BOGS Summer walks; Rasor Park July 4
Riverbend, July 11, 2019

On the fourth of July a small group of us went to the Rasor Park area on the west side of the river, essentially directly across the river from Delta Ponds. We found the failed Red-shouldered Hawk which had been observed by several local birders back in April. Apparently Crows had harassed the Hawks relentlessly and the Hawks gave up the nest.

Near Rasor Park there is a Beaver lodge on an island right near the river bank. We saw a mammal swimming in the river but none of us are skilled enough to sort out a Nutria from a Beaver at some distance when only the head can be seen. There were Lesser Goldfinches, Scrub Jays as well as Swallows using nesting boxes in the park. One of the neighbors long active in the grounds improvement of Rasor Park told us that Bluebirds have been seen there but have not yet used the nest boxes.

On July 11, we went birding on the trails behind Riverbend Hospital. Lots of bird species were seen and photographed. Doris, Jean and Ann had not been there before (maybe Steve as well), and all were very impressed with this location. The paths are paved and flat and one does not have to walk very far to enjoy quite a number of species. It is ideal when the weather is too hot to be out in the Sun because the entire area is shaded by trees, many of which are very old tall fir trees.

There were numerous Flickers - some of which were obvious juveniles. Quite a few Red-breasted Sapsuckers were also seen, including at least one which was an intergrade cross with Red-naped Sapsuckers. Don explained he had learned how to identify these this year at the Woodpecker Festival in Sisters, Oregon. (On each side of the face, there is a line of white extending from the base of the bill to back behind the eye). Don found a Western Wood Pewee nest and we all saw the adult go to the nest for extremely short visits and saw the gaping bills of three chicks reaching up for food. American and Lesser Goldfinches were seen; with the Lessers gathering mouthfuls of thistle down. Whether the down was for lining their nests or the seeds were for feeding their young is uncertain but Jody explained that Lessers are the last bird to breed in our area.

One particular Hawk gave our group quite a stir. It was being harassed by Robins. One of the problems was that the Hawk was mostly being seen only from directly below, so it was difficult to see useful field marks. The views folks had of the bird suggested it might be a Red-shouldered Hawk. Glimpses of the tail and breast did not reveal any obvious "belly-band" nor a red tail. The back of the bird showed quite a large amount of white in the form of random spots - unlike the 'V'-shape' often seen on the backs of Red-tailed Hawks.

Eventually the Hawk took refuge from the Robins by standing in a shallow side channel of the river. Now we could see traces of a belly-band and an obvious red-tail. When the bird flew and landed, it became clear that the very ruffled feathers caused the normally orderly "V-shape" pattern to look scattered and random. There were also tags on the wings - which you will see in the photos. Don submitted the tag information and was informed this was a Red-tailed Hawk which hatched three years ago in Silverton Oregon.