[obol] Kirk Park/Clear Lake Rd., Eugene Birds
- From: Thomas Meinzen <thomasmeinzen@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: obol@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sun, 17 Mar 2013 18:44:52 -0700
Although it's nothing compared to the excitement going on in Coos Bay, my
dad and I had a nice bike ride to Kirk Park and Pond this intermittently
sunny afternoon. The highlight along Clear Lake Rd. was seeing WESTERN
BLUEBIRDS at 7 different locations. Most of them were in pairs. It seems to
have been quite a good winter for bluebirds! Near the junction of Maxwell
Rd. and Prairie Rd., we had a single COMMON RAVEN feeding on road kill.
I've never seen a raven right here in the city before. We had several other
RAVENS along Clear Lake Road, as well as a RED-TAILED HAWK on nest, 3
GREATER YELLOWLEGS in a wet ditch, and 8 WESTERN MEADOWLARKS in a field,
among other birds.
In Alvadore the NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD was not at its regular holly bush, but
a soft singing led us to the mockingbird, which was a little further east
on 8th street in a bramble patch. We enjoyed hearing it sing for ten
minutes, with an impressive repertoire and mimics of scrub-jays, Lesser
Goldfinches, and other birds. Any speculation as to whether this wintering
bird is a male or a female?
Kirk Pond had 3 male EURASIAN WIGEON (1 hybrid) with the numerous AMERICAN
WIGEON, about a dozen GREATER SCAUP, a BLACK PHOEBE, 30 TREE SWALLOWS, and
2 more WESTERN BLUEBIRDS. The Redhead on Kirk Pond last weekend were
nowhere to be seen when we first stopped by, but when we left at about 4:00
we saw that 4 REDHEAD (3 males, 1 female) and returned to the east end of
the pond, and the scaup were gone. We enjoyed exploring the swampy
woodlands of Kirk Park and Kirk Forest, although birds were few.
The first migrant flocks of RUBY-CROWNED KINGLETS were moving through our
yard yesterday, a sure sign of spring. After having only one kinglet all
winter, I counted 12 in one bush yesterday, but a few minutes later they
were all gone. Happy migration!
Good birding,
Thomas Meinzen
Eugene
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