Tweeters & Inlanders,

Today I lead an LCBAS field trip to Lost Island and Big Flat HMUs, two of
the fourteen habitat management units, totaling just under 8,000 acres,
that the U. S. Corps of Engineers has created on both sides of the Snake
River from Pasco to Lewiston as partial mitigation for the habitat deemed
lost from construction of the dams on this section of the river. Now
that the permanent plantings in these areas have began to mature, thus
providing good cover and food source, they simply throb with bird life
(lots of mammal life too), even in the dead of winter. Incidently, all
this new habitat, many times more than existed along the shores of the
Snake River in this area prior to the construction of the four lower
dams, will die if the those dams are breached. No dams equals no
irrigation water and without the irrigation water this habitat, like much
of the rest of the rest of the Columbia Basin, would dry up and blow
away. Well, while we're waiting to see if the Salmon worshipers pull
that one off, I think I'll just go birding.

Today's species list total: 44

Double-crested Cormorant
Canada Goose
Mallard
Northern Pintail
American Wigeon
Common Merganser
American Coot
California Gull
Ring-billed Gull
Great Blue Heron
Ring-necked Pheasant
Northern Harrier
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Rough-legged Hawk
Bald Eagle (1)
American Kestrel
Merlin (1)
Barn Owl (3)
Great Horned Owl (1)
NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWL (1)
Belted Kingfisher (male) (1)
Mourning Dove
Rock Dove
Northern Flicker
American Crow
Common Raven
Black-billed Magpie
Bewick's Wren
American Robin (100's)
Varied Thrush
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
BOHEMIAN WAXWING (1)
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Red-winged Blackbird (100's)
Yellow-headed Blackbird (3)
Western Meadowlark
White-crowned Sparrow (100's)
HARRIS'S SPARROW (1)
Song Sparrow (50+)
Spotted Towhee
Dark-eyed Junco (100's)
American Goldfinch

It was a great day to be in the field! I hope you all were as fortunate.


Dennis K Rockwell
Kennewick, Washington
denniskrockwell at juno.com

"Cynicism is what passes for insight among the mediocre." Joe Klein

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