Recent Sightings in Rich County

Jul 2008

Kristin Purdy (13 Jul 2008) - I ... went birding in the Monte Cristo Range in Rich and Cache Counties. It was lovely. Wildflowers haven't yet reached their peak and a breeze kept the air comfortable all day. I spent a lot of time watching two species of woodpeckers in Monte Cristo Campground (mile 47.7 of SR-39) or nearby and just absorbed everything else that was moving or singing. Here's the list: ...Williamson's Sapsucker (likely the same pair as last year...)... American Three-toed Woodpecker (nest cavity at campsite #11)... Purple Martin (overhead at Curtis Creek Road, mile 48.8 of SR-39)...

Jun 2008

Kristin Purdy (29 Jun 2008) - Today, I came across another Purple Martin colony south of the Monte Cristo Highway (SR-39) at about milepost 52 in Rich County. I observed long enough to locate four nest cavities and saw males delivering green aspen leaves to the nest holes.

Mark Stackhouse (26 Jun 2008) - This evening, at about 8 pm, I saw a single Vaux's Swift flying over Main Street in Randolph from the city park to over the LDS church, disappearing behind the church to the NW. I was unable to relocate it by the time I got to the other side of the church, but it could easily still be in the area.

Kristin Purdy (14 Jun 2008) - Wasatch Audubon headed north and east this morning to bird Bear River Meadows northeast of Randolph in Rich County ... The highlights: Despite significant snow in deep rotting drifts and no apparent buds yet on the aspens in the Monte Cristo area along SR-39, we saw a good number of mountain species. We stopped at mile 48.8 at the intersection with Curtis Creek Road to look for Purple Martins and saw decent numbers of them, along with a nest cavity along Curtis Creek Road that I've never seen occupied in the past three years. This brings to six the number of Purple Martin nest cavities around that intersection that the birds have occupied this year, 2007 or 2006. We couldn't check all of them for occupancy this year due to the snow...

Dec 2007

Craig Fosdick (9 Dec 2007) - Mo Correll, Ryan O' Donnell, Stephanie Cobbold, and myself took a rather long drive from Logan to Birch Creek Reservoir in hopes of just maybe finding some Rosy-finches still hanging around. Not so much with the Rosy-finches. ..Birds of interest-about 13 or so Rough-legged Hawks, most in the Bear River floodplain along UT 16 between Randolph and Woodruff. Woodruff had 10+ Eurasian-Collared Doves; we saw one more in Randolph. We also had 8+ Bald Eagles (3 in Randolph, 1 in Woodruff, and 4+ along UT 99) and 4 Goldens. A Northern Shrike was also along UT 99 west of Woodruff.

Nov 2007

Adam Kozlowski - Clint Brunson, our Walk-in-Access Coordinator here with the UDWR in Ogden, came upon this great flock of Gray-Crowned Rosy-Finches last Friday (November 30th). They were gathered in the gravel parking lot of Birch Creek Reservoir (west of Woodruff on S.R. 39) in Rich County. Clint estimates there was about 100 birds. The photos clearly show both the Interior/Gray-Crowned and Coastal/Hepburn's/Gray-Cheeked subspecies. Typical of these high latitude/elevation species they are relatively easy to approach closely.

Jul 2007

Kris Purdy (11 Jul 20007) - At least one White-winged Crossbill flew over Monte Cristo Campground in Rich County yesterday morning, calling in flight. Twice in the recent past I believed White-wings were at Monte Cristo, but the call or view was so brief that I couldn't conclusively rule out other species. I chose not to report the possibility. Yesterday's calling sequence was definitive even though I didn't see the bird. What's wrong with those darn crossbills--why can't they perch sedately at eye level for me?!? We need spruces around here that produce cones at a height of 5' 3" instead of at 60 feet. ...It took about an hour of listening to get a sign from a Three-toed Woodpecker; finally one drummed a total of four times and sat patiently on a snag while I watched her. It was the adult female. She was on the slope downhill from campsite 18 on Loop C. That's the first place I saw the male on June 21 and I've seen both adults in that area a couple times. Then she disappeared while I was distracted by an adult male Williamson's Sapsucker feeding a juvenile female.

Jun 2007

Mark Stackhouse (17 Jun 2007) - Some of the folks on our trip to Deseret Ranch asked that I send in a report of what we found...We had all seven Utah swallows, including Purple Martins in two locations, and a great show by both male and female Williamson's Sapsuckers. A Common Tern added to the real "common" species to produce a four-tern day ...The oddest sightings were out-of-season shorebirds, including two Long-billed Dowitchers that continue to be present since at least two weeks ago, and a juvenile (already heading south?) plumaged Stilt Sandpiper.

Mark Stackhouse (5 June 2007) - David Wheeler and I did a "Big Day" on Deseret Ranch on Sunday. ...We found 155 species on the ranch Sunday - 139 species seen and 16 heard only. I had all 155, David missed a calling Downy Woodpecker, so had 154. We set a new record for the ranch, for June in Utah, and new county Big Day records for Rich (106 species) and Morgan (87 species) Counties. We also had 46 species in Summit County (not a record). ...The rarest species seen was a trio of White-rumped Sandpipers at Bluegrass Pond - the second record for that species on the ranch....We saw some uncommon Utah birds, such as Blue-winged Teal, Greater Scaup (quite a few of these), five species of owls, including Northern Pygmy-Owl (see photo), Purple Martin, and Common Grackle (first confirmed nesting on the ranch). See the entire list below.

Dec 2006

Joseph (20 Dec 2006) - Since a year ago when I heard that Eurasian Collared-Doves are immigrating to Utah I have been scoping out every dove that I see in hopes of finding one with a banded neck.  But alas, they have all been mourning doves...Then today I saw a couple doves sitting in a  tree, and just knew that they had to be Eurasians...So I asked the driver to go back. And sure enough, there were a dozen Eurasian Collared-Doves sitting in cottonwood trees, just across the street slightly north west of the motel in Randolf Utah. And then... 20 miles away in Evanston Wyoming,  just north of the County Road bridge over the Bear River were another two dozen Eurasian Collared-Doves.

Jul 2006

Kristin Purdy (9 Jul 2006) - I birded Monte Cristo Range in Rich County today...First, the Williamson's Sapsuckers... found two. I returned to the site of one of last year's nest cavities to determine where the birds were nesting this year... The birds are nesting in the same aspen snag as last year, about 20 feet lower and on the south side of the tree this time instead of on the east side. The nest cavity is about 25 feet high and much more secluded than last year's cavity. The tree's location is .2 miles north of Monte Cristo Campground next to a gravel pit... Finally, the Purple Martins. I found two males perching on the top branch of an aspen near the intersection of SR-39 and Curtis Creek Road, east of the highway and 250-300 yards out in a field...

David Wheeler (6 Jul 2006) - I spent the last two days on Deseret Ranch (private property, alas), west/southwest of Randolph, participating in a multi-state Purple Martin study. We found a couple of active nests. Currently the adults are taking turns flying in and out of the nests, located in Flicker holes in aspens, with food.

May 2006

Glenn B. Barlow (19 May 2006) - Today at about 6:00 a.m. at the Davis County Fairpark seven hardy birders met with Mark Stackhouse, our leader, to enjoy a day or birding Northern Utah. Our goal was to see as many birds as possible, before returning to the Fairpark after nightfall. ... The Bird of the Day was undoubtedly the White-rumped Sandpiper, we all saw at Blue Grass Pond! This was a LIFE BIRD for all, except Mark. Also seen keeping company with the White-rumped, were a Semipalmated, Western, and Least Sandpipers. Fortunately we were able to share these sightings with the birders in Bill Fenimore’s Deseret Ranch tour group. Also present at the pond were Sanderling, Long-billed Dowitcher, Marbled Godwit and a flock of over 300 Red-necked Phalarope. .. At the ponds near the headquarters building we had the pleasure of seeing a Northern Waterthrush and a few warblers. On the north side of the residential area, in the tangle of bushes, we were greeted with a very fortunate sighting of a male American Redstart in bright breeding plumage! ... At the large Neponset Reservoir we saw a pair of Greater Scaup diving near the dam, two Great Egret, and a Bonaparte’s Gull. Unfortunately we were not able to find the Pacific Loon previously seen by Bill Fenimore’s group.

Jul 2005

Brian Currie (9 Jul 2005) - Acting quickly on Kris Purdy's Monte Cristo post I ventured up there today. Sure enough, the Willamson's Sapsuckers were busy feeding there young. ...While in that area I also saw one Clark's Nutcracker and two Purple Martins. Both were fly overs and though the Purple Martins' size was obvious, they were nice enough to call out for me to confirm it.

Kristin Purdy (8 Jul 2005) - I saw three very busy Williamson's Sapsuckers at two separate nest cavities in the Monte Cristo area in Rich County today. I marked both trees and the route to them, so reply for specific directions if you're interested in seeking out these birds.

Aug 2004

John Richards (10 Aug 2004) - On July 31st I was driving along the exit road at Deseret land and Livestock, near the Wahsatch entrance, and spoted a Lark Bunting. first on the road and then flyling with a female along the sagebrush and perching on the sagebrush...

Jul 2004

Carol Davis (5 July 2004) - We went up by Randolph last Friday and were surprised to see not just one lark bunting but many Lark Buntings flying across the highway to the sage to retrieve bundles of insects for the kiddies...

Jun 2004

Pomera M. Fronce (15 June 2004) - I set out to find a Lark Bunting today, but I didn't find one. I found maybe 30. The largest concentration of them was on the Deseret Ranch Road, but I did continue to see them all along the road between Woodruff and Randolph.  More Lark Buntings were at Bear River Meadows along with Black Terns, American Bittern, Eastern Kingbirds, Blue-winged Teal, Common Yellowthroat, Canvasbacks, Franklin's Gulls, Wilson's Phalaropes and Black-crowned Night Heron (to name a few).

Cal Robbins - On June 14 I was birding in southern Rich county. When I arrived at Sage creek junction. on a whim I turned north instead of south towards Randolph. About a mile up this road and just before it turned to gravel I saw a thrasher on a power line. I had seen a couple of sage thrashers earlier and I almost passed this one up. I did stop and examined this bird and it turned out to be a Bendire's Thrasher. I know this is significantly north of it excepted range but this bird was larger than the sage, lacked any distinguishable wing bars and had much less prominent breast markings. I do not have any reservation about the identification. I would like to know if others have marked this bird in northern Utah

Mark Stackhouse (10 June 2004) - Lest you think that the spring migration and the chance for any rarities is over, consider what we found on a private tour of Deseret Ranch today. At the "Big House"," a nice migrant trap in Rich County, we had Red-eyed Vireo, Least Flycatcher (both new for the ranch), Yellow-billed Cuckoo and American Redstart, along with many of the more usual birds....

Mark Stackhouse (9 June 2004) - As far as Lark Buntings are concerned, I have to agree with Bob Bond that this appears to be an exceptional year for them in Utah. I think that Deseret Ranch is the most regular location in Utah for Lark Buntings, and the numbers vary greatly from year to year. Usually there are at least a few, rarely there are none seen in a year, and sometimes they're surprisingly abundant. ...I just did a BBS yesterday, and I'm sure that I counted over 50 Lark Buntings, and the survey I did isn't the one which usually has the most buntings.  ...On last Saturday's day trip to the ranch, one of the trip highlights (aside from the mama bear and her cub that we watched foraging in the aspens) was the large number of Lark Buntings. We probably saw over 100 all through the eastern part of the ranch. ...In addition to all the usual suspects, we saw ...a Horned Grebe in breeding plumage, and a Greater Scaup.

Bob Bond (8 June 2004) - The scattered reports of Lark Buntings may not portray the extent of the incursion this year by this bird. On our breeding bird survey done on wednesday, June 2 at Randolph we counted over 30 individuals and between stops saw an additional 20 to 30 birds. We saw 2 separate flocks of over 20 birds each, mixed males and females. Although we have seen this species on perhaps 30-40 % of our BBS at Randolph over the years, we have never seen anything approaching these numbers.

Dana Green (31 May 2004) - I saw 2 males and a female Lark Buntings yesterday about 2pm between Randolf and Woodruff in Rich Co. To get there go .7 mi south of the Brigerland Tech College. There is a dirt road on the east side of the highway. It has a circular metal mail box and a dead end sign at the entrance. The birds were in the field to the north of this dirt road. This field starts out in Sage and then goes to cultivated field. The birds were mostly along the edge between the types of plants. If you get as far as the scary two track wood bridge, you have gone to far.

Mark Stackhouse (20 May 2004) - ... Yesterday, May 19, I saw female Golden-winged Warbler in the housing complex at Deseret Ranch at about 3:15 to 3:45 pm....

Merrill Webb - On Tuesday March 9th... there were 9 Trumpeter Swans just west of Lake Town near Bear Lake.

   Mark Stackhouse - ... we had a male BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLER on Saturday, May 25, and a LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH on Monday, May 27. The waterthrush is very likely the same bird we first saw (and photographed) two weeks ago, but hadn't seen since.
    Sharon Andrus - (Thu, 23 May 2002)  A singing male Bobolink was seen on the Meadowville-Roundvalley road
just south of Meadowville and about 1/8 to 1/4 mile south of the Rocking W Bar Ranch gate (east side of road).  The Gray Catbird was seen in the willows (east side of road) just south of where the bobolink was seen.

A BROWN THRASHER was seen at a cabin just west of Garden City on Sunday, 11/18 (JB). It was seen about 2.5 miles east of the town.

An immature LITTLE BLUE HERON was reported on Monday, 09/18 from along the Bear River, just southeast of Randolph (PU).

Along Crawford Mountain Road, which heads east from SR 16 about 1.5 miles north of Randolph, several BLACK TERNS and 7 EASTERN KINGBIRDS were seen on Monday, 07/31 (JVM).

July 2000

A BAR-TAILED GODWIT was seen at Deseret Ranch on Friday, 07/07 (MS,DW,m.obs.). Deseret Ranch is private property, and birders can only visit on organized tours. This is the second record of Bar-tailed Godwit in Utah.

A breeding-plumage STILT SANDPIPER was seen in a flooded field southeast of Woodruff on Saturday, 06/03 (DW, m.obs.). To get to where the bird was seen, take SR 16 south from Woodruff for about 2 miles until a canal crosses the road. At this point, take the gravel road to the east. The bird was seen about 100 yds. down this road.

Large numbers of LARK BUNTINGS are being seen in several parts of Utah, especially in Rich County. On a Breeding Bird Survey on Deseret Ranch on Wednesday, 06/14, over 40 Lark Buntings were recorded (MS).

A CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER was seen in the trees by the guest house at Deseret Ranch on Friday, 05/19 (C&MM,MS,DW). Deseret Ranch is private property, and birding is allowed only on organized tours.

A LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH was seen at the ponds by the guest house at Deseret Ranch on Sunday, 05/14 (MS,DW). Efforts to relocated the bird on 05/15 were unsuccessful. Deseret Ranch is private property, and birding is allowed only on organized tours. This is the first record of Louisiana Waterthrush in Utah.

Two LARK BUNTINGS were seen on Tuesday, 05/16, along Crawford Mountain Rd. north of Randolph (BW). Crawford Mountain Rd. goes east from SR 16 about 1.5 miles north of town.

Other good birds seen at Deseret Ranch included a SOLITARY SANDPIPER on Thursday, 05/11, and an EASTERN KINGBIRD and a COMMON GRACKLE on Monday, 05/15 (MS,DW).

August 1999

A male ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK was seen in the top of a tree just south of the Home Town Drive-In in Garden City on Tuesday, 08/10 (JC,KF,MH,MS,KU,JV).

About 20 BOBOLINKS were seen in Round Valley, south of Bear Lake, on Wednesday, 08/04 (SA). The birds were along the road into Round Valley from Laketown, near the "T" intersection.

June 1999

Four male BOBOLINKS were seen in the fields east of the road, just south of the town of Meadowville, on Monday, 06/07 (C&SA). Meadowville is located just SW of Bear Lake.

Seven EASTERN KINGBIRDS were seen in a field about 1/2 mile south of Woodruff on Saturday, 06/05 (MS, m.ob.).

May 1999

A VAUX'S SWIFT was seen at the housing area at Deseret Ranch, south of Woodruff, on Sunday, 05/02 (MS).

Several COMMON GRACKLES were seen coming to a feeder at the Bear Lake Realty office in Garden City on Sunday, 05/02 (MS).