Memorial Day weekend at Malheur: Part 5

American Avocet near Hines, Oregon on 29 May, 2010 by Greg Gillson.

 

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

The American Avocet is one ot the "target birds" for wildlife observers visiting Malheur. See this page for more information on this bird in the Pacific NW.

American Avocet at Malheur refuge

American Avocet, Hines, Oregon on 23 May 2009 by Greg Gillson.

 

Malheur National Wildlife Refuge is an oasis in Oregon's sage desert southeast corner. This special area provides many opportunities for observing large, unique birds at close range in spring. I had the opportunity to spend nearly a week at Malheur in late May. Here is another photo from that trip.

Two of the most flamboyant shorebirds at Malheur are the Black-necked Stilt and American Avocet. While the black-and-white stilt sports impossibly long coral red legs, the avocet displays a rusty head and upturned bill perched on long blue-gray legs.

The range of American Avocet is a bit complex, but primarily seasonal wetlands in western North America. It is found in the prairie potholes of central Canada and the US. It is also found in the Great Basin lakes. Other breeding areas include coastal California from San Francisco south into Baja, Gulf coast of Texas and Mexico, interior Mexico, and isolated East Coast areas as far north as Virginia. Birds winter coastally from central California southward.

In the Pacific NW these striking birds breed in wetlands from SE British Columbia, southern Idaho, southeastern Washington, eastern Oregon, and northern California and southward. Winter birds are regular from San Francisco Bay, south.

The edges of the breeding range and the number of birds breeding in any location fluctuates from year-to-year based on water levels regionally. During periods of drought in the Southwestern United States, birds may move farther north in larger numbers in spring.

Bird Festival... Mono Basin Bird Chautauqua

American Avocets, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah, 2003. Copyright 2009, Rosalie Winard. Used with permission.

 

The Mono Basin Bird Chautauqua will be held on June 19-21, 2009.

Choose from among several field trips, presentations, and workshops. Enjoy an evening of dinner and music.

Check out the Lee Vining Chamber of Commerce for details on where to stay. Lee Vining is about 170 miles east of Stockton, California, traveling through Yosemite National Monument. Or, it is about 140 miles south of Reno, Nevada.

The 2008 species list included 153 bird species.

Presenters and field trip leaders: Karen Amstutz, Don Banta, Ted Beedy, Peter Bergen, Jon Dunn, Margaret Eissler, Lisa Fields, Nancy Hadlock, Tom Hahn, John Harris, Justin Hite, Debbie House, Ann Howald, Quresh Latif, Jack Laws, Burleigh Lockwood, Jeff Maurer, Chris McCreedy, Paul McFarland, Peter Metropulos, Stella Moss, Lisa Murphy, Kristie Nelson, Richard Potashin, Bob Power, Sarah Rabkin, Ane Carla Rovetta, Dave Shuford, Rich Stallcup, Bob Steele, Susan Steele, Erik Westerlund, David Wimpfheimer, and Ben Winger. Keynote presenter: Rosalie Winard