Slow Spring

April 3, 2014 by John Rakestraw, posted in behavior, mammals, nesting, OR Birding Sites, reptiles & amphibians, seasonal movements

The end of March and beginning of April have been cool and wet. Spring is progressing, but seemingly very slowly. Here are a few images from the past week.

Pacific Wrens are singing everywhere. This bird was at Powell Butte Nature Park in SE Portland.

Savannah Sparrows are staking out their territories in the grassland at the top of Powell Butte.

This Ruddy Duck at Vanport Wetlands is sporting his spring colors.

This Pileated Woodpecker is excavating a cavity at Tualatin Hills Nature Park. Thanks to Michele for sharing the location of this nest.

This tiny Common Garter was also at Tualatin Hills.

As was this Townsend’s Chipmunk.

Nala is far more interested in fetching sticks from the river than looking at birds. This “stick” in the Columbia is probably her biggest to date.

Sauvie Island

March 22, 2014 by John Rakestraw, posted in OR Birding Sites, seasonal movements

I took my Little Brown Birds class to Sauvie Island. A walk along the length of Rentenaar Road is always good for sparrows.

We found at least four White-throated Sparrows. This species was considered quite rare in Oregon ten years ago, but seem to be increasingly common in winter.
This individual is an example of the “white striped” form of White-throated Sparrow.

Fox Sparrow

Song Sparrow

Golden-crowned Sparrow

White-crowned Sparrow

One of the more interesting birds of the day was this leucistic Golden-crowned Sparrow. He was a uniform buffy gray with a splash of yellow on the crown.

Red-winged Blackbird

There are still large flocks of Snow Geese on the island.

Sandhill Cranes are always a treat.

Birding Oregon, Second Edition

March 13, 2014 by John Rakestraw, posted in OR Birding Sites, resources

The second edition of Birding Oregon is now available. This new version includes:

updated site descriptions
50 new sites
updated checklist of 532 species and their seasonal distribution
updated Resources and Contact Information
full-color photos

The stunning cover image is courtesy of photographer Jacob Spendelow. You can see more of his work at http://www.tringa.org

Order Birding Oregon Here

Waterfowl Class

February 28, 2014February 28, 2014 by John Rakestraw, posted in mammals, OR Birding Sites

I led my waterfowl class on a field trip to Sauvie Island and Dawson Creek. We had a few big misses (Gadwall and Wood Duck) but the diversity was pretty good.

At Wapato Access Greenway we found some Dusky Canada Geese along with the American Wigeons and Northern Pintails.

This Coyote was munching on a vole.

Tundra Swan was one of the most common species of the day.

This Lincoln’s Sparrow was very cooperative, posing out in the open for great scope views. But even then he blended in amazingly well with his surroundings.

You don’t get to see American Coots in flight very often, as they tend to walk or swim wherever they go. They have even been reported to migrate on foot.

Canvasback, looking very regal
Same bird, looking not quite so regal

American Wigeon pair, Dawson Creek

Bufflehead, preparing to dive

Ridgeway’s Cackling Goose

Random February Birds

February 22, 2014 by John Rakestraw, posted in rarities

I have spent very little time outdoors this month, but here are a few nice birds from the past few weeks.

This Yellow-rumped Warbler was displaying his namesake near Ankeny NWR.

Northern Shrike, also at Ankeny.

This Lewis’s Woodpecker has spent the winter near Ankeny. It is unusual to find them west of the Cascade Crest. You have to love a green woodpecker with a red belly.

Portland’s recent “Snowpocalypse” was not appreciated by the local Anna’s Hummingbirds.

This White-throated Sparrow has spent much of the winter on our property, but I haven’t seen him since the big snow melted.

Mourning Dove at the feeder

This Downy Woodpecker has made several visits to the dead cedar outside our living room window.

Cannon Beach

January 25, 2014 by John Rakestraw, posted in behavior, OR Birding Sites, rarities

While I recognize the serious nature of the current drought, it is hard to be unhappy about sunshine in January. So after many weeks of not birding, I finally got out and spent a day on the coast. On the path around the Cannon Beach wastewater ponds, I came across a flock of Greater White-fronted Geese.

This Eurasian Wigeon was hanging out with the Mallards at the wastewater treatment plant.

Ring-necked Duck

In the surf around Haystack Rock, there were lots of Surf Scoters and Black Scoters, but they kept out of camera range. This is a Harlequin Duck. No, really.

The mouth of Ecola Creek, at the north end of Cannon Beach, is a favorite hangout of the local gulls. I found Western, Glaucous-winged, California, Mew, Herring, and Thayer’s. Unfortunately, photographing white birds in bright sunshine against a dark background is beyond my rudimentary skills. Most of my shots consisted of glowing white blobs surrounded by lovely blue water. This shot of a third-cycle Thayer’s Gull bathing in the creek is at least recognizable.

This Red-shouldered Hawk was at Mill Ponds Park in nearby Seaside.
The same bird in the middle of a roust
I couldn’t get a flight shot of the Red-shouldered in focus, but this at least shows this species’ beautiful pattern.

Anna’s Hummingbirds

December 7, 2013December 5, 2013 by John Rakestraw, posted in species profile

With the cold weather we have had this week, the Anna’s Hummingbirds have been staying close to the feeders. Here are some random images from the last few days, all taken through dirty windows.

This male begrudgingly shared the slushy feeder with a female for a while.
The dim light hit this guy’s head feathers just right to reveal the absurdly pink color.

Rusty Blackbird

December 4, 2013 by John Rakestraw, posted in conservation issues, rarities, species profile

I made another trip to see the Rusty Blackbird that has been hanging out behind the Hillsboro Public Library for the past month. This species nests in boreal wetlands across Alaska, Canada, and the northeastern states. They typically winter in the southeastern U.S., so they are extremely rare in Oregon.

Unfortunately, they are becoming extremely rare in their normal range, as well. Since the 1960s, the population of Rusty Blackbirds has declined by between 85 and 95 percent. Probable causes include the drying of boreal wetlands due to climate change, mercury contamination, changes in breeding habitat caused by logging and farming, changes to bottomland forests in the birds’ winter range, and poisoning of “nuisance” blackbird flocks. Information on the situation can be found here and here.

So even though I have seen Rusty Blackbirds before, and added this one to my Oregon list a few weeks ago, it was worth another trip to appreciate an encounter with a species that has become increasingly hard to find.

North Coast, 21 November 2013

November 22, 2013November 22, 2013 by John Rakestraw, posted in behavior, OR Birding Sites

I spent a cold but sunny day on the coast, from Seaside to the Columbia River. One of the best surprises of the day was this Black Phoebe at Millponds Park in Seaside. This species continues to expand its range northward, both along the coast and in the Willamette Valley.

While the ponds at this park are attractive to freshwater waterfowl like Ring-necked Ducks and Hooded Mergansers, the brushy areas hold good numbers of sparrows. Here is a Song Sparrow in the harsh sunlight.

Fox Sparrows are common in the brushy areas. Unfortunately, my camera prefers to focus on the brush, rather than on the birds.

This lone Dunlin was the only shorebird I found at Fort Stevens. He was very tolerant of my presence.
The same bird, blending in well with the sand

The Seaside Cove hosted huge rafts of birds; all three scoters, Greater Scaup, Western Grebe, and a single Long-tailed Duck. Most birds were beyond the breakers (aka beyond camera range), but this Red-necked Grebe came in close enough for a blurry photo.

sleepy Surfbird

preening and sleeping Black Turnstones

sleepy Black Turnstone and Surfbird

Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden, 13 November 2013

November 17, 2013November 17, 2013 by John Rakestraw, posted in OR Birding Sites

The weather has entered its dark and dreary pattern, typical for Portland in late autumn. This makes for dark grainy photos, but here are a few shots from Crystal Springs in southeast Portland.

Steller’s Jay, looking all artsy among the architecture of the boardwalk