Notes on the occurrence of water and shore birds in the Lochsa region of Idaho

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Fish Lake, in the Selway Forest, lies near the headwaters of the Lochsa River, some twenty-five miles east of the main crest of the Bitterroot Range. At an altitude of 5800 feet, and comprising about 75 acres, it is completely surrounded by rugged mountain ranges. For almost the entire width of the state, east and west, and for at least a hundred miles north and south there are no large, open bodies of water where one would naturally look for waterfowl or waders. The Lochsa River is cut through precipitous cañon walls and in spring and fall is a veritable mountain torrent, while of the numerous alpine lakes, few are more than small ponds, and all are partly hidden by overtowering crags or dense spruce forests. The records here given are from my notes covering the seasons 1923 to 1929 during which I spent the far greater portion of my time in the mountains of the Lochsa country. Referring to the Lochsa drainage as a whole, of the thirty-one species listed, but two, the American Merganser and the Spotted Sandpiper, can be called common breeders. Three others, the Eared Grebe, Green-winged Teal and Mallard, are common enough as migrants to be expected each year, while a total of four others might be termed irregularly common migrants though they are sometimes totally absent. These are the Loon, Baldpate, Lesser Scaup and Western Solitary Sandpiper. As for the other twenty-two species, they are all of unusual enough occurrence to mark as red-letter days those on which they are seen, and thus they contribute to the interest of a region which is naturally rich in land bird-life.

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Reference Code: A32HAN01IDUS

Full Citation; Hand, R. L. 1932. Notes on the occurrence of water and shore birds in the Lochsa region of Idaho. Condor 34(1): 23- 25.

Location: ANIMAL EF: BIRDS