A Christmas Bird Chase and a Christmas Bird Count
Portland did not see a White Christmas this year, but Sarah and I compensated by finding a snow bunting on Christmas Day.
After brunching at her grandparents' house, we drove to the north side of the Portland Airport.
We pulled into a small parking area, rolled down our windows, and watched the Snow Bunting (possibly a Snow x McKay's Bunting hybrid) eat weed seeds for several minutes. Easiest bird chase ever! The bunting is in the lower right corner of the photo.
Two days later, we woke at 5:30 am and drove to the Willamette Valley town of Dallas, Oregon to assist their Christmas Bird Count.
With the help of a semi-local birder, Sarah and I drove our Subaru around our assigned sectors, which consisted of upland fields,
foggy hilltops,
and a few streams with nice bridges.
We found a friendly donkey and 53 species of birds. Of these species, two-thirds were songbirds.
Our songbird success pushed the overall count total above 100 species, a nice feat considering the stormy weather and relatively low number of participants.
After brunching at her grandparents' house, we drove to the north side of the Portland Airport.
We pulled into a small parking area, rolled down our windows, and watched the Snow Bunting (possibly a Snow x McKay's Bunting hybrid) eat weed seeds for several minutes. Easiest bird chase ever! The bunting is in the lower right corner of the photo.
Two days later, we woke at 5:30 am and drove to the Willamette Valley town of Dallas, Oregon to assist their Christmas Bird Count.
With the help of a semi-local birder, Sarah and I drove our Subaru around our assigned sectors, which consisted of upland fields,
foggy hilltops,
and a few streams with nice bridges.
We found a friendly donkey and 53 species of birds. Of these species, two-thirds were songbirds.
Our songbird success pushed the overall count total above 100 species, a nice feat considering the stormy weather and relatively low number of participants.
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