Subject: [Tweeters] RE: [obol] Fall Birds - neo-fallout -addendum
Date: Nov 1 23:27:31 2013
From: Rob Conway - robin_birder at hotmail.com
I'm also getting 10-15 Mourning Doves and a couple of EC Doves at the feeder tray every day. This morning on a utility wire just below the house I counted 26 doves of various sorts perched and still possibly waiting to warm up before hitting the neighborhood feeders. Also 3 Anna's Hummingbirds are still around and regularly divebomb the jays in the trees around the yard.
Rob Conway
Camas, WA
45.58?N 122.44?W - elevation 310 ft.
robin_birder at hotmail.com
From: robin_birder at hotmail.com
To: obol at freelists.org; tweeters at u.washington.edu
Subject: [obol] Fall Birds - neo-fallout
Date: Sat, 2 Nov 2013 06:23:42 +0000
This morning I walked slowly (very slowly) along the Columbia dike near Cottonwood Beach in Washougal. There were many more ducks and geese on the river than I've seen in a long time. There were 3 Common Mergansers, a Hooded Merganser in the dock/marina area, loads of Bufflehead and Common Goldeneye, Mallards, scores of Canada Geese that kept taking off and landing just 100 feet away or so, a single Greater White Fronted Goose, and a pair of squabbling GB Herons. On the inland side there were 2 Western Meadowlarks (a first in this location for me), a Raven chasing what I'm guessing were voles in a field (I saw at least 10 voles crossing the dike), many American Crows, a raucous group of Steller's Jays in the trees near the sewer plant, and 2 Bald Eagles Overhead. Oh, and a Kestrel on the fence likely eyeing the same voles.
At home there were skeins of geese flying over all day long, as well as a group of 7 Sandhill Cranes all in a diagonal line and calling loudly. Varied Thrushes are now every day visitors tearing through the leaves we have yet to rake, a single Robin (are there just fewer this year?), and a noisy Pacific Wren. Yesteday I had an equally noisy Bewick's Wren actively feeding under the junipers. Best bird of the day was a very light Peregrine Falcon that sat at the top of a big fir tree, I think eyeing my feeder area and the hundreds of finches, sparrows, juncos, and "my" mob of Stellers Jays and their cousins the Scrub Jay murder crew. I have heard a GH Owl the last 3 nights, and both a Western Screech Owl and what I am assuming is a Barred Owl (haven't spotted it) or mayber even 2.
I sit most of the day watching the birds and fretting about the yardwork that I probably need to hire someone to do. Still under doctors orders to avoid any stress or strenous exercise, and I try to do just that. I'm thinking about just leaving the leaves where they fall this year to start building up a natural mulch - the birds enjoy the leaves flipping and checking for juicy bugs and worms, so 2 birds with one lack of effort.
Rob
Rob Conway
Camas, WA
45.58?N 122.44?W - elevation 310 ft.
robin_birder at hotmail.com