Great Backyard Bird Count 2011

Hooray for the Great Backyard Bird Count and the signs of spring popping up everywhere! I went to Catherine Creek today with a dual purpose- to kick off wildflower season 2011 and to hopefully find some unique woodpecker species for my bird count checklist. I didn't see any woodpeckers, but I did get nice shots of some Golden Crowned Sparrows:







A little further down the trail the coolest thing happened. I heard rustling in a bramble of blackberry and snowberry, and when I looked I saw a flash of what appeared to be a Fox Sparrow. I remembered that I had my phone with me and on it are the recordings of all the western bird songs. So I whipped that sucker out and started playing the Fox Sparrow song. Immediately a very curious Fox Sparrow started making agitated call notes, and eventually responded to my song by mimicking it. I got a few quick pics of him popping his head up through the thicket to check me out...




A very concerned Fox Sparrow singing to my iphone

On the wildflower front, the Grass Widows were in full form:









I love it when wildflowers start to emerge from the decaying remains of last years blooms:


Columbia Desert Parsley, Lomatium columbianum


Pungent Desert Parsley, Lomatium grayi