Tweeters,


Washington's southeast corner is a gem!

SOUTHEAST WASHINGTON GYRFALCON, SNOWY OWL, LESSER GOLDFINCH, AND GULLS

Southeast Washington in winter is proving to be a great draw for us.
Breathtaking canyon country along the Snake and Grande Ronde Rivers are one
attraction. High plateaus, attractive to arctic birds in winter are another.
Riparian-lined stream sides, with a dense growth of White Alders, their
"cones" attracting finches, are yet another. Finally, gull watching is super
at both Three Mile Raids south of Asotin and the Asotin County Landfill.

Gyrfalcon was high on our wish list this weekend and reports from the high
plateaus surrounding Anatone prompted us to head in that direction. We spent
Saturday morning there, covering Weissenfels Road several times. It became
clear to us that the attraction for a Gyrfalcon might be the numerous
"chickens" in the area. We blundered into three coveys of Chukars. The road
winds close to the rim rock, with power poles providing commanding hunting
vantages for both the wheat country and the canyons, for some miles. We
concentrated our efforts in these areas but surveyed all vantages. Well,
after four hours, we saw only one large falcon, a Prairie. Other raptors
included Northern Harrier, Red-tailed and Rough-legged Hawks, Golden Eagle,
and American Kestrel.

A detour to the "Anatone Flats," wheat country west of that little town, was
great for a SNOWY OWL, an immature at the west end Ostott Road. We scoped it
across the canyon; there perched atop a rocky eminence. This owl has chosen
a spot quite remote from humankind, quite in contrast to its cousins at
Damon Point in Ocean Shores!

Another noteworthy observation here was a flock of 23 LESSER GOLDFINCHES, in
a wet, weedy gulch at beginning of Onstott Rd right in in Anatone. Ellen was
able to snap "for the record" shots of these pretty birds, adorning the
shrubs there like Christmas ornaments.

We hit Three Mile Rapids, south of Asotin, in the afternoon, targeting
gulls. We were not disappointed. THAYER'S GULL was our best find here.

In late afternoon we stopped by Swallows Park in Clarkston, hoping for the
Ross's Goose. It seems this bird has a daily pattern to be there in early
morning, and then fly off to areas unknown with Canadas to graze. Our timing
was off, so no Ross's.

Sunday morning, at dawn, we stopped at Swallows Park again. Our luck was
with us as we spotted a handsome ROSS'S GOOSE, in the shallow bay at the
park's south end, with hundreds of Canada Geese.

Chief Joseph Wildlife Area always pleases us, nested among stupendous basalt
cliffs of the Grande Ronde. Here were a couple COMMON REDPOLLS in the White
Alders lining the creek. Of interest, the male catkins of this tree are
already bright green, months before those of their cousins elsewhere in the
Pacific Northwest (Red, Mountain, and Sitka Alders). Also noteworthy were 10
WESTERN BLUEBIRDS, mostly flitting on the ground beneath Hackberry trees,
thus presumably foraging on fallen berries of this tree. Both Bald and
Golden Eagles were here while Canyon Wrens "zeeted" from the cliffs. The
weedy fields and thickets of introduced Himalayan blackberries were good for
sparrows. We noted towhee, juncos, and White-crowned and Song Sparrows.

Targeting Gyrfalcon again, we cruised Weissenfels Road east of Anatone one
more time. A most handsome GYRFALCON posed atop a power pole on the edges of
a big farm. Though mid-day, a Gray Partridge uttered its scratchy call from
the rank grassland surrounding a cattle fence, more direct evidence there
are good things to eat on this plateau! The falcon repositioned itself on
the pole in the bright sunshine to give us fantastic looks at this wonderful
raptor: a falcon with gray upper parts, no prominent moustachial striping,
and wingtips well short of tail tip. Its underparts were quite white,
lightly patterned with barring. Though a quarter mile away, our scope views
of this bird were indeed a "peak Wildlife Moment." Other raptors included
Northern Harrier, Red-tailed and Rough-legged Hawks, American Kestrel, and
Prairie Falcon.

The final stop on our trip was again at Three Mile Rapids. Here our best
find were WESTERN GULLS, one a pretty well-marked first-cycle bird, the
other a third year subadult. We studied THAYER'S GULLS again, three adults,
and two nicely checkered first-year birds. In decreasing order of
abundance, California, Ring-billed, Herring, and Glaucous-winged Gulls, were
present here by the hundreds. Ducks included Barrows's and Common
Goldeneyes, and Buffleheads. On the cliffs to our back, both Rock and Canyon
Wrens called while Bewick's Wrens, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, and Yellow-rumped
Warblers flitted in the Hackberry trees.

Andy and Ellen Stepniewski
Wapato WA
steppie at nwinfo.net