Last week's birds.

Last week I had some hot tips on a new 5-mile-radius bird, a Barred Owl, and on Wednesday afternoon I went searching for it.  Turns out I did not have to search hard.  It was exactly where it was supposed to be. 

So sleepy

This was my 87th 5MR bird for the year!  It was also the fourth owl species in my 5MR this year following Burrowing, Barn, and Short-eared. 

Anyway.  On Thursday I randomly chose to drive out to Dawson Creek to walk the dogs around and look at ducks.  Eurasian Wigeon was a pleasant year bird.


Also sleepy

I saw my first "storm wigeon" too, or at least storm-ish.


It looks like it shaved and its stubble is growing in. 

With the dogs tired and all of us frozen from the relentless wind and cold I decided the best thing to do was head to the auto tour at Ridgefield and be warm while I birded.

A lone Cackling Goose among Canadas made for a nice comparison view:


I once said that the albino nutria was the most vile creature I had ever seen.


I no longer believe that to be the case.  Thanks, 2017, for making albino nutria look good.

Towards the end of the route I pulled over to watch a Great Blue Heron hunt and was almost immediately rewarded. 



This little vole thing fought as hard as it could but that did not matter.  The heron swallowed it alive.



Lastly, a Rough-legged Hawk sat on the ground while a Bald Eagle perched at the top of a tree.

#classicridgefield

That's about it.  Hopefully this week won't be as rainy as predicted and I'll have a chance to get out.  Good times!!

Comments

  1. Those Great Blue Heron and vole shots - I’m impressed. Knocked out, even.

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    1. Thanks, Jean, it was an exciting little show to watch.

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  2. Terrific Owl Prowling! Amazing on the Eurasian, love the pastel colors going on...ouch for the vole, hope it was a sudden death..today I had a terrible thing happen. I was sawing a board, one of the recycled ones, and once I cut, carpenter bees came buzzing out! I had cut into their winter home, and ONE bee got cut in half...I was so upset! *tears* Felt like crap after that.

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    1. OHhhh saw on e-alerts this morning a Brambling in Lane, OR. The only place I've seen Brambling mentioned is on blogs in my friends in the UK!

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    2. Oh man that's a bummer about the bees! I would have felt bad also, but you didn't do it intentionally. Yes that Brambling has been there all winter, though I've seen one in Oregon before so haven't made the trek.

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    3. Great you have seen one, I had no idea they were there is it only in winter?

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  3. Nice shots, Jen. As for the albino nutria, I think we now know where the hairpiece of the new most vile thing comes from. As for the vole, a few weeks ago I had one run directly into the side of my boot, bounce off, and then bury its face in the grass acting like it was hidden. If I was a heron, I could have similarly ended it, but it wouldn't have been as good looking as the sequence here.

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  4. You just randomly happened to go someplace with a crushable FOY EUWI? If that is the case, I randomly saw an Emperor Goose at a park a couple days ago.

    Nice 5MR addition. I'm up to 145 in eBird...no owls! :(

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    1. Are you suggesting EUWI and Emperor Goose are on the same wavelength? You cray.

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