So amazing – just the other day, I was driving down Porter Creek Rd, thinking how I haven’t seen a Lewis’ Woodpecker for years, whereas they were regularly seen when we first moved up here 20 years ago….they are my favorite western woodpecker…
…fast forward to 30 minutes ago… I was working on my computer and suddenly 2 birds flew into my crabapple tree – couldn’t believe my eyes – 2 Lewis’ Woodpeckers! First time ever in my yard, so I’m a very happy camper right now…
Best, Jonathan, Horseshoe Bend
(the wind was blowing pretty hard, so it was so difficult to get any good shot…)
I heard an uncommon bird song late today. Grabbed my glasses and located a warbler way up in the nose bleed seats of our ancient front maple. My list submission will most likely be challenged, but after comparing photographs of the distinct white eyebrow and under the eye, the blue gray back, and the song, I’m fairly certain this was a black-throated gray warbler. I spotted one in our side yard in October 2015. Long time between visits.
I hope to be lucky enough to spot him again tomorrow.
I believe the bird in the attached photos is a leucistic female red-winged blackbird. What do you all think? Found this last Friday at Camas WMA in the east shelterbelt. It did not sing and was generally not shy. I was able to observe the bird for as long as I wanted, which was about 30 minutes.
Awesome day, Tom, and thx for a vote of confidence, but I’d rely more on Jay because while I have a lot of experience, I don’t necessarily remember it… 😉
Whereas Jay has excellent eyes, ears, memory and a lot of experience
There’s another factor we don’t often discuss… not long ago several of us had this game…. we’d each play a recorded bird on a specific CD set and challenge the others to name all the background songs, chirps, calls, wing sounds, whatever, and of course I always lost because those other birders were quite younger than I was, and they could separate most sounds from the “milieu” whereas I had lost much of that ability…
My FOY Black-headed Grosbeak hasn’t made an appearance yet – maybe today? But I was DELIGHTED to wake up to my FOY Western Tanager sitting outside my bedroom window.
Did I ever mention that I believe we should change the State bird for Idaho to the Western Tanager? – for 2 reasons:
Idaho would have it’s own unique State bird – ie., no longer share a State bird with another State, and more importantly…
The Western Tanager is the only bird I know of that is historically noted as DISCOVERED in Idaho – by Lewis & Clark in their expedition.
If I am incorrect, please correct me. But if this group got behind a drive to change the State bird, could we make it happen? I don’t know if that is possible, but I’m throwing it out there… 😊
