[Umpqua Birds] Re: East Roseburg/Dixonville Saturday (Feb 1)
- From: Matthew G Hunter <matthewghunter@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: umpquabirds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Mon, 3 Feb 2014 10:52:13 -0800
Toni (and all),
Some interesting thoughts and good questions.
Large groups work good for some situations, not so good for others. I have
been thinking about that issue for some time and I have some trips in mind
with limited space, so stay tuned.
There are a number of people in our area that have the capability of
leading field trips, and I hope they do. I'll just speak for myself. I want
to lead a variety of different field trips locally and throughout the
Umpqua Basin (and beyond on occasion, but I'm mostly focusing on the Umpqua
Basin right now). I am taking it slow so as to not over-commit myself, so
I'm mostly in the planning (and hopeful) stage. I also hope to apply for
some grant funding to do more local and basin-wide education and field
trips with regard to birds, and/or charge for some trips. This year I will
be trying out a number of different approaches.
Currently, on the Umpqua Valley Audubon Society (UVAS) website (
www.umpquaaudubon.org), I have two field trips set up (besides the little
series I just announced). One is to help folks learn to recognize Greater
White-fronted Geese when they come over during migration in late April and
early May. The second is sort of a specialty trip, canoeing the Umpqua
Estuary. I say specialty because not many people have canoes and are
willing to do such a trip. But it is a fantastic place! :-)
With regard to these short trips I just announced, (1) I saw an opportunity
to use the time to lead some nearby short walks, using the limited time for
birding vs. travel, and (2) saw an opportunity to introduce whoever is
interested to a few close-by sites, their birds, and how to look for and
find them. These are not high-diversity sites like Ford's Pond, Plat I
Reservoir, and Stewart Park Wildlife Ponds, but they have birds
nonetheless, and I think it is a good lesson in itself just to learn to
search for birds in different locations and habitats. So, I hope we'll have
some fun and learn together.
Regarding birdwatching site maps for Douglas County:
(1) The birdingoregon.info website has information in birding sites in all
Oregon's 36 counties, including Douglas. You can go to this site and click
on Douglas County and explore from there. I'm not wild about how the site
is set up, but it does have a lot of sites.
(2) A color brochure version of most information on the website for Douglas
County is available through Umpqua Valley Audubon Society (UVAS,
www.umpquaaudubon.org). You can email Diana Wales (
dianawales@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx) and request one, or come to one of the UVAS
programs and pick one up there. The programs are on the UVAS website,
and/or you can ask Diana to put you on her email list which she uses to
notify folks of upcoming programs, field trips, etc.
(3) I am currently working on an Umpqua Birds website that will include
some birding site information. In the beginning I will just include sites
that are not on the birdingoregon.info webpage, and just point to that
webpage with a link. Over time, however, I will develop a more
comprehensive treatment of birding sites in Douglas County, ...but that
will take some time. In the mean time, I recommend getting that brochure.
(4) Another thing you can do is go to eBird.org, click on Explore Data, and
check out the Hotspot Explorer or the Range and Point Maps.
I hope that helps, and I am looking forward to more field trips too.
Yours,
Matt
On Sun, Feb 2, 2014 at 6:36 PM, Toni M <creekwood@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> Matt:
> Great news! I noted that some list members expressed discomfort with the
> large field trip groups that have resulted from the list's growth. Perhaps
> I'd best email you separately, but I was wondering about any longer
> local/interior area field trips (paid would be fine) that may be planned
> later this year? I was also interested in obtaining information regarding
> any reliable birdwatching site maps for Douglas County. (Congratulations on
> getting your daughter off 'training wheels' ;-)... )
> Toni M
>
> *-------Original Message-------*
>
> *From:* Matthew G Hunter <matthewghunter@xxxxxxxxx>
> *Date:* 02/02/14 16:45:57
> *To:* umpquabirds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> *Subject:* [Umpqua Birds] East Roseburg/Dixonville Saturday (Feb 1)
>
> Hi Folks,
>
> Mark Hamm and I did a little scouting Saturday for the following series of
> short field trips. I thought I would take advantage of a two-hour period
> while my daughter is driving for her Driver's Education class for a few
> more Saturdays. So I hope some of you can join me. Mark Hamm may be along
> as well if he is available.
>
> Some of our interesting sightings from Saturday were:
> SAY'S PHOEBE near the Dixonville quarry.
> GOLDEN EAGLE north of the ODFW office.
> Leucistic FOX SPARROW continues at the ODFW office, in shrubs near the
> feeders to the west of the office (see photos from December here
> http://www.flickr.com/photos/matthewghunter/sets/72157638840748645/)
>
> Following is the announcement that will be on the Umpqua Valley Audubon
> Website soon (www.umpquaaudubon.org)
>
> Four-in-a-Row Short Saturday Field Trips
>
> Matt Hunter will lead short birding walks at some central and east
> Roseburg sites for the next four weeks while his daughter is in Driver's
> Education class at the UCC Small Business Development Center (SBDC, 2555
> NE Diamond Lake Blvd., just before Abby's Pizza on the right on the way out
> of town). Meet at 0855 at the SBDC, southeast parking area. From there we
> will travel less than 10 minutes to a nearby location where we will look
> and listen for birds for about 45 minutes. We will then drive to a second
> nearby location for about another 45 minutes. Matt will need to be back at
> the SBDC at 1100. If you don't meet in time at the SBDC, feel free to call
> Matt (541-670-1984) to meet wherever he is (or you can meet at the first
> site shortly after 0900). No cost for any of these field trips.
>
> Paired Sites and dates are as follows:
> Feb 8, O.C. Brown Park & Dixonville quarry
> Feb 15, Sunshine Park & ODFW office
> Feb 22, Eastwood Park & Beulah Park
> Mar 1, Bike Path at Deer Creek & Laurelwood Park and neighborhood
>
> Recent Observations at these sites can be seen at the following links:
>
> O.C. Brown Park
> http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S16750247
>
> Dixonville Quarry
> http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S16750274
>
> Sunshine Park
> http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S16750314
>
> ODFW area
> http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S16750355
>
> Eastwood Park
> http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S16750412
>
> Beulah Park
> http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S16720356
>
> Bike Path at Deer Creek
> http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S16416029
>
> Laurelwood Park
> http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S16488296
>
>
Other related posts:
