Tag Archives | Great Gray Owl

The Mountain Bird Festival

2016 will see the third annual Mountain Bird Festival in May. It’s based in Ashland and is focused on the birds found in both the Siskiyous and the Cascades. The festival’s logo bird is the Great Gray Owl, a breeding bird in both mountain ranges in southern Oregon. Other species festival-goers are eager to see include: Calliope Hummingbird, White-headed Woodpecker, Williamson’s Sapsucker, Mountain Bluebird and Chickadee, Green-tailed Towhee, Vesper Sparrow, breeding Sandhill Cranes. In addition the Klamath-Siskiyou Bioregion is rich in flora with more species of conifers than any area on earth. We will talk about the target birds, their habitat and their future was we all face climate change. Presented by Harry Fuller, President of the Klamath Falls Bird Observatory.

Great Gray Owls in Oregon

Harry Fuller is an Ashland-based birder and author who is currently writing a book on the Great Gray Owls of Washington-Oregon-California. He is also president of the Board of Directors of the Klamath Bird Observatory. Mr. Fuller will explore the mysteries and the facts surrounding this tallest North American Owl. The southern most members of the species are those nesting in scattered parts of California and Oregon. Klamath and Jackson Counties likely have the largest Great Gray population of any area in the Lower 48 States. He will talk about the owl’s ecology, habitat and threats. Some of the best data on the Great Gray Owl’s use of nest platforms comes from the Winema National Forest in Klamath County.

Klamath Bird Observatory’s Inaugural Mountain Bird Festival a Big Success

Great Gray Owl

What a great time I had at the inaugural Mountain Bird Festival in Ashland. I saw three life birds during the two day event, a Cassin’s Vireo, Vesper Sparrow and the Great Gray Owl (Strix nebulosa) shown above. This owl was nesting in an artificial platform provided by a local landowner who allowed us to observe the nesting owl. Click on photos for full sized images.

Another treat a few of us were able to observe was two Great Gray Owls hunting in an open meadow on Keno Access Road along the east side of Howard Prairie Lake, at the forest edge, at dusk. Harry Fuller, President of the Klamath Bird Observatory Board, led the all day Cascade Mountain Lakes trip which ended with a small group of die hard owl observers eager to see these beautiful owls in the open, and what a treat it was!

Great Gray Owl

Earlier in the day, along Dead Indian Memorial Road, we got great looks at several birds including what appears to be a first year male Western Tanager (Piranga rubra).

Western Tanager

We also observed Cliff Swallows nesting under a concrete structure on Walker Creek and under the eaves of a home adjacent to the creek.

Across the road from the nesting swallows were Yellow Warblers foraging in the willows along the roadway and our first look at Mountain Bluebirds (Sialia currucoides). A female seemed to be hanging around a tree stump out in the middle of a field but this male was foraging near the road.

Mountain Bluebird

Looking up, as we made our way toward Howard Prairie Lake through some sagebrush habitat, we witnessed a flock of American White Pelicans flying overhead. What a beautiful sight to see from a mountain road.

We stopped in search of one of my target birds of the trip, the Green-tailed Towhee (Pipilo chlorurus). This secretive species is usually heard before being seen, but we managed to spot this male as he occasionally popped up out of the surrounding brush.

Green-tailed Towhee

They give their presence away with characteristic ascending, catlike mew calls, and breeding males become conspicuous when singing their diverse song, which consists of short phrases of jumbled notes and trills. You can here both their call and song in this recording from Xeno-canto.

While searching for the elusive Towhee, this male Lazuli Bunting (Passerina amoena) jumped up and posed atop a nearby stump.

Lazuli Bunting

This being the second day of the festival, part of our journey with Harry Fuller took us to territory I had previously visited with John Alexander, Klamath Bird Observatory’s Executive Director, specifically the Howard Prairie Lake area where we saw the nesting Great Gray Owl.

We spotted Bald Eagles from the trail, flying into their nest site in the tall trees across a large shoreline meadow next to the lake. This photo of Mount McLoughlin was taken looking across that meadow and the lake before us.

Mount McLoughlin

There was a stand of Aspen trees near the owl nest where we spotted Hairy Woodpeckers nesting in a cavity about three feet off the ground. In the same stand of trees was a nesting Northern Flicker and a pair of Williamson’s Sapsuckers (Sphyrapicus thyroideus). This is the handsome male …

Williamson's Sapsucker

and the female at the cavity entrance with a beak full of insects for the nestlings.

Williamson's Sapsucke

Back at the park entrance, near the boat launch area we spotted nesting Tree and Barn Swallows as well as Brewer’s Blackbirds (Euphagus cyanocephalus). This is the male Brewer’s distinguished by his bright yellow irises.

Brewer's Blackbird

Along the lake shore we stopped at what was appropriately termed the Cormorant tree. Little did I know until we approached it that it was a snag, loaded with nesting Double-crested Cormorants (Phalacrocorax penicillatus)!

Just prior to this photograph, the two nestlings were causing a lot of commotion begging food from the adult at the nest as the other adult landed a few feet away on the branch.

Double-crested Cormorant

In the conifers surrounding the parking area we found more Yellow Warblers but also one of my other life birds, the Cassin’s Vireo (Vireo cassinii).

Cassin's Vireo

As we made our way to Little Hyatt Reservoir we found a Western Wood-Pewee working the trees along side the road and spotted an American Robin (Turdus migratorius) with a beak full of food. Sure enough, s/he was feeding a nest full of baby robins. We all watched as the parent birds came and went to the delight of the hungry chicks.

American Robin

Just below the reservoir dam, under the footbridge crossing the river there was a known American Dipper (Cinclus mexicanus) nest. I crawled under the bridge to take a photo of it for the Egg & Nest ID page of my blog. The Water Ouzel (my favorite bird name) breeds on mountain streams and often builds their nest overhanging water. They are a bulky domed structure of moss, with an internal cup of of moss and grasses, lined with dead leaves and about 12 inches across.

American Dipper Nest

This is the juvenile Ouzel that was foraging the creek, flying back and forth, under the bridge from the dam, downstream and back. The juvenile is lighter overall than the adult and has the orange based bill.

Water Ouzel

The Vesper Sparrow (Pooecetes gramineus) was actually the first of the life birds I saw on the first day of the festival. Then we found it the second day also, singing from a perch.

Vesper Sparrow

These were just some of the highlights of the festival for me. One of the keynote speakers, Barry Kraft, a Shakespearean actor, gave a spectacular rendition of his experiences growing up with a Raven as a pet.

Finally, with my purchase of the Mountain Bird Conservation Science Stamp, I was pleased to support Klamath Bird Observatory‘s scientific programs that inform management for healthy land, air, and water in the Klamath-Siskiyou Region of southern Oregon and northern California.

Mountain Bird Conservation Science Stamp

The First Ever Mountain Bird Festival Is Coming to Ashland, Oregon

Great Gray OwlGreat Gray Owl (Strix nebulosa) courtesy Wikipedia Commons

Have you ever seen a White-headed Woodpecker? How about a Calliope Hummingbird or Great Gray Owl? Would you like a chance to witness these and other spectacular mountain birds while helping advance conservation? If so, the first annual Mountain Bird Festival is for you!

This unique conservation festival will be held in beautiful Ashland, Oregon from May 30th to June 1st, 2014. The Mountain Bird Festival combines a celebration of the region’s mountain birds with the stewardship ethic needed to ensure thriving landscapes for humans and wildlife. Every citizen who participates in this festival will receive an attractive conservation stamp for their significant stewardship of the science that drives bird conservation.

The Mountain Bird Festival offers guided bird walks, keynote presentations, a fine art auction, cocktail parties, music, local foods, and a feel-good community atmosphere. We hope you, and your bird-watching friends, join the fun! To register or learn about sponsorship benefits, visit their website: www.KlamathBird.org/Education/MountainBird.

Klamath Bird Observatory will host this community conservation event in partnership with the City of Ashland, the Ashland Chamber of Commerce, ScienceWorks Hands-On Museum, and many other organizations. Klamath Bird Observatory is an Ashland-based scientific non-profit organization that achieves bird conservation in the Pacific Northwest and throughout the migratory ranges of the birds of our region.

You can see a list of the field trips here and register for the event here.