The Good Stuff Others Have Seen

["Kristin Purdy" <kristinpurdy at comcast dot net>]

A few of the less common birds others have reported recently in Davis County were still present today for my birding pleasure.  Deedee O'Brien and I saw a Horned Grebe at Farmington Bay.  The grebe loosely associated with a large raft of mostly American Coots in the pond southeast of the southern-most parking area.  We had the chance to study the grebe for an extended period of time and we really appreciated being able to see its fat head--oops! sorry, little grebe--black crest, and snowy white cheeks and neck.  

I also visited Antelope Island Causeway and saw a female and drop-dead gorgeous male Long-tailed Duck.  Both were at the same spot others have reported; at the north side of the bridge between mile markers 0 and 1.  These two ducks stayed along the closest edge of the mixed Common Goldeneye and Eared Grebe raft and were only about 125 feet away.  The lake was pretty turbulent and waves rolled in from the north.  All the ducks bobbed, but the added dimension to the male Long-tailed Duck sighting was that his tail looked like a long flexible rapier--an avian epee, if you will--that slapped the water in sync with the motion of the waves.  The waves must have had a lulling effect as well, because the duck sleepily blinked his white eye-ringed eye and I thought he was going to fall asleep without tucking his head.  I also appreciated his snowy conehead and I use those descriptive words  with the utmost reverence.  

While I watched the ducks a male Common Goldeneye finally won the battle of the upstream current and swam right beneath my viewing spot on the bridge.  When the duck swam directly under me, I had a bird's eye view of this bird.  His wing tips were so sharp and neatly crossed!  His tail fanned out flatly on the water like a serrated beaver tail.  And then, bloop!  He dove, and that was that.  I also saw one male Barrow's Goldeneye waaaaaaaaaay out at the edge of the raft.  

There was NOTHING going on at Garr Ranch.  I saw and heard several year-round birds.  The only thing that responded to my pishing was the doe mule deer that pretty much lives at the ranch house and has become habituated to humans.  She came over to investigate my pishing and gave my jacket and binoculars a good sniffing.  Then she followed me down to the spring as I pished along.  I felt like the Pied Piper who played a flute to lead the rats out of the city of Hamelin.  

Kris