Willamette rafting trip, 8/12
42 views
Skip to first unread message
Lisa Millbank
Aug 19, 2013, 12:58:13 AM8/19/13
to Mid-valley Nature
On Monday (8/12), I woke up to clouds
and a light drizzle. At around 6:15 AM, some of the more secretive
critters were still out and about, including 4 families of River
Otters (see photo) and 2 American Beavers. One young otter got
separated from the rest of the family, and gave a loud, frantic
chirping call until one of the parents came to the rescue.
There were plenty of awkward fledgling Great Blue Herons, who were sometimes kicked out of prime fishing spots by adults. Young herons were still begging from two nests along the way. Near Bowers Rock State Park, a few miles from Albany, a Pileated Woodpecker's call rang out. Somewhere past Albany, I saw and heard a juvenile Sharp-shinned Hawk begging – one of two Sharpie broods along the river, where I'd expected to hear more young Cooper's Hawks. A Willow Flycatcher sang from a stand of large Pacific Willow, with plenty of Yellow Warblers singing and a Hairy Woodpecker calling nearby. Flocks of Common Mergansers were fishing along the edges of the river.
I watched a juvenile Red-tailed Hawk land next to a Great Blue Heron perched in a tree. Immediately, the heron's neck feathers puffed up like a bottlebrush. It stared at the hawk. When the hawk lunged forward to take flight, the heron jabbed its bill toward the hawk and gave an earsplitting squawk. I thought that might have been that young hawk's first lesson about keeping its distance from herons!
By the late afternoon, I was approaching Luckiamute State Natural Area, at the confluence of the Santiam, Luckiamute and Willamette Rivers. When I got there, I noticed some folks had rolled a cart full of camping stuff into the campground already. While it is technically a boat-in only campground, it may be possible to get permission to camp there without boating to the site. I looked for a secluded spot, and found one at the north end of the open meadow, among some small ash trees. There was a somewhat undercut ledge, from which I could see the broad gravel bars and small rapids at the mouth of the Santiam (see photo).
A Pacific Jumping Mouse bounded through the dry grass near my campsite. As it got dark, at least 4 Common Nighthawks began flying around over the Santiam River, calling and booming. Small bats zipped through the trees, inches from my face. I stayed up long enough to see a few meteors.
Sometime during the night, I awakened to the sound of an animal rustling in the dry grass and a strong, musky skunk-like odor. I’m pretty sure that this was a Red Fox, and the pungent smell was its urine and/or other scent-marking secretions. Last year, in the same area, I heard what I thought was a Red Fox’s “trilled bark” call.
Lisa Millbank
www.neighborhood-naturalist.com
There were plenty of awkward fledgling Great Blue Herons, who were sometimes kicked out of prime fishing spots by adults. Young herons were still begging from two nests along the way. Near Bowers Rock State Park, a few miles from Albany, a Pileated Woodpecker's call rang out. Somewhere past Albany, I saw and heard a juvenile Sharp-shinned Hawk begging – one of two Sharpie broods along the river, where I'd expected to hear more young Cooper's Hawks. A Willow Flycatcher sang from a stand of large Pacific Willow, with plenty of Yellow Warblers singing and a Hairy Woodpecker calling nearby. Flocks of Common Mergansers were fishing along the edges of the river.
I watched a juvenile Red-tailed Hawk land next to a Great Blue Heron perched in a tree. Immediately, the heron's neck feathers puffed up like a bottlebrush. It stared at the hawk. When the hawk lunged forward to take flight, the heron jabbed its bill toward the hawk and gave an earsplitting squawk. I thought that might have been that young hawk's first lesson about keeping its distance from herons!
By the late afternoon, I was approaching Luckiamute State Natural Area, at the confluence of the Santiam, Luckiamute and Willamette Rivers. When I got there, I noticed some folks had rolled a cart full of camping stuff into the campground already. While it is technically a boat-in only campground, it may be possible to get permission to camp there without boating to the site. I looked for a secluded spot, and found one at the north end of the open meadow, among some small ash trees. There was a somewhat undercut ledge, from which I could see the broad gravel bars and small rapids at the mouth of the Santiam (see photo).
A Pacific Jumping Mouse bounded through the dry grass near my campsite. As it got dark, at least 4 Common Nighthawks began flying around over the Santiam River, calling and booming. Small bats zipped through the trees, inches from my face. I stayed up long enough to see a few meteors.
Sometime during the night, I awakened to the sound of an animal rustling in the dry grass and a strong, musky skunk-like odor. I’m pretty sure that this was a Red Fox, and the pungent smell was its urine and/or other scent-marking secretions. Last year, in the same area, I heard what I thought was a Red Fox’s “trilled bark” call.
Lisa Millbank
www.neighborhood-naturalist.com
Reply all
Reply to author
Forward
0 new messages