Tweets -

I have trouble walking more than 100 feet these days limiting my birding to my own yard or from my car. The yard has been very productive over the past couple of weeks with great birds and some good numbers. Among the most notable:

Turkey Vultures - Just today a group of 51 moving south along the Cascade - Willamette Valley border. Slowly gliding along but seeming to enjoy the updrafts created by the gorge cliffs.

Band-tailed Pigeons - A flock of 47 birds hit my feeders like locusts. They emptied about 6 pounds of millet/corn/milo and 8 pounds of black oil sunflower in just over 90 minutes. Healthy robust birds - many of them huge. I usually don't see more than 3 or 4 at a time.

Evening Grosbeaks - A flock of 9 and then one of 11 last week. Beautiful birds with such striking markings and facial patterns that make them look to have thin almond shaped eyes.

Red Crossbills - Always a thrill when these come by. A group of 30+ came into my pond/stream to drink. Both sexes with some beautiful colors of yellow and red. They looked to be feeding in a fir tree up the canyon after they left.

Dark eyed Juncos - A small flock of 5 - first of the fall.

Anna's hummers - Still everywhere feeding in my perennial garden. I had to remove my feeders as thousands of honey bees were coming to them making it hazardous to go onto the deck. Glad to have an active colony of bees close by, but they need to be in the flowers, not sucking up sugar water!

Bewicks's Wren - A pair is frequenting the dense planting along my stream - so entertaining to watch.

Varied Thrush - Early for here and the first of the season.

Cassin's Finches, House Finches, Purple Finches - At my feeders all day long, emptying 3 pounds or so of black oil sunflower every day.

Red- and White-breasted nuthatches - Snatch a seed, stash a seed, repeat....all day long

Bush tits - few and far between this summer a group of 15 or so now visits the suet feeder daily - little clowns

Steller's Jays - about 12 feeding every day with about 6 Scrub Jays - I have 1 of each type that come to get peanuts from my hand!

Red Tailed Hawks - appears the pair that has raised 3-5 chicks for the past 3 years only managed a single offspring this year but he is LOUD.

Both Chickadees by the dozens and 2 Brown Creepers circling, circling, circling the big fir trees.

Still 1 or 2 Black Headed Grosbeaks every day

6 Western Tanagers accompanied by a Bullocks Oriole last Tuesday. What beauties.


I continue to watch where and when I can. Patiently waiting for a call that says come and get your body replacement parts!

Rob

Rob Conway
Camas, WA
45.58?N 122.44?W - elevation 310 ft.
robin_birder at hotmail.com