Several successful previous day Ross's Gull birders were roaming the
Highlands yesterday (12/24) in search of anything. Yes, even a Mountain
Chickadee was a thrill. All in all, pretty slow going up there. The gray morph
GYRFALCON 5.2mi out of Tonasket was reported again, and I found another at
the far north end of Havillah Road where it intersects the main
Ororville-Chesaw Road and where Davies Road continues north from there. Wow, what a
stunner that bird! Initially, a blur, two birds, one large 'accipiter' I
first thought, in pursuit of a pigeon-like bird (Rock Pigeon probably).
Both disappeared behind the roof of the old abandoned house, the 'accipiter'
soon after rounded the house empty-taloned and turned into a GYRFALCON which
then landed on a branch right over the road. Didn't see the pigeon again
and suspect it may have ducked into an open window. Had to die for awesome
looks at that perched Gyrfalcon through the windshield at less than 100
meters for about a minute, and just my 'thinking' about the camera sent it
off again in purposeful pursuit of either that pigeon again or something
else, and I lost it after that. A spectacular bird by Gyrfalcon standards,
adult gray morph but decidedly on the pale end of the spectrum.

Otherwise, a pretty slow day in the Highlands throughout and really had to
work for everything. Two adult Northern Goshawks were a treat, including
an unusually sedate adult perched atop a utility pole 6.9mi out of Tonasket
on the west side of Havillah Road behind the yellow school bus out there
in the early morning. Another was a hungry early afternoon bird in Chesaw
that managed to scatter everything including an otherwise sedate feeding and
resting flock of Bohemian Waxwings in a crabapple and spruce and some
nearby Common Redpolls, and everything else that was around.

Apart from the conspicuous raptors throughout the Highlands open country,
notably Red-tailed and Rough-legged Hawks, passerines were really tough
going, even the usual ordinarily common year-round resident types, with too
many stops and short walks flat out stone dead birdless. Common Redpolls
were few and far between, small flocks and flighty, zero crossbills seen by
anyone at least up to 2pm, and single small flock encounters with Pine
Grosbeaks and Gray-crowned Rosy Finches were reported by one lucky party. Also,
zero Snow Buntings or longspurs, and even at the known active feeder sites,
the birds seemed to be taking the day off. Snow might help up there and
maybe bring things to the roads. It's been unusually dry this past month
even in the Highlands including the highest summit peaks where current snow
cover is patchy averaging an old couple inches, maybe 4-6" in colder
protected spots, so still lots of exposed open range and forest habitat available
for birds to scatter and forage if they are even out there at all.
Certainly, the table is set for Common Redpolls in that 3-mile stretch of catkin
laden water birch just north out of Chesaw along Bolster Road, just few or
no diners at the present.

So, kind of grim at the moment, and with that, decided to cut my planned
extended stay short and head for home. Maybe later in the winter and
significant snow cover, try it again.

Richard Rowlett
Bellevue (Eastgate), WA