[birding] E.E. Wilson Wildlife Area & vicinity

[Joel Geier]

Hello folks,

I can confirm Rich & Paula's report of zero waterbirds on the main ponds
at E.E. Wilson Wildlife Area, unless you count the ever-present
KINGFISHER. This corner of Benton County doesn't seem to be sharing in
the Philomath phenomenon. 

This afternoon a flock of gulls were resting around a puddle in a field
on the NE side of the wildlife area. That finally gave me an excuse to
use the scope that I'd been lugging around for a couple of miles, but
they turned out to be a remarkably pure flock of 25 CALIFORNIA GULLS. A
flock of 15 DUNLIN flew in while I was scoping the gulls, so that was my
big excitement for the day.

The "lake" on the north side of the PRC (yard-waste composting facility)
had two DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANTS, two PIED-BILLED GREBES that briefly
got my hopes up, and one MALLARD.

Lots of the usual sparrows etc. I heard a couple of flyover AMERICAN
PIPITS. Over by the landfill, Toketie Marsh had about five WILSON'S
SNIPE feeding along the south side of Coffin Butte Rd. 

Happy birding,
Joel

--
Joel Geier
Camp Adair area north of Corvallis.