April 15, 2001 to May 16, 2001
by Jim Rogers

The Spring migration got into full swing by mid-March as flocks of shorebirds headed for nesting grounds up in the Arctic tundra. Most flew on past Curry County without stopping for a quick bit to eat, but small flocks were seen in the estuaries.

April 15: Colin Dillingham reported the return of the Evening Grosbeaks.

April 27: The Northern Mockingbird that had been visiting Colin's feeder, on the south bank of the Rogue, since November 11 departed, as did the Rough-legged Hawk that Terry Wahl had been seeing south of Langlois.

April 29: Colin Dillingham, Mark Stevens, and Mike Miller conducted a Big Day in North Curry County and found a respectable 120 species. They began by call for owls in Quosatana Creek and found a total of 7 species by the end of the day: Barn, Screech, Great Horned, Pygmy, Spotted, Barred, and Saw-whet. They found an early Bullock's Oriole and several Lazuli Buntings in Agness, as well as their first Olive-sided Flycatcher, and at the mouth of Shasta Costa Creek they found a Yellow-breasted Chat. The also discovered a new Peregrine Falcon nest near Port Orford.

April 30: A Sandhill Crane was on Rick McKenzie's ranch on the Coos-Curry county line. Terry Wahl reported his first Black-headed Grosbeak of the year. April 31: At least 60 Whimbrels were feeding on the Wahl ranch on the lower Elk River (down from the estimated 1000 that were there at one time last year).

May 1: Terry Wahl and I each heard our first Western Tanagers of the season, and I heard my first Pacific Slope (Western) and Olive-sided Flycatchers.

May 12: North American Migration Count day. About a dozen Curry County birders participated in this semi-annual continent-wide "snapshot" of where the birds are. We found a total of 143 species¯the same as last year, but well short of the record 160 we found in 1999. We need more birders so we can spare people to cover the more remote places like Whetstone, Butte, Chetco Lake, etc. The most outstanding bird of the day was a Scissor-tailed Flycatcher that put in an appearance on the Wahl ranch on Elk River for the special occasion. As I recall, this is the fourth record for this unmistakable bird of Oklahoma and Texas. A flock of 30 White-faced Ibis, observed flying around the Pistol River pastures by Don Munson, was a rare sight for Curry County. They nest on the Malheur NWR and are rarely seen west of the Cascades. Flocks of Pacific Loons were resting on the ocean or flying north as we record most May NAMCs. The South County crew tallied 26 Black-crowned Night Herons in their roosts along the Chetco. The lone White-fronted Goose that spent the winter with the domestic flock in Euchre Creek was still there. If you'd like to help with this event, let me know. The NAMC is held twice a year, in May and September.

May 16: A very elusive Common Moorhen was discovered by Terry Wahl on the Elk River ranch in a little backwater along the river. This is only the second record for this species (formerly known as the Common Gallinule) in Curry County, the first having been photographed by Lois Brooks on Garrison Lake on May 5, 1976. Terry led me to the bird for my 315th Curry County species. Moorhens are relatively common in the Eastern states and along the Mexican border.

Curry County lost (hopefully only temporarily) one of its most intrepid birder, Colin Dillingham, who moved away to Quincy, California. His knowledge of birds and plants and his records of bird activity in the central county will be sorely missed.

Please phone or fax me your Curry County bird observations at 332-2555, and or mail them to me at 95187 Elk River Road, Port Orford, OR 97465. Good birding!