Marion County Big Day 5-5-16

Hi All,

On 5/5/16 four of us did a big day in Marion County.  This included myself, Brandon Wagner, Doug Robinson and Tyler Hallman.  Jenna Curtis, who has joined us in the past was in Panama, so was excused.  Last year we did Yamhill County, and the year prior Polk County. Doing a big day is fun and takes a lot of planning and strategy to find the most possible birds in one day, and spring migration is the best time.

We met at Brandon’s house, just north of Independence at 4:45 A.M. and went south and over the Independence bridge into Marion County.  Our first owling stop was quiet, but the following one, a couple miles north of Ankeny NWR, yielded Common Yellowthroat (1) Spotted Towhee (2) American Robin (3) Tree Swallow (4) Great-horned (5) and Western Screech owls (6).  En route to Pintail Marsh we had Savannah Sparrow (7) in the head-lights and heard both Song Sparrow (8) and Western Meadowlark (9) in the vicinity.

As there was a report on OBOL the day before of a late Snow Goose (10) at Ankeny, we stopped at Pintail Marsh to scan over what geese spent the night there, and in the dim light were able to find it, as well as Cackling Goose (11) Canada Goose (12) Northern Shoveler (13) Gadwall (14) and heard Black Phoebe (15) Bewick’s Wren (16) and Red-tailed Hawk (17).

There were other waterfowl that we could have added to the list, but we would return after a visit to the Rail Trail just down the road.  By now it was 5:30 A.M. and our next few additions to the list for the day would not be visual, but by ear.  A minute or two in the parking lot at the trailhead gave us Brown Creeper (18) Mourning Dove (19) Black-capped Chickadee (20) and Yellow Warbler (21).  We spend some 40 minutes walking the trail and marsh and by the time we were back in the car our list was at 46 with the additions of: Yellow-breasted Chat, American Goldfinch, Red-winged Blackbird, Swanson’s Thrush, American Bittern, Marsh Wren, Cinnamon Teal, Mallard, Yellow-headed Blackbird, Virginia Rail, Brown-headed Cowbird, Sora, Great Egret, Downy Woodpecker, Red-breasted Sapsucker, Northern Flicker, Starling, White-breasted Nuthatch, Wilson’s Warbler, Anna’s Hummingbird, Crow, Warbling Vireo, Western Tanager, Bullock’s Oriole, and Black-headed Grosbeak.

A short drive back to Pintail Marsh and we were back out of the car.  It was 06:15 and light was just fine now to see everything.  We spent 30 minutes between here and a short walk to the Frog Pond adding: Least (47) and Western Sandpipers (48) Long-billed Dowitcher (49) Green-winged Teal (50) American Wigeon (51) Common Goldeneye (52) Greater Yellowlegs (53) Barn Swallow (54) Northern Pintail (55) Cliff Swallow (56) Bald Eagle (57) Ring-necked Duck (58) Northern Rough-winged Swallow (59) Ruddy Duck (60) Peregrine Falcon (61) Killdeer (62) Brewer’s Blackbird (63) Dunlin (64) Orange-crowned Warbler (65) Wood Duck (66) and Great-blue Heron (67).  The Common Goldeneyes and Snow Goose were really the only bonus birds of the day - species you really cannot expect.

A short jaunt west across the R&R tracks and we decided to pull over into the viewpoint and added Kestrel (68) Horned Lark (69) and  an overdue Eurasian Collared Dove (70)  A half mile down the road at the small community of Sidney were Acorn Woodpecker (71) House Finch (72) House Sparrow (73).  On the short way to Eagle Marsh we added Violet-green Swallow (74) Scrub Jay (75) and Osprey (76).  We parked in the lot on the east side of the same R&R tracks to check out the wetland there and added  Bushtit (77).  

At Eagle Marsh we added Pied-billed Grebe (78) Bufflehead (79) Lesser Scaup (80) Cooper’s Hawk (81) and Vaux Swift (82).  A few yards east we stopped on the north side pull out and added Semi-palmated Plover (83).  I should stop and explain here, since there are readers who do not do big days or realize that there are certain rules which the ABA has in place to make such efforts “official.”  One of them is that everyone in the group must see or hear 95% of all the birds on the list.  The last addition was only  heard by one in the group, and played a part in returning to the refuge later in the day.  If you know your math, this means that by the time you reach 100, you have 5 “grace birds,” so to say, which you keep track of, and it doesn’t  matter too much at the end of the day so long as you don’t accumulate more than the 5%. So for every 20 species you are only allowed one  grace bird which is not seen or heard by everyone, and so you try to keep those ones to a minimum and knock them off of the grace list as you can.

Just east we parked at the junction of Buena Vista and Ankeny Hill Rds and picked up Evening Grosbeak (84) Purple Finch (85) Western Wood-pewee (86) and White-crowned Sparrow (87).  We planned to head over to Duck Flat Road but took the long way there, going into South Salem and picked up Turkey Vulture (88) en route.  Our first stop was the gravel pond in back of Kelley’s Furniture Store where we got Double-crested Cormorant (89) Spotted Sandpiper (90) Band-tailed Pigeon (91) and Northern Harrier (92).  At the lake in front of Lowe’s we got our only Coot (93) of the day.  From there we went the short distance to Cascade Gateway Park where we picked up Rock Pigeon (94) Green Heron (95) House Wren (96) and in leaving we spied 2 large gulls in the distance, which counted as a large gull species (97).  At another nearby gravel pit 2 of us heard a California Quail (98).  This would play into those grace issues later in the day.

From south Salem we headed to Duck Flat Rd and the nice wetlands there.  Tyler and I had been here scouting the previous week.  Both of us had never been here before and were quite impressed with the place.  The first bird added to the list here was a Ring-necked Pheasant (99), followed by Wilson’ Snipe (100) and Junco (101), the only other additions, which seemed a little bit deflating for a place with such great potential, but the unexpected is the norm on a big day.

On our drive east  it was somehow brought up about my new hearing aids, and someone used the word “powerful” to describe them.  Guess it was a stark contrast from last year when it was quite obvious (at least to me) that I was being left out when it came to hearing some of the birds.  So I explained they were so powerful I could hear their thoughts, which brought out a few laughs.  But I was reminded they were not all that great when we went by Niagra Park and someone read the sign, but I thought they were joking around, for to my ears it sounded like “Viagra Park.”  That seemed to set the stage for viagra jokes and jests on occasion during the rest of the day.

We now started for the mountains, stopping first at Fisherman’s Bend Campground.  We arrived there at 10:15 and within one or two minutes after  getting out of the car added Hermit Warbler (102) Black-throated Warbler (103) Pacific Wren (104) Rufous Hummingbird (105) Pacific-sloped (106) and Hammond’s Flycatcher (107).  A little down the way toward the Santiam River we added Chestnut-sided Chickadee (108) and on the water Common Merganser (109).  If we were here a couple weeks ago, Harlequin Ducks would likely have been on the river, but by now had dispersed father upstream.  It was still a great stop, and reaching 108 by this time of day was great motivation to keep going.

We made short stops here and there, scanning Detroit Lake for loons or grebes, but did not find anything new for the list until we reached Detroit Flats, at the head of Detroit Lake.  This area has become well known in recent times for attracting east side migrants heading north, and the week before Tyler and I saw species that would certainly make good additions to the list.  Today was a not to be quite as good, but nevertheless, we added a few here: Lincoln’s Sparrow (110) Dusky and Gray Flycatchers (111 & 112) Raven, (113) Ring-billed Gull (114) Belted Kingfisher (115), and one distinctive Flatulated Flycatcher.  But seeing we were up against the clock with holes still on the list, we stopped farting around and got more serious, if you can believe that one.  On the way back to the town of Detroit we heard a Macgillivray’s Warbler (116). We stopped in the general store there for a few needs, then headed west, over the bridge and turned right and eventually headed up FS Rd 2225.  

Osprey at Detroit Flats

Gray Flycatcher - Detroit Flats

Dusky Flycatcher - Detroit Flats

About 4 miles up this road we stopped twice, adding Sooty Grouse (117) Townsend’s Solitare (118) Golden-crowned Kinglet (119) Northern Pygmy Owl (120) and Red-breasted Nuthatch (121).

Northern Pygmy Owl above Detroit

Tyler Hallman trying to convince Brandon and Doug about hearing a Golden-crowned Kinglet

From here we descended back to Detroit Lake, then headed up Rt 46 with hopes of eventually reaching Ollalie Meadows.  Out strategy was to now find  various high elevation species there and along the way, one of which was a long overdue Stellar’s Jay (122).  I had told Tyler, when scouting the week before, that one thing we would learn on our big day was how to do a better big day in Marion County based on our short-comings.  When you don’t live in an area and are not acquainted with it intimately, you are not aware of little side trips to find one or two species you are ignorant of, and so the list at the end of the day tends to reflect such.  Plus, you learn what you should not have done.  We probably got within 10 miles of Olallie Meadows and came across a fallen log in the road, too large to move, so turned around and took a couple spur roads to try to get higher up. (We also had reached a little snow, and we will never know if that would have impeded us as well.)  We were able to add Hermit and Varied Thrush (123 & 124) Yellow-rumped Warbler (125) Golden-crowned Sparrow (126) Pileated and Hairy Woodpeckers (127 & 128) and Grey Jay (129).  This part of the strategy took too much time and plus we were some 90 minutes from being back in the lowlands.  If we were to do it again we would more likely find a closer place to Detroit to try for higher elevation species.

Now it was downhill all the way back to the lowlands.  Near Big Cliff Reservoir we finally found our American Dipper (130) for the day.  We next needed to figure out some strategy for adding what birds we could with what day light we had left.  During a big day event, this is the time of day when you look over your list and figure out what you have not seen, where you can find it, figure out if you have enough time to chase whatever easier birds are left.  

Since this was our 3rd big day effort as a group (minus Jenna) we had toyed with a name for it, something to call ourselves like they do for the world series of birding that takes place every year in New Jersey.  Since we had some time to kill while driving to the next destination, I decided to bring up the idea again. We more or less accepted a name I suggested for now, called the “Big Day Dudes.”  If Jenna rejoins us next year we would of course need to change it, but for now it will work.  In doing these big days, the group develops a certain comradery, friendship and trust that is uplifting and lays a foundation for similar events in the future.

Tyler had done his homework and figured out in advance some birds we might be needing and where to find them, one of the great features of Ebird.  Being one of Doug’s undergrad students, tech savvy and pursuing a degree in wildlife science, and a great birder, he was a great asset to the group.  He also had the best hearing in the group, so was often hearing birds the rest were not.  This led to the occasional ribbing of wondering if some of them were a figment of his imagination, but in the end, he was proved right more often than not, so we were OK with taking his word for it and usually soon the bird would be heard by the rest of us. He remembered a place not far off the hwy where both Lazuli Buntings and Vesper Sparrows were a possibility, so we checked it out, but came up empty.  We then went to Silverton and stopped at the residence of John Thomas.  Tyler had been there recently to see the wintering Harris’ Sparrow. Plus there were Lesser Goldfinches there at the time.  We mused about Pine Siskins being possible as well.  We dipped on all of them.  Plus, we had 7 species on the grace list, which meant that we could really only count 129 at this point.  But while at Thomas' place I saw a California Quail, which did not change anything, but we were maybe a little closer being that 3 of us had seen or heard one, leaving us to get one for Brandon.

Next stop was at back to Duckflat Rd where we figured by now the lighting would be great, being in back of us.  We were able to add Wilson’s Phalarope (131) and Lesser Yellowlegs (132).  While there I figured it was time for a group picture, so had the guys line up and mounted my camera on my tripod.  My camera is fairly new to me, and I could not remember how to set the timer, so ended up taking a few pictures before I figured it out.  My eyes are quite far sighted, so need glasses for reading, and I could not read the various settings, and ended up setting the feature that takes 60 frames at a time.  I am not sure why cameras might be needed for such, but when it was all over, I thought I only took 4 pictures of us, but when I got around to uploading them on my home PC, it turns out I took 240 pictures of the Big Day Dudes!  And the one where I am in it is not even in focus! Oh well, at least most of the rest of the day went well.

We had limited time left  and so needed to make a decision: Return to Ankeny NWR or head to a friend of Brandon’s where we could possible find Western Bluebird and Chipping Sparrow.  We opted for Ankeny partly because when reading OBOL at mid day we found out someone saw 2 Semipalmated Plovers there, one we needed to knock off the grace list. 

When almost to Pintail Marsh we found a California Quail along side the road, so now those on the grace list would not penalize us.  The light was fading badly, and it was getting harder to see, but after 5 minutes  and not finding anything new, we made a bee line over to Eagle Marsh where we found a female Hooded Merganser (133), the final bird for the day.  

We made the drive back to Brandon’s with our headlights on, arriving about 9 PM. tired but satisfied.  While listing 133 species is respectable, any big day always has some misses.  In reviewing these we figure 140 is certainly reachable, and even 150 is possible if the weather and luck good your way.  So here is a list of gettable birds we missed: Greater-white Fronted Goose, Blue-winged Teal, Greater Scaup, Wild Turkey, Mountain Quail, any migrating Loon or Grebe, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Black-bellied Plover, Solitary Sandpiper, Red-necked Phalarope, a few species of owls, Western Kingbird, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Cassin’s and Hutton’s Vireos, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Western Bluebird, Pipit, Cedar Waxwing, Nashville Warbler, Townsend’s Warbler, Vesper and Fox Sparrows, Lazuli Bunting, Cassin’s Finch, Red Crossbill, Pine Siskin, Lesser Goldfinch.  

The "Big Day Dudes"From Left to Right:
Bill Tice, Doug Robinson, Brandon Wagner and Tyler Hallman

Next year???  We did not make any firm plans but did bring up Linn, Tillamook and Wasco Counties to consider.  We hope this piece inspires you to get out birding more, and even try doing a big day.  They are fun and you learn things you may not have realized before about bird migration and habits.