BIG MEADOW LAKE TO NORTHPORT

18 JUNE 2006



Ellen and I led the WOS conference fieldtrip titled "Northport to Big Meadow
Lake." We blasted off from Republic at 5 am and headed straight east up and
over Sherman Pass.



Our first stop was in Kettle Falls where we observed Merlin. A pair has a
nest hidden in a large spruce here, a rare breeding species for Washington.
We had great looks at both birds as one of the pair perched on its
"plucking" pole, the other nearby in a tree. These appeared to be the
"continental" columbarius race to me.



Eastwards, we made a couple stops alongside a hillside covered in Interior
Douglas-firs, next to riparian growth and hay meadows. Because of the mosaic
of habitats, we added lots of species to our trip list here, including
several Pacific-slope Flycatcher, Nashville Warbler, Bullock's Oriole,
Black-headed Grosbeak, and Lazuli Bunting.



Nearby, from a vantage above the Colville Sewage Lagoons, we scoped the
ponds below and added a variety of wetland species, including Wood Duck,
Blue-winged Teal, Common Goldeneye, Wilson's Snipe, and Yellow-headed
Blackbird.



>From Colville, we headed to Big Meadow Lake. This drive quickly leaves dry
forest of Ponderosa Pine and Douglas-firs and enters wetter forest types. A
Wild Turkey flapped strongly across the road here, and dove into tall grass
to elude a Red-tailed Hawk.



At a stop for Cassin's Vireo about 5 miles west of the lake, we caught a
glimpse of a Northern Goshawk dashing just above treetops, in the distance.
Over the next 20 minutes, we heard a hawk screaming from their presumed
territory in mature forest to the south of the road. As a finale, we saw one
of the pair soaring right over us, a handsome bird, indeed. Olive-sided
Flycatcher yelled at us "quick three beers," a nice addition to our list
here. Winter Wren and Townsend's Warblers singing from the forest were
examples of species of this moist forest.



Big Meadow Lake was great for Northern Waterthrush and of Virginia Rail and
its downy chick. On the lake we heard yodeling from a Common Loon and saw a
Common Goldeneye mom and brood, Bufflehead, Ring-necked Ducks, and Bald
Eagle. The highlight of a walk along the Meadow Trail west from the
campground was a Moose in the sedge marshes, but the hoped-for American
Redstart failed to show. It was a beautiful walk, with lots of other forest
birds about, many typical of wet forest. We heard or saw Red-naped
Sapsucker, both kinglets, Hammond's Flycatchers, Warbling Vireos, Swainson's
Thrush, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Townsend's and Yellow-rumped Warblers.



Deep Lake and other lakes nearby yielded Red-necked Grebe, Barrow's
Goldeneye, and Ruddy Duck. Checking nearby marshes and meadows helped swell
our list with Sora, Common Nighthawk, and Bobolink. On a distant ridge, we
debated the identification of a perched raptor. With our old KOWA, we could
only determine this dark shape was probably an accipiter. Others had
new-model Leica and Swarowski scopes. With these trained on the hawk,
tailbands came into sharp focus and color became true, as did the snake
dangling from its talons! This was indeed a Cooper's Hawk. That hawk is
gonna cost us heaps as we feel the need to upgrade.



A stop overlooking alders nearby gave us excellent views of an adult male
American Redstart. Only yards from the Canadian border was a female Calliope
Hummingbird nested in its ever-so-tiny cup nest. As it was now mid-day and
getting warmish, many birds had become quiet. The notable exceptions were
both Warbling and Red-eyed Vireos. Most stops in riparian habitat in these
low river valleys seemed to have Red-eyes singing. No doubt there are more
Red-eyed Vireos in the major valleys of northeastern Washington than
anyplace else in the state. Gray Catbirds were also persistent singers,
another species more common in this part of the state than elsewhere.



Crossing the Columbia at Northport, we headed south through dry forest below
outcrops of metamorphics. We added Northern Harrier, Golden Eagle, Ruffed
Grouse, Lewis's Woodpecker, Mountain Chickadee, Rock Wren, and Mountain
Bluebird here. A Least Flycatcher "che-becking" from aspens along the road
would not resume singing for our second vehicle, perhaps it was too late in
the afternoon.



Heading over Kelly Hill, a pretty mosaic of open rangeland, forests, and
marsh-fringed lakes, we made several stops for Clay-colored Sparrow,
apparently regular here in patches of Snowberry and wild rose. With a little
effort, we lured one into view. On a slope grown to "meadow steppe," we
noted a Blue Grouse, seldom recorded in these parts.



With clearance from all, we headed into a field trip "extension." In Sherman
Pass Campground, I talked up a wish list of possibilities, including Spruce
Grouse, Boreal Owl, and Hermit Thrush. The reality here was Varied Thrush
and Townsend's Solitaire. We tallied 118 species for the day.



We rolled into Republic just in time for supper. Dinner was still hot, but
barely!



Andy and Ellen Stepniewski

Wapato WA

steppie at nwinfo.net