Hi Tweeters,

Last week I birded some of the Coulee Corridor Scenic
Byway Birding Trail between the Wenas campout, a run
to Nile burn and the WOS convention in Moscow, ID. I
made it to roughly half the sites. I tried something
different than when I did part of the Cascade Loop
Trail last year which was to take the trail sites and
plug them in as best I could figure into my DeLorme.
This was very helpful as the locations aren't
necessarily strung together in a logical manner
although most of them are. Not complete bird lists,
just an idea of what you might find and see.

June 1, late afternoon.

#18 Audubon Dodson Nature Trail. A bit run down
probably due to the harsh weather conditions. Nice
trail. The second bird blind had a big scoop of sand
windblown out from under it rendering it basically
unusable. Some pretty feathers under it,
Kildeer feathers likely. 3 Great Egrets flew around
and a Forster's Tern was likely nesting in the area as
it practically divebombed me.

#17 Winchester Wasteway. Cinnamon and Bluewing Teal
and a big beaver that I startled.

#16 Beda Lake. Sign at entry: Beda Lake, No Bait, 1
Fish Limit. Wonder how that works, flavored hooks?
Brief stop. Nice Loggerhead Shrike on fence.
Redheads and Wood duck.

June 6 All Day

#29 Rocky Ford Creek. 2 parts-More birding first. On
lake, Western Grebe, Common Yellowthroat, Double
Crested Cormorant. I began to notice a pattern here
for male Brown Headed Cowbirds. They like to perch on
the outhouses at the WDFW parking lots. On Neppel Rd
to the actual dam, Long Billed Curlews. At the dam
trail got to scope a pair of Lark Sparrows. 100's of
carp swarmed at the dam.

#30 Oasis Park. Very nice park, worth a camping visit
sometime. Western Wood Peewees and nice looks at
soaring Red Tails.

#31 Martin Road Russian-Olives. Didn't stay long.
Hard to figure out where to go to enter the trees, no
obvious paths and the trees were thick with bees.

#32 Norton Road Shrub-Steppe. Great drive.
Swainson's hawk (none at nests noted on map that I
could see but females snug down so low it is hard to
be sure), Sage Thrasher, Brewers Sparrow with an
unusual song, Say's Pheobe (lots), Wilson's Warbler,
Lazuli Bunting, Yellow Breasted Chat.

#40 West Beach Park at Soap Lake. Most interesting
birds of whole trip. One immature female Surf Scoter
and two male Harlequin Ducks. Also Eared Grebe,
Avocets, White Throated Swifts, Barrow's Goldeneye,
Wilson's Phalarope, Ruddy Duck, and Black Tern to name
a few...

#39 Lake Lenore. Pie-billed Grebe, tons of Ring
Billed Gull, probably California too, but not sure
about that.

#38 Blue Lake Rest Area. Nothing, very quiet.

#37 Sun Lakes. Osprey on same pole entering park and
on return. Cedar Waxwings, Northern Flicker, Cliff
Swallow, etc. Deep Lake, best ever for me looks at a
Black Crown Night Heron after I flushed it. Unknown
flycatcher that says peeeer. Got a ways to go to get
good at these guys. When I went back through the lot
to check out Vic Myer lake, a marmot was enjoying a
bath under the sprinklers.

#36 Dry Falls Overlook. Violet Green Swallow, Turkey
Vulture, one White Throated Swift.

#53 Coulee City Communtiy Park. Quick stop, a bit
unnerved after a stunt plane thought it would be fun
to buzz the bridge over the dam. I thought he was
going to emergency land that is how low he was. I
told the gas station folks about it. Nice looks here
of a Semipalmated Plover with a couple of Kildeer.

#21 North Potholes Reserve. Getting late in the day.
The most birdy stop of whole trail. No wonder it is
an IBA. Many, many flyovers of herons, egrets, ducks
and cormorants. 2 American Bittern in the flyovers.
Clarks and Western Grebe. Nighthawk on the way out.
Many species, not enough daylight to enjoy.

#19 Crab Creek Overlook. Quick stop on way out,
Franklin's Tern flew by my car.

June 3 Half Day

#14 Birders Corner. Many Black Neck Stilts
displaying and generally carrying on. Virginia Rail,
Snipe winnowing, Canvassback and Redhead, nesting
Coot, American Bittern, Cinnamon Teal, Bluewing Teal.
I cannot seem to locate the nesting Burrowing Owl in
this area. I tried last year here as well. Any
specifics would be appreciated.

#15 Desert Wildlife Area-Road I SW. Dark Morph Red
Tail Hawk, Redhead (lots), American Wigeon, Pheasant,
and possibly an owl in a nest box, by the time I set
up the scope for a better look it scrunched down.

#12 Potholes State Park. Fairly quick stop, mostly
wanted to see the small Bank Swallow colony near the
campground.

#11 O Sullivan Dam. Black and Forster's Tern.

#10 Lind Coulee Overview. Cooper's Hawk, Red Tail
Hawk.

#8 Soda and Migraine Lake. Rock Wren, Great Egret,
Lazuli Bunting, American Avocet, Eastern Kingbird.

#6 Frog Lake, etc. Quick stop, quiet.

#5 McManomon Lake. Pie billed Grebe, Kestrel. Near
here is an informational sign about the Para family
and how they helped out the town of Othello during the
depression.

#3 Drumheller Overlook, not very birdy, Western
Meadowlark. Interesting scenery and informational
signage even if they spelled them Morning Doves.

Then it was off to head east to Moscow.

Happy Trails!

Kathy
Roosting somewhere in South King County




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