Late this morning Greg Lambeth of Moscow found a Black Tern and 5 White-faced Ibis at different ponds along Little Bear Ridge Road north of Kendrick in Latah County. I was quickly able to refind these 2 local rarities and new birds for my Latah County list. On my way back home, I ran into a NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD on Dry Creek Road one tenth of a mile northeast of the intersection with Davidson Road and exactly at the location of this eBird checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S68723903. Not sure the last time I got three new Latah County birds in one day (much less one hour). Greg and Neil Paprocki have both refound the Mockingbird this afternoon. It looks like there is one previous report of a Mockingbird in Latah County, from near Moscow in July 2008 by Jerry Cebula.
Fun, Brian! I meant to send a note this morning, but had to get on the road early and forgot. My FOY Bullock’s Orioles just showed up last night – they were the last Spring bird I was anticipating, although I have not heard a Yellow Warbler
or Yellow-breasted Chat signing along the creek yet… I was on my way to chase the Blackpoll Warbler today when I saw the IBLE note that lots of others were already on the chase with no success, drat it. G’night all…Jonathan, Horseshoe Bend
Today’s Spring arrival was a male Bullock’s Oriole. Now, waiting for a male W Tanager & my personal list for what it takes to really be Spring, bird-wise, will be complete.
Both Evening Grosbeaks & Cassin’s Finches continue at the feeder. As do quick visits by the Blue Jay. White-crowned Sparrows are here, 1 Lincoln’s Sparrow & Dark-eyed Juncos are down to just a couple.
WOW what a cool story … have been waiting for about 10 years not for a Bobcat encounter with something other than a pocket point and shoot in my hands.
On May 8, 2020, at 2:28 PM, Larry Arnold <larnold47@…> wrote:
Normally, it’s difficult to decide which was my favorite beastie of the day, but today’s was easy because it was life experience. I was watching a doe mule deer tip-toeing along behind a bobcat, and my imagination told me she was fixing to boot the bobcat into low Earth orbit, because maybe she had young nearby? but of course the boot never happened.Bob the cat was fixated on an adult Canada Goose walking across a grassy area.The goose soon appeared to be trapped in a corner of chain-link fence, too close to fly up and over, while the cat was in stealth mode sneaking toward the goose, who had, meanwhile, found a hole in the fence to get thru, but by this time the cat was moving quickly, found the same hole and lunged thru it faster than the speed of my brain trying to keep up, and grabbed the goose by the neck.The latter appeared zombified by these events, but was still alert, and the cat-with-goose immediately wandered into the understory of a mature riparian cottonwood stand and THAT was the end of the show…..
In a prior life I’d seen plenty of bobcats, but this was my first in Idaho since moving to the state eight yrs ago.Yes I got a couple of “year birds” today biking the Boise River Greenbelt (19 miles), but the cat & goose show was a first in my 70+ yrs !!=)
“Any day could have been a special day, but you had to get out there and see!”(Kenn Kaufman, Kingbird Highway, 1997)
Larry
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
Normally, it’s difficult to decide which was my favorite beastie of the day, but today’s was easy because it was life experience. I was watching a doe mule deer tip-toeing along behind a bobcat, and my imagination told me she was fixing to boot the bobcat into low Earth orbit, because maybe she had young nearby? but of course the boot never happened.Bob the cat was fixated on an adult Canada Goose walking across a grassy area.The goose soon appeared to be trapped in a corner of chain-link fence, too close to fly up and over, while the cat was in stealth mode sneaking toward the goose, who had, meanwhile, found a hole in the fence to get thru, but by this time the cat was moving quickly, found the same hole and lunged thru it faster than the speed of my brain trying to keep up, and grabbed the goose by the neck.The latter appeared zombified by these events, but was still alert, and the cat-with-goose immediately wandered into the understory of a mature riparian cottonwood stand and THAT was the end of the show…..
In a prior life I’d seen plenty of bobcats, but this was my first in Idaho since moving to the state eight yrs ago.Yes I got a couple of “year birds” today biking the Boise River Greenbelt (19 miles), but the cat & goose show was a first in my 70+ yrs !!=)
“Any day could have been a special day, but you had to get out there and see!”(Kenn Kaufman, Kingbird Highway, 1997)
Earlier this P.M. I found a male Blackpoll Warbler in the SE corner of Pioneer Cemetery. There is a big tree in the SE corner about 20ft. from a grave with the name INGLIS on it. That is the tree where I last had the bird. I found the bird about 1400 and had it for about 30mins. off and on. It was very windy, all birds were very active and there are many big trees in the adjoining neighborhood. Lots of coming and going. I did manage to get a few photos. I’ve not yet looked at them. Hopefully one or two will be close enough to be able to id the bird when I post to ebird here shortly.
Pioneer Cemetery is located on Warm Springs Ave. about a block off Broadway here in Boise near St. Luke’s Hosp..
There is no parking allowed within the cemetery. You’ll have to find a place on the street. I parked on N. Ave. C across from a little corner park that has a Celtic Cross sidewalk layout.There is a gate from the park to access the cemetery. Walk straight thru, keeping parallel to Warm Springs on your right. Just when you pass the Cecil Andrus gravesite you’ll see the tree where I last had the bird in front of you (see above).
I know ebird has a site marked as Morris Hill and Pioneer Cemetery. That is wrong. Pioneer is not Morris Hill. They are in totally different places in Boise. There is a separate ebird Hotspot marked for Pioneer Cemetery alone.
Continued Good Birding. RL
P.S. Mark Collie called me. He had a possible female Purple Finch at Morris Hill Cemetery about 1300. Seen in the trees near a brick maintenance bldg. along Emerald not far from where we had the sapsuckers this past winter.
I just spent a few minutes working in the garden and heard White-crowned Sparrows singing for the first time this year. I spread some finished compost around and noticed there were tons of earthworms in the pile, like red spaghetti. Ten minutes later there was a Hermit Thrush pulling them out and devouring them. Kind of cool how quickly the bird noticed the feast I uncovered.
Cliff
— Cliff and Lisa Weisse Island Park, Idaho @cliffweisse
Home of Idaho Birding and the Idaho Bird Records Committee
