East Cascades Bird Alliance

Wednesday Birders
2025-03-19 08:00, 2025-03-12 08:00, 2025-03-05 08:00, 2025-02-26 08:00, 2025-02-19 08:00, 2025-02-12 08:00, 2025-02-05 08:00, 2025-01-29 00:00 (America/Los_Angeles) and 1 more date
Wednesday Birders is a group of birders, birding, but not a traditional field trip with a named leader who always provides a guided field experience. Everyone helps everyone else, shares, learns and enjoys birding together. Usually some advanced birders are there and are so helpful. All are welcomed. We carpool when possible.
As times vary from week to week, please watch COBOL for details and times which are usually announced a few days prior to Wednesday.
All the locations are listed on our website. From the home page, select Birding Resources, and from the drop-down menu, you can choose Birding by County where you will get a list of favorite birding places including directions to the spots and what birds you might hope to find.
One of the goals of Wednesday Birders is to encourage everyone to use the ECBA birding site guides and get used to using those directions and the “how to bird it” tips for the locations. Simply select the county and the hotspots are listed alphabetically.
Important Notes:

Please remember to read COBOL by Tuesday mornings for last minute details and changes to plans in case of adverse weather, road conditions or detours, bird news or better birding opportunities. Watch COBOL for meeting and carpooling times and places or for changes in the plan.
COBOL is Central Oregon Birders Online. It’s free to join.
Remember to dress for the weather. Be prepared with food, sunscreen, etc. and bring a pair of binoculars. Spotting scopes are helpful on many trips.

For questions and for more information contact: ecba@ecbirds.org

Science Pub: Highways & Wildlife Crossings
2025-03-18 17:30 - 19:00
The design and use of wildlife crossing structures along the U.S. Highway 97 corridor will be the topic of Oregon State University – Cascades Science Pub titled “When Worlds Collide: Highways and Wildlife Crossings” on March 18.
Speaker Corrinne Dombrowski is a wildlife biologist and research analyst in the OSU-Cascades Human and Ecosystem and Resilience Lab.

The Science Pub will take place from 5:30 to 7:15 p.m. in the Charles McGrath Family Atrium in Edward J. Ray Hall at OSU-Cascades. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. for networking and dining with the presentation to follow at 6 p.m.
Registration is required and on-campus parking is free.
The event is $22 per person, which includes a light, pub-style, pre-lecture dinner. The no-host bar will offer beer, wine, cider and soft drinks.
To register, visit osucascades.edu/science-pubs. Space is limited to 120 attendees.

Birding by Ear 2025
2025-03-18 08:00 - 09:30, 2025-03-11 08:00 - 09:30
Birding by Ear is a weekly bird walk led by ECBA volunteer Dave Tracy and will take place every Tuesday through early June.
Meet at Sawyer Park at 8 a.m. Bird walks typically last 1-1.5 hours depending on bird activity. We usually cover about 1/1.5 miles over mostly flat trails.
Depending on the weather, be prepared to dress for cool, breezy conditions. Wear suitable clothing and footwear in case of snow and muddy trails.
New as well as seasoned birders are welcome! Learn to identifiy the birds you hear, hone the skills you have, or share your talent with others!
If you haven’t already, please fill out the ECBA General Activity Waiver. Waivers are required for all ECBA trips. The online waiver takes one minute and you only need to fill one out once per year. Thank you!
General Activity Waiver

Birders' Night: Pinyon Jays in Oregon
2025-03-13 19:00 - 21:00 | Worthy Brewing, 495 NE Bellevue Dr, Bend, OR, 97701
Title: Pinyon Jays in Oregon – Life History, Data, and Monitoring Efforts
Presenter: Claudia Funari, Wildlife Biologist for the USFWS, Bend Field Office
This presentation will give information on the life history of pinyon jays in Oregon, review current data on their distribution and habitat use in Central Oregon, and discuss recent and ongoing monitoring efforts, including efforts supported by the ECBA.
The pinyon jay is a blue-gray jay that is an obligate bird of pinyon-juniper and other pine-juniper woodlands. Pinyon jays are highly social and form colonial flocks throughout the year. These tight-knit flocks can be up to a few hundred of individuals. They nest colonially and range widely for food foraging mainly on pine seeds, insects, and juniper berries depending on the season and availability. While their nomadic lifestyle to follow food resources can make their movements unpredictable, they generally have a local home range and will nest in the same general vicinity from year to year. While no pinyon pine species occur within the breeding range of pinyon jay in Oregon, pinyon jays are known to breed in ponderosa pine and juniper woodlands in central Oregon. The pinyon jay has suffered significant long-term population declines rangewide (over 80%) – the steepest declines of any bird in North America (BBS 2023). The pinyon jay is understudied and poorly known in most areas of its range, and Oregon is no exception. Little is known about their populations here and there are no recent published studies on pinyon jays in Oregon. Most of the available information comes from local birders, biologists, and studies from other states (New Mexico and Arizona mainly). Since August 2023, birders and biologists have put in countless hours trying to collect information on these gregarious birds. Due to this effort, we’ve confirmed locations of nesting colonies and multiple colonial flock areas found around Sisters, Redmond, Tumalo, Bend, and Brothers. ECAS has supported this effort though banding efforts and training members on the use of the new citizen science pinyon jay monitoring app from Great Basin Bird Observatory (GBBO). These and other monitoring efforts are giving us a better understanding of populations, habitat use, and life history of this iconic pine-juniper obligate within central Oregon. Join us for Birders Night to learn more about his magnificent bird in Central Oregon.

DLT Nature Nights - Sailing the Sagebrush Sea
2025-03-12 19:00 - 20:30 | Tower Theatre, 835 NW Wall St., Bend, Oregon, 97703
Deschutes Land Trust program
Event registration opens Feb. 12. There will be links to register for the in-person event as well as the livestream event.
Sailing the Sagebrush Sea – https://www.deschuteslandtrust.org/hikes-events/hikes/031224-nn

La Pine HS STEAM night
2025-03-06 16:00 - 18:30
ECBA is looking for volunteers for this event. We will teach students about birds and convey the joy of birding.

ECBA Board Meeting
2025-03-04 16:00 - 17:30, 2025-02-04 16:00 - 18:00
East Cascades Bird Alliance Board of Directors meets monthly, on the first Tuesday.

USGS Saline Lake Ecosystems 2025 Update
2025-02-26 10:00 - 12:00
You are invited to join us on a webinar to hear about our upcoming activities in 2025.

The webinar will be on February 26, 2025 from 10-noon PT/11-1 pm MT. We will share our 2025 data collection plans across all five science pillars: Waterbird Movement, Waterbird Aquatic Food Resources and Habitat, Water Quality, Water Quantity, and Remote Sensing. The presentation will be pre-recorded and followed by a live Q&A with the scientists. The presentation will be made available at the Saline Lake Ecosystems IWAA site after the webinar date.

You must register in advance at this site to attend the webinar.

Videos from our 2024 Fall webinar series can be found here.

DLT Nature Nights - Creating a Home Wildlife Haven
2025-02-24 19:00 - 20:30 | Tower Theatre, 835 NW Wall St., Bend, Oregon, 97703
Deschutes Land Trust program
Event registration opens Jan. 24. There will be links to register for the in-person event as well as the livestream event.
Creating a Home Wildlife Haven – https://www.deschuteslandtrust.org/hikes-events/hikes/022425-nn

Birder's Night: Birding Colombia
2025-02-13 19:00 - 21:00 | Worthy Brewing, 495 NE Bellevue Dr, Bend, OR, 97701
Come join us as we take you along on our journey from Cali, to southern Colombia, to Bogata, and back to a region north of Cali. We will talk about logistics and planning. We will share photos of our destinations, the countryside, and of course, the birds. Presenters are Donna Nordstrom, Jeff Nordstrom, and Chuck Gates.

Antone CBC
2025-01-04
The Antone CBC is now scheduled for January 4th, 2025.

This count straddles the county line between southeast Wheeler County and southwest Grant County. In addition to its eponymous town site of Antone (nowadays population maybe 3), the count circle includes most of the Sheep Rock Unit of John Day Fossil Beds National Monument. The nearest towns with services are Mitchell (along US Hwy 26 in Wheeler County) and Dayville (in Grant County).

Thanks to National Park Service staff, the morning meeting and late afternoon countdown will be in the Thomas Condon Visitor Center in the National Monument, a couple miles north of Hwy 26 on State Hwy 19, just across from Cant Ranch.

Please contact me *well in advance* if you’d like to join. Due to the remoteness of this count, in rugged canyonlands with with no cell phone reception in large areas of the circle, we need to know who’s planning to be there.

Sorry to say, there’s no free lodging for this count, nor are there any designated campgrounds in the circle (Clyde Holliday State Park would be the nearest accessible one but it closes Nov 30th, and Barnhouse Spring Campground is usually snowed in). There are motels in Mitchell (Skyhook Motel) and Mt. Vernon (Blue Mountain Lodge). The Oregon Hotel in Mitchell was closed, last time I went through there in June, but there’s some sort of hostel on the west side of town which might still be an option.

If you are interested in joining, contact Joel Geier ASAP. (541) 745-5821 or clearwaterATpeak.org

Redmond CBC
2025-01-02
Redmond CBC, Tuesday, January 2nd
Contact: Mike Golden, 541-420-5814, gardenbug99@bendbroadband.com.

Prineville CBC
2024-12-31
Prineville CBC – Tuesday, December 31st
This count circle has extensive private land holdings with limited access. Consequently, it’s not the kind of count that requires a huge number of volunteers. However, I generally scramble to find a group of hikers that is willing to hike/snowshoe through a closed forest section near Brennan Palisades. Kim Kathol has been a perennial hiker, but he could use help covering this area. If you are up for a winter hike, please let me know. This section has historically had some of the rarest and most uncommon species of the entire count circle — think Dusky Grouse, Canada Jay, Black-backed Woodpecker, Mountain Quail, etc. The rest of the circle offers a mix of driving and short walks.
Contact: Mark Gonzalez, towhee@bendbroadband.com, 541-410-2659

Madras CBC
2024-12-26
Madras CBC, Thursday, December 26th
Birding Volunteers will meet at Madras Black Bear Diner on Thursday Dec. 26, from 7:00 – 8:30 am for handouts, maps and assignments. Later pick ups may be found in baskets at 225 NE 8th. Street, just two blocks off Hwy 97, up Oak Street. You may also call and make special arrangements. The Black Bear Diner is located in the middle of Madras at 237 SW 4th.
Return to house, 225 NE 8th, if possible, between 3:00 and 3:30 pm. and leave Data collected. Hot coffee and warm soup can be taken on the road, or savored while you warm up and we SHARE OUR FINDINGS with each other at 3:30. (Since we may finish earlier or later, and weather always plays a part, you may drop off counts anytime, on the house porch, use restroom facilities etc.)
Contact: Annette Lange Hildebrand, 503-750-2567, Lange69Annette@gmail.com

Sheldon CBC
2024-12-20
Sheldon (Friday, Dec 20th)

Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge is the sister refuge to Hart Mountain, just across the state line in northern Nevada. Most of the circle is sagebrush, canyons, and rimrock, with no trees in vast areas of the circle. Wintering birds tend to concentrate in the Virgin Valley wetlands which usually have some areas of unfrozen water, due to inflows from geothermal springs. Lodging in the refuge bunkhouse is available for count volunteers. Space in the bunkhouse is limited so please contact the compiler well in advance, if you are interested to join this count.

Note that this CBC is almost full. If you are interested in joining, contact Joel Geier ASAP. (541) 745-5821 or clearwaterATpeak.org

Sunriver CBC
2024-12-20
The Sunriver Nature Center’s 2024 “Christmas” Bird Count will be on December 20th, if you need more information email bird@snco.org.

Birders' Night--Birds & Brew Edition
2024-12-19 17:00 - 19:00 | Broken Top Bottle Shop, 1740 NW Pence Lane, Bend, OR, 97701, United States
We had a great Birders’ Night in November with Steve Kornfeld sharing his experiences planning international birding trips. There was a lot of enthusiasm and energy at the event and the house was full! So, we decided to have a Birds & Brews edition of Birders’ Night in December, a month when we typically don’t have a Birders’ Night. There will be no speaker or presentation. Instead, it will be an opportunity to get together and talk about past trips, trip ideas, or whatever strikes your fancy. Come out to spend some time with Central Oregon birders–connect with old friends and make some new ones!
Please join us at the Broken Top Bottle Shop on Thursday December 19th from 5 to 7pm. The bottle shop is at 1740 NW Pence Lane, Ste. 1, Bend, OR 97701.
We are looking forward to seeing you there!

CANCELLED: Hart Mountain CBC
2024-12-18
Hart Mountain (Wednesday, Dec 18th)

CANCELLED DUE TO EARLIER FIRES.

This count on Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge and neighboring parts of the Warner Valley Wetlands near Plush. This year’s count has a high probability of being canceled due to access restrictions affecting most of the circle, in the aftermath of the 2024 Warner Peak Fire. Check back after Nov 15th for an update on the situation.

Summer Lake CBC
2024-12-17
Summer Lake CBC, Tuesday, December 17th
Please join us for the 37th annual Summer Lake CBC. The plan is to meet at the ODFW Summer Lake Wildlife Headquarters at 8:00am on Tuesday December 17th for sector assignments. The details for the compilation meeting time and place are TBD. Please contact Marty St. Louis if you would like to participate or if you have any questions.
Contact: Marty St. Louis, 541-219-0879, stlouismartin541@gmail.com

Bend CBC
2024-12-14
Bend CBC, Saturday, December 14th
The 57th Bend Christmas Bird Count will be held on the first Saturday of the count period, December 14th. Many of the sector leaders have put together their teams for the count but I do imagine there will be openings available for those who want to participate all day. Feeder watchers are always welcomed, too. If you would like to participate, please drop me a line at tc@empnet.com and let me know. Some routes involve a lot of walking, others are mainly driving. Let me know your preference and your experience level. We will try to accommodate as many as possible. Remember this is a winter activity and requires dressing appropriately for the weather. Every year someone shows up without a warm coat, gloves or shoes that aren’t made for walking on forest trails. Meet at Pioneer Park at 7 am.
Contact: Tom Crabtree, tc@empnet.com.
