FLOW Survey near Ashton, Idaho

Our survey near Ashton, Idaho, was indeed delayed one night due to bad weather, mainly wind.  The wind died down over the next day, and we spent most of the day birding at nearby Chester Dam and the riparian area that leads to it.  It turned out to be one of our best warbler days in Idaho, including lots of Yellow and Yellow-rumped Warblers, a few Wilson's and Orange-crowned Warblers, and a single MacGillivray's Warbler.  We also picked up a new state bird (for me!), Eastern Kingbird.

Yellow Warbler

Pine Siskins were the most abundant species, moving around in small flocks from 20 to 50 individuals.  A lot of flycatchers were out, too, including Cordilleran, Dusky, and Hammond's. A single male Bobolink was also in the riparian area.

Pine Siskin

Dusky Flycatcher

Bobolink - male

Bobolink - male

Eastern Kingbird

With the weather looking better, we were able to complete our Flammulated Owl survey that night.  Before dark, we heard Ruffed Grouse and Hermit Thrush, and spotted a few Calliope Hummingbirds during our vegetation surveys.  We didn't hea any Flammulated Owls during our survey, but we did flush a Great Horned Owl on the way to our last point.  We finished the survey in record time since the elevation change was not very drastic and we were able to start very close to our points with only a short walk in.  Just as we set up our tent for the night, the wind picked up, and we were treated to another night of the tent wall smacking us in the face.  The rain persisted through most of the morning, but we made a quick stop at a marsh where we called out a Sora, and finally got a great look at a species that has been avoiding us for a long time!  Check out Alex's post about the Sora for more photos.

Sora

On our way home in the rain, we didn't make many stops for birds, but found these Cliff and Bank Swallows lined up together on barbed wire near American Falls Dam.

Cliff and Bank Swallows

Later this week I will head out with our new co-worker Morgan to continue owl surveys where Alex and I left off.

Flammulated Owl and a few Great-horned Owls: Surveys near Malad City and Driggs, Idaho

Two days ago, Alex and I completed an owl survey grid near Malad City, Idaho.  Our survey grids consist of 4 points spaced 500 meters apart on national forest land.  Sometimes there is a road that can get you close, but sometimes not.  On our Malad City grid, we did have a road that got us within 500 meters of our points, but we had to pretty much slide down a steep rock scree to get to the points.  We try to do the lowest elevation points first, so we don't have to do as much steep hiking at night.  In general this plan worked out at this site, with a few steep scrambles every now and then that were unavoidable.  The site was mostly juniper forests, interspersed with meadows and sage here and there.  In the meadows, wildflowers were abundant, and we found our FOY Blue-gray Gnatcatchers flying around.  Dusky Flycatchers were all over the place, too.  On the way to each point, we've been running tracks on our GPS, so we have an "easy" path to follow on the way back.  Following this has been pretty important because of streams that don't have many stream crossings due to snow melt.

At our second survey point of the night, we got a Flammulated Owl to respond to our calls!  At first he was pretty far away and only gave us two hoots...but eventually he moved in and became pretty vocal.  He was very chatty as we walked to our next point, but it seems like he stayed in his small canyon since we didn't hear him at our next point.  The way out of this site was of course the steep rock scree, which was pretty challenging to climb in the dark...but the thought of a big jar of peanut butter kept me going (although very slowly).  We then continued on to a road point down a muddy road, and flushed two Great-horned Owls on the way.  Our final road point of the night was inaccessible due to lots of snow, but we found a nice place to camp.  The ground was a little wet, so we put our tent in the bed of the truck.  I am VERY grateful for my tent that sets up in under a minute, because at 2:00 am after a night of steep hiking, I am borderline delirious.  As soon as we got in the tent, it started raining.  If you were anywhere in south eastern Idaho two nights ago trying to sleep in a tent, you probably had the challenge of sleeping through wind gusts that were nearly blowing your tent away.  Despite the tent wall smacking me in the face all night, I slept like a rock.  The next day we checked out Oxford Slough, which was loaded with great birds like Snowy Egrets, White-faced Ibis, and Willets, and we watched an adult Peregrine Falcon hunting a flock of phalaropes (he missed).

We drove about 3 hours north towards Driggs Idaho, where we scoped out our road and grid points for the evening.  The grid points were bisected by a major road, which meant we only had to walk a few hundred meters to get to each.  This thought was a little reassuring because this site apparently put us in Grizzly Bear country. Unfortunately, there was an overflowing river in our way, and even though we could pretty much see the points from the road, we had to hike in on an 800 meter long detour.  It turned out fine though, since there wasn't much underbrush and the elevation changes weren't very drastic, and the chances of running into a big angry bear are pretty slim.  On one of the points, I heard a distance Great-horned Owl, but we didn't hear anything else.  The road points also turned out to be uneventful, even though they seemed to be located in excellent Flammulated Owl habitat (mixed conifers with large patches of aspen).

Today we will head a little north towards Ashton, Idaho, and hope the predicted rain/snow/wind holds off.

Check out this link to see some info about our target species, the Flammulated Owl.  Despite being a very small owl, these guys have a pretty low "hoot" that they repeat over and over every 2-3 seconds (they can sound pretty similar to a Long-eared Owl).

First Night of Flammulated Owl Surveys - near Inkom, Idaho

Yesterday, Alex and I drove toward Inkom, Idaho to start out first night of Flammulated Owl Surveys. Our goal was to complete a survey grid consisting of 4 points on the western edge of the Caribou-Taghee National Forest, and complete 4 road points afterwards.

When we arrived at 6:30, it was snowing on the mountain. Luckily, our points were about 1/2 mile below the fresh snow.  Unfortunately there was still some snow pack left, and it was just enough to get into your boots.  The mountain was pretty steep...just looking at it almost gave me an asthma attack, and I don't even have asthma.  The closest road to our first point was almost a kilometer away.  This doesn't sound far, but we had to hike up and down a few steep slopes and slide down a few snow banks to eventually get to our first point around 7:45 pm.  It didn't help that at the bottom of each slope was a small raging river.  It was time-consuming to find crossings, but we saved ourselves from wet feet.  We crossed mostly through shrub-steppe habitat and thick riparian areas, but our first point was surrounded by a clump of Aspen and Douglas Fir, with a tangle of undergrowth.  It looked like really good Flammulated Owl habitat, and a few Ruffed Grouse were drumming nearby.  We moved through and did vegetation surveys on the second point, which was more out in the open sage and rabbit brush.  Between the second and third point, we had pretty energy-draining nearly-vertical climb that kicked my butt, and had me really regretting that beefy-five layer burrito I scarfed down earlier at Taco Bell.  About half way up this slope we flushed a Dusky Grouse, and through my huffing and puffing and random swear words, I could hear a few Green-tailed Towhees calling as the sun set.  Points 3 and 4 were our highest elevation points, so the plan was to start owl surveys at them (half hour after sunrise) and work our way down slope to points 1 and 2.  Unfortunately, there was a massive ravine with a few cliffs between points 3 and 4, and the slope above it was a steep snow bank, likely to turn to ice after sunset.  At that point we didn't have time to turn back and find a new route, so we sat at point 3 for about 20 minutes, while I pretended my peanut butter crackers and granola bars were big juicy hamburgers.  We didn't hear any owls at our points, and only really heard a far-away dog barking down in the valley.  The hike out took about an hour and a half.  We got tangled up in a few riparian areas, but eventually found our way back to the road and our truck.  We made an attempt to get to the road points, but gates blocked our way.  Our truck started smoking around 1:00 am, so we decided to call it a night and head for Pocatello where we could get it looked at in the morning.  My body wasn't quite ready to stay up past 1:30 am, but hopefully over the next few days I can get back into a nocturnal schedule.  I am unsure if I am sleepy today or not, but when I look at our topo maps for tonights surveys, I just want to curl up in my sleeping bag and take a nap!

I really like nocturnal work; I spent a few months back in 2008 tracking Northern Saw-whet Owls (look up the 2008 archives!) at night in Pennsylvania with Scott Weidensaul.  In fact, I thought about Scott a few time last night as we bush-whacked through some thick underbrush.  I think the best nights tracking saw-whets were when I could actually hear the Saw-whets talking around me. So I am looking forward to coming across any owls on our surveys, and hope I get to hear a few saw-whet "toots" at some point.  It obviously can be extremely challenging to walk around at night, but the owl encounters always make it worth it.  On top of that, we had a great view last night at our highest elevation point, and I can honestly say I would have never climbed that mountain if I wasn't looking for owls.

No photos today!

Orange Overload

After coming home from work in the evenings, I usually refill my bird feeders and put out new oranges.  Two nights ago, the colorful birds were going absolutely crazy over the oranges, and yellow and orange streaks where darting everywhere in between angry chatters. 

Six male Western Tanagers dominated the oranges, while a female Western Tanager chased every Bullock's Oriole that even looked at the suet feeder away.  Both male and female Black-headed Grosbeaks stuck to the seed feeder, but occasionally sneaked over to an orange when no one else was looking.  By far these are the most colorful yard birds I have ever had!

Western Tanager - male

Western Tanager - male

Western Tanager - male

Western Tanager - male at suet

Western Tanager - male

Bullock's Oriole - male at suet

Black-headed Grosbeak - male

Black-headed Grosbeak - female sneaking a bite of orange

Black-headed Grosbeak - female at feeder with peanut

This blog post is a part of WORLD BIRD WEDNESDAY!

Birding Update for Boise, ID parks

I've been staying fairly close to Boise over the last few days for birding.  There are a few species out right now that you are pretty much guaranteed to see if you visit any of Boise's parks, especially Foote Park and Discovery Park.  Bullock's Orioles are very numerous and have begun nesting, and are the most numerous yard bird we have at the moment.  They devour about 5 oranges a day up at our camper.

Bullock's Oriole - immature male

Bullock's Oriole - male

Black-headed Grosbeaks are also everywhere, and seem to jump around in flocks with orioles and Western Tanagers.  No one really touched the suet feeder in our yard the first few weeks we had it out, but the Black-headed Grosbeaks surprisingly love it!

Black-headed Grosbeak - male

Black-headed Grosbeak - male at suet feeder

Western Tanagers are also here in full force, and we noticed a surge of them with a storm two nights ago.  Surprisingly, they also really like the oranges at our feeders, but are easily bullied by the Bullock's Orioles that dominate the oranges.  House Wrens and Magpies also visit our oranges throughout the day.

Western Tanager - female

Western Tanager - male

If you've been birding in the foothills near Boise, you've likely come across huge flocks of Chipping Sparrows in the past week and a half or so.  There were hundreds on the hillsides by Foote Park a week ago, and the numbers seem to be dropping off just slightly.

Chipping Sparrow

While birding with local birder "RL" at Foote Park a few days ago, we came across our FOY Wilson's Warbler and Warbling Vireo!!!  Both species are pretty much a guarantee this week at Foote and Discovery Parks.

Wilson's Warbler

RL and I also found about 6 different Dusky Flycatchers.  Gray flycatchers have been reported here, but we haven't yet been able to spot one.

Dusky Flycatcher

And although they've been around for awhile, I still enjoy seeing Lewis's Woodpeckers in our yard and at Discovery Park.  They may be turning into my new favorite woodpecker species!

Lewis's Woodpecker

Yesterday, while birding with Alex and our new co-worker Morgan, we found our first MacGillivrays Warbler at Foote Park.  We didn't get photos, but we are sure we will come across more.  Yellow Warblers are still packed in as well, and are now busy nest-building at Foote Park. 

Another guarantee is now Lazuli Bunting, which are one of the most common birds at Foote Park and are easily spotted foraging low in the willows.

Lazuli Bunting - male

Yellow-breasted Chats are now on territories as well, and are chatting their little hearts out at Foote Park.  They are a lot more visible and less sneaky now that they are defending territories, and can be easily spotted when they do their crazy displays.

Yellow-breasted Chat - male

Spring has arrived in Boise, Idaho

We've been pretty busy lately, but have been birding here and there and adding a few more state birds (like Red-necked Grebe, Wilson's Warbler, Warbling Vireo, and MacGillivray's Warbler).  While birding, we typically come across mammals, and in the past few days, we've encountered a number of cute baby mammals. In addition, most trees have now leafed out, so the combination of baby animals and leafy trees is a pretty good sign that we are leaving bad weather behind us until the fall.

In Idaho, the most common mammals we have come across while birding are Mule Deer, Coyotes, Yellow-bellied Marmots, and Red Fox.  At Discovery Park just south of Boise, Idaho, a trio of Yellow-belled Marmot babies have emerged, and hang out near the paved path eating grass.  Yellow-bellied Marmots,  Marmota flaviventris, are 1 of the 6 species of marmots found in North America (in the east, we have "Groundhogs," Marmota monax-also known as Woodchucks). Typically, Yellow-bellied Marmots have 4 pups, and only about half survive. At the park, the babies are getting a little more wary as they get older, but for now you can take photos from a distance until mom or the oldest baby realizes you are watching.

This baby looks like the runt of the litter...cute overload!

an older but still cute baby

The third baby marmot..looking more like an obese squirrel than a marmot

baby marmot

Across the dam at Foote Park this morning, we came across this adorable baby Red Fox.  We had seen an adult in the area a few weeks ago, but this is the first time we saw one of its babies.  It was hiding in a storm drainage, likely waiting for its mom to return.  It had no fear of us, and it was very young, so I think this is one of the first times its been out of its den.

baby Red Fox

Meanwhile, birds are nesting and some already have fledged chicks.  At Foote Park, there are a number of American Robin nests that are easily observed, and Bullock's Orioles are hard at work constructing their intricately designed hanging basket nests.  Females build most of the nest, but males are known to help out.  Today we watched a female hard at work adding thin material to her nest.

American Robins feeding chicks at nest

female Bullock's Oriole constructing nest

In another area of the park, a young male Bullock's Oriole was constructing a nest that is nearing completion.  You can only really see his tail in the photo, but this nest is a good example of the shape of a completed nest.  This one will be filled in a little more and within a few days will have eggs in it.

Sub adult male Bullock's Oriole constructing nest

And of course, baby geese are getting larger and have infiltrated most of Boise's parks.

Canada Goose chicks

And don't forget to check out this post about baby Horned Larks!

Lapland Longspur in Canyon County, Idaho

Today while rope-dragging to look for Long-billed Curlew nests, we stumbled upon a great state/year bird, a female Lapland Longspur.  Check out Alex's photos and story over at Nemesis Bird!

A not-so-wild Wild Turkey...

A few days after we drove to Idaho to start work for IBO in early April, we came back to our camper trailer to find a huge male Wild Turkey walking around the yard.  We thought maybe he was a pet, kind of a Fish and Game mascot.  You could walk right up to him and he would just make his way slowly in the other direction.  He seemed to be in no real hurry to go anywhere and seemed to be enjoying his little vacation in our yard.  Turkeys really aren't supposed to be in the foothills, but from what we heard, someone down the road had him in their yard for a few days, and we were the next lucky people to be graced with his strange presence.  He was a wild, Wild Turkey. Over the next few days, I really started liking the turkey.  He followed me around a lot, and was like my little own pet Turkey (not that I have ever said outloud that I want a pet turkey).  On day 2, he puffed up his feathers for me for a few seconds, and he looked even bigger.  Borderline intimidating, but he settled down and shrunk back down to normal turkey size within a few seconds.

Turkey Dinner? Pet? So many feelings...

On day 3, things got a little strange when I sat on my step to put my shoes on. Apparently, getting down at "turkey height" was a bad idea. Mr. Turkey got overly excited, and began a pretty elaborate mating display. He moved his way closer and displayed just a few inches away. I tried not to encourage him, but Alex came out and started flapping his human wings at him. Mr. Turkey got pretty livid, and no more was he quietly displaying to a potential turkey mate, but defending his potential turkey mate from a strange turkey-human. His actions changed drastically, and he went into territorial mode. I think this was the point in time when he put a big target on Alex's back.

I finished putting on my shoes and going about my activities with Mr. Turkey following close behind, still displaying, a bit happier now that Alex was out of the picture.  When I went in the camper, he displayed outside my window, like he knew I could see him.  You could hear his loud turkey gobbles echoing through the valley.

This is what a turkey looks like *before* he falls in love with you...

(photo by Alex Lamoreaux)

This is what a turkey looks like *after* he falls in love with you...

Turkey or dinosaur?

A little later in the day, Alex was out at his car, unpacking some things from our trip.  Within seconds the turkey jumped on his back and was violently kicking him.  I walked out the door just in time to see Alex running for the broom, the turkey hot on his trail.  Believe it or not I ran out to defend the turkey from an inevitable broom whack, but Alex was the one that needed defended.  I felt like a school teacher breaking up the fight, getting between the two sparring males, eventually having to 'walk' the turkey away from Alex.  It was clear that Alex made an enemy here, and from that point on I had to escort Alex around the yard, keeping the crazed bird at bay.  The turkey even started attacking Alex's car, but I think he was only going after his own reflection.  Eventually the turkey attacked our co-worker Eddie, and started liking a female Fish and Game employee that works in a nearby trailer.  He would puff out his feathers as soon as we drove our truck up the driveway, and would disappear into the night, still displaying.  Over the next few days, he finally stopped displaying, and became more like a big yard chicken again.  In a few more days he disappeared, just as I was about to plan a turkey re-location effort to help him find a real mate.  Even though we found a few turkey feathers in a nearby meadow, I can only hope he continued his quest into the valley for a more suitable non-human mate!

This post is a part of WORLD BIRD WEDNESDAY!

Yellow-billed Cuckoos just around the corner...

When it comes to finding field work, you've got to be on the ball and apply for jobs a season in advance.  Right now, you should have a summer job lined up (if your spring job doesn't continue through summer), and pretty soon, you should start thinking about fall work, as employers start advertising fall positions.  Alex and I had so much fun in Arizona and California last summer tracking Yellow-billed Cuckoos that we are going to do it again, starting in mid-July, to end out the summer field work season. I am getting pretty excited to make the trip to California and jam pack in a bunch of work and birding in a month before we have to head back to Pennsylvania for the fall.  Yellow-billed Cuckoos are pretty awesome birds to work with, and we should be arriving when the tree tops are full of fledglings and hopefully a few hidden nests!  Check out this post about one of our last days of work in Arizona, when we caught a Yellow-billed Cuckoo in the net with a praying mantis in its mouth!

Meanwhile, until we get there, check out our friend Tims blog, Words About Birds.  Tim just arrived a few days ago to start work on a Willow Flycatcher project, and is living in Blythe, California with some of our co-workers and our bosses Shannon and Diane.  He's already got a pretty sweet yard list, living a little closer to trees than we did last summer!

Barn Owl in Bank Swallow Colony

Following a tip from our friend Gary Worthington, Alex and I were headed for a location where Gary has reliably seen Bewick's Wren.  It was late in the day, so we didn't see it, but we did stop at a massive Bank Swallow Colony.  This is the biggest I have seen.  There are multiple layers, and I am sure a few thousand Bank Swallows are nesting in it.  I didn't have my small lens, so the picture doesn't really do a good job showing it's size.  Bank Swallows seem to be the only species in the small cavities, besides a few European Starlings. 

Bank Swallow Colony

In the largest cavity on the bank, Alex spotted a Barn Owl, which is a favorite bird for both of us (Barn Owl is the first species I worked with).  It looks like it might be on a nest, but it could also just be sitting a little lower.  In western Pennsylvania, Barn Owls are pretty much nonexistant, but they are becoming more abundant in eastern Pennsylvania because of nest boxes that are provided for them.  We see many road-killed on the roads here, unfortunately, so it was nice to finally see one alive.

Barn Owl roosting in Bank Swallow Colony

close-up of Barn Owl...on a nest?

This post is a part of WORLD BIRD WEDNESDAY! Share your bird blog and photos :o)