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Another Lifer!?

Greetings

Last Saturday, (5/3/03) the Dixie Birders teamed up with about a dozen Salt
Lake Birders and birded Lytle Ranch, with a brief look at Welcome Springs,
which produced the bird of the day.

All told we saw roughly 38/39 species, depends if you count the Verdin, not
seen by all. There was the usual birds, even some more exotic as Larry Tripp
has indicated, but the real class act was a good showing by the Common Black
Hawks - 2 for all to see. But the bird of the day had to be... the
Flammulated Owl seen in the willows up the canyon from Welcome Springs.
Fantastic looks by all in attendance as the bird sat "leaning" on the tree
trunk about 12 feet of the ground and only 20 feet away, at most.

Other birds seen of interest: Osprey, Cooper's Hawk, Peregrine Falcon,
Rufous Hummingbird, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Loggerhead Shrike, Juniper
Titmouse, Blue-gray and Black-tailed Gnatcatcher, Black-throated and
Savannah Sparrow, and a Lazuli x Indigo Bunting hybrid. Admittedly a great
day birding.

Now, if you've read this far, I need your help. There are two geese on the
SunRiver Golf Course that at first glance you dismiss as Greater
White-fronted Geese. But, on closer inspection the head really stands out,
as does the green on the flank. They look like a cross between a Muscovy
Duck and a Blue Goose. Legs are red, bill is reddish with gnarled nostrils,
wing coverts and secondaries are pure white, very noticeable in flight. The
head and breast are clean except for a silver dollar black spot mid-chest,
and the eyes are ringed by a large dark feathering looking as if masked.
Never mind, NEVER MIND!!! I just opened Sibley to give more of a description
and the book opened to page 89. There they are, EYGPTIAN GOOSE. There are
two of them. Absolutely gorgeous. They come and go, but I've seen them for
about two weeks. This morning they were in my back yard.

So... can I count them as a Washington County bird??? Ahh, come on Rick.

Dixie Willie

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