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From November 1-4 I spent a mini-vacation with the
family in St. George and environs. This was a great opportunity to bird in
an area never before visited for this purpose, and to begin my Washington County
List.
On Saturday @ 7 a.m. Rick Fridell and Charlie
Sheard picked me up at the motel for a day of birdng in and around St.
George. (To tell the truth, I should have gone a month earlier, but we do
what we can.)
We visited Red Hills Golf Course, Sun Brook Golf
Course, Tonaquint Park, Southgate Golf Course, Washington Fields, Washington
City, and later in the day Quail Creek Reservoir. On Monday I visited
Lyttle Ranch and Enterprise Reservoir. On the way home I stopped briefly
at the Green Valley Golf course and again, Washington City.
We started at Red Hills Golf Course and the first
bird of the day was a life bird for me, a Common Moorhen hiding in the cattails
on the west side of the pond. On the pond we also saw a Pied-billed Grebe
and American Coot, and nearby in a pile of brush a Bewick's Wren. As we
continued through the golf course we saw many birds, including a flock of
Gambel's Quail, a Verdin, and a Ladder-backed Woodpecker. All
life birds for me. We also saw Northern Mockingbird, Say's and
Black Phoebe, Lesser Goldfinch, American Goldfinch and Northern Flicker, among
others. We saw a woodpecker that Rick thought was a cross between a
Red-naped Sapsucker and a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, since it had color
characteristics of both. (Sorry, no camera.)
Next we visited Sun Brook Golf Course where I added
the Greater White-fronted Goose to my life list. The large water hazard
(pond) contained many ducks. Charlie pointed out a nearby home, where we
peaked into the backyard and observed flitting around on the ground,
near some bushes, an Abert's Towhee. Another life bird
for my list. There were also Spotted Towhee and White-crowned
Sparrows in the same area.
Then to Tonaquint Park, with the hope of finding a
Crissal Thrasher. No luck.
On our way to Southgate Golf Course we stopped at a
nearby Maverick convenience store to refuel. There we saw a Great-tailed
Grackle. The large golf course pond contained a large flock of many
different ducks, which we scanned for new species, without success.
On to Washington Fields, where the big find was a
Crissal Thrasher that flew parallel to Rick's truck long enough for us to get a
good look. Another life bird! We also had a good view of several
raptors, including Golden Eagle, Northern Harrier and a Cooper's
Hawk.
At Washington City we were not able to see the
European Collard Dove previously reported by Dennis Shirley, and subsequently
seen by Rick Fridell, William Hunter and others. A cell phone call to
Dennis helped to locate the specific area. (Thanks, Dennis.)
In the late afternoon I met Rick at Quail Creek
Reservoir, which yielded many ducks, including a Surf Scoter and a life
White-winged Scoter. We then went to Berry Spring Marsh, where we
immediately spotted a Great Horned Owl that was settling into a large dead tree
in front of us. We were able to observe it for several minutes, before it
flew away.
On Monday I made a solo first trip to Lyttle
Ranch. However, it was quite dead to bird life. But, I was able to
add a Western Bluebird to my year list. I also observed a Townsend's
Solitaire and another Ladder-backed Woodpecker, as well as Ruby-crowned Kinglet
and more White-crowned Sparrow. I had a nice visit (in English and
Spanish) with Eriberto Madrigal, the caretaker. We had a good time
chatting about things of common interest and sharing a few pomegranates.
(I don't see how some people can eat those seeds.) This was followed
by a brief visit to Enterprise Reservoir. At Shivwits (Indian reservation)
I had a nice close view of a Red-tailed Hawk sitting on the remains of an adobe
house. Its crop was protruding to such an extent that I
concluded it must have just finished eating.
On the way home on Tuesday we stopped by the Green
Valley Golf Course to inspect the pond at the entrance. There we saw a
nice collection of ducks; a few Mallard, many Ring-necked Duck, a few
Ruddy Duck and many noisy American Coot. But, unfortunately, not the
Greater Scaup previously reported by Dennis Shirley. A brief visit again
to Washington City did not yield the collared doves.
For me this was a great birding trip to a new
birding area. Besides the 52 birds I now have on my Washington County
List, I added 7 life birds and another annual bird. I certainly enjoyed
and appreciated the time and efforts of such affable and experienced birders as
Rick and Charlie. Thanks so much.
A list of bird seen included the following birds,
which got my Washington County List off to a great start.
Pied-billed Grebe
Great Blue Heron
Greater White-fronted Goose *
Canada Goose
Mallard
Northern Shoveler
American Wigeon
Ring-necked Duck
Surf Scoter
White-winged Scoter *
Bufflehead
Ruddy Duck
Bald Eagle (imm.)
Northern Harrier
Cooper's Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Golden Eagle
American Kestrel
Gambel's Quail *
Common Moorhen *
American Coot
Mourning Dove
Great Horned Owl
Belted Kingfisher
Red-naped Sapsucker
Ladder-backed Woodpecker *
Northern Flicker
Black Phoebe
Say's Phoebe
Common Raven
Verdin *
Bewick's Wren
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Western Bluebird **
Townsend's Solitaire
American Robin
Northern Mockingbird
Crissal Thrasher
European Starling
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Spotted Towhee
Abert's Towhee *
Savannah Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
Red-winged Blackbird
Yellow-headed Blackbird
Great-tailed Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Pine Siskin
Lesser Goldfinch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
* Life Bird/Annual Bird
** Annual Bird
P.S. Rick, if I missed any, please let me
know. I did not see the House Finch. GBB
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