Click here to return to 2019 Birding Reports:  http://www.barry15.com/2019_Birding_Reports

 

 

Saturday, February 2, 2019

 

It rained all day yesterday, and I didn't do any birding.  I did manage to find a way to work around my computer problem that I had on Thursday night, though.

 

Today I started out at East Montlake Park and walked across Marsh Island to Foster Island.  Before I left home, I saw some Dark-eyed Juncos in our yard, and while crossing the Evergreen Point Bridge I saw the first of four Bald Eagles that I saw this morning.  On my walk I soon added American Crow, Canada Goose, Common Merganser, and Pied-billed Grebe to my February list.  There were a few Buffleheads around, and the usual Mallards, too.  On Marsh Island I first heard, and then saw, a Song Sparrow.

 

My main target for that location was a duck called a Redhead.  I had seen some of them there last weekend, and now I wanted it for February.  I found the pack of American  Coots, but today there weren't any Redheads with them, sorry to say.  There were a lot of American Wigeons and one male Eurasian Wigeon, a vagrant to our area.  Here is the male Eurasian Wigeon with a bunch of coots.

 

Here are some male American Wigeons for comparison.

 

I continued on and saw a few Gadwalls and this male Wood Duck.

 

Here is a Pied-billed Grebe.

 

My pictures from today leave a lot to be desired because of the heavy overcast and subsequent lack of light.  Winter light can be wonderful when it is clear, but in a heavy winter overcast, the light is flat and things look murky.  Here is a female Hooded Merganser, another species for my February list.

 

There were also a couple of Double-crested Cormorants, some Ring-necked Ducks, and a single male Green-winged Teal.  I saw a Belted Kingfisher flying, and there was a chorus of Red-winged Blackbirds as I got back to the end of the trail.

 

Since I was already most of the way there, I next went to my spot for California Scrub-Jay, at the end of 15th Ave NE.  I played their calls and a couple of them obliged me by showing up.  I chased them around a bit, and got this picture of a California Scrub-Jay.

 

With that one taken care of for February, I drove to Magnuson Park.  I mainly wanted to look for Cedar Waxwings, but since February had just started, there were bound to be more species I needed.  I parked and walked out onto the paths around the hawthorn trees, which have fruit on them at this time of year.  I saw American Robins and European Starlings feeding on the hawthorn fruit, and at one point I saw a cute little Ruby-crowned Kinglet.  Continuing on around and heading back toward my car, I saw a Northern Flicker up in a tree.  I had just about given up on the waxwings when I spotted a few of them.  Here is a Cedar Waxwing in the poor light.

 

Here is a Cedar Waxwing with one of the hawthorn fruits in its bill.

 

That one must be an older bird, because it has the red waxy substance that gives the species its name, on its wing.  You can also see the bright yellow strip at the end of its tail.

 

Back at the swim beach, I spotted some gulls.  Here is a Mew Gull (on the left) and a larger California Gull.

 

I wasn't completely sure of the identification of the California Gull until it took off and I got this picture.

 

The yellow legs are the big clue, and the pattern at the end of the wings is also indicative of California Gull, as is the wide white trailing edge of the wings.

 

There were ducks out on the water, and I ended up counting both Greater Scaup and Lesser Scaup for my February list.  The differences are subtle, mostly the shape of the head and bill.  Here are some pictures, but I won't list the salient features.  Here are three female Greater Scaups, I think.

 

Here are two female Lesser Scaups for comparison.

 

I told you the differences were subtle.  Here is a male Lesser Scaup, I think.

 

Here is a front view of a male Lesser Scaup, showing the narrow bill.

 

Here is a male Greater Scaup, I believe.

 

There were also Ring-billed Gulls around.  Gulls take 3 or 4 years to reach maturity and they have a different plumage each year along the way.  Here is a mature Ring-billed Gull in winter plumage.

 

Here is a first winter (hatched in 2018) Ring-billed Gull, and you can see it looks quite different.

 

I also saw a couple of Common Goldeneyes before I left the beach area.  On my drive out of the park, I took pictures of the pair of Ring-necked Ducks on the first pond.  Here is the female Ring-necked Duck.

 

Here is the male Ring-necked Duck.

 

In that picture and the next one, you can actually see the brownish ring at the base of his neck, that gives the species its name.  You have to get a good look to see that ring, but this guy was close and he had his neck stretched out.  Here's a front view of the male Ring-necked Duck.

 

That was it for today.  I started my February list today with 32 species.  I didn't get anything new for any other lists (3-county list, 2019 list, or 5MR list).  The next several days are supposed to be cold, but there isn't supposed to be much precipitation.  A little snow is possible.  Hopefully, the light will be better for pictures.  Today was tough.

 

 

Sunday, February 3, 2019

 

It was cloudy today, with rain threatening, snow expected late.  I went to Marymoor Park first and looked for Green Heron, but I didn't hear or see one today.  I did add Downy Woodpecker and Bushtit to my February list, however.  I drove through the park, but I couldn't find the Northern Shrike or any meadowlarks.  I did see a single Killdeer, though, so that one went on my February list.

 

I drove out to the Snoqualmie Valley to Sikes Lake.  On the way I saw this Red-tailed Hawk on a wire.

 

 

It flew a short distance and then sat there when I approached in my car, so I took a picture from almost underneath the bird.

 

That was a new one for February.  A little farther down the road, I got this picture of a Dark-eyed Junco, a species I didn't need.

 

At the Sikes Lake bridge, I added Cackling Goose, Trumpeter Swan, and Great Blue Heron to my February list.  Sparrows weren't showing themselves anywhere today.  On the road south of Sikes Lake I added Spotted Towhee, House Sparrow, and Black-capped Chickadee.  Everything I was seeing was common, but I was racking up species.

 

On 310th Ave NE, I saw some birds by the side of the road.  There were robins and juncos, but there was another bird that looked interesting.  Here are a couple of pictures of the interesting bird.

 

 

By the time I got close enough for those pictures, I realized it was a female Purple Finch, an excellent one to get for February.  The male Purple Finch was there, too, but they both flew away before I could get a decent picture of the male.

 

I went on to the house in Carnation with feeders.  I soon added American Goldfinch there, and here's a picture of some of them.

 

I saw a Mourning Dove in a tree, but it was gone when I next looked for it, so I didn't get a picture.  It was another good one for February, though.  Later there were several Eurasian Collared-Doves around.  Here is a picture of a pair of Red-winged Blackbird, a species I had seen yesterday in Seattle.

 

A pair of House Finches flew in briefly, and I got this picture.  The red one is a male House Finch and the bird at the bottom that is just landing is a female House Finch, I think, although when I saw this picture it looked rather like a female Purple Finch.

 

There was an Anna's Hummingbird in a tree, so that one went on to my February list, too.

 

Next I picked up a sandwich at the Carnation Market and went to the end of Neal Road, near Fall City.  I was looking for blackbirds at the dairy across the river.  I scanned a lot of birds, but never found the rare Rusty Blackbird that has been reported there.  I did manage to add both Brewer's Blackbird and Brown-headed Cowbird to my February list, anyway.  A Common Raven flew into one of the trees across the river and called a few times, just to reassure me it was a raven and not a big crow.  That was another February bird.  I ate my sandwich there and periodically checked the trees with my scope.

 

I was close, so I drove up to Tokul Creek to look for a dipper.  There were people fishing there, so I figured the dippers would have moved to another part of the creek  Here is Tokul Creek with fisherpeople.

 

I scanned the creek with my binoculars anyway, and was pleased to find an American Dipper working the creek, beyond the second person on the left of the water.  Here is a very distant picture of the American Dipper.

 

The bird was working its way downstream, toward me, so I stuck around a while.  Here is a picture of the American Dipper when it got a little closer.

 

 

I would have waited around for it to get still closer, but I had just gotten some close dipper pictures a week or two ago, so I moved on.  I headed toward home, but I drove through Marymoor Park on the way, again looking for the same birds I had looked for earlier.  I found nothing new, and by the time I left there, a few snowflakes had started to fall.  By the time I got home, it was snowing lightly.  Here are a couple of pictures of our yard at about 4:30 this afternoon.

 

 

It's supposed to snow overnight, but snow here is tricky to predict.  All the conditions have to line up just right.  I'll see how it looks in the morning before I decide if I will go birding tomorrow.

 

Today I added 20 more to my February list, and now I have 52 species for February.

 

 

Monday, February 4, 2019

 

Well, it did indeed snow overnight.  This morning we had 5 inches of it on the ground.  Here are some pictures of the yard in the snow.

 

 

 

In addition to the snow, it was cold.  It was 23 degrees outside when I got up and I never saw it higher than 27 all day long.  It's supposed to get down to 17 tonight, and maybe not over freezing tomorrow at all.  That's pretty cold for around here, and the snow will obviously be around for days.

 

I didn't go out today, other than out to the street to take that last picture.  I did, however, get some birds for my February list and some bird pictures.  All my pictures from today, except one, were taken through windows, which doesn't help the quality, but here they are.

 

My first add for February was Bewick's Wren.  This little guy was around all day, eating the seed we put out.  Here it is with a Dark-eyed Junco.

 

Here are some shots of the Bewick's wren on its own.

 

 

 

 

At least one Black-capped Chickadee kept coming around, too.

 

 

There were Steller's Jays around, too.  I didn't get any pictures of them, but they went on to my February list.  There was also a Fox Sparrow for my list, which was a surprise.  I don't see Fox Sparrows here very often.  I never saw it out in the open, so I didn't get a picture.  Christina thawed out the hummingbird feeder and filled it with fresh sugar water.  A female Anna's Hummingbird was around most of the day, and I got some good close up pictures through the window.

 

 

That last picture looks more like a juvenile male Anna's Hummingbird to me now.

 

 

 

I saw her feeding a couple of times, but mostly she just sat there, presumably conserving her energy and maybe guarding the feeder.

 

Here is a Dark-eyed Junco, the most common bird today.

 

A male House Sparrow was around briefly.  This is the only bird picture from today that wasn't taken through a window.

 

So, despite staying in all day today, I added 3 more species to my February list, to give me 55 species so far this month.  I expect the snow to be around for days, and if it stays below freezing, as expected, I might not go out again tomorrow.  We'll see how adventurous I feel.

 

 

Thursday, February 7, 2019

 

I stayed in on Tuesday, as the Seattle area started digging itself out from the 5 to 10 inches of snow we got on Sunday overnight.  By Wednesday they had cleared the roads enough that I drove up to Everett to go out to lunch with my friend, Chris.  After I dropped him off after lunch, I drove to Mukilteo to look for some saltwater birds.  There was very little out there, but I did pick up Red-breasted Merganser, Surf Scoter, Horned Grebe, Red-necked Grebe, and Barrow's Goldeneye.  While en route I added Feral Pigeon to my February list.  Those 6 species brought my February total to 61 species.

 

That was yesterday, and today I went up to Edmonds.  It got down in to the teens again last night (the lowest I have seen this week here in our yard is 12), and it was still below freezing when I got to Edmonds.  My first stop was at the water treatment plant, to look for the Harris's Sparrow that has been around there.  All I saw were Golden-crowned Sparrows, though.  Here is a picture of one.

 

Next I went to the fishing pier, but there was little around.  I did manage to add Pelagic Cormorant to my February list, and here are a couple of pictures of a Pelagic Cormorant.

 

 

We had nice winter light today, which made photography good.  Pelagic Cormorants normally look black, but with the light coming from behind me and low in the sky, you can really see the iridescence of this bird.

 

Here's a shot of the Edmonds fishing pier, with the Olympic Mountains in the background.  There were fewer people on the pier than I ever remember seeing, probably because it was still about 32 degrees.

 

I saw three Pigeon Guillemots out on the water, and that was another February bird.  There were a number of Surf Scoters around, but I had gotten that one yesterday up at Mukilteo.  Here is a male Surf Scoter.

 

I also had seen Red-necked Grebe up at Mukilteo yesterday, but today I got this picture of one.

 

As I left the pier there was a female Belted Kingfisher sitting on the sea wall, presumably the same one I took pictures of a couple of weeks ago.  I took more pictures today.

 

 

 

I left her there, intently watching the water for a fish to come near the surface.  Between the pier and my car there was a Killdeer on some grass, so I took this picture.

 

I drove up to Sunset Avenue and looked around.  I added Harlequin Duck to my February list, and then Brant.  Here are a couple of Brant.

 

On the beach below the cliff was a single Black-bellied Plover, a good February bird.

 

 

I moved up the street a little way and looked again.  This time I spotted a male Black Scoter, another good February bird.

 

After that I drove by the Edmonds Civic Field.  Last month I had seen a Greater White-fronted Goose there, with some Canada Geese.  I saw two or three groups of geese today, but I couldn't find the Greater-White-fronted Goose  As I drove away, I looked again, and saw another little group of geese on the other side of the park.  They were too far away to see clearly, so I drove around, and by golly, my Greater White-fronted Goose was with them.  Here are three pictures of this great addition to my February list.

 

 

 

When I was taking the pictures I didn't even notice the obnoxious orange fencing behind the birds.  If I had noticed, I might have tried to go around to the side, to get it out of the pictures.

 

Next I drove up to Ocean Avenue.  I added Red-throated Loon and Pacific Loon to my February list there, and then I drove home.  This afternoon the Bewick's Wren came around again to eat seeds on our sidewalks, and I got a couple more pictures of it.

 

That picture really suffers from having been taken through a rather dirty window, and this next one even more so, but Bewick's Wren is such a cute little bird, I'm showing them both anyway.

 

I ended up adding 9 more species to my February list today, despite the fact that there weren't very many birds on the water at Edmonds today.  I had hoped to see the Black Turnstone and Surfbird I saw last month there, but no luck today.  Now I have 70 species for February.  I haven't been up to Skagit county yet this month, nor over to the Kitsap Peninsula, and I don't know when I might be able to do either of those things.  We are supposed to get another 5 to 8 inches of snow, starting tomorrow afternoon, and then there is the possibility of more snow, off and on all next week.  My birding is being affected by the weather, but it actually comes at a good time because I am kind of enjoying staying home more, for now.

 

 

Friday, February 8, 2019

 

The snow wasn't due to hit until this afternoon, so this morning I went over to Marymoor Park.  I drove through the park, but I didn't see anything from the car, so I went to the office to check out the feeders there.  I got this picture of a male Spotted Towhee in the snow.

 

Here's another picture of him with a Song Sparrow.

 

Here's one more of the male Spotted Towhee.

 

I walked around the path that goes around the grassy area in front of the mansion, but there weren't many birds at all.  I played the song of Golden-crowned Kinglet, though, and I did manage to attract one, a good one for my February list.  I wasn't quick enough to get a picture, though, before it flew off.  On the north side of the mansion, I played the song of Red-breasted Nuthatch, and two of them flew in and sang back to me.  I was able to get these three pictures of Red-breasted Nuthatch.

 

 

 

I was doing well with little birds, so I played the song of another one I needed for February.  A Chestnut-backed Chickadee showed up, but it stayed high up in the trees.  Here are a couple of distant pictures of it, high in the trees.

 

 

Next I drove along the side of the community gardens, but I only saw some sparrows I already had and I didn't get any pictures.  I parked at the west parking lot for the dog park and walked along the slough.  I spotted a Wilson's Snipe along the shore of the slough, but it flew off when I tried to get close enough for pictures.  It was an excellent February bird, though.  Later I saw a couple more of them across the slough.  Here's a picture of a Wilson's Snipe way across the slough, in poor light.

 

Here's a shot of two Wilson's Snipe across the slough.

 

Here are the two Wilson's Snipe and two male Green-winged Teal in front of them.

 

A little farther along, a Fox Sparrow showed itself.  I didn't need it, but here is a picture.

 

There were a couple of Northern Pintails in the slough, and I needed that one for February.

 

Here is a closer shot of one of the male Northern Pintails.

 

I didn't need the species, but here are pictures of a pair of Common Goldeneyes in the slough.  First, here is the male.

 

Here is the female Common Goldeneye.

 

There were a lot of sparrows around today, mostly Golden-crowned Sparrows, Fox Sparrows, and Song Sparrows.  I kept looking at them, hoping for something less common, and finally I was rewarded with a Lincoln's Sparrow, another good February bird.

 

It was pretty far away, so I approached to get a better picture.  Just as I decided I was close enough and set up to get a picture, it flew off.  I got this picture of the Lincoln's Sparrow just as it was taking off.

 

I ended up adding 6 species to my February list, and now I have 76 for February.  I got home about 12:15, and at about 12:45 the snow started to fall.  It will be interesting to see how much there is in the morning.  I would say we have gotten only about an inch so far, but they had been predicting 5 to 8 inches, so maybe it will continue to fall overnight.  I doubt I'll be going anywhere tomorrow, if that happens.  I just looked at an updated forecast, though, and it appears that there might not be much more snow tonight, so maybe I will venture out tomorrow, but I won't go far from home.  There is another round of snow due on Monday and Tuesday, so my birding will continue to be impacted, it sounds like.

 

 

Monday, February 11, 2019

 

I haven't been out birding since Friday, due to the continuing snow and sub-freezing weather, but today we had a lot of birds eating the seed we put out on the sidewalks.  I took pictures through the windows.

 

What got me going was the Bewick's Wren, because it is such a cute little bird.  Here are some pictures of the Bewick's Wren today.

 

 

 

Here's my favorite picture of the Bewick's Wren, looking at me through the window.

 

A Steller's Jay was attracted by the peanuts we put out.

 

 

 

 

A Spotted Towhee showed up several times, but it was pretty shy.

 

 

 

The pictures would have been sharper if I wasn't taking them through the dirty windows, but I still like them.  We had another 3 inches of snow last night, to make about 14 inches total here, in the last 8 days.  Here is what the back yard looked like from the back porch.

 

A Fox Sparrow made an appearance a few times, but it didn't come out into the open much.

 

 

There were two or three Song Sparrows around, too.

 

 

American Crows came around a few times, but they are rather shy and didn't pose much for pictures.

 

The most common species was Dark-eyed Junco.  Here is a female Dark-eyed Junco.

 

Here are a couple of pictures of male Dark-eyed Juncos.

 

 

Snow started to fall, and the birds seemed kind of desperate to get some food then.  Here are some juncos chowing down.

 

A Black-capped Chickadee came around a few times, but it didn’t sit still for long.

 

Here's a male House Finch.

 

Here's a House Finch that is either a female or a first year male.

 

Here are a couple more pictures of the Bewick's Wren.  I just can't resist the little cutie.

 

 

When the temperatures were in the teens and low 20's, there were no squirrels around, but as the temperature got up around freezing today, a single squirrel showed up and gave the peanuts a big play.  It mostly hauled them off somewhere, but in this picture it looks like it was planning to eat the peanut on the spot.

 

Here's the view from the garage, looking at the back porch and the driveway.

 

I didn't get anything new today, but over the weekend I did notice that I had overlooked counting White-crowned Sparrow and Golden-crowned Sparrow on Friday at Marymoor.  That brought up my February total to 78 species.  The snow is supposed to be over now, and the temperatures are supposed to be in the 30"s for most of the week.  Tomorrow looks to be rainy, but Wednesday could be a birding day for me, if the forecast holds.  I had fun today taking pictures from inside and watching the birds come and go.

 

 

Wednesday, February 13, 2019

 

I didn't do any birding on Tuesday, but today I went over to Marymoor Park.  There was still a lot of snow around, but they had plowed the roads in the park, so I drove around.  At one point I spotted a WESTERN MEADOWLARK under a tree, near the road.  It was my first one of the year.  I had been looking for that species at Marymoor all year long, and today in the snow I finally saw one.  Go figure.  I pulled over into a driveway and got out and took some pictures of the Western Meadowlark foraging under a tree in the snow.

 

 

 

 

It was very cool to get a year bird, especially with the snow covering everything.  Most of the parking lots were closed, but the west one at the off-leash dog park had been partially plowed, and it was open.  There were a couple of dozen cars there, and the hard core dog owners were walking their dogs.  Here is a picture of the plowed part of the parking lot.

 

Here are some people and their dogs.

 

I didn't have shoes for walking in the snow, so I only went to the edge of the slough, to the end of the plowed part.

 

I played some sparrow songs near the blackberry brambles, and some birds responded.  I saw Song Sparrows, a Ruby-crowned Kinglet, and some Golden-crowned Sparrows.  I also got this picture of a Spotted Towhee.

 

Three or four Fox Sparrows responded, too, and I got a couple of pictures of that species.

 

 

I didn't need any of those species, but it was nice to at least be seeing a few birds in the snow.  I drove through the park again, and this time I spotted the Northern Shrike that has been hanging out there this winter.  I had seen it in January, but this was my first February sighting.  Here's a distant picture of the Northern Shrike, taken from the car while I stopped in the road.

 

I drove to the office area and watched the feeders there for a few minutes.  Here's a female Downy Woodpecker at the suet feeder.

 

There were a few crows around, and I accepted the challenge of taking pictures of black birds against the white snow.

 

 

That was it for my birding today.  I added 2 more species to my February list, and now I have 80 species in February.  Western Meadowlark was new for the year and for King county this year, and now I have 132 species for the year and 95 in King county this year.  The snow will likely be around for a number of days still, and I have to figure out where I can go birding that doesn't involve walking in the snow, since I don't have good shoes for that.

 

 

Thursday, February 14, 2019

 

The snow is still hanging around, but it was in the mid-30's to low 40's today, so it's melting.  It rained this afternoon, too, and that will help it melt.  This morning I went up to Edmonds.  I walked out on the pier, but it wasn't a good day for it because it was pretty windy and there were waves.  In the sheltered part of the marina there was a pair of Barrow's Goldeneyes, which I didn't need, but they posed for pictures.  Here is the male Barrow's Goldeneye.

 

Here's the female Barrow's Goldeneye.

 

Here's the pair of them together.

 

It was cold and windy out on the pier, and the only thing I saw that I needed was a Glaucous-winged Gull, which is the most common gull around here, I think.  At least it was a February bird.  I didn't need it, but here's a picture of a Horned Grebe that was close to the pier.

 

I think grebes are interesting because their legs are located so far back on their bodies.  They can't really walk on land because of that, and I've only ever seen any grebe on land one time.  They don't fly very often, either, but they are great swimmers and divers.

 

Next I went over to the Edmonds Marsh.  I was hoping for Marsh Wren, but I couldn’t attract one.  I did see a couple of Bewick's Wrens and I got this picture of one of them.

 

There were some birds feeding on the ground, and one of them was a Yellow-rumped Warbler, which I needed for February.  It wouldn't stay still for pictures, and these two are the best I was able to do.

 

 

There were some sparrows feeding on the ground, too.  Most of them were Golden-crowned Sparrows, and here's one of them.

 

There was a mature White-crowned Sparrow with them.

 

There was also an immature White-crowned Sparrow, with different colors on its head.

 

I drove up to Sunset Avenue, and looked around.  With the wind and waves, there wasn't much to see.  I did manage to add Brandt's Cormorant to my February list, at least, but nothing else.  Then I drove to a little park I discovered in the town of Woodway.  The park is called Deer Creek Park, and it's actually only a couple of trails through the woods.  Here's the entrance to the trails.

 

It was snowy on the paths, but I had my hiking pole, and I was careful not to slip.  Here's the snowy path.

 

I've been able to attract both Pacific Wren and Brown Creeper there several times, but not every time I go there.  Today I couldn't get a response from a creeper, but I did attract a cute little Pacific Wren, so that one went on my February list.  As usual, it didn't stay still for a picture, and the best I could do is this one.

 

So, I ended up getting 4 species for my February list, and now I have 84 in February.  I also added 3 species to my 2019 Snohomish county list, to bring it to 81 species.  The snow is going to continue to impact my birding, but I'm hoping by Sunday and Monday I'll be able to get out and get some good February birds.

 

 

Saturday, February 16, 2019

 

I was going to do some local birding yesterday, but as I started out, I got a low tire pressure warning on my dashboard.  I was able to take care of some chores, and I had a doctor's appointment, but I spent about 4 hours on the tire issue, mainly waiting around the tire place for them to get around to me so they could fix it.  No birds for Friday.

 

Today I headed up north, to Skagit county.  It was supposed to be cloudy in the morning with a 25% chance of showers in the afternoon, but it ended up raining lightly all day long, with some heavier showers from time to time.  Most of my birding was from the car, although I did get out in the sprinkles a couple of times.

 

My first stop (after picking up a tuna sandwich at Subway) was at Eide Road, west of Stanwood, which is near the northern border of Snohomish county.  I got this picture of an immature Bald Eagle there.

 

I was hoping for Short-eared Owl there, but came up empty on that one.  I did manage to see a couple of Northern Harriers and a distant Rough-legged Hawk, at least, both for my February list.  I also saw a Greater Yellowlegs for my February list, and got this picture of it.

 

From there I went up into Skagit county, to Wylie Slough.  On the way I stopped to check out some swans, and saw a flock of Dunlin flying around.  That was a February bird. 

 

At Wylie Slough, I didn't feel like taking the time to do much walking, but I saw a pair of Northern Shovelers from the car. I got these two pictures of the male Northern Shoveler.

 

 

That was my first Northern Shoveler in February and my first of the year in Skagit county.  As a reminder, in addition to keeping a year and monthly lists, I'm also keeping a list for 2019 for each of three local counties - King, Snohomish, and Skagit.  I also still have my old spreadsheet of all 39 Washington counties, started in 2012, and I continue to update that when I see a new species in any Washington county.

 

I saw the Black Phoebe that has been hanging out there for over a year, so that one went on my February list, too.  Black Phoebe is rare around here, but I've seen this one a number of times in the last year.  It's interesting that it has hung out there, in a relatively small area, for over a year now.  It ought to be in California, but I guess it likes it at Wylie Slough.

 

I also saw a male Ring-necked Pheasant.  It was probably captive-bred and released for hunters, and as such, shouldn't be counted, but I'm not that much of a purist, and I added the species to my February list.

 

On my way out of the preserve, I stopped at a place where I have seen Brown Creeper before, and I played its call.  A Brown Creeper obligingly flew in and walked up several tree trunks, as I tried for pictures.  Here is the back of the Brown Creeper, as it crept up a tree trunk.

 

I don't usually see a Brown Creeper's face, but today I got lucky and got a picture as it turned toward me.

 

That was my first Brown Creeper of February and also my first in Skagit county this year.

 

As I returned to the main road, I counted 20 Bald Eagles in one short stretch of maybe a quarter of a mile.  They were everywhere today.

 

I drove in to Hayton Reserve, but I didn't get out of the car.  I saw a female Northern Harrier on the ground and tried for a picture, but all my pictures are out of focus for some reason.  I drove down Maupin Road to Rawlings Road and then to the North Fork Access for the Skagit WMA.  I was again hoping for Short-eared Owl, or maybe Virginia Rail or Marsh Wren, all of which I had seen or heard there last month.  No luck today, and I didn't play any calls because there were other birders there.  I did see my first Tundra Swan of February along Maupin Road, though.  As I was leaving that area, a small falcon flew toward me and then over me.  I thought it might have been a Merlin, so I turned around and went back.  I guess it was only an American Kestrel, though, because I found this female American Kestrel on a wire.

 

It was my first kestrel of February, at least, and I like the picture.  A Merlin would have been better, though.  I also saw a flock of Snow Geese flying over, so that one went on my February list, too.  It was lunch time, so I went to the house on Valentine Road that has feeders.  At the south end of Valentine Road there were three Mourning Doves on a wire.  I had that species for February, but they were the first in Skagit county for me this year.  Here is one of the Mourning Doves.

 

I parked at the feeder house and tried to eat my sandwich.  I say "tried" because it wasn't easy, because so many birds kept showing up.  They had obviously filled their feeders recently, and the joint was really jumping with birds.  I was very pleased to see my first VARIED THRUSH of the year, way in the back.  This was the best I could do for a picture of the Varied Thrush.

 

I looked up from trying to get pictures of the Varied Thrush and there was a lovely Red-breasted Sapsucker at the suet feeder.  It flew off before I could get a picture, and never came back.  It was an excellent February bird, though, and my first Red-breasted Sapsucker for Skagit county since I started keeping county lists in 2012.  That gives me 140 species in Skagit county, since 2012.  There were one or two Pine Siskins around, so that one went on my February list and also on my 2019 Skagit county list.  Here are a couple of pictures of Pine Siskins.

 

 

Here is a female Red-winged Blackbird.

 

Red-breasted Nuthatches came to the suet feeder a number of times, and I got this picture.

 

Here's a Golden-crowned Sparrow at a feeder.

 

A small flock of Bushtits came to the suet feeder, and that was a first for my 2019 Skagit county list.  Here are four of the Bushtits.

 

A couple of Mourning Doves were feeding way at the back, and I got this distant picture of one of them.

 

Chestnut-backed Chickadees kept coming to the suet, too, and I got this picture of one of them.

 

Here's a male Downy Woodpecker.

 

Finally, as I was getting ready to leave, a male Hairy Woodpecker flew in to the suet.  That was my main target species there today, one for my February list, and it showed up just in time.  Here is the male Hairy Woodpecker.  Check out how much larger its bill is than that of the much smaller Downy Woodpecker above.

 

It was raining fairly hard by then, and it was coming in my open window, through which I had been shooting all these pictures, so I moved on.  I had managed to finish my sandwich and veggies in between all the bird action.  I drove around a little on the way back, but didn't see anything else up in Skagit county.  I detoured as I came through Marysville, though, and went over to Tulalip Bay.  I was looking for the rare (for this area) Ruddy Turnstone that I had seen there last month, along with the Black Turnstones it hangs out with.  As I drove into the marina area, I spotted a small raptor in a tree, though, and went back to check it out.  Here's a mediocre picture of it.

 

It was either a Cooper's Hawk or its smaller cousin.  I decided it was my first SHARP-SHINNED HAWK of the year.  The top of the head is rounded, not flat like a Cooper's Hawk's, and the bottom corners of the tail are squared off, not rounded like a Cooper's Hawk's.  The final clincher was when it flew and chased a couple of crows.  It was clearly smaller than the crows, and that definitely made it a Sharp-shinned Hawk.  It was my first Sharp-shinned Hawk in Snohomish county since I started keeping track of county lists in 2012.  Now I have a total of 162 species in Snohomish county since 2012.

 

At the northwest end of the marina, the turnstones weren't on the log where they roost at high tide.  That was disappointing.  It was two hours past high tide, and I guessed they had moved on to forage along the shore somewhere, as the tide went out.  I did see a female Common Merganser, though, and I needed that one for 2019 in Snohomish county.  Here she is.

 

As I was taking pictures of her, she stood up and stretched her wings.

 

There were some gulls on another log, and I've seen turnstones on that log, too, so I took out my scope to check it out.  Nothing of interest on the log boom, but then I noticed that way across the bay, the tide was far enough out that there were some shorebirds and gulls on the beach.  There was a flock of Dunlin, but there were also some Black Turnstones, and that was a good February bird.  They were very distant, but by looking carefully I was able to pick out the Ruddy Turnstone among the Black Turnstones, so I ended up getting both species I was looking for there, although no pictures, since they were so far away.  Last time when they were on the close log, I had close pictures.

 

So, it was a very successful day of birding, despite the constant rain.  Much of the time the rain was very light, and I was in the car almost all the time, anyway.  I added 18 species to February, to give me 102 now this month.  Last year at this point I had 113, but I didn't add any more in 2018 until the 24th, so I have some time to catch up.  I want to go over to Fort Flagler, and I could add as many as 10 species there, if I got really lucky.  I'm hoping to go over there on Monday, GWATCDR.

 

Two of the species today were new for 2019, too, and now I have 134 for 2019.  Last year at this point I had 139, so I need some catch up there, too.  In January 2018 there were about 10 rarities that I chased and found, and that's going to be hard to make up for this year.

 

I added 7 species to my 2019 Skagit county list, and now I have 75 in Skagit county this year.  I added 2 to my 2019 Snohomish county list, and now I have 83 in Snohomish county in 2019.

 

That's too many numbers.  I think I've kind of gone overboard with lists this year, but once started, how can I abandon a list?

 

 

Sunday, February 17, 2019

 

Today I went up to Edmonds, specifically to look for a rarity that has been seen there a few times lately.  I went right to Sunset Avenue, and within five minutes of setting up my scope, I found the rare EARED GREBE offshore.  It was pretty far out, but I had a good view of it with my scope.  Here's a very distant picture of the Eared Grebe.

 

Here is a distant picture of a Horned Grebe, the only other possible species it could have been.  Note how much more white the Horned Grebe has on the lower half of its face and upper neck.  Also, the black cap doesn't go below the eye in Horned Grebe.

 

I was pretty sure of my identification, but I wanted to try for a better picture.  It was much closer to the jetty at Brackett's Landing, which is at the base of the cliff where I was, so I drove down to Brackett's Landing and walked out to the end of the jetty.

 

I located the bird in question again, and here's a closer picture of the Eared Grebe.

 

Here is an even closer picture of the Eared Grebe.

 

Finally, here is one more of a Horned Grebe, showing how much more white there is on the face and the way the black cap doesn't go below the eye level.

 

That was exciting, to find a rarity and a new 2019 bird, but while I was doing that I noticed an interesting gull right next to me.  The Eared Grebe was repeatedly diving, so I had time in between when it would surface to look at the gull closely.  I decided it was a WESTERN GULL, an uncommon gull here in the interior of Puget Sound.  I won't go into all the points of identification, but here is a picture of the bird and a close-up of its head.

 

 

Western Gull hybridizes readily with Glaucous-winged Gull, and it's possible this is a hybrid that is almost all Western Gull (like if it had a grandparent that was a Glaucous-winged Gull, or something), but it is close enough to a pure Western Gull that I'm counting it as such.  I was pretty pleased to have picked up two year-birds so quickly and easily.

 

I went back up to Sunset Avenue and looked for other things.  There were tons of Pacific Loons out there today, and I saw a couple of Red-throated Loons as well, but no Common Loons, the only local loon species I still need for February.  I counted over 40 Pacific Loons in one group, and there were other groups of them.  I think they must migrate in groups, because I often see them that way.  Pacific Loons breed in Alaska and northern Canada, and they winter all up and down the west coast, all the way down into Mexico.  These must have been on their way back north for the breeding season.

 

I saw a group of four birds way out there.  Three of them seemed to be Red-necked Grebes, but the other one was something different.  I wasn't sure what species it was, but it was north of where I was, so I went up to Ocean Avenue and managed to find them again, closer this time.  I decided eventually that the fourth bird was a Common Murre, one I was very pleased to get for February.  While I was there, I also saw a large group of dozens of Western Grebes, way offshore, and that was a February bird, too.

 

With four February birds under my belt, I headed back toward home.  On the way I stopped at the Edmonds Marsh, though, to look for Marsh Wren.  I couldn't call up a Marsh Wren, but I did see a cute little Bewick's Wren working its way along the edge of a sidewalk.  It seemed to be looking for bugs on the undersides of leaves.  It was very active, and I watched it work its way along the edge of the planting.  I know I have shown a lot of Bewick's Wren pictures lately, but this one was so cute that I can't resist showing a whole series of pictures of it as it chased bugs and never stayed still for long.

 

 

 

 

 

 

A few minutes later a Spotted Towhee flew in and perched for just a few seconds, and I shot this picture of it.

 

I think Spotted Towhees are very photogenic.

 

I headed for home, but I made one more stop, at the house in Lake Forest Park that has Band-tailed Pigeons that come to the feeder there.  There were three Band-tailed Pigeons at the top of a tall tree, right where they usually hang out.  My pictures, didn't turn out, but I had a good look before they flew away and didn't return.  That was another February bird for me. 

 

I went home and had lunch, but it was nice this afternoon, and I hadn't yet gone to Log Boom Park this month to look for Canvasbacks.  I looked it up, and Canvasback hadn't been reported there for a couple of weeks, but there isn't really any other reliable place for me to look for them, and it seemed like a nice afternoon for an outing, so I went over to Log Boom Park, which is in Kenmore and only about ten or twelve minutes from home.  I walked out on the dock and got this picture of a female Common Merganser that I like.

 

I like the way the water around the birds ripples and flows.  I went out near the end of the dock and scoped the water.  There were dozens of Common Mergansers, both males and females, some Scaup, some Buffleheads, a few Gadwalls, a number of cormorants, some Wood Ducks way over near the other shore, and finally I spotted two male Canvasbacks, an excellent February bird.  My quest was a success!

 

On the way back to the car, there was a different female Common Merganser sitting on the end of a log that was sticking up out of the water, and I took this picture.  I like the feather detail and also the great hair-do she has.

 

I added 6 more species to my February list today, to give me 108 species for February now.  Two of those were new for the year, too, and now I have 136 species in 2019.  Eared Grebe and Western Gull were new for Snohomish county for the year (obviously, since they were new for 2019 as well), and now I have 85 species this year in Snohomish county.

 

The weather is supposed to be good again tomorrow, and I hope to take a ferry across Puget Sound and go to Fort Flagler.  Last month I went there and then went on to Sequim and spent the night, but this time I plan to come home tomorrow afternoon after seeing what I can find at Fort Flagler and other points along the way.  I could get 4 to 8 species for my year list, depending on how lucky I am.  It would have almost certainly been more, but I've gotten several species in the last two days that I'll probably see again tomorrow.

 

 

Monday, February 18, 2019

 

I was going to go across Puget Sound today, to Fort Flagler, but I did some more research and it looks like some of the birds I wanted to see there are gone now for the season.  At least, they haven't been reported lately.  So, I decided to go up to the Anacortes area, in Skagit county, mainly to try to get some saltwater birds for my 2019 Skagit county list - especially the winter ones that will be moving north in a month or so.  I had a few February birds on my wish list, too.

 

My first stop today was at the North Fork Access, at the end of Rawlings Road.  I played various songs and calls, but the only response I got was a Virginia Rail, one time only.  That was a good February bird, but it was remarkable how few birds there were there today.

 

I moved on from there to March Point.  My main hope there was Black Oystercatcher, although I don’t usually see them when I go there.  Today was my lucky day in that respect, though, and I found five of them on the beach, right next to the road.  Here is a Black Oystercatcher, a great February bird.

 

Here's one looking right at me, giving a different view of the bird.

 

They were foraging in the rocks on the beach.

 

Here are two Black Oystercatchers.

 

Here's a shot of four of the five Black Oystercatchers.

 

I had been hoping for some saltwater birds offshore, but there was very little out there today.  It was windier than I expected, too, with waves that made distance viewing tough.  I did pick up a bunch of Brant, way out there, and that was a good one for my 2019 Skagit county list.  Black Oystercatcher was new for Skagit county in 2019, too.  The only other thing I got off March Point was a Common Loon, for my February list.

 

I drove into Anacortes and picked up a sandwich at Subway, then went out to a place called Ship Harbor Interpretive Preserve, near the Anacortes ferry terminal.  Again, I was hoping for some saltwater birds, and again, there was very little there.  I scoped around and saw some Surf Scoters, which I didn't need for any lists, and then I saw a small grebe.  I would have probably just put it down as a Horned Grebe, but after yesterday, when I saw Eared Grebe at Edmonds, it struck a chord.  This was an Eared Grebe, too.  It is just about as rare in Skagit county as in Snohomish county, where I saw one yesterday.  It was my first Eared Grebe in Skagit county since I started keeping county records in 2012.  There were some Pigeon Guillemots there, too, and that was new for Skagit county for me since 2012, too.

 

I went on to Washington Park and drove around the loop, which has views of the water.  I added Red-necked Grebe to my 2019 Skagit county list, and then I saw a pair of Harlequin Ducks, another 2019 Skagit county bird for me.  Here is a male Harlequin Duck.

 

Here is the much less colorful female Harlequin Duck.

 

I didn't need it, but I like this picture of a male Red-breasted Merganser, looking back at me as it swam away.

 

I had seen a Common Loon earlier at March Point, but there were 3 or 4 more of them off Washington Park.  Here's a Common Loon.

 

I only saw three cormorants while on that loop drive, but I saw both species I needed for my Skagit county list (2012 version, and of course, 2019 also).  Here is a juvenile Pelagic Cormorant.

 

The brown color tones indicate that it is a juvenile.  Here is a Brandt's Cormorant.

 

Both of those cormorant pictures were quite distant and in terrible lighting conditions.  Both were merely silhouettes when they came out of the camera, and I had to process the heck out of them to make the birds even recognizable.

 

I parked and ate my sandwich in the car.  It was about 40 degrees outside, but it felt a lot colder, maybe because of the breeze.  I did sit on a bench to take those cormorant pictures, though, and there were birds around me then.  There were several Song Sparrows, a Dark-eyed Junco, and a Spotted Towhee.  Then a Chestnut-backed Chickadee flew in.  I didn't need any of those for any lists, but the chickadee landed right at my feet almost, about 2 or maybe 3 feet away from me.  Here are a couple of shots of the Chestnut-backed Chickadee from very close.

 

 

The chickadee found something to eat and took it up into a tree to work on it.  I got a couple more pictures of it in the tree.

 

 

When I finished my sandwich, I headed for home.  I had planned to go to Rosario Beach, but I already had Black Oystercatcher, which is the specialty there, and I wanted to stop a couple of places on the way, so I headed for home.  I stopped again at the Ship Harbor Interpretive Preserve and got Horned Grebe for my 2019 Skagit county list.  I saw the Eared Grebe again, and the difference from the Horned Grebe was obvious.  I also stopped at Wylie Slough and walked around a little.  I saw a Golden-crowned Kinglet in a tree, and that was a 2019 Skagit county bird.  There was a hawk on top of a snag, and I decided it was a Cooper's Hawk, rather than the smaller Sharp-shinned Hawk.  That was an excellent February bird.  Here are a couple of pictures of the Cooper's Hawk.

 

 

The weather today was overcast, and that made the light very flat and not good for pictures.  It seemed like there were very few birds everywhere I went today, too.  It didn't feel like a very good day of birding, but somehow I managed to get 4 more species for my February list, to bring me to 112 species now.  My main goal had been to get some Skagit county birds for that list, and I added 11 species to my 2019 Skagit county list, to give me 86 species now in that county this year.  Four of those species were my first since I started keeping county lists in 2012, too, and now I have 144 species in Skagit county since 2012.

 

I don't have very many more species I can go looking for in February now, but I'll probably add one or two here and there.  I'm at 112 species now, and I seriously doubt I'll get to 120 unless I do something unusual.

 

 

Wednesday, February 20, 2019

 

Today I decided to go on a three-cornered trip to the north, to look for three specific species.  My first stop was at Tambark Pond, in Mill Creek.  Last month I had seen a pair of Cinnamon Teal there, and that species is quite uncommon around here in the winter.  With the freezing weather we have had, I didn't know if the teal would have hung around or not, but I drove up there to find out.  I was surprised when I got there to find that the pond was mostly still frozen over, but there were ducks around the edges.  The first thing I saw was a male Hooded Merganser, not a species I needed, but one I think is striking in appearance, so I took his picture.

 

I looked around and soon found the female Cinnamon Teal, a great February bird.  She was in the reeds, so pictures were tough, but here is one that at least shows her, even if she is a bit blurry there are reeds in between her and the camera.

 

Here’s a shot that is better focused, but the reeds are still in the way.

 

She moved out of sight, and I couldn't find the male, so I don't know if he is still around or not.  With all the reeds and vegetation, I was lucky to find her at all.

 

There was a Great Blue Heron on a post, so I took its picture.

 

My first stop was successful, to my pleased surprise, so I headed for my second stop, which was Lake Tye, near Monroe.  I had never been there before, but a rarity had been reported there the last two days, so I decided to give it a shot.  I went to the south end of the lake, where the bird had been seen yesterday and the day before, but it wasn't there.  I got out my scope and looked around the lake, and I spotted it at the north end of the lake - an AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN.  That is rare here at any time, but especially in the winter.  One has been reported a number of times this winter in the fields near Lake Tye, so presumably this was the same bird.  It should be down in California at this time of year, and they breed inland, from eastern Oregon up into Canada and the Rocky Mountains.  A few have been showing up here in the summer, but they don't breed around here, and they very rarely stay for the winter, like this bird seems to have done.  I had gone looking for it once before, last fall, but hadn't found it.  I drove up to the north end of the lake and found it again.  Here are some pictures of the out-of-place-and-season American White Pelican.

 

 

 

I was two for two after that, so I headed for my third stop, which was Cottage Lake, east of Woodinville.  I took a road through the Paradise Valley Conservation Area, which I had never visited before, and came to Cottage Lake by the back way.  I was looking for Ruddy Duck, which I had seen there a month or two ago.  Cottage Lake was still mostly frozen over, too, like Tambark Pond, but again, there were ducks around the edges where it had thawed.  I saw several duck species, but no Ruddy Ducks.  They are deep water diving ducks, and the water around the edges that wasn't frozen was probably too shallow for their liking, so they moved on.

 

I ended up getting two of the three species I was looking for today, which exceeded my expectations.  The two species I got were the two tough ones, too; I should be able to get Ruddy Duck at the Everett Sewage Ponds, I hope.  Those two February birds (Cinnamon Teal and American White Pelican) give me 114 species for February now.  The pelican was new for the year and now I have 137 species in 2019.  It was also the first time I have seen American White Pelican in Snohomish county since I started keeping county records in 2012, and now I have 163 species in Snohomish county since then.  It gives me 86 species in Snohomish county this year so far, too.

 

The weather is supposed to be good tomorrow, but there is so little I still need that I'm not sure where I'll go.  We will see.

 

 

Thursday, February 21, 2019

 

My first destination today was Marymoor Park.  I went to the rowing club pond in the hopes of seeing a Green Heron, but the pond was still frozen over.  I drove around to the west parking lot for the dog park and walked along the slough.  I looked carefully for a Green Heron along the slough, but never found one.  I did see a Belted Kingfisher, though, across the slough.  The pictures are kind of distant, but I like the species, so here they are.  In the first one the bird is preening and showing its tail pattern.

 

 

In this last one, it almost looks like the bird has two eyes on this side of its head, because of the white spot in front of the eye.

 

There were a few ducks in the slough.  Here's a female Common Goldeneye.

 

Here is the more striking-looking male Common Goldeneye.

 

The light was right to see the iridescence of his head.  Speaking of iridescence, male Buffleheads normally look black and white, but this one had the sun on him just right to show his colors.

 

Here's an American Coot, with its striking red eye.  Taking a picture of a black bird is always a challenge, and in this case, the white bill made it even harder.

 

I didn't need any of those birds, and I headed to my car to leave.  As I approached my car, though, I heard a bird call in the medium distance.  I thought I recognized it, but I wasn't positive at first.  I walked toward the sound and played the call on my phone.  In a couple of minutes, I heard another call, and it was definitely a PILEATED WOODPECKER, my first of the year.  I walked around under the tall trees where the sound was coming from, and the bird called at least a half dozen times while I was there, but I never got a glimpse of it.  Still, since I count "heard only" birds for my lists, I had it.  A lot of branches were down, due to the snow load of the last week or so.  Here's a picture of that part of Marymoor Park, with some of the broken branches.

 

As you can see, the last of the snow is still around.

 

Next I headed out to the Snoqualmie Valley, partly just to see what it looked like after the snow.  I drove through the Evans Creek Preserve, as usual, and saw a pair of Wood Ducks.  Here's the female Wood Duck.

 

That's ice behind her.

 

Here is the male Wood Duck.

 

Here's a picture of the pair of Wood Ducks.

 

Out in the Snoqualmie Valley the fields were still covered with snow, so it was very white and bright out there.  I tried to find sparrows, but all I found were a few Song Sparrows.  Sikes Lake wasn't frozen, and there were more ducks there than usual, but no swans.  I drove around a bit, then went into Carnation and got a sandwich at the Carnation Market.  I ate my sandwich in the parking lot for the Stillwater Access to the Snoqualmie Wildlife Area, but there was still too much snow on the trail for me, so after I ate, I moved on north.  I drove up West Snoqualmie River Road NE, but I didn't see anything interesting or get any pictures worth showing.  I headed for home and stopped at Cottage Lake, where I had looked for Ruddy Duck yesterday.  There was less ice on the lake today, but still no Ruddy Ducks.

 

So, I had a nice drive around, and it was interesting to see everything in the lingering snow.  To top it off, I added Pileated Woodpecker to my lists, and now I have 138 species this year, 115 in February, and 96 in King county this year.  The next couple of days are supposed to be windy and wet, so I don't know if I'll get out or not.

 

 

Friday, February 22, 2019

 

There was a short window in the weather forecast this morning, indicating that the rain showers might be absent for about an hour, so I headed over to Marymoor Park again.  I was there yesterday, looking for the Green Heron that has been wintering there.  I missed it yesterday, but the people on the weekly Marymoor birding walk had found it, right in one of the places I had looked.  They would have been at that spot a couple of hours before I was there, so I guess the bird moved on.  I parked and walked along the slough to where it had been reported.  It has been seen at that same spot a number of times in recent weeks, on or near a beaver lodge.  They also had seen 3 California Quail yesterday, and I don't have that species yet this month, so I was watching for that one, too, across the slough at the first dog beach.  I didn't see any quail, and I couldn't find the Green Heron anywhere along the slough.  I did see a Belted Kingfisher, presumably the same one I had taken pictures of yesterday.  Yesterday it was fairly far away, across the slough, but today it was on my side, and I got a couple of close pictures of the male Belted Kingfisher today.

 

 

The same ducks were in the slough as yesterday, and I got another picture of the male Common Goldeneye.

 

It started to rain, so I left.  On my way to my car, I saw a Lincoln's Sparrow, which is a good bird, although I didn't need it for any lists at this point.  I tried for a picture, but my camera was too slow to focus and I missed it.

 

I drove around to the rowing club pond, just to see if the ice on it had melted enough that the Green Heron might be there.  The ice had indeed melted some, and there was some open water around the edges.  No Green Heron, though.  I walked down to the slough, to look up and down river for the Green Heron, but no luck there, either.  I did see a couple of Double-crested Cormorants on a snag, and although I didn't need that one either, I took this picture of them.

 

The black one is an adult Double-crested Cormorant, and the lighter colored one is a juvenile, hatched last year.

 

That was it for today.  No birds for any lists, and only a few pictures.  Not every day is a success when you are birding, but at least I got out and walked a bit.  It was much better than sitting in an office working, and better than sitting at home reading, too.

 

 

Saturday, February 23, 2019

 

It wasn't raining this morning, but it was fairly windy.  I went up to Totem Lake, which is only about a mile away from home, to look for Marsh Wren.  I walked around and played Marsh Wren songs, but I never got a sniff of one.  I did see a couple of Ruby-crowned Kinglets, though, in two places.  When I saw the second one, I decided to try for a picture, and I played its song.  The bird responded strongly, flashing its red crown, which is normally hidden, and flitting around me.  It never stayed still for long, but I managed to get three pictures that are marginally good enough to show.  Ruby-crowned Kinglet, with its crown exposed.

 

 

 

After that I decided to drive over to Marymoor Park and try again for Green Heron, for the third day in a row.  I skipped the location along the slough because on a Saturday morning, there would be so many dogs and their owners just across the slough (and dogs swimming in the slough) that I didn't think the heron would be there.  I went to the rowing club pond instead.  The ice had melted more, and there was open water around the edges and in the pond on the south side of the roadway, but I didn't see the Green Heron.

 

I headed toward home, but I got the bright idea of checking out another place in Redmond where I have seen Green Heron in the past.  It's a trashy looking stormwater retention pond on the edge of downtown Redmond.  Not many people bird there, I don’t think, so I thought that the fact that there hadn't been any reports of Green Heron there this year might not mean that there wasn't one there.  It was only a slight detour, so I gave it a shot.  I parked in what is probably not a legal place and walked along the edge of the pond.  I didn't see anything, so turned back toward my car.  Then I suddenly realized that there was a Green Heron sitting right out in the open, only about 30 feet off the path, on the other sided of a chain link fence.  It had its head tucked in, so I had missed it the first time I went past it.  Here is the Green Heron with its head tucked in, snoozing.

 

I watched for a few minutes and it woke up and showed its face.

 

I moved down a bit and got a slightly different angle on it.

 

Finally, here is a close up shot showing the feathers well.

 

Green Heron was a great one for my February list.  They are uncommon around here at any time of year, and most of them migrate south for the winter.  I wonder if this one has been at that pond all winter.  Maybe the best thing about seeing it there was that it was within my 5 Mile Radius circle, so it went on my 5MR list.  Marymoor Park is just outside of my 5 mile circle, so the ones I see there wouldn't count on that list.

 

While I was shooting pictures of the Green Heron, I played Marsh Wren songs off and on, and some House Finches responded.  A couple of American Goldfinches flew in and looked at me, too.  Here is an American Goldfinch.

 

 

I was pleased with the Green Heron, and I continued on toward home.  I detoured again, though, because I wanted to check out the area around the fire station road at Juanita Bay Park.  They have been restoring the wetlands there, and I wanted to see how they were doing.  They have taken out a lot of non-native vegetation, and I assume they are going to plant some native plants.  The sign says the work will go on until June, and it will be interesting to see how it all turns out and how much they restore.  I got this picture of a Song Sparrow there.

 

As I was leaving, I saw a large dark bird fly in, and it was a female Pileated Woodpecker.  It landed on a dead snag and started pecking away, presumably looking for bugs under the bark.

 

Here she is stretching out to get a bug, I think.

 

Here's a close up shot showing her tongue, as she tried to slurp up a bug.

 

It was hard to pull myself away from such a great photo op, and here is one last picture of the female Pileated Woodpecker.

 

I had heard a Pileated Woodpecker over at Marymoor earlier this week (just outside of my 5 mile circle), so it wasn't new for February for me, but this one was within my 5 Mile Radius circle, so it went on my 5MR list.

 

I was pleased with the Green Heron and the Pileated Woodpecker, so I went home and had lunch and read for a while  Just after 3:00 I checked my computer and happened to notice that there was an interesting eBird report from this morning.  A group of birders reported 7 Ruddy Ducks at Phantom Lake in Bellevue.  I still needed that one for February, and Ruddy Ducks aren't very common around here.  I had tried twice this week at Cottage Lake, but it was too frozen over, and I missed them there.  I hopped in my car and drove to Phantom Lake, to see if I could find them.  I left my scope in the car because I thought I wouldn’t need it, and I walked down to the lake.  I saw a few ducks around the edges, and one or two out in the middle, but no Ruddy Ducks.  Here is a male Greater Scaup.

 

Here's one of the two female Hooded Mergansers I saw.

 

I scanned around the lake several times, and on about my 4th time, I noticed some ducks way on the other side of the lake.  I couldn’t tell what they were with my binoculars, so I took some pictures at full zoom.  The pictures were suggestive, but I couldn't be sure of the identification.  Here's one of the pictures, and you can see why I couldn't identify the ducks.

 

Later I looked on Google Maps and I calculated that those ducks were about 600 yards away, about a third of a mile.  I thought they looked rather like they could be Ruddy Ducks, so I walked back to my car and got my scope.  Back at the end of the dock, I looked through my scope, and sure enough, they were Ruddy Ducks, an excellent February bird.  While driving home I thought about how strange it was that I would drive for 20 or 25 minutes to see one duck species, then turn around and go home again.  This birding gig is pretty strange.

 

So, I ended up adding two species to my February list, to give me 117 species now in February.  I also added two species to my 5 Mile Radius list, and now I have counted 73 species within 5 miles of home this year.  No new year-birds and no new county birds today.  The weather forecast keeps changing, but right now it looks like I can do some birding over the next 3 or 4 days, although there really isn't much I can go looking for specifically.  I'd like to get Marsh Wren, but they just don’t seem to respond to playback very much in the winter, and they are quite secretive as well, outside of breeding season.

 

 

Sunday, February 24, 2019

 

Today I headed up to Edmonds, despite the forecast for windy conditions.  My first stop was Richmond Beach Saltwater Park, to look for California Quail.  I walked down to the pedestrian bridge over the railroad tracks, but didn't see or hear any quail today.  I did see a pair of Harlequin Ducks, though, and that was a new one for King county for me, since I started keeping county records in 2012.  Of course, it was new for 2019 as well, by definition.

 

I drove to Kayu Kayu Ac Park, just north of there, and there wasn't much out there.  I did manage to see some Pigeon Guillemots, though.  A couple of them were just across the county line in Snohomish county, I think, but I decided that two of them were on the King county side.  That was another new King county bird for me, since 2012.  I may have seen that species before, but I never added it to my spreadsheet until today.

 

I headed up to Edmonds, but I had to drive through Woodway on the way.  I had noticed a report on eBird that listed California Quail just yesterday, at the end of 238th St SW, and I was going right by there, so I drove a block and a half off my route to check it out.  Within a minute of arriving there, I heard a very clear, very close call from a California Quail.  Talk about perfect timing.  I stuck around for another 10 or 15 minutes and only heard one more quail call, more distant this time.  It was not only a great February bird, it was my first ever California Quail in Snohomish county.  I've seen (or heard) them a number of times at Richmond Beach Saltwater Park, and that is only a mile or two away, but the county line is in between.  eBird comes through for me again.

 

With a February bird under my belt, I went on into Edmonds.  I stopped at Edmonds Marsh and used playback for Marsh Wren, but never attracted one.  I moved on to the fishing pier, in the hopes of seeing the Surfbird that has been hanging out there, but couldn't find it.  There was very little out on the water, and the wind was up so there were waves, which made birding tough, anyway.  I did see a pair of Black Scoters, close to shore, between the pier and the ferry dock.  They don't usually come that close to shore, so I took some pictures.  I already had that one this month, but it's a good bird.  Here is the male Black Scoter, a fairly uncommon bird around here.

 

Here's a picture of the pair of Black Scoters.

 

Here's the female Black Scoter on her own.

 

There was a merganser there, too.  I had to look it up because the plumage was a bit strange, and I think it was a juvenile male Red-breasted Merganser.  The black spot around the eye is the clue.  This bird is just starting to molt into the adult plumage of a male Red-breasted Merganser.

 

Here is the juvenile male Red-breasted Merganser and the male Black Scoter in the same frame.

 

You can see the waves in that picture, and this was in a sheltered, protected area, not out on the open water.  Here is one more picture of the pair of Black Scoters.

 

After that, I stopped up on Sunset Avenue, but there was very little out there in the wind and waves.

 

I added one more to my February list today (California Quail), and now I have 118 species in February.  That's respectable, and I might not get any more for February.  I added 2 to my King county lists, and now I have 98 species in King county this year and 187 total, since 2012.  I added 1 to my Snohomish county lists, too, and now I have 87 this year and 164 total, since 2012.

 

We are supposed to get some decent weather for the rest of the month (cold, dry, and a bit windy), but there isn't much for me to look for.  I'll see what I can do.

 

 

Monday, February 25, 2019

 

Today I drove north to North Creek Park, a park I hadn't ever even heard of before, let alone visited.  It's about 15 or 20 minutes north of home, in Snohomish county. There were eBird reports of Marsh Wrens there, and I wanted to check it out.  It's a nice park, with some evergreen trees at the south end, around the parking lot, and a floating boardwalk that goes across a marshy area.  I wanted to walk out on the boardwalk and play Marsh Wren songs, hoping to attract one.  I was surprised to see that there was still snow on the first part of the boardwalk.  Here's a picture of the beginning of the boardwalk, at the south end.

 

I'm very cautious about falling when I'm out birding, and I was reluctant to venture out onto the snow-covered boardwalk, for fear of slipping.  I ended up doing it, though, and the boardwalk was actually bare and dry after a short distance.  I cautiously walked out there and played Marsh Wren songs, but got no responses.  All I saw there were 2 or 3 Song Sparrows and a Ruby-crowned Kinglet.  I decided to give up the Marsh Wren hunt and I went back to the parking lot area, with its evergreen trees.  I needed several species for my 2019 Snohomish county list, so I concentrated on that.  First I played a Golden-crowned Kinglet song, and I soon attracted one.  Of course, as usual, it wouldn't sit still for pictures.  I kept playing the song, though, and eventually I had three Golden-crowned Kinglets flitting around, showing off their crown.  I kept trying for pictures, and most of them were crap, but here are the best ones.

 

 

Here's what you get when you are just a fraction of a second too late taking the picture.

 

 

 

Here's one of the Golden-crowned Kinglets feeding.

 

I also played the song of Chestnut-backed Chickadee, and I saw two of them, high up in a tree.  They were too far away for a picture, and I had recently gotten good pictures of Chestnut-backed Chickadees, so I didn't take the time to try to lure them down lower.  I tried another species I needed, and I attracted a couple of Red-breasted Nuthatches.  They didn't sit still for pictures, either, and the only one I got that is halfway decent is this one.  Red-breasted Nuthatch.

 

While I was chasing those species around trying for pictures, a Red-breasted Sapsucker flew into a tree and then away again.  That was another good one for my 2019 Snohomish county list. On my way back to the car I saw some birds feeding on the ground, and they included Song Sparrow, Spotted Towhee, Dark-eyed Junco, and a Fox Sparrow.  I didn't need any of those, though, and I didn't get any pictures, although I tried for the Fox Sparrow.  I did take this picture of another one I didn't need, an American Robin that posed for me in the sunshine.

 

I was almost back to my car when I heard a Red-tailed Hawk calling.  I looked up and it was circling overhead.  Here's a picture of the Red-tailed Hawk flying overhead.

 

Pictures of flying birds are tough with my little camera, but I like that one very much.  Here's another picture of the Red-tailed Hawk as it flew away.

 

After that I picked up my buddy, Chris, in Everett and we went to lunch.  After lunch I drove to Mukilteo to try for Marbled Murrelet there, but it was windy and there were not only waves, there were whitecaps.  There were a few ducks near shore, and I got this picture of a male Barrow's Goldeneye.

 

Here's the female Barrow's Goldeneye that was with him.

 

I didn't get any new February birds today, but I added to my Snohomish county lists.  I added 4 species to my 2019 Snohomish county list - Golden-crowned Kinglet, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Red-breasted Nuthatch, and Red-breasted Sapsucker.  It was the first time I have recorded Golden-crowned Kinglet and Red-breasted Nuthatch in Snohomish county since I started keeping county records in 2012, so that was satisfying.  Now I have 91 species in Snohomish county this year and 166 species total, since 2012.

 

The weather forecast continues to be excellent for the next week or more, so I'll have to see what else I can find.  February is winding down and March will soon be here, with its new monthly list.

 

 

Tuesday, February 26, 2019

 

It was a beautiful sunny winter day today, and I went over to the Snoqualmie Valley to see if I could call up a Marsh Wren.  I've been trying for Marsh Wren all over the place, all month long, and I had seen a couple of them in December at the Stillwater Unit of the Snoqualmie Valley Wildlife Area.  I stopped out in the valley a couple of places to try for sparrows, but I never saw anything interesting.  At Stillwater, I was glad to see that the snow had mostly melted.  I was there last Thursday, and there was still too much snow on the ground for me to venture out onto the trail.  Today it was fine.  Here's a view of the Snoqualmie Valley Trail, looking north.

 

There was almost no snow on the trail heading south from there, which is where I was going.  Here's a view across the fields from the trail.

 

From that spot, I played the song of Marsh Wren, and one responded right away.  It flew across that water in the foreground and posed for me.

 

 

 

 

As you can see, it was quite cooperative.  I finally had found a Marsh Wren that was responsive to playback in February.  That was not only a February bird, it was my first Marsh Wren in King county this year.

 

I had what I wanted, but it was such a lovely morning that I walked down the trail, anyway.  I didn't see anything much, other than a few Song Sparrows, but I enjoyed the walk in the sunshine.  Here's a view of the trail, looking back north.  There was more water there than I have seen before.

 

The trail is an old railroad right-of-way and is up on a dike.  It runs all the way up the valley, from Duvall to Fall City, with a connection of some kind up to the North Bend area.   I normally will see dog walkers, joggers, and bikers on the trail, but today I never saw anyone else.

 

There wasn't really anything else for me to look for out there, so I headed back toward home.  I stopped again at Sikes Lake for sparrows, but again got skunked.  Here's a picture of one end of Sikes Lake in the winter sunshine.

 

There were more ducks on the lake than usual, including a male Eurasian Wigeon.  Eurasian Wigeons should be in Asia now, not here, but each winter a small number of them migrate south down the wrong side of the Pacific Ocean with American Wigeons.  Here are four wigeons.

 

The one with the red head, on the left is the male Eurasian Wigeon.  The next one is a female, and the other two are male American Wigeons.  Here's a picture of the male Eurasian Wigeon with one of the male American Wigeons.

 

There were a few Trumpeter Swans around, and while I was there, these two flew in, and I got this picture of them landing on the lake.

 

That was it for my birding for today.  Marsh Wren (finally!) gives me 119 species for February and 99 species for King county this year.  There are just two more days left in February, and then I get to start a new list for March.

 

 

Wednesday, February 27, 2019

 

There was very little I could go look for today that I needed for February, so I concentrated on getting a bird or two for my 5 Mile Radius list (within five miles of home).  On my way to my first stop, I saw a Glaucous-winged Gull on a light pole between our local McDonald's and Burger King.  I needed that one for my 5MR list.

 

I drove on to Costco because Brewer's Blackbirds hang out there, and I need that one still.  In the summer when the food court doors are open, they are all over the place, but not so much in the winter.  I didn’t see any today.

 

Next I drove to the Lake Washington shoreline south of Kirkland.  At the first park, there were some Canvasbacks near the shore.  I didn't need Canvasback for any lists today, but that's a great species, and I wanted pictures.  Here is a male Canvasback.

 

Here is a pair of Canvasbacks.  The female is less colorful, as is usual with ducks.

 

Here are two females and a male Canvasback.

 

There was a female Lesser Scaup there, too.

 

There were also a couple of Horned Grebes out on the lake.

 

I moved on to the second park along that stretch, and found the species I was looking for - Killdeer.  Killdeer are common, but not so much within my five mile circle, so I was glad to find a couple of them.  Here is a Killdeer.

 

At that stop there was a large raft of coots and ducks out on the lake.  Beyond them, there was a group of scaup.  Here's a picture that shows the coots, ducks and scaup.  The scaup are the group on the right, off by themselves a bit.  The group in the foreground are American Wigeons.  You can see part of the Seattle skyline in the distance.

 

Here's a shot showing some Canvasbacks with coots behind them.

 

The American Wigeons were on the grass part of the time, and there were 3 or 4 Eurasian Wigeons mixed in with them.  That is a lot of Eurasian Wigeons for the number of American Wigeons (maybe 25 or 30 total?).  Here is a male Eurasian Wigeon.

 

One of the Eurasian Wigeons was unusual in its coloration.  It might have been a hybrid of American Wigeon and Eurasian Wigeon.  Here it is.

 

I went on down to the third park, Houghton Beach Park, but I didn't see anything I needed there, although I did see dozens of Western Grebes, way out on the lake.

 

I added 2 more species to my 5MR list today, and now I have 75 species within 5 miles of home this year. 

 

I plan to go across Puget Sound tomorrow, ending up in Sequim for the night.  I hope to add 2 or 3 more species to my February list tomorrow, and then on Friday I hope to start off March with some good species I don't see around here very often.  I plan to come back on Friday afternoon.

 

 

Thursday, February 28, 2019

 

I managed to get myself up and out of the house in time to catch the 9:35 ferry from Edmonds to Kingston, across Puget Sound.  Here’s a picture taken on the crossing, showing the Olympic Mountains in the background.

 

As you can see, it was a beautiful winter day, although it was pretty cold, in the low 40’s once it warmed up.  In Seattle we have had something like 25 days in a row that didn’t get up to the average high temperature for that day.  It is one of the coldest Februarys on record.

 

I picked up a sandwich at Subway, and my first stop was Port Gamble.  I didn’t have much to look for today, but a couple of species were theoretically possible there.  I looked around and didn’t see anything at first, but on my second or third scan of the bay, I saw a single Long-tailed Duck, one I needed for February.  I also needed it for Kitsap county.  I saw a group of about a half dozen Black Scoters, too, an excellent sighting.  I didn’t need that one for February, but it was another first for Kitsap county for me.

 

I skipped the possible detour to Fort Flagler today, but I hope to stop there tomorrow on my way home (in a new month, when everything is new for my March list).  I stopped at Gardiner Beach, but didn’t see anything of note there today.  I moved on to John Wayne Marina, near Sequim.  There were a couple of Black Oystercatchers on the beach there, and although I didn’t need it for February, it was another excellent bird.  I did get a couple of pictures of one of the Black Oystercatchers.

 

 

It was just stretching its wings in that picture.

 

I got Northwestern Crow there, as usual, for my February list.  I’ll get it for March tomorrow.  There were the usual gulls on the beach at the mouth of the creek, and I saw several Iceland Gulls, another excellent February bird for me.  I had three February birds, and it wasn’t even noon yet.  I had hoped for 3 or 4 February birds today, so I was on a roll.  I scanned the bay north of the marina, but didn’t see anything I needed.  There were only three possible species I needed that could be there, and none of them were, which was expected, actually.

 

I moved on to Marlyn Nelson county park, and I ate my sandwich in the car overlooking the water.  There were a lot of birds there, and I saw some more Long-tailed Ducks, but I didn’t get anything I needed.  I thought I saw a Rhinoceros Auklet once, but it was only a glimpse and it dove.  Water birds like that can stay down for 3 or 4 minutes, and they can move a long distance in that time.  When they finally do come up again, they might stay on the surface for ten seconds or so, and then they dive again.  I never saw the bird I thought might be a Rhino Auklet again, and I decided my look at it was too brief to be sure enough to count it.  I looked for a long time, too.  In addition to the problem of the bird diving, it was windy and there were waves, which meant you could only see a bird for a second or so before it disappeared behind a wave.  Tough birding conditions, despite the sun and excellent light.

 

Next I went to 3 Crabs.  The place is named for a restaurant that used to be located there.  The state bought the restaurant and its 52 acres of land for a wildlife reserve back in 2012, and now the restaurant is gone.  I walked out to the shore and the tide was out.  There were many hundreds of birds on view, probably thousands, actually.  I already had most of them, of course, but I looked around.  There was a flock of small shorebirds, and it turned out to be a mixed flock of Dunlin and Sanderlings.  I already had Dunlin this month, but not Sanderling, so that was February bird number 4 for me today.  Here is a cropped picture of some of the Dunlin and Sanderlings.  The ones with brown backs are Dunlin, and the ones with light gray backs are Sanderlings.

 

 

There were a lot of American Wigeons around, and I got this picture of four wigeons.  The one on the left with the red head is a male Eurasian Wigeon, the two in the middle are females, and the one on the right is a male American Wigeon.

 

As I was leaving that area, there was a kingfisher on a post.  Here’s a picture of the Belted Kingfisher, in good light.

 

My next stop was Dungeness Landing county park.  With the tide out, there were thousands of birds on view, all around.  I set up my scope and looked.  It took 2 or 3 scans, but eventually I saw a group of about a dozen White-winged Scoters, which was one of the three possible saltwater birds I still needed for February.  Outstanding!  That gave me 5 February species for the day, which exceeded my hopes. 

 

It was still early, and I didn’t know what to look for next.  There has been a rare (for this area) shorebird that has been reported on that bay all winter, so I scanned the distant shorelines looking for it.  I was looking for a single bird among thousands of birds, with no guarantee that it was even somewhere within sight.  It could have been on a beach I couldn’t see.  I stuck with it, though, and eventually there it was, far away, but clear in my scope – a WILLET.  It should be in California or Mexico now, but for some reason it’s here.  I saw one here last winter, too, quite possibly the same bird, returning to last year’s wintering ground.  Here’s a picture of the bay, and the Willet was on the point of land in the distance, in the middle of the picture.

 

Looking across the bay in another direction, to the left of that last picture, you could see the lighthouse at the end of the Dungeness Spit.

 

It was still early, so I decided to go on into Port Angeles and go out on the spit called Ediz Hook.  I had hopes of seeing a Rhinoceros Auklet in the harbor there.  I didn’t see anything I needed, but I did get some more pictures.  Here is a Black-bellied Plover in terrible light.

 

Here is a small saltwater goose called a Brant.

 

There were some Harlequin Ducks there, and I always like getting pictures of them.  Here is a male Harlequin Duck.

 

Here is a female Harlequin Duck, not nearly as gaudy looking.

 

Finally, here’s a picture of a pair of Harlequin Ducks.

 

So, it was a very successful day.  I added a whopping six species to my February list, and I’m finishing February with a quite respectable 125 species.  Last year I had 127 in February, and I didn’t think I would get close to that this year.  I also added 2 species to my Kitsap county list, to give me 69 species there since I started keeping county lists in 2012.  I added 2 species to Clallam county, too, and now I have 89 species in Clallam county.

 

Now I need to plan tomorrow, when I start my March list.  I need to decide which species I should go for that I’m not likely to see around home, as I probably won’t be back over here again in March.  My plan is to be home tomorrow night.