13 November 2024

Archive for January, 2020

Waxwing

Friday, January 31st, 2020
Cedar Waxwing, East Millcreek, Salt Lake City, Utah, 31 January 2020.
Cedar Waxwing.
Wapiti, East Millcreek, Salt Lake City, Utah, 31 January 2020.
Wapiti.

Hazy sun first thing. Also elks. Right away I caught site of a herd of them on the far north summit where I saw the the other day. Then a half-dozen appeared on the near hillside as dog and I headed up the slope. Looked like two bulls chaperoning four females—the largest male in front, and a younger bull in back.

Not many birds on the hike itself, but elsewhere quite a few. Including my first Utah Cedar Waxwing in six months here (in a little ornamental tree at the post office). I heard it first, then accidentally set off my truck alarm scrambling for my camera. (Worth it.)

Grandeur Peak Area List
Beginning at 10:00 a.m., I hiked a few hundred feet up the mountain.

1. House Finch** (v)
2. Black-capped Chickadee**
3. Black-billed Magpie
4. Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay*
5. Song Sparrow* (v)
6. Dark-eyed Junco
7. Downy Woodpecker (v)

Elsewhere

8. American Robin (v)
9. Lesser Goldfinch
10. European Starling
11. Rock Pigeon
12. House Sparrow
13. Cedar Waxwing

(v) Voice only
*Also elsewhere

**Voice only elsewhere

Odd Day

Thursday, January 30th, 2020
Shy chickadee, East Millcreek, Salt Lake City, Utah, 30 January 2020.
Shy chickadee.

This was an odd day. As forecast, a little snow fell early, but then a thick fog settled in, so I figured I’d wait it out. I waited a while—until early afternoon, and we were still socked in. So Jack and I headed up the mountain anyway.

Didn’t expect many wildlife sightings, and didn’t have many at first. But then the fog lifted a bit, and you could see for a distance. Deer, some chickadees, a corvid or two. And then the sun blasted through and warmed us for about the last third of the hike, at which point a whole bunch of little birds descended.

Alas, none posed for a photo—except one shy chickadee that didn’t want to show its face.

Yet, still, I loved this odd day.

Grandeur Peak Area List
Beginning at 1:30 p.m., I hiked a few hundred feet up the mountain.

1. Black-capped Chickadee**
2. Northern Flicker**
3. Black-billed Magpie*
4. Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay (v)
6. House Finch
7. Lesser Goldfinch
8. Dark-eyed Junco
9. Small falcon (spp)

Elsewhere

10. American Robin
11. Rock Pigeon
12. European Starling

(v) Voice only
**Voice only elsewhere

†Lifer

Goshawk

Wednesday, January 29th, 2020
Northern Goshawk, East Millcreek, Salt Lake City, Utah, 29 January 2020.
Northern Goshawk.

Light snow and thick fog this morning. Temps right around freezing (or a tad above). Dog and I didn’t make it to the trailhead until late morning—still pretty foggy, and I didn’t know what to expect. Kind of thought it might be fun to encounter a surprise.

Goshawk takes flight, East Millcreek, Salt Lake City, Utah, 29 January 2020.
Goshawk takes flight.

And I did.

Returning from the first leg of trail (which offered up a few deer, fox tracks, and several bird species), I spotted a hawk sitting tall far ahead of us. Thought it was a red-tail at first, but then it took off, showing a long accipiter tail and relatively fast-flapping wings. It flew our way, perched quite near. It had white eyebrows.

My first ever Northern Goshawk. Woo-hoo!

Grandeur Peak Area List
Beginning at 11:30 a.m., I hiked a few hundred feet up the mountain.

1. House Finch** (v)
2. Black-billed Magpie**
3. Black-capped Chickadee (v)
4. Woodhouse’s Scrub-jay**
5. Northern Flicker (v)
6. Northern Goshawk
7. Song Sparrow**
8. Pine Siskin
9. California Quail

Elsewhere

10. Lesser Goldfinch (v)

(v) Voice only
**Voice only elsewhere

†Lifer

 
Bird Report is a (sometimes intermittent) record of the birds I encounter while hiking, see while driving, or spy outside my window. —Brian Willson



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