During this trip I added 8 new birds to my life list (compared to 0 in 2018).
I've selected the best photos from the trip. I have to admit that it got bigger and more verbose as I created this post.
May 5, 2019
The first photo is not a bird but a mammal up in a tree at Iona Regional Park.
Raccoon - Iona Regional Park - May 5, 2019
May 11, 2019
Six days later we were on the road in Washington State. These two photos show birds discovered by Thomas Mayo Brewer, an ornithologist from the early 1800's.
Brewer's Blackbird - Umtanum Creek Recreational Area, Ellensburg WA
May 11, 2019
Brewer's Sparrow - Umtanum Creek Recreational Area, Ellensburg WA - May 11, 2019
Our first target bid was the White-headed Woodpecker. Chris was using E-bird coordinates for sighting locations and his system worked out very well. We stopped at a certain spot and were rewarded with sightings of this iconic bird. This was a lifer for both of us, for me # 427.
White-headed Woodpecker - Umtanum Creek Recreational Area, Ellensburg WA - May 2019
The Cassin's Finch was a Grail bird for me for many years, but they're actually quite common when you travel into Central Washington. The shape and bright red color on the cap make the bird distinguishable from the similar House and Purple Finches.
Cassin's Finch - Quilomene Wildlife area , near Yakima Wa - May 11, 2019
The Mountain Bluebird is a common bird that I always enjoy seeing. This one was no exception.
Mountain Bluebird - Hwy 30 near the Dalles, Ore - May 11, 2019
We had the two Brewer's birds earlier in the day, and two Sage birds later.The Thrasher was seen earlier in the day, before the White-headed Woodpecker.
Sage Thrasher - Umtanum Creek Recreational Area, Ellensburg WA
Sagebrush Sparrow - Quilomene Wildlife near Yakima, Washington - May 11, 2019
It's rare to get a good shot of a Pheasant, but I was ready when Chris spotted one on the roadside.
Ring-necked Pheasant - Columbia Hills State Park , WA - May 11 2019
May 12 and 13, 2019
After the rush of birds on the previous day, the 12th was mostly a travel day as we drove south into Oregon. We did see some birds but the only photo worth posting was this colourful duck.
Cinnamon Teal - Wallowa State Park, OR - May 12, 2019
On the 13th we crossed into Idaho and the birding picked up. Early in the morning we stopped to photograph this Red-tailed Hawk, a western dark morph.
Red-tailed Hawk (Western Dark Morph) - Highway 71, ID - May 13 2019
Our first destination was the City of Rocks National Reserve in Idaho. We had some target birds for this location and were happy with the birds we did see.
The first target bird was seen quite early. It was a Virginia's Warbler, a lifer for both of us.
Virginia's Warbler - City of Rocks National Reserve, ID - May 13, 2019 - Life List #429
The other target bird was the Plumbeous Vireo. It was our day and we finally saw one about three hours later. Once again, for both of us it was a lifer.
Plumbeous Vireo - City of Rocks National Reserve, ID - May 13, 2019 - Life List #430
The last photo chosen for this day was taken late in the afternoon. This shot of a Bank Swallow had an interesting effect, almost a halo around the the bird's beak.
Bank Swallow - Massacre Rocks State Park, ID - May 13, 2019
May 14, 2019
On this day, we visited two locations in Idaho. By 6:30 AM we were at City Creek Management area near Pocatello. The first photo chosen was this hummingbird seen 40 minutes after arriving.
Calliope Hummingbird - City Creek Management Area, Pocatello ID - May 14, 2019
The next photo shows a bird I felt lucky to see, my previous sighting was in 2016. It was a Warbling Vireo. Ironically, I'd have one in my backyard in September !
Warbling Vireo - City Creek Management Area, Pocatello ID - May 14, 2019
This attractive bird can be seen in BC in the Okanagan. I was happy to get some good shots here.
Lazuli Bunting - City Creek Management Area, Pocatello ID - May 14, 2019
We left City Creek and made our way north for the Market Lake Wildlife Management area near the town of Roberts ID. This was a great spot to get some close-ups of water birds such as this Cinnamon Teal taking flight..
Cinnamon Teal - Market Lake Wildlife Management Area, Roberts ID - May 14 2019
Market Lake was quite active with both Western and Clark's Grebes. The Clark's is not as common as the Western.I assume the photo below is a male courting a female Western.
Western Grebe - Market Lake Wildlife Management Area, Roberts ID - May 14, 2019
And here's a Clark's Grebe with the telltale white patch above the eye.
Clark's Grebe - Market Lake Wildlife Management Area, Roberts ID - May 2019
We traveled further north again towards St. Anthony and visited the Sand Creek Management area, where I picked up another lifer to end the day.
Grasshopper Sparrow - Sand Creek Wildlife Management Area, St. Anthony ID - May 14, 2019
Life List #430
That ended the day, we stayed in St. Anthony overnight and headed north the following day.
May 15, 2019
We did some early morning birding at the Camas Wildlfe Refuge near Hamer Idaho and then made a five hour drive north and west to Helena Montana. Our target bird was the Pinyon Jay. They had reported on E-Bird at a cemetery in that town. The E-Bird report was accurate and we located four birds soon after arrival.
Pinyon Jay - Veterans Cemetery, Helena MT - May 15, 2019 - Life List #431
We left Helena and drove north to Great Falls, where we'd stay the night. We made a quick stop at the Great Falls Airport and saw some more birds.
We'd seen quite a few Vesper Sparrows on our trip, this was one of my best photos of the species.
Vesper Sparrow - Great Falls International Airport, Great Falls, MT - May 15, 2019
Another bird seen elsewhere was the Horned Lark.
Horned Lark - Great Falls International Airport, Great Falls, MT - May 15, 2019
And last for the day, another "lark" at the airport.
Western Meadowlark - Great Falls International Airport, Great Falls, MT
May 15, 2019
May 16, 2019
This would be our last day south of the border. Chris needed to be home by the 18th, so we headed north and west towards Grand Forks BC. We'd be staying at my sister's place there and then going home the following day.
Our first stop was the Benton Lake National Wildlife Refuge near Great Falls. This photo was taken at 6:24 AM.
Marbled Godwit - Benton Lake National Wildlife Refuge MT - May 16, 2019
As we rounded a corner on there was an owl on the side of the road. We stopped and got some good shots, it was quite cooperative.
Short-eared Owl - Benton Lake National Wildlife Refuge MT - May 16, 2019
On the lake were some Eared Grebes in breeding plumage.
Eared Grebes - Benton Lake National Wildlife Refuge MT - May 16, 2019
About eight hours later we arrived at my sister's place in Grand Forks. The last bird of the day was a Lewis's Woodpecker in her yard.
Lewis's Woodpecker - Grand Forks BC - May 16, 2019
May 17, 2019
The drive from Grand Forks to North Delta is about 6 hours, unless you're bird-watching along the way. We made a few stops along the route as it was our last day of birding on this trip.
Even before we left we were taking photos. The American Robin is not usually a bird of interest, but the early morning setting was special for this one.
American Robin - Grand Forks BC - May 17, 2019
Finally on the road, we spotted this bird along the highway about a half hour east of Osoyoos.
Western Wood-Pewee - Bridesville, BC - May 17, 2019
At Osoyoos we detoured north towards Oliver so we could visit the Vaseux Lake Wildlife Center. I've birded there for years, going back to the 90's. As usual, there were birds to see, including this common Woodpecker.
Hairy Woodpecker - Vaseux Lake Wildlife Centre, Oliver BC
May 17, 2019
We drove back towards Osoyoos on White Lake Road. This Lark Sparrow was on the side of the road .
Lark Sparrow - White Lake Road - Oliver BC - May 17, 2019
Next stop was the Swan Lake Bird Sanctuary near Princeton. This female Mountain Bluebird
posed nicely for us.
Western Bluebird (F) - Swan Lake Bird Sanctuary - Princeton BC
May 17, 2019
And finally, the last shot of the trip was this Evening Grosbeak at Swan Lake
Evening Grosbeak - Swan Lake Bird Sanctuary - Princeton BC
May 25, 2019
One last shot for May, this was taken at home looking out our living room window. This us a young Nuthatch, who's found a good source for food.
Red-breasted Nuthatch (Imm) - Backyard, North Delta BC - May 25, 2019
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