John Rakestraw

Tualatin River NWR

June 13, 2015 by John Rakestraw, posted in OR Birding Sites

Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge is still a fairly new addition to the Willamette Valley refuge complex, but it offers a nice variety of habitats very close to Portland. I don’t know if the resident Bald Eagles had a successful nesting this year, but this individual was hanging out by the nest during my recent visit.

Cinnamon Teal were conspicuous, but Blue-winged and Green-winged Teal were also present.

Killdeer and Spotted Sandpipers are both common nesters on the refuge.

The air above the wetlands is filled with various species of swallows. This Northern Rough-winged Swallow was the only one that sat for a distant photo.

This Willow Flycatcher was giving his distinctive “FITZ-bew” call.

Western Wood-Pewees were calling from the edges of the woods.

The grassy areas are home to Savannah Sparrows.

This White-crowned Sparrow was singing from the roof of the refuge office.

Smith and Bybee Wetlands

June 7, 2015 by John Rakestraw, posted in behavior, nesting, OR Birding Sites, reptiles & amphibians

Nesting season is in full swing at Smith and Bybee Wetlands in northwest Portland. There is a small colony of Cliff Swallows nesting under the highway overpass.

Here is the tail end of a Cedar Waxwing sitting on a nest. This seems like an awfully large nest for such a small bird.

Several Cedar Waxwings were raiding nesting material from this Bushtit nest. I hope the Bushtits were done with it.

Cedar Waxwing with fruit

This Sparrow was carrying a mouthful of bugs, indicating that she had a nest of babies nearby.

Marsh Wrens were actively singing in several locations.

Brown-headed Cowbird

Great Blue Heron on Smith Lake

The warm sun brought the reptiles out in good numbers. Smith and Bybee is a stronghold for the threatened Western Painted Turtle.

Northwestern Garter Snakes were also enjoying the sun. Northwestern Garters are distinguished from Common Garters by their smaller head and gentler disposition.

Sandy River Delta

May 28, 2015 by John Rakestraw, posted in nesting, OR Birding Sites

Nala and I spent several hours hiking (and swimming) at the Sandy River Delta. Local nesters, like this Common Yellowthroat, were busy gather food for nestlings.

Male Lazuli Buntings were very vocal, and seemed to be vying for the attention of the females (below).

Osprey flying along the Columbia River

This Western Canada Goose had an unusual head pattern, with white reaching across the forehead and around the nape.

Rufous Hummingbirds were defending their blackberry patches.

Pacific City

May 6, 2015 by John Rakestraw, posted in OR Birding Sites, seasonal movements

I led a couple of tours for the Birding and Blues Festival last weekend. The weather was dry and reasonably warm, despite rather vicious afternoon winds on the beach.

North winds brought good numbers of migrating shorebirds close to land. Shorebirds often bypass Oregon beaches on their way to Grays Harbor in Washington, so it was nice to find a big flock feeding right across from our hotel.

The flock was mostly Dunlins and Western Sandpipers, but their were a couple of Semipalmated Plovers in mix. (but not in this photo)

These Red-breasted Mergansers were at Clay Meyers State Natural Area.

Bufflehead at Clay Meyers

White-crowned Sparrows were conspicuous and vocal everywhere.

Eurasian Collared Doves are pretty easy to find in Tillamook County. This one was singing behind the community center in Pacific City.

The view from Cape Lookout. It is unusual to see the ocean looking blue instead of steely gray.

Blue Grosbeak

May 3, 2015 by John Rakestraw, posted in rarities

A Blue Grosbeak was found hanging out at Koll Center in Beaverton this week. This species has only been reported in Oregon about a dozen times before, so I was thrilled to add this beauty to my state list, especially when it was found only a few miles from home. The bird seemed crazy stupid, hanging out in the parking lots, and sometimes in the middle of the street. There was speculation that the bird may have been injured, perhaps by hitting a window, but he has been hanging out in the same area for several days now, so hopefully he is OK.

This bird is a classic example of a “twitch,” hearing about a vagrant bird found by someone else, then running out to add it to my own list. Seeing a Blue Grosbeak in Oregon did not require a great deal of luck, effort, or skill on my part, but I still relish the opportunity to see this species again, and to add another checkmark to my Oregon list. Yes, there is great satisfaction in finding a rarity on your own, but I am not too proud to appreciate a freebie.

Red Hot Pokers

April 20, 2015 by John Rakestraw, posted in OR Birding Sites

While birding at the Whiskey Creek Fish Hatchery in Tillamook County, I stopped to check out a stand of Red Hot Poker, or Torch Lily. This plant is not native, but the flowers are very attractive to hummingbirds, orioles, and warblers.

Orange-crowned Warblers were the only warbler species around that day, but several individuals came out of the heavy cover to feed on nectar.

When I first arrived at the patch, a female Anna’s Hummingbird was feeding. She took off before the camera came out, and then the patch was dominated by a male Rufous Hummingbird.

Whiskey Creek Hatchery is a small site, but offers a little patch of woods and access to Netarts Bay.

Sandy River Delta

April 9, 2015 by John Rakestraw, posted in OR Birding Sites, seasonal movements

Nala and I spent the morning at the Sandy River Delta east of Portland. Bird activity is definitely picking up, although many of the summer residents haven’t arrived yet.

White-crowned Sparrows were singing

as were Savannah Sparrows.

Rufous Hummingbirds were zipping around everywhere. All the birds I could get a look at were males.

scratching an itch

Here is a typical view of a Common Yellowthroat.

The recently reopened channel hosted a lot of birds, including this pair of Wood Ducks and a sleepy Mallard.

Spotted Sandpiper, not yet spotted

Great Blue Heron in a tree

Common Merganser, proving once again that I have no idea how to control the white balance on my camera.

Of course, Nala will tell you the main reason to visit this site is to go swimming. Here she is in the Sandy River, while the mastiff on shore waits to try to steal her ball.

Sauvie Island

April 1, 2015 by John Rakestraw, posted in OR Birding Sites, reptiles & amphibians

I made a couple of trips out to Sauvie Island for my Little Brown Birds class. The weather was freakishly nice for late March, although the mild winter has not been conducive to large sparrow flocks.

One highlight of the trip on Saturday was a large flock of California Quail. This species has become more difficult to find in recent years.
Wapato Access Greenway State Park is a great place for herps on Sauvie Island.
This is a large Common Garter Snake. The subspecies found in this area is Red-spotted Garter Snake (Thamnophis sirtalis concinnus)

Pacific Chorus Frogs (also known as Pacific Tree Frogs) were common in the grassy areas. Their call is surprisingly loud for such a small frog.

Double-crested Cormorants

March 20, 2015 by John Rakestraw, posted in behavior, species profile

Double-crested Cormorants always put on a good show along the Willamette River in Portland. For being an all black bird, they really show a lot of interesting details in their plumage. The blue eyes on an orange face are also striking.

This bird is just starting to sprout his crest feathers.

This young bird is still showing his pale gray breast and neck, but the facial skin is getting pretty bright.

This is what it looks like when a cormorant catches a fish that is just a little too big. The bird swam around for quite a while with this odd posture and bulging neck.

Wetland Birds

March 17, 2015 by John Rakestraw, posted in nesting, OR Birding Sites, seasonal movements

While spring migration has not really ramped up yet, locally nesting birds at Fernhill Wetlands and Jackson Bottoms are starting to pair up, and the winter flocks are breaking up.

A few Least Sandpipers have arrived at Fernhill.

These Killdeer were vying for position. I think this species would be more highly regarded if their voices weren’t so grating. Their plumage and red eye ring are rather stunning, but they just don’t shut up.