BOUNDARY COUNTY BIG YEAR 2013
Compiled by Jan Rose
Boundary County is the only county in the US with an international border and two different state borders, but its natural wonders far outmatch the anomalies of its political boundaries. The coastal influence is strong here and is obvious to those who have wondered any of the groves of giant cedars. The connection to the Canadian Rockies can also be seen in the vast spruce and fir dominated forests in the higher peaks. Nowhere is this more apparent than along the amazing crags of the Selkirk Crest. These mountains are still home to wilderness-loving animals such as Grizzly Bears and Wolverines and the only herd of Woodland Caribou in the Lower 48 spends most of its year here. This seems to be the best place in the state for specialties like Black Swift and Boreal Chickadee and even White-tailed Ptarmigan have been found here. Boundary doesn’t have the enormous lakes of Bonner and Kootenai Counties (Priest Lake is suspiciously omitted from Boundary’s borders) but McArthur Lake provides some deep water and Kootenai National Wildlife Refuge and Boundary Creek Wildlife Management Area host large numbers of breeding and migrating aquatic species. Please be sure to submit any records Jan Rose BioTech/YCC Crew Leader Kootenai NWR 287 Westside Rd Bonners Ferry, ID 83805 208/267-3888 208/267-5570 Fax
2013 Boundary Cty & Kootenai NWR Bird List Date First Sighted Bird Location Date First Sighted Bird Location LOONS UPLAND GAME BIRDS 3/16 Common Loon Koot. River 3/26 Ring-necked Pheasant KNWR GREBES 1/12 Ruffed Grouse Moyie Springs 2/19,3/16 Pied-billed Grebe Koot.R.,KNWR 6/11 Spruce Grouse Grass Crk 5/30 Eared Grebe Moyie Springs 1/2,1/22 Wild Turkey French Pt, Moyie Springs 2/19,4/14 Horned Grebe Koot.River 1/2 California Quail Blume Hill 2/19,4/22 Red-necked Grebe Koot.R.,BSCWMA Chukar 6/4 Western Grebe KNWR 6/11 Dusky Grouse Grass Crk PELICANS AND CORMORANT CRANES, RAILS AND COOTS 5/18,July American White Pelican KNWR, KNWR 5/6 Sandhill Crane KNWR 4/5 Double-crested Cormorant Koot.R. 4/1 Sora Rail KNWR BITTERNS, HERONS AND EGRETS 5/9 Virginia Rail KNWR White-faced Ibis 3/3 American Coot KNWR 1/2,2/16 Great Blue Heron Koot.River,KNWR SHOREBIRDS American Bittern 3/16,3/29 Killdeer KNWR, BF Fairgrds SWANS, GEESE AND DUCKS 5/24 Blk-necked Stilt KNWR 1/26,2/20 Tundra Swan Koot.R, KNWR 5/8,5/21 American Avocet McArthur Lk, Koot.R. 3/1 Trumpeter Swan KNWR Greater Yellowlegs 1/2,3/1 Canada Goose Koot.R.,KNWR Lesser Yellowlegs 3/1,3/25 Greater WhFronted Goose BSCWMA,McArthur Lk Solitary Sandpiper 5/8 Snow Goose McArthur Lk 5/25 Spotted Sandpiper Koot.R bank./Bonners Ferry 1/2,3/1 Mallard Koot.R.,KNWR 4/4,7/13 Long-billed Curlew KNWR, BSCWMA 4/3 Wood Duck Moyie Springs, KNWR Semipalmated Sandpiper 2/16 Northern Pintail KNWR Western Sandpiper 3/16 Gadwall KNWR Least Sandpiper 3/1 American Wigeon KNWR Pectoral Sandpiper Eurasian Wigeon Misc. Peeps 3/25, 27 Northern Shoveler McArthur Lk, KNWR Long-billed Dowitcher 4/20 Blue-winged Teal KNWR 3/26 Wilson's Snipe KNWR 4/16 Cinnamon Teal KNWR Wilson's Phalarope 3/25.4/16 Green-winged Teal McArthur Lk, KNWR Red-necked Phalarope 1/10 Lesser Scaup KNWR Baird's Sandpiper 2/25,3/16 Ring-necked Duck McArthur Lk.,KNWR Sanderling 3/26 Canvasback KNWR Semipalmated Plover 3/3 Redhead KNWR GULLS AND TERNS 5/21 Harlequin Duck Smith Creek California Gull 1/2,3/2 Common Goldeneye Koot.River,BSCWMA 3/14,3/27 Ring-billed Gull Bonners Ferry, KNWR 4/25 Barrow's Goldeneye Koot.R. Bonaparte's Gull 2/5,3/16 Bufflehead Koot.R.,KNWR Franklin's Gull 1/3 Common Merganser Koot.R. 5/30 Black Tern BSCWMA 3/2 Hooded Merganser KNWR,BSCWMA Forster's Tern Red-breasted Merganser Caspian Tern 4/12 Ruddy Duck BSCWMA Herring Gull PIGEONS AND DOVES RAPTORS 1/2 Rock Dove Bonners Ferry 4/2, 4/6 Turkey Vulture Frch Pt,Naples, Moyie Sprgs 1/3 Eurasian Collared Dove Bonners Ferry 3/16 Northern Harrier KNWR 1/21 Mourning Dove Blume Hill 4/9 Cooper's Hawk Moyie Springs OWLS 1/22,2/24 Sharp-shinned Hawk French Pt, Moyie Springs 2/24,2/18 Great Horned Owl Bonners Ferry, KNWR 4/22,5/12 Northern Goshawk Blume Hill, Spruce Ck, M.Sp 2/14 Northern Pygmy-Owl KNWR 1/2,1/30 Red-tailed Hawk Blume Hill,KNWR Barn Owl Swainson's Hawk Snowy Owl 1/30 Rough-legged Hawk KNWR 2/4 Western Screech Owl Cow Crk area 4/11,4/20 Osprey Bonners Ferry, KNWR 2/2 Barred Owl Moyie Springs 1/24 Golden Eagle Dawson Ridge 2/4 Northern Saw-whet Owl Cow Crk area 1/2 Bald Eagle Koot.River 6/10 Short-eared Owl BSCWMA 2/5 American Kestrel Mt.Hall School area Great Gray Owl 1/2,3/1 Merlin Blume Hill,Moyie Springs 5/31 Flammulated Owl Dawson Ridge 4/25 Peregrine Falcon Koot.R. NIGHTHAWKS AND SWIFTS Prairie Falcon 6/6 Common Nighthawk Moyie Springs 1/30 Harlan's Hawk KNWR 5/23 Vaux's Swift French Pt FLYCATCHERS Black Swift 5/23 Western Wood Peewee French Pt KINGFISHER 5/9 Hammond's Flycatcher Bonners Ferry 1/22,2/25 Belted Kingfisher KNWR,Koot.R,Hall Crk. 5/21 Least Flycatcher KNWR HUMMINGBIRDS 6/15 Willow Flycatcher KNWR 4/24 Calliope Hummingbird Bonners Ferry, KNWR 5/15 Dusky Flycatcher Myrtle Cr Rd/KNWR 4/24 Rufous Hummingbird Moyie Springs, KNWR 6/4 Olive-sided Flycatcher Leonia Knob 4/26 Black-chinned Hummingbird KNWR 6/3 Western Flycatcher Bonners Ferry WOODPECKERS 5/16,21 Eastern Kingbird KNWR, Bonners Ferry 2/2 Pileated Woodpecker Moyie Springs Western Kingbird 1/2 Northern Flicker Moyie Springs Say's Phoebe 1/2,2/10 Hairy Woodpecker French Pt, Moyie Springs SHRIKES AND VIREOS 1/2,2/4 Downy Woodpecker French Pt, Moyie Springs 1/19,2/14 Northern Shrike Bonners Ferry, KNWR 6/11 Three-toed Woodpecker Grass Crk 5/21 Red-eyed Vireo KNWR 6/13 Black-backed Woodpecker Leonia/Katka Rd 5/8 Warbling Vireo Kriest Crk area 9-Apr Red-naped Sapsucker Moyie Springs 5/5 Cassin's Vireo Moyie Springs 20-May Lewis's Woodpecker French Pt CROWS, JAYS AND MAGPIES 17-Jun Red-breasted Sapsucker Feist Cr/Moyie River area 1/2,3/16 Steller's Jay Moyie Sprgs.,KNWR MIMIC THRUSHES AND PIPITS 1/2 Gray Jay Moyie Springs 6/4,6/15 Gray Catbird KNWR, Moyie Springs 1/6 Blue Jay Copeland Northern Mockingbird 1/2,1/30 American Crow Blume Hill,KNWR American Pipit 1/2,3/16 Common Raven Moyie Sprgs.,KNWR STARLINGS AND WAXWINGS 1/2,1/30 Black-billed Magpie Blume Hill,KNWR 3/3,3/18 Bohemian Waxwing Bonners Ferry 4/22 Clark's Nutcracker Blume Hill 6/3,6/15 Cedar Waxwing Moyie Springs,KNWR 1/3 European Starling Bonners Ferry WARBLERS SWALLOWS 4/21,4/24 Yellow-rumped Warbler KNWR, French Pt 3/15 Tree Swallow KNWR 5/27 MacGillivray's Warbler Bonners Ferry 3/16,3/22 Violet-green Swallow Bonners Ferry, KNWR 5/24 Common Yellowthroat KNWR 4/27 N. Rough-winged Swallow French Pt/Koot.R. 5/10 Yellow Warbler KNWR 5/15 Cliff Swallow KNWR 5/1 Townsend's Warbler Boulder Cr area 5/15 Barn Swallow KNWR 5/27 American Redstart Moyie Springs 5/9 Bank Swallow French Pt/Koot.R. Northern Waterthrush CHICKADEES, NUTHATCHES AND ALLIES 4/30 Orange-crowned Warbler Boulder Cr area 6/10 Boreal Chickadee Copper Lake 5/7,5/8 Nashville Warbler Bonners Ferry, KNWR 1/2 Black-capped Chickadee Moyie Springs 7/9 Wilson's Warbler North Crk/Boulder area 1/2,2/4 Mountain Chickadee Blume Hill, Moyie Springs 6/13 Ovenbird Leonia/Katka Rd 1/2 Chestnut-backed Chickadee Moyie Springs TANAGERS, CARDINALS, GROSBEAKS AND ALLIES 1/2 Red-breasted Nuthatch Moyie Springs 5/20 Western Tanager French Pt 1/3,2/24 Pygmy Nuthatch Blume Hill,Bonners Ferry 5/21,6/15 Black-headed Grosbeak Bonners Ferry,KNWR White-breasted Nuthatch 5/13,5/15 Lazuli Bunting French Pt, MyrtleCrk Rd 1/27,28 Brown Creeper Moyie Springs, KNWR SPARROWS AND TOWHEES WRENS, DIPPERS AND KINGLETS 1/2,2/14 Dark-eyed Junco Bonners F.,KNWR,Moyie Sp 3/10 American Dipper KNWR 2/27 Spotted Towhee North Bench 5/8 Ruby-crowned Kinglet Kriest Cr area 1/26 Song Sparrow Riverside Rd 4/30 Golden-crowned Kinglet Boulder Cr area Fox Sparrow 2/1 Pacific Wren(Winter) Dawson Ridge 4/29,7/6 White-crowned Sparrow Moyie Sprgs,Continental Mine 5/2 House Wren Bonners Ferry 6/15 Vesper Sparrow BSCWMA 4/17 Marsh Wren KNWR Savannah Sparrow Canyon Wren 6/3 Lincoln's Sparrow KNWR 6/3 Rock Wren Moyie Springs 5/8,5/19 Chipping Sparrow Kriest Cr,French Pt THRUSHES American Tree Sparrow 2/20 American Robin Bonners Ferry Snow Bunting 3/13,3/20 Varied Thrush KNWR,Moyie Sprgs BLACKBIRDS, ORIOLES AND ALLIES 5/22 Swainson's Thrush Moyie Springs 2/14 Red-winged Blackbird KNWR 6/10 Hermit Thrush Grass Crk 4/5 Yellow-headed Blackbird KNWR 6/10 Veery KNWR 3/10 Brewer's Blackbird Bonners Ferry 3/20,24 Mountain Bluebird Myrtle Crk Rd/KNWR 3/16 Western Meadowlark KNWR 3/15,4/2 Western Bluebird Bonners Ferry, KNWR 6/19 Bullock's Oriole BSCWMA 2/27 Townsend's Solitaire Blume Hill 5/6 Brown-headed Cowbird Bonners Ferry Bobolink Bald Eagle Pair added to & have been on the nest end of Feb/early March. 2 eggs laid in the nest by March 1st. By end of April, obvious that eggs failed to hatch. FINCHES 1/3,2/27 House Finch French Pt,Copeland 4/28 Cassin's Finch Moyie Springs 3/27 2 different Red-tailed Hawk nests on KNWR, both setting 1/2,2/12 Pine Siskin Blume Hill,Moyie Springs 1/3,4/22 American Goldfinch French Pt,KNWR White-winged Crossbill 5/18 Common Loon Pair Bonner Lake 2/27,4/28 Red Crossbill Bonners Ferry, Moyie Sprgs 6/4 Common Loon McArthur Lake 1/27 Common Redpoll Moyie Springs 7/12 Common Loon juvenile Myrtle Crk/KNWR 1/30 Pine Grosbeak Bonners Ferry 20-Jul Common Loon juvenile Myrtle Crk/KNWR 1/6,1/21 Evening Grosbeak Blume Hill, Moyie Springs 1/3 House Sparrow Bonners Ferry Gray-crowned Rosy Finch www.idahobirds.net select County Big Yr List Updated July 20, 2013