Today, Joe Koutney and I birded the River "S" Unit at
Ridgefield NWR (~4mi W of I-5 at Exit 14 in SW
Washington; http://www.fws.gov/ridgefieldrefuges/ ).
We did not walk the entire Kiwa Trail, opting to bird
only some of the Oregon Ash woodlands on the Trail.
It was sunny the entire time we were there (around
8:30a to about 3p).

Highlights for our day:

* RED-BREASTED SAPSUCKER: We found an ACTIVE NEST
beside the entrance canyon road. The nest is in a
small diameter (say 1 foot at nest hole) Douglas Fir
tree. Near the top of this broken top fir, on the
left side is a semicircular "fungus" that appears to
act almost as a natural awning above the nest hole.
>From the top of the road, after the steel entrance
gate, about 75 feet beyond where you enter the
woodland, there is a large Western Red Cedar tree on
the driver's side (as you drive down hill). This
appears to be the first Cedar you come to that is
within 15 feet or so from the road. The nest tree is
close to the Cedar and further away from the road. It
is broken off at about 40-50 feet above the road
level. There is a much shorter broken tree near it.

* EARED GREBE: This Happy pair is still on Rest Lake.
BUT the "floating nest" was Not anywhere to be found
today. They were together and actively feeding.

* BUFFLEHEAD: After at least 2 weeks of missing this
species we saw two 1st year birds on Rest Lake.

* The entrance canyon road was particularly birdy
this am on the way in to the Refuge proper.
Cooperative birds that were seen singing Cheerfully:
WINTER WREN, WILSON'S WARBLER, SWAINSON'S THRUSH,
WESTERN WOOD PEWEE. We also had a drumming PILEATED
WOODPECKER there.

* BULLOCK'S ORIOLE: We heard a few and saw a couple
of females. One was constructing a nest (seems a bit
late). Her construction project appeared today as
merely a large outline that was a "water drop" shape
and it is right after the railroad tracks and Directly
over the road in a Cottonwood, immediately before you
drive onto the bridge to the refuge proper.

* BABIES SEEN: Coot, Pied-billed Grebe, Gadwall,
Mallard, Cinnamon Teal, Wood Duck, Canada Goose,
Yellow-headed Blackbird, Red-winged Blackbird, Brewers
Blackbird, BC Chickadee, White-breasted Nuthatch, Tree
Swallow.

It was a great day to be outside Anthropomorphizing
non-human animals!

Bill Clemons
SW of Portland in Mtn Park
Willclemons AT Yahoo dot com


Complete list of 71 species seen / heard:

Pied-billed Grebe
EARED GREBE
American Bittern
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Turkey Vulture
Canada Goose
Wood Duck
Gadwall
American Wigeon
Mallard
Cinnamon Teal
CANVASBACK (drake on Rest Lake)
Ring-necked Duck
BUFFLEHEAD
Ruddy Duck
Osprey
Bald Eagle
Northern Harrier
Red-tailed Hawk
American Kestrel (2 harassing a R/t Hawk
Desperate to escape)
Virginia Rail (heard only)
Sora (heard and seen at the
Blind)
American Coot
Killdeer
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Vaux's Swift
Belted Kingfisher
RED-BREASTED SAPSUCKER
Downy Woodpecker (bringing food to nest
hole)
Northern Flicker
Pileated Woodpecker
Western Wood-Pewee (seen & heard)
Willow Flycatcher (seen & heard)
Pacific-slope Flycatcher (heard only)
Steller's Jay
Western Scrub-Jay
American Crow
Tree Swallow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Barn Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
Bushtit
Red-breasted Nuthatch (heard only- entrance
canyon)
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
Bewick's Wren
House Wren
Winter Wren
Marsh Wren
Swainson's Thrush (seen & heard)
American Robin
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing (on nest near the Blind)
Yellow Warbler (seen & heard)
Common Yellowthroat
Wilson's Warbler (seen & heard ? entrance
canyon)
Spotted Towhee
Savannah Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Black-headed Grosbeak
Red-winged Blackbird
Yellow-headed Blackbird
Brewer's Blackbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
Bullock's Oriole
Purple Finch
House Finch
American Goldfinch




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