Monday, December 30, 2013

Afternoon in Spokane County

Being back home is hard to beat. My dad and I got out for just a couple hours this afternoon, and in no time at all I picked up a county lifer and a year bird! A Trumpeter Swan has been hanging around on a friend's property down along the Little Spokane River, and it was still present today among a nice flock of waterfowl.

Trumpeter Swan
Little Spokane Natural Area, Spokane Co, WA
December 30, 2013

As we continued along the Little Spokane, some robins in a subdivision caught our attention so we decided to investigate. As we were leaving the area, a huge flock of waxwings flew into a nearby berry tree. It turned out to be a pure flock of about 75 Bohemian Waxwings! #367 for the 2013! The rich, rusty undertail coverts and brilliant red and yellow that accent the wings and tail make these surprisingly colorful birds in a winter landscape.

Bohemian Waxwing
Little Spokane Natural Area, Spokane Co, WA
December 30, 2013

Bohemian Waxwing
Little Spokane Natural Area, Spokane Co, WA
December 30, 2013

Bohemian Waxwing
Little Spokane Natural Area, Spokane Co, WA
December 30, 2013

We wound up with 13 species of ducks while we were out, a nice count for winter in the county. As usual, the Barrow's Goldeneyes stole the show:

Barrow's Goldeneye
Little Spokane Natural Area, Spokane Co, WA
December 30, 2013

Sunday, December 29, 2013

Christmas Break Highlights: A Few Days in Northwestern Washington

Jen and I began our break travels by heading to her home town of Coupeville, and we have had a nice, relaxing week of spending time with family. I really felt like I was home when Jen's mom asked me the first morning if I wanted to borrow her car to go look for birds. Nothing like marrying into a family that accepts your birding passion. We had wonderful weather most of the week, and experienced several breathtaking sunrises and sunsets over rocky peaks, doing very little to abate my already unwavering home state pride. So good to be back.

When birding on the west side of the state, I'm always at the disadvantage of not having a scope. This is particularly difficult because much of what I want to do there involves sea watching. I always go out knowing I'm going to miss some stuff, and just take what I can get. I wound up getting quite a bit this week. The diversity of winter birds in this region is incredible, and makes for some really enjoyable outings. I tallied 84 species on the week and had some unexpected highlights along the way.

The nearby Crockett Lake held the usual Trumpeter Swan, large flocks of waterfowl (this time dominated by pintail, gadwall, and wigeon), and plenty of active Bald Eagles and Northern Harriers. A beautiful adult Peregrine Falcon was a nice treat, as was the huge flock of Dunlin it was hunting. Black-bellied Plovers and a few Western Sandpipers were present too, the latter of which was #217 for my WA list this year. For sure the most exciting bird I found there this week was a hybrid Golden-crowned x White-crowned Sparrow, amidst a nice mixed flock of both sides of its ancestry.

Golden-crowned Sparrow
Crockett Lake, Island Co, WA

A harrier doing its part to promote bird conservation:

Northern Harrier
Crockett Lake, Island Co, WA

Golden-crowned Sparrow
Crockett Lake, Island Co, WA

Golden-crowned x White-crowned Sparrow Hybrid
Crockett Lake, Island Co, WA

White-crowned Sparrow
Crockett Lake, Island Co, WA

Dunlin and Western Sandpipers
Crockett Lake, Island Co, WA

The adjacent Keystone Ferry Landing provided some nice opportunities for studying gulls, as usual. I'm nowhere near gull expertise, but I am getting increasingly comfortable with noticing the relevant subtleties that separate species from one another. A pretty little first cycle Mew and several sharp looking Thayer's were my favorites this time around - I didn't realize how many Mews I would end up seeing on the week.

Mew Gull
Keystone Ferry Landing, Island Co, WA

Dark and light-eyed Thayer's together:

Thayer's Gulls
Keystone Ferry Landing, Island Co, WA

At Jen's parents' house, great looks at Spotted Towhees, Chestnut-backed Chickadees, Golden-crowned Kinglets, "Red-shafted" and "Integrade" Northern Flickers, and a couple snappy Fox Sparrows were consistent throughout the week. One evening we watched a female Northern Harrier feeding over a field from the dinner table.

Spotted Towhee
Island Co, WA

Fox Sparrow
Island Co, WA

Jen's dad and I took what is turning out to be an annual day trip to look for birds. He enjoys it because my birding interests lead us to little nooks and crannies that he's never been before in his lifetime of living in the area. I enjoy it because there are usually plenty of interesting birds to be seen, and such was the case again this year! We took the early Keystone ferry to Port Townsend, dropping off Jen and her mom for a day of shopping up a storm in this cute little seaside town. Most of the ferry ride was in the dark, but I was outside the moment there was enough light to see things flying by. Quite a few Common Loons were present, and a flock of Brant flew past as rich pink tones began peaking through the cloudy skies. Ted and I then headed west towards Sequim. We checked a number of places I hadn't been before and in the process padded my Jefferson and Clallam County lists. I'll let the pictures do the talking.

Brant
Jefferson Co, WA

Harlequin Duck
Diamond Point, Clallam Co, WA

Pacific Loon
Diamond Point, Clallam Co, WA

Marbled Murrelet
Diamond Point, Clallam Co, WA

After seeing many "Olympic" Gulls (Glaucous-winged x Western hybrid) and a handful of Glaucous-winged Gulls, the dark upper parts and jet black wingtips of a pure adult Western Gull were quite striking:

Western Gull
Three Crabs, Clallam Co, WA


Mew Gull
John Wayne Marina, Clallam Co, WA

Eurasian Wigeon
John Wayne Marina, Clallam Co, WA

Our most westward stop of the day was Dungeness Spit, which is a truly remarkable place. The five mile piece of land extends out into the Puget Sound. Here's a view from the overlook:

Dungeness Spit, Clallam Co, WA

We hiked out on the spit a little ways, and here's the view looking back inland:

Dungeness Spit, Clallam Co, WA

Oh, and there were some birds too. As we walked out on the spit, I was thinking about how I still needed Black Scoter for the day and week. Not long after I was looking at this beautiful male:

Black Scoter
Dungeness Spit, Clallam Co, WA

That male was joined by two others, and as I was enjoying the sight, a light-faced loon in the foreground caught my attention right before it dove. I waited anxiously for it to come back up, and sure enough, it was what I thought! In just a couple minutes I had filled out all three scoters and all three loons for the day.

Red-throated Loon
Dungeness Spit, Clallam Co, WA

Ted got a couple pics of me in action through a cool stump with a hole in the middle.


We headed back to Port Townsend, grabbed ice cream with the family, and hopped back on the ferry, where White-winged Scoters were abundant.

White-winged Scoter
Island Co, WA

And one of those incredible sunsets rounded out the day:


The next morning, I headed down to Penn Cove to look for any interesting shorebirds that may be hanging around. I didn't find any, but had a couple nice consolation surprises:

Anna's Hummingbird
Penn Cove, Island Co, WA

And this little guy was Washington bird #218 for 2013!

Lincoln's Sparrow
Penn Cove, Island Co, WA

Finally, this morning's ferry ride to Mukilteo was pretty quiet, but I did have Red-necked and Western Grebes, added my first Rhinoceros Auklets of the trip, and got incredible looks at the standard flocks of Barrow's Goldeneyes and Surf Scoters at the ferry landing.

Surf Scoter
Mukilteo Ferry, Snohomish Co, WA

Surf Scoter
Mukilteo Ferry, Snohomish Co, WA

Surf Scoter
Mukilteo Ferry, Snohomish Co, WA

Barrow's Goldeneye
Mukilteo Ferry, Snohomish Co, WA

Jen's brother then dropped us off at Sea-Tac, and now we are safely into Spokane where another week of Christmas, time with family and friends, and birding lies ahead. Gotta love Christmas break!

Total list to this point:
85 Brant
2 Trumpeter Swan
700 Gadwall
1 Eurasian Wigeon
1975 American Wigeon
147 Mallard
13 Northern Shoveler
1703 Northern Pintail
4 Green-winged Teal (American)
2 Ring-necked Duck
12 Greater Scaup
50 Lesser Scaup
100 Greater/Lesser Scaup
11 Harlequin Duck
460 Surf Scoter
34 White-winged Scoter
3 Black Scoter
1 Long-tailed Duck
323 Bufflehead
356 Common Goldeneye
90 Barrow's Goldeneye
151 Hooded Merganser
38 Red-breasted Merganser
12 Ruddy Duck
2 Red-throated Loon
3 Pacific Loon
35 Common Loon
2 Pied-billed Grebe
34 Horned Grebe
8 Red-necked Grebe
12 Western Grebe
37 Brandt's Cormorant
190 Double-crested Cormorant
125 Pelagic Cormorant
27 Great Blue Heron
8 Northern Harrier
12 Bald Eagle
4 Red-tailed Hawk (Western)
135 Black-bellied Plover 
1 Killdeer
6 Greater Yellowlegs
512 Dunlin
5 Western Sandpiper
8 Common Murre
53 Pigeon Guillemot
13 Marbled Murrelet
2 Rhinoceros Auklet
27 Mew Gull (American)
3 Ring-billed Gull
11 Western Gull
12 California Gull
13 Thayer's Gull
11 Glaucous-winged Gull
418 Western x Glaucous-winged Gull (hybrid)
3 gull sp.
140 Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon)
3 Mourning Dove
1 Anna's Hummingbird
12 Belted Kingfisher
2 Downy Woodpecker (Pacific)
2 Hairy Woodpecker (Pacific)
8 Northern Flicker (Red-shafted)
2 Northern Flicker (intergrade)
1 Peregrine Falcon
2 Steller's Jay
29 American Crow
19 Northwestern Crow
4 Common Raven
4 Black-capped Chickadee
11 Chestnut-backed Chickadee
4 Pacific Wren
32 Golden-crowned Kinglet
96 American Robin
8 Varied Thrush
479 European Starling
9 Spotted Towhee (Pacific)
6 Fox Sparrow
27 Song Sparrow
2 Lincoln's Sparrow
12 White-crowned Sparrow
44 Golden-crowned Sparrow
1 White-crowned x Golden-crowned Sparrow (hybrid)
41 Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon)
15 Red-winged Blackbird
1 Western Meadowlark
200 Brewer's Blackbird
13 House Finch
2 House Sparrow

The primary mammals seen throughout the trip were the small Black-tailed Deer and Harbor Seals, though Ted and I did have a porpoise of some sort swim by at Gardiner Beach, always a cool sight.

Good night!

Thursday, December 26, 2013

2013 in Review, Part IV: June-July in Washington and Idaho

Well, we've been back in Washington for a few days now, and before the end of the year is officially upon us, I need to get through the final phase of the 2013 recap: Summer in the Pacific Northwest.

I find that most people from somewhere other than the northwest are oblivious to the astounding diversity within the state of Washington. "Oh, Washington, doesn't it always rain there?" 

Not quite.

If you live in Seattle, or anywhere west of the Cascdes, then frequent drizzle and cloudy days are your lot in life - as well as breathtaking views of snow-capped peaks many days of the year. But then there's the other 2/3 of the state. The middle portion of the state is actually quite arid, where sage brush, apple farms, and wheat fields dominate the undulating landscape. The northeast part of the state is mountainous as the Selkirks creep across the Idaho panhandle and nestle in there. The rolling hills of the Palouse are just south of Spokane, and further south takes you right down to the impressive canyons along the Snake River.

This diversity is part of what makes driving across the state beautiful and intriguing at any time of the year. Usually our summer trips home are in early to mid July. This year, we were back a couple weeks earlier, and the increase in bird activity was obvious as we caught the tail end of breeding season. I flew into Spokane to pick up my car at my parents' place, and within minutes of being picked up from the airport, I had White-throated Swifts, Violet-green Swallows, and crested 300 for the year. The next day I made the westward drive to the Seattle area. One of my favorite parts of this drive is the dramatic drop (then climb) into the Columbia River valley, announced from the west by the wild horse sculptures dotting the horizon. Upon arriving in Spokane, I was pleased to hear from my dad that a Black-throated Sparrow had acquired my same liking for this portion of the state's topography by taking up residence there - and just two minutes off of I-90 no less! This is a great, though regular, bird for Washington (they breed fairly reliably at Steptoe Butte also), which is the northern extremity of its breeding range. In the same area, a Western Red-tailed Hawk, Black-billed Magpie, Common Raven, pair of calling Yellow-breasted Chats and host of Rock Wrens reminded me that I was indeed back in my home state.

Black-throated Sparrow
Vantage, Kittitas Co, WA
June 18, 2013

I met up with Jen at her aunt and uncle's place near Mt. Rainier. Aunt Gail and Uncle Scott are active and familiar with all of the nearby trails, so we got to do a lot of hiking over the next day that we spent with them. The forests were alive with the songs of Western Tanagers, Black-headed Grosbeaks, Spotted Towhees,  Pacific-slope Flycatchers, Red-breasted Sapsuckers, and Pacific Wrens to name a few. One of my main goals for my time home was to get some good looks at a Black-throated Gray Warbler, and we were afforded many! On one of our hikes, Jen spotted a few Elk trekking through a river, making us both very proud.

Black-throated Gray Warbler
O'Grady Natural Area, King Co, WA
June 18, 2013

Pacific Wren
Federation Forest State Park, King Co, WA
June 19, 2013

Elk
Federation Forest State Park, King Co, WA
June 19, 2013

One set of Jen's grandparents have a lake place up at Lake Cavanaugh, where we always love spending time whenever we get the opportunity. Bird highlights were the gorgeous Rufous Hummingbirds that frequented the feeders on their deck, and the best looks I've ever had of Band-tailed Pigeons.

Rufous Hummingbird
Lake Cavanaugh, Skagit Co, WA
June 21, 2013

Wilson's Warbler
Lake Cavanaugh, Skagit Co, WA
June 21, 2013

Band-tailed Pigeons
Lake Cavanaugh, Skagit Co, WA
June 21, 2013

Yeah, always rainy.
Lake Cavanaugh, Skagit Co, WA
June 22, 2013

Once getting back to Coupeville, a quick swing by the Keystone Ferry produced this handsome flock of Harlequins:

Harlequin Ducks
Keystone Ferry Landing, Island Co, WA
June 23, 2013

We headed over to Port Townsend to meet up with Aunt Julie and Uncle Mike to look for sea glass along North Beach at the lowest tide of the year. It was a long but beautiful walk, and there was plenty of sea glass to be had - though I was admittedly more interested in the birds. A beautiful Orange-crowned Warbler, a tussle between a Peregrine Falcon and Bald Eagle, and some friendly Black Oystercatchers rounded out the sea glass festivities. What a day!

Orange-crowned Warbler
North Beach, Jefferson Co, WA
June 24, 2013

Peregrine Falcon and Bald Eagle
North Beach, Jefferson Co, WA
June 24, 2013

Peregrine Falcon and Bald Eagle
North Beach, Jefferson Co, WA
June 24, 2013

Black Oystercatcher
North Beach, Jefferson Co, WA
June 24, 2013

Black Oystercatcher
North Beach, Jefferson Co, WA
June 24, 2013

Black Oystercatcher
North Beach, Jefferson Co, WA
June 24, 2013

This gluttonous Rhino was floating alongside the return ferry:

Rhinoceros Auklet
Port Townsend, Jefferson Co, WA
June 24, 2013

Once back to Spokane, my dad and I did quite a bit of birding on the east side of the state. We took one morning and birded from home to the top of Mt. Spokane and back, bagging Townsend's and MacGillivray's Warblers, and finding all eight species of thrushes that occur in the state in a matter of hours - American Robin, Varied Thrush, Townsend's Solitaire, Veery, Swainson's Thrush, Hermit Thrush, Western Bluebird, and Mountain Bluebird. A couple common birds posed nicely for photos, too!

Lazuli Bunting
Mt. Spokane, Spokane Co, WA
June 27, 2013

"Audubon's" Yellow-rumped Warbler
Mt. Spokane, Spokane Co, WA
June 27, 2013

American Dipper
Mt. Spokane, Spokane Co, WA
June 27, 2013

The next day we worked our way west to Wilson Creek in Grant County, with all kinds of highlights along the way.

Lewis's Woodpeckers
Telford Road, Lincoln Co, WA
June 28, 2013

Grasshopper Sparrow
Seven Mile, Lincoln Co, WA
June 28, 2013

Sage Thrasher
Mayberry Road, Lincoln Co, WA
June 28, 2013

Gray Flycatcher
Spokane Co, WA
June 28, 2013

Ferruginous Hawk (juvenile)
Lincoln Co, WA
June 28, 2013

Ferruginous Hawk (light morph)
Lincoln Co, WA
June 28, 2013

Ferruginous Hawk (intermediate)
Lincoln Co, WA
June 28, 2013

Rock Wren
Wilson Creek, Grant Co, WA
June 28, 2013

We found this cooperative Sora on a quick trip over to Hauser Lake in Idaho. This was one of my favorite places to bird growing up, mostly because of the great looks of Red-necked Grebes, Wood Ducks, Hooded Mergansers, and Common Loons we could get in the Spring. The drumming Ruffed Grouse and chattering Pacific (then Winter) Wrens stand out as fond memories too. This day, the Sora stole the show.

Sora
Hauser Lake, Kootenai Co, ID
June 29, 2013

As the calendar turned to July, we took a day to bird the Idaho panhandle, spending most of our time in Boundary County up along the Canadian border. We wound up with an impressive 114 species by the end of the day! From Saddle Pass to Pend Oreille Lake, here's some of what we saw:

Chestnut-backed Chickadee
Boundary Co, ID
July 2, 2013

Townsend's Warbler
Boundary Co, ID
July 2, 2013

Western Tanager
Boundary Co, ID
July 2, 2013

MacGillivray's Warbler
Boundary Co, ID
July 2, 2013

Least Flycatcher
Boundary Co, ID
July 2, 2013

One of the things I miss about birding in the northwest is the frequent encounters with big game animals. It's hard to make a trip to the Kootenai NWR without finding a Moose, one of my favorite animals.

Moose
Boundary Co, ID
July 2, 2013

The Western Grebes on Lake Pend Oreille put on quite the show for us:

Western Grebes
Denton Slough, Bonner Co, ID
July 2, 2013

Western Grebes with hunting Osprey
Denton Slough, Bonner Co, ID
July 2, 2013

Salmo Mountain in Pend Oreille County, WA is without a doubt my favorite place in the northeastern part of the state. It's secluded, scenic, and loaded with wildlife and good birds. Our trip there this last summer yielded American Three-toed Woodpeckers, White-winged Crossbill, Gray Jay, and a couple of my favorites: Boreal Chickadee and Pine Grosbeak.


Boreal Chickadee
Salmo Mountain, Pend Oreille Co, WA
July 5, 2013

Pine Grosbeak
Salmo Mountain, Pend Oreille Co, WA
July 5, 2013

Some friends from church took us out on a boat along Long Lake to go skiing. We went on July 5th, so the lake was devoid of people and boats, and there were some fun birding moments along the way too. A flyby Forster's Tern was a excellent bird to have cross the Spokane and Steven's county border. Clark's Nutcrackers, Townsend's Solitaires, and Rock Wrens were fun additions. We found a pair of Eastern Kingbirds harassing a Red-tail, pictured below.

Eastern Kingbird riding Red-tailed Hawk
Long Lake, Spokane/Steven's Co, WA
July 5, 2013

Probably the highlight of our time on the boat was the consistently close-up views of beautiful breeding Western Grebes.

Western Grebes
Long Lake, Spokane/Steven's Co, WA
July 5, 2013