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About The nugget. (Sisters, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 5, 2016)
6 Wednesday, October 5, 2016 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon Oregon Wings and Feathers calendars available By helen Schmidling Correspondent The 2017 “Oregon Wings and Feathers” calendar is now available. Sisters wildlife photographer Douglas Beall has assembled this year’s cal- endar from his favorite pho- tographs of birds taken in the past year. Beall photographs and writes the Sisters Country Birds feature for The Nugget. This month, Beall’s photo- graphs of Oregon Waterfowl are featured in the computer room of the Sisters Library. Beall, who lives in Camp Sherman, is donating the proceeds of sales to Turtle Ridge Wildlife Center, a non- profit organization that pro- vides injured and orphaned animals a second chance at life, and promotes the well- being of wildlife through public outreach, education, and involvement. The calen- dar, which sells for $16, is available at Sisters Gallery & Frame Shop and Paulina Springs Books, both on West Hood Avenue in Sisters. They can also be ordered by email- ing bealla49@gmail.com. Choosing a cover image is always difficult. This year, Beall picked his photo- graph of the northern pygmy owl (Glaucidium gnoma). Although this is a fairly com- mon owl, like most owls it’s hard to spot, even though it does hunt its prey during the day. Beall found this pretty little owl north of Sisters near a spring. The owl put on a show for nearly half-an- hour, never spotting Beall or his camera. The cover pho- tograph depicts the owl at nearly life-size. A pair of western mead- owlarks (Sturnella neglecta) is January’s photograph. Oregon schoolchildren picked this as the state bird back in 1927, in a poll spon- sored by the Oregon Audubon Society. Often spotted on fen- ceposts and in grasslands, the western meadowlark has a flute-like song that ends with three descending notes. Look closely at the February bird … it’s a bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocepha- lus), not a golden. The imma- ture bird has dark wings and tail. The hooked bill is dis- tinctive, and in soaring flight the wings are held flat, like a board. The head will eventu- ally turn white, and the bill yellow. A pair of western blue- birds (Sialia Mexicana) tops the March calendar. Beall shot this photograph in a Sisters subdivision. “I just got lucky one day,” Spooktacular Savings $300 t n D isco u For the month of October b er when you start a comprehensive treatment program! Call for a complimentary consultation, fl exible fi nancing & family discounts! Smile by Amidee and The Brace Place! 541-382-0410 he said. This male and female had not yet begun building their nest, and were out hunting insects. Many of Beall’s favorite birds are water- or shore- birds, like the white-faced Ibis (Plegadis chihi) of April. This very tropical-looking bird has a distinctive long down-curved bill. Beall said he once spotted five of these birds in snow in the Rockies — too much snow for them. This shot was taken at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. A common bird, photo- graphed at Camp Sherman, is September’s western tanager (Piranga ludoviciana). It is as bright as fall’s finest col- ors with its orange-red head, golden-yellow body and white-tipped black wings. They tend to hang out in coni- fers, so look for them down near the Metolius. C l a r k ’s n u t c r a c k e r (Nucifraga Columbiana) can remember where it buries nuts in thousands of places, even under the snow. This October bird was hanging out Year-round FIREWOOD SALES — Kindling — — — SISTERS FOREST PRODUCTS 541-410-4509 SistersForestProducts.com photo by douglas beall ace birding photographer douglas Beall has produced a calendar. at Crater Lake when photo- graphed on a typical blue-sky day. Turn to November for male and female hooded mer- gansers (Lophodytes cuculla- tus) on the wing. “I worked for years to get this shot!” Beall exclaimed. He captured this image at Upper Klamath Falls National Wildlife Refuge, and they take their name from the distinctive crest (or hood) — black and white for the males and cinnamon colored for females. The calendar year winds up with a photograph of the varied thrush (Ixoreus nae- vius), a shy, robin-like bird with an ethereal trill that echoes through the forest. This stocky black-and-orange songbird was photographed around Camp Sherman. More avian and wildlife photographs are available at Beall’s website, www.abird singsbecauseithasasong.com. WE’RE NOT JUST TIRES! We do... Alignments, Brakes, Shocks, Struts, CV Joints, U Joints, Axle Shafts, Drivelines, & Tire Siping ...not only cars, but trailers, too! DAVIS TIRE 541-549-1026 Serving Sisters Since 1962 188 W. Sisters Park Dr. In Sisters Industrial Park across from SnoCap Mini Storage CONCEALED CARRY PERMIT CLASSES MULTI-STATE | VALID 35 STATES 410 E. 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