Public thanks to Tom and Kathy Bell for leading a productive hike on a glorious day in a gem of a place. I've long loved this area, but it's value is enhanced by touring with people so familiar with both its birds and its plants.
While I was happy to encounter some old favorites--red-tail hawk, brown thrasher, yellow warbler, c. yellowthroat, goldfinches, indigo bunting, bluebird, rose-breasted grosbeak, kingbirds; song, field, grasshopper sparrow, among others--the real highlights of the day were the orchard orioles and the pair of Bell's vireos. The SNA is in Cottage Grove; Mapquest gives good directions. The orioles were in a line of trees and some shrubs/bushes at the top of the ridge in the NE section of the SNA. The Bell's vireos were in some shrubs just east of the path that passes a small pond at the bottom of the dunes, on the east side of the train tracks. This is a fragile environment, so it's heartening to see that people are apparently sticking to the walking paths, and no longer doing the ATV thing! Linda Whyte
