I promised I'd get some photos posted Friday from my Oregon Coast
adventure, but see it's now just past midnight. Sorry about that. Anyway,
here's some albums for your viewing pleasure.
Glaucous Gull:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/101538169@N05/albums/72157676064506383
Brambling:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/101538169@N05/albums/72157677907561611
Costa's Hummingbird:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/101538169@N05/albums/72157675973085584
Black Oystercatcher:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/101538169@N05/albums/72157675972702424
On Thu, Jan 26, 2017 at 11:46 PM, Nels Nelson <nelsnelson7@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
I had a very successful birding trip to the coast, starting at 5:30AM in
Hillsboro Jan. 25 and ending back at Hillsboro, 8PM, Jan. 26. I
encountered road work between Drain and Scottsburg, with flaggers stopping
traffic at 2 or 3 spots for up to 10 or 15 min. at a time. Longest wait was
just across the bridge at Scottsburg (west end) where a huge part of the
hillside had slid off into the highway. After a 10 or 15 min. wait while
the work crew cleared trees, mud and rocks from the highway, one lane was
open (sort of) and we were able to pass on by. I'm indebted to Tim
Rodenkirk and others for their fine coastal bird reports that enabled me to
plan this trip and find most of the target birds I was looking for.
Here's a brief sampling of what I saw over the two days.
*Jan. 25th*
- MP 21.5 on the Umpqua River Highway (Hwy 38), I saw a flock of 39 *Wild
Turkeys *in a field.
- Fossil Point, Coos Bay: After some 10 or 15 min. of scanning with my
scope (anywhere from 20 - 60X), I finally located the *King Eider*,
hanging out with a bunch of scoters. What first caught my attention was a
very large black duck, way bigger than the scoters, then I saw the white
flanks when he 'stood' up and flapped his wings. Sadly, he was WAY too far
out for photos.
- I found the *No. Mockingbird *at west end of Florida St. in North Bend
(on my way north), plus to *Yellow-rumped Warblers (Myrtle sub-species) *at
the same spot (I was not able to locate the reported Palm Warbler at the
other end of Florida Street).
- I was at the Sutton Lake *Brambling stake out spot (~3 miles north of
Florence) *from about 2:30PM until near dark (where I met up with Bill
Tice and his wife). The Brambling was a 'no show', so I drove back to
Florence and rented a motel room for the night.
*Jan. 26th*
- After a great breakfast at the *Little Red Hen Restaurant in Florence*,
I headed back to Sutton Lake, arriving about 8:50 AM. Within 10 or 15
minutes, I located the *Brambling* hanging out with a bunch of DE
Juncos. The home owner next door (Rick) was a great help with information
about the habits of the Brambling, which has been there for about a month.
- Heading north on Hwy 101, I stopped at a couple of spots, including Bob
Creek wayside, where I found seven *Black Oystercatchers* and an
assortment of gulls, including a lovely, large *Glaucous Gull*, which I
dutifully photographed. I didn't notice this bird when I first arrived,
but saw it fly in and land beside the creek, then make it's way into the
fresh water, where it walked around and bathed a bit. After taking my
photos, I looked away for just a moment or two and took some photos of
flying Black Oystercatchers. When I looked back at the spot where the
Glaucous Gull had been only a moment or two before, it was gone. Try as I
might, I could not relocate the bird, which must have flown on out, after
stopping for a bath and a brief rest. Bummer, for anyone wanting to chase
it.
- Stopping at Yachats State Park, I found an assortment of gulls
(including a possible *Thayer's Gull*) and a flock of *Black Turnstones*
and more *Black Oystercatchers*.
- At South Beach (Newport), I swung by the residence of Eric Horvath
(after calling him first), where he graciously invited me in to watch his
hummer feeder. Shortly, I was able to see and photograph the young male
*Costa's
Hummingbird *and the *Orange-crowned Warbler *that are currently coming
to his feeder.
- Next, I headed to the South Jetty Rd. on the Yaquina, where I spent
several hours and saw the usual assortment of waterfowl, including a pair
of *Greater Scaup*, a pair of* Harlequin Ducks*, a *Red-breasted
Merganser*, two *Brant* and two *Long-tailed Ducks*, which were diving
and feeding just west of the rock finger jetty just east of the 'gull'
spot. Getting photos of them was a bit of a challenge, as they didn't stay
up long before diving again.
- I should have been smart and headed for home at 4:30PM, but instead,
I drove to the HMSC and walked the trail and did my best to bird that area
until it got too dark to see much. I found a large flock of *Brant *there,
but they were a long ways out, as the tide was low.
- The drive home in the dark was no picnic, as the center line and the fog
lines between Lincoln City and Grand Ronde are worn so bad (or covered up
with mud), they are for the most part, almost non-visible, which posed
challenges to safe driving. Fortunately, I arrived safely home in
Hillsboro at 8PM. Three 'lifers' in two days makes one tired old
birder VERY happy.
Photos and eBird reports to follow tomorrow AFTER I've rested up a bit.
Nels Nelson
Hillsboro
P.S. One bit of birders 'eye candy' attached.
