Dusk falls on my second night at Conboy Lake National Wildlife Refuge in Glenwood, WA. Conboy is an important migratory stop and residency for many different kinds of waterfowl, songbirds, and cranes. There is a vibrancy of life here, echoed and heightened by the singing natural reverb, that makes me want to stay and listen forever.
The lake itself is transient, filled by the melting cover of winter snow and the slow draining of the surrounding mountains and hills. This time of year the sound of trickling water is omnipresent as the shallow valley fills with still water. By late July all that will remain is a valley of hay with marshy grasses near the middle.
Several groups of Greater Sandhill Crane take advantage of this time between the melt and the drain to stop, rest, and calve. The young are fledged and ready to fly around the time lake has finally emptied.
A light drizzling rain had settled in over the valley during this recording. It dissipates a bit after 8 minutes, only to come back with strength around 26 minutes.
Some highlights:
A large flock of Canada Geese circles through, first around the 1 minute mark, the next around 7 minutes
Sandhill Cranes crow throughout the piece, but listen to the eruption at 11 minutes to get a full sense of the space.
Wilsen's Snipe are common in the area. You can hear their feathers beating constantly. They also make the constant "peep-peep-peep-peep" call you hear throughout.
Pacific Chorus Frogs don't like rain, apparently, and delayed coming out en masse until well after sunset.
Early on you can hear the last few straggling Meadowlarks and Red-Winged Blackbirds, eager to sing a little bit before bed now that the harder rain has ended.
Other bird life include ducks, an owl, a few swallows, some strangers I don't recognize (I'd be much obliged if anyone can recognize that critter at 13:50 and another at 26:10)and more.
