Hello folks,
Jon Hazen asked me to forward this to the list, since he does not subscribe
to OBOL.
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Jon Hazen <salemoregon2468@xxxxxxxxx>
Date: Tue, May 24, 2016 at 2:26 PM
Subject: [birding] The Case of the Finley Little Blue Heron
To: MIDVALLEYBIRDING <birding@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
The Case of the Finley Little Blue Heron
The Facts. You decide.
I saw a Little Blue Heron on the Bruce Road scrape/marsh, eastern-most end
on Sunday, May 15th, at 5 PM.
I was able to follow the bird continuously from a distance of 30-35 yards
for 15-20 seconds, partly through the windshield, then longer through my
rolled down (passenger) window.
I did not know the bird, yet I was able to describe it in flight to my
partner (as he fought unsuccessfully to find it with his 15x binoculars).
I was accurate in describing the size and overall "slate gray" color
-including-
the underwing and likely a heron.
Facing east at 5 PM, I got a great look, at short distance, in excellent
light, at a large bird, of unique size & coloration through 8.5x
binoculars. It simply could not have been better.
I surmised aloud that it must have been some (unrecognized) form of Green
Heron. But the next morning I was thinking, “Is there anything else it
might have been??”, never thinking 'rare bird'.
I went to Sibley 2nd Edition where I found on page 111 the bird exactly as
I had seen and described it, a Little Blue Heron. I checked the range and
knew then it was a rare sighting.
It would have been nice to have had my partner see it beyond its initial
flight up and out of the marsh, "What the heck is THAT??!!", he said as he
fought to find it in 15x binoculars. Ever -not- get on a good bird and
feel frustrated? He was. But it happens.
And it would have been nice to get a photo; I had my "super zoom" camera
cased at my knee. But I learned a while back, that getting a good look was
better than hurriedly trying for a photo and getting neither. I got the
good look, a really good look.
I watched it fly up from the marsh, picked it up through the windshield as
it flew in front of the car and got a very good look through my down window.
After crossing the road (heading south) it slowed, turned toward us, flew
back across the road, then turned right over the marsh (all the time in
front of us), coasted down and curled into a hidden nook in the
eastern-most end of the marsh.
I'm not talking about the ID of a flycatcher. I am talking about the
ability to identify a large, uniquely plumaged bird, in good light, at a
short distance, in flight all the way in 8.5x binoculars, while offering an
accurate description of an unknown bird.
After referencing Sibley, I am 100% certain of the ID.
The bird got up from the marsh, from an area that was in straight-line view
to us, however obscured by reeds. There were no cars around when it flew
and our engine was turned off.
To which I can reasonably conclude the bird saw us drive up and park on the
marsh side of the road, watched us, and then even though undiscovered, got
nervous and flew.
You’ve perhaps noticed too, that herons really don’t like to be watched (or
have the perception that they are being watched), especially at close
quarters.
The only reason we saw that bird, was that it flew.
I have held onto a hope that someone might also see it, but in reality, it
makes sense that the only way that bird would likely be seen again, if it
remained there, is if it were to fly. The reeds are dense & the marsh on
that end though constrained, is pocked with places to hide. And, the bird
is shy.
I marked it as a Life Bird for myself because I saw it clearly and have no
doubt. I have logged more than 200 field trips in four years, many of them
on the Refuge Complex (Baskett Slough, Finley & Ankeny). I know what is
commonly there or might be expected.
I also understand that none of this qualifies the bird as an "official
sighting" (there are rules). But please note for yourself, the place,
time, sighting description, and bird ID are correct.
I won't be surprised if this Little Blue Heron, or another one shows up in
the Willamette Valley in the next few years or sooner. With climate
warming and the extension of northern ranges, one never knows what might
show up.
Good birding!
Jon Hazen
///
--
Jon Hazen
NE Salem
"A true conservationist is a man who knows that the world is not given by
his fathers, but borrowed from his children." - John James Audubon
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Hendrik G. Herlyn
Corvallis, OR
*"Nature is not a place to visit. It is home." -- Gary Snyder*
