Greater Sagegrouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) gather at leks in the spring to compete for and select mates. Males choose a territory within the lek and create loud, popping sounds as they resplendently fan their tail feathers, puff, and stalk about trying to impress the females. Most of the action takes place at dawn ± 30 minutes.

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Three Grey Kangaroos pause from their browsing to contemplate yet another photographer. Coming from North America, it seemed to me that these animals are similar to deer in terms of the ecological niche they fill.

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I have to admit, I never expected to see one of these baffling animals in the wild. They are insectivores, but apparently, have fairly inefficient digestive systems so they consume vast quantities of food on a daily basis.

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The Coho salmon were spawning thickly in Eagle Creek this past week, and with spawning comes dying and a recycling of ocean-derived nutrients into the forest. Eagle Creek is a tributary of the Columbia River, but most of its water gets diverted to hatcheries, and I suspect most of the spawning salmon we witnessed were hatchery fish. Regardless, the American Dippers were having a field day with the plethora of eggs the salmon left strewn about the gravelly stream bed.

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Though the water was only inches deep, it swirled with the motion of hundreds of Coho salmon, all ridiculously oversized for such a small body of water.

Tags:   salmon Coho Eagle Creek Columbia River Gorge Oregon autumn

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