[Birdtalk] UCB field trip report: Capitol Reef & Torrey

[L.D. Giddings]

Seven birders had a great time in Sevier and Wayne counties yesterday 
afternoon and today. Perfect weather, beautiful country, and great birds 
made the drive more than worthwhile. A partial list of the places 
visited includes Richfield, Sigurd, Koosharem reservoir, Fish Lake, Loa, 
Fremont, Bicknell and Bicknell Bottoms, Torrey, Teasdale, Boulder 
Mountain, the Fruita district of Capitol Reef, and the Fremont River as 
it runs east out of the National Park. Trip highlights include the 
following:

- a Lucy's warbler was observed in a grove of mature cottonwood trees on 
Highway 24, along the Fremont River and about 2.5 miles east of the 
Notom road. This is, as far as I know, the most northerly sighting of a 
Lucy's warbler in Utah, and the first reported sighting of which I am 
aware in Wayne county. In this same stand of trees we also observed an 
ash-throated flycatcher, an olive-sided flycatcher, a yellow warbler, an 
orange-crowned warbler, a plumbeous vireo, and a female black-chinned 
hummingbird constructing a nest.
- several Grace's warblers were heard singing in the Single Tree 
campground on Boulder Mountain. In this general vicinity we also 
observed red-breasted nuthatches, white breasted nuthatches, pygmy 
nuthatches, Clark's nutcrakers, Cassin's finches, and red crossbills.
- the sighting of a bald eagle and also, later, a golden eagle in the 
Bicknell Bottoms area. Numerous waterfowl species were also seen in this 
area, along with great and snowy egrets.
- Koosharem Reservoir was just ducky! While American coots were easily 
the most abundant species on the water, in total numbers they were 
matched by many hundreds of various waterfowl species, including a pair 
of greater scaup seen this afternoon and a pair of common loons.
- Fish Lake had five pairs of common loons and an osprey.
- a number of first-of-year observations of common birds were enjoyed, 
including Wilson's phalaropes, black-throated gray warblers, yellow 
warblers, lark sparrows, and Bullock's orioles.

Thanks for a great trip and good company to Larry Draper, Sue Hinde, 
Eric Huish, Milt Moody, Tuula Rose, and Merrill Webb!

Lu Giddings

A partial trip list of the birds observed by one or more trip 
participants in Sevier and Wayne counties is as follows:

Total Count: 112 species

Canada Goose
Tundra Swan
Gadwall
American Wigeon
Mallard
Blue-winged Teal
Cinnamon Teal
Northern Shoveler
Northern Pintail
Green-winged Teal
Redhead
Ring-necked Duck
Greater Scaup
Lesser Scaup
Bufflehead
Common Merganser
Ruddy Duck
Ring-necked Pheasant
Common Loon
Pied-billed Grebe
Eared Grebe
Western Grebe
American White Pelican
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Cattle Egret
Turkey Vulture
Bald Eagle
Northern Harrier
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Swainson's Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Golden Eagle
American Kestrel
Virgina Rail
Sora
American Coot
Sandhill Crane
Killdeer
Black-necked Stilt
Wilson's Phalarope
Franklin's Gull
Californian Gull
Rock Pigeon
Eurasian Collared-Dove
Mourning Dove
White-throated Swift
Black-chinned Hummingbird
Belted Kingfisher
Red-naped Sapsucker
Northern Flicker
Olive-sided Flycatcher
Say's Phoebe
Ash-throated Flycatcher
Western Kingbird
Loggerhead Shrike
Plumbeous Vireo
Steller's Jay
Western Scrub-Jay
Clark's Nutcracker
Black-billed Magpie
Common Raven
Horned Lark
Tree Swallow
Violet-green Swallow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Bank Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Barn Swallow
Mountain Chickadee
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Pygmy Nuthatch
Rock Wren
Bewick's Wren
Marsh Wren
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Mountain Bluebird
Townsend's Solitaire
American Robin
Northern Mockingbird
Sage Thrasher
European Starling
American Pipit
Orange-crowned Warbler
Lucy's Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-throated Gray Warbler
Grace's Warbler
Spotted Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Vesper Sparrow
Lark Sparrow
Savannah Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Lincoln Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Red-winged Blackbird
Western Meadowlark
Yellow-headed Blackbird
Brewer's Blackbird
Bullock's Oriole
Cassin's Finch
House Finch
Red Crossbill
Lesser Goldfinch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow