By Russ Koppendrayer
May saw the spring neotropical migrants continue to arrive and were enjoyed by many birders. For us in Cowlitz County the rarest to be seen were a couple of Lark Sparrows at the sediment retention dam on the Toutle River. For some reason this large sparrow with a striking appearance was seen in unusually large numbers in western Washington this spring. In our state they seem to prefer rocky slopes with some short grass east of the Cascade Mountains for breeding. Only the second record for the county consisted of the two individuals together foraging for seeds in the short grass on top of the sediment retention structure.
Dusky Flycatchers which appear as a code 5 species in the attached list were seen in two locations near Coldwater Lake in May. Code 5 means less than five records for the county and should definitely have been updated to code 4 last year. At any rate this species, formerly difficult to find in Cowlitz County, may have nested in the brushy slopes of the St. Helens blowdown area last summer and may be trying to do the same this year. Not all that surprising as they have bred nearby in similar habitat upslope around the mountain in Skamania County.
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