[obol] Sauvie Island CLAY-COLORED SPARROW, etc

[Tom McNamara]

As Shawneen just posted I did indeed go for the Clay-colored (from 12;15--1)  and I found it...........by ear only, never got the good look......Aaargh! just where she described.   I can't claim that I'm familiar with the song. What I can claim is that it is just as she rendered it and, perhaps more important, doesn't sound like  anything else. There were a number of Savannahs and House wrens hanging out and their song is like night and day different. Process of elimination in a very small pond and I'm satisfied I heard the bird.  But satisfied satisfied, no!---wanted  the look, naturally. I was somewhat pressed for time and so could not wait it out for the eventual showing. 

Thanks for the bird and good  company Shawneen, Bob and Adrienne!

Tom


________________________________
> From: shawneenfinnegan at gmail.com
> To: obol at oregonbirdwatch.org
> Subject: Sauvie Island CLAY-COLORED SPARROW, etc
> Date: Thu, 5 Jun 2008 14:52:07 -0700
> 
> Today at 10 AM, Bob Lockett, Adrienne Wolf-Lockett and I found a singing CLAY-COLORED SPARROW on Oak Island.  We later ran into Tom McNamara at the Wildlife Viewing Platform who went to look for the sparrow after we birded Rentenaar Road together. We birded in scattered light rain until about 10:45 when it began raining in ernest, though it did let up from time to time.
> 
> Directions to sparrow:  Drive out Oak Island Road and continue west all the way to the locked gate with the port-o-john is located.  Walk past the gate and walk until you reach a fork, where the trail obviously goes straight or goes to the right.  Go straight (or due west), about 50 yards to where there is grass on both sides with obvious blackberry thickets surrounded by grass on the right.  The sparrow was found in the thicket nearest to the trail, then moved to the next one to the back (north).  It was first located by its buzzy monotone song --- bzzzzz bzzzzz bzzzzz.
> 
> OAK ISLAND:
> 
> We began at Oak Island which was thick with WW PEWEES, SWAINSON'S THRUSHES, HOUSE WRENS, CEDAR WAXWINGS, BULLOCK'S ORIOLES, BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAKS, two WARBLING VIREOS, and a number of WESTERN TANAGERS.  I had one YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER, and a few YELLOWS on the very west end, but other than COMMON YELLOWTHROATS that was the only migrant warbler we saw or heard. Had one GREAT HORNED OWL, three fly-over BAND-TAILED PIGEONS, and one EURASIAN COLLARED-DOVE.  Towards the west end of the island we had a singing WILLOW FLYCATCHER and one male LAZULI BUNTING.
> 
> REEDER ROAD WILDLIFE VIEWING PLATFORM:
> 
> Next we stopped here briefly as it began to rain.  Lots and lots of swallows with the best bird being a BLUE-WINGED TEAL and 13 GREAT EGRETS. Gobs of PIED-BILLED GREBES, a few GADWALL and MALLARDS, a N SHOVELER, and a pair of AMERICAN WIGEON.
> 
> RENTENAAR ROAD:
> 
> We scored here with 2 WILSON'S PHALAROPES, 2 BONAPARTE'S GULLS, 5-6 SPOTTED SANDPIPERS, 7 BLUE-WINGED TEAL, another CINNAMON TEAL, 2 WILSON'S SNIPE, and
> 
> Shawneen Finnegan
> NW Portland, OR

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