Tom Mansfield and I birded Columbia, Garfield, Asotin and Whitman Counties beginning Friday morning at Lyons Ferry Pond which was thawed out and had 3 Gadwalls feeding in it. A quick stop at the mouth of the Tucannon River revealed 1 Horned Grebe. Rosy-Finches were at their usual spot along the cliffs leading to Little Goose Dam. The Snake River was devoid of gulls, which must mean no fish at the present time. We found the Tucannon River Valley pretty dead and only Brown Creepers on Patrick Grade, which is impassable due to pure ice.

On Saturday we searched wheat fields for Short-eared Owls east of Dayton without success in part due to rain, fog, and snow. Central Ferry was alive with ducks most of which was Common Goldeneye with the odd Barrow?s mixed in. It was odd to see 1 Pintail mixed in with the large flock of Mallards and goldeneyes, a few American Wigeons, and coots. Many of these were seen on the Whitman Co. side of the Snake River looking south into Garfield County from the grain terminal there. Willow Bar had 100?s of White-crowned Sparrows feeding on the Experimental Fields run by WSU. After a long drive to Lower Granite Dam and continuing to the very end where the Wawawai Grade Rd. heads up the hill and becomes a private road we found a very tame Common Redpoll. I believe this is only the 2?nd Garfield Co. record. In Pomeroy we had 30+ Eurasian Collared-Doves in town. Most were in trees along Hwy 12 on the north side of the hwy.

Nisqually John Canyon in Whitman Co. was quiet where 3 weeks before there were Lesser Goldfinch mixed in with American Goldfinch and Pine Siskins. We finished the day by going south of Asotin to Fields Spring State Park in snowing conditions and found a Northern Shrike at Anatone Cemetery singing. Seemed out of place in the wind and snow falling and in the middle of the winter with no sign of spring in sight. Just south of Savage Ponds we had 1 Prairie Falcon and 2 Short-eared Owls and 1 dark Rough-legged Hawk. In Clarkston along the hwy going to Asotin were 7 Eurasian Collared-Doves.

Sunday morning before daybreak we heard a Western Screech-Owl calling near the Asotin Creek mouth. At dawn we had many calling Gray-crowned Rosy-Finches at the cliffs west of Clarkston along the hwy. At Chief Timothy WMA we had a flock of about 50 Cedar Waxwings fly overhead. No Bohemians anywhere, even though we kept our ears open for even the faintest high electric notes. Most of the Mt. Ash trees that had lots of fruit a month ago was now stripped and we only saw Starlings and Robins at those trees with fruit still to eat.

A quick trip up to Pullman produced Dipper where Diane and Tom Weber told me where to look. We heard one fly as we arrived at Reaney Park near the public swimming pool area along the creek. We found Kamiak Butte fairly dead with the snow.

Monday birding south of Dayton up Wolf Fork Rd. we had a small group of Chestnut-backed Chickadees and an young Golden Eagle fly over and 100?s of Wild Turkeys. Makes one wonder how they can find enough to eat during the winter.

Ken Knittle
Vancouver WA 98665
mailto:washingtonbirder at hotmail.com
Washington Birder online
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