Jim, et al

With respect to birds at RNWR this time of year:

The short answer is that it is a bit quiet, though niceties are being seen.

1) There is still some mud, but it is at a scoping distance. There was a rumor that the Rest Lake water was going to be lowered a bit, but it does not appear to have happened. Water in Rest Lake already seems to be on a slow rise. This is just when shorebirds would have benefited from the water level staying low or continuing to drop. Sadly, Fall filling appears to have already begun. I am sure the Fed's have their reasoning, but the migrating shorebirds I am sure are not in agreement with whatever that reasoning is. There are a scant few shorebirds to be seen around, but most shorebirds are either in "off limits" areas on the Refuge, or they have chosen Sauvie Island, etc. to look for sustenance. I do not think that the RNWR staff has the money to create an accessible and managed shorebird spot, therefore it is sad, but what we see is what we get.

2) Ducks at Ridgefield right now are either still in eclipse plumage or they are females and juveniles. This makes for a puzzling time sorting out species with a spotting scope. For the most part the species are there, but some species are difficult to spot or to separate out and are in low numbers compared to say Northern Pintails, which have returned in good numbers.

3) The Friends of The Ridgefield NWR has a weekly list of species seen/heard on the River S Unit at RNWR. The bird species seen at the Carty Unit are not included in this list. The list is put together by Roger Windemuth and Al Larrabee and is updated through the week as they see more species. The link is:
http://www.ridgefieldfriends.org/WildlifeReport.html


Will Clemons
SW of Portland in Mtn Park
willclemons AT Yahoo dot com

Birding:
The best excuse for getting outdoors
And avoiding chores

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Subject: Ridgefield

From: "Jim Clark" <clark5080 AT gmail.com>
Date: Thu, 11 Sep 2008 20:53:57 -0700

I haven't seen many posts on Ridgefield lately. Is it pretty quiet?
Hope not going to spend three days down there this weekend

Jim Clark