Continued from part 2...

My dad and I again headed up Bisquit Ridge to try again for the Green-tailed
Towhees this morning (7/31/05). Three WILD TURKEYS were on the road near
the bottom. After once again trekking down the steep slope to the major
sections of chaparral, we again heard two or three GREEN-TAILED TOWHEES
calling. After about an hour, we finally spotted one as it climbed higher
in a bush, calling as it came up. Although mostly silhouetted against a
bright background, some markings were still discernable, although not much
color. Enough of a view was attained, although not completely satisfactory.
We will have to come back sometime! It seems that they would be much
easier to see in early summer...is this true with them? A couple
CHESTNUT-BACKED CHICKADEES also came through briefly, and I got fantastic
views of a Slate-colored FOX SPARROW in the bushes after hearing it call.

We again stopped by at the hummingbird feeders of Tom Lamb for close to 2
hours, where we once again hoped to spot the Broad-tailed Hummingbird.
About 15 VAUX'S SWIFTS flew around overhead while we waited. Views of the
three hummingbird species were had, and a few times we thought we might have
the Broad-tailed. But photos I took of most of them show that they all were
variations of Rufous Hummingbird. There is one bird that came in quickly
that was quite possibly the Broad-tailed, but we've decided not to put it on
our list because we really aren't sure. The juvenile Rufous Hummingbirds
really complicate things!

Headed back towards Spokane, we made a very quick check at Lyons Ferry State
Park (Franklin County), where there was a NASHVILLE WARBLER. Although we
haven't heard it reported recently, we also looked around for the
collared-dove at Washtucna, but came up only with a bunch of Mourning Doves.
Has anyone seen it since July 8?

All in all it was a great trip with a bunch of great birds. We ended with
98 species of birds without concentrating very hard on land birds, including
16 species of shorebirds.

I forgot to mention the dragonflies in the last post. This is a summary of
what I saw this weekend:
Black Saddlebags - multiple locations
Blue-eyed Darner - multiple locations
Western Pondhawk - Horn Rapids County Park
Eight-spotted Skimmer - Horn Rapids
Western Meadowhawk - Columbia NWR & Horn Rapids
River Jewelwing - Columbia NWR, a lifer
Alkali Bluet - Soda Lake Dam, lifer; is this a known location for them?
Tule Bluet - Ringold, Franklin County

I've posted a few photos at www.flickr.com/photos/nightjar of a nighthawk,
Swainson's Hawk, Rufous Hummingbird, Western Meadowhawk, and Baird's
Sandpiper.

Good birding!
Michael and Roger Woodruff
Spokane, WA

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