Subject: [Tweeters] Re: [inland-NW-birders] Interesting Observation
Date: Apr 1 20:07:09 2011
From: Charles Swift - chaetura at gmail.com


Very cool observation Mike! Coincidentally did you note the discovery of a
new hummingbird species in southern California? Details here:
http://smbasblog.wordpress.com/2011/04/01/new-hummingbird-species-discovered-in-los-angeles-county/

On Fri, Apr 1, 2011 at 7:56 PM, Mike & MerryLynn <m.denny at charter.net>
wrote:
> Hello All,
>
> Just wanted to share an interesting observation I made this last week
while
> on the job. I was walking along the Touchet River in an open area carpeted
> with salt grass and tight bunches of creosote bushes that stood about a
> meter and a half high. Out in the salt grass carpet were several
> shallow burrows created by badgers or coyotes digging out rodents over the
> last few weeks. As I approached one of these excavations and its pile of
> soil I heard an odd noise emanating from down in the burrow that I did
not
> recognize. It could have been rodent or an insect. So I walked around this
> burrow staying about twenty-five feet away as I continued to hear
> this strange call coming from the burrow. Slowly I moved in from the down
> wind side. Just as I was getting near the burrow a shadow shot over me. I
> looked up only to see a lone adult Black-billed Magpie land on top of
a near
> by creosote bush. I now got down on my hands and knees and crawled closer
to
> the burrow opening. Then it dawned on me that whatever was down in that
> burrow was now in danger of being predated as I was being watched by a
> magpie. A bird so intelligent that it thinks circles around many humans.
So
> I backed off and decided to wait out the magpie and test his span of
> attention and interest in what I was doing. As I sat down I heard a call
> that was almost familiar, but not right on. After a few minutes the magpie
> seemingly lost interest in what I was doing and drifted off to the east
over
> the Touchet River. I now crawled back towards the burrow entrance and
> quietly looked down into it. Just as I was making out what the animal was
> down in the dark hole a very loud calling Killdeer swooped in and ordered
me
> away from this site. I got up and walked away some fifty feet and watched
> the site. The defending Killdeer now circled on foot the burrow entrance
> calling constantly. >From somewhere deep in the ground came a now very
> familiar call. Soon an adult Killdeer emerged from the burrow slightly
> dusted, but no worse for ware. I was stunned as this adult female moved
> closer to the loudly calling male bird. Then I was blown away when out of
> nowhere the magpie re-appeared and in an instant the adult female shot
back
> down into the burrow with no hesitation. This was a first for me. Has
anyone
> else ever heard of Killdeer nesting in an underground burrow? I apparently
> did not recognize the calls coming from underground as they were distorted
> by the burrow. While crawling back to the burrow I apparently pulled my
leg,
> hopefully not yours.
>
> Thanks Mike Denny
>
> *******************************************************
> Mike & MerryLynn Denny
> Birding the beautiful Walla Walla Valley
>
> "If you haven't birded, you haven't lived"
> _______________________________________________
> Inland-nw-birders mailing list
> Inland-nw-birders at uidaho.edu
> https://lists.uidaho.edu/mailman/listinfo/inland-nw-birders
>
>



--
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
(north-central Idaho, 80 miles SE of Spokane, WA)
46?43?54? N, 116?59?50? W
email: chaetura at gmail.com
skype: charles.swift
google voice: 208-991-2473
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