Dickcissel

[Alton Thygerson <thygerson at byu dot edu>]

My wife, one of my sons, and I were sitting in a Provo restaurant discussing
our holiday plans.  I'm not a spontaneous type of person since most of my
actions and behaviors are usually thought out and planned.  However, before
the meal was over, my son and I had decided to head for St. George that same
night.  There were birds in Washington County I needed for my 2003 Utah
list.

I was also fortunate to learn that Merrill Webb was visiting his parents in
St. George, so a phone call was made to Merrill at his parent's home.
Merrill showed me where a CRISSAL THRASHER was (Bloomington-Virgin River
Trail).  As we left the area, a GREATER ROADRUNNER was seen running across a
parking lot at the Wildlife Museum.  Merrill had family commitments, so I
continued to Gunlock Reservoir where another Greater Roadrunner was seen.
The REDDISH EGRET was among a dozen Black-necked Stilts. A week before,
Glenn Barlow, Reed Stone, and I completed a 19-hour trip to see it.

On Snow Canyon Parkway the lights were on at the Dixie Downs
(softball/baseball fields).  LESSER NIGHTHAWKS and COMMON NIGHTHAWKS were
flying around the lights catching insects.  It was a good opportunity to
compare the two species.

While Merrill Webb and I were looking at the Reddish Egret at Gunlock
Reservoir and after unsuccessfully searching for the Red-shouldered Hawk,
Larry Tripp pulled up.  We were fortunate because he asked if we had seen
the DICKCISSEL at Lytle Ranch posting.  So, we (Merrill, Larry, and I) set
out for Lytle Ranch.  Larry had found it and Rick Fridell had reported it on
the bird hotline.  Merrill says this may be only the third report of the
bird in Utah.  An easy way to identify this particular bird is to look for
one without a tail--Dickcissels have tails but for some unknown reason, this
one doesn't.

My only regret was that I didn't have enough time to search for the Lark
Bunting reported by Rick Fridell, that the Red-shouldered Hawk may be gone,
and I had no luck in finding a Rufous-crowned Sparrow. There were lots of
other species seen which would interest most birders.

Good birding to all,
Alton Thygerson