Post by Gord on Aug 31, 2007 22:08:02 GMT -8
I got out for a hike on Thursday.
The weather was really nice and promised to be a good day. About half way up the road, a chicken sized bird flew up from the side of the road. For Dave's benefit, Ill say it must have been a small blue grouse that had dipped a bit of his tail in black paint. ;D (Dave, we're going to get one of those for you before 2008 ;D)
Straight away from the parking lot, things were busy. A mini flock of migrants was quite exciting. A Nashville warbler was great considering I havnt seen one for over three years! It was among other migrants including the fall's first ruby-crowned kinglets, two western tanagers and other warblers.
Nashville
Orange-crowned
Fox sparrow
At Spoon Valley was a small group of Lincoln's sparrows and MacGillvray's warblers. The Lincoln's sparrows were also a first for me this fall migration. Also here up on the slope were three black bears. One was a very big fellow!
Hard to say at 800 yds+ but I bet he'd go a good 300lbs!
A little further along I came across a friend of Thor's and Dave's. I hoped it wouldnt keep me company and scare things off. Happily it worked its way opposite to where I was going.
At the bit between Lady and Cheam Peak I heard a chattering sound that came from swifts that were too big to be Vaux's swifts. I thought WOW, white-throated maybe? It didnt sound right to be so but Ive only heard white-throated ones to be that noisy. Turns out, and this is speculation, that it was a family of them and the young pestering the adults were making all the noise.
As I sat to have a snack a large orange butterfly flew over my head. I did not get a very good look but I can tell you it was large, almost if not about swallowtail butterfly in size and very orange. When it flew it would glide with it's wings in a bit of a 'V'. My only guess in the short view I had accompanied by a humorous attempt to get it in my binoculars (fighting a pepperoni stick in one hand and an apple in the other) is that it was a monarch butterfly. Is this likely?
A few kicks and lots of puffs later as I was getting near the top this guy showed up to add a challenge to find a ptarmigan. I would have preferred the harrier! This golden eagle was very acrobatic playing in the breeze. It also moved off down the ridge.
I made it to the top and had great views. A pair of horned larks flew over calling away madly. No ptarmigan though but I was not surprised given the cloudless day, golden eagle and lots of people. On my way back down I was scanning the rocks almost 200 yds away and LO! a hen was sitting on the rocks against the sky. While it involved me going out of my way and a little bit back uphill, I could not give up this gimmie of spotting one from such a great distance. I took the obligatory pictures of her and her three chicks and will post them as per tradition.
On the way back down, I did not run into much of interest aside from a calling pygmy-owl who did not come to my whistles.
Lots of butterflies flying around too. I think this is a hairstreak.
As always, a beautiful hike.
Location: Cheam Mountain
Observation date: 8/30/07
Number of species: 37
Ruffed Grouse 1
White-tailed Ptarmigan 4
Northern Harrier 1
Cooper's Hawk 1
Golden Eagle 2
Northern Pygmy-Owl 1
Black Swift 7
Vaux's Swift 20
Hairy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 2
Steller's Jay 4
Common Raven 1
Horned Lark 2
Chestnut-backed Chickadee 4
Red-breasted Nuthatch 6
Winter Wren 3
Golden-crowned Kinglet 16
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 6
American Robin 8
Varied Thrush 1
American Pipit 10
Orange-crowned Warbler 10
Nashville Warbler 1
Yellow Warbler 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler 25
Townsend's Warbler 1
MacGillivray's Warbler 4
Wilson's Warbler 3
Western Tanager 2
Savannah Sparrow 1
Fox Sparrow 2
Lincoln's Sparrow 5
White-crowned Sparrow 2
Dark-eyed Junco 28
Gray-crowned Rosy-Finch 13
Pine Siskin 15
Evening Grosbeak 6
The weather was really nice and promised to be a good day. About half way up the road, a chicken sized bird flew up from the side of the road. For Dave's benefit, Ill say it must have been a small blue grouse that had dipped a bit of his tail in black paint. ;D (Dave, we're going to get one of those for you before 2008 ;D)
Straight away from the parking lot, things were busy. A mini flock of migrants was quite exciting. A Nashville warbler was great considering I havnt seen one for over three years! It was among other migrants including the fall's first ruby-crowned kinglets, two western tanagers and other warblers.
Nashville
Orange-crowned
Fox sparrow
At Spoon Valley was a small group of Lincoln's sparrows and MacGillvray's warblers. The Lincoln's sparrows were also a first for me this fall migration. Also here up on the slope were three black bears. One was a very big fellow!
Hard to say at 800 yds+ but I bet he'd go a good 300lbs!A little further along I came across a friend of Thor's and Dave's. I hoped it wouldnt keep me company and scare things off. Happily it worked its way opposite to where I was going.
At the bit between Lady and Cheam Peak I heard a chattering sound that came from swifts that were too big to be Vaux's swifts. I thought WOW, white-throated maybe? It didnt sound right to be so but Ive only heard white-throated ones to be that noisy. Turns out, and this is speculation, that it was a family of them and the young pestering the adults were making all the noise.
As I sat to have a snack a large orange butterfly flew over my head. I did not get a very good look but I can tell you it was large, almost if not about swallowtail butterfly in size and very orange. When it flew it would glide with it's wings in a bit of a 'V'. My only guess in the short view I had accompanied by a humorous attempt to get it in my binoculars (fighting a pepperoni stick in one hand and an apple in the other) is that it was a monarch butterfly. Is this likely?
A few kicks and lots of puffs later as I was getting near the top this guy showed up to add a challenge to find a ptarmigan. I would have preferred the harrier! This golden eagle was very acrobatic playing in the breeze. It also moved off down the ridge.
I made it to the top and had great views. A pair of horned larks flew over calling away madly. No ptarmigan though but I was not surprised given the cloudless day, golden eagle and lots of people. On my way back down I was scanning the rocks almost 200 yds away and LO! a hen was sitting on the rocks against the sky. While it involved me going out of my way and a little bit back uphill, I could not give up this gimmie of spotting one from such a great distance. I took the obligatory pictures of her and her three chicks and will post them as per tradition.
On the way back down, I did not run into much of interest aside from a calling pygmy-owl who did not come to my whistles.
Lots of butterflies flying around too. I think this is a hairstreak.
As always, a beautiful hike.
Location: Cheam Mountain
Observation date: 8/30/07
Number of species: 37
Ruffed Grouse 1
White-tailed Ptarmigan 4
Northern Harrier 1
Cooper's Hawk 1
Golden Eagle 2
Northern Pygmy-Owl 1
Black Swift 7
Vaux's Swift 20
Hairy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 2
Steller's Jay 4
Common Raven 1
Horned Lark 2
Chestnut-backed Chickadee 4
Red-breasted Nuthatch 6
Winter Wren 3
Golden-crowned Kinglet 16
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 6
American Robin 8
Varied Thrush 1
American Pipit 10
Orange-crowned Warbler 10
Nashville Warbler 1
Yellow Warbler 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler 25
Townsend's Warbler 1
MacGillivray's Warbler 4
Wilson's Warbler 3
Western Tanager 2
Savannah Sparrow 1
Fox Sparrow 2
Lincoln's Sparrow 5
White-crowned Sparrow 2
Dark-eyed Junco 28
Gray-crowned Rosy-Finch 13
Pine Siskin 15
Evening Grosbeak 6
