Birds - Tree Swallow

Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor)

Found these Tree Swallows at my new favorite birding spot, Shillapoo Wildlife Recreation Area in SW Washington. Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor) occur from Alaska east through southern Nunavut to Newfoundland and south to California, northern Arizona, Texas, and Georgia. Fun fact: A group of tree swallows are known as a "stand" of swallows. 

Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor)

Birds - Redhead

Redhead (Aythya americana)

Just recently discovered a really cool birding spot near Vancouver Lake called Shillapoo Wildlife Recreation Area. It's an ephemeral wetland area that, right now has an amazing amount of waterfowl and song birds. This week I was able to add a Redhead duck to my life list. Redhead (Aythya americana) are not common here in the PNW and would normally be found in their northern or inland breeding grounds this time of year. It looked like there were some younger Redhead with the adults so it's not clear what they were up to.

Birds - Common Yellowthroat

Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas) male 

As the name suggests, Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas) are a common warbler found in practically every marsh, reed-bed and patch of cattails from coast to coast. Despite that, I feel lucky to have photographed this male and female hiding in the grass at Shillapoo Wildlife Refuge Area. According to allaboutbirds.org, Common Yellowthroats are easy to find during spring and summer in much of North America. Just visit open habitats such as marshes, wetland edges, and brushy fields and listen for the male’s wichety-wichety-wichety song. If you don’t spot one after a while, try making a “pishing” sound; yellowthroats are inquisitive birds and often pop into the open to see who’s making the sound.

Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas) female

Birds - House Wren

House Wren (Troglodytes aedon)

I’ve seen a lot of House Wren (Troglodytes aedon) at Vancouver Lake Park but this is the first time I’ve seen one with a nest hole full of babies. I must have taken at least 100 photos before I was able to get this one with the momma and her babies with their mouths wide open.

House Wren (Troglodytes aedon) nest with mother and babies

Birds - Red -Breasted Sapsucker

Red Breasted Sapsucker (Sphyrapicus ruber)

Discovered two nest cavities with Red-breasted Sapsuckers (Sphyrapicus ruber) on the west Vancouver Lake Park trail. Both had babies that could be heard from several hundred feet away. I lucked out with the above photo and caught the momma giving stink-eye to her baby who was sticking its head out begging for food right after she just got done feeding it. Sapsuckers get their name from eating sap in holes they drill in trees. They also eat insects attracted to the sap and sometimes catch insects in flight and eat seeds and berries.

Red-Breasted Sapsucker (Sphyrapicus ruber)

Birds - Audubon Warbler

A delightful flock of Audubon Warbler (Setophaga coronata ssp auduboni) swarmed through our yard today. This is kind of an unusual bird for our backyard, and is especially unusual in a flock. Audubon Warbler are supposedly a year-round resident here in the Pacific Northwest but, as far as I've seen, they are most common here during Spring and Fall migration.

Audubon Warblers are the western version of the Yellow-rumped Warbler. Warblers in general are a variable group of small perching birds that are small, vocal and insectivorous. Due to the difficulty in identifying Warblers, they are many times referred to as LBJ's (Little Brown Jobs).

Winter Solstice - Haiku

In the Northern Hemisphere, Winter solstice 2019 was at 8:19 PM on Saturday, December 21. I love Winter Solstice because it means days are getting longer and hopefully sunny weather is only a few months away. One of my favorite birds is the American Robin because they stay here in the PNW throughout the winter and don’t seem to be affected by the long, dark winter days. Following is a haiku to celebrate Winter Solstice and the American Robin

The Winter Solstice 

Like the song of a robin 

Tonic for the blues

Days getting longer

After the Winter Solstice

Brightens my spirit

First day of winter 

Brought sunshine and long shadows 

Summer is coming

Mammals - Columbian Black Tailed Deer

Found these two Columbian black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus columbianus) grazing in a slough at Vancouver Lake Regional Park, Washington. It was late on a cloudy day but a break in the clouds gave an almost surreal lighting that made them look like they were in a museum diorama.

According to Wikipedia, there are two forms of black-tailed deer that occupy coastal woodlands in the Pacific Northwest of North America. Columbian black-tailed deer are found in western North America, from Northern California into the Pacific Northwest of the United States and coastal British Columbia in Canada. The other, Sitka deer (O. h. sitkensis) is found coastally in British Columbia, southeast Alaska, and southcentral Alaska. Photographed with a Sony RX10IV on December 12, 2019 

Birds - American White Pelicans

Had a surprise encounter on the road to Vancouver Lake Regional Park with a large flotilla of American white pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos) . White Pelican are seasonal visitors in SW Washington. According to Wikipedia, White pelicans are a large aquatic soaring bird that breeds in interior North America, moving south and to the coasts, as far as Central America and South America, in winter. Preferred habitats include shallow lakes and coastal lagoons.

Note: The Trump administration recently finalized its deconstruction of clean water rules that protect wetlands such as this. The new rules would limit or remove protections for vernal pools or ephemeral bodies of water that appear during the rainy season.

As a result, polluters will no longer need a permit to discharge harmful substances into these bodies of water. Developing or polluting these areas could destroy critical habitat for species that depend on vernal pools for water and food. According to The Center for Biological Diversity, the new rules could accelerate the extinction of more than 75 species. Polluting these ephemeral bodies of water and wetlands could also have impacts on drinking water. An EPA study found that 1 in 3 Americans get some of their drinking water from ephemeral bodies of water. 

Birds - Barred Owl

Had a close encounter of the best kind with a Barred Owl (Strix varia) on a walk at Vancouver Lake Regional Park. I often wonder how many times I've walked by birds like this without a clue due to their excellent camouflage.

Barred Owls are fairly common in woodlands throughout eastern and northwestern US and Canada. In recent decades Barred Owl have expanded their range in northwestern US where it now competes with endangered Spotted Owl. 

Bird Feeder Report

There's been lots of activity at the feeder this week. We've been seeing alot of northern flicker feeding on the suet in our custom cage bird feeder. We've also been seeing alot of bush tits who come through in huge flocks of about 30 at a time and totally swarm the suet. Dark eyed junco have been quite common hopping around on the ground and on the feeders.

Townsend Warbler with flock of Bushtit

We've also had the pleasure of seeing Townsend's warbler on the feeder pecking at the suet and picking up seed on the tray below the feeder. Anna's hummingbird have been very common all winter at the hummingbird feeder.

Anna's Hummingbird feeding from hummingbird feeder

Luckily it's been a warm winter compared to most. So the Anna's aren't having too hard of a time this winter.