*To all birders:*
This is a summary of the Salem Audubon Society Field Trip for Minto-Brown
City Park on Sunday, March 6, 2016. With rain and wind in the forecast, we
were fortunate to get a bit wet, but only with drizzle, then cloud breaks
and even a bit of sun. Temperature remained in the 50's.
*Comments:*
Yesterday Fred, Kay and, and myself were joined by birders from Eugene,
McMinnville, including Paul Sullivan, one birder Robin from Aumsville who
picked up life birds and Salem members. One of the wishes described was to
re-find the Barred Owl that has been seen by many birders in the last 2
weeks.
Fred offered we follow the report by Theresa Byrne, who provides turtle
census in the park, with her posted observations of many ducks in the north
conservation area. Our plan was to then seek the owl on return. Kindly,
Jean Massie advocated she would separate and look for the Barred Owl and
leave us a note. After birding parking lot # 3, 10 of us ventured toward
the osprey field and route, passed the plantings of restoration of Western
Ponderosa and Oregon grape in bloom, then we walked past the apple trees to
the 'triangle pork chop' area to the upper field; then to the "enchanted
forest" hoping for Mountain Chickadee found in a flock in December by Fred
and Kay, but mostly to enjoy Pacific Wren singing and the woodpecker
sighting as noted.
Upon arriving at the north we were not informed that the entrance gate had
formidable fencing that was connected to orange and white boards and there
was no getting around. Since the gate was an obstacle we decided to walk
the river trail and then to the bridge after returning to the parking lot.
We failed to re-find the owl in the woodsy area towards the bridge. Travel
was 3.90 miles.
*Highlights:*
Scope views of the* Red-tailed Hawk *nest from the #3 parking lot
showed a sitting bird*.*
A *Turkey Vulture* flew in at the Osprey field, giving some birders a
FOS sighting.
Sparrow sightings included *Golden-crowned*, *White-crowned*, *Dark-eyed
Junco*, *Spotted Towhee*, and *Song.*
Among the* 7 Downy Woodpeckers* sighted at different locations, 5 were
female. Thanks to Paul we admired their spots not streaks as a
differentiation with Hairy Woodpecker, and though all 5 females had a
buffyness in the upper chest, one had pristine white contrast in her back
and side plumage more typical of eastern birds.
One of the *American Kestre*l was seen again at the snag at the oxbow.
We enjoyed the song of *Ruby-crowned Kinglet*, *Golden-crowned Kinglet*,
*Brown Creeper*, *American Robin *spring caroling*, *and Paul Sullivan and
his practiced song,and picked out our single *Hairy Woodpecker, *infrequently
seen this last winter, before sighting it.
Finally, at the heron rookery, one adult Bald Eagle was seen near
or/on one of the nests. This was new.
*The Minto-Brown Island Park Checklist follows here: *
We had 39 birds and 2 other taxa:
30 Cackling Goose (minima)
3 Canada Goose (moffitti/maxima)
9 Mallard
33 Lesser Scaup
1 Common Merganser
3 Pied-billed Grebe
3 Double-crested Cormorant
5 Great Blue Heron
2 Turkey Vulture
4 Bald Eagle -- 3 adults 1 on nest in heron rookery
6 Red-tailed Hawk
3 Anna's Hummingbird--one doing aerial display
2 Belted Kingfisher
7 Downy Woodpecker -- 5 females
1 Hairy Woodpecker
2 Northern Flicker
4 Northern Flicker (Red-shafted)
2 American Kestrel
5 Steller's Jay
3 Western Scrub-Jay
1 American Crow
12 Black-capped Chickadee
3 Chestnut-backed Chickadee
4 Bushtit
2 White-breasted Nuthatch
14 Brown Creeper
4 Pacific Wren
13 Bewick's Wren
4 Golden-crowned Kinglet
4 Ruby-crowned Kinglet
35 American Robin
4 European Starling
2 Yellow-rumped Warbler
10 Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon)
17 White-crowned Sparrow
19 Golden-crowned Sparrow
10 Song Sparrow
6 Spotted Towhee
1 Red-winged Blackbird
2 House Finch
1 passerine sp.
*Future events:*
The SAS Field Trip for Ankeny WLR for March is on Tuesday, March 22 at 8:00
AM
There is a SAS Short Field Trip at Cascades Gateway Park on Wednesday,
March 30 at 9:00 AM.
The next SAS Minto Brown Field Trip will be on Monday, April 4.
Join us if you can.
Also there is the Raptor class on Saturday, March 26th at 10:00 AM at the
ODFW Classroom.
Thanks to all who participated on this day.
Barbara Dolan and Fred Stevens
