Oregon is one of only 4 states where my
statelist is still below the old ABA reporting threshold. And even though I have 218 on my OR list,
that’s still a whopping 41 below the threshold.
Oregon’s very high threshold, the 5th highest of all 50 states, is
mainly because of all the varied regions and habitats in the state. As a result, although I have birded quite a
bit in OR, since almost all of that time has been in the northwestern part of
the state, I still have a long way to go to reach the threshold.
My single biggest statebirding opportunity in
OR would be to spend a few days birding the drier eastern portion of the
state. Because of the very different
habitats there compared to northwest OR, there are close to 70 possible
statebirds I could try for there.
Although that’s a large target list, I typically only find a few more
than half of my possible targets on a trip like that one – in this case my
estimate was 37. That means just one
trip to eastern OR may not be enough to reach, and then surpass, the old
threshold.
So what other significant statebirding
possibilities could there be for me in OR?
I started doing a bit of research and found out that there were a few OR
species that are only seen in the southwestern portion of the state. The year-round southwest specialties included
California Thrasher (I thought this one was endemic to CA), Oak Titmouse,
Red-shouldered Hawk, Mockingbird, and Lesser Goldfinch, with summer specialties
like Blue-gray Gnatcatcher and Allen’s Hummingbird. Then there were species I still needed that
were only seen in the western portion of the state like Black Phoebe and
White-tailed Kite year-round, and White-throated and Swamp Sparrows in the
colder months. Not to mention seabird
and shorebird targets only seen on the coast, many most likely in winter. I figured with this many local specialties I
could get at least 10 new OR birds for my list, so there was “critical mass” to
justify a trip to southwest OR.
So the next question was how to get
there. My work travels take me to the
San Francisco Bay Area every couple of months, and on several of those trips I’ve
added some vacation time to bird in the Reno, NV area 4 hours away. It would be a longer drive to OR (5-6 hours),
but still feasible to tack a mini OR vacation onto an upcoming work trip flying
in and out of SFO. Next I needed to
decide on whether to go in the winter or the summer. Going at either time of the year would mean
several targets would not be feasible, so each option had pros and cons. But given that I was anxious to get there, I
decided to head to OR on my next SFO trip in February. Though I was more than a bit concerned about
the possibility of rainy conditions in this El Nino winter.
Now it was time for the detailed
research. First I went to eBird and
compiled a long list of possibilities, and most likely locations for key
targets. Then I reached out to the OR
listserve and received some general guidance for the local specialties. I noticed that many of my targets in the
Medford/Ashland area, including several owls, were being seen by local birder
Frank Lospalluto, so I sent him an e-mail requesting some advice. He replied by offering to go with me to help
me search for my local targets, including pre-dawn owling. I’ve always found statebirding with a local
expert is invaluable, especially for owls, so I quickly accepted his offer. Since I’ll eventually get to eastern OR I
wanted to concentrate on those western or southwestern specialties. So I planned an itinerary spending the first
day with Frank in the greater Medford/Ashland area. Then I would head to the coast for the second
day before making my way back to CA. I figured
would have about 28 possible statebirds in those 2 days, though since many were
low probabilities, I hoped for maybe 12 new birds for my OR list. And as the trip neared it looked like my birding
days would be between pacific storms, so the forecast was going to cooperate as
well.
Day 1
I met Frank at 4 AM and we headed east of
Medford into the mountains in search of four owl species – Saw-whet, Pygmy,
Western Screech, and Barred – though I would be happy finding just 2. Our first several stops for Screech were
unsuccessful even though Frank had had success there in the past. Then at the next stop on Salt Creek Rd. in
Eagle Point we had a calling Saw-whet (statebird #1), apparently responding to
a Screech Owl call. OR is only my 14
state for this species even though it is regular throughout much of the country
(see my statebird map below).
We made several more stops on Salt Creek
Rd. and elsewhere in good habitat, but had no success with the other
targets. By the time we made our way to
nearby Lake Creek Rd. it was starting to get light, and despite more good
habitat, we couldn’t scare up an owl.
Then as it was almost time to get out the binocs to start searching for
daytime birds, we had a Western Screech Owl give a short response to our last
bit of owl tape for the day (#2). It
took us almost 3 hours but we had our 2 species of owls. I’m slowly filling in my statebird map for
this western species.
A bit further up Lake Creek Rd. we made our
first daytime birding stop, but could only find a few Juncos and Robins. Frank starting doing a Pygmy Owl imitation
and almost instantly we had not 1 but 2 birds respond (#3). One bird was still calling 10 minutes later
when we left this location, which afforded this very nice view of the valley
and mountains in the distance. By the
way, the Pygmy Owl was likely calling from the tallest conifer in the distance on
the left side of this picture.
With few landbirds in the area, we decided
to come down out of the mountains and head for other nearby locations. Near the bottom of the road we made a quick
stop with a nice vista over a riparian area.
Frank quickly picked out a distant Lewis’ Woodpecker which I was lucky
enough to get on before it flew off (#4) – not the best of views but there
would be more to come.
Next it was off to Agate Lake. Along the way Frank mentioned that Prairie
Falcon was a possibility there, and just then I noticed a mid-sized falcon
perched in a roadside tree. It was just
a Merlin, but still a nice bird to add to the day list. Then as we neared Agate Lake we noticed an
even larger falcon perched near the entrance – it was indeed a Prairie Falcon
(#5). That was one I hadn’t even
included on my list of possibilities. I
still need this species in several more states in its regular range.
Our next stop was Lower Table Rock, but along
the way we picked up the first of several flocks of Lesser Goldfinches (#6),
and a flock of Tundra Swans “grazing” in a field. Lower Table Rock park was a very interesting
spot, with groves of oak trees, and patches of low brush and grasses. Here our targets were Oak Titmouse and
California Towhee. But perhaps most
memorable were the Lewis’ Woodpeckers which were everywhere – we saw at least a
dozen of these very colorful birds. Only
slightly less common were the Acorn Woodpeckers, attractive in their own
right. But back to the target birds - we
heard and then saw several Oak Titmice (#7), and eventually were able to coax
several California Towhees into the open (#8) and heard a few more giving their
sharp chip notes. OR is only my second
state (after CA) for each of these species.
Frank next directed us to a spot on Rogue
River Road where he has had Red-shouldered Hawks in the past. Luckily the caretaker for the property was
just coming out just as we arrived, and he opened the gate to let us onto the
grounds. After a short walk we made our
way to a lush riparian area, where right on cue we soon heard at least 1
calling Red-shouldered Hawk (#9). My
statebird map now pretty well matches the regular range of this species (with the exception of the gap in IA).
We also had a singing Brown Creeper that
sounded very different from our eastern birds.
Maybe one to bank pending a split some day?
It was now midday and we started a search
of numerous possible valley locations for White-tailed Kite and
Mockingbird. One stop was at Ousterhout
Farm where a Mockingbird had been reported each of the last several days. Frank couldn’t reach the homeowners to gain
access to the farm, so we were limited to just viewing the farm from the
perimeter. Unfortunately we came up
empty there and at all our other stops for both the Kite and the Mocker. Though we did find Black Phoebes at two
locations (#10).
Then we were off to North Mountain Park in
Ashland where Frank had re-found a wintering Swamp Sparrow at the park feeders
two days before. As we neared the park
Frank got word that a Pygmy Owl was being seen perched most cooperatively low
in a tree in the park. As we arrived we
saw a few birders in the distance with cameras trained into a low conifer. With a short walk we could see the Pygmy Owl
chowing down on a large rodent – by far my best ever view of a Pygmy Owl.
Then we headed to the feeders to try to
find the Swamp Sparrow. It was now
mid/late afternoon and we wondered how much time we should spend at the feeders
versus heading off to a couple other locations we still needed to get to that
day. After just a couple minutes with no
birds at all, soon a small group of mostly Golden-crowned Sparrows
arrived. Just as Frank commented that this
group was similar to the group accompanying the Swamp Sparrow a couple days
earlier the target bird appeared at the feeder (#11). OR was one of my last likely states for this
species (except for WA perhaps).
With that one pretty quickly under our
belts, we headed to Emigrant Lake southeast of Ashland where Frank had seen a
Kite most every day that week. Along the
way we heard back from the homeowner at Ousterhoudt Farm who invited us to try
for the Mockingbird. So we planned to
quickly check off the nearly sure-fire Kite so we could head right to the
farm. However, the Kite was a no-show
despite searches in many different locations around the lake. Just goes to show you that no bird is ever
guaranteed.
As we headed to Ousterhoudt Farm we tried
several other locations for Kites with no luck.
Then we got a call that the Mockingbird was once again at the farm. Minutes later we met the farm owner and he
took us right to the bird (#12). OR was
my 44th state for this species (I really need to work on my IA list!).
He also gave us a quick tour of his very
birdy property, which included a Barn Owl perched in a nest box – the 5th owl
species of the day.
We ended our most successful day with 76
species and 12 new birds for my OR statelist.
Can’t thank Frank enough for all his help!
Day 2
Since we couldn’t find a White-tailed Kite
in the Medford/Ashland area, I altered my planned route for Day 2 to head a bit
farther north toward Coos Bay where Kites were regular. Plus I planned to take the back roads en route
to Coos Bay where several Kites had been reported recently. With my new itinerary I came up with a list
of 10 additional statebirds that were at least remotely possible that day, but
I figured I’d be happy adding just 2.
Despite a couple hours of searching in
really nice Kite habitat, once again I came up empty on the Kite. One interesting stop along the way was at a
dairy farm near Norway where a large flock of Doves included numerous hybrid
Mourning x Collared Doves. All had a
black ring on the hind-neck. However some
birds had pointed tails like Mourning’s while others had square tails like
ECDs. The mantle of all birds varied
from brown like Mourning’s to a bit darker gray than ECDs. There were also other Doves there that
appeared to be pure ECDs – or at least they had such a minor amount of Mourning
DNA that they looked like pure ECDs.
My last stop trying for the Kites was at
the Ni-Les’tun overlook at Brandon Marsh northeast of Coos Bay. Although there were no Kites, the parking lot
was full of birds, including a surprising Hermit Thrush hopping atop a curb
(#13). Although I would spend quite a
bit of time in good Thrush habitat during my 2 days in OR, surprisingly the
only one I would see was in this parking lot!
I just need this species in 5 more mainland states to fill in my
statebird map.
It was now time to turn around and head
back to Route 101 to begin my trek down the coast. The road was paralleling the Coquille River
and I noticed one lone Aechmophorus grebe diving in the river. With no cars behind me I decided to make a
quick stop and check it out. With a
quick binocular view I noticed paler sides and a white face. Finally it rested on the surface long enough
to confirm that it was a Clark’s Grebe (#14).
My next stop was at Floras Lake where reports
earlier in the winter had included 3 of my targets – 1 report each of American
Bittern and Snowy Plover, and a few reports of a lone Lapland Longspur but not for
several weeks. As I arrived at the lake
and started to put on my boots I could have sworn I heard a distant
Bittern. I walked to the lake edge, and
once again thought I heard a Bittern – but couldn’t be sure. Although I was tempted to check it off I
decided to play it safe and not count it.
Next I headed to the short grasses between the lake and the beach where
the Longspur had been seen, but with no luck.
Then I headed to the beach to look for the Plover but saw no shorebirds
at all. This wasn’t going well. On my way back from the beach I noticed two
small sparrow-like birds fly in from the south and land in the grasses. I got brief looks at 1 of the birds before it
landed and it looked like a Longspur.
But the view was so brief that I needed to be sure. I headed to where one bird landed and quickly
found a most cooperative male Lapland Longspur in almost full breeding plumage
(#15). I then walked over to the area where
the other bird landed and found a second Longspur – either a female or a basic
plumaged male. Who knows if these birds
had been there all winter or were just arriving from points south. My statebird map for this species is still
pretty spotty, mostly due to limited winter birding in much of its normal
range.
My last set of stops were in Brookings just
a few miles from the CA line. My first
target was Allen’s Hummingbird – I was told Brookings was the best spot in the
state to try for them. Specifically I was
to check flowers in gardens in Azalea State Park. Although it was a bit early for them, I was
still hopeful. I found two nice gardens
with flowers suitable for hummingbirds, but I could only find an Anna’s Hummer
at each spot. A nice consolation was a
flock of Red Crossbills feeding in a tall conifer.
The next stop was at Chetco Point
recommended by local birders as a good spot to do a seawatch. Although I had a fair number of possible
seabird targets, the only one that was a realistic possibility was Black-legged
Kittiwake. It was starting to rain lightly
when I got to the Point, but visibility was good as I set up my scope. I had just begun to scan the distant ocean
when a closer gull passed through my scope field – it was a Kittiwake (#16). I stayed at the point for about an hour, and
saw several other Kittiwakes.
Interestingly all were flying higher and closer to shore than the larger
gulls. But as expected, I saw none of my
other targets. That completes my statebird map for Black-legged Kittiwake on the Pacific coast – though I still need it in several regular states on the Atlantic.
My last OR stop was to try for Barred Owl
in mixed woodlands along Peavine Ridge Road just barely outside of CA. It was some great habitat, and it was late
afternoon on a gray, drizzly day, so I hoped I could coax a response from a
Barred Owl. At one of my first stops I
heard a distant series of calls that sounded a lot like Mountain Quail – one I
had studied up on prior to the trip. But
they were distant, and I couldn’t quite hear the two-syllable nature of the
call. So I kept trying for Barred Owls
with no luck. I headed back down the
ridge for one more try for the owls and heard another series of Quail-like
calls – these were much closer and I could hear the two-syllable notes of the
Mountain Quail (#17). Only my 3rd state for
this species after CA and NV. A very
nice consolation for missing the owl!
I ended my 2-day OR trip with 110 species,
and an amazing 17 new birds for my statelist – 5 greater than my expected
statebird total. And although I missed 3
western targets (White-tailed Kite, Allen’s Hummer, and White-throated
Sparrow), I got several others that were nice bonuses. That gives me 235 in OR – still 24 short of
reportable. But with an eventual trip to
the eastern half of the state, I should be able to exceed the OR threshold by a
nice margin.
But as it turned out, my birding time was
not over yet…
My hotel that evening was in Arcata, CA,
about a 2-hour drive down Route 101. It
was late afternoon as I was heading south through Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park
when I noticed two people up ahead on the shoulder with long camera lenses
pointing across the road to the north-bound shoulder. I figured they had spotted a bear or other
large mammal so didn’t think too much of it.
Although I went by them at 65 mph, I had enough time to look over to
where they were looking and noticed a large owl sitting in a tree on the
shoulder. Luckily I was able to quickly
pull over and walked back to the photographers.
They had spotted a Great Gray Owl, or I should say THE Great Gray Owl,
that had been seen in the area for the last couple months. I had heard a little about this bird, but
didn’t even know where it was being seen, let alone didn’t know that I would be
driving right through the area. Although
many birders had missed this bird during its stay, remarkably I was able to
happen on it – though I surely would have missed the bird if the other birders
hadn’t been out with their cameras to photograph it. I got this nice phone-scoped photo of the
bird - #381 for me in CA.
Truly an excellent ending to a great
birding trip!
