Chuck Trost et al. have a slew of Idaho Big Days in the 150’s I think (in
fact they should have the majority of the top 10 except for the top 2
listed below). I presume those plus the ones listed here follow the ABA Big
Day rule that 95% of shared species must be seen/heard by each member of
the team. These other Big Days are archived in the old paper ABA Big Day
reports of which there should be a few around still (perhaps somebody else
has them handy than mine!).

Charles.

On Wed, May 17, 2017 at 9:37 AM Stoddard Davenport s_g_davenport@hotmail.com
[ible] wrote:

>
>
> This is a bit dated, but in spring 2015 I had downloaded the entire eBird
> dataset for Idaho and looked at the biggest days that had been eBirded up
> until that point. Of course there could be bigger days that haven’t been
> eBirded or that have happened in the 2 years since the last time I was
> playing with the data. But here were the leaders at that point:
>
>
> #1 – 133 species – Zeke Watkins (June 2, 2012)
>
> #2 – 127 species – Zeke Watkins and Kathleen Cameron (June 1, 2013)
>
> #4 – 119 species – Kathleen Cameran (May 31, 2011)
>
> #5 – 114 species – Joshua Little (July 2, 2013)
>
> #6 – 112 species – Terry Little (July 2, 2013)
>
> #7 – 111 species – Harry Krueger (July 2, 2013) and Larry Arnold (May 8,
> 2013)
>
> #9 – 110 species – Ian Gardner (May 25, 2014), Sarah Harris (June 2,
> 2012), and Bill Schiess (May 25, 2013)
>
>
> The Idaho Birding website has a few records that are noteworthy, though
> these records include multiple observers, and I’m not sure whether or not
> each observer saw every bird on the list, so this may or may not be
> directly comparable to the eBird records:
>
>
> #1 – 176 species – Bob Kemp, Steve Gross, and Ron Weeks (June 9, 2005)
>
> #2 – 174 species – Bob Kemp, Steve Gross, and Ron Weeks (June 1, 2004)
>
> #3 – 144 species – Charles Swift and Joe Lipar (June 24, 2001)
>
> #4 – 132 species – John Gatchet and Andy Crabtree (July 26, 1997)
>
>
> The ABA also warehouses big day reports, but it looks like the only report
> anybody has submitted for Idaho was Josh and Terry Little’s big day in
> 2013, which is already included in the list from eBird.
>
> One of these days I’ll get another download of the full dataset from eBird
> to check for bigger days in the last 2 years.
> ——————————
> *From:* ible@yahoogroups.com on behalf of ‘Larry
> Arnold’ larnold47@cableone.net [ible]
> *Sent:* Wednesday, May 17, 2017 9:52 AM
> *To:* ‘Kathleen Lopez’
>
>
> *Cc:* ‘damnempid’; ‘IBLE To Post’
>
> *Subject:* RE: [IBLE] Custer County Big Day, 5/13/17
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Thx Kathy! =)
>
> I just uncovered last year’s list for Elmore County, when on 14 May 2016
> we tallied 107 species over 11.5 hrs and 97 miles
>
> I’m fairly certain *Chuck Trost* has tallied big day lists that smoke
> these numbers, but I don’t have details in front of me… Ouch, I should have
> kept notes on that! Maybe he’ll chime in?
>
> Larry
>
>
>
>
>
> *From:* Kathleen Lopez [mailto:kathylopez80@yahoo.com]
> *Sent:* Wednesday, May 17, 2017 8:13 AM
> *To:* Larry Arnold
> *Cc:* damnempid; IBLE To Post
> *Subject:* Re: [IBLE] Custer County Big Day, 5/13/17
>
>
>
> Impressive lists Larry & Wendy!
>
>
>
> Kathy Lopez
>
> Nampa
>
>
> On May 17, 2017, at 7:23 AM, ‘Larry Arnold’ larnold47@cableone.net [ible]
> wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
> Impressive list, Wendy!
>
> Saturday was a driving day for us (in a blizzard while crossing Caribou
> County, low temp was 22F), so Missy and I did our Bear Lake County “little
> big day” on Sunday, and tallied 101 species during ten hours of roaming 68
> miles.
>
> Larry
>
>
>
>
>
> *From:* ible@yahoogroups.com [mailto:ible@yahoogroups.com
> ] *On Behalf Of *damnempid damnempid@yahoo.com
> [ible]
> *Sent:* Tuesday, May 16, 2017 11:31 PM
> *To:* IBLE To Post
> *Subject:* [IBLE] Custer County Big Day, 5/13/17
>
>
>
>
>
> I also participated in eBird’s Global Big Day on Saturday. I wanted to
> improve on the 13 species reported for Custer County during last year’s Big
> Day, even though I’ve only been in Idaho for a month. I came up with a game
> plan for Saturday to try to maximize sightings by going to as many of the
> places I’ve explored in Custer County as possible.
>
>
>
> I spent 17 long and cold hours in the field, covering a variety of
> habitats from Mackay Reservoir to Pennal Gulch, including a short ways up
> the Mt. Borah trail, Chilly Slough, and Bar-D Reservoir. On Hwy 75, I
> visited Land of the Yankee Fork State Park and the Bayhorse Recreation Site.
>
>
>
> Two species I see regularly eluded me on Saturday: Bald Eagle and Lewis’s
> Woodpecker. I’d also hoped for a calling Virginia Rail but they were silent
> until Sunday. However, as the sole participant in the county, I’m pleased
> with what I did find and the fact that I moved Custer County up to third
> position in Idaho for this year’s Big Day.
>
>
>
> I’m rather surprised to see that I apparently had the most sightings for
> the day at 106 species, one of which is yet to be approved*. My Big Day
> species list is below. The 21 checklists I submitted can be viewed at
> http://ebird.org/ebird/subnational2/US-ID-037?yr=BIGDAY_2017a.
>
>
>
> Good birding,
>
> Wendy McCrady
>
> Challis, ID
>
>
>
> *Custer County Big Day 5/13/17*
>
>
>
> Canada Goose
>
> Wood Duck
>
> Gadwall
>
> American Wigeon
>
> Mallard
>
> Cinnamon Teal
>
> Northern Shoveler
>
> Green-winged Teal
>
> Canvasback
>
> Redhead
>
> Ring-necked Duck
>
> Lesser Scaup
>
> Bufflehead
>
> Barrow’s Goldeneye
>
> Hooded Merganser
>
> Common Merganser
>
> Ruddy Duck
>
> Wild Turkey
>
> Common Loon
>
> Pied-billed Grebe
>
> Eared Grebe
>
> Western Grebe
>
> Clark’s Grebe
>
> American Bittern
>
> Great Blue Heron
>
> Osprey
>
> Golden Eagle
>
> Northern Harrier
>
> Red-tailed Hawk
>
> Sora
>
> American Coot
>
> Sandhill Crane
>
> Killdeer
>
> Long-billed Dowitcher
>
> Wilson’s Snipe
>
> Wilson’s Phalarope
>
> Spotted Sandpiper
>
> Willet
>
> Franklin’s Gull
>
> Ring-billed Gull
>
> California Gull
>
> Rock Pigeon
>
> Eurasian Collared-Dove
>
> Mourning Dove
>
> Short-eared Owl
>
> Common Poorwill
>
> White-throated Swift
>
> Belted Kingfisher
>
> Red-naped Sapsucker
>
> Downy Woodpecker
>
> Northern Flicker
>
> Pileated Woodpecker
>
> American Kestrel
>
> Prairie Falcon
>
> Western Wood-Pewee
>
> *Hammond’s Flycatcher
>
> Dusky Flycatcher
>
> Say’s Phoebe
>
> Western Kingbird
>
> Gray Jay
>
> Black-billed Magpie
>
> American Crow
>
> Common Raven
>
> Horned Lark
>
> Northern Rough-winged Swallow
>
> Tree Swallow
>
> Violet-green Swallow
>
> Bank Swallow
>
> Barn Swallow
>
> Cliff Swallow
>
> Black-capped Chickadee
>
> Mountain Chickadee
>
> Red-breasted Nuthatch
>
> White-breasted Nuthatch
>
> Rock Wren
>
> House Wren
>
> Marsh Wren
>
> Ruby-crowned Kinglet
>
> Mountain Bluebird
>
> Townsend’s Solitaire
>
> American Robin
>
> Sage Thrasher
>
> European Starling
>
> Common Yellowthroat
>
> Yellow Warbler
>
> Yellow-rumped Warbler
>
> Chipping Sparrow
>
> Brewer’s Sparrow
>
> Lark Sparrow
>
> Dark-eyed Junco
>
> White-crowned Sparrow
>
> Vesper Sparrow
>
> Savannah Sparrow
>
> Song Sparrow
>
> Lincoln’s Sparrow
>
> Western Tanager
>
> Red-winged Blackbird
>
> Western Meadowlark
>
> Yellow-headed Blackbird
>
> Brewer’s Blackbird
>
> Brown-headed Cowbird
>
> House Finch
>
> Cassin’s Finch
>
> Pine Siskin
>
> American Goldfinch
>
> House Sparrow
>
>
>
—
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
chaetura@gmail.com

This is a bit dated, but in spring 2015 I had downloaded the entire eBird dataset for Idaho and looked at the biggest days that had been eBirded up until that point. Of course there could be bigger days that haven’t been eBirded or that have happened in the 2 years since the last time I was playing with the data. But here were the leaders at that point:

#1 – 133 species – Zeke Watkins (June 2, 2012)

#2 – 127 species – Zeke Watkins and Kathleen Cameron (June 1, 2013)

#4 – 119 species – Kathleen Cameran (May 31, 2011)

#5 – 114 species – Joshua Little (July 2, 2013)

#6 – 112 species – Terry Little (July 2, 2013)

#7 – 111 species – Harry Krueger (July 2, 2013) and Larry Arnold (May 8, 2013)

#9 – 110 species – Ian Gardner (May 25, 2014), Sarah Harris (June 2, 2012), and Bill Schiess (May 25, 2013)

The Idaho Birding website has a few records that are noteworthy, though these records include multiple observers, and I’m not sure whether or not each observer saw every bird on the list, so this may or may not be directly comparable to the eBird records:

#1 – 176 species – Bob Kemp, Steve Gross, and Ron Weeks (June 9, 2005)

#2 – 174 species – Bob Kemp, Steve Gross, and Ron Weeks (June 1, 2004)

#3 – 144 species – Charles Swift and Joe Lipar (June 24, 2001)

#4 – 132 species – John Gatchet and Andy Crabtree (July 26, 1997)

The ABA also warehouses big day reports, but it looks like the only report anybody has submitted for Idaho was Josh and Terry Little’s big day in 2013, which is already included in the list from eBird.

One of these days I’ll get another download of the full dataset from eBird to check for bigger days in the last 2 years.
________________________________
From: ible@yahoogroups.com on behalf of ‘Larry Arnold’ larnold47@cableone.net [ible]
Sent: Wednesday, May 17, 2017 9:52 AM
To: ‘Kathleen Lopez’
Cc: ‘damnempid’; ‘IBLE To Post’
Subject: RE: [IBLE] Custer County Big Day, 5/13/17

Thx Kathy! =)
I just uncovered last year’s list for Elmore County, when on 14 May 2016 we tallied 107 species over 11.5 hrs and 97 miles
I’m fairly certain Chuck Trost has tallied big day lists that smoke these numbers, but I don’t have details in front of me… Ouch, I should have kept notes on that! Maybe he’ll chime in?
Larry

From: Kathleen Lopez [mailto:kathylopez80@yahoo.com]
Sent: Wednesday, May 17, 2017 8:13 AM
To: Larry Arnold
Cc: damnempid; IBLE To Post
Subject: Re: [IBLE] Custer County Big Day, 5/13/17

Impressive lists Larry & Wendy!

Kathy Lopez
Nampa

On May 17, 2017, at 7:23 AM, ‘Larry Arnold’ larnold47@cableone.net [ible] > wrote:

Impressive list, Wendy!
Saturday was a driving day for us (in a blizzard while crossing Caribou County, low temp was 22F), so Missy and I did our Bear Lake County “little big day” on Sunday, and tallied 101 species during ten hours of roaming 68 miles.
Larry

From: ible@yahoogroups.com [mailto:ible@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of damnempid damnempid@yahoo.com [ible]
Sent: Tuesday, May 16, 2017 11:31 PM
To: IBLE To Post
Subject: [IBLE] Custer County Big Day, 5/13/17

I also participated in eBird’s Global Big Day on Saturday. I wanted to improve on the 13 species reported for Custer County during last year’s Big Day, even though I’ve only been in Idaho for a month. I came up with a game plan for Saturday to try to maximize sightings by going to as many of the places I’ve explored in Custer County as possible.

I spent 17 long and cold hours in the field, covering a variety of habitats from Mackay Reservoir to Pennal Gulch, including a short ways up the Mt. Borah trail, Chilly Slough, and Bar-D Reservoir. On Hwy 75, I visited Land of the Yankee Fork State Park and the Bayhorse Recreation Site.

Two species I see regularly eluded me on Saturday: Bald Eagle and Lewis’s Woodpecker. I’d also hoped for a calling Virginia Rail but they were silent until Sunday. However, as the sole participant in the county, I’m pleased with what I did find and the fact that I moved Custer County up to third position in Idaho for this year’s Big Day.

I’m rather surprised to see that I apparently had the most sightings for the day at 106 species, one of which is yet to be approved*. My Big Day species list is below. The 21 checklists I submitted can be viewed at http://ebird.org/ebird/subnational2/US-ID-037?yr=BIGDAY_2017a.

Good birding,
Wendy McCrady
Challis, ID

Custer County Big Day 5/13/17

Canada Goose
Wood Duck
Gadwall
American Wigeon
Mallard
Cinnamon Teal
Northern Shoveler
Green-winged Teal
Canvasback
Redhead
Ring-necked Duck
Lesser Scaup
Bufflehead
Barrow’s Goldeneye
Hooded Merganser
Common Merganser
Ruddy Duck
Wild Turkey
Common Loon
Pied-billed Grebe
Eared Grebe
Western Grebe
Clark’s Grebe
American Bittern
Great Blue Heron
Osprey
Golden Eagle
Northern Harrier
Red-tailed Hawk
Sora
American Coot
Sandhill Crane
Killdeer
Long-billed Dowitcher
Wilson’s Snipe
Wilson’s Phalarope
Spotted Sandpiper
Willet
Franklin’s Gull
Ring-billed Gull
California Gull
Rock Pigeon
Eurasian Collared-Dove
Mourning Dove
Short-eared Owl
Common Poorwill
White-throated Swift
Belted Kingfisher
Red-naped Sapsucker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Pileated Woodpecker
American Kestrel
Prairie Falcon
Western Wood-Pewee
*Hammond’s Flycatcher
Dusky Flycatcher
Say’s Phoebe
Western Kingbird
Gray Jay
Black-billed Magpie
American Crow
Common Raven
Horned Lark
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Tree Swallow
Violet-green Swallow
Bank Swallow
Barn Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
Mountain Chickadee
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Rock Wren
House Wren
Marsh Wren
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Mountain Bluebird
Townsend’s Solitaire
American Robin
Sage Thrasher
European Starling
Common Yellowthroat
Yellow Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Chipping Sparrow
Brewer’s Sparrow
Lark Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
White-crowned Sparrow
Vesper Sparrow
Savannah Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Lincoln’s Sparrow
Western Tanager
Red-winged Blackbird
Western Meadowlark
Yellow-headed Blackbird
Brewer’s Blackbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
House Finch
Cassin’s Finch
Pine Siskin
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow

Thx Kathy! =)

I just uncovered last year’s list for Elmore County, when on 14 May 2016 we tallied 107 species over 11.5 hrs and 97 miles

I’m fairly certain Chuck Trost has tallied big day lists that smoke these numbers, but I don’t have details in front of me… Ouch, I should have kept notes on that! Maybe he’ll chime in?

Larry

From: Kathleen Lopez [mailto:kathylopez80@yahoo.com]
Sent: Wednesday, May 17, 2017 8:13 AM
To: Larry Arnold
Cc: damnempid; IBLE To Post
Subject: Re: [IBLE] Custer County Big Day, 5/13/17

Impressive lists Larry & Wendy!

Kathy Lopez

Nampa

On May 17, 2017, at 7:23 AM, ‘Larry Arnold’ larnold47@cableone.net [ible] <ible-noreply@yahoogroups.com> wrote:

Impressive list, Wendy!

Saturday was a driving day for us (in a blizzard while crossing Caribou County, low temp was 22F), so Missy and I did our Bear Lake County “little big day” on Sunday, and tallied 101 species during ten hours of roaming 68 miles.

Larry

From: ible@yahoogroups.com [mailto:ible@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of damnempid damnempid@yahoo.com [ible]
Sent: Tuesday, May 16, 2017 11:31 PM
To: IBLE To Post
Subject: [IBLE] Custer County Big Day, 5/13/17

I also participated in eBird’s Global Big Day on Saturday. I wanted to improve on the 13 species reported for Custer County during last year’s Big Day, even though I’ve only been in Idaho for a month. I came up with a game plan for Saturday to try to maximize sightings by going to as many of the places I’ve explored in Custer County as possible.

I spent 17 long and cold hours in the field, covering a variety of habitats from Mackay Reservoir to Pennal Gulch, including a short ways up the Mt. Borah trail, Chilly Slough, and Bar-D Reservoir. On Hwy 75, I visited Land of the Yankee Fork State Park and the Bayhorse Recreation Site.

Two species I see regularly eluded me on Saturday: Bald Eagle and Lewis’s Woodpecker. I’d also hoped for a calling Virginia Rail but they were silent until Sunday. However, as the sole participant in the county, I’m pleased with what I did find and the fact that I moved Custer County up to third position in Idaho for this year’s Big Day.

I’m rather surprised to see that I apparently had the most sightings for the day at 106 species, one of which is yet to be approved*. My Big Day species list is below. The 21 checklists I submitted can be viewed at <ebird.org/ebird/subnational2/US-ID-037?yr=BIGDAY_2017a> ebird.org/ebird/subnational2/US-ID-037?yr=BIGDAY_2017a.

Good birding,

Wendy McCrady

Challis, ID

Custer County Big Day 5/13/17

Canada Goose

Wood Duck

Gadwall

American Wigeon

Mallard

Cinnamon Teal

Northern Shoveler

Green-winged Teal

Canvasback

Redhead

Ring-necked Duck

Lesser Scaup

Bufflehead

Barrow’s Goldeneye

Hooded Merganser

Common Merganser

Ruddy Duck

Wild Turkey

Common Loon

Pied-billed Grebe

Eared Grebe

Western Grebe

Clark’s Grebe

American Bittern

Great Blue Heron

Osprey

Golden Eagle

Northern Harrier

Red-tailed Hawk

Sora

American Coot

Sandhill Crane

Killdeer

Long-billed Dowitcher

Wilson’s Snipe

Wilson’s Phalarope

Spotted Sandpiper

Willet

Franklin’s Gull

Ring-billed Gull

California Gull

Rock Pigeon

Eurasian Collared-Dove

Mourning Dove

Short-eared Owl

Common Poorwill

White-throated Swift

Belted Kingfisher

Red-naped Sapsucker

Downy Woodpecker

Northern Flicker

Pileated Woodpecker

American Kestrel

Prairie Falcon

Western Wood-Pewee

*Hammond’s Flycatcher

Dusky Flycatcher

Say’s Phoebe

Western Kingbird

Gray Jay

Black-billed Magpie

American Crow

Common Raven

Horned Lark

Northern Rough-winged Swallow

Tree Swallow

Violet-green Swallow

Bank Swallow

Barn Swallow

Cliff Swallow

Black-capped Chickadee

Mountain Chickadee

Red-breasted Nuthatch

White-breasted Nuthatch

Rock Wren

House Wren

Marsh Wren

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Mountain Bluebird

Townsend’s Solitaire

American Robin

Sage Thrasher

European Starling

Common Yellowthroat

Yellow Warbler

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Chipping Sparrow

Brewer’s Sparrow

Lark Sparrow

Dark-eyed Junco

White-crowned Sparrow

Vesper Sparrow

Savannah Sparrow

Song Sparrow

Lincoln’s Sparrow

Western Tanager

Red-winged Blackbird

Western Meadowlark

Yellow-headed Blackbird

Brewer’s Blackbird

Brown-headed Cowbird

House Finch

Cassin’s Finch

Pine Siskin

American Goldfinch

House Sparrow

This morning 5/16 a Black-chinned Hummingbird visted my nectar feeder.
Yesterday I noticed the liquid level had decreased in the past few days. I
moved it to where I would see it more often. Just before 9:30 this morning
a male Black-chinned showed up to feed. He checked the Heuchera nearby, but
the blossoms are not open quite yet, so he zoomed away.

—– Forwarded Message —–
From: “ebird-checklist@cornell.edu” <ebird-checklist@cornell.edu>
To: susanpatla@yahoo.com
Sent: Monday, May 15, 2017 10:51 PM
Subject: eBird Report – Packsaddle Estates, May 15, 2017

Comments: Walked from the house around the upper loop back up Grandview Drive to home. 45 deg start, calm
35 species

Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus) 1 heard drumming
Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura) 3
Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus) 1
Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) 2
Sandhill Crane (Antigone canadensis) 1 heard one call in field below subdivision
Broad-tailed Hummingbird (Selasphorus platycercus) 6
Calliope Hummingbird (Selasphorus calliope) 2
Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) 1
Dusky Flycatcher (Empidonax oberholseri) 3
Steller’s Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri) 1
Common Raven (Corvus corax) 2
Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor) 2
Violet-green Swallow (Tachycineta thalassina) 2
Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus) 2
Mountain Chickadee (Poecile gambeli) 3
House Wren (Troglodytes aedon) 6
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (Regulus calendula) 6
Mountain Bluebird (Sialia currucoides) 1
Townsend’s Solitaire (Myadestes townsendi) 1
American Robin (Turdus migratorius) 12
European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris) 1
Orange-crowned Warbler (Oreothlypis celata) 1 FOY
Yellow Warbler (Setophaga petechia) 3
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Audubon’s) (Setophaga coronata auduboni) 4 all males
Chipping Sparrow (Spizella passerina) X one flock of over 15, scattered singles
Fox Sparrow (Passerella iliaca) 1 heard one sing briefly from thick shrubs
Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis) X
White-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys) 1
Green-tailed Towhee (Pipilo chlorurus) 10
Spotted Towhee (Pipilo maculatus) 1 only second one I have seen in neighborhood in over 15 years
Black-headed Grosbeak (Pheucticus melanocephalus) 1 FOY
Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater) 2
Cassin’s Finch (Haemorhous cassinii) X many, at feeders, singing from conifers
Pine Siskin (Spinus pinus) X many coming to feeder
Evening Grosbeak (Coccothraustes vespertinus) 1

Packsaddle Estates, Teton, Idaho, US
May 15, 2017 8:15 AM – 9:30 AM
Protocol: Traveling
1.0 mile(s)

View this checklist online at ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S36897992

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (ebird.org<ebird.org/>)
[http://ebird.org/content/ebird/wp-content/uploads/sites/55/33600231.jpg]<ebird.org/>

eBird<ebird.org/>
ebird.org
Last month brought two major milestones for eBird, amazingly each of the same bird species! On 8 April, Bill Thompson submitted a checklist from Massachusetts that …

Maybe because it’s spring and birds are everywhere that more posting is to
be expected? But *eyiyi* there have been some fun postings on IBLE
recently! Thank you Scott, Brian, Jason, Cliff, Zeke, Kim, Tom, and..
Wendy, you are a very welcome addition to Idaho and to IBLE. =)

Missy and I have just returned home from our SE Idaho walkabout for year
birds. For the most part, roads were in good shape with few closures due to
washouts, lingering snow cover, and downed trees. But I gotta say, birding
riparian areas by ear was a challenge with the increased ambient noise due
to spring runoff (at historic levels across S Idaho?)

Some trip stats:

Counties we birded: Power, Bannock, Bingham, Jefferson, Teton, Caribou,
Bear Lake

eBirds lists we entered: 23

Species we found: 154

Idaho year birds: 23

We dipped on a few hopeful targets, including Cattle Egret, some woodpecker
and flycatcher species, Catbird, and Wilson’s Wobbler, but..

Toppermost were these:

Roaming around Sterling WMA is always fun: very little traffic,
interesting/unexpected patches of habitat, lots of birds, and nearly always
some unexpected species.

With shorebird migration winding down and passerine migration ramping up, we
were happy with 14 sp of shorebirds, including Black-bellied Plover at two
locations.

We also found American Bittern at two locations, and were thrilled with our
“close encounter” yesterday at Bear Lake, as in Close!

Grays Lake and Bear Lake are always amazing for their Sandhill Cranes and
Yellow-headed Blackbirds.

Two Black Terns this morning at Alexander Reservoir provided a sweet grand
finale!

There were many moments when/where we just wanted to sit back and chill.. to
soak up the varied avian orchestrations, of which there were many! =)

Good boid’n!

Larry Arnold, Boise