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I witnessed waves of wonderful warblers in
Wellsville today. I birded the trails behind the Best Western Sherwood
Hills Resort in Wellsville Canyon (Sardine) on 89/91 between Brigham City and
Cache Valley. I saw more warblers than I've ever seen on one day in my
life! Even though I didn't arrive until noon and the woods were quiet, as
I moved above the Mountain Maple and Quaking Aspen to mixed deciduous and
open deciduous-coniferous forest, things started heating up.
I perceived I saw about three waves or flurries
between periods of quiet as I ascended and descended the east-west Lookout Point
Trail. I lost track of the number of Townsend's Warblers I saw.
I estimate the number is between a dozen and a half and two dozen. I
also saw three brilliant Wilson's and three Black-throated Gray
Warblers. The Townsend's, Wilson's, and Black-throated Grays primarily
gleaned and worked their ways through conifer branches. One of the
Wilson's radiated his brilliant yellow from Mountain Maple in bright
sunshine. It was breathtaking. MacGillivray's and Nashville Warblers
popped up periodically out of the understory. I also saw a female Yellow
Warbler at a lower elevation and many Yellow-rumped Warblers throughout.
I was attracted to the last and most significant
wave by a Plumbeous Vireo's burry sing-songing--I know; wrong time of year--off
trail and I decided to follow the call to find the bird. Not only did I
find bespectacled vireos, but the flurry of warblers in the fir trees
caused so much movement I became an automaton--detect movement, lift binocs,
ID--detect movement, lift binocs, ID--and so forth. The activity
reminded me of how a still aspen looks when overtaken by a sprinkle
shower. So many branches were moving and birds flitting about at the same
time! In addition to the warblers, other birds contributed to the movement
bonanza. I also lost track of the number of Plumbeous Vireos,
although that number is likely near a half dozen. Black-capped Chickadees,
Warbling Vireos, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Dark-eyed Juncos, and many Western
Tanagers kept things hopping as well. One Black-capped Chickadee had a
serious need to check me out and did so in a decreasing spiral, closing in to a
distance of about three feet. Then it engaged me in a staring contest for
a still moment in an unchickadee-like way.
I saw a few other birds that were not part of the
waves--a Spotted Towhee, a Hermit Thrush who alerted me to its presence with its
discrete "chope...chope...chope" call note, and a Downy Woodpecker. I
found it quite ironic that the calls of Pine Siskins and Red-breasted Nuthatches
were incessant for the 4 hours I birded these trails, but I only saw one of
each. And I saw bunches and bunches of flycatchers. Most were
Cordillerans and Western Wood-pewees, but a few will remain as unidentified
Empids. The lower trails running
north-south are good woodpecker territory. The Mountain Maple is so thick
it chokes out the understory, but the orange-lichen covered bark is flaky and
peeling and I saw about 10 Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers making the most of
it. I also saw at least two Northern Flickers.
The warblers were the best part of the day, but
other sightings competed for top billing. A very vocal and mixed mob of
Black-capped Chickadees, raspy-voiced Warbling Vireos, and Western Tanagers led
me to a young Sharp-shinned Hawk that looked bewildered by all the noise.
The hawk did not detect me through the curtain of branches. Its tail was
folded and the end appeared as two perfect scallops. I watched the hawk
stretch its long tarsus outward at an awkward angle, and then rest with the foot
tucked up underneath its long, fluffy belly feathers. The hawk was just
behind the Outdoor Theater at the trailhead. On McMurdie Hollow Road, I
was able to cram eight out of ten Mountain Bluebirds, a Western Kingbird, and a
Vesper Sparrow into the same scope view. I also saw a nice smattering
of raptors that included a young Cooper's with an impossibly long tail sitting
on a fencepost. On Highway 101 from Hyrum to Paradise I saw 12 Swainson's
and Red-tailed Hawks on a 3-mile stretch. I don't know how birders can
drive this road without running off into the irrigation ditch with all the Buteo
distractions. I didn't think I could, so I pulled to the shoulder and
looked at each one in turn. Two of the Swainson's were lovely dark
morphs. Finally, I had started the morning with an unplanned diversion
to Perry Nature Park on Highway 89 in Perry. This spot is a lovely
little tangle with great birding--bunches of hummers, Virginia's Rails and
Soras, Common Yellowthroats, flycatchers, goldfinches, and too many
others!
Kris
P.S. If you'd like to bird the trails behind
Sherwood Hills Resort, you can pick up a less-than-perfect-but-still-useful
trail map at the hotel lobby. The trails are within the Wellsville
Wilderness Area and are on public National Forest lands.
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