As I left my house at 5:00am it was in a down pour... Things were not looking good.  As I picked up my cohort Jeff in downtown Salt Lake, it was a torrential down pour... things could only get better.  The drive into Davis County was wet wet wet.  And as we got breakfast it seemed to get even wetter. Finally arriving at the Legacy Events Center to meet out group the rain was still coming down; but it seemed to have lightened a little--and to the west there was a shimmer of hope that the clouds would part and the weather might turn for the better. We kept our expectations reasonable--the rain could definitely damper our efforts--it was probably snowing above 8,000' so our mountain birding could definitely be rough.  This was going to be a wet and wild Marathon Birding Trip.

Everyone that ended up going on the trip was on time and in the vehicles; but 2 participants didn't show up, and we wasted 15 minutes waiting and trying to get a hold of them--in the end we left late, and without the 2 no-shows.  In the parking lot the first birds of the day were a flyover flock of WHITE-FACED IBIS; and singing AMERICAN ROBIN, HOUSE FINCH, and RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD. We wasted no time making our way to Glover Lane, where birds were singing as if it were sunny and warm. COMMON YELLOWTHROAT and YELLOW WARBLER were heard quickly. Sitting in the middle of a wet field was an easy to watch BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON, while the ponds at the end of the lane provided the usual share of waterfowl and waterbirds--we were underway and I personally didn't mind the rain since the birding was off to a good start.

At Farmington Bay the gates were locked as usual and it took a few minutes to get in.  We were greeted by a GREAT EGRET in the pond to the east, as well as COMMON GOLDENEYE, and 100's of VIOLET-GREEN SWALLOWS.  Behind the restrooms 2 WOOD DUCKS were nice to get out of the way.  We snagged both SORA and VIRGINIA RAIL calling from the reeds, and CASPIAN and FORSTER's TERNS overhead. At Egg Island Overlook a very wet SWAINSON'S HAWK posed  for the group int he small trees. Scoping form here we picked out a small group of 7 RED KNOTS to the southwest--a fortuitous find as we would have none at the causeway later.  We quickly nabbed our waterfowl needs and got a bonus PEREGRINE FALCON before turning around and heading out.  Along the way we added LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER, WILSON'S PHALAROPE, and SANDHILL CRANE. We were glad to get both NORTHERN SHOVELER and AMERICAN WIGEON which have been surprisingly difficult in the past. As we left a singing LINCOLN'S SPARROW at the restrooms was a bonus that eventually gave everyone great looks--and for the first year in many we struck out on Blue-winged Teal.

Red Knots at Farmington Bay

Heading towards the freeway we snagged CALIFORNIA QUAIL, which is never a sure thing so was technically a bonus bird for the day.  Like every year adjusting our route, this year we threw in a loop the opposite direction of our trip--heading to Bountiful Pond, we hoped to maximize our migrant lists by hitting 2 migrant traps instead of just.  It was rewarding as we were able to also add CATTLE EGRETS along Legacy Parkway--where 1,000's of WHITE-FACED IBIS filled every field. The group only had to scan one flock to get lucky enough to pick out a GLOSSY IBIS for the day.

Glossy Ibis photo by Rachel LeBlanc

At Bountiful Pond we waded in ankle deep water through the flooded orchard hoping for migrants. There wasn't as much as expected but we did star to pick things out slowly. YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER, BULLOCK'S ORIOLE, WILSON's, & MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLERS were found. Several GREEN-TAILED TOWHEES were seen along the path around the west side of the pond. A BARN OWL flushed from the trees, while overhead swallows twittered about.  On the water we snagged COMMON MERGANSER and CLARK'S GREBE.  Feeling we'd exhausted the trees we left 15 minutes behind schedule for the day--but on time given we left 15 minutes late at the onset.

Bobolink at Shick Lane

The drive to Kaysville went quick, and we netted 2 BOBOLINK and WILSON'S SNIPE at Schick Lane, before adding GREAT-TAILED GRACKLE at Jensen Nature Park. And just like that the rain subsided--the clouds parted and the sun graced us with its presence. The rest of the morning would be spent at Antelope Island, birding in ideal conditions.  On the causeway we quickly pinned down 2 AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER, 4 WHIMBREL and a SNOWY PLOVER amongst the 1,000's of BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER and SANDERLINGS. 10's of 1,000's of RED-NECKED PHALAROPE dotted the water. We couldn't find any turnstones or dunlins; and not a peep in the whole bunch. But a 3rd cycle LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL was a bonus--as was an AMERICAN PIPIT along the beach. We plowed through our needs and headed to the end of the causeway where 2 PURPLE MARTIN were drifting over the last bridge.  At the marina we had 5 more including several gorgeous males that flew past at eye level.

Female Purple Martin at AIC

Tim's Car photo by Rachel LeBlanc

On the island CHUKAR, ROCK WREN, and LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE came quickly. At Lady Finger Point we flushed a CANYON WREN from the rocks, and a singing NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD were nice additions. Another flyby PURPLE MARTIN made 8 for the day. Along the loop road we added SAGE THRASHER, GRAY FLYCATCHER, and a surprise BLACK-THROATED SPARROW. That was followed by BURROWING OWL and BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER as well as the usual LARK and BREWER'S SPARROW. And yet another flyby PURPLE MARTIN made 9 for the day.  We finished up the north arm of the island with HORNED LARK and SAY'S PHOEBE, as well as the usual GREAT HORNED and BARN OWLS at the corrals.

Great Horned Owls at Antelope Island

The drive to Garr Ranch was punctuated with a quick stop for GRASSHOPPER SPARROW which was perched up and singing on arrival. At Garr Ranch we ran into a fallout--kicked off with PURPLE MARTIN number 10 for the day. WILSON'S WARBLERS were dripping form the understory.

Wilson's Warbler at Garr Ranch

Various other warblers flitted about, and we were fortunate to find the NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH along the fence line at the east end of the spring. Our only RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH of the day would be here--PINE SISKIN, WESTERN TANAGER, LAZULI BUNTING and WARBLING VIREO were also nice additions. We did a clean sweep of the Utah empids with all 5 regularly occurring species found around the ranch grounds. After making the rounds we opted to head out knowing we'd done very well at the ranch and were already past 130 species for the day. The drive out netted our NORTHERN HARRIER for the day, and in Layton we saw plenty of AMERICAN CROWS.

Northern Waterthrush at Garr Ranch

On our way to get lunch in Ogden we added a pair of WESTERN SCRUB-JAY which is usually a miss for us--and after a short lunch stop we headed to Birdsong Trail at the mouth of Ogden Canyon.  Here with a little coaxing we picked up YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT and FOX SPARROW for the day as well as BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAK and BLACK-CHINNED HUMMINGBIRD. Overhead our first TURKEY VULTURES were a pleasant sight. Heading into the canyon, Mike suggested stopping at "The Oaks" to see if we could get a catbird and Calliope Hummingbird at their feeders. We had no such luck with those birds, but as we were getting ready to leave a small buteo emerged form the trees across the road and circled.  Everyone looked and someone quickly yelled out Swainson's Hawk! But that wasn't right, the dark bird was very "broad-winged", and the pattern was just off.  I fumbled to grab my camera as I stuttered that I thought it looked like a BROAD-WINGED HAWK.  All eyes were back on the bird as it circled overhead.  After getting my camera and finally focusing the bird made its way up up up eventually being dive bombed by a SHARP-SHINNED HAWK, as they both circled amongst the WHITE-THROATED SWIFTS overhead. A quick check of the field guide and it sunk in that we really did have a dark-morph Broad-winged Hawk.  To gloat just a little (and for comfort confirmation) I sent the picture to Jerry Liguori with no text--his response was to excitedly ask WHERE??? This was definitely the bird of the day for me.

Dark morph Broad-winged Hawk in Ogden Canyon

Getting our wits about us we continued. At Pineview we added a BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER before hitting Jefferson Hunt Campground. Here CEDAR WAXWING were added and finally OSPREY as we headed eastward towards Monte Cristo.  This was the first year SR-39 had been open so we took advantage of a new route through the mountains. As I tallied the birds from the day we sat at 149.  The car started guessing what 150 would be.  Mike was confident that it would Mountain Bluebird, while a few of us ventured that Northern Flicker would be next.  The radio from Jeff's car crackled, "NORTHERN FLICKER". We cheered and eventually saw one ourselves. The next bird to follow--MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRD.

The road to Monte Cristo

Making our was up the mountains we eventually hit gray skies, then thicker clouds. We picked up DARK-EYED JUNCO, followed by DOWNY WOODPECKER and RED-NAPED SAPSUCKER in the same tree!  Then we hit the clouds--literally, we drove into the fog and were greeted with snow and hail as we continued on.  This could make things difficult. We had a small but reliable list of birds we needed to get up here--and with this weather it would be difficult. As we parked across from the entrance to Monte Cristo Campground the fog lifted enough to see around us--but all was quiet.  I reluctantly ditched my flip-flops for hikers as it was even cold for my taste.  We did pick up a calling MOUNTAIN CHICKADEE, but not much else.  I heard what sounded like a chortling Pine Grosbeak; and a couple times it sounded like American Three-toed Woodpeckers called.  But we couldn't pin anything down.  Eventually a few people did hear CLARK'S NUTCRACKER (and we'd all see one 10 minutes later as we drove off the mountain); but the birding left a lot to be desired.

Jeff's Car 12 hours in to the day

Back in the cars we descended to the east and out of the clouds. We added CASSIN'S FINCH on the way down, but no other montane species.  Monte Cristo was a bust and cost us a few species.  Had the weather been different it probably would have been a great addition to the trip. We stopped in Woodruff briefly to look for Common Grackle to no avail.  Driving along SR-16 south towards the Wyoming border through Deseret Ranch we picked up CANVASBACK for the day. We decided to cross the border and check out Woodruff Narrows Reservoir. VESPER SPARROW was picked up along the road in and at the lake we had RING-NECKED DUCK. Our other targets in the sage and on the water were missed, and we slowly made our way back towards Utah, stopping briefly in Evanston to pick up food for our last few hours on the move. Back in Utah we checked an old Ferruginous Hawk nest but there were none present.  All in all our big loop to the east had been a waste.  A few years ago we changed the route to leave the long drive up Logan Canyon, and down through Wyoming out.  It was too much driving--too little birding--and in the end we could get more species spending more time int eh field closer to home. I think that holds true with this years experiment; its hard to say how much different things would have been on a sunny day; but on this day it was a miss.

Common Loon at Echo Reservoir

Down Echo Canyon we decided to stop at Echo Reservoir. Here we picked up COMMON LOON and PLUMBEOUS VIREO for the day, before making our way towards Henefer adding both GOLDEN and BALD EAGLES along I-84. We were getting short on daylight and I knew we could add at least one more songbird for the day with AMERICAN DIPPER at Jeremy Ranch Road.  That was it though--we exhausted our last spot for Gray Catbird for the day without seeing one--and Swainson's Thrush really aren't back yet so that was another miss. Looking at our list we sat comfortably at 165 species for the day--we would have no problem at least tying our previous best.

Heading up East Canyon to look for nocturnal birds several in the group had a BLACK-CAPPED CHICKADEE for the day. I was a little worried when Ruffed Grouse wasn't on its usually booming log--it took a short hike but eventually we flushed a RUFFED GROUSE from some high grass making it 167 for the day, what we ended with last year.  A few minutes later we called in a FLAMMULATED OWL for 168 and a new Marathon Birding record.  Try as we might we couldn't get another Flammy to come in nearby; and no poorwills were heard calling.  We might end up stalling with +1.  At our next stop there were flammy's calling but we tried for other owls which we needed for the day.  I heard a couple of screeches from the woods after doing a NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWL whistle for a bit--and it was a couple minutes later when one finally whistled back making it 169.

Flammulated Owl from East Canyon

At Big Mountain Pass it took a little coaxing to get a COMMON POORWILL to respond making it 170 species on the day--and we still had time to burn.  But given the long day, and great numbers we opted not to stop and try for screech-owl and instead head back to Farmington.  We forgot to check the odometer, but the trip should have covered 305 miles or there abouts for the day. We got back right at 11:00pm for 16 hours and 45 minutes of Marathon Birding through 7 counties (+1 in Wyoming). I was honestly shocked what we were able to see given the weather--it actually helped keep a lot of birds down probably which made picking up migrants easier than in the past.

It always amazes me how this trip transforms every year.  After 10 years looking back its crazy to think that in the past we struggled to get 130 species on this trip. Each of the last 3 years we have topped 160 and as we keep refining 175 or 180 doesn't seem that far off.  We never know how the trip will go, or what we really will see ad the unpredictability of migration, due to the rising and falling water levels of the GSL, the hit or miss nature of passerine migration in mid-May, and what routes will be open to drive. Every year we talk about adjusting the route a little bit and making subtle changes to get the most out of the day. So we'll have to wait and see what next year brings.  As always thanks to Jeff for co-leading this trip; and Mike and Taylor for driving--the 2 extra sets of eyes has really mad ea difference.  And especially thanks to the 6 hardy birders who showed up despite the horrendous conditions--it paid off!

I've been tied a lot closer to home the past 6 months with the addition of a son to our family.  It's meant I don't manage to go birding for as long, or as far from home as usual.  I've still managed to do a lot of birding, but really changed my pattern.  One thing I have decided to work on is building out locations in and around Sandy, Utah creating a patchwork of personal birding location in eBird to micro list as I go about my day to day.  It's actually really simple and ends up keeping me in tune with what birds are where around my current home town.

My personal locations in blue--hotspots in red.

It started rather simply a couple years ago.  I had my house as a personal location, my neighborhood as another, and then I created a spot for a woodlot along my drive home from work.  There are two hot spots along my routes to and from work--the Sandy City Cemetery and Dimple Dell Park. I also created a location a few years ago at La Caille for the trail down to Quail Hollow Park, that is now listed as Little Cottonwood Canyon -- Mouth (incl. La Caille). Larkin Sunset Gardens also has a hotspot but I rarely make it up the road to this location.  East of I-15 and in Sandy City these are the only hot spots.  There are a couple spots long the Jordan River, and of Course the Sandy Urban Fishery.  But you get the idea, there just aren't a ton of birding spots on the map.  So I changed that.

Sandy -- Porter Rockwell Trail at 10600 South

I started by creating two spots along the Rail Trail (Trax)--one at 9000 South and another at 10600 South.  The locations were named accordingly Sandy -- Porter Rockwell Trail and Sandy -- Expo Station @ 9000 S 146 E. I decided to use the eBird naming schema for locations in a given area.  Since these were all personal I used Sandy as the location with each sub location following dashes.  Next I added Lake Hills Cemetery on State Street, and then another location along 10600 south at about 1050 East just past the Dimple Dell Rec Center.  I also had a location that I rarely used listed at the Sandy Amphitheatre, which I adjusted to Sandy -- Quarry Bend and Amphitheatre.  From here I branched out and while out and about in the past week I created 3 location along the I-15 corridor just east of the freeway.  One near 9000 south at the old Classic Fun Center where a small ditch has a marsh habitat.  I also created two locations around the Southe Town Mall.  One north of the mall along Centennial Parkway  where a tiny pond is surrounded by marsh.  And another along the freeway the length of the west side of the mall where these is an expansive marsh.

Sandy -- South Towne Center Marsh

Deciding I needed to break Sandy down even more I decided to create locations at a number of local parks: Storm Mountain Park, Lone Peak Park, Bell Canyon Park, Pebble Brook GC, Falcon Park, Flat Iron Mesa Park, and Quail Hollow Park.

Sandy -- Flat Iron Mesa Park

I didn't create spots for every park, but ones I pass or spend some amount of time at on a monthly basis.  My goal going forward is to submit at least 1 list per month at each location in Sandy, and eventually work on getting a list for every week of the year to create a full data set for these locations.  It won't be comprehensive but will give me a good overlay of the entire city!

Generally the lists contain a lot of Rock Pigeons and European Starlings--a realistic look at what most urban birding looks like.  But the lists get sprinkled with Mourning and Eurasian Collared-Doves, Americn Robins, Western Scrub-Jays, Black-billed Magpie, American Kestrel, House Finches and Sparrows, California Gulls, etc.  Just for laughs I have submitted 61 Checklists for the Sandy Ciy Cemetery--comprising exactly 14 species! With this micro birding there are far more checklists than species generally.

American Kestrel

On a daily basis I try to enter lists when I stop at lights or keep an eye out for birds while driving.  I also usually stop at one or two locations on the way home for a just a couple minutes to listen to what's calling. It gives me the opportunity to fit in a little birding every day away from my home and office.  It has also made me really aware of specific birds that have set up territories along the route. I have 2 spots where I know American Kestrel are on territory; 1 Red-tailed Hawk that frequents a certain woodlot; and of course the specific locations where you almost always find American Crow in the city.

American Crow

So if you can't get away from home as much as you'd like, or you prefer birding locally, without a car, on foot, bike, or scooter I suggest creating your own patchwork of local birding locations and working on micro listing your area. Not only will you provide valuable data for citizen science, but you'll really get to know the birds around you.

If you'd like me to share any of my personal locations with you just let me know--I don't suspect a lot of folks go birding at many of these places, but if more than one were interested I would certainly love to add more data from more birders!

Last night, 13 Utah Birders headed into the hills outside Salt Lake City to look for Flammulated Owls.  What has become an annual trip was nothing short of great this year.  With a 98% full moon and wonderful summer weather we started the evening off at Mountain Dell Reservoir and Parley's Creek, picking up the common montane species expected in the area with great looks a GREEN-TAILED TOWHEE and LAZULI BUNTING.  A COOPER'S HAWK being mobbed by a flock of cowbirds, blackbirds, and alone Western Kingbird was a good show, while a BREWER'S BLACKBIRD dive-bombed a fly-over TURKEY VULTURE as well.

Brewer's Blackbird mobbing a Turkey Vulture

On the actual reservoir a pair of AMERICAN WIGEON accompanied the throngs of Canada Geese and Mallards.  Nearby an active RED-TAILED HAWK nest held several young birds, while an OSPREY stood watch from its nest platform. The warm air made things a little slow but we picked up the expected birds for the area.

Utah Birders at Parley's Creek

A quick stop at Little Dell Reservoir turned up the out of range LEAST FLYCATCHER that appears to be on a territory.  Poor thing won't find a mate this year!

Least Flycatcher on a perch at Litte Dell

Flocks of LESSER GOLDFINCH, HOUSE FINCHES, and several BULLOCK'S ORIOLES brightened up the sagebrush hillsides with there bright colors creating some stunning photo opportunities.

American Goldfinch at Little Dell

As it started to get a little darker we headed to Big Mountain Pass where things were considerably less birdy than usual.  We did get both HERMIT and SWAINSON'S THRUSHES at the pass as well as a WESTERN TANAGER, DUSKY FLYCATCHER, HOUSE WREN, and the expected VIOLET-GREEN SWALLOWS.  But there wasn't a lot of activity in the usually bustling forest.

Utah Birders at Jeremy Ranch Road

Not wasting time we headed to Jeremy Ranch Road.  A WESTERN WOOD-PEWEE greeted us at the parking area and we quickly located one of targets in a local nesting AMERICAN DIPPER.  Along the creek we had several singing FOX SPARROWS as well as a BULLOCK'S ORIOLE, and a singing YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT keeping hidden in the willows.

American Dipper bringing food to the nest

As it got dark 4 COMMON NIGHTHAWKS appeared over the road providing great looks for the entire group.

Common Nighthawk on Jeremy Ranch Road

We headed back up the canyon picking up a GREAT HORNED OWL perched alongside the road.  When we reached our owling stop we headed into the forest. Almost simultaneously we had a drumming RUFFED GROUSE, a distant calling COMMON POORWILL and a nearby FLAMMULATED OWL.  Concentrating on the owl we called the bird in and the whole group got great looks at the little bird.  Several others sang from nearby and after a little work we had one individual perch in the open singing without us using playback for a good 15 minutes.

Flammulated Owl in East Canyon

As we were set to leave Jeff heard the drumming of the grouse again and in an attempt to find the bird I stumbled across it squatting on a log about 10' from where we were looking.  It quickly scampered into the underbrush and out of view unfortunately.  We headed back to the cars and went up canon to our next stop where several more Flammulated Owls were singing.  While we tried to bring one in, a NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWL burst into song back down the road from us.  There was some confusion as others in the group were off to the west and had apparently played a Pygmy-Owl tape around the same time.  However after asking what call they played and how many times, it was apparent that they had not played an alarm call and we had indeed heard a Saw-whet in a different direction.

The almost Full Moon

We tried hard to get another look at a Flammy, but only had a flyover while trying to find a bird hidden in the big pines.  We made one last stop at Big Mountain Pass which was quiet.  The group departed while a couple of us stayed behind.  It wasn't even 5 minutes and a COMMON POORWILL started singing like crazy in the canyon below. Timing is everything!  We headed into the forest and after a couple minutes had multiple singing FLAMMULATED OWL.  With a little work we had a great photo opportunity with one of the birds, before we called it a night!

Last bird of the night, a Flammulated Owl in Mountain Dell Canyon

We tallied 62 species for the evening, but more importantly had great luck with tiny owls on a wonderfully lit almost full moon night with a great group of Utah Birders!

As the year 2013 began I tried to exercise some restraint in my birding radius. It is possible to spend a lot of travel time and gas money running all over the place looking for birds.  There are also work responsibilities that should not be procrastinated forever in the name of a bird that is far away, or will take to much time to track down.  I live in Sandy and I told myself I would try and just chase the county birds. I failed in that goal a few times. A good birds like a Snowy Owl can show up in Ogden and I can't help but to twitch my way up there to see it.

So as the year progressed I slowly developed the goal to do a County big year. It was a small goal compared to those who do big years for the state and see 300+ birds for the year, but it was a goal I thought was doable.  I never could have done it without the many very talented birders out there who were willing to post there good sighting in ebird  or on the google group Ubird.  A lot of the hard to find rare birds I chased down by following your leads, so thank you to everyone out there who likes to share. My number this year was not possible without the communal nature of Ubird and ebird so I can't express enough my appreciation to everyone out there, thank you for all your help.

In addition to the specific rarities I chased ebird indirectly gave me a lot of good birds. I had a list of hard to find birds for the county and I looked up the historical data on ebird. In this way I learn where to go for what birds and what the chances were of seeing these species. To say that I love ebird is an understatement. I spent years birding here and there with no connection to the other birders out there, so when I found Ubird and ebird it was a huge game changer for me, so forgive me for continually plugging them both. I have in turn tried to give back by posting sighting I think are of value on Ubird and also quickly posting my ebird checklists so others may benefit as I have.

It was difficult to decide which birds to include here as rare birds for the county. Many are obvious but some birds that some might not consider to be rare were hard for me to find and I may have only seen them once or twice, so a number of those I have included.

Here is a google map with the sightings, descriptions, and location of my rare Salt Lake County birds this year. There is also a link, in every bird mentioned, to the photographs and checklists of each species.  https://mapsengine.google.com/map/edit?mid=zLxdN-B6-fSA.k61JejvaHVbE

Thanks to an ebird report by Rachel LeBlanc I was able to chase this bird down the next day. The bird stuck around for a couple of weeks after it was first spotted.

Ross's Goose

I focused heavily this year on the gulls. Between Lee Kay ponds, Lake Park, and Saltair, a lot of rare gulls can show up in the county and I wanted to get as many of them on my year list as possible.

Rare gulls this year were:

1. Heerman's Gull
2. Mew Gull
3. Western Gull
4. Iceland Gull
5. Glaucous-winged Gull
6. Glaucous Gull

A beautiful adult Mew Gull was spotted by Stephanie Greenwood. I went looking the next day and it was enjoyed by many over a few days. This was the second of two Mew Gulls I saw this year in the county but this was the best look I have ever had of one.

Mew Gull



One of two I saw this year.



Glaucous-winged Gull



This Dunlin was found mixed in with some Dowitchers on a spring bird festival field trip. A group of 20+ were the only people that I know of to see this bird in the county this year.  This spot is closed to the public the other 364 days of the year so it was a good opportunity to bird a great area that you just can not get into.

Dunlin



One of the best places to bird in the county is in Farmington Bay. The Salt Lake County side is south west of the four way stop and accessible on foot part of the year. It is open for the hunters but is closed the rest of the time. I had some rare ones after a few long walk both in the early spring and fall including:

1. Semipalmated Sandpiper
2. Black Tern
3. Common Tern
4. Trumpeter Swan
5. Eurasian Wigeon

Lee Kay ponds is a great place to bird and where I picked up a huge portion of my county birds.

1. Long-tailed Duck
2. Red-throated Loon
3. White-throated Sparrow
4. Common Tern
5. Semipalmated Plover
6. Ash-throated Flycatcher
7. Harris's Sparrow
8. Lapland Longspur
9. Some of the Gulls previously mentioned

First reported and found by Bryant Olsen. Very rare bird. I saw it the next day and many times after that since it stuck around for a very long time. A lot of birders got to enjoy this bird.

Red-throated Loon

First of two I saw in the county this year. The second one I saw was seen three days later at the Salt Lake International center. This bird is not that rare in the state but it seems to be quite rare in the county.

Ash-throated Flycatcher

 Found by Rachel Leblanc, I ran out to see this bird the day it was found. I also went back the next morning to enjoy it some more. It stuck around for a week. This bird is usually only found briefly during fall migration up on some of the big reservoirs with Common Loons. We usually have one or two reported in the state annually so getting this bird at this spot and in the county was a major bonus.

Pacific Loon

Saltair can be hit or miss but if your timing is right you can get some rare birds out there. From the Marina to Lee Creek a bit further East I had a good handful of rare birds including:

1. Iceland Gull
2. Western Gull
3. American-Golden Plover
4. Sanderling (rare in Salt Lake)
5. Black Tern
6. Northern Mockingbird

Millcreek canyon lent a few rare birds last winter. Rare birds were:

1. Pacific Wren
2. Varied Thrush
3. Northern Pygmy-Owl

After an ebird report my son and I went after this bird the next day. After a really long walk in the biter cold we got great satisfying views of this bird ready to start lunch with a recently caught mouse in its talons.

Northern Pygmy Owl

This was a good year to find redpolls and there were consistent sightings further north but sightings in the county were sporadic. I gave this bird more effort than any other this year.  I chased every SLC sighting of a common redpoll but they seemed to be at a feeder with a flock of goldfinches one minute and then gone the next. I searched feeders and potential area high and low. One of my spots was near a feeder only about 50 yards within the county line and it was there that I finally found one, and on my birthday! Great birthday bird!

I chased a pair of these woodpeckers after the Obrien's found and reported them. I spent a lot of time this year looking for these guys in there habitat. I thought I would go the year without seeing them despite my best efforts. I was happy when they were found and the best part is they hung out in this area (Tanner Park) through the end of the year.

Lewis's Woodpecker

Southern side of the valley:

 Pulling into my driveway on a crazy stormy spring day I happened upon a male and female Common Grackel in my driveway. What a shocker yard bird! I thought I was lucky with the weather blowing them in until later on June 23rd I saw a female flying out of my backyard. After that I tracked them and there nest down a few blocks from my house in a neighbors backyard. I invited anyone who was interested to come and see them. They remained in the area and reared there young until the middle of July when they left the area. I really hope they continue to nest hear year after year. These were the only Common Grackles seen in the county this year.

  Common Grackle



Little Cottonwood Canyon Black Swifts- Only spot in the county one can find this species. The best way to find them is at dusk as they fly into there waterfall homes high up in the cliffs. This is the most fascinating bird I have ever heard of and it is very difficult to see. Studying about this bird is fascinating and I highly recommend it.

On the Jordan River across from the ebay building is the best place in the county to find the beautiful and rare Blue Grosbeak. That being said I had no luck until the 8th time I went there looking. They nest somewhere in the area. After finally seeing them I saw them again in the same spot two weeks later and then again surprisingly further south at Jordan Narrows. Then late summer I had another sighting on the ISSR property. Even though I got lucky with a bunch of sightings this is still a rare county bird. I also had my only American Bittern of the year in the Marsh here.

Blue Grosbeak

There had been a few reports of Northern Waterthrushes throughout the state and I knew they were moving through the area. I spent sometime thinking of where in the county I could find the best habitat to look. Draper Wetland Park, to me, seemed the most likely location to start and I was not disappointed. There were a few other ebird reports of this species, one of which was at the Salt Lake International Center in the fall, but this was the only one I saw this year.

I first spotted a Grasshopper Sparrow in the dry grass hills south of Herriman in spring with my son. I went back a few days later and walked through more of there habitat over a couple of miles and I was able to count 7 singing and establishing territories throughout this area. They seem fairly common in this grass fields of the area but none were reported anywhere else in the county on ebird.

Grasshopper Sparrow

I missed a few birds this year but the big miss that, despite my best efforts, I never could find was a Barn Owl. I didn't think it would be a hard one to get and that might have been part of the reason I missed it. I spent a lot of time looking for it as the year was coming to an end with no luck. That will just have to be the one that got away.

There were other birds that may be considered rare that I have left off but narrowing this list down was difficult and if I did it again I might leave some birds off the list and others I might add. For this reason I think an entire list of all the birds I saw in the county this year in the order I saw them would be fun.

2013 Salt Lake County total: 256

1	Sharp-shinned Hawk	64	Belted Kingfisher	127	Sandhill Crane	190	Yellow Warbler
2	Mourning Dove	65	Peregrine Falcon	128	Western Grebe	191	Black-headed Grosbeak
3	Northern Flicker	66	Marsh Wren	129	Bushtit	192	Ruffed Grouse
4	American Kestrel	67	Evening Grosbeak	130	Burrowing Owl	193	Virginia's Warbler
5	Western Scrub-Jay	68	Clark's Nutcracker	131	Tree Swallow	194	Bullock's Oriole
6	Black-capped Chickadee	69	Mountain Chickadee	132	Lincoln's Sparrow	195	Spotted Sandpiper
7	European Starling	70	Red-breasted Nuthatch	133	Greater Yellowlegs	196	Common Tern
8	Cedar Waxwing	71	Long-eared Owl	134	Great-tailed Grackle	197	Black-throated Gray Warbler
9	Dark-eyed Junco	72	Eared Grebe	135	Caspian Tern	198	Brewer's Sparrow
10	House Finch	73	Downy Woodpecker	136	Red-breasted Merganser	199	House Wren
11	Lesser Goldfinch	74	Ruby-crowned Kinglet	137	Savannah Sparrow	200	Flammulated Owl
12	House Sparrow	75	Red-naped Sapsucker	138	Chukar	201	Black-chinned Hummingbird
13	Canada Goose	76	American Crow	139	Canyon Wren	202	Gray Flycatcher
14	Eurasian Collared-Dove	77	California Quail	140	Band-tailed Pigeon	203	Cordilleran Flycatcher
15	American Robin	78	Ring-necked Pheasant	141	Say's Phoebe	204	Plumbeous Vireo
16	American Goldfinch	79	Golden Eagle	142	Turkey Vulture	205	Swainson's Thrush
17	Rock Pigeon	80	American Avocet	143	Black-necked Stilt	206	Green-tailed Towhee
18	Black-billed Magpie	81	Northern Pygmy-Owl	144	Long-billed Dowitcher	207	Dusky Grouse
19	Spotted Towhee	82	Brown Creeper	145	Bonaparte's Gull	208	Willow Flycatcher
20	Song Sparrow	83	Bohemian Waxwing	146	Fox Sparrow	209	Warbling Vireo
21	Merlin	84	American Dipper	147	Cassin's Finch	210	Sage Thrasher
22	Steller's Jay	85	Varied Thrush	148	Franklin's Gull	211	Pinyon Jay
23	Townsend's Solitaire	86	Virginia Rail	149	Great Egret	212	Rock Wren
24	Gadwall	87	White-throated Sparrow	150	Long-tailed Duck	213	Black-bellied Plover
25	Mallard	88	Western Screech-Owl	151	Cliff Swallow	214	Dunlin
26	Northern Shoveler	89	Pine Siskin	152	Common Loon	215	Northern Mockingbird
27	Green-winged Teal	90	White-breasted Nuthatch	153	Osprey	216	Common Yellowthroat
28	Ring-necked Duck	91	Juniper Titmouse	154	Willet	217	Yellow-breasted Chat
29	Greater Scaup	92	Wilson's Phalarope	155	Long-billed Curlew	218	Common Poorwill
30	Lesser Scaup	93	Short-eared Owl	156	Snowy Egret	219	Common Grackle
31	Bufflehead	94	Prairie Falcon	157	Barn Swallow	220	Northern Waterthrush
32	Common Goldeneye	95	Loggerhead Shrike	158	Lesser Yellowlegs	221	MacGillivray's Warbler
33	Barrow's Goldeneye	96	American Tree Sparrow	159	Marbled Godwit	222	Western Wood-Pewee
34	Pied-billed Grebe	97	Western Gull	160	Swainson's Hawk	223	Wilson's Warbler
35	Bald Eagle	98	Pacific Wren	161	Red-necked Phalarope	224	Gray Catbird
36	American Coot	99	Tundra Swan	162	Northern Rough-winged Sw	225	Sora
37	Killdeer	100	Gray-crowned Rosy-Finch	163	White-faced Ibis	226	American Bittern
38	Ring-billed Gull	101	Northern Goshawk	164	Blue-winged Teal	227	Olive-sided Flycatcher
39	White-crowned Sparrow	102	Hairy Woodpecker	165	Vesper Sparrow	228	Hammond's Flycatcher
40	Northern Pintail	103	Ferruginous Hawk	166	Clark's Grebe	229	Eastern Kingbird
41	California Gull	104	Golden-crowned Kinglet	167	Forster's Tern	230	Grasshopper Sparrow
42	Herring Gull	105	Wild Turkey	168	Violet-green Swallow	231	Williamson's Sapsucker
43	Thayer's Gull	106	Mountain Bluebird	169	Snowy Plover	232	Common Nighthawk
44	American Wigeon	107	Yellow-headed Blackbird	170	Solitary Sandpiper	233	White-throated Swift
45	Canvasback	108	Mew Gull	171	Least Sandpiper	234	Black Swift
46	Redhead	109	Lesser Black-backed Gull	172	Western Sandpiper	235	Blue Grosbeak
47	Hooded Merganser	110	Black Rosy-Finch	173	Short-billed Dowitcher	236	Rufous Hummingbird
48	Great Blue Heron	111	Cinnamon Teal	174	Bank Swallow	237	Red Crossbill
49	Northern Shrike	112	Western Meadowlark	175	Red-throated Loon	238	Calliope Hummingbird
50	Common Raven	113	Great Horned Owl	176	Wilson's Snipe	239	Nashville Warbler
51	Horned Lark	114	Glaucous Gull	177	Lark Sparrow	240	Ash-throated Flycatcher
52	Red-winged Blackbird	115	Wood Duck	178	Western Tanager	241	Townsend's Warbler
53	Brewer's Blackbird	116	Hermit Thrush	179	Brown-headed Cowbird	242	Cassin's Vireo
54	Northern Harrier	117	Common Redpoll	180	Broad-tailed Hummingbird	243	Sanderling
55	Red-tailed Hawk	118	Ross's Goose	181	Blue-gray Gnatcatcher	244	Pectoral Sandpiper
56	Rough-legged Hawk	119	Northern Saw-whet Owl	182	Western Kingbird	245	Black Tern
57	American Pipit	120	American Three-toed W-pkr	183	Lazuli Bunting	246	Semipalmated Sandpiper
58	Ruddy Duck	121	Neotropic Cormorant	184	Chipping Sparrow	247	Clay-colored Sparrow
59	Horned Grebe	122	Double-crested Cormorant	185	Orange-crowned Warbler	248	American Golden-Plover
60	Yellow-rumped Warbler	123	Eurasian Wigeon	186	Pine Grosbeak	249	Lewis's Woodpecker
61	Cackling Goose	124	American White Pelican	187	Dusky Flycatcher	250	Snow Goose
62	Common Merganser	125	Black-crowned Night-Heron	188	Semipalmated Plover	251	Pacific Loon
63	Cooper's Hawk	126	Trumpeter Swan	189	Baird's Sandpiper	252	Heermann's Gull
						253	Glaucous-winged Gull
						254	Iceland Gull
						255	Lapland Longspur
						256	Harris's Sparrow

Here is a google map with the sightings, descriptions, and location of my rare Salt Lake County birds this year. There is also a link, in every bird mentioned, to the photographs and checklists of each species. https://mapsengine.google.com/map/edit?mid=zLxdN-B6-fSA.k61JejvaHVbE

The day after Thanksgiving is a great time to get out and shop till you drop.  Spend lots of money, help boost companies end of year revenue, and stimulate the economy... It's also a nightmare to those of us who look at the whole things as the epitome of American gluttony--its sadly disgusting in many respects and speaks volumes about our society.  So this year we decided instead of joining other in our community partaking in this "Event", we would do a sort of anti-Black Friday--where instead of trying to trample our neighbors for that flat screen, we would go birding and be as far away from the commotion as possible.

As a disclaimer I will note that I did go to Home Depot and Shopko before making my way to the field trip--my haul: 2 four-mode headlamps and 4 strings of Christmas lights.  Hardly stuff worth fighting over, which is why I waited till the crowds dispersed.  In any event the trip began with 12 of us meeting up at the Wal-Mart on Foothill and Parley's Way--of all places we thought it a tad bit ironic, but also a bit clever. The group was quite varied and included several young Utah birders, including Kendall Watkins and Brenton Reyner, as well one of Utah's youngest and brightest birders, Ivan Richardson, 10, from St. George, along with his dad Tom.

Utah Birders scanning the ducks at the Jordan River

To get started we headed to the Jordan River, Redwood Trailhead at about 2300 South.  Here the group got great looks at both species of Goldeneye, with an exceptional count of 25 BARROW'S GOLDENEYE.  Other waterfowl included, Bufflehead, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, Gadwall, Ruddy Duck, and Canada Goose.

eBird Checklist:
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S15799637

From the river we hopped a short drive over to Decker Lake where we picked up a COMMON MERGANSER along with the usual California and Ring-billed Gulls, as well as plenty of Mallards and domestic Geese.  There were about 100 CANADA GEESE on the grass near the parking area, including the hybrid Canada X Grayleg that has been around at least the past 2 winters.  As we were getting ready to leave geese started pouring in, and as we watched them we picked out a couple CACKLING GEESE in the air.  We waited till the landed and found 2--while we were watching them 3 more came in for a count of 5 CACKLING GEESE.

Cackling Goose (left) with Canada Goose at Decker Lake

eBird Checklist:
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S15799687

After getting our fill of these geese it was onward to Lake Park in hope of more geese, perhaps some gulls, and maybe, just maybe the Pacific Loon that had been present the week before.  Well there were few geese (by Lake Park standards), almost no gulls, and the loon I would say its safe to assume is gone.  We did however pick up a pair of HOODED MERGANSERS on the river behind the IHC building.  They were accompanied by a handful of Common Mergansers.  We also watched a PRAIRIE FALCON hunting in a large field to the west of there, providing great looks for the group.

Prairie Falcon coming in for a landing at Lake Park

At the west pond we did add a lone RED-BREASTED MERGANSER for the 3 species sweep for the day.  The only other thing of note was an enormous flock of EUROPEAN STARLINGS, perhaps 5,000 birds that came form the west and flew over us, murmurating, as they headed east.

Just a portion of the European Starling flock over Lake Park

eBird Checklist:
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S15799725

The next stop was Lee Kay Pond which was inundated with Gulls, approximately 2,500~ mostly on the west pond--the best viewing was from the east, but it put us at an extreme distance.  From the entrance to the middle pond we scoped the birds and picked out a couple HERRING and THAYER'S GULLS form a distance.  The Thayer's was a lifer for Ivan so that was quite exciting.  

Utah Birders Ivan and Tom Richardson scanning the gulls at Lee Kay Ponds

After giving it a good while we drove the road along the middle pond where we spotted more HOODED MERGANSERS.  We looped back to the west pond, closer to the flock to try scanning a little closer while we still had some good light.  We weren't out of the car 5 minutes when Kenny shouted that he had an ICELAND GULL.  I took a quick look through his scope and excitedly hollered for everyone to come over.  That's when we went into crisis mode--no one could get the bird in a scope, besides Kenny's and trying to get everyone on the bird was like a nightmare.  Finally, as a stroke of luck would have it the bird emerged form the throngs of gulls and sat in the open for everyone to see nicely--a life for many on the trip, including Ivan who had now picked up one of Utah's hardest to get gull species.

Iceland Gull taking flight--the highlight of the day and lifer for many.

Eventually a THAYER'S GULL flew right over us proving excellent looks for the entire group.  This was followed by the Iceland Gull taking off and flying to the west beach where it landed and began preening.  We drove down and spent a few more minutes watching it before continuing on our way.

Thayer's Gull flyby at Lee Kay Ponds

eBird Checklist:

http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S15799794

We made a quick drive up 7200 West with nothing of note--bird wise and otherwise.  We made a quick stop at the International Center to refuel and grab snacks.  A quick check of the ponds there revealed a few gulls, ducks, and geese, but nothing of note.

7200 West eBird Checklist:

http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S15799806

SLIC eBird Checklist:

http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S15799822

After our short break we drove the frontage road along I-80 towards Saltair.  Our stop here was at Kennecott's Inland Sea Shorebird Reserve--a private mitigation wetland that provides much needed protection to both habitat and birds on the south shore of the Great Salt Lake. The target bird here was Tundra Swan (among others), which this time of year can number in the thousands.  As our luck would have it there were about 1,000 TUNDRA SWANS present, and we spent the better part of an hour watching them from various distances, with different lighting and back drops.  It was a highlight for many on the trip.

Small portion of the Tundra Swans at the ISSR

We also added both GOLDEN and BALD EAGLE and had NORTHERN HARRIER and several ROUGH-LEGGED HAWKS.  No shrikes, but several in the group did get short looks at a small flock of AMERICAN TREE SPARROWS that passed by the vehicles.

eBird Checklist:

http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S15800065

Our final stop of the trip was at the Great Salt Lake State Park marina to scan the gulls along the shoreline.  We hoped the Heermann's Gull from the previous week was still present but with great lighting we quickly found that it was not.  We spent some time just relaxing and talking while scanning, bring the trip to a quiet end.

eBird Checklist:

http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S15800093

We did however have one more sighting of note, as we made our way back to the Wal-Mart we passed Parley's Gulch where form the interstate were able to pick out 2 LEWIS'S WOODPECKERS remaining on the poles along the bike path.  A great end to a great trip.  

eBird Checklist:

http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S15800216

Thanks to everyone who took part and made for a great day of birding some of the lesser visited places in the county--the south shore is often overlooked as a a birding hot spot but it definitely is one of the best places along the lake to look for waterbirds.  

This past winter was by many standards a cold miserable one here in Utah. The air was bad, people were sick, and it was bitter out there. Though this is all true, there were a few individuals crazy enough to brave it on a regular basis. These crazy people did it with the end game of enjoying one of the finest winter birding experiences nature will ever provide in Utah. I have come to this consensus by hearing this same conclusion from the mouth of other nutty birders like myself. If those reading do not mind indulging me, I would like to share the highlight of what was for me, a great winter.

It all started with the realization that the often visited south and west sides of Farmington Bay would be amazing places to bird if people were allowed to drive out there. A large expansive wetland area exists that the common birder has no access to. The idea of walking out there was planted in my head and grew until I finally decided to act on this inclination. I was rewarded well beyond my expectations. I parked my car at the four way stop and ventured out on what would be a three and a half mile walk into nature.
 

Here is a map showing the area birded.

I was engulfed by God’s creations. It was a spiritual experience to say the least. To be out there with not a single discernible human sound. Replaced by a chorus of Tundra Swans and waterfowl. Winter bird life flying all around you. Nature being aware of your presence and allowing you, as an intruder, to enjoy its majesty.

 

Tundra Swans in flight illustrate the beauty savored that day and capturing a runing swan, fighting to achieves lift is a treat.
 

There were at least 1500 swans on the ice, on the water, and in the air. They were aware of this lone human intruder.  I thanked them for doing nothing more than cautiously walking away from me as I approached.

 

 

 

I almost tripped over this Black-crowned Night-Heron as it yelped at me and flew off. My attempt at being one with nature in this instance was a major failure.

 

I saw my first of the year American White Pelicans in big numbers (44) out in the middle of all the swans.

 

It was a treat to see my first Sandhill Cranes of the year flying right over my head as they made there distinct calls. If they hadn’t been announcing their presence I easily could have missed them. The challenge here was deciding what to focus on when you are overwhelmed with bird life.

After walking for about three miles and being a little worn out from tracking through the mud and snow for hours, I found a great spot next to the road where the ice was more open. The highlight of the bounteous duck life and this singular day of birding was this rare Eurasian Wigeon, which put a smile on my face for days.

Though not in their beautiful breading plumage, these Ruddy Ducks are still a handsome bird and it was fun to see about 300 of them. This male Buffelhead and this female Lesser Scaup did not seem to mind that I was there.
 

I expected to see Bald Eagles but Fifty two! Wow!

 

 

 

I may not be a professional photographer but I love to capture and freeze in time a moment enjoyed looking at a bird or group of birds. A singular moment can be shared and reflected upon.

Below is a list and counts for species seen on my winter birding adventure.

Canada Goose 50
Trumpeter Swan 1
Tundra Swan 1500
Eurasian Wigeon 1

Gadwall 2

American Wigeon 40
Mallard 300
Cinnamon Teal 35
Northern Shoveler 200
Northern Pintail 500
Green-winged Teal 20
Canvasback 45
Redhead 240
Ring-necked Duck 50
Lesser Scaup 200
Bufflehead 25
Common Goldeneye 30
Common Merganser 100
Ruddy Duck 300
Ring-necked Pheasant 1
American White Pelican 44
Great Blue Heron 2
Black-crowned Night-Heron 1
Northern Harrier 2
Bald Eagle 52
Rough-legged Hawk 2
American Coot 25
Sandhill Crane 3
Ring-billed Gull 1
California Gull 800
Herring Gull 50
Loggerhead Shrike 1
Common Raven 5
Song Sparrow 1
Red-winged Blackbird 20
Western Meadowlark 1

36 species and 4,500+ individuals.