Dusky Canada Geese follow-up

It only has been two days since I saw and reported the red neck collar numbers of four Dusky Canada Geese I recorded at Jackson Bottom Wetlands in Hillsboro, Oregon. I received certificates of appreciation for reporting two of the geese. The certificate for 7JP is reproduced here.

Bird 7JP is a female, banded 5 August 2003 by Dr. Dirk Derksen and was at least one year old when banded. The banding location was 5 miles west of Alaganic, Alaska (see map).

The other goose, 84C is a male, banded 18 July 2005 and was at least one year old when banded. It was banded not too far from the other bird, 11 miles south of Cordova, Alaska, by Thomas Rothe.

Reporting neck collar numbers helps scientists figure out where these birds go and their survival rates. Notice that goose 7JP was banded 6 years ago and is at least 7 years old.


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Mallard

Mallard, Forest Grove, Oregon on 10 October 2009 by Greg Gillson.

 

All summer the ducks have been in their dull eclipse plumage. The drakes appear in a plumage very similar to the hens. But now that autumn is fully upon us, the male ducks have regained their stunning colors.

Neck-collared Geese

Wednesday is Lunch with the birds time for me again at Jackson Bottom Wetlands. Today, highlights included a Bald Eagle chasing a Cackling Goose, a quick fly-by Merlin, and a flock of Dusky Canada Geese.

Dusky Canada Geese are not as big as the Western Canada Geese that are resident at the local ponds and raise their goslings here locally in the Pacific Northwest. But the Duskies are still about 2/3 larger than the Cackling Geese that are here by the thousands now.

Dusky Canada Geese are a dark-breasted population that nest on the Copper River delta in Alaska. The 1964 Alaska earth quake raised their swampy river delta 6 feet. Now Arctic Foxes and other predators could reach any nesting area that remained. Thus, the US Fish and Wildlife service set up 3 refuges for these birds in the 1970's in the Willamette Valley: Ankeny NWR, Finley NWR, and Baskett Slough NWR. Numbers of these geese have rebounded, but they are still not legal to hunt.

Several of the Dusky Canada Geese had red plastic neck collars with white numbers and letters written on them. [Cackling Geese have yellow neck collars; Western Canada Geese have blue or white neck collars.] I was able to make out the numbers on four birds, though they were quite distant, hidden behind the willows, it was a bit hazy today, and the eagle was stirring things up. Have I made enough excuses for the bad digiscoped photo to accompany this post?

You need a good spotting scope, and practice reading the stylized lettering, but finding flocks of geese or swans with neck collars and then submitting them can be quite fun. I filled out the web form for reporting the 4 neck collars (6NV, 7 JP, 7VF, 84C) at the bird banding laboratory on the USGS page.

In a few days I expect to hear back from the researcher working on these birds. I'll receive a thank you acknowledgement and learn something about where these birds were banded and how old they are. I'll write another post when I find out.

In the backyard... Cedar Waxwing

Cedar Waxwing, Fernhill Wetlands, Forest Grove, Oregon on 1 August 2009 by Greg Gillson.

 

Many backyard birders are already familiar with the crested Cedar Waxwing. This handsome bird breeds throughout the Pacific Northwest in towns and woodland edges, but is rare or absent in dense higher forests and treeless expanses of the Great Basin. In winter they are irregular and rare, as most move south in their search for berries--their primary food.

Migrant Cedar Waxwings arrive in large numbers in May. They wait to nest until berries (cherries, blueberries, hawthorn) are ripe. They often nest twice in the year, raising broods first in June, then again in August. Local numbers are augmented by migrants from the north and many young-of-the-year in September and October.

These birds are found in flocks except during the nesting season. Flocks fly from tree to tree, eating fruit and giving constant high-pitched trilling calls. In August and September they can often be seen hawking larger insects out over rivers.

The primary field marks are the fawn-colored upperparts and crest, black mask, pale yellowish belly, and darker tail with yellow tip. At close range (see photo above) the name sake waxy red tips can be seen on the wings.

In winter, nomadic flocks of birds are most often noted in larger cities where they can find berries from introduced fruit-bearing trees. Important winter fruits come from holly bushes west of the Cascades and juniper berries east of the Cascades.

Brown Pelican in flight

Brown Pelican, Newport, Oregon on 2 October 2009 by Greg Gillson.

 

Brown Pelican numbers are unprecedented this fall along the coastline of the Pacific NW. Every summer and fall these birds wander up from their breeding colonies in Baja California, accompanied by Heermann's Gulls. This year, however, has been special.

Nearly a thousand Brown Pelicans have been roosting at night near Newport, Oregon, either on Yaquina Head by the lighthouse, or in Yaquina Bay and on on its jetties.

To get this photo, I drove out to the south jetty of Yaquina Bay in late afternoon. The low-angled sunlight provided a rich warm glow and the desired shadows that bring out the shape of the bird. Brown Pelicans were coming in off the ocean, turning up into the bay, then returning along the jetties, right over and beside me, including this nice adult.