EWVI possible find at Hidden Spgs., Ada Co.
Hey out there in ible-land, RL here.
Just had a phone call from Gary and Linda Ackert who are birding the Hidden Spgs. trail here in Ada Co. They asked me to put this note on ible for them
They are reporting finding an Eastern Warbling Vireo. They heard a vireo and knew that it sounded different from a WWVI They played a EWVI song from Merlin, the bird came within an approx. meter of them. A warbling vireo type was seen and it “looked” to be more yellowish than an expected WWVI. They are trying to get a live recording of the bird. They did not have a camera to get a photo.
The attachment, if it comes thru, shows the approx. location of their sighting.
Continued Good Birding. RL
Hummingbirds Again
Don’t get near Bill Moore’s numbers, but between est of individuals visiting feeder at one time & draining of nectar, figure I have about 16 resident Black-chinneds in the area. Know, for sure, have seen 4 individual Black-chinneds this AM. Juveniles should appear in next couple of weeks. And, then our first Fall migration Rufous toward end of July. Calliope &. Broad-tailed mid-Aug & into Sept.
Good numbers of Yellow Warblers, Black-headed Grosbeaks, Bullock’s Orioles, Lazuli Buntings, Red-naped Sapsuckers & House Wrens this year. The Black-headed Grosbeaks have really been putting on a show fly-catching midges in mid-air, this season.
Brian Carrigan
Blackfoot
Re: Hummingbirds
I’ve got two 4 cup feeders up and they are emptying one a day, likely a couple hundred birds and constant pressure from before dawn to dusk. Third feeders likely going up this week. Loads of goldfinches still on the sunflower feeders that are still up. House wrens prepping for second brood. Turkey poults are cautiously exploring in the fields with their minders. Not sure Sandhill colt made it after brief sighting early last week, but they are good at hiding in grass.
Bill Moore
Hoot Owl Rd
Inkom
Hummingbirds
Believe I’ve got at least 3 nesting prs of Black-chinned Hummingbirds by watching visits to the nectar feeder. Male visits outnumber female visits by about 8:1. Indicates females are probably sitting on eggs now.
So, Bill Moore, are you getting your usual multitude of hummingbirds & variety, your direction?
Brian Carrigan
Blackfoot
Bay-Breasted Warbler at Camas NWR
Intermountain Bird Observatory songbird banders just released a female Bay-breasted Warbler near the observation tower at Camas NWR in Jefferson County! Approximate location: 43.92833, -112.27006 – she was released from here but we just saw her fly off to the southeast and have not relocated her, although she did land in the sagebrush not too far from the path. She was originally caught around here: 43.92519, -112.27469, so she may return to that area.
I believe this is the 3rd state record if all records are on eBird.
She was banded and released as part of research efforts to understand water usage and its impact on migrating songbirds, with a federal permit from the USGS Bird Banding Lab.
Juvenile American Robin
Yesterday, I saw my first juv American Robin of the year, spotted breast & begging parent for food, hopping around the backyard. I know of one Robin pair just starting their nest. Believe this juv Robin is probably the earliest I’ve seen here. Looking it up, had to have come from an egg laid in April. Shows how mild our winter was this year.
Believe a Black-chinned Hummingbird pair is working on, if not already, nesting, as well. They definitely hit the nectar feeder, but are great at fly-catching, too. Have watched them sallying forth from a high tree limb perch to nab midges mid-air. As they arrive, before much is blooming, think insects make up a large part of their diet, esp in early Spring.
Brian Carrigan
Blackfoot
Western Tanager
Sitting on back deck with my morning coffee, watching Black-chinned Hummingbirds come into feeder. And, movement in a tree caught my eye: beautiful male Western Tanager. So, all my Spring birds have arrived!
Brian Carrigan
Blackfoot
Broad-winged Hawk / Ashton
There have been several reports of Broad-winged Hawk already this spring so they were on my radar screen. Yesterday afternoon I was getting gas in Ashton and looked up to see a distant interaction between hawks. A Red-tailed was chasing a much smaller buteo so I immediately thought Broad-winged. I watched for a minute or two and the smaller bird behaved just like the Red-tailed only with faster wing beats. All I could really make out from the distance was stark white under side of the wings and a white band on or near the base of the tail. Northern Harrier crossed my mind but the whole shape and behavior was wrong. There really isn’t anything else it could have been so I’m confident in the ID despite the distance and short duration of the observation. This is the second Broad-winged I’ve seen here in spring. I’ve seen three in the area in October and one in June hunting stone flies that were hatching from the Henry’s Fork of the Snake River downstream from Island Park dam. Not anywhere near as cool as the Little Blue Heron seen earlier this week (unfortunately not by me) but still a pretty good bird.
Cliff
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Cliff and Lisa Weisse
Island Park, Idaho
cliffandlisa@…
Re: Waiting on Western Tanager
Saw my first group of little yellow fluffy goslings sandwiched between parents at front & back, all in a line, down on the Snake this AM. Had gone down to check on fishing conditions. River came up a bit during the night. Did see a couple of good rises. Water’s supposed to drop again mid-week.
Brian
Re: Waiting on Western Tanager
We’ve got our usuals, but very few if any calliope hummers, many broad tailed.
I’ve looked at over a thousand goldfinches trying for a lesser. May be time to catch one and apply magic marker.
Sandhills may have a colt.
Bill Moore
Hoot Owl
Inkom