Hello Tweets-

On Thursday I was informed that the electricity to the building at work
would be turned off the next morning and that I could take Friday off or
work from home. With the forecast promising warm weather I decided to
take the day off and try for Dusky Grouse in Central Ferry Canyon, near
Brewster, WA. I had corresponded with Gina Sheridan earlier in the week
so I was armed with good details on where she had heard and seen the
birds in the canyon the previous weekend.

I got up at 3am and drove the 3 hours and 15 minutes to the canyon. My
plan was to get to the ponderosa pine forest and then work my way down
the canyon. But at 3.6 miles up the canyon I saw what looked like a bird
not far off the road in the sagebrush. I stopped the car and sure enough
there was a Dusky male performing his heart out about 15 yards away on
the east side of the road, just across a small creek just below level of
the road. What luck! Almost right after I found the bird- another car
pulled up with two other birders so they got to enjoy the grouse too.
They stayed 10 or so minutes and moved on up the canyon, but I watched
the grouse for another 10 minutes. I was prepared for a different bird
from the Sooties I'm used to, but the differences were quite pronounced.
Lack of a distinct terminal band on tail, reddish-purple inflated bare
skin on the neck surrounded by broad white, and relatively small reddish
eye combs were noted, but the vocalizations were very different. Five
very low-pitched hoots you could more feel than hear. And he was aimed
right at me- when I had my window up I couldn't hear him but knew he was
vocalizing! I saw another male later about a mile up the canyon from
this bird, but it was right next to the road and flushed before I got a
good look. Both birds were well below the small belt of ponderosa pine
and aspen at the near the rim of the plateau- and they were performing
in open sagebrush! I was not expecting that, although have since learned
that Dusky Grouse frequents shrub/steppe and grassland habitats. I
birded the upper half mile of the canyon with a father and son from
Spokane- they had also come to the canyon hoping to see a displaying
Dusky Grouse on details provided by Gina. I meant to write down their
names but forgot and now can't recall (even asked twice so I would
remember- jeez)- if you read this - it was a pleasure birding with you
that morning and hope you had good luck at the Highlands Snow Park.
Other birds detected in Central Ferry Canyon- in the pines- many
migrating kinglets of both species, Cassin's Vireo, Townsend's
Solitaire, Cassin's Finch, Red-naped Sapsucker, all 3 nuthatches, and
Red Crossbills feeding on catkins. And in the sage, Loggerhead Shrike,
Vesper and Brewer's Sparrows.

I had planned on spending the night nearby and trying again on Saturday
if I wasn't successful with the grouse, but since I had good success, I
birded other spots on my way back to Seattle. The Waterville Plateau had
many Rough-legged Hawks (I had a least a dozen during the trip), several
Swainson's Hawks (3 just east of Mansfield) and a Golden Eagle. I had
never been to Dry Falls, so I swung by there to see the fantastic cliffs
and canyon- here White-throated Swifts rocketed by at eye level. The
lakes of Lower Grand Coulee were full of ducks, Common Loons, and
grebes. A pair of Ferruginous Hawks and several Tricolored Blackbirds
were easy at Wilson Creek. Black-necked Stilts, Cinnamon Teal, and
hundreds of Sandhill Cranes overhead were found along Dodson and
Frenchman Hill Roads, My final stops at Quilomene Wildlife area produced
a few Mountain Bluebirds, but Great Horned Owls don't seem to be nesting
this year on the cliffs near milepost 22.

All in all it was a great day for birding. Big thanks to Gina for the
tips on the Dusky! Good birding, Alan

--
Alan J. Knue
bluejay at surfbirder.com

Seattle, WA, USA