On Tuesday (4/11/06) Gary Kuiper and I took advantage
of the break in the weather and birded the Colville
River Valley south of Chewelah. Our goal was to see
some of the better species that Terry Little had found
last week, and to hope for some shorebirds. Despite a
few light sprinkles, the weather was nice, cool, and
cooperative.

As a new year bird for me, I saw a RED-NAPED SAPSUCKER
fly into Ponderosa Pine tree (just south of
Springdale). On the west side of the community of
Valley (on Waitts Lake Road), the flooded fields
hosted AMERICAN WIGEON, LESSER SCAUP, BUFFLEHEAD,
GADWALL, CACKLING GOOSE-10, CANADA GOOSE, GREEN-WINGED
TEAL, BREWER'S & RED-WINGED BLACKBIRDS, GREAT BLUE
HERON, singing SAVANNAH SPARROWs, KILLDEER, GREATER
YELLOWLEGS -4, and a definitive LESSER YELLOWLEGS.

Waitts Lake held COMMON LOON - 2, RED-NECKED GREBE -
2, AMERICAN COOT, and COMMON MERGANSER - 14. Jumpoff
Joe Lake contributed HOODED MERGANSER to our day list,
and more COMMON MERGANSERs, noisy RED-NECKED GREBEs,
PIED-BILLED GREBEs, COMMON GOLDENEYE, and RING-NECKED
DUCK.

As we worked the expansive flooded fields along the
Colville River (christened Lake Chewelah by the
friendly locals), we came up with NORTHERN SHOVELER,
CINNAMON TEAL, EURASIAN WIGEON - 1 nice male, AMERICAN
WIGEON, NORTHERN PINTAIL, RING-NECKED DUCKs, C.
GOLDENEYE, MALLARD, L. SCAUP, HORNED GREBE-2 (in full
alternate plumage), BALD EAGLE -4, NORTHERN HARRIER,
RED-TAILED HAWK, HOODED MERGANSER, and winnowing
WILSON'S SNIPE. The biggest concentration of these
birds was on the northwestern corner of Lake Chewelah
(accessed from Cottonwood Creek Road, east of the
highway and south of the town of Chewelah).

Along the loop road of vernal Lake Chewelah, we noted
SAY'S PHOEBE, TOWNSEND'S SOLITARIE-2, RED CROSSBILL,
MT. CHICKADEE, and AMERICAN GOLDFINCH.

On the west side of the highway, along partially
submerged Newton Road, we saw over eighty swans. A
pair of TRUMPETER SWANs were mixed in with this flock
of TUNDRA SWANs.

When we drove up the Beitey Creek drainage, we saw
CASSIN'S FINCH-2 and a SPOTTED TOWHEE. The final
notable bird of the day, was a pair of GRAY PARTRIDGE
east of Reardan (Lincoln Co.).

Gina Sheridan
Spokane, WA

__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around
http://mail.yahoo.com