May 11 - Quilomene Wildlife Rec Area - Yakima WA

After leaving Umtanum Creek we had to backtrack north and east to get to this Game Management area near Yakima. It was about two and a half hours later when I took my next photo.

It was one of my best on the trip, a Sagebrush Sparrow. The bird was called a Sage Sparrow back in 1989, when I saw one near Sedona, Arizona.

It has recently been split into two species: the Sagebrush Sparrow and Bell's Sparrow. The Bell's has much darker markings around the eyes.

I looked at my 1989 prints and can't tell if it would qualify as a Bell's. There's not enough detail in the print. So, I won't call this one a lifer, just a great bird for 2019.

Sagebrush Sparrow - Quilomene Wildlife Area, Yakima WA - 2019 Bird #86

We saw Brewer's Sparrow again at this location, I was lucky to catch a shot of it in flight.

Brewer's Sparrow  - Quilomene Wildlife Area, Yakima WA

There were Mountain Bluebirds in the area, the light was better than it was earlier in the day.

Mountain Bluebird  - Quilomene Wildlife Area, Yakima WA

I got this shot as it took off.

Mountain Bluebird  - Quilomene Wildlife Area, Yakima WA

This is a female Mountain Bluebird, under represented in this blog.

Mountain Bluebird (F)  - Quilomene Wildlife Area, Yakima WA

We had a brief glimpse of a Cassin's Finch, probably the best shot of the species on the trip. They seem shyer than their House Finch cousins.

Cassin's Finch - Quilomene Wildlife Area, Yakima WA - 2019 Bird #87

It was mid-afternoon by now and we needed to move on. We'd make another major stop before heading south to Oregon for lodging.