[obol] Benton County "Five Chicken Day"; Prairie Peak Cassin's Finch (Lane Co.)
- From: Hendrik Herlyn <hhactitis@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: OBOL <obol@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>, Midvalley Birding <birding@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 9 Oct 2014 14:49:12 -0700
Hello folks,
Oscar and I explored the rarely birded Prairie Peak on the Benton/Lane
county line this morning, and in the process ended up with 5 species of
gallinaceous birds on our day's list:
1. California Quail - one adult with about 10 chicks on SW 53rd Street (S
of Corvallis)
2. Wild Turkey - 9 birds in a yard along Dawson Road (W of Bellfountain)
3. Ruffed Grouse - flushed one along Miller Road (NE of Alsea Falls)
4. Mountain Quail - a covey of 8 on Miller Road (2 minutes after the Ruffed
Grouse!), another 4 on Prairie Peak
5. Sooty Grouse - 2 birds on Prairie Peak (one in Benton County, the other
on the Lane County side)
The only thing missing for a County Chicken Grand Slam was a Ring-necked
Pheasant.:-)
Other than the chickens, birding was rather slow on the peak. Highlights
included one CASSIN'S FINCH (Lane County side), 2 SAVANNAH SPARROWS, 2
AMERICAN PIPITS on the summit road, and one COOPER'S HAWK.
Even on a slow day, this mountain is worth a visit, and the formerly almost
impassable road to the summit has been vastly improved (still a long and
winding drive to get up there, but the place has great potential!).
Happy exploring
Hendrik & Oscar.
--
__________________________
Hendrik G. Herlyn
Corvallis, OR
*"Nature is not a place to visit. It is home." -- Gary Snyder*
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- » [obol] Benton County "Five Chicken Day"; Prairie Peak Cassin's Finch (Lane Co.) - Hendrik Herlyn
