Early Sooty Fox Sparrow north of Corvallis

[Joel Geier]

This morning I was surprised to see a Sooty Fox Sparrow sitting up in a large willow shrub in our back yard. It was one of the very dark ones, so it might be a short-distance migrant from coastal British Columbia, later to be leapfrogged by some of the more northerly subspecies in this complex.

Overall it was a good morning for sparrows, with a dozen or so Chipping Sparrows, at least 10 Vesper Sparrows, and one Savannah Sparrow still at a nearby monitoring site, along with the usual white-crowns, juncos, and towhees.

I saw a female-plumaged (maybe immature) Lazuli Bunting there on August 30th but didn't see one today.

I've been hearing shotguns at E.E. Wilson Wildlife Area, so it must be September. Good idea to wear orange if you go out there, from now through the end of February.

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Joel Geier

Tampico Ridge north of Corvallis