Dixies Birders Field Trip

["William J. Hunter" <william4 at sisna dot com>]

CONFLUENCE PARK/KOLOB RESERVOIR
Saturday, June 8, 2002

This was the inaugural flight of the Dixie Birders. Attending were
Marilyn and Keith Davis, Fred Dunnell, Rick Fridell, Bill Hunter, Judy
Jordan and Kevin Wheeler.

Our focus was a possible nesting Lewis?s Woodpecker, but first, we
wanted to look over a ?new? area for us at the confluence of Ash
Creek/La Verkin Creek and the Virgin River, just west of the town of La
Verkin, Utah. Red Cliffs Audubon held a field trip there on May 25th and
turned up 44 species and Rick Fridell and Kristen Comella went there on
June 3, 2002 and found 37 species.

This was previously a private holding and only recently has been
purchased by the county. The primary habitat is lowland riparian, with
some old agricultural and desert scrub around the edges.

Then we followed the route along the Kolob Reservoir road from the town
of Virgin on SR 9 to Kolob Reservoir. Stops along the way included Blue
Springs reservoir, which was so low with water as to not provide any
birding opportunities.

The following is an account of the 61 species of birds seen starting at:

Confluence Park (39sp): Great Blue Heron, Turkey Vulture, Cooper's Hawk,
Red-tailed hawk, Golden Eagle, Ring-necked Pheasant, Gambel?s Quail,
Killdeer, Mourning Dove, White-throated Swift, Black-chinned
Hummingbird, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Western Wood-pewee, Black Phoebe,
Say's Phoebe, Ash-throated Flycatcher, Western Kingbird, Northern
Rough-winged Swallow, Cliff Swallow, Verdin, Rock Wren, Bewick?s Wren,
House Wren, American robin, Northern Mockingbird, Phainopepla, Yellow
Warbler, Yellow-breasted Chat, Western Tanager, Song Sparrow,
Black-headed Grosbeak, Blue Grosbeak, Red-winged Blackbird, Brown-headed
Cowbird, Hooded Oriole, Bullock's Oriole, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch,
House Sparrow.

Kolob Reservoir and beyond (28sp): Eared Grebe, Western Grebe, Turkey
Vulture, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, Northern Harrier, American Kestrel,
Peregrine Falcon (2 birds jostling for a few moments together above the
reservoir and then parting), Spotted Sandpiper, White-throated Swift,
Lewis's Woodpecker - our target species (It was in a 12"-14" living
Aspen. There were two, possibly three - looked like an attempt to start
a third - entrance holes, though only the one on the NE side was used.
The male came to the hole with food on one occasion and returned empty
on two others. The first time he appeared to feed something inside the
tree and then eventually climbed in the nesting cavity himself.
Consensus was that he was feeding the female who was sitting eggs, as we
heard nothing while earlier we had stood directly under the tree. This
appears to be the first documented evidence of a nesting Lewis's in
Washington County, Utah), Downy Woodpecker, Dusky Flycatcher, Warbling
Vireo, Stellar's Jay, Common Raven, Horned Lark, Tree Swallow,
Violet-green Swallow, Northern Rough-winged Swallow, White-breasted
Nuthatch, Western Bluebird, Yellow Warbler, green-tailed towhee,
Chipping Sparrow, Vesper Sparrow, Brown-headed Cowbird, Lesser
Goldfinch.

It was a good day birding.

Bill Hunter... alias Dixie Willie
St. George, UT