Bird Notes - May to July, 2004
by Jim Rogers

Early summer of 2004 brought a few oddities to Curry County. . .

May 23? - While hiking down the trail on the north side of Cape Blanco Veva Stansell was quite surprised to see a Sandhill Crane! The big bird flew off toward Blacklock. Nearly every year one or two of these unmistakable birds is seen in. the county, and occasionally they apparently spend the entire summer here. Although they're the size of a Great-blue heron, they can be easily distinguished in flight in that the crane flies with its neck outstretched while the heron flies with its neck cranked up. If they call, the crane's high rolling bugle is unmistakable from the heron's imitation of a cougar coughing up a hairball (though the crane also makes a similar sound). One of the best places to see them is Malheur National Wildlife Refuge as well as other lakes and marshes in Southeast Oregon. .

This seems to be the year of the Rose-breasted Grosbeak. On June 5 Miriam Yates saw one behind the Rite Aid store in Harbor. The following Saturday, June 12, Jonnie O'Sullivan had one at her feeder on the south end of Port Orford. Don Munson saw one by Carpenterville at the Edmonds residence, and in mid-June Phil Hicks spotted one up the Chetco (possibly a second sighting of the June 5 bird). Others have been sighted elsewhere in western Oregon. Of course these are all males, the female being nearly indistinguishable from the female Black-beaded Grosbeak. This eastern version of our Black-headed Grosbeak occasionally shows up throughout Oregon, usually during the mid-May through mid-June period. .

On a visit to Snow Camp on June 28 Don Munson observed a pair of Rock Wrens singing, an indication that they were nesting. We do occasionally find these wrens of the eastern Oregon rimrock country nesting in Curry County in suitable habitat, that being hot, dry, barren, rocky terrain. Don also reported a Sharp-shinned hawk spending the summer in his neighborhood, an indication that it might be nesting nearby. While Sharp-­shins are fairly common here from fall through early spring, they mostly leave to breed elsewhere.

A first for Oregon was scored by Don Munson on July 2 when he found a Yellow-throated vireo near his house up the south bank of the Chetco! There are a few records for this east-of-the-Mississippi rarity in most of the western states, but now I think Montana is the remaining holdout.

Michael Myers saw a Peregrine Falcon on the Port Orford Heads on July 2. He goes there every day and this is the first time he’s seen one there in the summer so presumably it isn’t nesting there, but the Heads certainly provides excellent nesting habitat.

A note on feeding hummingbirds ... the proportion of sugar to water is one part sugar to four parts boiling water. Never feed them honey. If they stop using a feeder it's probably because there's a little mold in it. Wash it in hot clear water then put in a bleach solution of one tablespoon of bleach to a quart of water. Let it stand a few minutes then dump the bleach and rinse well with hot water.

Please phone, fax or mail your bird observations to me at (541) 332-2555; 95187 Elk River Rd., Port Orford, OR 97465. Thanks.