It's been awhile since September. In that time we have been to Capitol Reef where I saw a pair of White-throated Swifts flying around the cliffs along the Fremont River trail, but very little else. In October it was down to Arches National Park where we many Ravens, as well as a Scrub Jay and my first ever Juniper Titmouse. The days after returned, we went out to Utah Lake where I saw my first Eared Grebe. Then things kind of fell apart.
In November I got the flu. I spent two days working even though I was terribly sick, followed by four days in bed trying to get better. I was finally starting to feel like myself again around Christmas, but then I was struck down by flu again and spent New Year's Eve in bed with a fever. I was completely down the first six days of the year, and finally started feeling almost back to normal last weekend.
I celebrated my almost return to normalcy by driving out to the levee by Utah Lake. We saw a couple of Ring-necked Pheasants running across the ice to into the grasses, as well as a few European Starlings, and a couple of Black-billed Magpies. It was really rather uneventful, but then the place is still frozen and there was snow everywhere. In some places it had grown into these amazing crystals.
And even though the haze from our almost ever-present inversion shows just how unhealthy the air can be here in the winter, it can help create some interesting photos.
A little further on, we saw something hanging out in the top of the trees. Merilee thought it was a Kestrel, but I didn't think it was big enough. Well, she was definitely right, and he was one of the most colourful Kestrels I have ever seen. He would not let me get close enough to get a really good picture, but you get some sense of just how beautiful he was.
A little further along we saw a Northern Flicker, but the real surprise came as we were almost at the end of our drive. Near where the Provo River enters the lake, there is some open water and I saw something swimming around in the water, I got out of the car and saw a pair of Common Goldeneyes. I tried to get a good shot of them, but as I would walk one way, they would swim the other, always with a big tree in between us. We played this game a couple times until they decided to simply fly off, leaving me without a photo.
Yesterday we decided to take a drive down the south fork of Provo Canyon. Merilee had been taking her turn being sick this week and really needed to get out of the house and a drive up the canyon was just the thing. It was a good thing I brought the camera, because we were rewarded with this cool sight.
Yes, a flock of Wild Turkeys enjoying the sun and foraging where it had burned away the snow. Normally we see a few when we visit Zion National Park, but last year we didn't go, so it had been awhile since we had seen any close up.
Inspired by the turkey sighting, I decided to finally begin participating in Cornell's Project Feederwatch. It officially started back in November, but my dual bouts of the flu made it impossible for me to start, so I decided this weekend was the weekend. I was definitely rewarded for my time. I saw American Goldfinches
Dark-eyed Juncos
Tree Sparrows, House Sparrows, House Finches, Eurasian Collared Doves, and something that even Cornell seemed to think was uncommon; a single Common Redpoll. I had never seen one before and was surprised to see this sparrow with a red forehead and light-red color on it's breast. By the time I realized it was definitely NOT a house finch, it had flown off and I missed the chance to get a photo. I was not even certain what it was until I came back inside and was looking at the poster of common feeder bird Cornell sent me and there it was.
I watched again today and saw many of the same birds, with the addition of a Black-capped Chickadee that sat in the apple tree above my heath and made all kinds of interesting noises. It was also funny to watch the sparrows. The Tree Sparrow and House Sparrows tend to hang out together in a tamarisk in the neighbor's yard. When they finally start to feel it is safe to come to the feeder, they first fly, almost en masse, into the grape vines along the fence, and then make sorties to the feeder, with two, three, or four birds making the trip at a time. They do this back and forth until they get spooked, which happens quite easily, and then they all flee back to the tamarisk. It was really interesting to watch.
So that is 2014 so far. I have seen 20 species, including my first Common Redpoll. I now have 128 species on the life list I started in 2012. I could probably add many more that I remember seeing while in North Carolina, Georgia, and California when I was a kid, but as I cannot place a firm date, I have decided not to include them yet.
I plan on updating this blog ever week, usually after completing my feeder watching for the week. Toward the end of last year, I had allowed stress from work to be an excuse for not writing and not really doing any birding, but I have learned that stress from work is an excellent reason to do the writing and birding, so wish me luck as I move forward with 2014. The year has started kind of dodgy, but here is hoping for much better things to come.
