[obol] Ft. Rock/Christmas Valley

[Kim Boddie]

Marian Davidson, Jim Langton and I spent the day in Ft. Rock and Christmas Valleys checking out the raptor populations and we found lots (195).  The main attraction in the raptor division was a Burrowing Owl just east of Ft. Rock Village.  This was the first I have seen in the area.  The other unexpected bird was a Eurasian Collared-Dove which was out in the Juniper sage flats.

Here is what we saw and could ID.  We counted raptors and not most other species.

Red-tailed Hawk   118            Am. Kestrel    13        N. Harrier  7
Bald Eagle  2 A, 1 S                Golden Eagle  1        Swainson's Hawk  6
Ferruginous Hawk  11            Prairie Falcon    5        Cooper's Hawk  1
Unid. Buteo   5                        Burrowing Owl  1        Great-horned Owl  5
Osprey 1

Others:
Sage Thrasher (lots)                Mt. Bluebirds (hundreds)    W. Meadowlark
Green-tailed towhee             Chipping Sparrow         Vesper Sparrow
Sage Sparrow                        White-throated Swift    Mourning Dove
Common Raven (saw one murder of 80)                    Loggerhead Shrike (7)
Eurasian Collared-dove        W. Kingbird                    Horned Lark
Wilson's Phalarope                Bufflehead                     Canada Goose
Mallard                                    Rudy Duck                     Am. Coot
Killdeer                                    Cinnamon Teal                Am. Shoveler
Common Nighthawk                N. Rough-winged Swallow    Tree Swallow
Barn Swallow                        California Quail                House Finch
House Sparrow                    Am. Goldfinch                    European Starling
Red-winged blackbird           Brewer's Blackbird        B. headed Cowbird
Red Crossbill                        Savannah Sparrow         Brewer's Sparrow
Violet-green Swallow    White-headed Woodpecker    Cassin's Finch

We also saw about 50 Pronghorn, 1 Cow Elk in an alfalfa field, and 1 coyote.

We had quite a day in the desert.

--kim boddie
Bend 
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