Lifer and Year Birds

The last life bird for me occurred at the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival in November 2010, a Crimson-collared Grosbeak (Rhodothraupis celaeno). If I remember correctly it had a beautiful, ethereal, bell-like quality song/call emitting from a dense stand of thorn scrub. Very fortunate to list; my good fortune kicked in again on Sunday afternoon in the northwest corner of Flathead Lake, the largest natural freshwater lake west of the Mississippi River. Near a couple of hundred of American Coot and lesser concentrations of other diving waterfowl species was a Yellow-billed Loon (Gavia adamsii), 9th record for the state. It took several minutes to find this bird. Conditions were very favorable: sun behind the back, calm 'seas' and a excellent elevated viewing site above the lakeshore. The Yellow-bill was much lighter in coloration compared to a nearby Common Loon (Gavia immer); it was sandy colored much like a Prairie Falcon. The bill was very large and so was the neck. Here's what it looked like:

Light speck to the right of the island...Y-B Loon :-)

Yes, it was so far out that I could not capture even a pixelated image. Not so with a Year bird observed today (photo below) at a Stevensville feeder...White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis). This was my third try for this bird...many thanks to Judy & Bob Hoy for being so kind in letting me feeder watch from their home. A week earlier, I listed a Spotted Towhee (Pipilo maculatus) also coming to the Hoy feeders (bottom photo). Having a really good time this year birding...87 species for the year with a life list of 640. Wishing you great finds in your birding ventures!

White-throated Sparrow

Spotted Towhee

Golden Eagle...Check

Another early year birding goal is find a soaring Golden Eagle from the deck of our house. Today, the viewing and weather conditions are just right [tad unseasonably warm :-)]. Here is the view (looking east) from our home in Lolo, MT looking across the Bitterroot River:

This Sapphire Mountain range 'foothill' is unnamed on topo maps I've looked at. There is a canyon on the northeast corner (left, out of frame of photo) called 'Cahoot Canyon'. Nice connection as I'm certainly in cahoots with the foothill for finding soaring hawks over the ridge :-). I usually start scanning the ridge at 10:30 am knowing that thermals are forming/rising air from wind. Today, I first looked at 11:15 am and within five minutes saw an immature (23rd bird species for the year) soaring westward (photo from earlier 2011):

Here's another photo from earlier 2011of higher quality (overhead at home):

Can you imagine soaring like this? Wouldn't that be great! Find a flying wonder in your neighborhood.