Subject: [Tweeters] Black-throated Sparrows near Yakima-23 June
Date: Jun 23 14:53:18 2007
From: Andy Stepniewski - steppie at nwinfo.net


Hi Birders,

On a hike today on Rattlesnake Ridge southeast of Yakima, I located at least
four Black-throated Sparrows in three different territories. You can drive,
with a high-clearance vehicle, very close to one of these sites:

Take SR-24 east from Yakima (Exit 34 off I-82) past Moxee to Faucher Road.
Go south here 1 mile. Follow the main arterial as the road bends to the
right (west), then curves left (south) for about 2.6 miles to Konnowac Pass.
At the pass, go right on a dirt track 2 miles, skirting the top of Lady Bug
Peak. Continue on .75 mile where the first shrubs appear on your left (west)
side of the road. Walk west along a dirt track into a shallow ravine. I had
one sparrow here. Another sparrow was farther west across the ravine and
then .2 mile north along the ridge. Finally, a pair was west down into
another ravine from this second site .2 mile in the same area a pair nested
successfully in 1997. At this last spot, I noted a Common Nighthawk
performing a distraction display, probably trying to lead me from its nest.

The habitat for these observations was Big Sagebrush/Bluebunch Wheatgrass
with little or no Cheatgrass. The microbiotic crust was well developed.
Grazing ceased on these sites about 1975.

Andy Stepniewski
Wapato WA
steppie at nwinfo.net