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Sunday, July 1, 2018

 

A new month.  It was drizzly and gloomy this morning, but I headed up to Edmonds to look for July birds.  Before I left home I got American Crow and Dark-eyed Junco.  I'm not going to list every species I saw today, but I'll mention some of the better ones.  In addition to the expected Glaucous-winged Gulls and Heermann's Gulls, I saw a group of four California Gulls, which are harder to see.  From Sunset Avenue, I was pleased to see a pair of Marbled Murrelets and a small group of 4 or 5 Rhinoceros Auklets, as well as the expected Pigeon Guillemots.  There was one Pelagic Cormorant, too, which was nice.  I'll have to go back to try for Double-crested Cormorant and Surf Scoter.

 

I saw nothing at all from Ocean Avenue, but at the Edmond's Marsh I got some birds.  There were Marsh Wrens singing all over the place, but I never got a peek at one, so that one is on my list as a "heard only".  I also heard a couple of Virginia Rails call, in response to playback.  There were Violet-green and Barn Swallows swooping around.  In addition to the usual Killdeer, I spotted a group of sandpipers.  I counted nine Western Sandpipers and one Least Sandpiper.  "Fall" migration is in swing, I guess.

 

A group of Bushtits flew through and perched long enough for me to identify them.  A Common Yellowthroat was singing away, and I managed to get a couple of pictures of him.

 

 

A Black-capped Chickadee came along and was feeding on a cattail.

 

 

Those were the notable birds in Edmonds.  Back at home I picked up House Finch, House Sparrow, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, and Anna's Hummingbird.

 

It was drizzly most of the morning, with some heavier periods and a couple of dry spells.  It wasn't good birding weather at all, and the light was poor due to the heavy cloud cover.  I still managed to pick up 30 species for July, though.  23 of those were "repeaters".  As of the end of June, I had seen 73 species in each month of the year, and today I saw 23 of those 73 species.  My plan is to try to maximize that number for the entire year.  Each month some species will fall off the list because I didn’t see them that month, and I want to see how many are left at the end of the year.  My total for the year remains at 229 species.

 

 

Monday, July 2, 2018

 

The weather was better today, although we had had 0.04 inches of rain here before I got up.  I had a few sprinkles during the morning, too, but by the afternoon it was mostly sunny.

 

First I went down to Juanita Beach Park to see if the American Coots were still around.  At first I didn’t see them, but then I spotted them, within 20 feet of where they have been for the last couple of months.  I guess these two decided to stick around for the summer, rather than go off with the rest of the coots, to wherever they go in the summer.  Birds of Washington says they are resident here, but I haven't seen any coots anywhere for the last couple of months, except these two at Juanita Beach Park.  In the winter they are quite common and are on almost every body of water.  There are usually hundreds of them on Juanita Bay in the winter months, but they go somewhere in the summer.  There was a pair of Brown-headed Cowbirds there, too, so that one went onto my July list.  Both the coots and the cowbirds were repeaters, and now I have seen them in every month this year so far.  Here's a picture of one of the American Coots.

 

Next I drove over to the Shoreline nest site, hoping to add Merlin to my July list.  I didn't see anything at first, and the nest was empty, but eventually I spotted one of the fledglings sitting on a branch in a tree near the nest tree.

 

I stuck around for 15 or 20 minutes, hoping there would be some feeding, but I heard nothing and saw nothing else.  I drove around to the east side of the tree and got a picture in better light, of the same juvenile Merlin.  It was farther away, though.

 

From there I went on to Richmond Beach Saltwater Park, looking (and listening) for California Quail.  This time I wasn't lucky, though, and I never saw or heard any quail.  I did add Song Sparrow and Northern Flicker to my July list, though.  Both were repeaters.

 

Next I went to Kayu Kayu Ac Park, but a train was stopped on the tracks between the park and the water, so I couldn't get a good view of the water.  An Osprey flew over, though, and I spotted a Bald Eagle in the distance, so those two went on to my July list.  The eagle was a repeater.

 

I ended up getting 7 species for July today, to bring July's total to 37 species.  Five of the species today were repeaters, so now I have 28 species that I have seen in each month this year.

 

 

Tuesday, July 3, 2018

 

This morning I went to Marymoor Park.  My first stop was actually beyond the park, at the northeast corner of Lake Sammamish.  I wanted to see if the Purple Martins were still at their nests there, and they were.  That one went onto my July list.  As it turned out, I saw more Purple Martins later in the morning, with pictures.

 

After that I went into the park itself and parked near the viewing mound north of the East Meadow.  I was looking specifically for Lazuli Bunting, having read reports of them in that area.  I played the song and saw some birds, but they kept flying off before I could get a good look.  Eventually I did see a male Lazuli Bunting, and I got some pictures.

 

 

 

I finally got a good look at one of the brown birds that kept flying around, and it turned out to be a juvenile Lazuli Bunting.  Here is a picture from the back.  The breast was streaked, which is how I knew it was a recently fledged juvenile, rather than a female.

 

I was glad to see that they had successfully bred there.  Lazuli Bunting is uncommon on the west side of the mountains, but there have been one or two of them in that particular spot for at least the last three years.  This is the first time I have seen a juvenile, though.

 

A male American Goldfinch flew off as I walked down from the viewing mound.  That was another July bird.  I walked south along the west edge of the East Meadow.  I saw the usual Savannah Sparrows, another one for my July list.  Here is a picture of a Savannah Sparrow.

 

There were Tree Swallows flying around overhead, so that one went onto my list.  There were four Cedar Waxwings in a dead tree, so that one went onto my list, too.  I can't resist taking pictures of Cedar Waxwings.  These were kind of distant, but here is one of them, anyway.

 

A largish bird flew into a tree, and it was my first Band-tailed Pigeon of July.  It was a repeater, too.

 

They are usually in groups, and at least three more of them flew in shortly afterwards.

 

Farther down the path toward the lake, I played the song of Brown Creeper because I had seen one there a couple of months ago.  Sure enough, one flew in and I got a couple of pictures.

 

 

Brown Creeper was another repeater, my second of the day.

 

I heard Swainson's Thrushes singing on both sides of the path, so that one went onto my July list.  At the end of the path there is a boardwalk and it ends with a short extension out into Lake Sammamish.  There are some nesting gourds there, and earlier in the year there were swallows in them.  Swallows nest early, though, and Purple Martins (which are members of the swallow family) nest later.  There are Purple Martins nesting in the gourds now.  Here is a male Purple Martin.

 

Here is a Purple Martin at one of the nest gourds.

 

Here is a female Purple Martin.

 

Here is a view of Lake Sammamish at that point.  You can see the four nest gourds off the end of the boardwalk.

 

Here is a picture of a female House Finch in the sun.

 

I heard a splashing sound nearby, and it turned out to be a river otter that had caught a bullfrog.  It sat there right in front of me and chewed that frog until it was all down.  Here are some pictures of the river otter with its frog.

 

 

 

 

I headed back to the car after that excitement, and on the way I got this picture of a female Northern Flicker, a species that I had already counted this month.

 

That was it for my birding today, but this afternoon while I was relaxing on the front porch, after mowing part of the lawn, I picked up Spotted Towhee for July, at our feeder.  That was my third repeater of the day.  I ended up adding 10 species to July, to bring it to 47.  I got three repeaters, to bring that total to 31.

 

 

Wednesday, July 4, 2018

 

Before I left home this morning, I picked up Steller's Jay for my July list.  That was a repeater.

 

My first actual birding stop was the Redmond Retention Ponds.  There had been a report of Spotted Sandpiper chicks there, and I had never seen Spotted Sandpiper chicks before.  What's more, I needed Spotted Sandpiper for July.

 

It didn't take long to find the two chicks and an adult.  I couldn't get very close for pictures, but here are some distant pictures of the Spotted Sandpiper chicks.

 

 

 

There were only two of them, as far as I could tell.  Here's a picture of one of the chicks and an adult Spotted Sandpiper.

 

I think the adult was all puffed up like that because the other chick was under it, because both chicks had been in the area a minute before.

 

As I left I saw two more adult Spotted Sandpipers on the larger pond.  They posed for me, so here they are.

 

 

From there I drove over into the Snoqualmie River Valley.  I added Gadwall, a repeater, to my July list at the pond at Chinook Bend.  I went on to the Stillwater access to the Snoqualmie Valley Wildlife Area and walked down the trail.  It was very quiet, with very little bird activity.  I did pick up Belted Kingfisher, another repeater I was glad to get.  There was a single female Wood Duck in one of the ponds, and that was another repeater.  On my way back to the car, I saw a flycatcher and moved in to get pictures.  As I have mentioned many times, flycatcher identification is very tough, but this one cooperated and called repeatedly.  Best of all, it was a call I know - that of the Willow Flycatcher, an excellent July bird.  Here are two views of the Willow Flycatcher I saw today.

 

 

I walked north on the trail to the larger pond, and I got more pictures.  Here is a Great Blue Heron intent on catching something.

 

There was also another female Wood Duck, and this one had five ducklings with her.  Here is the female Wood Duck with two of her ducklings.

 

In this next picture you can see four of the five ducklings.

 

A cedar Waxwing flew in and insisted I take its picture, so I did so.

 

That was it for me today, although when I was driving toward home, going across the valley, I spotted a Turkey Vulture for my July list.  Later, while sitting on our porch after eating my lunch, a Bewick's Wren flew in for a brief visit, and that was another repeater for my lists.

 

I ended up adding 9 species to my July list today, to bring it to 56.  The 6 repeaters I got today gives me 37 species now that I have seen in each month this year.

 

 

Thursday, July 5, 2018

 

Today I had an early lunch appointment and I got a late start, but I visited a park I hadn't ever been to before, Crestwood Park in Kirkland.  I had seen a woman yesterday who told me that there were Barred Owls in that park, and that there were three recently fledged juveniles, along with their parents.  I found my way to the park and walked around in the woods.  It was really quiet, and all I saw were a couple of robins.  I gave that up and moved on to the Yarrow Bay Wetlands path, which runs between the wetlands and some condos.  There are some bird feeders along the path, and that was my destination.

 

There isn't really any way to watch the feeders in the summer, without scaring off the birds.  In the winter there aren't as many leaves and you can get a look at the feeders from far enough away that the birds will come to the feeders.  I went up on the grass of a neighboring condo today, and stood very still.  Some birds came to the feeders, and some merely approached and landed in the nearby trees.

 

I was able to see a female Black-headed Grosbeak for my July list, and then a male.  They never came to a feeder, but they were nearby for a short while, and then flew away.

 

A male Downy Woodpecker flew in and was in a tree near the feeders for a while  That was a July bird and a repeater.  Eventually it did go to a suet feeder, and then went back up into a tree.  I took some pictures, and here are four of them.

 

 

I was close enough that you can really see the feather detail, which I like.

 

 

There were a number of European Starlings around.  I didn't need that one, but I got a couple of pictures of recently fledged, juvenile birds.  They look somewhat different from the adults.

 

 

There were also a lot of Red-winged Blackbirds around.  There were a few males, but most were either females or juveniles, which look very much alike.  Here's a picture of a bunch of juvenile and/or female Red-winged Blackbirds that were brave enough to go to the feeding table while I watched.

 

A couple of Black-capped Chickadees came to the feeders, too, and I got this picture of one of them.

 

A female Northern Flicker came in briefly, but it didn’t seem to like my presence and soon left.

 

There were birds on the ground, too, eating the seeds that had fallen from the feeders.  A Spotted Towhee showed up briefly, and there were also Song Sparrows and Dark-eyed Juncos.  Here is a picture of a juvenile Dark-eyed Junco that was hopping at the time.

 

Here is that same bird from the side.  It seems to be missing several tail feathers.

 

Of all those birds, the only ones I needed for July were Black-headed Grosbeak and Downy Woodpecker.

 

After lunch with my friend, Chris, we went over to Phantom Lake.  It was very quiet when we got there, and it was pretty hot.  As it turned out, though, we saw quite a bit of bird action today.  A Sharp-shinned Hawk flew through, and we got great looks at that July bird.  We saw several other species, but none I needed.  Chris heard a Purple Finch that was singing in the distance, though, and then I was able to hear it and identify it, too, so that one went onto my July list as a "heard only" species.

 

I ended up adding 4 species to July today, to bring me to 60 species for the month.  One was a repeater, to give me 38 repeaters now.

 

I've been somewhat distracted from my birding lately because I have been researching and looking at new cars.  I like the Subaru Ascent, which is a brand new model, sort of a super-sized Forester, similar in size to my Honda Pilot.  I have an appointment tomorrow morning to sign papers for a factory order for one, so I might not get out birding at all tomorrow.

 

 

Saturday, July 7, 2018

 

I didn't go out birding yesterday, and I didn't buy a new car, either.  Today I went over to the Snoqualmie River Valley to see what I could find.  On the way down the west side of the valley, I spotted a Pied-billed Grebe in a pond, which was a July bird and a repeater.  Going across the valley there were some swallows on a wire and flying around.  They turned out to be Violet-green Swallows, a species I already had this month.  I don't recall seeing juvenile Violet-green Swallows before, and I got this picture of one of them.

 

The parents were feeding the youngsters.

 

I crossed the river and soon saw a Western Wood-Pewee, a July bird.  Soon after that I added another July species, Northern Rough-winged Swallow.  Here is a picture of one on a wire.

 

I stopped at the house in Carnation with the bird feeders and took some pictures.  Here is a male American Goldfinch, a species I already had for July.

 

Here is a less colorful female American Goldfinch.

 

Here is a mixed group of male and female goldfinches.

 

I got pictures of another species I already had in July, Black-headed Grosbeak.  Here is a male Black-headed Grosbeak.

 

I also added Rufous Hummingbird to my July list.  Later I got some pictures, to be shown later in this report.  I next added Eurasian Collared-Dove to my July list, and here is a picture of one.

 

After that I moved on up to Tokul Creek, to look for American Dipper for my July list.  When I got to the creek, the first thing I saw was a female Common Merganser, a repeater that I needed for July.  Here is a picture of the female Common Merganser.

 

I looked up and down the creek, but no dippers showed themselves.  I hung around for at least fifteen minutes, and I was ready to give up when I spotted a dipper way upstream.  Here is a distant picture of an American Dipper.

 

Here is another one, just as distant.

 

That was a repeater, too.  I have managed to see at least one American Dipper in each month this year so far.

 

After that I went back down to Carnation to the feeder house.  Here are a couple of pictures of a female Rufous Hummingbird.

 

 

There were 15 or 20 Band-tailed Pigeons around, and although I didn't need that one for July, it is always nice to get pictures, and I think they are a cool bird.  Here are some Band-tailed Pigeon pictures.

 

 

 

I never noticed before what short little legs they have.

 

There were at least three male Black-headed Grosbeaks around, I think.  Here are a couple more pictures of male Black-headed Grosbeaks.

 

 

I hung around as long as I did because I was hoping another species would come in, and I was rewarded when I added another July bird, Mourning Dove, which was also a repeater.

 

 

By that time it was time to head for home for lunch.  On the way back across the valley, I got a couple of pictures of a recently fledged juvenile American Robin.

 

 

It looks quite a bit different from an adult American Robin.  I remember the first time I saw one, and it took me a while to figure out what it was.

 

I ended up adding 8 species to my July list today, to bring it to 68.  Five of those were repeaters, so now I have 43 species that I have seen in each month this year.  July is really slow for birds.  Birders refer to it as the summer doldrums.  I'll keep plugging away, but my totals are going to be low this month, even if I take a trip across the mountains, which I may or may not do.

 

 

Sunday, July 8, 2018

 

This morning I headed over to Seattle.  My first stop was Magnuson Park, to look for several species.  First I went to the place where I knew that Cliff Swallows nested, and I picked up that one for my July list.  No problem, no drama, I just took a look and put them on my list.  Cliff Swallows are pretty common, but it is nice to know where they nest, to make it easy to find them when wanted.

 

Next I drove into the park.  I stopped near the entrance to look for a duck that had been reported, but I think I was in the wrong place.  The habitat looked good for Golden-crowned Kinglet, though, so I played the song.  In a minute or so, a cute little Golden-crowned Kinglet came in and posed for me, less than ten feet away.  I tried for a picture, but the bird never stopped moving, and there was little light under the thick trees, so I got nothing worth showing.  Still, it was an excellent July bird, and I had a great look at it.

 

I moved on to the wetlands area, still looking for the duck, but there was nothing on any of the ponds that I saw.  While walking back to my car, I did take a good look at the swallows flying around overhead, and I found that some of them were not swallows, but Vaux's Swifts, another excellent July species.

 

I had been looking all the time for Cooper's Hawk, but I never saw one.  Reportedly, three young ones had recently fledged and the parents were feeding them.  I visited several parts of the park, but I never saw or heard any sign of any Cooper's Hawks.  I'll have to keep looking for that one this month.

 

After I left Magnuson Park, I drove over to the place near Portage Bay where I have seen California Scrub-Jay several times this year.  I parked and walked around, but I didn't see any jays.  As I was getting back to my car, I decided to play the call of California Scrub-Jay.  I have never seen them respond to playback, but I had nothing to lose, so I tried it.  To my surprise, a couple of them flew in and called back to me, repeatedy.  They stayed near the tops of trees, but I got a couple of pictures of California Scrub-Jay.

 

 

That was a repeater as well as a July bird.  Not only that, it was a blue colored bird, which I like to get pictures of.  California Scrub-Jays are quite uncommon in this county, but a family of them lives in that area, and I think I have seen them every time I have gone there this year.  I was glad to find that they would respond to playing their calls.

 

I got 4 more species today, to bring my July total to 72 species.  My one repeater, California Scrub-Jay, makes my total 44 now, for birds I have seen in each month this year so far.

 

Tomorrow I plan to take my car in for some minor body work, preparatory to selling it or trading it in on a new car.  I won't get it back until late on Wednesday, so I don’t know if I will get any more birds or write any more reports until then.  It seems unlikely, but maybe I'll borrow Christina's car and go looking.

 

 

Thursday, July 12, 2018

 

My car was in the body shop all week until today at noon, fixing the accumulation of dents and dings that I had picked up over the four and a half years I have owned it.  It looks great now, but I still plan to order a new Subaru Ascent from the factory.  I won't get the Ascent until at least September, though, so I'll still be driving the Pilot until then.

 

I didn’t go out birding all week, including today, until I got an email from a birding buddy who told me there was an American Wigeon on the pond at the Ste. Michelle Winery.  Since that is only about three miles away, I jumped in my car and headed over there, since I needed that one for July still.

 

At the pond I saw some Mallards.  Here is a male Mallard in his eclipse (non-breeding) plumage.

 

From October to May he would have a shiny green head, but at this time of year, he looks like a female, except for the yellowish bill.  A female would have an orange bill, with some black on it most likely.  Here is another shot of a male Mallard.

 

I walked around the pond and found the male American Wigeon.  He looked pretty scruffy, since he is currently molting, changing from breeding plumage to his eclipse plumage.

 

That was not only a July bird, it was a repeater.  Here is another shot of him, showing a little more feather detail.

 

I had my bird, so I headed back toward my car.  Here is a picture of the pond at Chateau Ste. Michelle.  The wigeon is on the left side, near the bottom of the picture.

 

A Red-winged Blackbird was calling from the cattails, and I got this picture of him.

 

Here's a picture of the pond from the other end.

 

That was it for my birding today.  I got the bird I went looking for, and I went home.  Total time spent on it - 30 minutes.  The American Wigeon brought my July total to 73 species.  Since it was a repeater, I now I have 45 species in each month this year.  I still need a number of duck species, but there just aren't many ducks around in the summer.

 

 

Friday, July 13, 2018

 

Today I headed north to order a new Subaru Ascent from the factory.  The best deal I could find was from a dealer in Burlington, which is about 60 miles of here.  They are in short supply and seemingly very popular, so to get exactly what I wanted, I ordered one.  It will take about ten weeks to get it.  Fortunately, I wanted to do some birding up that way, anyway.  On the way there, an American Kestrel flew over the freeway, and that was a July bird and a repeater.

 

I took care of ordering the car, and then I did some birding, but not until I had first picked up a sandwich at Subway.  As I drove through the Skagit flats, I picked up Red-tailed Hawk and Common Raven.  Both were July birds and also repeaters.  My first actual birding stop was on Valentine Road, at the house that has a lot of feeders.  The feeders were mostly empty, but the large suet feeder had some remnants left in it.  I was about ready to give it up when a Black-capped Chickadee came in to the almost-empty suet feeder and browsed for a while.  It flew off, but I was encouraged, so I stuck around longer.  A few minutes later a Red-breasted Nuthatch flew in and picked at the suet.  That was the one I was looking for, a July bird and another repeater.  Here are a couple of pictures of the cute little Red-breasted Nuthatch.

 

 

Looking at those pictures now, I can see I let too much blue sneak into the second picture when I was processing it.  The first one more true to life.  I'm not going to bother redoing the second one.

 

Next I went to Hayton Reserve.  I walked out onto the dike with my scope, but I didn't see anything at all.  I did take a picture of the Bald Eagle nest there.  Here's a picture of an almost full grown immature eagle in the nest.

 

I went on to Wylie Slough, and as I turned off the main road, there was a Red-tailed Hawk on a wire.

 

In that picture you can see that the bird has a metal band on its left ankle, but you can't see the red of its tail.  Here is another picture that shows the red tail.

 

At Wylie Slough I ate my humble lunch, sitting in the car, and then walked out on the dike trail.  I soon picked up Brewer's Blackbird, which was still another repeater for my July list.  Then I saw a Greater Yellowlegs, which was another July repeater.

 

At the pumping station I climbed down from the dike and looked at the slough on the north.  There were a couple of duck families there.  Here is a female Gadwall and a bunch of ducklings.

 

I wasn’t sure which duck species she was, but later I saw her again and got better pictures.

 

I thought she might be a Cinnamon Teal, but this next picture shows the orange on the side of her bill, which indicates she is a Gadwall.

 

I didn't need Gadwall, and I didn't need Pied-billed Grebe either, but here is a picture of a Pied-billed Grebe.

 

I very much needed Blue-winged Teal, though, and this male Blue-winged Teal was there, too.

 

There were some little shorebirds feeding in the shallow water, but I never got a really good look at them, so I'm not sure which species they were.  They were either Least Sandpipers (they have yellow legs) or Western Sandpipers (they have black legs).  I didn’t need either species for July, so I didn’t spend any time trying to determine the leg color.  I had left my scope in the car, but I did take some pictures.  I think that there were some of each species, but I'm not really sure.  Here is a picture of three of them.

 

I think those three have yellow legs, which would make them Least Sandpipers, but I'm pretty sure that others were Western Sandpipers.

 

There were also two dowitchers there.  The two dowitcher species look very much alike, but I think these were Short-billed Dowitchers, which was an excellent July bird.

 

 

Here are a couple more Greater Yellowlegs.

 

I was happy with what I had seen, and I headed for home.  On my way out, though, I saw a flycatcher from the car, so I stopped and went back.  It was a Black Phoebe, a rarity in this area.  I had seen what was probably the same bird several months ago there, but then I had missed it several times after that.  I had seen a report that it was back, and sure enough, it was, assuming it was the same bird.  It was in the exact same place I had seen it twice before, early in the year.  Here are three mediocre pictures of the Black Phoebe, a California bird that has settled in here, evidently.

 

 

 

With that one under my belt, I once again headed toward home.  I ended up adding 9 species to my July list today, to bring it to 82 species.  Five of those were repeaters, and now I have 50 species that I have seen in each of the 7 months so far this year.  I did pretty well for Friday the 13th.

 

 

Sunday, July 15, 2018

 

I didn't do any birding on Saturday.  A branch on a very old apple tree in our yard broke off overnight, presumably partly due to the fairly large crop of ripening apples on the tree.  I spent an hour in the relative cool of the morning clearing some of it away, and then I stayed home the rest of the day.  There is more clearing to do, and then I'll have to break out my little electric chain saw to take care of the larger branches.

 

Today I headed over to Richmond Beach first.  I walked down to the pedestrian bridge over the railroad tracks and looked for California Quail.  I didn't see any, so I played their call, but I got no responses.  I was leaving when I took one last look to the south and the north, and I was quite pleased to see a whole extended family of California Quail to the north, beside the tracks.  Here are some pictures.

 

Okay, they are pretty distant, but you can see a couple of males and a couple of females, along with 5 or 6 young quail in that picture.  Here is a closer crop of another picture.

 

At least six young ones are in that picture, maybe seven.  Here is one more distant picture of my California Quail this morning.

 

That was not only a July bird, it was a repeater - a species I have seen in every month so far this year.  Quail are pretty uncommon around here, so I was pleased to get them again this month.  Richmond Beach is my "go to" site for them locally, but I had missed them earlier this month there.

 

Next I stopped at Kayu Kayu Ac Park, but I saw nothing from there except a few Pigeon Guillemots and a Rhinoceros Auklet, species I didn't need for July.

 

Next I went up to Edmonds, to Sunset Avenue.  There were a number of gulls on the beach below me, and I took a good look at them.  In addition to the usual Glaucous-winged Gulls and hybrids, there were several California Gulls, but I already had gotten that one this month.  There were also some smaller gulls, though, and I took some pictures.  Based on their size alone (smaller than the California Gulls), I thought they might be juvenile Ring-billed Gulls.  My pictures and a consultation with the field guide confirmed that.  Gulls take 3 or 4 years to mature, and Ring-billed Gulls are three-year gulls.  The ones on the beach were in what is called "first winter" plumage.  I'm not sure if that means they were hatched this year or last year, but they were July birds and repeaters, in any case.  Here are a couple of pictures of immature Ring-billed Gulls.

 

 

I normally don’t pay any attention to immature gulls because there are so many different plumages.  Each species has a different look each year, and they take 3 or 4 years to mature, as I mentioned.  In this case, the size of the birds, compared to the California Gulls and Glaucous-winged Gulls made me pay attention and I was able to get the repeater.

 

I didn't see anything else of interest there.  There were Pigeon Guillemots and a couple of Rhinoceros Auklets, but nothing else I needed.  I had hoped for Surf Scoter or Double-crested Cormorant, or maybe even Caspian Tern or Bonaparte's Gull, but saw none of those species.

 

Next I stopped at Ocean Avenue, but saw nothing at all there but some crows and some gulls.  Moving on to Yost Park, I parked and walked the trails a bit.  I played the songs of various species that I need, but it was very quiet.  At the east end of the park I played Pacific Wren, though, and one came in and showed itself.  That was an excellent July bird, though not a repeater because I missed that species in April.  I tried for a picture, but it was too dark under the trees, and I couldn't even get my camera to focus, let alone get me a picture.

 

That was it for today.  I added 3 more species to my July list, to bring it to 85.  Two of them were repeaters, so now I have 52 species in each month of this year so far.  I'm thinking maybe tomorrow I might go over to Whidbey Island, to see what I can find over there.

 

 

Monday, July 16, 2018

 

I got to bed early last night, slept well, was up at 6:40 this morning, and I was on the road by 8:20.  For me, that's very early.  I made the 9:00 ferry from Mukilteo to Whidbey Island.  After I boarded, I noticed a Marbled Murrelet in the water near the ferry.  It kept diving, but when it came up, I shot pictures of it when I could.  It was about as close as I have ever been to a Marbled Murrelet, I think.  Here are three pictures, taken from the ferry before we departed.

 

 

 

I didn't need Marbled Murrelet for July, but it was nice to get close pictures of a bird I normally only see through my scope.

 

Here is a picture of the other ferry on the run, with Mount Baker in the background, although you can barely see the mountain.

 

It was a beautiful morning, but it was a bit hazy in the distance.  At the Whidbey Island end of the ferry trip I saw a Pigeon Guillemot near the boat.  That was another one I didn't need for July, but pictures are always welcome.  Pigeon Guillemot was one of the most common species I saw on the water today.  I saw them at almost every stop.

 

I reached Whidbey Island and I was ready to find some birds.  First I picked up a sandwich at a local deli I had been told about, and then I went to Deer Lagoon.  Rather than walk the trail to the lagoon, I drove to Sunlight Beach Road, which runs out onto the spit that separates the lagoon from Useless Bay.  I was looking for American White Pelicans and maybe some ducks and other sea birds.  I parked and set up my scope, but I was disappointed that there were no ducks at all in sight, and no pelicans either.  I did see some Caspian Terns, which I needed for July, but that was it.

 

Three women who were out walking came along and they mentioned the pelicans.  They pointed out a public access strip, between the houses, to the shore of Useless Bay, where I could see more of the shoreline and the lagoon.  I saw more Caspian Terns, and I even saw two or three Bonaparte's Gulls, which was not only a July bird, it was a repeater.  Eventually I saw some American White Pelicans in the distance, when they lifted off and flew around a bit.  I think I might have had a better view of them if I had walked the trail, and maybe I would have seen some ducks, too.  I didn't want to take the time to do that, though, because I had a lot of places I wanted to stop, so I moved on.

 

I don’t have any pictures from the middle part of the day because I was looking out to sea from the shore, at various points up the west coast of Whidbey Island, and the birds were always too distant for pictures.  That's often the nature of looking for sea birds.

 

My next stop was Crockett Lake, which is more like a large lagoon than a lake.  I picked up Northern Harrier there, which was what I was mainly looking for at that location.  That was another repeater.  I found where the cormorants were roosting, near the Keystone ferry dock, but almost all of them were Pelagic Cormorants, which I already had for July.  I did see one or two Brant's Cormorants, but no Double-crested Cormorants.  I needed those two species for July, so Brandt's Cormorant was one more for my list.  Double-crested is the most common of the three species, so I have hopes I might see one somewhere this month still.

 

After that I moved on to Hastie Lake county park.  I got the expected Harlequin Ducks there for my list (therfe were 20 or 30 of them), and I was pleased to see four Western Grebes, which was unexpected.  That was a repeater that I hadn't expected to see this month.

 

Next I moved on a few miles to West Beach county park.  There were a lot of Surf Scoters there, another repeater that I was expecting to find there.  To my very pleased surprise, there were also at least a half dozen White-winged Scoters, another one I hadn't expected to see this month.  Not only that, I also saw a Pacific Loon, another pleasant surprise that I needed, and then a couple of Common Loons.  That was a repeater, and still another one I didn’t expect to see this month.  That was a really excellent stop.

 

Leaving West Beach county park, I drove along what I guess is called Bos Lake.  There were ducks on it, but most of them were Mallards or Gadwalls.  I did spot one female Bufflehead, another repeater, and then a pair of Greater Scaup, which was also a repeater.  Most ducks are very hard to find in July, so I was glad to get a couple of species there.

 

I ate my sandwich at Joseph Whidbey State Park, and then I drove off the north end of Whidbey Island to Rosario Head, just north of Deception Pass.  I was mainly looking for Black Oystercatcher there.  I walked with my scope to where I could see the offshore islands and rocks, and on my way I noticed a bird at the top of a tall dead snag.  I got the scope on it, and it was an Olive-sided Flycatcher, an excellent July bird.  There were tons of people there on a warm summer day, including people in kayaks that were close to the rocks where I was hoping to see an oystercatcher.  Eventually I did spot one Black Oystercatcher, though, so that one went onto my list.

 

After that I headed toward home, although that meant starting off going farther north and then east back toward I-5.  I drove across the Skagit Flats and Fir Island, where I had been on Friday.  I thought about stopping at the house with feeders on Valentine Road, in the hopes of seeing Hairy Woodpecker, which I have seen there before, but there was almost no suet in the big suet feeder on Friday, so I almost passed.  As it turned out, I did go by, and the suet feeder had been refilled.  Not only that, there was a Hairy Woodpecker actually feeding when I drove up.  Here is my July Hairy Woodpecker, another repeater.

 

Here is another shot that shows the red patch on his head a little better.

 

Note that in that last picture, there is also a Downy Woodpecker at the feeder.  Here is a picture that illustrates the size difference between those two species - the larger Hairy Woodpecker and the smaller Downy Woodpecker.

 

There were at least five Red-breasted Nuthatches coming to the suet feeder, too.  Here is a picture that shows parts of five of them, plus one of the Downy Woodpeckers.

 

I had added Red-breasted Nuthatch to my July list at that very spot on Friday.  Here is one more picture of a Red-breasted Nuthatch and a Downy Woodpecker.

 

Downy Woodpeckers are pretty small, but nuthatches are even smaller.

 

I wanted to stop at Wylie Slough to try again for Cinnamon Teal and some other species I missed on Friday, but it turned out that it was closed today for maintenance, so I just headed for the freeway and home.

 

My day's adventure wasn't over yet, though.  As I was tooling down the freeway just south of Marysville, still about 25 miles from home, I heard an alarming thumping sound that sounded like something was hitting my roof repeatedly.  It was alarming enough that I pulled over and got out to check it out.  Fortunately, there was a fairly wide shoulder there.  It turned out to be the end of the pliable plastic strip that holds the windshield in place and seals it.  About 18 inches of it, on the passenger side, had come loose and was flopping around.  I have thought before that it would be a good idea to have a roll of duct tape in the car, for emergency repairs, and today was the day I needed it.  Unfortunately, I had never acted on that thought, so I didn't have any duct tape.  I drove to the next offramp, which was two or three miles, and got off.  The first likely looking store I came to was a large supermarket, so I went in.  They didn't have duct tape, but I bought a roll of masking tape and fastened the plastic strip down with that.  It held until I could get home, anyway.  I had the windshield replaced 18 months ago, and I checked my paperwork and the replacement had a lifetime warranty, so I'm hoping to get it fixed for free.  The experience reinforced the idea of getting a new car, though.  I hate car problems, especially when I'm on the road away from home.

 

So, I ended up adding a whopping 16 species to my July list, to break the century barrier and put it at 101 species.  There is very little else to get now, in the midst of the summer doldrums, but I'll see what I can scare up.  Eight of today's species were repeaters, so that gives me 60 species that I have seen in every month this year.  This morning I had told myself that if I got 10 more July species today it would be outstanding, so 16 was a bit amazing.  I spent about 4 hours driving and riding the ferry today, and about three hours actually birding.  I put about 150 miles on my car, but at least I beat the heat, because it was quite pleasant along the water.

 

 

Wednesday, July 18, 2018

 

Finally we had a break in the heat.  It was overcast this morning and the temperatures were in the 60's all morning.  For me, the 60's are immeasurably better than the 80's.

 

My goal today was to get Eastern Kingbird for my July list.  They are quite uncommon on this side of the Cascades, but they do breed in a small area between Everett and the town of Snohomish.  On my way north I stopped at the Brightwater Sewage Treatment plant in north Woodinville.  I hadn't ever stopped there before, but I knew they had ponds and trails, and I hoped I might find a good duck there.

 

I didn't see any good ducks, but I did see a family of American Coots.  I don’t recall ever seeing young coots before, so I took a lot of pictures.  Here is an adult American Coot with one of the young ones (cootlings? cootlets?).

 

Here is an adult American Coot, which is what I'm used to seeing (although they are few and far between in the summer around here).

 

Here is an immature American Coot on its own.

 

The young ones seemed to mostly be feeding on their own, but the two parents were also feeding them from time to time.

 

Here are some more pictures of the young American Coots.

 

 

 

At first I only saw three young ones, then four, then five, then six, and finally I counted seven of them.  Here they are all in a group, with one of the adults.

 

That was fun, but it wasn't adding to my list.  I went on to Fobes Road, looking for Eastern Kingbirds.  I saw one fairly soon, but I kept walking because I wanted pictures.  There were ducks on one of the ponds, but they were pretty distant.  Most of them were Mallards, with a few Wood Ducks, which I didn't need.  There was one smaller one, though, and I took some very distant pictures to try to identify it.  Here is what I decided was a male Green-winged Teal in eclipse (non-breeding) plumage.

 

Here's a picture that shows how much smaller he is than the Mallard to the right of him.

 

That was an excellent bird to get for July, and it was even a repeater.  I doubt I'll see one in August, but one month at a time.  I got it for July.

 

Here is a distant picture of a male Wood Duck in his eclipse plumage.

 

There were some Cedar Waxwings around, and I almost got a great picture of one, but it wouldn't turn its head, and then it flew away.  I did manage to get one close picture of an Eastern Kingbird, at least.

 

Here is a more distant picture of an Eastern Kingbird that shows its back.

 

I was pleased with my little birding adventure, and I headed for home.  It sure was nice to not have it be so hot.

 

I thought I was done with my birding for today, but when I got home I saw a post on Tweeters that reported several shorebirds at the Edmonds Marsh this morning.  I needed two of the species, one of which would be a year-bird (Pectoral Sandpiper), so I headed up there after I ate lunch.

 

I saw some shorebirds, but they were pretty distant and the sun had come out by then, so there was a lot of heat shimmer.  I don't think I ever saw the Pectoral Sandpiper, but I did see a Semipalmated Plover, which wasn't even one of the birds reported this morning.  Here is a distant picture of a little Semipalmated Plover, with a lot of heat shimmer.

 

Here is a picture of the Semipalmated Plover (on the right) with a Killdeer for size comparison.

 

Killdeer are plovers, too, but they are larger than Semipalmated Plovers and they have two breast bands, rather than just one.  Semipalmated Plover was an excellent bird, one I hadn't expected to see this month.

 

I hung around for almost an hour, hoping to see the Pectoral Sandpiper, but I never did.  I did see another species that had been reported this morning that I needed, though - Long-billed Dowitcher.  Here are two very distant pictures of the Long-billed Dowitcher, with lots of heat shimmer distortion.

 

 

The deep curvature of the lower back marks that bird as a Long-billed Dowitcher, rather than its very similar cousin, Short-billed Dowitcher.  I had the short-billed one already this month, but not the long-billed one.

 

So, I ended up adding 4 more species to my July list, to bring it to 105 species.  Green-winged Teal was a repeater, and that gives me 61 species that I have seen in each month this year.  There is very little for me to go looking for now, but maybe I'll figure something out.  I could pick up some more if I took a trip across the mountains, but the temperatures are in the 90's over there at this time of year, and I just don’t feel like facing that.  I always say that I am only a dilettante birder, and I care too much for my comfort to be a really good birder.

 

 

Sunday, July 22, 2018

 

Before I get into today's birding, I have a little story to tell.  Last week I kept thinking about the new Subaru Ascent I ordered from the factory, thinking about waiting 10 weeks to get it.  The more I thought about it, the more I didn't like the idea of waiting.  I went back to my notes and did some more research on the Toyota Highlander, which was my second choice.  My main problem with it was the price, which was several thousand more than the Ascent.  The model I was comparing was fancier, though, with more features, like leather upholstery, a navigation system, and a moon roof, as well as other things.  Anyway, to make a long story shorter, I decided to see how much I would have to pay for a Highlander, largely because I could get it immediately.  I ended up communicating with four Toyota dealerships, by phone and email.  On Friday I visited two of them, and after spending a total of five hours at the two dealerships, I came home in a new Toyota Highlander and left my Honda Pilot with them.  Now I just need to cancel the order for the Subaru Ascent.

 

Anyway, today I took my new Highlander out birding for the first time.  I drove over to the Union Bay Natural Area, known to birders as the Montlake Fill, near the University of Washington.  There wasn’t much I needed, and I didn’t see much.  The heat is coming back, and it was warm walking in the sun, although it was only about 80 degrees.  There is an Osprey nest there, on a man-made platform, and I got a bunch of pictures of the Osprey chicks and their parents.  Here is the first Osprey chick I saw today.

 

It is a perfect little copy of an adult Osprey, I think.  A second one showed itself, and here is a picture of two Osprey chicks.

 

They both stood up and showed themselves off even better.

 

An adult Osprey flew in to the nest.

 

After a minute or two, the adult flew off again, and I got a picture of it leaving.

 

A few minutes later the same one (I think) came back to the nest, and I got this picture of it landing.

 

Here is the adult back in the nest.

 

Here are a couple of pictures of the adult Osprey and one of the chicks, showing the size difference.

 

 

While all this was going on, the other parent was just sitting in a nearby tree, watching everything.

 

So, that was a lot of fun, but I still didn’t have anything for my list.  I walked on and saw a large bird flying low over the reeds.  I wasn't sure what species it was - it looked like some kind of heron, and it seemed too small to be a Great Blue Heron.  My guess was American Bittern, and that's what it was.  That was an excellent July bird.  I knew that one had been reported at that location several times in the last week, so it was one of the species I was looking for.  Here are three pictures of the American Bittern.

 

 

 

It was actively hunting, but I didn't see it catch anything.  While I was taking pictures of the bittern, a Green Heron flew over, calling as it flew.  It went down into the marsh, and I couldn't find it after that for pictures, but it went onto my July list, another excellent bird.  That one had also been reported there this past week.  My main reason for going there today was the hope of seeing one of those birds, and I got both of them in the same place within a few minutes of each other.

 

There was a Great Blue Heron up in a tree, so I took its picture.

 

A little later I saw that bird or another Great Blue Heron much closer, so I took a close up picture of its head.

 

After that I headed back to my car, with a little detour to check out the creek to the west of the area I had been walking in.  Cinnamon Teal had also been reported there yesterday, but I didn't find any today.  On my way home I drove through Magnuson Park, mainly hoping to see one of the Cooper's Hawks that have recently fledged three young ones, but I didn't see anything, and I didn't even get out of the car.

 

I added two more to my July list, which was more than I expected I'd get today.  Getting both American Bittern and Green Heron at the same place was very surprising.  Now I have 107 species in July.  I still have 61 species on my "repeater" list, which means I have seen them in each month this year.  My total for the year remains at 229 species, and I haven't added anything new to my year total since June 27.

 

Summer is well and truly here now, and it is a hot and dry one so far.  We are supposed to be in the low 90's for the next several days.  I don’t know if I'll even do any birding, since there is so little for me to go looking for, and I don't enjoy walking around in the heat.

 

 

Thursday, July 26, 2018

 

On Monday I went up to Edmonds, hoping for a Pectoral Sandpiper at the marsh.  All I saw were a couple of Spotted Sandpiper chicks and a parent.  They were too far away for decent pictures, which was too bad because they were cute.  I saw nothing along the waterfront that I needed, and I got nothing at Yost Park either.  No July birds and no pictures.

 

I skipped a couple of days because I was busy, it was hot, and there isn't anything much to go looking for anyway.  Today I went over to the Redmond Retention Ponds, in the faint hope of seeing a Solitary Sandpiper or a Lesser Yellowlegs, neither of which was likely at all and neither one has been reported in this area this year yet.  I did see an adult Spotted Sandpiper and the two chicks I had seen there last week.  They have grown quite a bit, but they are still sort of fuzzy and are much smaller than the parent that was with them.  All my pictures are pretty distant, but here are a couple of shots of the parent Spotted Sandpiper.

 

 

Here are my best shots of the youngsters.

 

 

 

Here is maybe my best shot of a Spotted Sandpiper chick from today.

 

That was it for today.  No July birds.  It was only about 77 degrees by then, but it seemed hotter than that in the sun.  I headed for home and my cool bedroom and basement office.  It was about 90 degrees again today, as it has been all week, much too hot for me.

 

 

Saturday, July 28, 2018

 

It was a little cloudy this morning, and somewhat cooler than recently, so I headed out looking for birds.  I went to Marymoor Park and walked along the slough, through the dog park.  I didn't have high expectations, but I was hoping for some pictures.  Here is a Killdeer, a species I think is attractive.

 

There was a Green Heron just below the weir, an excellent species, although I already had it this month.  Here are some pictures of today's Green Heron.

 

 

In that last picture, it had its neck pulled in.  Here is the Green Heron with its neck extended.

 

The Sammamish Slough connects Lake Sammamish with Lake Washington.  There is a weir that regulates the water level, just as the slough gets going.  In the winter, the whole area is covered in water, but with our dry summer, the water flow is way down, and here is what the weir looked like today.

 

The Green Heron was just on the other side of the water, just below (to the right of) the weir.

 

I was looking for Hooded Mergansers, among other species.  I didn’t see any, but I did see three juvenile Wood Ducks, almost full grown.  Here is a juvenile Wood Duck, another species I didn't need for July.

 

My Achilles tendon wasn't hurting at all today, and it wasn't too hot, so I kept walking and went through the gate out of the off-leash dog park and along the slough to the lake.  I sat on a bench briefly, just past the gate, and there was a small mixed flock of birds in the trees.  Among other species, I got a good binocular look at a female Black-throated Gray Warbler, an excellent July bird for my list.  It was too high in the trees and flitted around too much for a picture, unfortunately.

 

I saw a couple of Brown Creepers, a Bewick's Wren, and a small flock of Bushtits, none of which I needed for July.  A couple of Black-capped Chickadees were with the Bushtits, and I got this picture of one of the chickadees.

 

A Spotted Towhee was calling, and I got this picture, despite the poor lighting.

 

Out at the end of the boardwalk, Purple Martins nesting in the artificial gourds there still feeding their young.  Here are a couple of pictures of a male Purple Martin at a nest hole.

 

 

I was looking right into the sun, which made them difficult pictures.

 

Here is a front view of a female Purple Martin.

 

Here is a rear view of a female Purple Martin.

 

Here is a picture of a female Purple Martin exiting a nest hole, carrying a fecal sac.  I've explained about fecal sacs before, so I won't go into it again.

 

Here is a Purple Martin looking out of a nest hole.  I'm not sure if it is a youngster or a female, but I think it is an adult female.

 

I thought the water lilies were pretty, so I took a picture.

 

There were three juvenile American Robins flying around, and I got this picture of one of them.

 

I walked back toward my car, and got this picture of a flycatcher at the top of a tree.

 

At the time I thought it was a Western Wood-Pewee, but after looking at my pictures, I think it was an Olive-sided Flycatcher.  I already had both of those species for July, so it didn't really matter as far as my lists are concerned.  Finally, I got a picture of a male American Goldfinch.

 

I walked for over two hours and got some pictures, but I only got one species for my July list at Marymoor, the Black-throated Gray Warbler. 

 

I still had a little time, though, so I stopped by the Redmond Retention Ponds on the way home.  It is getting to be the time of year when a particular uncommon shorebird species stops off at the ponds, at least for the last couple of years.  I needed it for my year list, so I stopped on the off-chance I might find one, although I haven't seen any reports of one there this year yet.

 

I parked and took my scope into the area to take a look.  I saw an adult Spotted Sandpiper and one juvenile Spotted Sandpiper across the main pond, too far away for decent pictures.  Going on to the small pond, I found a photographer sitting down and taking pictures of a little shorebird across the pond.  The bird was walking our way, so I stopped behind some bushes to screen me, and started taking pictures.  My first impression was that it was another Spotted Sandpiper, and here are a couple of the first pictures I took of it.

 

 

It kept approaching us and we both kept taking pictures.  At some point I realized it was actually a SOLITARY SANDPIPER, the very species I was hoping to find there today.  That's an excellent, quite uncommon species, so I just kept taking pictures, and here are three more of them.

 

 

 

It just kept going, right on by us, and when it was far enough away, the photographer got up and we talked briefly.  I mentioned that I had specifically come to look for Solitary Sandpiper, and he said "Solitary Sandpiper?"  He thought was a Spotted Sandpiper, a much more common species.  I call him a photographer, rather than a birder, because he had a fancy camera, but no binoculars.  I've seen him in various birding places before, including there at the ponds.  Anyway, he was happy to learn it was a Solitary Sandpiper, and as I left, he was looking for it again, to take more pictures.

 

So, I had a nice morning of birding today.  It was still only about 75 degrees when I headed for home just after noon, which was quite a bit cooler than it has been lately.  I got two more July species, to bring my July total to 109 species.  The Solitary Sandpiper was a year-bird, to give me 230 species for the year so far.  It was the first new year-bird I have gotten in just over a month.  I won't be getting many more, unless I do some travelling.

 

 

Sunday, July 29, 2018

 

Today I decided to try to get a saltwater bird or two, and I headed first to Kayu Kayu Ac Park in Richmond Beach.  Yesterday there was a report of two species I needed, but I didn't see anything I needed today.

 

I moved on to the Edmonds Marsh, in the hope that a Pectoral Sandpiper might be around.  I saw some little shorebirds there, so I got my scope out and checked them out.  There were at least a half dozen Semipalmated Plovers there, a great species, but one I had already seen there last week.  Here is a rather distant picture of a Semipalmated Plover.

 

Here is a picture of a couple of the little cuties.

 

In addition to the distance, I was fighting heat shimmer in my pictures and looking through my scope.  There were some Least Sandpipers, another one I had already seen this month, and there was one other little peep that was different.  I watched it for ten or fifteen minutes, and I ended up deciding it was a SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER, a new year-bird for me.  It could have been a Western Sandpiper, but the bill seemed quite short and there wasn't any red on it that I could detect, so I decided to call it a Semipalmated Sandpiper.  Here are some distant pictures with lots of heat shimmer, but I want to show them so I have a record in case I want to refer to them in the future.  In each case, the bird in the middle of the picture is the one I am looking at.

 

 

The bird sitting down is the one I am looking at in the picture above.

 

 

 

In those last two pictures, the bird almost looks like a Sanderling, but it was too small for that.

 

My main reason for calling it a Semipalmated Sandpiper rather than a Western Sandpiper is the length of its bill.  Western Sandpipers have a longer bill that droops a bit.  The identification is debatable, but I'm going with Semipalmated Sandpiper for my lists.

 

After the marsh, I went to Sunset Avenue and then to Ocean Avenue, but I didn't see anything I needed in either place.  The species I was looking for were Double-crested Cormorant, Parasitic Jaeger, and Common Murre.  They were all unlikely, so I wasn’t surprised or disappointed not to see them.  With my debatable Semipalmated Sandpiper, I now have 110 species for July.  My year list is now at 231 species.

 

 

Monday, July 30, 2018

 

I had an early lunch appointment today, so I didn't really do any birding to speak of, but I did stop at Marymoor Park on the way to lunch.  I visited the pond by the rowing club, where Hooded Mergansers had been reported a few days ago.  I didn't see anything at first, but eventually four Hooded Mergansers showed themselves, two males and two females.  Here are pictures of the two males, in their eclipse (non-breeding) plumage.

 

 

As an illustration of how different breeding plumage can be, here is a picture of a male Hooded Merganser in breeding plumage, taken In April this year.

 

Big difference, huh?  Except for the bill shape, you wouldn't guess they were the same species.

 

Here are pictures of the two female Hooded Mergansers today.

 

 

The males and females don't look all that much different at this time of year, but the males have light colored yellow eyes, and the females have dark red eyes.  The bill colors are different, too.  So, that was a July bird and a repeater.

 

There was a female Wood Duck sitting on a log, so I took her picture.

 

There was also a Pied-billed Grebe across the pond.

 

I went to lunch, and after lunch we went to Phantom Lake, as usual.  I didn't get any new July birds, but there was quite a bit of bird action today.  There was a whole family of Barn Swallows, with the recently fledged young ones begging for food and flying around a bit.  In the distance, Chris spotted a bird on the water, and it turned out to be a Common Loon, a species I don’t recall seeing at Phantom Lake before.  Here is an extremely distant picture of the Common Loon, still in breeding plumage and probably on its away south for the winter.

 

There was a juvenile male Red-winged Blackbird posing for me, so I took a couple of pictures of him.

 

 

We also had a little flock of Bushtits move through, another species I don't recall seeing there before.  An Osprey was fishing, but it didn’t seem to catch anything on the three dives into the water that I saw.

 

So, I added one more species to my July list, to bring it to 111 species.  Hooded Merganser was a repeater, so now I have 62 species that I have seen in each month this year.  I remain at 231 species for 2018.

 

It was hot again today, but now the heat wave is supposed to start receding.  The temperatures are supposed to be in the mid-70's by Wednesday, which will be a huge relief after over a week of temperatures about 90.  I have one more day to add to my July total, but I don't know if I'll go out birding or not.

 

 

Tuesday, July 31, 2018

 

I decided to go out one more time in July, trying to get a another bird or two for my July list.  I had an itinerary planned, with at least one species to look for at each stop.  My first stop was Tulalip Bay, about 35 minutes up the freeway to the north.  The species I had the greatest hope for was Black-bellied Plover, but I didn't find any today.  I did see a couple of Mew Gulls, though, a gull species that has been absent around here for the last couple of months, but they are just now starting to come back.  I also saw a single Double-crested Cormorant out in the bay, and that one was a repeater, which was great.

 

My only real photo opportunity was a pair of Immature Bald Eagles on a beach.  I didn't need Bald Eagle for any list, but here are a couple of pictures.

 

 

Bald Eagles take four years to reach their adulthood and get their white heads and tails.  These birds were two or three years old, I think.

 

Next I drove to Ebey Waterfront Park in Marysville and walked along the Ebey Slough on the paved path, to where I cold get a view of the Marysville sewage ponds.  I ran into a birder from Michigan and he joined me and we talked about birding places we had visited.  My goal there was ducks, hoping to see something I needed for July.  There were a few Mallards, but then there was a single Ruddy Duck, one I needed for July, and a repeater to boot.  We saw Marsh Wrens, too, but not much else.

 

I skipped my original planned stop at the Everett waterfront because the species I had hoped to see there, Double-crested Cormorant, was one I had seen already today at Tulalip Bay.  I stopped at the Everett sewage ponds, but I didn't see anything there.  I went on home then and had lunch, hoping to go out again to look for a Snow Goose that had been seen yesterday at Log Boom Park in Kenmore.  As it turned out, I got waylaid by other things and never got out again.  I did see a Merlin in our neighbor's yard, though.  I think that is a new species for my yard list, but I didn’t need it for July.  Here are some pictures of the Merlin next door.

 

 

 

That was it for today and for July.  I added 3 more species to my July list, to my surprise, to bring it to 114 species.  Two of those species were repeaters, too, so now I have seen 64 species in each month this year.  My year total stayed at 231 species.  Tomorrow is the start of a new month, and I'll start working on an August list.  We are having a huge family reunion picnic on Saturday this week (expecting 80 to 100 people), and already people from California are arriving, so I don’t know how much birding I'm going to be able to do until next week.

[Correction - due to an error I made on June 18, my 2018 total is understated here by 50 species.  I actually had 281 for 2018 at the end of July.]