Those cursed Yellow-headed Blackbirds!

This spring saw an unprecedented migration of Yellow-headed Blackbirds into my home county in NW Oregon. There were Yellow-headed Blackbirds everywhere I went this spring!

It's true. They were seen just before I got to the wetlands.... They were seen moments after I left.... Sometimes both. And sometimes they were even seen at the same time I was there, but across the marsh!

I knew it was bad when a non-birding "friend" text-messaged me:

Saw my first yellow headed blackbird here @ Tualatin Refuge... I didn't even know yellow head blackbirds were in Oregon.

Then the next day:

Oh Greg... Wish you were here @ Fernhill... Guess what I saw? I had my cam this time. Can't believe back to back days for this... Cool.

Sure, Byron, rub it in.

I chased reported Yellow-headed Blackbirds at Tualatin River NWR, at Fernhill Wetlands, at Jackson Bottom Wetlands Preserve. My mistake might have been not chasing the 2 birds reported at Emma Jones for several days in April--even if this wetlands park is officially closed to the pubic....

Yellow-headed Blackbirds are rather common marsh birds west of the Mississippi and south of the boreal forests, wintering to southern Mexico. However, in the Pacific NW they are common in the Great Basin lakes, but not so much west of the Cascades. We discussed this bird in What is that black bird with the yellow head? back in July 2009.

It's not like I haven't seen Yellow-headed Blackbirds before--even in my home county. But it has been a couple of years. But my birding this spring was making good progress at seeing most of the expected annual migrants. I didn't want to miss an "easy" one. Besides, eBird tells me that Steve and Joe keep pushing ahead of me in county year bird species this spring.

April and May came and went, and reports of Yellow-headed Blackbirds ceased. So I gave up. However, on the final day of May I finally saw a Yellow-headed Blackbird! It wasn't a very close bird. It wasn't a bright adult; it was a first year male. But I managed a documentation photo (translation: really bad photo).

Memorial Day weekend at Malheur: Part 1

This singing Yellow-headed Blackbird seems to point the way to Malheur NWR, Oregon. Photographed near Hines, Oregon on 28 May, 2010 by Greg Gillson.

 

Many birders in the Pacific NW make an annual pilgrimage to Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in southeastern Oregon. This gem of the wildlife refuge system is one of the top refuges for birds in the Pacific NW. Indeed, this refuge usually appears in lists of the best birding hotspots for refuges nationwide.

Thousands of Snow Geese, Ross's Geese, and Sandhill Cranes stage here during migration in April, feeding here before taking the final northward leap. The John Scharff Migratory Bird Festival offers field trips to see the concentrations of these birds present then, and even offers trips to see Sage Grouse on their strutting grounds.

Late September and early October have pleasant weather, and fewer biting insects. The road up the 9000 foot elevation of the Steens Mountain may allow you to view Black Rosy Finches at the summit and perhaps Bighorn Sheep.

But for many regional birders, Memorial Day weekend in late May is "Malheur Day weekend." Hundreds of birders spread out at the many ponds, creeks, and oases from Burns in the north to the Nevada border some 150 road miles to the south. Besides the numerous spring breeders, myriads of migrants pass through the Great Basin on their way north and stop where they can find water in this region. Not a small number of birders daily search each favored birding site such as Refuge Headquarters, Benson Pond, Frenchglen, and the Fields oasis, searching for rare vagrants.

It should be noted that Malheur Refuge actually begins about 30 miles south of Burns, and continues to Frenchglen, about 40 miles further south. From there it is a 75 mile drive to the tiny town of Fields and its oasis. However, once one leaves Burns and heads south, birds are abundant in the fields and ponds and "Malheur" birding has begun.

My wife, Marlene, and I went to Malheur this past Memorial Day weekend, May 28-31. I took over 600 photos of birds, which I will eventually whittle down to a hundred or so. Over the next several weeks I will try to show daily a new bird species of Malheur and talk a little about the land and the birding in this amazing place.

[Click to read all Memorial Day weekend at Malheur posts.]

What is that black bird with the yellow head?

Like a cat coughing up a furball, the strangled "creaky-hinge" song of the Yellow-headed Blackbird is as painful to watch being delivered as it is to listen to. Hines, Oregon on 24 May 2009 by Greg Gillson.

 

Here is another photo from my trip to Oregon's Malheur National Wildlife Refuge during the Memorial Day weekend of late May.

Yellow-headed Blackbirds are a bird of prairie wetlands in western North America. They love large tule and cattail expanses. They breed north to interior British Columbia east to the Great Lakes and south to northern Arizona and New Mexico. They winter in agricultural lands and feedlots in the SW US and northern half of Mexico.

Although a few birds may winter in the Pacific NW, most arrive on territory in April and remain into September. In the Pacific Northwest they are found primarily east of the Cascades and Sierra-Nevada Mountains. This bird is one of the obvious and unique birds of the Malheur NWR area, attracting the attention of all visitors, whether birders or not.

The female is smaller, browner, with the duller yellow more restricted to the lower face and throat.

Yellow-headed Blackbirds will visit backyard feeders near their breeding wetlands. They eat mixed seeds and cracked corn, spending much time on the ground feeding. They will also be attracted to bird baths for drinking.

Backyard birds of... Burns, Oregon

Red-winged Blackbird and Yellow-headed Blackbird, Hines, Oregon on 10 May 2008 by Larry Hammond.


 
The following common yardbirds are found in Burns and Hines, Oregon. To a large degree this list applies to many towns in the Great Basin eco-region.

The seasons listed are those when most common, though some individuals may occur at other seasons.

California Quail, year round
Red-tailed Hawk, year round
Rufous Hummingbird, spring, summer
Black-chinned Hummingbird, spring, summer
Eurasian Collard-Dove, year round
Rock Pigeon, year round
Mourning Dove, summer
Say's Phoebe, spring, summer, fall
Steller's Jay, winter
American Crow, spring, summer, fall
Townsend's Solitaire, winter
American Robin, year round
Varied Thrush, winter
Cedar Waxwing, fall, winter, spring
European Starling, year round
Orange-crowned Warbler, spring, fall
Yellow-rumped (Audubon's) Warbler, spring, fall
Spotted Towhee, spring, fall
Lark Sparrow, spring
Lincoln's Sparrow, spring, fall
Song Sparrow, spring, fall
White-crowned Sparrow, fall, winter, spring
Dark-eyed (Oregon) Junco, winter
Bullock's Oriole, summer
Yellow-headed Blackbird, spring
Red-winged Blackbird, spring, summer, fall
Brewer's Blackbird, spring
House Finch, year round
Cassin's Finch, spring, summer, fall
Lesser Goldfinch, year round
American Goldfinch, year round
House Sparrow, year round

Less common birds:
Cooper's Hawk, fall, winter
Sharp-shinned Hawk, fall, winter
Great Horned Owl, year round
Western Kingbird, summer
Western Scrub-Jay, year round
Black-capped Chickadee, winter
Mountain Chickadee, winter
Bohemian Waxwing, winter
Nashville Warbler, spring
Golden-crowned Sparrow, spring, fall
Dark-eyed (Slate-colored) Junco, winter
Pine Siskin, winter (irruptive, not common every year)

Because Burns and Hines are on the edge of huge wetlands, there are many birds often seen flying over local backyards:
Canada Goose, year round
Ross's Goose, spring
Snow Goose, spring
Turkey Vulture, spring, summer, fall
Northern Harrier, summer
Bald Eagle, winter
Golden Eagle, year round
Swainson's Hawk, spring, summer, fall
Prairie Falcon, year round
American Kestrel, year round
Greater and Lesser Sandhill Crane, spring
Ring-billed Gull, spring, summer, fall
Franklin's Gull, spring, summer, fall
Northern Raven, year round


This list was provided by Steve Dowlan who lives in Hines, Oregon. Be sure to visit Steve's photo site at Dowlan's Photography Log.

Thanks, also, to Larry Hammond for his great photo of the blackbirds from his backyard in Hines, Oregon.