[birding] finley/philomath

[rich armstrong]

1. paula vanderhuel, gail andrews, and i went to mcfaddin hoping for a heerman's gull.
    a. zero gulls
    b. only 3 tundra swans
    c. 2 male wood ducks
2. across from the scrape on bruce road there was 1 cackling goose with a very very wide white band (much wider than the normal little white bands that some have) that made me think possible aleutian goose. unfortunately it turned it's back and then they all flew and landed in a huge group all with heads down and facing away. so we never saw it again - just something to keep an eye out for, especially since there are 2 at ankeny.
3. we walked out the boardwalk to cabell
    a. 3 cormorants
    b. 1 EURASIAN WIGEON
    c. 200+ green-winged teal in perfect light to look for common teal - didn't find any but i tried
4. pond across road from cabell turnoff
    a. 2 male EURASIAN WIGEON
5. at hq we did not find the black phoebe that has been seen regularly there
6. at philomath poo ponds
    a. 2 GOLDENEYE. one was definitely COMMON GOLDENEYE with all dark bill. the other was interesting. now, although i still think it was a common, it was noticeably different - shorter stubbier bill, but did have 1/2 black and 1/2 yellow bill, different shaped head, and when the 2 flew together from south pond to north pond, it did look like it had ever so slightly less white on the wings. so we consider it might remotely possibly be a female barrow's. paula and gail both got some pictures they will send to doug robinson, but since goldeneye is always a good bird for benton county hopefully others will check this out.
    b. 1 HORNED GREBE
    c. 1 gull species flyby - definitely not a heermans, most likely a 1st winter california from what we saw.
    d. lots of bufflehead, ring-necked, a few sleeping scaup, and the usual shovelers, coots, ruddy ducks.
Rich Armstrong
541-753-1978
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