[Birdtalk] Escalante birds

[Lu Giddings]

I had the opportunity to spend a a few minutes more than two hours
birding in Escalante today. The highlight was a very vivid and beautiful
male vermilion flycatcher; the details have been posted on BirdNet. I
was amazed by the numbers and varieties of birds I was able to see in
such a short period of time. This is an area that more birders should
visit, not only for its birds but also for its remarkable beauty. The
scenery is so marvelous that in many respects the birds were just an
added "plus" to the afternoon.

First-of-year birds included the vermillion flycatcher, a
yellow-breasted chat, and a blue grosbeak.

I stopped briefly by the acorn woodpecker tree found between miles 93
and 92 along Highway 12 just north of Boulder. A northern flicker was
very noisily conspicuous but acorn woodpeckers were not seen or heard.

I suppose I should also note that Eurasian collared-doves were seen in
Escalante, Loa, Bicknell, and Torrey today. I didn't see any in Boulder;
perhaps I didn't look hard enough or was too busy admiring the scenery.
Have I mentioned how beautiful it is down there?

Lu Giddings

Total Count in Escalante: 39
Mallard
Wild Turkey
Eared Grebe
Western Grebe
Great Blue Heron
Snowy Egret
White-faced Ibis
Red-tailed Hawk
American Coot
Killdeer
Spotted Sandpiper
Franklin's Gull
Eurasian Collared-Dove
Mourning Dove
Vermillion Flycatcher
Western Kingbird
Plumbeous Vireo
Pinyon Jay
Black-billed Magpie
Common Raven
Violet-green Swallow
Western Bluebird
American Robin
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Yellow-breasted Chat
Spotted Towhee
White-crowned Sparrow
Blue Grosbeak
Red-winged Blackbird
Western Meadowlark
Brewer's Blackbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
Bullock's Oriole
House Finch
Lesser Goldfinch
House Sparrow