Tweets--

I'm forwarding Jim's post about this trip.

Tom


While waiting for the TESC Mt Helens field trip to begin
I Identified the following bird species on the Evergreen campus:


oregon junco
evening grosbeak
bandtail pigeons- 2
spotted towhee
european starling
violet green swallow
american robin
song sparrow

Also, two mammals were seen: Eastern gray and douglas squirrels.

While in route to our destination, Tom and I saw following species along
the interstate 5:

American crow
rock dove
*song sparrow
redtail hawk
stellar jay

Along hiway 504 we saw:

*violet green swallow
osprey
redwing blackbird
turkey vulture
brewers blackbird

At Johnston Ridge Observatory I saw or heard:

barn swallows- 2
white crown sparrows

One student reported she thought she had head the calls of a western meadowlark.

In addition, Tom & I saw a single golden mantled squirrel

At Coldwater Ridge Visitor Center we saw:

American goldfinch- one male
*barn swallows
cliff swallow

Off hiway 504 we saw a herd of sixty-five elk. Two bulls with velvet
antlers were part of herd. A cow was leading herd at a quick pace accross
hillside to unknown destination.

At the Weyhauser Education Center we made a quick stop to count elk in the
State Fish & Wildlife Wildlife Area preserve. Fourty elk were seen. Barn
swallows were very common.

On the return trip back to TESC we added a few sightings:
savannah sparrow
*redtail hawk flying near I5 nest site a mile south of the 113th Street
Bridge.

And finally, one black-tail fawn was seen close to the edge of I5.

In summary, I had seen twenty bird and five mammal species during the
course of the trip. Please note, the trip took place before most spring
migrant bird species had returned to the upper slopes of Mt St Helens and
its adjoining ridges. Within a few weeks Johnston Ridge will take on a
greenish tint and Coldwater lake will have ducks, snipe, spotted
sandpipers and common nighthawks to entertain wildlife enthusiasts.

Jim Pruske