Review Species Reported This Month:
    White-rumped Sandpiper  Davis Co.
    Elf Owl  Washington Co.
    Broad-billed Hummingbird  Wasatch Co.
    Scissor-tailed Flycatcher  Summit Co.
    Scarlet Tanager  Juab Co.
    Painted Bunting  Juab Co.
    Bronzed Cowbird  Washington Co.
 

BOX ELDER COUNTY

Bridget Olson - Bear River Bird Refuge Waterbird/Raptor Survey - 7/19/07... Notable birds include... a Eurasian Collared Dove... Great Egret 8... Solitary Sandpiper 2...

Dave Slager (14 Jul 2007) - I went to Bear River Bird Refuge this morning. Along the entrance road I had a Grasshopper Sparrow silently perching on the fence at the small brown sign that says "Bird Refuge 10 miles". I had a Short-eared Owl along the entrance road and another Short-eared along the west side of the auto tour loop.

DAVIS COUNTY

Tim Avery (21 Jul 2007) - This evening I saw a very strange large Caladris sandpiper along the causeway between MM 4 and 5. Initially I thought it was just a pale Baird's Sandpiper but once in the scope, the base of the bill appeared pinkish-orange. Then when the bird took off I was stunned to see the white rumps as I snapped a few more shots:... The bird appeared to be a White-rumped Sandpiper, but this date and location would seem highly unlikely... At the same time I can't figure out what else it may be. ...Also in the same area were 3 Pectoral Sandpiper...

Nate Nye (2 Jul 2007) - This morning, my dad and I drove out to Antelope Island to do some birding together. We saw plenty of all the expected species, including probably close to 100,000 Wilson's Phalaropes along the causeway (incredible sight). Easily the most unexpected bird of the morning was a pair of Grasshopper Sparrows seen at about 9:30 AM along the road slightly north of Garr Ranch (at the site there was a brown road marker with a "9" on it). They were quite cooperative--we watched them from about 25 ft. away in excellent lighting for a couple of minutes before they flew off into the fields and began singing their "trip, trip, tip-tzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz" song. We could see well their buffy, unstreaked breast, yellow lores, wide dark stripe on either side of the pale central crown stripe (seen from above), and intricately patterned scapulars and tertials. And if the great views weren't enough to confirm the ID, their distinctive insectlike song was a complete giveaway.

DUCHESNE COUNTY

Mark Stackhouse - On Saturday morning, 20 July, I saw and heard a (presumably a male) White-throated Sparrow singing on the south side of the trailhead parking area. It was acting very territorial and responded vigorously to a recorded song. I don't know how frequently White-throated Sparrow is recorded for summer in Utah but I though it odd. It was especially odd to hear the clear tones of "Old Sam Peabody Peabody Peabody" coming from the forest in the Uintas. Well, it wasn't exactly the classic phraseology, he jazzed it up a bit, more like "Old Sam Peabody ooo body body ooo body . . ."

GARFIELD COUNTY

Colby Neuman (25 Jul 2007) - Tim Avery called me last night to report the Pacific Loon continues in the location described by Rick Fridell.

Rick Fridell - On Monday (July 16, 2007), Kristen and I were very surprised to see a Pacific Loon at Panguitch Lake, Garfield Co., UT. The loon appeared to be a first summer bird in basic plumage. We viewed the bird from the boat ramp on the south side of the lake. Also on July 16th, we observed a family of Williamson's Sapsuckers at the NFS campground at Panguitch Lake...

Lu Giddings (14 Jul 2007) - A small but enthusiastic group of Utah County Birders traveled to Escalante late yesterday afternoon. Trip highlights include, in no particular order: - seeing both an Acorn Woodpecker and a Lewis's woodpecker at the acorn woodpecker tree 5.5 miles north of Boulder on Highway 12...

JUAB COUNTY 

Steve Carr (31 Jul 2007) - The UOS Quick Chase to Fish Springs, attended by 8 birders, also saw the Painted Bunting at the picnic site within minutes upon arrival at about 10:15 a.m. today. A lifer for most and a state bird for all but Larene, who had seen it last week. ...A couple of fleeting glimpses of the possible/probable female Scarlet Tanager were seen, not at the picnic site but at the Hqs area. Unlike the Bunting, which made itself very obvious time and again, the "Tanager" kept to herself in the higher canopy of the cottonwoods, often flying from one set of trees to another.

Edson Leite (29 Jul 2007) - My girlfriend Beth and I went after the Painted Bunting this morning. What a great looking bird. We got to the refuge at 5pm. Spotted the bird by the cottonwoods near the picnic tables.  Also a lot of Common Nighthawks, the Red-shouldered Hawk made an appearance near the picnic area and the Nighthawks were not too pleased. ...On our way out Beth spotted a American Bittern on the first pond from the entrance. Finally got that nemesis bird. But my camera battery had died.

Milt Moody (25 Jul 2007) - Matt Mills reported that the Painted Bunting is at the same location today and that he's gotten some pictures of the bird... He also saw a female Scarlet Tanager, and the same Red-shouldered Hawk as he saw yesterday (that's quite the trio all in the same place).

Milt Moody (24 Jul 2007) - Matt Mills phoned in to reported a male Painted Bunting at the Thomas Ranch Interpretive Site just up the road north of the main buildings at Fish Springs. It was on the ground around the picnic tables. He also reported seeing a Red-shouldered Hawk in the area.

RICH COUNTY

Kris Purdy (11 Jul 20007) - At least one White-winged Crossbill flew over Monte Cristo Campground in Rich County yesterday morning, calling in flight. Twice in the recent past I believed White-wings were at Monte Cristo, but the call or view was so brief that I couldn't conclusively rule out other species. I chose not to report the possibility. Yesterday's calling sequence was definitive even though I didn't see the bird. What's wrong with those darn crossbills--why can't they perch sedately at eye level for me?!? We need spruces around here that produce cones at a height of 5' 3" instead of at 60 feet. ...It took about an hour of listening to get a sign from a Three-toed Woodpecker; finally one drummed a total of four times and sat patiently on a snag while I watched her. It was the adult female. She was on the slope downhill from campsite 18 on Loop C. That's the first place I saw the male on June 21 and I've seen both adults in that area a couple times. Then she disappeared while I was distracted by an adult male Williamson's Sapsucker feeding a juvenile female.

SAN JUAN COUNTY

Tim Avery (12 Jul 2007) - Spent 4 scorching hot days in San Juan County this week. The highlight of the week was an adult male Indigo Bunting in Montezuma Creek Canyon this morning. The bird was seen about a 1/2 mile from where one was seen a month ago during a survey.

SUMMIT COUNTY

Kris Purdy (22 Jul 2007) - Yesterday afternoon between 3 and 6 pm a noisy bunch of Three-toed  Woodpeckers kept me busy chasing them around Crystal Lake in Summit County along SR-150. I saw between six and eight woodpeckers and may have seen more because I didn't count an adult male and female twice even though I saw adult birds several times. I believe there were two different family groups.

Dana Green (11 Jul 2007) - Yesterday evening when driving into Ogden to visit kids, I saw a Scissor-tailed Flycatcher perched on a sign between t;he I-84 cutout and the sign for Henifer and Echo. Sorry, I can't be more specific but it took me awhile to realize I wasn't in Texas anymore. Arnie wouldn't go back for a scissortail. It was on a small rectangular green sign.

UTAH COUNTY 

mdpack@juno.com - 9:30 am July 31. Alison and I saw a Green Heron on the canal side of  the Airport dike just past the first south east corner. It was in a dead tree preening just above the water.

WASATCH COUNTY 

Angie (moabgirl@gmail.com) - Broad-billed hummingbird-Uintas - Observed a hummingbird with a reddish-orange, black tipped, slightly downcurved bill and a blue-green back at soapstone basin the morning of July 28th.

WASHINGTON COUNTY 

Tim Avery (19 Jul 2007) - Tuesday night at 9:45 pm, Stacie Schoppman and I heard an Elf Owl in the Beaver Dam Wash, just south of Lytle Ranch Preserve. The area where the bird was heard was just after you cross Beaver Dam Creek below the ranch. The bird was in what would be the west or south clump of trees. This is the grove where you can drive about 100 yards off the road into the small camping area, as opposed to the east grove which is all posted as Private Property...

Tim Avery (19 Jul 2007) - 07/17 - 3 Brown-crested Flycatcher at Lytle Ranch...

Larry Tripp (2 Jul 2007) - At my house in Central in Washington County tonight there is a Bronzed Cowbird. I first saw it at the bird bath. Then I watched it and took some photos of it on the power line in the yard. It flew off when I went out to put more seed out so hopefully it will come back. It's a female.