqueira Bird Observatory (OAMa) Luiza Figueira. The cost of this trip includes hotels, food (breakfast, lunch, dinner), and transportation (to and from the airport and during the trip). The total cost of the trip is $5,000, $2500 to reserve your seat, and the total amount is due by February 10th. With 12 people attending, these funds will cover a FULL YEAR of OAMa’s banding program. It will also be used to help support a student intern that is participating in KBO OAMa’s intern exchange program. 

If you are interested, contact Elva Manquera. ejm@klamathbird.org

ANTARCTIC GLACIER MELT–not a good thing, click here.

Avian flu has led to the slaughter of millions of domestic chickens in the US recently. The disease has just been discovered in Uruguay and Argentina. Now it is year-round on all five continents (but not Antarctic as far as we know), no longer seasonal. Click here for summary of situation.

Salem Riverfront Park, Marion, Oregon, US
Feb 16, 2023
15 species

Canada Goose  80
Mallard  20
Green-winged Teal  12
Lesser Scaup  10
Bufflehead  2
Pied-billed Grebe  4
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon)  X
Killdeer  2
Wilson’s Snipe  4     south of footbridge
Bald Eagle  1     adult not far from nest
American Crow  6
European Starling  60
American Robin  120
Golden-crowned Sparrow  6
Red-winged Blackbird  2

Minto-Brown Island Park, Marion, Oregon, US
Feb 16, 2023
13 species

Canada Goose  2
Mallard  4
Green-winged Teal  20
Bufflehead  5
California Quail  32     east of hedge along east side of Parking Lot #3
Pied-billed Grebe  3
Anna’s Hummingbird  1     It was 35 degrees when I saw him
Double-crested Cormorant  1
Belted Kingfisher  1
California Scrub-Jay  1
American Crow  X
Ruby-crowned Kinglet  1
Hermit Thrush  1