Bear River Refuge Count-Box Elder County

[Bridget_Olson at fws dot gov]

Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge
Waterbird/Raptor Survey
7/22/03

Tour route pool providing great opportunity for bird observations.  Large
numbers of birds are using this area as there's extensive mudflats exposed
as the unit is drying out.  Shorebirds seem to be very mobile so no
guarantees that they'll still be there but yesterday there were large
numbers of Western Sandpipers, Baird's Sandpipers, a few Least Sandpipers,
both Lesser and Greater Yellowlegs, Avocets, Stilts, Spotted Sandpiper, a
couple Willets, Marbled Godwits, killdeer, just a couple Semipalmated
Plovers and even a few Snowy Plovers (in the canal on the east side of the
tour loop as you're heading north).  In addition, there were several
thousand White-faced Ibis and 100's of Pelicans and Canada Geese in this
unit.  44% of the total birds counted on the survey were observed from the
tour-route or "open" part of the Refuge.

When separating the peeps I look for the long slightly drooping bill, black
legs and "spots" down the sides of the western sandpipers, the "buffy wash"
on the breast of the Baird's sandpipers and wing extension beyond the tail
and the small size, yellow legs, and overall "brown on brown" appearance of
the least sandpipers.

Canada Goose            2244
Mallard                 18
Northern Pintail        72
GW Teal           60
BW Teal           49
Cinnamon Teal           3314
Northern Shoveler 2
Gadwall           2751
Unk. Dabblers           2460
Canvasback        1
Redhead           10
C. Goldeneye            1
Ruddy Duck        211
Pied-billed Grebe 22
Eared Grebe       3
W. Grebe          96
Clark's Grebe           41
A.W. Pelican            6081
DC Cormorant            404
GB Heron          85
Great Egret       5
Snowy Egret       436
BC Night Heron          24
WF Ibis                 11437
Snowy Plover            117
Semipalmated Plover     4
Killdeer                70
Black-necked Stilt      5173
American Avocet   5182
Willet                  4
Spotted Sandpiper 29
Greater Yellowlegs      46
Lesser Yellowlegs 109
Long-billed Curlew      3
Marbled Godwit          1238
Western Sandpiper 9149
Least Sandpiper   92
Baird's Sandpiper 897
Dowitcher spp.          70
Wilson's Phalarope      206
Franklin's Gull         912
Ring-billed Gull        119
California Gull         1126
Caspian Tern            45
Forster's Tern          65
Black Tern        8
Virginia Rail           1
Sora              1
Coot              5932
Sandhill Crane          10
American Kestrel  1

Bridget Olson
Wildlife Biologist
Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge
58 S. 950 W.
Brigham City, UT  84302
Phone: 435/723-5887 ext. 13
Fax: 435/723-8873



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