Important Lessons from Birds: Florence, Oregon… Pacific Coast Series #19

/ Curt Mekemson
A great blue heron perched behind our camp in Florence, Oregon appeared to have lost its neck. Had it stuck it out too far?

Peggy and I have visited Florence, Oregon a number of times over the years. It was a short 2 1/2 hour drive from our home above the Upper Applegate River in Southern Oregon. We spent the majority of our visits camped at the Siuslaw Marina. The prices are reasonable, the people friendly, and Old Town, with its good restaurants and fun shops, is within easy walking distance. But there’s more…

The Oregon Dunes are just south of the town. The Devil’s Churn, Thor’s Well, the Sea Lion Caves, and the Heceta Head Lighthouse are just a few miles north. There are even some good kayaking opportunities nearby. In other words, there was alway plenty to keep us amused doing things we love to do.

One thing about our stays at the Marina— we had never been able to obtain a site on the Siuslaw River. They fill up fast. People sign up for them months in advance. This time, because Peggy and I were staying for two weeks, I made our reservations early and we scored a spot on the river. Most of the photos today are taken from our ‘backyard.’ We will be featuring five birds: Great blue herons will provide lessons on preening, a great white egret will share its secrets on fishing, a not so impeccable seagull will teach how to get down and dirty, Canada geese will demonstrate the best way to keep track of kids, and, finally, cormorants will hold a large meeting doing who knows what.

An evening view from our backyard on the Siuslaw River. The old pylons out in the river speak to how busy it was in the past. Once, they held up various structures; now have become a primary perching place for birds.
Water birds put a lot of effort into preening. It’s their way of preparing for a busy day of work. This great blue Heron demonstrates just how much effort. Check out its neck. Linda Blair from the 1973 movie, The Exorcist, would not have been able to manage this trick.
It’s important to dress appropriately for whatever activity you have planned for the day. The heron here plans on spending a lot of time in the water so he is waterproofing his feathers. He stores oil in his uropygial gland at the base of his tail feathers for the job. “His what?” you ask. At least I did. So I looked it up and learned it’s a bilobed sebaceous gland. Consider yourself informed.
Having gathered oil, in his beak, the heron proceeds to oil his feathers. Preening involves more, however. Cleaning, positioning and interlocking feathers are all involved. Parasites are kept under control as well.
In terms of parasites, sometimes a good scratch is in order. (It was getting dark when I took this photo and a couple of the others, so clarity was a little fuzzy.)
Having finished preening, “Who’s the pretty bird?”
Next up, a great egret demonstrates how to catch and eat a fish.
First, you have to get off your perch.
You will need to get wet. Step off into the water.
You may have to stick your neck out, take a chance.
Focus is critical.
There will come a moment when it is time to strike. A second’s hesitancy may cost dinner. (I hesitated for a second and missed the photo.)
Success. Next up, you eat what you catch. This isn’t catch and release. Good news, you don’t have to clean or cook the fish. This is sushi at its wiggly rawest.
You do have to position the fish so you can swallow it. It is unlikely someone will be around to perform a Heimlich maneuver.
Down the hatch. Gulp.
One of the more serene photos of California gulls we have ever taken. Notice how clean it is, how pristine. That is about to change.
Our serene friend caught a crab on the shore just behind our trailer.
Pieces of the crab were broken off to eat.
It was down and dirty work!
There is no doubt that Canada Geese have perfected the art of taking their kids from place to place. Peggy caught the young geese traveling in a neat line between their mother and father.
While the babies are easy to keep in line, the teenagers require a few more directions. Grin. Check out the extended necks of the adults. It isn’t hard to imagine a bit of scolding.
Maybe mom and dad were urging them to do some independent foraging.
One of the youngsters found some tasty seaweed that a sibling was eager to share. I’m pretty sure that the message was “Go get your own.”
Peggy noticed a gathering of cormorants up the river from our backyard and we tried to figure out what they were up to. It seemed that the adults were up on the pylons while the younger and smaller cormorants were swimming beneath them.
Soon a large flock of cormorants had gathered. Again, the majority of the flock in the water were immature birds based on their light color. I thought the dead tree in the background made a nice backdrop.

I learned an interesting fact about cormorant intelligence when I was trying to figure out why they were gathering. The can count to seven: “Chinese cormorants on the Li River are allowed to keep every eighth fish they catch. Otherwise they “stubbornly refuse to move again until their neck ring is loosened.”

And now for a few miscellaneous photos.

This great blue heron was fishing.
We liked the way it was outlined by an old wooden structure.
Most days a lone seal would rest on what may have been a cross beam to a pier at one time.
Looking west from our campsite, we noticed this interesting cloud formation one evening. Peggy identified it as a flock of flying dragons.
Another evening we watched a sunset out to the west, which will wrap up today’s post. Next we will take you out to the Devil’s Churn near Yachats, Oregon where the pounding ocean turns foam into a thick, brown froth with the texture of whipped cream.

10 thoughts on “Important Lessons from Birds: Florence, Oregon… Pacific Coast Series #19”

  1. Hehe.. I love your line “this is not a catch and release”😍

    I saw the other evening an osprey with a fish in its claws, but by the time I saw it, it was too late for any picture. So interesting to watch them catching their dinner, they really have to have special skills!

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  2. I had a great childhood on the east coast, but I sure feel like I missed something by not seeing the north west. Your pictures always help to correct that.

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  3. And Americans think the porous southern border of the United States is a bit of a problem. That is nothing compared to the massive infiltration of your country by Canada Geese.

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  7. I have always liked visiting Florence. For some reason, it felt so different from some of the other towns along the coast! I loved the seal having a nap…reminded me of myself after lunch!

    I am taking off on my own journey tomorrow with the daughter and granddaughter to Marrowstone Island. We return on Friday but it will be a very different trip for us than the usual that we have done each year and that is down to Long Beach, Wa…just a favorite.

    Take care and maybe even see you soon?

    Wendy

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  8. Flying White Dragons! I love that shot, and Peggy’s imagination. What a wonderful collection of birds, Curt. I’m pleased to hear you had a spot on the river with all this amazingness going on so close to you.

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