Honey Lake - March 5-7, 1999. Four grouse-enamored Birders met at the Chico Park & Ride at 4 PM and headed for Susanville. We picked up two more grouse seekers at highway 89 & 36. We all shared a meal at one of the Mexican restaurants in Susanville. Two of us camped out at the Fleming unit and en route to our campsite we had a Burrowing Owl on a fence post. Great Horned Owls serenaded us while we prepared our sleeping area. We went for a walk and turned up several Barn Owls. Geese called all night long only to fall silent with the break of dawn. Sandhill Cranes picked up where the geese left off as did Killdeer and Black-billed Magpies. Getting in a little birding before we rendezvoused with the group we found Canadian Geese, a Red-tail, Bewick's Wren and Song Sparrows. Large flocks of Blackbirds raced across our path.

At 7 AM we were joined by another birder and then by our compatriots from the previous evening. We drove out to a pond area on the east end of the Refuge. Northern Harriers were in great abundance in our journey to Ducks deluxe. The Pond yielded American Coots, Northern Pintails, Northern Shoveler, Greater White-fronted Geese, Mallards, Gadwall, Eurasian Wigeon, American Wigeon, Lesser Scaup, Green-winged Teal and Marsh Wren. While at this location two more Altacalers showed up, bringing the total to 5 out of 8 participants. We drove to some dipper ponds and were rewarded with a Great-horned Owl flying in front of us and up into a tree for all to see and a Double-crested Cormorant basked on a snag. Our next destination gave us our first Ringed-neck Ducks, Canvasbacks, Redheads and Common Goldeneye. We then headed off to find something beside waterfowl. We drove to flooded field known for it Blackbird flocks and shorebirds. The only shorebird besides Killdeer was a Greater Yellowlegs. American Kestrels were sporadically seen along the wires as we moved from place to place. The field added to our waterfowl species list, producing our first Cinnamon Teal. The Blackbird flocks were there as expected. We saw Brewer's, Red-winged, Tricolored, and Yellow-headed blackbirds. There must have been 20,000 blackbirds (or more). We spooked a Barn Owl from hiding and he flew to a perch for all to see. Sandhill Cranes graced the high spots in the Field. We drove toward Wendel in search of Sparrows; our first stop got us Sage Sparrow. We then drove on to a large escarpment where we saw more Sage Sparrows and padded our list with Rock and Canyon Wrens. We were treated to an aerial display by our first of 3 Prairie Falcons. Chukars started calling us to come hither so we split up into two groups. Phil Johnson and Skip Augur circled to the far side of the calls and moved up hill and we stayed where we had started up the outcropping. Skip and Phil got to see 20 plus birds while we had one fly across in front of us, only to immediately scurry behind a rock upon landing.

We next went to the Dankin unit. As we approached the check-in station a Cooper's Hawk took off from its' perch and sailed out behind the out buildings. We drove to a spot where we hoped to find some Tree Sparrows, but the area was closed for nesting. Here we saw some of the same ducks as before, but we also saw our first Tundra Swans and large concentrations of Snow Geese who rose up in response to a Bald Eagle cruising by. We drove a few roads in search of hawks and Shrikes. We saw one Golden Eagle, two Rough-legged Hawks and Several Loggerhead shrikes. We went back into Susanville for dinner and cleaning up. We encounter snow flurries and rain on our way into Susanville, so some of the folks who had camped out the previous evening elected to share a room rather than braving the elements. The first day gave us 65 species total.

Sunday started at 4:30 AM. We stopped at Jerry's for coffee and headed for a rendezvous with two more birders who wanted to see the grouse. We arrived at the base of the hill about 6:15 and started up the hill to the lek. Before we saw the birds we heard the males "booming". We arrived at the lek area and began looking for the birds. We eventually spotted ten males and four hens. While we were watching the grouse, Western Meadowlarks and Horned Larks called and flitted about. Beyond the grouse, a heard of 40 Pronghorn Antelope grazed. Walking balk to our vehicles we saw several more shrikes but alas they were all Loggerheads. The shrike situation was quite odd, as Northerns should predominate in this area, but we saw none. Janesville was our next destination. Heading there, we saw Western Bluebirds and Say's Phoebe. Once in Janesville we saw Scrub Jays and Lewis's Woodpecker. At the Cemetery we saw Stellar's Jay, Acorn Woodpecker, American Robin and Spotted Towhee. Back on the Road we stopped at forested lots and were rewarded with Red-breasted Sapsuckers, Hairy Woodpeckers, White-headed Woodpeckers, Pygmy Nuthatches and Mountain Chickadees.

We then headed for the Eagle Lake Field Station. The road in gave us our first Tree Swallows. Farther in we encountered Red-breasted and White-breasted Nuthatches and Brown Creepers.

Other birds seen on the trip were Sharp-shinned Hawk, Crow, Raven, Hooded Merganser, Common Mergansers, Pygmy Owl, Winter Wren and a singing Dipper. - Richard Redmond

Dog Island - May 20, 1999. The drive to Red Bluff was rainy and overcast, but as we arrived at our destination the rain stopped. 10 eager birders gathered for what was to be our first encounter with spring migrants. Your leader, however, scheduled the trip about three weeks too early. Robins greeted with song and chucks as if spring were here. Bushtits and Cedar Waxwings were also heard as we exited our autos. Walking into Dog Island we heard our first warbler, a Yellow rump. We also heard and saw Spotted Towhees and Hermit Thrushes. Ruby-crowned Kinglets were singing and flitting through the trees and shrubs. A Lincoln's Sparrow popped up in some weeds, responding to pishing. We spotted a large flock of Cedar Waxwings high in a Cottonwood and then a Downy Woodpecker was seen in another treetop. Red-shouldered Hawks began screaming and a pair of Wood Ducks flew by several times squeaking at us. Skip Augur who was lagging behind called out our only Brown Creeper. About that time I found our first Orange-crowned Warbler.

As we walked on down the trail several sparrows were spotted in the trail in front of us. This was a very good opportunity to work on those confusing LBJs (little brown jobs). We had both Fox and Song Sparrows, which have some common characteristics that can be problematic to beginners. Both are heavily spotted on the breast but the Song's spots are smaller and less abundant and it has a very prominent central spot. The Fox Sparrow has large, numerous spots, which often merge into a splotch in the center of the breast. Fox and Song are also greatly varied from one bird of the same species to the next and this could result in several more splits coming down the pike. A little farther down the trail we spotted our first California Towhee.

Near the Sacramento River we encountered our first Anna's Hummingbird and Northern Mockingbird. We soon heard and saw Greater Yellowlegs. Common Mergansers cruised along the banks of the River and a possible Winter Wren called from a tangle and was never seen except for a flash. We heard and then spied a pair of Belted Kingfishers across the River, perched in a tree. Tree and Violet-green Swallows flew furiously around us. Bewick's Wrens, White-crowned Sparrows, a lone Golden-crowned Kinglet (that got us going for a moment) and a Black Phoebe rounded out our Dog Island observations.

We next drove to the Diversion Dam and riparian area. We immediately added American Kestrel, Snowy Egret, Canada Goose and Mallard to our total. Our walk along the riparian area added Northern Flicker, House Finch and Dark-eyed Junco to our numbers. Moving along we encountered Nuttall's and Acorn Woodpeckers, American and Lesser Goldfinches and female Red-winged Blackbirds. Progressing to a more open area we observed several Western Bluebirds and a pair of Say's Phoebes. Marching on, we were treated to a pair of Osprey wheeling above the riparian Canopy. When we returned to the parking lot, many people had to leave. The group was reduced to four birders, who took a circuitous route to Cone Grove Park (which was uneventful). A pond on Foothill Road turned up our first Pied-bill Grebes, Ruddy Ducks and Ring-necked Ducks. The bird of the trip was further down Foothill, closer to 68th Ave. Cruising along, we spotted a bird on the fence line. Our initial diagnosis was a Northern Mockingbird, but it had a streaked breast. Immature mockers have spotted breasts, What is this? Further observation confirms a possible first county record for Tehama County, a Sage Thrasher! - Richard Redmond