All photos copyright John Rakestraw unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved.
Category Archives: behavior
Random Images
Here are some random birds from recent weeks. This Great Blue Heron was wading deep at Commonwealth Lake. The white face and yellow eye really popped, giving her a creepy look. A Black-capped Chickadee was excavating a cavity in a … Continue reading
Force Lake
Force Lake, a small lake at the edge of a golf course in north Portland, is not a terribly attractive site, but it can be quite birdy at times. On this visit, a large flock of Golden-crowned Sparrows was feeding … Continue reading
Into the Woods
We left Portland for ten days to escape the fireworks which terrify our dogs. We stayed on a farm in the Coast Range in Benton County. The birds where we stayed were typical Coast Range birds which stayed high in … Continue reading
Jackson Bottom
Spring migration hasn’t really revved up yet, but a recent warm sunny day drew me out to Jackson Bottom Wetlands. I was as interested in herping as I was birding, and some cooperative herps easily filled the void created by … Continue reading
Virginia Rail
As many people are jumping on the “bird local” bandwagon, little Commonwealth Lake Park in Beaverton has been getting a lot of birding attention and producing an increasing array of interesting species. One of the stars of this winter is … Continue reading
Posted in behavior, conservation issues, OR Birding Sites
Tagged Commonwealth Lake Park, Virginia Rail
2 Comments
Tualatin River NWR
I visited Tualatin River NWR last week. The weather has been very hot and dry, so I started early in the morning. There was a surprisingly large diversity of species for mid-summer. I ended the trip with 55 species. I … Continue reading
Shorebirds on the rocks
A recent trip to the coast on a sunny and windy day resulted in these images of shorebirds using rocky habitats. Two of these species are usually found on rocks, but the other two are not. I wonder if the … Continue reading
Random Images
Life and inclement weather have conspired against me of late, so my outings have been far too few. But here are some photos from recent weeks. A trip to Broughton Beach provided nice looks at a small flock of Horned … Continue reading
Posted in behavior
Tagged Anna's Hummingbird, Bushtit, Eurasian Wigeon, Horned Lark, Pied-billed Grebe, Red-breasted Nuthatch, vegan suet
Leave a comment
Fernhill Wetlands and Jackson Bottom
I made a quick trek around Washington County’s two prominent wetlands. There was nothing unusual to report, but there is plenty of bird activity at these sites this time of year. Green Heron, lurking Great Blue Heron, not lurking Juvenile … Continue reading