[obol] Ankeny NWR Shorebirds 8/2/06

[Roy Gerig]

Anytime you can find 10 or more species of shorebirds around the Salem area, 
that is special - not Christmas or New Year's Eve in Oakland with the 
Grateful Dead or anything, but more like President's Day or Canada's Flag 
Day - a little bit special.

At Ankeny south of Salem I saw 10 species of shorebirds in a walk around 
Pintail Marsh and around the southwest part of Mohoff Pond where most of 
them were.

Greater Yellowlegs 15
Lesser Yellowlegs 3
Killdeer 25+
Dowitcher sp.  (I thought I heard some Short-billed sounds, but most had 
longer bills)
Spotted Sandpiper 3 (1 juvenile)
BAIRD'S SANDPIPER 1 (caps because it is the first of the fall migration, we 
always get a few)
Wilson's Phalarope 2 (JUVENILES)
RED-NECKED PHALAROPE 1 (we always get just a few, this one was also there 2 
or 3 days ago)
Least Sandpiper 40
Western Sandpiper 15

A few days ago, I walked the same route and saw in addition to most of the 
above, Black-bellied Plover 1, and Semipalmated Plover 3.

I also saw a confusing swallow, looked for all the world like a Bank 
Swalllow, but I assume juvenile Tree Swallow.  It is just that the breast 
band contrasted sharply with the white throat and belly, very distinct and I 
have never seen a juvie Tree Swallow's "breast band" anywhere near that 
distinct.  It didn't give me much time, and only one good look for about 5 
seconds.

Over at the kiosk on the other road at Ankeny there were 40 Dowitchers way 
out there in the muck, looked they had shorter bills.  Probably 11 shorebird 
species were there today.

A giant white goose was flying with the 100 or so giant Canada Geese above 
Egret Marsh, way bigger than the Canadas.

Roy Gerig, Salem OR

"The piano has been drinking, not me" - Tom Waits.  I just thought of that 
today when I had to call someone back to clarify the message she'd left on 
my answering machine, I told her that my machine doesn't articulate well...