Thanks for your respectful response, Roy. Times they are a changing.
Last Saturday while doing Western Bluebird surveys for a National Audubon
Society pilot project on climate change, Karan and I also found many roads
through O&C checkerboard lands, built and maintained by federal dollars to high
standards, are still largely open. Some have been appropriated by private
industrials by gate or ‘permit entry’ signs, and in places have been duplicated
nearby to stay in the public checkerboard, only adding to the road network,
its impact, plus a confused driver and GPS plotting.
The most recent clearcuts, the most suitable habitat for WESTERN BLUEBIRDs,
were all behind gates. Older clearcuts did harbor a wealth of interesting
“early seral” birds, including PURPLE MARTIN, McGILLIVRAY’S WARBLER, WILLOW
and OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER, and ubiquitous robins and white-crowns. Within the
100 meter radius plots, there really weren’t that many birds.
Once BLM refused me access to BLM land on a BLM road through private land when
I was reviewing a planned timber sale. When I pointed out this fell under
their road agreement to access for administrative purposes, BLM relented.
Jim Fairchild
Benton County
From: obol-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:obol-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of ;
Roy Gerig
Sent: Wednesday, June 15, 2016 3:15 PM
To: obol@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [obol] Interior coast range birds, Polk County
I went up the Stott Mtn Rd from Grande Ronde a couple miles when a white pickup
came up fast and said did you know this is private land? Well I did, I said.
I am on a BLM Rd. Yes said the white pickup, but it is not open to the public.
Oh, I worked here 25 and 20 years ago, I was taking this road to get into BLM
land. it was open to the public then and I thought it was OK. No he said.
We talked, he still being a security guard but respectful. Times have changed
he said.
I haven't been to the coast range of Polk, Benton, Yamhill, Tillamook Counties
much for 15 years. I spent much of my time there in the 1980-90s. This is not
a comment or criticism or political, but times have changed and you can't
always get there from here anymore...
At low elevation, WILSON'S WARBLERS most noticeable, then a little higher OC
WARBLERS and WARBLING VIREO. Into a mature forest, HERMIT WARBLER, with
PAC-SLOPE FLYCATCHER, PACIFIC WREN, SWAINSON'S THRUSH and a HUTTON'S VIREO.
On the way back down from a slide at 3000' I heard about half of a 'TOO-Ok'
from a Mtn Quail, a little later an unmistakable tail (gray band at the end of
a long tail) of a large bird flying over the road, a SOOTY GROUSE. I heard a
RED-SHOULDERED HAWK up there, where there is a little Old-Growth at about mp 5
on the Gold Creek Rd. That was new to me, but not surprising.
