[obol] Fern Ridge birds

[Alan Contreras]

I went to Fern Ridge Reservoir with Tim Lee and his father Chun-il today.
This was Tim's "farewell" birding trip, as he leaves Eugene in three weeks
to begin his freshman year at Berkeley.

The marshes and flats between Fisher and Royal were very birdy today.  Three
small flocks of ibis were present.  At least fifty Greater Yellowlegs were
spread out over the area.  At least five Lessers were present.  Other
shorebirds included about 40 Least, widely scattered, two Western, local
killdeer and one imm. Wilson's Phalarope on the Redhead Pond.  About 50
dowitchers were around; all that we could see well or hear were Long-bills.
Light was not good on them for the most part.

About 25 Great Egrets were around, plenty of GBH and a Green Heron.

Black tern numbers are very high this year.  The ponds south of Royal are
swarming with them.  Likewise Purple martins; there were at least 30 martins
perched and flying over those ponds, and scattered singles all over the
area.

At the SW corner of the large pond just south of Royal, usually called the
Redhead Pond, Tim saw a blackbird with a white epaulette edge.  Better views
a few minutes later showed a nice white edge, a bill more slender and
"orioly" than that of an adjacent redwing, and at some angles a somewhat
Brewers-like gloss.  The red on the epaulettes was not in direct sunlight,
and looked pretty red to me most of the time, perhaps not red enough for
Tricolored according to one observer's thoughts.

My three photos, all in bad light, show the white edge very nicely, show
some partly hidden red and unfortunately don't show a side view of the bill.
I had excellent comparative looks at the bill with an adjacent redwing.

One thing the photos seem to show is longer primary extension on the
Tricolored cmpared to adjacent Redwing; I have no idea if that is a
legitimate field mark.

This is a fifth county record.  Four previous reports, August 13, 2005, July
13, 2003, Jan. 6, 1999 and Apr. 6, 1996, all at Fern Ridge Res.

Tim can add anything I forgot.

-- 
Alan Contreras
EUGENE, OREGON
acontrer at mindspring.com