[obol] [Fwd: Baskett Butte prairie restoration Vesper Sparrow]
- From: Joel Geier <joel.geier@xxxxxxxx>
- To: Oregon Birders OnLine <obol@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 23 May 2014 20:28:05 -0700
-------- Forwarded Message --------
To: MidValley Birds <birding@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Cc: Mid-Valley Nature <mid-valley-nature@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: Baskett Butte prairie restoration Vesper Sparrow
Date: Fri, 23 May 2014 20:26:22 -0700
Hi again,
It almost seems like I had too much fun today. At 5:30 AM I was doing
transects as part of a monitoring project for the native prairie
restorations at Baskett Slough NWR, with WESTERN MEADOWLARKS singing and
a couple of PURPLE MARTINS calling overhead.
Farther back I had to be careful not to step on all the GOLDEN
PAINTBRUSH which is really coming in amazingly on one of the prairie
restoration fields that was featured as part of the recent 50th
anniversary hike at BSNWR. Meadowlarks were also singing there, but
nothing more unusual.
However, on the next field over I encountered an OREGON VESPER SPARROW.
So far as I know, this is the first Vesper Sparrow to turn up in these
habitat restorations, so that's a very good sign.
However, this guy's chances of attracting a mate seem slim. Not only was
he singing in a place where nesting Vesper Sparrows haven't been
recorded in recent decades, but also he doesn't seem to have figured out
the full song. He's skipping the four sweet introductory notes and going
straight into the more chattery sequence that comes afterward.
Despite that, it's a very good sign that at least one of these imperiled
birds has managed to find this recently-created habitat.
Something to give hope to the folks on this list who've devoted time &
effort to restoring native prairie/savanna habitat -- maybe the birds
can find it after all!
--
Joel Geier
Camp Adair area north of Corvallis
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