Hello birders,

Today Mike Force, Ryan Tomlinson and I took part in "The Battle of the
Towers". We arrived at the Vaseux Lake viewing tower at 5 AM and nestled in
for a long 8 hours. The birding was excellent. As the day wore on birding
gradually got better and better as migrants built and by the time we were
done our big sit warblers, flycatchers, vireos, and kinglets were
everywhere.

Species tallied from Vaseux Viewing Tower between 5 AM and 1 PM.

1. Common Loon 3
2. Pied-billed Grebe 5
3. Red-necked Grebe 1
4. Great Blue Heron 5
5. Canada Goose 20
6. Wood Duck 4
7. Green-winged Teal 3
8. Mallard 10
9. *Blue-winged Teal 3
10. Cinnamon Teal 1
11. Northern Shoveler 2
12. American Wigeon 12
13. Canvasback 5
14. Redhead 15
15. Ring-necked Duck 10
16. Lesser Scaup 12
17. Bufflehead 15
18. Turkey Vulture 5
19. Osprey 3
20. Bald Eagle 3
21. Northern Harrier 6
22. Sharp-shinned Hawk 2
23. Cooper's Hawk 1
24. Red-tailed Hawk 5
25. Golden Eagle 2 (nest seen on cliff. Ad. caught marmot!)
26. American Kestrel 1
27. Grouse SP - 99 % sure Chukar 1 perched on ridge
28. California Quail 5
29. Virginia Rail 5
30. Sora 5
31. American Coot 50
32. Killdeer 2
33. Least Sandpiper 5
34. Wilson's Snipe 1
35. *Bonaparte's Gull 2
36. Ring-billed Gull 8
37. California Gull 10
38. Herring Gull 4
39. *Glaucous-winged Gull 4
40. Rock Dove 6
41. Mourning Dove 6
42. Vaux's Swift 60!
43. White-throated Swift 40
44. Belted Kingfisher 4
45. Lewis's Woodpecker 1
46. Red-naped Sapsucker 1
47. Northern Flicker 4
48. Western Kingbird 1
49. Say's Phoebe 3
50. *Horned Lark 2
51. Tree Swallow 30
52. Violet-green Swallow 20
53. Northern Rough-winged Swallow 10
54. Bank Swallow 10
55. Cliff Swallow 12
56. Barn Swallow 10
57. Steller's Jay 3
58. Clark's Nutcracker 5
59. Black-billed Magpie 3
60. American Crow 6
61. Common Raven 4
62. Black-capped Chickadee 3
63. Canyon Wren 1
64. Marsh Wren 6
65. Ruby-crowned Kinglet 8
66. Western Bluebird 1
67. Townsend's Solitaire 1
68. American Robin 4
69. American Pipit 10
70. European Starling 5
71. Orange-crowned Warbler 5
72. Nashville Warbler 3
73. Yellow-rumped Warbler 10
74. *Lazuli Bunting 1 male
75. Savannah Sparrow 2
76. Song Sparrow 4
77. Lincoln's Sparrow 1
78. White-crowned Sparrow 5
79. Red-winged Blackbird 13
80. Western Meadowlark 3
81. Yellow-headed Blackbird 6
82. Brewer's Blackbird 2
83. Brown-headed Cowbird 3
84. House Finch 1
85. Red Crossbill 2
86. Pine Siskin 3
87. American Goldfinch 5

We thought our total of 87 species was impressive! Of particular note was an
early male Lazuli Bunting. Other interesting features of the day included a
large movement of Vaux's Swifts, seeing woodland birds like CLNU, STJA,
WEBL, TOSO, RECR, etc on the other side of the lake. Okanagan specialties
like Canyon Wren, White-throated Swift, Western Bluebird and Lewis's
Woodpecker were nice to see.

After we were finished the "battle" we birded along the river channel N. of
Okanagan Falls Campground. This area was absolutely alive with migrants.
Here's what we tallied in the lush riparian habitat along the river banks:

Hammond's Flycatcher 11!
Dusky Flycatcher 5!
Rufous Hummingbird 1 male
*Wilson's Warbler 5 males
Yellow-rumped Warbler 5
Nashville Warbler 18!
Orange-crowned Warbler 32!
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 64!
*Warbling Vireo 2
Spotted Towhee 2
Pileated Woodpecker 1
Downy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 1
White-crowned Sparrow 20
Song Sparrow 5
Lincoln's Sparrow 1
American Pipit 1
American Kestrel 1
Red-tailed Hawk 3
Osprey 1
House Wren 1
Am. Crow 1
Canada Goose 60
Mallard 15
Bufflehead 1
Steller's Jay 1
Clark's Nutcracker 1
Red-winged Blackbird 15
Brewer's Blackbird 2
Brown-headed Cowbird 1
House Sparrow 1
Barn Swallow 1
Violet-green Swallow 80
N. Rough-winged Swallow 5
California Quail 4
Am. Goldfinch 2

On the way home we spotted 11 Sandhill Cranes flying over Penticton, heard
an Evening Grosbeak in Westbank and tallied numerous Horned Grebes and a
Common Merganser on Okanagan Lake for a group total of 100 species. I made a
detour on the way home and added Greater Yellowlegs, Merlin and Great-tailed
Grackle to my day list..103. Not bad.

Chris Charlesworth
Avocet Tours
Kelowna, BC, Canada
www.avocettours.com


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