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<\/a>A male yellow-headed blackbird tries to attract a mate at Market Lake Wildlife Management Area in Jefferson County. | Bill Schiess, EastIdahoNews.com <\/p>\nWhile watching them, two things happened. First, I glanced up into the tall trees and saw a pair of baby great-horned owlets watching me. Then, amid the blackbird\u2019s racket, I heard the call of a sora. I knew instantly it was going to be a good morning, as long as the predicted wind waited long enough for me to spend just a few hours there before it started howling.<\/p>\n
Because I knew the owlets would not move much, I positioned myself so that I could watch the slough where the sora had called. Then I waited for it to show itself. It took about half an hour to come out, but I got a couple of pictures.<\/p>\n Then I opened my truck door and slammed it shut, which caused the bird to show itself again. Soras are cousins to the Virginia rails, which are usually more visible in area marshes.<\/p>\n After walking down the North Windbreak to get pictures of the owlets, I headed south. I traveled about 200 yards before I flushed out a short-eared owl hidden on the side of the road and watched it chase a female northern harrier that was gathering material to build her nest.<\/p>\n Later, the owl was harassed by the female red-winged blackbird defending her nest. But it finally captured a rodent and delivered it to its mate, which was nesting in a patch of tall marsh grass. Hopefully, I will be able to see them after the kids are hatched.<\/p>\n There were also a few cinnamon teal, northern shovelers, greater scaup, ruddy, redhead and mallard ducks. One hen mallard had seven ducklings with her, while a pair of Canada geese had eight goslings with them. There were also a few shorebirds along the canal \u2014 mostly spotted sandpipers, willets and killdeer.<\/p>\n<\/a>Two great-horned owlets at Market Lake Wildlife Management Area in Jefferson County. | Bill Schiess, EastIdahoNews.com <\/p>\n<\/a>A short-eared owl flies over a dried-up marsh at Market Lake Wildlife Management Area in Jefferson County. | Bill Schiess, EastIdahoNews.com <\/p>\n