I spent a long Thanksgiving weekend in eastern Modoc County, doing a
little birding each day from 25 to 29 Nov. around Goose Lake (which is
still completely dry except for a film of water at several seeps and
creek mouths) and Alturas.   My general impression was that most
wintering birds, including both passerines and waterfowl, were in low
numbers.  For example, my maximum daily total of swans around Alturas
did not exceed 50 on any day (which, fortunately, made it easier to pick
out some Trumpeters and "Bewick's"), and I saw only two Zonotrichia the
entire weekend (single White- and Golden-crowned Sparrows).  American
Robins were in good numbers in the New Pine Creek area, with 2-3000
birds seen on 25 Nov., but otherwise were scattered in low/moderate
numbers elsewhere around Goose Lake and Alturas.  I had only two
shrikes, a Northern near Dorris Reservoir (east of Alturas) on 28 Nov.
and a Loggerhead south of Goose Lake on 27 and 28 Nov.



Buteos were in good numbers, though.  An informal census of the Alturas
area, including the valley between Alturas and Likely, on 26 Nov.
produced 138 Red-tailed, 18 Rough-legged, and 8 Ferruginous hawks.  The
majority of Rough-legged and Ferruginous hawks were concentrated around
a few short-mown hayfields.  I saw at least 5 Red-shouldered Hawks, with
2 around New Pine Creek 25 Nov. and 3-4 around Alturas and Likely 26
Nov.



Eurasian Collared-Doves continue to increase and spread in the county,
with a concentration of 135+ in the vicinity of the Desert Rose Casino,
just east of Alturas, on 26 and 28 Nov.



Aside from 4 Herring Gulls at a seep on Goose Lake south of New Pine
Creek on 25 Nov., the only gulls I saw were a handful of Ring-billed
Gulls (up to 20/day).



Lingering birds that probably won't winter included up to 4 Cinnamon
Teal at Modoc NWR on 26 and 28 Nov.; 37 Greater and 2 Lesser yellowlegs
in a pool near Alturas on 26 Nov., and another Greater Yellowlegs at
Dorris Reservoir 26 Nov.; 22 Dunlin at Dorris Reservoir 26 and 27 Nov.;
a Winter Wren in New Pine Creek on 27 Nov.; and a Lincoln's Sparrow in
New Pine Creek on 29 Nov.





Other highlights were as follows:



Trumpeter Swan:  4 adults (two pairs) on 26 Nov. and 7 adults on 28 Nov.
in "Lower Duck Pond" and "Upper Duck Pond" at Modoc NWR (the first two
ponds on the left as one enters the main part of the Refuge).  I
obtained some digiscoped photos of all these birds, including some in
direct comparison with Tundra Swans.



"Bewick's" Tundra Swan:  1 adult on 26, 27, and 28 Nov. was always
closely associating with the same adult "Whistling" Swan; a second adult
Bewick's (not associating closely with the other) was also present on 28
Nov.



Wood Duck:  8 on a pool south of Alturas on 26 Nov.



Red-breasted Merganser:  2 females on Dorris Reservoir on 28 Nov.



Varied Thrush:  2 in New Pine Creek on 25 Nov. were the first of this
species I've seen in the county



Northern Mockingbird:  1 in Alturas on 26 Nov.



Lapland Longspur:  4 south of Alturas on 26 Nov., 3 near Modoc NWR on 27
Nov., and 1 south of Goose Lake on 27 Nov., all with Horned Lark flocks





I'm looking forward to getting up there again the end of December.



Good birding,



Steve Rottenborn

Morgan Hill, CA





[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

I participated in the Luke Cole Memorial Challenge by birding Modoc
County over the weekend, recording 124 species in the Surprise
Valley/Goose Lake/Alturas areas on the 26th and 27th, plus an additional
seven species on Friday the 25th in the southwestern part of the county.


White-crowned Sparrows and "Audubon's" Yellow-rumped Warblers were
abundant and widespread, but Neotropical migrants were scarce in most
places.  Morning birding in Ft. Bidwell on 26 Sep. produced single
Black-headed Grosbeak and Western Tanager along with 3 Yellow Warblers
and 22 Orange-crowneds among the hordes of yellow-rumps, while the New
Pine Creek area on 27 Sep. had only 2 Yellows and 14 Orange-crowneds.  I
wish I'd spent more time looking for vagrant passerines in Alturas, as
late-morning checks of several stands of trees in and around Alturas on
the 27th produced a Blackpoll Warbler among 33 Yellows and 40
Orange-crowneds (and many hundreds of yellow-rumps, including my first
"Myrtle" of the fall).

Highlights were as follows:

Wood Duck:  5 in a pond along County Road 94 in Widow Valley on 25 Sep

Red-shouldered Hawk:  1 in New Pine Creek and  4 around Alturas on 27
Sep (all HY birds)

Baird's Sandpiper:  9 with Least and Western Sandpipers at a small seep
at the edge of Goose Lake about 1/4-mile south of Stateline Road in New
Pine Creek on 27 Sep.  The lake was otherwise completely dry.

Pectoral Sandpiper:  9 on 25 Sep. and 7 on 26 Sep. in a flooded field
along an unnamed road west of Highway 395 south of Alturas

Northern Saw-whet Owl:  3 responded to my calls along Forest Service
Road 47N72 northwest of Fandango Pass, in the north Warner Mountains, in
the wee hours of 26 Sep.

Hutton's Vireo:  2 along County Road 94 just east of Day Road on 25 Sep
represented a first county record.  The birds were with a large flock of
passerines (mostly Mountain Chickadees and Yellow-rumped Warblers but
including nuthatches, creepers, and woodpeckers) near the "Caution No
Winter Maintenance" sign less than 50 m east of Day Road.  I got poor
but identifiable photos of both birds.

Blackpoll Warbler:   1 at 1034 County Road 59B, just south of Modoc NWR;
the owners of this place have landscaped their property with numerous
trees and shrubs, and several water features, and there were 300+
yellow-rumps here.  This is a good spot to check if you're in the area,
as many birds can be seen from the public road.

White-throated Sparrow:  1 tan-striped bird with a flock of
White-crowned Sparrows at Stough Reservoir, which is in the north Warner
Mountains north of Cedar Pass, on 26 Sep.

Bobolink:  1 (photographed) on CR 61 (Jones Lane) south of Alturas and
west of Highway 395 on both 25 and 26 Sep.  The bird was with sparrows
where the road crosses the westernmost of two canals.


Steve Rottenborn
Morgan Hill, CA







[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

I spent the weekend in Modoc County, getting our for a few hours of birding each
morning.  Almost all of my birding during the period 4-6 Sep was right on and
just south of the CA/OR border around New Pine Creek on the east side of Goose
Lake.  Goose Lake was almost completely dry, with a small patch of mud fed by a
seep along the lake edge about 1/4-mile south of the state line being the only
accessible/visible shorebird habitat at the lake.  Even the mouth of Pine Creek,
which throughout the summer provided waterbird habitat even as the lake edge was
receding, was dry.  Fortunately, landbirding was excellent, with particularly
large numbers of migrant passerines present on the morning of 6 Sep.  Following
are the highlights:

Red-shouldered Hawk: 1 juv. in Davis Creek 4 Sep, 2 at Goose Lake State
Recreation Area (on the OR side of the state line) on 5 Sep, and 3 at GLSRA (all
in OR) on 6 Sep

Baird's Sandpiper:  5 juvs. in the aforementioned wet patch 1/4-mile south of
the state line on 4 Sep, with 2 there on 5 Sep, with 120-150 Least and Western
Sandpipers

Short-billed Dowitcher:  1 juv. in a large pond west of Highway 395 south of
Davis Creek on 4 Sep

White-winged Dove:  1 seen flying south from GLSRA into CA, continuing out of
site to the south (just east of the RR tracks) on 6 Sep

Black Phoebe:  1 along Ash Creek in Adin on 7 Sep, just above the "swimming
hole" on the upstream side of the Highway 299 bridge.  This is the same area
where Steve Glover and Luke Cole found the county's first record on 13 Sep 2007.
I had checked this area, including under the 299 bridge, several times this
spring and summer hoping for breeding phoebes without success, so this bird was
unexpected.

Red-eyed Vireo:  1 AHY bird repeatedly feeding a well-feathered but still
dependent fledgling along Stateline Road on 6 Sep (both photographed).  The
vireos spent most of their time along a gravel road perpendicular to, and just
south of, Stateline Road (marked with a "Honker Inn" sign), but I saw the adult
on the OR side of the road once.  Interestingly, a Warbling Vireo was closely
associating with the two Red-eyeds, and the HY Red-eyed begged from it on
several occasions, but I never saw the Warbling feed the Red-eyed, and the
juvenile appeared to be a typical Red-eyed.  Although the birds were primarily
on the CA side of the road during the 1.5 hours in which I saw them, nesting
habitat is of much higher quality on the OR side, and I suspect that these birds
nested in GLSRA.

Purple Martin:  1 female with a swallow flock along Highway 299 just west of
Alturas on 7 Sep (first record of a fall migrant in the county according to John
Sterling)

Swainson's Thrush:  1 in willows on the south side of Stateline Road, across
from GLSRA, on 5 Sep was only my second in the county

Black-and-white Warbler:  1 basic-plumaged AHY male photographed along Stateline
Road, on both the OR and CA sides of the road, on 5 and 6 Sep; this bird, which
sang occasionally, is likely the same bird found here by Todd Easterla in
mid-August

Bobolink:  1 seen and heard calling as it flew fairly high over the eastern edge
of Goose Lake, heading from CA into OR, on 5 Sep (first county record away from
Surprise Valley, according to John Sterling)

Lawrence's Goldfinch:  1 female with a House Finch flock in our "yard" in New
Pine Creek on 4 Sep; possibly only the third county record, the second also
having been in our yard on 6 Oct 2007


Steve Rottenborn
Morgan Hill, CA





[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Reporting the continuing presence of some rare birds.  At New Pine Creek,
along Stateline Road, a Red-shouldered Hawk, and the singing Red-eyed Vireo
and Yellow-breasted Chat were there on Monday morning.  The second-cycle Mew
Gull was at the end of the road on Goose Lake on Sunday evening along with
61 Franklin's Gulls.  At Fort Bidwell, three Anna's Hummingbirds and one
Black-chinned Hummingbird were visiting feeders in town.  At Cowhead Lake,
an immature Red-shouldered Hawk was in a willow thicket.



John Sterling

VVVVVVVVVV



26 Palm Ave

Woodland, CA  95695

cell 530 908-3836

jsterling@...







[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

This past week while up in Modoc and Lassen counties working on conservation
projects, I had the chance to do a little birding.  Perhaps of interest are the
following:


  1.  Saw an adult Red-shouldered Hawk on August 3th and 4th at the
Sheppard-Nardella Ranch which is located at the east end of Mill Street in Lake
City.  Visits are welcome to stop in at the house to ask the owners, Lynn
Nardella and Sophie Sheppard, to bird on the property.  Please only enter with
permission.
  2.  Saw an another adult Red-shouldered Hawk on August 5th 3 miles west of
Madeline along County Road 510 (Ash Valley Road).  The county road is the only
major road from Hwy 395 in Madeline. The sighting was in Lassen County.  In
addition, at Headwater Reservoir along Ash Creek about 6 miles west of Madeline
on the same road, there was a pair of Black Terns foraging, along with Wilson's
Phalarope, Sandhill Crane and many other expected species.

Graham Chisholm
Audubon California
Berkeley, CA

Just received a phone call from Todd Easterla.  Along State Line Road in New
Pine Creek (at OR/CA state line on east side of Goose Lake) he refound
Rottenborn's Red-eyed Vireo that sang a few times and a singing
Black-and-white Warbler that is currently sticking to the OR side of the
road.  Also there were lots of Franklin's Gulls and TWO second-cycle Mew
Gulls (Rottenborn had reported one previously).



Also Tule Lake is completely drained with no shorebird habitat.



John Sterling

VVVVVVVVVV



26 Palm Ave

Woodland, CA  95695

cell 530 908-3836

jsterling@...







[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Siskiyou birders:

First, apologies for this tardy posting . . ..  Those who don't
belong to the 'better late than never' school should hit delete
now . ....

On the evening of July 13, a single Yellow Rail called persistently
along Wyehka Way, just west of Mt. Shasta.  This is the Yellow Rail
location first reported (I believe) in 2002; the most recent report
that I saved was from 2005.

Here are my notes from July 13:  "I arrived on Wyehka Way about 10:15
pm, and decided to park 0.3 miles west of Old Stage Road.  I then set
about walking west along the dark road, playing tape.  I first heard
the bird calling at about 10:30 pm, and I turned off my tape as I
continued to walk westward.  The bird continued to call as I walked
on, finally stopping once I reckoned I had passed the point that was
closest to its posiiton out in the field (wet pasture, I assume, but
I never saw it in the daylight).  I stayed to enjoy it awhile, before
I walked back to my car.  I estimate the bird was 50 - 100 yards or
more off the road.

"Back at my car, I drove west with my windows down, just to see how
far down the road the bird was.  I put it just short of 0.7 miles off
Old Stage Road; in earlier years people had reported it about 0.5
miles off the road.  I slowly turned around and headed back to my
motel at about 10:55 pm, with the bird still calling away.

"The night was lovely: no moon (late moonrise), no clouds, with stars
and the Milky Way quite bright; 57 degrees."


The bird called so persistently that I believe it was probably
calling when I arrived; i.e., my tape did not induce it to call.  And
it was loud .  . . I could hear it clearly from a quarter mile away.

Others have reported Virginia Rails calling from the same field.  I
heard none, and chose not to play tape, not wishing to disturb folks
in the homes along the north side of the road.

Here are notes and directions from Len Lindstrand's 2002 report.
I'll re-emphasize the cautions to stay on the road, NOT enter the
pasture that holds the bird, . . . and to avoid disturbing the folks
living along the road.  If the bird is calling, you will hear it
easily from the road.

________________________________________________________________________
     Date: Fri, 16 Aug 2002 16:10:20 -0700
     From: "Len Lindstrand" <lindstrand@...>
Subject: Yellow Rail

Folks, here are directions to the yellow rail site.  Please read the
last paragraph of this message regarding the landowners requests, and
follow-them.

  >From Mt. Shasta, take the Central Mt. Shasta exit.  Turn left at
the end of the off ramp.  Follow that street (west lake street) to
the stop sign at Old Stage Road.  Turn right, drive approximately 2.0
miles to Wyehkea Way.  The bird was heard about 1/2 mile down the
road on the left side (the meadow side).

This bird is best detected at night, or possibly at first light.
Although Julian has heard it numerous times this summer (7/15, 7/16,
7/25), he hasn't been back at the late evening hour since the 25th,
so he doesn't know if it (they?) are still around.  Julian would be
happy to take a group to exactly the spot he has heard it.  Anyone
interested can call him during business hours at (530) 926-3595, or
after hours at 926-4941.

We want to make it clear to everyone that the land owners don't want
people on their land.  There are bulls and cows in the pasture, and
the landowners are concerned about liability.  Also, they don't care
if people walk along Wyehkea Way, but they do not want Fish and Game
getting involved and placing more restrictions on their cattle
operation.  Apparently they have had a few negative run-ins with F&G.

Len Lindstrand III
Fisheries/Wildlife Biologist, Project Manager
North State Resources, Inc.
5000 Bechelli, Suite 203
Redding, CA 96002
phone: 530.222.5347#15
fax: 530.222.4958
e-mail: lindstrand@...
________________________________________________________________________


Again, I'm sorry this note is so tardy.

Dave Quady
Berkeley, California
davequady@...

I saw some interesting birds in Modoc County over the weekend.  Highlights,
roughly in descending order of significance/interest to me, were as follows:

Red-eyed Vireo: One singing male in New Pine Creek on 19 July.  It was in
willows on the east side of the railroad tracks about 200 m south of Stateline
Road.  I first heard it singing at around 05:50 and was able to bring it into
view by spishing.  It continued singing for around 5 minutes, then was silent.

Mew Gull: One second-summer individual on the mudflats on the east side of Goose
Lake at Stateline Road/Goose Lake State Park on 19 July.  The bird was on the
California side of the state line.  This is almost certainly the same individual
I had at this same location on 16 May.

Eastern Kingbird: One adult with one recently-fledged juvenile at Modoc NWR on
18 July.  The birds were initially perched in willows on the tour loop, between
Teal Pond and Wigeon Pond.  The juvenile (still with a fairly short tail and
engorged yellow rictal flanges) was obviously begging from the adult.  They then
flew northeastward out of sight.  There is a house (associated with the Refuge?)
with some taller trees in that direction, and perhaps that's where the birds
nested.  I doubt they would have nested in trees around the Refuge headquarters
and gone undetected until now.  On 17 July, I also saw the pair of nesting birds
previously reported at Blue Lake in Lassen County.

Wood Duck: A pair with one medium-sized young were in Ash Creek in Adin, just
upstream from the large pool on the upstream side of SR 299, on 16 July.  A
female and three large young were in the North Fork of the Pit River just
upstream from SR 299/395, near Alturas, on 18 July.

Willow Flycatcher: One was in Ft. Bidwell, singing from willows around a meadow
on the southwest side of the intersection of Willow St. and CR 1, on 17 July. 
Although the habitat here and in many other places in Modoc County looks very
good for the species, this is the first potentially breeding Willow Flycatcher
I've seen in the county.

Yellow-breasted Chat: The singing male was still present in New Pine Creek on 19
July.  It was on the south side of Stateline Road across from the Goose Lake
State Park campground entrance.

Franklin's Gull: 32 were on the east side of Goose Lake in New Pine Creek on 19
July.

Sage Grouse: 1 female at Cow Head Lake, north of Surprise Valley, on 17 July. 
There may well have been more present, but I saw this bird when it flushed from
dense sagebrush, apparently in response to a pair of Sandhill Cranes flushing
noisily nearby.

Flammulated Owl: 1 calling from the south side of Forest Service Road 9 about
0.5 km west of the Fandango Pass summit, around 04:45 on 17 July.

Steve Rottenborn
Morgan Hill, CA








[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Luke Cole 400 Species $40,000 Memorial Challenge
A benefit for Center on Race, Poverty and the Environment (CRPE)
September 26th and 27th, 2009



The birding community lost one of our most selfless members when Luke
Cole was tragically killed June 6, 2009 in an auto accident while
visiting Uganda. Luke's passion for birds, birding and conservation
seemed boundless. Whether he was looking for the near-mythical Red Owl
in Madagascar or simply trying to add a new species to his many county
lists while traversing back roads in California, Luke's joy in finding
and sharing birds was infectious.

Luke was not only a great birder he was also a great humanitarian. With
his background in law, Luke could have been a highly paid attorney.
Instead Luke founded the Center on Race, Poverty and the Environment
(CRPE). Acting Executive Director Caroline Farrell wrote:

"Luke founded CRPE almost 20 years ago, in October 1989. What started as
the 'Luke Cole employment project' has become a 15-person environmental
justice organization with a national reputation for representing poor
people and people of color fighting for environmental justice . . . He
recognized that an injustice in one community diminishes us all. He
shared his power and privilege to help those low income communities and
communities of color struggle against powerful interests and buck the
status quo."

To celebrate Luke's life some of his friends have come up with the kind
of harebrained scheme Luke would have loved; a California-wide birding
event to raise funds to help keep CRPE running strong.

Here's the challenge: Can a group of birders find 400 bird species in
one weekend in California? And can we raise donations amounting to $100
per species for the Center on Race, Poverty and the Environment?

Unlike a Birdathon, teams and individuals in the Challenge will be
working with each other instead of competing against each other.
Everyone from elite birder to backyard observer can add to the ultimate
state total. In the spirit of Luke's passion for county listing, species
will be tallied county-by-county as well. Focusing county-by-county will
be essential if we are to reach the 400 species mark, as we'll need a
grass-roots effort from observers looking for such isolated species as
Great Gray Owl in Tuolumne County, Yellow-footed Gull in Imperial County
and Greater Sage Grouse in Lassen County.

As of this point, the dates are set and we're working hard to set up the
coordinators for all 58 counties in California. Also, we're working hard
with our friends at CRPE to set up a simplified mechanism to pledge
donations to the effort. As soon as these details are sorted out, we'll
send out an update, but mark your calendars now to join us!

Mark Eaton mark@... <mailto:mark@...>
Steve Glover countylines@...
<mailto:countylines@...>
Alan Hopkins ash@... <mailto:ash@...>
Brent Plater bplater@... <mailto:bplater@...>



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Yesterday, Ed Pandolfino & I birded parts of Modoc & Lassen Co. It was a
beautiful day away from the heat of the CV. Starting off from Likely (S end of
Modoc Co) we headed east along Jess Valley Rd to the canyon area. We were
fortunate to see 2 WHITE-THROATED SWIFTS flying up over the cliffs with the
swallows (VG, CLIFF & NRW). Many Rock Wrens sang from the rocky area. Around
mileage 8.6-8.7, we heard both INDIGO & LAZULI BUNTINGS. Eventually we found the
Indigo sitting high up on top of a pine tree. Both Orange-crowned & Yellow
Warblers sang from the willows. Even the Canyon Wren chimed in with his song.

On the way to Blue Lake (Lassen Co.) we stopped and birded the burned area. Here
we had more Lazuli Buntings, Mac Warblers, House Wrens, etc. Closer to the
campground, had a very interesting sapsucker which got away before Ed had a good
look at it. From the Blue Lake boat launch parking lot, we walked the trail to
the SW and found the EASTERN KINGBIRD sitting on a nest high in the tree. If we
didn't know where to look, we would have missed it! Plus on our walk back to the
car we had a couple of VAUX'S SWIFTS flying over the trail.

Our next targets were over in Surprise Valley, so we took Patterson Mill Rd/CR
64 stopping to bird periodically. Many WARBLING VIREOS were heard among the
chorus of other songs.

In Eagleville (back in Modoc Co) tried for the Bobolinks seen by previous
birders, but missed by us. Did see a BLACK-THROATED SPARROW sitting on the sage
around mm 5 along CR 38. Oh and case anyone is interested there is a nice cafe
in Cedarville that has Wi-Fi and great drinks & sandwiches.

On the way home, stopped along Herriot Ln in Sierra Valley and saw the male
BURROWING OWL guarding the 3 youngsters sitting out in the field.

A long trip yes, but we had a great day birding!
Frances
Lodi, CA

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Hello,

Ray Ekstrom and I took a trip over to the southeastern part of Modoc County on
June 13-14. It was cloudy with scattered showers, but overall avoided much of
the rain, with below ave. temps.

Highlights:
SNOWY PLOVER, 5, June 13,  scattered along The Causeway at the south end of
Goose Lake. Most were just south of the area that had water adjacent to the west
side of the road (which was at the northern end of The Causeway). The plovers
were in the unvegetated areas between the sparsely vegetated areas. One was on a
small island adjacent to the road about midway through the water section. A few
LONG-BILLED CURLEW were seen in this area.

BONAPARTE'S GULL, Goose Lake State Park, June 14, 20+, all immature, in the
shallow areas offshore, No grebes at all (appeared to be too shallow well
offshore), AMERICAN CROW, about 5, a species that was not around 20+ years ago
at the south end of Lake Co. OR.

BOBOLINK, 5, Eagleville, June 13-14, with 3, a quarter-mile south of jct. of Co.
Rds. 35 and 38, on Co Rd. 35, (descrived by Rottenborn, June 7) but views were
too distant to the east, so opted to head down Co. Rd. 38, about a quarter-mile
east, where show stopper views of one male posted up on a fence post, singing,
acroos from a volunteer fruit tree. Further east, at 5 mile mark Co. Rd. 38,
both SAGE SPARROW and BLACK-THROATED SPARROW were singing and posted up on low
sage.

Visited a location where a Yellow Rail was reported a few years ago, but none
were detected while there. A pair of JUNIPER TITMOUSE were there, exchanging
food items. That was near a cattle guard crossing near  the 68 mile marker of
Surprise Valley Rd.

CALLIOPE HUMMINGBIRD, GREEN-TAILED TOWHEE, booming SOOTY GROUSE, among other
forest species were detected along Fandango Pass Road, June 14.

No luck with a reported Yellow-breasted Chat along North Fork of Pit River, nor
Eastern Kingbird at Fort Bidwell.

While returning, stopped at Petroglyphs, Lava Beds National Monument, and viewed
6-8 WHITE-THROATED SWIFT at the north end of the rock facing. Some were entering
and leaving  cavities in the cliff. Two GREAT-TAILED GRACKLE were seen on Sump
1-B, Tule Lake NWR, one-half mile west of Modoc County line, along the road that
travels the south end of the sump. The sump is being drained and a variety of
marsh birds were foraging in the mudflats. Two GREATER YELLOWLEG were seen at
this unusual date for them (same location). Approx. 24 FRANKLIN'S GULL were out
in the middle of mudflats, as was a pair of BLUE-WINGED TEAL, all also in
Siskiyou Co.

Kevin Spencer
Klamath Falls, OR
rriparia@...

Highlights from a few days' birding in Modoc County, 7-9 June, were as follows:



Ferruginous Hawk:  1 adult soaring over CR 6 on the eastern edge of Surprise
Valley east of Ft. Bidwell.  I was hoping I could follow the bird to a nest, but
it flew out of sight over the hills heading northeast.



Peregrine Falcon:  1 SY bird, very dark and thus likely pealei, at Modoc NWR on
9 June



Semipalmated Plover:  1 at the "delta" where the springs of Three Springs Ranch
flow into the southwestern part of Goose Lake on 8 June.  This was my only
migrant shorebird of the trip.



Franklin's Gull:  2 at Goose Lake State Park (just north of the border, seen
only in Oregon), and 22 on the southwest side of the Goose Lake causeway west of
Davis Creek, both on 8 June.  One in the latter group was leucistic, being very
whitish overall.  It had a very pale (Black-headed Gull shade) mantle, a ghost
of a hood, and only a small amount of pale grayish pigmentation in the otherwise
white outer primaries.



Common Tern:  3 (1 ad., 2 SY) on the southwest side of the Goose Lake causeway
on 8 June



Short-eared Owl:  1 in northern Surprise Valley east of Ft. Bidwell early on the
morning of 7 June and 3 foraging during daylight hours (as late as 09:15) at
Modoc NWR on 9 June.



Willow Flycatcher:  1 singing male at Modoc NWR on 9 June (presumably a migrant)



Eastern Kingbird:  1 in Fort Bidwell on 7 June.  The bird was on the fence
around a large, rectangular, fenced-in, bermed area (some kind of detention
pond?) within the open meadows in the southwestern part of the town.



Yellow-breasted Chat:  2 singing males.  One was on the south side of Stateline
Road across from the entrance to Clear Lake State Park on 8 June, and may have
been the same male that I saw carrying food nearby last summer.  The other was
along the North Fork of the Pit River just north of the Highway 395 bridge (and
just south of the agricultural check station), north of Alturas, on 9 June.



Bobolink:  3 singing males in Eagleville on 7 June.  Singles were singing from
perches within, and giving display flights above, unmown hayfields along CR 35
about ¼-mile north of CR 38 (on the east side of CR 35) and about ¼-mile south
of CR 38 (on both sides of CR 35).  I looked for but could not find any females
to which these males might have been displaying.



Steve Rottenborn

Morgan Hill, CA






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Not having any notes in front of me I can say I certainly have had a pair at
the Soup Springs campground every summer for the past 8 years. They have
been quite reliable. I had birds up the trail into  the wilderness area most
years, and at various locations along the Forest Service road heading back
towards Mill Creek. Most of my stays up here have been late Jun/ July. I
never really considered them uncommon simply because they seemed to be at
hand both in the campground and away from it. There is a huge amount of
diseased and dead wood in that area, and I have found it to be thick with
woodpeckers, Pileated and otherwise.
--
Kevin McKereghan
San Francisco CA
Theman@...

Throughout the centuries, man has considered himself beautiful. I rather
suppose that man only believes in his own beauty out of pride; that he is
not really beautiful and he suspects this himself; for why does he look on
the face of his fellow-man with such scorn?
Isidore Ducasse Lautreamont





From: John Sterling <jsterling@...>
Date: Thu, 28 May 2009 15:32:53 -0700
To: <modoc-siskiyoubirding@yahoogroups.com>
Subject: RE: [modoc-siskiyoubirding] Pileated Data






I surveyed Soup Springs area for the Forest Service often in 1990 and 1991
and never detected Pileated Woodpeckers there.  Please send me the dates or
at least years that you have found them in the South Warners¡ªalso the
locations too.  If your records are based on just one or a few pairs, then
I¡¯d be hesitant to claim that they were fairly common in the South Warners.

John Sterling

VVVVVVVVVV

26 Palm Ave

Woodland, CA  95695

cell 530 908-3836

jsterling@... <mailto:jsterling%40wavecable.com>

From: modoc-siskiyoubirding@yahoogroups.com
<mailto:modoc-siskiyoubirding%40yahoogroups.com>
[mailto:modoc-siskiyoubirding@yahoogroups.com
<mailto:modoc-siskiyoubirding%40yahoogroups.com> ] On Behalf Of Kevin
McKereghan
Sent: Thursday, May 28, 2009 3:11 PM
To: modoc-siskiyoubirding@yahoogroups.com
<mailto:modoc-siskiyoubirding%40yahoogroups.com>
Subject: Re: [modoc-siskiyoubirding] Pileated Data

In the South Warner©ös they are fairly common, certainly in the Soup Springs
area I have seen them daily, and heard far more often, over the course of
multiple summers.
--
Kevin McKereghan
San Francisco CA
Theman@... <mailto:Theman%40thegasstation.net>
<mailto:Theman%40thegasstation.net>

Throughout the centuries, man has considered himself beautiful. I rather
suppose that man only believes in his own beauty out of pride; that he is
not really beautiful and he suspects this himself; for why does he look on
the face of his fellow-man with such scorn?
Isidore Ducasse Lautreamont

From: carolspencer <rriparia@... <mailto:rriparia%40charter.net>
<mailto:rriparia%40charter.net> >
Date: Thu, 28 May 2009 06:55:55 -0000
To: <modoc-siskiyoubirding@yahoogroups.com
<mailto:modoc-siskiyoubirding%40yahoogroups.com>
<mailto:modoc-siskiyoubirding%40yahoogroups.com> >
Subject: [modoc-siskiyoubirding] Pileated Data

I checked the Pileated Woodpecker BBS data for the Lakeview BBS route. Only
1 has been detected during a count period. And that was in 2006 or so. So,
that appears to support John Sterling's point about their more recent
increase in numbers. That data doesn't seem to support the uncommon status
I mentioned, according to what I've recorded during the BBS. I have however,
heard them outside count times, and so might be a reason why I mentioned an
uncommon status. I should have looked up the data before I mentioned that. I
generally regard a Pileated Woodpecker observation very noteworthy in
forests east of the Cascades, and especially in Lake Co, OR.

Kevin Spencer
Klamath Falls, OR
rriparia@... <mailto:rriparia%40charter.net>
<mailto:rriparia%40charter.net>
<mailto:rriparia%40charter.net>

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]




>



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

I surveyed Soup Springs area for the Forest Service often in 1990 and 1991
and never detected Pileated Woodpeckers there.  Please send me the dates or
at least years that you have found them in the South Warners—also the
locations too.  If your records are based on just one or a few pairs, then
I’d be hesitant to claim that they were fairly common in the South Warners.



John Sterling

VVVVVVVVVV



26 Palm Ave

Woodland, CA  95695

cell 530 908-3836

jsterling@...





From: modoc-siskiyoubirding@yahoogroups.com
[mailto:modoc-siskiyoubirding@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Kevin McKereghan
Sent: Thursday, May 28, 2009 3:11 PM
To: modoc-siskiyoubirding@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [modoc-siskiyoubirding] Pileated Data








In the South Warner¹s they are fairly common, certainly in the Soup Springs
area I have seen them daily, and heard far more often, over the course of
multiple summers.
--
Kevin McKereghan
San Francisco CA
Theman@... <mailto:Theman%40thegasstation.net>

Throughout the centuries, man has considered himself beautiful. I rather
suppose that man only believes in his own beauty out of pride; that he is
not really beautiful and he suspects this himself; for why does he look on
the face of his fellow-man with such scorn?
Isidore Ducasse Lautreamont

From: carolspencer <rriparia@... <mailto:rriparia%40charter.net> >
Date: Thu, 28 May 2009 06:55:55 -0000
To: <modoc-siskiyoubirding@yahoogroups.com
<mailto:modoc-siskiyoubirding%40yahoogroups.com> >
Subject: [modoc-siskiyoubirding] Pileated Data

I checked the Pileated Woodpecker BBS data for the Lakeview BBS route. Only
1 has been detected during a count period. And that was in 2006 or so. So,
that appears to support John Sterling's point about their more recent
increase in numbers. That data doesn't seem to support the uncommon status
I mentioned, according to what I've recorded during the BBS. I have however,
heard them outside count times, and so might be a reason why I mentioned an
uncommon status. I should have looked up the data before I mentioned that. I
generally regard a Pileated Woodpecker observation very noteworthy in
forests east of the Cascades, and especially in Lake Co, OR.

Kevin Spencer
Klamath Falls, OR
rriparia@... <mailto:rriparia%40charter.net>
<mailto:rriparia%40charter.net>

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]





[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

In the South Warner¹s they are fairly common, certainly in the Soup Springs
area I have seen them daily, and heard far more often, over the course of
multiple summers.
--
Kevin McKereghan
San Francisco CA
Theman@...

Throughout the centuries, man has considered himself beautiful. I rather
suppose that man only believes in his own beauty out of pride; that he is
not really beautiful and he suspects this himself; for why does he look on
the face of his fellow-man with such scorn?
Isidore Ducasse Lautreamont





From: carolspencer <rriparia@...>
Date: Thu, 28 May 2009 06:55:55 -0000
To: <modoc-siskiyoubirding@yahoogroups.com>
Subject: [modoc-siskiyoubirding] Pileated Data






I checked the Pileated Woodpecker BBS data for the Lakeview BBS route. Only
1 has been detected during a count period. And that was in 2006 or so. So,
that appears to support John Sterling's point about their more recent
increase in numbers. That data doesn't seem to support the  uncommon status
I mentioned, according to what I've recorded during the BBS. I have however,
heard them outside count times, and so might be a reason why I mentioned an
uncommon status. I should have looked up the data before I mentioned that. I
generally regard a Pileated Woodpecker observation very noteworthy in
forests east of the Cascades, and especially in Lake Co, OR.

Kevin Spencer
Klamath Falls, OR
rriparia@... <mailto:rriparia%40charter.net>








[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Pileated are uncommon but regular in the North Warners, such as on the east side
of Crane Mountain, Willow Creek, north to Hwy 140. I pick them up on a Breeding
Bird Survey that runs from Dismal Ck. north to Bull Prairie in the North
Warners. I would suspect that if the habitat is similar that they would also
populate the South Warners.

Kevin Spencer
Klamath Falls, OR
rriparia@...

---- Scre@... wrote:

=============
Lauren Harter and I checked out parts of Modoc County on May 24.? We birded
Modoc NWR, Goose Lake and CR 11 (out of Davis Creek) in the Warner Mts before
car trouble cut our trip short.? The only birds of note was a calling PILEATED
WOODPECKER at mp 6 on CR 11 and a pair of Black-backed Woodpeckers at just past
mp 9 on CR 11 (at Benton? Meadow).? Are Pileateds known from the Warners?? Also
which Scrub Jay is around Goose Lake?? Good birding all

David Vander Pluym
Netarts Or (for shorter bit of time than I thought)


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Pileated are uncommon but regular in the larger pine fir areas in the North
Warners, such as on the east side
of Crane Mountain, and Willow Creek, and Burnt Ck. areas.  I pick them up on the
Lakeview, OR,  Breeding
Bird Survey that runs from Dismal Ck. north to Bull Prairie in the North
Warners, in Lake County, OR, north of Modoc Co.

Kevin Spencer
Klamath Falls, OR
rriparia@...

I checked the Pileated Woodpecker BBS data for the Lakeview BBS route. Only 1
has been detected during a count period. And that was in 2006 or so. So, that
appears to support John Sterling's point about their more recent  increase in
numbers. That data doesn't seem to support the  uncommon status I mentioned,
according to what I've recorded during the BBS. I have however, heard them
outside count times, and so might be a reason why I mentioned an uncommon
status. I should have looked up the data before I mentioned that. I generally
regard a Pileated Woodpecker observation very noteworthy in forests east of the
Cascades, and especially in Lake Co, OR.

Kevin Spencer
Klamath Falls, OR
rriparia@...

There are definitely more Pileated Woodpeckers in Modoc County now than
there were 20+ years ago.  They seem to be spreading into the Warner Mtns
and vicinity in recent years.



The scrub-jay in Modoc is the "California subspecies".  Woodhouse's isn't
found north of Alpine County in California.



John Sterling

VVVVVVVVVV



26 Palm Ave

Woodland, CA  95695

cell 530 908-3836

jsterling@...





From: countybirders@yahoogroups.com [mailto:countybirders@yahoogroups.com]
On Behalf Of scre@...
Sent: Wednesday, May 27, 2009 3:21 PM
To: countybirders@yahoogroups.com; modoc-siskiyoubirding@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [CB] Warner Mts








Lauren Harter and I checked out parts of Modoc County on May 24.? We birded
Modoc NWR, Goose Lake and CR 11 (out of Davis Creek) in the Warner Mts
before car trouble cut our trip short.? The only birds of note was a calling
PILEATED WOODPECKER at mp 6 on CR 11 and a pair of Black-backed Woodpeckers
at just past mp 9 on CR 11 (at Benton? Meadow).? Are Pileateds known from
the Warners?? Also which Scrub Jay is around Goose Lake?? Good birding all

David Vander Pluym
Netarts Or (for shorter bit of time than I thought)

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]





[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Lauren Harter and I checked out parts of Modoc County on May 24.? We birded
Modoc NWR, Goose Lake and CR 11 (out of Davis Creek) in the Warner Mts before
car trouble cut our trip short.? The only birds of note was a calling PILEATED
WOODPECKER at mp 6 on CR 11 and a pair of Black-backed Woodpeckers at just past
mp 9 on CR 11 (at Benton? Meadow).? Are Pileateds known from the Warners?? Also
which Scrub Jay is around Goose Lake?? Good birding all

David Vander Pluym
Netarts Or (for shorter bit of time than I thought)


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

I spent the weekend in Modoc County, birding around Goose Lake and eastern
Surprise Valley on Saturday and checking Ft. Bidwell, Modoc NWR, and the Day
area in the southwestern part of the county on Sunday.  I spent large chunks of
both days looking primarily at odonates and was not really trying to compile a
large species total, so I was pleasantly surprised to come up with 122 bird
species seen on Saturday, with an additional 31 species seen Sunday.  A "big
day" in Modoc would have done well this weekend.

Highlights (roughly in order of interest to me) were as follows:

Mew Gull: 1 first-cycle bird photographed at Goose Lake State Park on 16 May was
initially at the mouth of New Pine Creek on the Oregon side of the state line,
but it eventually joined Ring-billed and California Gulls making the trek
between the creek mouth and a recently plowed field on the California side of
Stateline Road.  This bird is quite late, and there can't be many Modoc County
records of the species.

Red Knot: 3 alternate-plumaged birds photographed on 16 May along the edge of
Goose Lake near Three Springs Ranch, which is at the southwestern corner of the
lake not far north of the causeway.  The "delta" formed by outflow from the
seeps in this area often attracts waterbirds (e.g., I've had Sanderling here).

Semipalmated Sandpiper: 1 alternate-plumaged bird photographed on 16 May at the
same location as the knots

Common Tern: 2 foraging over Goose Lake with Forster's and Caspian Terns off
Stateline Road/Goose Lake State Park on 16 May

Franklin's Gull:  4 alternate-plumaged birds flew in to the New Pine Creek mouth
from the south on 16 May, calling loudly, and stayed for about 5 minutes before
continuing north

Flammulated Owl: On my way up late Friday/early Saturday, I drove up the Forest
Service road to the Rush Creek campgrounds northeast of Adin to see what owls
might be there.  Two Flammulateds were calling spontaneously in the wee hours of
16 May.

White-crowned Sparrow:  1 pugetensis in Ft. Bidwell on 17 May (late
migrant/lingering)

Hermit Thrush:  1 in New Pine Creek on 17 May (late migrant)

Black-chinned Hummingbird:  1 female in Ft. Bidwell

Northern Goshawk:  1 about halfway down Forest Service Road 9 between Fandango
Pass and CR 1 on the east side of the Warners south of Ft. Bidwell on 17 May

Ferruginous Hawk:  1 SY bird in northern Surprise Valley east of Ft. Bidwell on
17 May

Migrant/lingering, nonbreeding shorebirds at Goose Lake on 16 May included 10
Black-bellied Plovers, 2 Semipalmated Plovers, 67 Western Sandpipers, 2 Least
Sandpipers, and 2 Red-necked Phalaropes.

Other than the White-crowned Sparrow and Hermit Thrush, the only songbirds that
I thought were migrants were a few Gray Flycatchers and Wilson's Warblers in
unusual habitat where I didn't think they would breed.  Breeding Gray
Flycatchers were abundant along Crowder Flat Road on the Modoc Plateau.

Oak woodland specialists along Day Road and CR 94 east of Day included Oak
Titmouse (only the second time I've had this species here), Anna's Hummingbird,
15+ singing Nashville Warblers, 1 Black-throated Gray Warbler, White-breasted
Nuthatch, and Acorn and Nuttall's Woodpeckers.

Good birding,

Steve Rottenborn
Morgan Hill, CA




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Hi, Birders:

WFO (Western Field Ornithologists) and the Idaho Bird Observatory
invite you to the 34th Annual WFO Meeting in Boise, Idaho from
September 10-13, 2009.

For details and to register, go to the WFO web site
<http://www.westernfieldornithologists.org/>
and click on the "2009 Annual Conference" button. You can download a
full conference schedule there.

Help celebrate WFO's 40th anniversary!  In addition to the usual
great field trips, skills workshops, and scientific paper
presentations, this year we feature a keynote talk and special field
trip on what may well be the next new North American species, the
South Hills Crossbill.  Dr. Craig Benkman will discuss his work on
this distinctive crossbill and its co-evolution with its 'prey',
lodgepole pine cones.  A Sunday field trip will visit the South Hills
area to look for this bird.  This is an outstanding example of what
WFO is all about, fostering the link between ornithology and birding.

Dave Quady
Berkeley, California
davequady@...

Hi, Birders:

Western Field Ornithologists' 34th annual meeting will be held in
Boise, Idaho, September 10-14, 2009.  Papers are now being solicited
for presentation at the meeting.

As in past years, papers should reflect original research or
summarize existing unpublished information about birds in western
North America, including YOUR area.  The papers should be presented
in a manner that will be of interest to serious amateur and
professional field ornithologists.  Fifteen minutes is allotted for
each presentation, with a few more minutes allotted to questions from
and discussion with the audience -- a hallmark of WFO meetings.

Talks relating to the following themes are solicited:
• Status, distribution, migration, and population dynamics of birds
• Systematics and biogeography of birds
• Ecology, behavior, and evolution of birds
• New information on avian field identification problems
• Descriptive field identification
• Science-based conservation and management of birds
• Techniques for field study of birds, including censusing,
monitoring, and other methods; and results of studies applying such
techniques

Abstracts are being accepted NOW.  Abstracts must be in a specific
format, which you can read at

<http://www.westernfieldornithologists.org/docs/2009/
CallForPapers_WFO2009.pdf>

Abstracts will be reviewed, and program time awarded, in the order
that abstracts are received.

Apologies to those who receive multiple copies of this Call.  If for
any reason you cannot read the pdf mentioned above, contact me and
I'll paste it into a return message.

More information about the Boise meeting will soon be posted at

<http://www.westernfieldornithologists.org/conference.php.>

and you can join WFO at

<https://www.westernfieldornithologists.org/join.php>.

See you in Boise!


Dave Quady
Berkeley, California
davequady@...

John Luther and I met up with Jim Lomax in Modoc on Friday afternoon and all
day Saturday.  There were several Anna's Hummingbirds in Day, including a
male on the large dead pine tree on the west side of the road,  just after
crossing into Modoc County on the Day Road.  Also a female in Day in the
willows near the small farm pond.  This was a long overdue county bird for
me.  We then proceeded to Modoc NWR and couldn't refind the Cattle Egret
found there a few days before by Steve Rottenborn.  However, we drove south
and found a flooded field full of birds, including the Cattle Egret-spotted
by Jim Lomax.  This was my 250th native bird species in Modoc County, so I
was happy to have fulfilled my goal (thanks Steve for finding and reporting
it).  We looked for the Red-necked Grebe at Dorris Reservoir, but couldn't
find it.  We checked there again on Saturday, and found a Horned Grebe
instead.  We covered a lot of ground on Saturday, from Fee Reservoir,
Cedarville area, Ft. Bidwell, Goose Lake, Ash Creek, Modoc NWR etc.  Only
real highlight was a male Tricolored Blackbird east of Ft. Bidwell which may
be the first Surprise Valley record.  Water at Goose Lake was very low for
April and it was difficult to get close to the shoreline to see birds.



John Sterling

VVVVVVVVVV



26 Palm Ave

Woodland, CA  95695

cell 530 908-3836

jsterling@...







[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

I spent the past four days in Modoc County, spending a few hours birding around
Alturas and Goose Lake, with a stop in the southwestern corner of the county on
the way home.  Highlights were as follows:

Eurasian Wigeon: 1 male in a pond along County Road 48 just west of Davis Creek,
at the south end of Goose Lake, 13 April.

Red-necked Grebe: 1 alternate-plumaged bird on Dorris Reservoir, which is part
of Modoc NWR near Alturas, 14 April.  A check with John Sterling confirmed that
this is an overdue first Modoc County record.

Horned Grebe: 1 alternate-plumaged bird on Goose Lake, seen from County Road 48
on the west side of the lake, 13 April.

Cattle Egret: 1 in Goose Pond at the main section of Modoc NWR, 14 April.  This
was the only egret I saw during my trip other than a single Great Egret at the
same location, also on the 14th.  According to John, there are only 1-2 previous
county records.

Rough-legged Hawk: I saw 3 lingering birds, all around Goose Lake, on 12-13
April.

Pileated Woodpecker: 2 were calling from pines in the burned area west of County
Road 48 on the west side of Goose Lake, just south of the Oregon border, on 13
April.  I had one in the same area a year or so ago.

Loggerhead Shrike: Because I haven't seen many Loggerheads in Modoc County over
the past couple of years, 2 birds along County Road 48 on the west side of Goose
Lake on 13 April were noteworthy.

A stop at Day, in the southwestern corner of the county, yesterday afternoon (15
April) produced several species that are difficult to find elsewhere in Modoc
County: 2 Wrentits and single Nuttall's Woodpecker, Anna's Hummingbird, and
Band-tailed Pigeon were along County Road 94 in the area where the pines
transition into oak woodland then quickly into scrub/chaparral as one heads east
from Day Road.

Good birding,

Steve Rottenborn
Morgan Hill, CA




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

This afternoon there was a 1st-cycle TRUMPETER SWAN with two tundra swans on
Goose and Teal Ponds at Modoc NWR.

Ken Burton
Arcata

Birders:

Yesterday Rick Lebadour reported to the Northern California Birdbox
(415-681-7422) some highlights of the Redwood Region Ornithological
Society field trip he led to Lassen County this past weekend.  Here
are additional notes on a few Lassen County birds that Rick mentioned
to me, plus birds seen on Golden Gate Audubon Society's weekend field
trip, as well as on a couple of days scouting in advance of the
trip.  Rick's Birdbox report mentioned many of these species.

There were still hundreds of Greater White-fronted Geese, thousands
of Snow Geese, and a few Ross's Geese in the Honey Lake Valley.  They
were most numerous at an evening fly-in spot on the north side of US
395, a few miles west of Leavitt Lake.
On Saturday, about 15 male Great Sage-Grouse displayed for 7 females
on the Shaffer Mountain lek.
The immature Northern Goshawk that Rick found on Friday was still
present on Saturday morning.  It roosted in trees behind an
uninhabited house on the west side of Mapes Road, just north of the
Fish and Game Road intersection.
Willow Creek Valley still held a few Rough-legged Hawks, but we saw
no Ferruginous Hawks there or elsewhere.
There were several Eurasian Collared-Doves along the Bizz Johnson
Trail, near Richmond Road in Susanville
Northern Pygmy-Owls were found along Janesville Grade Road and, in
the Eagle Lake area, along a logging road off Eagle Lake Road just
west of SR 139, and about 2.3 miles up Champs Flat Road (off Eagle
Lake Road, near the Spalding Tract).
A few Lewis's Woodpeckers continued their life and death struggle
against European Starlings along Main Street in Janesville.
A burn about 2.7 miles up Champs Flat Road held a pair of Black-
backed Woodpeckers on Friday.  The road was too muddy and held too
much snow for me to feel comfortable taking my GGAS trip there, but
it may be OK to drive within a week or so.
Four stops at an uninhabited home site on Lindblom Lane (off
Sunnyside Road) failed to produce the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker found
there on the Honey Lake Christmas Bird Count.  A local birder who saw
the bird then told me that she was unaware of any sightings -- or of
any attempts to re-find the bird -- in the interim.  So it has
probably moved on . . . but the presence of several pine trees still
oozing sap lends hope that the bird might still be trap-lining the area.
On Saturday, two adult Northern Shrikes hunted on the north side of
Fish and Game Road, in the first field east of Mapes Road.  Rick's
group saw one bird on Friday; on Saturday afternoon we were very
surprised when a second bird appeared only a few fence posts away
from the bird we were watching.
Juniper Titmice were found along Red Rock Road on Thursday and Friday.
On Saturday morning the road to the lek produced a singing Sage
Thrasher (heard by Rick's group) and a singing Sage Sparrow.
A flock of about 20 Evening Grosbeaks found by Rick's group on Friday
continued along Richmond Road in Susanville on Saturday.

Weather was great Thursday through Saturday, but deteriorated on
Sunday as rain and snow threatened and high winds arose.  Still, it
was a fine time to be in Lassen County.

Dave Quady
Berkeley, California
davequady@...

I spent the past few days in Modoc County, getting out for a few hours of
birding each morning (mostly around Alturas and Goose Lake).  The birding
highlight was the observation of 6 Trumpeter Swans (2 pairs of adults, each with
one immature in tow) south of Alturas on Tuesday, 17 Feb.  The birds were with
2250 Tundra Swans (including 2 adult "Bewick's") in a pool on the east side of
CR 60 between CR 61 and CR 62, not far south of Alturas.

Other highlights included:

"Bewick's" Tundra Swan:  In addition to the aforementioned birds, an adult was
in Teal Pond at Modoc NWR on 15 Feb.; the pattern and extent of yellow on the
bill was similar to that of one of the birds seen nearby on 17 Feb., and it may
have been the same bird.

Snow/Ross's Goose:  A flock of 9500+ flew up and down the valley south of
Alturas on 16 and 17 Feb.  I estimated that about 95% were Snow Geese, including
40 "blue"-morph birds on 16 Feb.

Greater Scaup:  A male was in Goose Pond at Modoc NWR on 15 Feb.

Barrow's Goldeneye:  3 (two males and a female) were among 67 Common Goldeneyes
in Goose Pond at Modoc NWR on 15 Feb.

Red-shouldered Hawk:  An SY bird was in Adin on 14 Feb.

Bald Eagle:  Many were scattered around the few, small patches of open water on
Goose Lake; my highest count was 90 on 16 Feb.

Northern Shrike:  2 were near Willow Ranch on the west side of Goose Lake on 14
Feb., and one was on the Modoc NWR tour loop on 16 Feb.

American Tree Sparrow:  One was south of New Pine Creek along CR 133-D just
north of Highway 395 on 14 Feb., foraging with a junco flock along the road.

Lapland Longspur:  Along CR 59 south of CR 59-B (just south of Modoc NWR), I had
at least 6 with 150 Horned Larks on 15 Feb. and at least 15 with 300 Horned
Larks on 16 Feb.  Four calling birds were with Horned Larks flying over the pool
where the Trumpeter Swans were on 17 Feb.

Good birding,

Steve Rottenborn
Morgan Hill, CA


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Birders,

Yesterday, Jan 3, I birded the Alturas and northern Suprise Valley areas of
Modoc County.

At Cedarville, I found at least 10 Eurasian Collared-doves in trees on the north
side of
Townsend St., between High and Lincoln Sts. It seemed strange to see these birds
in such a
cold climate.

As Steve reported, there were many Rough-legged Hawks in the fields in Alturas,
and at the
Surprise Valley. I had one Ferruginous Hawk along No.Surprise Valley Rd., about
4 miles north
of Cedarville. I had one adult Bald Eagle perched in a tree on Surprise Valley
Rd., between
Lake City and Ft. Bidwell, and an adult and sub-adult on the road to Fee
Reservoir.

John Lewis
Chico

I spent the last three days birding Modoc County, covering the western part of
the county (Day, Lookout, Newell/Tulelake) on 1 Jan., Goose Lake and the valley
from Alturas to Likely on 2 Jan., and northern Surprise Valley (from Cedarville
north) yesterday.

Waterbirds were few and far between, as most ponds and lakes were frozen.  For
example, Goose Lake was completely frozen, and a drive along the western shore
and scanning from several spots on the eastern shore produced zero waterbirds. 
The only shorebirds I saw were 3 Wilson's Snipe along the Pit. River near
Alturas, the only geese other than Canadas were 2 Cackling Geese near Newell,
the only 2 Tundra Swans I had were at Modoc NWR, and the only gulls (2
Ring-billed) were also at Modoc NWR.

Highlights are as follows:

Red-shouldered Hawk: 1 SY bird along CR 60 northwest of Likely on 2 Jan.

Other buteos: I kept tabs on the relative abundance of Rough-legged and
Red-tailed Hawks (the only Ferruginous of the trip was near Newell on 1 Jan.). 
Numbers of Rough-legged and Red-tailed Hawks during each of the three days were
37/88 on 1 Jan., 23/63 on 2 Jan., and 7/27 on 3 Jan.

Owls: A Northern Saw-whet Owl responded to my calls from an area upslope from CR
9 near the Willow Ranch cemetery at 06:00 on 3 January (an area where I've
previously had this species), and a Long-eared was calling spontaneously (heard
repeatedly) in the same area; this area is east of Goose Lake along the road to
Fandango Pass.

Shrikes:  The only shrikes I saw were 2 Loggerheads and 3 SY Northerns in the
Newell/Tulelake area on 1 Jan.

American Tree Sparrow: 2 were near Modoc NWR along CR 56 just east of Alturas
and 1 was just south of Stateline Road in New Pine Creek near Goose Lake S.P.,
both on 2 Jan.  In both cases, the birds were with junco flocks.

Harris's Sparrow: 2 SY birds were together in the backyard of 202 Main St. in
Cedarville on 3 Jan., as seen from Locust St. (the house is on the corner of
Main and Locust).  Neither bird had black on the chin, indicating that they were
first-winter birds, but one had considerably more black on the breast and more
black showing under the brownish tips to the crown feathers than the other, and
both were seen simultaneously.

Juncos: As usual, I spent some time trying to ID these to subspecies group when
I got good looks.  All of the 46 scrutinized on 1 Jan. and 27 on 2 Jan. were
Oregons (many more were not seen well enough).  Of the 57 seen well in northern
Surprise Valley on 3 Jan., 50 were Oregon, 1 was a hyemalis-type Slate-colored,
and 6 appeared to be cismontanus types.

Good birding,

Steve Rottenborn
Morgan Hill, CA



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]