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Bird of the Month The Dark-eyed Junco is a type of sparrow with a pink bill and a white-edged tail. Six subspecies are easily recognizable. The "Oregon" subspecies of the western U.S. (including southern California) sports a dark hood and warm brown back and flanks. Males sing a musical trill that lasts up to two seconds. Dark-eyed Juncos breed in coniferous or mixed forests across most of Canada, U.S. mountain west, and the Appalachian Mountains. They winter in a wide range of habitats from woodlands and fields to parks and backyards in western and southern Canada, the entire lower 48 states, and northern Mexico. In southern California, "Oregon" Dark-eyed Juncos breed in our local mountains and winter throughout the area. Thus, our first-of-season Dark-eyed Juncos were seen on Dec. 4 in a small flock on upper Trail C (Veterans Park), where they have been seen most often in past years (with all of the "Oregon" subspecies). A single "slate-colored" Dark-eyed Junco was at my feeder the following day, a subspecies first record for Four Seasons! During our Jan. 7 bird walk, Kara Jakse and Kathy Burgis spotted a small flock of Dark-eyed Juncos on upper Trail C and Barbara Wasco saw four at her feeder. Birding CLUB It has been a good winter for Dark-eyed Juncos, starting with our first-of-season sighting on Dec. 4. On Dec. 24, Tina Canon spotted our first-of-season Western Bluebirds on Goodrich Rock. During our morning bird walk on Jan. 7, we saw a nice variety of winter birds and we finished the morning with 20 species. The highlight was great looks at an acrobatic Nuttall's Woodpecker. Following the regular bird walk, most of us took a "mini-field trip" to The Summit then to bird upper Trail C around Veterans Park, specifically to search for Dark-eyed Juncos, where I had seen them a few days prior and where they had been seen in prior years. Most of us gave up after about 15 minutes, but Kara Jakse and Kathy Burgis persevered and finally spotted three Dark-eyed Juncos and also spotted a first-of-season White-breasted Nuthatch! Later in the day, Bill and Genie Cooper, Gerrie Karczynski, Barbara Wasco, and I spotted six additional species, bringing the day's total to 28. Highlights included an appearance of the White-throated Sparrow that has visited my feeder sporadically since Nov. 10 and Barbara Wasco's sighting of more Dark-eyed Juncos at her feeder (our Bird of the Month). ~ Steve Edelman, steve.h.edelman@gmail.com FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | FEBRUARY 2023 39 Above: The Birding Club stops for a photo-op on Trail A on Jan. 7 Left: An acrobatic Nuttall's Woodpecker. The red crown indicates that this is a male. Photo by Gerrie Karczynski during our Jan. 7 bird walk "Oregon" Dark-eyed Junco. Photo by Mia McPherson

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