Buell County Park in Polk County is a hidden gem for the eight birders that attended our field trip on Saturday. It was good to have birders from McMinnville and Dallas join us, and we were not disappointed as it is that time of year when juveniles try to create the mystery of “what’s that bird?”
Our field trip coordinator, Mark Elliott, played at Buell Park as a child and now he leads birdwalks there.

Birds seen included Chipping Sparrows, a flock of Red-breasted Sapsuckers, Western Wood-pewee, Bushtit, Lesser Goldfinch, Downy Woodpecker, Cooper’s Hawk along with a few more species.