I have forwarded this to Tweeters because of the recent series of posts
reporting a decrease in the populations in western Washington. Since Eugene
is only about 100 miles south of the Washington border there may be
something to be learned from this report of Common Nighthawks having
increased. Jeff Gilligan (Portland and Nahcotta).



------ Forwarded Message
From: DAVID IRONS <llsdirons at msn.com>
Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2006 17:17:31 +0000
To: <obol at lists.oregonstate.edu>
Subject: [obol] Eugene area Nighthawks

There have been a couple recent reports of Common Nighthawks from the Eugene
area that suggest they are somewhat rare around here. Since the first week
of June I have seen/heard nighthawks at least five times over Eugene. I
don't consider these sightings all that unusual since I've had similar
numbers of encounters over the past five years. There are certain areas of
town where nighthawks can be regularly encountered.

I see them most frequently along Prairie Rd between Irving and Irvington
Rds. When I am in this area at dusk I often see them in the vicinity of the
sawmill on the east side of the road just south of Irvington. I think they
might be attracted by lights and water (equals insect hatches) being sprayed
on the log decks. Also there are several small flat topped warehouse/office
buildings that might provide suitable rooftop nesting habitat.

Also, I often encounter them flying over south Eugene and the south hills of
Eugene, particularly in the vicinity of Spencer Butte. I suspect they nest
on the summit of Spencer Butte (lots of bare open ground) and other
clearings. I've seen/heard 3-4 in this area already this summer and I've
had multiple sightings in this area over the past couple years. I've also
seen a couple recent OBOL postings of s. Eugene sightings.

Finally, on our July 1 Big Day Tim Janzen, Tim Rodenkirk, Jay Withgott and I
had one flying over the gas station on 6th just w. of Chambers at about
12:20AM. Again this area has lots of warehouses. Nighthawks often nest on
flat gravel rooftops.

Nighthawks are not particularly rare around Eugene. I think the biggest
limitation to detecting them over town is the ever increasing "urban surf".
Dan and Anne Heyerly live in one of the noisiest sections of Eugene because
they have freeways and major arterials on all sides. Nighthawks usually fly
pretty high and a high-pitched call at distance is not easily detected
amidst the sea of urban noise. South Eugene is by comparison much quieter
in terms of traffic noise, probably contributing to high frequency of
detections.

In general there has been a marked increase in the number nighthawks being
reported in the Willamette Valley the past few years. Hopefully, this trend
will continue.

Dave Irons
Eugene, OR


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