Wow … I guess we were to high birding with Terry yesterday at the Mores Mountain Trail 🙂
On Jul 8, 2023, at 4:11 PM, Denise Hughes <deniseh449@…> wrote:
Terry Rich found a Dickcissel this morning. He thinks there might be a second bird about 50 yards past this bird.
There is a dickcissel on Big Willow Road. My Ebird checklist is at the spot where the bird is being seen.
The bird is actively singing from the top of sunflowers. It’s about 50-60 feet or so from the road.
Denise Hughes Caldwell, Idaho Any day might be a special one-you just had to go outside and see if it was.—-Kenn Kaufman
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Ken Miracle chukar28@… 208-570-2780 “Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God” 2COR 3:5
Want to point out to folks that when setting location on this road for ebird checklists, it comes up Bluf Rd, which it isn’t. Street signage is clearly marked Big Willow Rd, running from its intersection with Bluff Rd east to Sucker Creek Rd.
I don’t know of a solution for that mapping problem but following the pin will find the location where the bird is actively singing and possibly nesting; playback I would think should be discouraged.
The 2023 supplement to the AOS checklist includes the re-lumping of Pacific Slope and Cordilleran Flycatchers into Western Flycatcher. This “species” pair has long presented an impossible ID challenge so this news is very welcome. You can read more about it here: https://www.aba.org/aos-checklist-supplement-redux-v-2023/
Cliff
— Cliff and Lisa Weisse Island Park, Idaho cliffandlisa@…
The push southward of Rufous Hummingbirds continues. Today, has been adult males & females at about 3:1 Rufous to Black-chinneds. Definitely, a change at my immediate location for July. But, I’ll take it!
Only other birds of note were a few Solitary Sandpipers along the Snake River, seen while I was fly-fishing this morning. Since the trout were laughing at me, settled for another cool sighting. A mink working through ever nook & cranny along the opposite bank. I know, no feathers, but it was still neat to see!
That’s so interesting! I had never even heard of them before this and a domestic bird hadn’t crossed my mind! But now that I know, they won’t fool me again the next time they pop up somewhere!
My wife and I also saw a pair of Coturnix Quail on June 27 at the parking lot near the outhouse at the Corrals trailhead on Bogus Basin road. They were making very “non-Idaho bird” calls, and allowed us to get within 3-4 feet of them, deep in the grass. No
doubt in my mind that’s what they were.
Some of you are already involved in this effort but some sites are in need of survey coverage during the August survey window. Especially if people plan to bird any of these sites anyway, this is a great way to contribute to an important regional project.
See below for details and feel free to pass this on to any shorebird-savvy birders.
Thanks!!
Jay
———- Forwarded message ——— From: Malmquist, Max<Max.Malmquist@…> Date: Fri, Jun 30, 2023 at 6:21 PM Subject: IMWSS: Fall is Coming! Help Us Count and Conserve Shorebirds in the Intermountain West To: Cc: Blake Barbaree <bbarbaree@…>
Dear Shorebirders,
August is just around the corner, and the Intermountain West Shorebird Surveys are gearing up for fall migration! Last April –with your help – over ~300 volunteers
and biologists surveyed more than 179 sites in 11 western states. Please consider helping us advance wetland and water conservation across the west by signing up for fall (August) surveys here
Key Dates
Monday, August 7th, 4:00-5:30 p.m. – IMWSS Training Webinar and Protocol Refresher
August 9th-22nd – Fall Migration Window – Get out and Count Shorebirds!
All new, returning volunteers and biologists – please take a few minutes to fill out this form to sign up for fall surveys. Ideally returning surveyors will survey the same site(s) that they surveyed in the spring. If you have questions about your site or a new site, please contact max.malmquist@… and bbarbaree@…
Preliminary Survey Totals Below – see attached for shorebird totals by site.
Season
AZ
CA
CO
ID
MT
NM
NV
OR
UT
WA
WY
Sites
Fall 2022
2
21
0
15
0
3
38
10
4
0
0
93
Spring 2023
8
33
8
13
17
9
46
18
4
13
10
179
Shorebirds
Total
Fall 2022
456
93,154
0
1,832
0
469
21,356
31,490
217,902
0
0
366,659
Spring 2023
504
25,388
417
396
2,514
940
4,191
3,971
84,664
380
678
124,043
What is the Intermountain West Shorebird Survey?
Migratory shorebirds are key indicators of environmental health. They can tell us about the health of an individual ecosystem and the broader wetland networks
upon which they rely.
Wetlands and saline lakes of the Intermountain West are oases for migrating shorebirds each spring and fall. Much has changed since the last comprehensive shorebird
survey of the region in 1989-1995, and this program is replicating that census so we can better manage shorebirds today and into the future.
The goals of the Intermountain West Shorebird Survey aim to sustain shorebird populations by empowering and inspiring stakeholders to take actions that conserve
wetlands and water. The surveys will:
Document shorebird populations at sites using synchronous surveys at 200+ sites during spring and fall migrations for at least 3 years.
Compare shorebird populations today to those from 1989-1995 and identify factors that influence shorebird distributions.
Communicate scientific results to participants and conservation stakeholders including land and water managers and policy makers.
Ideal shorebird surveyors:
Have a passion for birds and time outdoors,
Can commit to one survey day in the spring and one survey day in the fall, and allow some flexibility for scheduling around bad weather,
Will be safety conscience and cooperate with field partners,
Can collect high quality data in the field,
Can identify shorebirds in breeding and non-breeding plumage.
Please pass this information along to anyone who might be interested in participating!
