Hi, Folks,

I just got my new computer to read my Tweeters account mail this evening
and have only read reports since Sunday, 6/6. However, since I've heard
nothing from the Birdbox reports I left on Monday and Tuesday, it seems
most ethical to risk being perceived as a fool and report here what Alan
and I saw Monday at Lyons Ferry Fish Hatchery. I wasn't listing for the
day since we were on limited time to get home, but I did take notes on
interesting sightings.

As we walked back to the car from the natural pond holding a female
Shoveler and 5 chicks, Blue-winged Teal pair, and two
shy-but-still-handsome male Wood Ducks, a pair of quail crossed the road
about 50' in front of us. The birds weren't in a particular hurry and
doddled along giving us great looks with high overcast and sun breaks
overhead behind us. The male had a dark patch on the low belly, so I
stopped Alan and made note of any field marks. Both sexes had a clear
yellow patch on the upper belly and rufous brown flanks with creamy
white streaks. The black on the face seemed longer than California, and
the black head plume hung forward in front of a rufous crown on the
male. The call note was different from California and inflected
downward; the voice sounded different. Both birds had a fine white
streak on the back where the edges of the wings fold into the body. We
watched for a few minutes until they disappeared into the grass. We
were still marveling over this when the birds returned closer than
before, maybe 30'. They took even longer to cross the path this time
and stayed a while under a small tree by the path as if discussing where
to go or what to do. The male flew up behind the tree, so we examined
the female further (as she examined us). The leg color was
unremarkable, grayish, pinkish, yellowish, pale and just plain
unremarkable. I just was not picking up any more notable field marks
after maybe 10-15 minutes observing these two birds, and I was eager to
get to the field guide in the car. We walked past the tree and the
female flew to the male on top of a fence at the far end of the holding
pond by the tree. He joined her as they both flew to the other side of
the holding pond and disappeared from sight. At the car (maybe 120-150'
away) it was 3 p.m. and Sibley had an exact picture of our quail as
Gambel's Quail. What made our birds look so different from CA Quail was
the lack of 'scaling'--that yellow patch was clear and unmarked, in fact
all the lower body colors were clear and distinct. I heard the call
note several times again near the car and some singing that didn't quite
sound like CA Quail to me. I wrote it up.

There were several residences on the grounds and I had the unique
experience of having a female red finch actually move closer to me when
I imitated her call, "Twee?". She was so conversant that I felt a
little bewildered and rude when I closed the door and drove off. Could
people have brought Gambel's Quail there?

I hope I haven't bored you or made you feel embarrassed for me if you've
gotten this far. Perhaps it's common knowledge, but I have found or
heard nothing on it.

Feeling confused,
Patricia Lott
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