FOY Cindy Klein 3/12/14

The first Rufous male made himself known at our place today. I suspect he might have come yesterday because I heard the sound of his wings but couldn't locate him. Anyway, the beautiful sunshine today really set off his bling!

Cindy Klein

Everson

March Tour de Bellingham photos‏ Andrew Reding 3/12/14

With such inviting weather, I did another 20 mile “Tour de Bellingham” on my bike.

Highlights included a pair of flickers, a pair of wood ducks, and a pair of sparring male mallards at Scudder Pond.

Highlight at Boulevard Park was a pair of eared grebes - the first I’ve ever seen in Bellingham (I see them in Blaine every year).

You can see the photos of all of these at http://www.flickr.com/photos/seaotter/

Andrew

Bird Photography Workshops‏ 3/11/14

Hello,
 
I'm sending this out rather last minute and hope you could spread the word.  Blaine, Washington is having it's annual Wings Over Water birdfest March 14-16. Of special interest to photographers is the following:

Photography Workshop by Paul Bannick  noon- 1:30

Blaine School Performing Arts Center - 975 H Street 

Cost: $20  Registration at the Festival:  Blaine Middle School 

This is a unique opportunity for photographers to learn from Paul Bannick an award-winning wildlife photographer specializing in the natural history of North America with a focus on birds and habitat to inspire education and conservation.  Paul coupling his love of the outdoors with his skill as a photographer will share how he creates images that foster the intimacy between viewer and subject.  Topics will include how to find the birds, camera settings and gear accompanied by his personal stories and photos.  There will be time for a Q&A period too. 

Photography Workshop:  The Art of Photographing Birds- by Photographer Karen Ulvestad  2- 4

Blaine Harbor Boating Center Conference Room, 235 Marine Drive

Cost:  FREE,  Registration at the Festival:  Blaine Middle School 

Learn about the variety of bird species that frequent this Northwest Corner of Washington State’s Cascade Loop Birding Trail and how to capture the perfect image of these birds in flight and in their natural surroundings.  This workshop will be both in the classroom, and shooting on location at nearby Marine Park.

Based out of Seattle, Karen Ulvestad is a wildlife and landscape photographer, with a passion for photographing birds.  Her favorite subjects are birds in flight, or horses at a full gallop.  She has taught digital photography classes and workshops since 2008 in the greater Seattle area.

Bring your camera, dress for the weather, and wear appropriate shoes for walking.

There will be field trips to see local birds in the area as well.

http://www.wingsoverwaterbirdingfestival.com/event_schedule.html

Herons in Fairhaven‏ Joseph Kelly 3/10/14

Yesterday I saw herons flying to the nesting area by the wastewater treatment plant.

Joseph Kelly

Herons on Robertson‏

All weekend Herons have been visiting the nesting area

Valerie

Anna's juvenile?‏ Joan Bird 3/11/14

I just had two Anna's feeding together - one a bit smaller, a little bit stubbier in tail and shorter primaries, and overall paler, with no red flecks on the throat.  They fed together for about 5 minutes, then left together.  It looks like a mother and juvenile.  Sibley indicates juveniles are present Feb. - Sept.  Can anyone confirm that it's not too soon for juvies or provide any other helpful info.?

Joan Bird

Semiahmoo Spit‏ David Schutz 3/10/14

I birded the spit this weekend for the first time in a month, and was pleased to see the female Mountain Bluebird is still there. On Saturday there were hundreds (more likely thousands) of ducks, scoters, brant, and gulls actively feeding as if on herring spawn. Sunday was relatively quiet in the same area. Approximately 200 Pacific Loons were seen both days well offshore as I looked towards White Rock.

 

David Schutz

Coquitlam/Birch Bay 

FOY Rufous‏ Barry Ulman 3/8/14

Saw my FOY Rufous Hummingbird this morning: a beautiful male that made a couple visits to my feeders.

Barry Ulman

Since our first Rufous showed up the Anna's have disappeared. Does this happen every year? Are the Rufous just more aggressive? Rachel Strachan


I saw my first rufous--also a male--on Sunday March 9. I also note a sudden absence of Anna's. I live on the north side of Sehome Hill.


John Stark





I walk the trails on the north side of Sehome Hill almost daily and have noticed Anna's recently up there ... the Indian Plum is starting to bloom.


Joyce Lincoln



I had a stunningly beautiful male rufuous at my nectar feeder on the north side of Sehome Hill about a week ago - just one.  Since then only 3 or 4 regular Anna's.

Joan Bird

Leucistic American Robin Doug Brown 3/7/14

Chirp,

This very unusual leucistic, or semi-albino AMRO was seen today at Red Tail Reach.

Padden Eurasian‏ Barry Ulman 3/7/14

Yesterday (Wednesday) I checked things out at Lake Padden. At the recreation area on the east end of the lake was a flock of 50-60 American Widgeons which included this beautiful male EURASIAN WIDGEON. Also on the lake were about a hundred RUDDY DUCKS, about 40 COMMON MERGANSERS, maybe 20 CANVASBACKS, and a handful of BUFFLEHEADS and LESSER (?) SCAUP DUCKS.

Barry Ulman

singing in the rain...‏ John Bower 3/3/14

One of the zillions of robins around decided that we are all done with that nasty weather and broke out in a prolonged bout of singing this morning. Hurray for robin song!

John

Along with a lovely male rufous hummingbird!

Valerie

And here in lower South Hill, the resident northern flicker’s very early morning visit to the neighbors’ metal chimney cap for a session of serious drumming.

Lynn

I've been enjoying a singing Robin or two also, as well as Bewick's Wren, House Finch, and Song Sparrow.

Barry Ulman

This talk of singing made me realize that the one species that is not
singing nearly as much as usual around my house is Anna's hummingbirds.
We have two males present pretty much all the time (front yard male, back
yard male) and this year there has been very little song. Usually, in
February they sing like crazy and engage in flight displays etc. Not much
of that this year. 

I wonder if it is the weather or per chance that there has been a die off
of females to display too. Certainly in the cold stretches the females
have had a hard time getting to feeders at our house. We have three
feeders and the two males defend them all the while. It was truly
heartbreaking to see the females trying with very limited success to get
at the feeders before sunset on those really cold evenings while the males
drank sugar water to their heart's content.

In the woods, winter wrens are singing a whole lot.

John Bower

yellow-headed blackbird‏ Paul DeBruyn 3/3/14

A friend had a YHBB at his feeder in Fort Bellingham today.  Paul

For native birds, cities may spread disease while still providing sanctuary — High Country News

Interesting article about urban landscape and birds relavant to bellingham



http://www.hcn.org/blogs/goat/for-native-birds-cities-may-spread-disease-while-still-providing-sanctuaries


Fredrick Sears

.. .gets the worm‏ Eric Ellingson 2/27/14

I felt I had to share this shot with all the Robin chatter. Even the common Robins are fun to watch. 

Shot at Semiahmoo Park.

Steller's Jay Eric Ellingson 2/25/14

The activity at my feeder has been non-stop.  A couple infrequent flyers stopped by: Varied Thrush and this Steller’s Jay.

A Mourning Dove and dozens of Red-winged Blackbirds also present.

brush piles‏ Adena Mooers 2/28/14

I have made good use of all of the branches that are down everywhere. 
I renewed the brush pile in my yard that I have in place just for the 
birds. My old brush pile had gently composted itself. Adena Mooers

Robins Cindy Klein 2/23/14

At about 9AM, this is about 1/3 of the number of robins visible under our
feeding station. We put our soft storage apples out. There was a single
varied thrush yesterday, none so far today. One flicker joined the melee
this morning.

We still have three Anna's, two females and a male. Two weeks ago Bob and I
were at Haleakala National Park at Hosmer Grove to see some of the native
Hawaiian birds and plants. We met a couple from Pennsylvania that reported
Rufous, Anna's, Allen's, and Black Chinned Hummingbirds seen there this
winter through their listserv.

Cindy Klein,

White-throated Sparrow Doug Brown 2/25/14

Chirp,

There has been at least two of these White-throated Sparrows in my yard lately.
I'm hoping to hear them sing.

Varied Thrush‏ Nancy Downing 2/28/14

During the snow this little guy stayed in my yard the whole time. I got a lot of shots of him but I like this one in the snowy tree best.

rufous Twink Coffman 2/28/14

Had a male rufous at my feeder this morning.

--

happy birding

Twink

VGSW‏ Marion Hill 2/25/14

First of year Violet-Green Swallows were seen today at Red Tail Reach.

Lummi Flats Jim Duemmel 2/27/14

Early this afternoon (2/26) inside the loop east of the base of the aquaculture dike there were twoAmerican Bitterns. Always before I’ve only seen singles in this area. Also, the first Savannah Sparrow of the year. The northern part of the loop is difficult to walk – still covered with deep snow. The general appearance of the area is strange – all the tall grass was flattened in the recent storm.

 

Jim Duemmel

Whatcom county geese Ken Lane 2/28/14

Hey Whatcom birders,

Today out on Mountain View Rd, just east of Lake Terrell, Fanter and I observed a large flock of Canada and Cackling Geese (subspecies minima and taverneri) with one Greater White-fronted Goose and two Snow Geese. Also with all the snow we've had up to 18 Varied Thrushes around our feeders. Multiple Varied Thrushes singing back and forth is so nice!

Good birding,

Ken Lane

Eagles near Boundary Bay‏ Veronica Wisniewski 2/28/14

Traveling on 99 just north of the border,  Tricia and I saw a huge congregation of eagles just North of the Ladner Trunk road and easy of the highway.   There were no less than 300 birds congregated throughout the woodlot.  Does anyone know what the attraction is?

Veronica and Whatcom birders,

The attraction for Bald Eagles around Boundary Bay is ducks--  of which about 50,000 winter at Boundary Bay each year.

As most of us know, the preferred food of Bald Eagles is fish--  especially dead fish (which are easier to catch!)  Salmon runs attract hundreds of Bald Eagles, or in some cases even thousands, to places like the Squamish River and lower Harrison River in BC, the Chilkat River in Alaska, and to a lesser extent, the Nooksack and Skagit Rivers in Washington. However, this food source is available for only a short time each year (mostly November through January).

After the salmon carcasses have all disappeared or been washed away by the high waters of winter storms, Bald Eagles in the Vancouver area concentrate in the Fraser Delta and especially near Boundary Bay. The peak numbers of eagles around Boundary Bay are from February through April. With 50,000 ducks in the area, there are a small number dying of various causes every day, as well as some which may be sick or weak and are easy for eagles to catch. Eagles in fact are quite capable predators, and not infrequently will catch and kill perfectly healthy ducks, gulls, or other large birds. However, with ducks as with fish, they prefer to feed on those that are already dead, injured, or sick, which is why there are so many eagles around Boundary Bay.

The number of eagles around Boundary Bay never fails to impress birders visiting from other parts of North America. However, it hasn’t always been so; in the 1960s, when eagle numbers were very low because of DDT poisoning, you would have had to work hard to find 20 or 30 eagles in the area. Fortunately, their numbers now seem to have rebounded to equal the pre-DDT numbers.

Wayne C. Weber

Chirp,

I would add that there is a landfill dump in Delta that is an attraction to Bald Eagles, especially young birds.

See this excerpt from a newspaper article in 2011.

There is little food around for bald eagles this year, and they are getting desperate

 

By Kim Pemberton, Vancouver Sun February 24, 2011

 

 

Starving bald eagles, desperate to find food after a failed southern B.C. chum salmon run, are gathering in record numbers at the Vancouver landfill, says eagle expert David Hancock.

The wildlife biologist earlier this month counted nearly 1,400 eagles -triple the usual number at this time of year -at one time at the landfill, located in Delta.

"The chum salmon didn't come in and with no other major concentration of food they are gathering everywhere and many are starving," said Hancock.

He said a world record was set in mid-December when 7,200 eagles were spotted on the Chehalis River, which flows into the Harrison River. Hancock said that 10 days after the raptors finished feeding off salmon carcasses, only 345 eagles were spotted on the river.

"They had to go somewhere. They're incredibly mobile -can move 500 to 1,000 miles a day. They're forced to go where they can find food."

He said young eagles are essentially scavengers because it takes them two to three years to learn how to hunt. Many rely on dead salmon and swarming masses of herring.

"To catch a specific fish or duck, that comes later, and is a developed skill."

cheers,  

Doug Brown

A naturalist once corrected me when I said eagles were scavengers, he said “No, they are just birds of opportunity”. JH

Flocks of robins‏ Alan Fritz/Nancy Taylor 2/27/14

Adding to Adena Mooers South Hill observation, I observed it seems like 100s of robins here and there on my loop walk of South Hill Tuesday while enjoying the bright views of snow on Lummi and Orcas Islands. Are migratory robins on their way through?

Alan

Dear birders who are more knowledgeable than I am,

Like Alan, I wondered about the flocks of robins we have been seeing. Are they from our area and getting ready to migrate, or did they just arrive from the north, or are they passing through? I have never heard of a radio tagged robin, so there may be no way to know for sure.

Does anyone know?

Nancy Taylor

Could it be that the snow is causing large congregations of robins in bare spots around houses and bushes, and in berry-bearing shrubbery, where there is food?

John Stark

I rode my bike through a flock of at least 200 robins on and around the grass at Roosevelt Park this morning. Last night, the communication tower in the Public Works yard on Pacific was covered in an equal number of raucous Red-winged blackbirds. NW

I, too, had a flock of robins... not in the hundreds, but far more than I've ever seen before, all at once, in my yard (Alabama hill). They were "digging" in the snow to get at berries on shrubs. Pat Buhl




I do think it's the snow that causes Robins to flock up. Though I didn't see that in my neighborhood this time around, I have seen it in the past. They are probably concentrating on places where food is accessible.

True to style, yesterday I saw the first Varied Thrushes close to home this winter. Snow usually brings them here.

Barry Ulman

I saw 3 large flocks of robins the week before we had snow, so I'm not convinced that the flocking is related to weather. It could be related to day length, which I suppose is a big factor of migration.
Nancy

I suspect that the flocks of Robins are resident birds concentrated bysnow. 

In past springs i had Robins fall out at the muhlberry bushes at the clinic and feed in frenzies on over winter berries- same behavior in the falls.
Fredrick R. Sears

Why couldn't it be both things happening at once: The snow focusing the robins on limited feeding areas, while at the same time there is a migrational thing going on...? JS



John and Whatbirders,



I think you are right  in that both migration and snow concentrates the robins. I wondered, though, if flocks of robins that we see (outside of a weather event) are getting ready to leave, are passing through, or have just arrived. Without study (and I doubt there is much research money for robins), we may not know. I always presumed that flocks of robins that are seen later in the spring are stopping off on their way north, or possibly some or all are staying here. We may never know for certain, but it's fun to surmise.



Now I will go look at my feeders and enjoy the robins' cousins,  Varied Thrushes.

Nancy




John,



I think you are bang on.



A few (!!) years ago, when I was doing field work for my master’s thesis on urban birds at the University of British Columbia, I found that the majority of American Robins arrived in the spring during the last 2 weeks of February. Although Robins are fairly common in the winter, 80% or 90% of those which breed in the residential areas of Vancouver arrive in late February and early March. They are one of the earliest of all spring migrants.



In good weather during the early spring, Robins tend to take up breeding territories, and do much of their feeding on lawns. However, during foul weather, they may abandon their breeding territories and gather into flocks which feed on fruit, much as Robins do in the winter. However, in late spring (from late March onward), even foul weather will not cause Robins to abandon their territories--  there is too great a risk of losing it to another Robin!



I think this explains what is happening with the recent snow in Bellingham and Vancouver. Yes, I noted sizable flocks of Robins in Bellingham myself on Wednesday while looking for the Western Scrub-Jays, which are still near Grant and Connecticut in Bellingham (well, at least one of them is!)



Wayne C. Weber

Robins Adena Mooers 2/27/14

We saw a very musical flock of about 25 Robins singing and eating 
holly berries on south hill this afternoon. Adena Mooers

Hoag's Pond widgeons‏ Tedd Judd 2/17/14

With the ice gone the widgeons are back, well over a hundred in tight flocks; you'd think it was a feeding frenzy. Just one European in with all the Americans--on sabbatical I expect. And the usual 3 pairs of hooded mergansers. No sign of the lonely teal. 

Tedd Judd

Bewick's Wren w/ Unusual Plumage‏ Doug Brown 2/17/14

Chirp,

I have been seeing this curious BEWR in my front yard recently.
On Sunday I was able to photograph the bird.
Note the very dark, almost black flanks, belly, and back.
Any ideas? Thanks for your thoughts on this.




That's a neat looking bird. Opposite of leucistic. Just for the fun of it, I looked up some Latin-American wrens; the closest thing I could find was the Black-bellied Wren, found on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. I really don't think it was that. As far as I know, Bewick's Wrens do not migrate, so there wouldn't be any possibility of hybridization.

Barry Ulman



Follow-up on the unusual Bewick's Wren in my yard‏


Chirp,



I sent two photos of the unusual Bewick's Wren to Cornell Labs.



Here is the reply from Marc Devokaitis.........




Whoa—very cool!!!



A melanistic bird?

http://feederwatch.org/learn/unusual-birds/#color-variants



haven’t seen that one before!



Hope you will also consider sharing on

http://www.flickr.com/groups/birdshare/



Thanks!



Marc





Marc Devokaitis

Public Information Specialist


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BTW, I still see this unique bird almost every day.

Spring activities‏ Tricia Otto 2/16/14

I saw this strange new black spot on the Big Leaf Maple outside my bathroom window. Closer inspection reveals the culprit and now there is a new feeding station outside the window. Sorry about the poor photo. Tricia.

I feel stupid because I do not know what the black spot is. Please inform. Adena

I also can't identify the "black spot" in Pat Otto's photo. anyone know? JK

I would like a better image bur i am going to guess woodpeckers are flaking bark revealing rot/ mold .

Other issue are there fewer swans in north Whatcom now?

Fredrick Sears

Eurasian Collared Doves Fredrick Sears 2/15/14

I see these birds about in the city some and out NW Ave. alot. There is also a growing flock in Birch Bay which numbers about 15 now up from like two last spring.

Ruby-crowned Kinglet‏ Joe Meche 2/13/14

In the sunshine this afternoon at Scudder Pond, I found one very cooperative Ruby-crowned Kinglet.

 

Joe Meche

Bellingham Bay from over walkway‏ A Fritz 2/12/14

Walking from the dock to Boulevard Park we noticed a pair of long-tailed ducks uncommon compared to goldeneyes in our experience. Otherwise the usual few pairs of goldeneyes, cormorants, loon and seals. 

Seems like some correlation between the few diving ducks in Bellingham Bay and large numbers typically seen in Semiahmoo.

Alan

First winter Sharp-shinned Hawk‏ Doug Brown 2/10/14

Chirp,

I have updated my site to include new photos from 2014.
Many of these are from the Whatcom Creek, Red Tail Reach area.
Click on this link to view the images in my Recent Photographs gallery.

http://www.douglaslbrownphotography.com/recent-photographs/

Beaver video‏ Doug Brown 2/10/14

Chirp,

This rather large North American Beaver has been seen in the Red Tail Reach area of Whatcom Creek.

Here, it dines on the skin of wild rose stems.

http://youtu.be/PIUP1rAlLYU

http://youtu.be/VO0wmHnWcB8

http://youtu.be/Ozb0rsFl8zw

Dipper jazz‏ Doug Brown 2/10/14

Chirp,

This American Dipper took an extended solo in celebration of the sunny morning yesterday.
Here is the video.

http://youtu.be/vne1gBoa79Y

Barn owl at Riverstead‏ A Fritz 2/8/14

Resident at recent Whatcom Land Trust Preserve acquisition near Acme (http://www.whatcomlandtrust.org/?page_id=157).

Snow Buntings‏ Joe Meche 2/8/14

For those not on the vanbcbirds list serve, there have been sightings posted of good numbers of SNBUs in the 'Sumas prairie' area, so if you're up in that vicinity, perhaps keep an eye out for any that might have trickled across the line.

 

*Photo provided as a visual aid.

 

Joe Meche

Trumpeter Swans with Mt Baker view‏ Eric Ellingson 2/8/14

Always a treat to have the Trumpeter Swans in numbers here locally. Hundreds grazing in the fields in Ferndale.

Dozens hanging out on the Nooksack river too finding fresh water that’s not frozen to drink.

Two thrushes Joe Meche 2/8/14

Along with the Hutton's Vireo, I found a Varied Thrush at Maritime Heritage Park and later in the day, I observed a Hermit Thrush above the whirlpool in Whatcom Falls Park.

*The HETH shot is pretty grainy but it's about documentation.

 

Joe Meche

Hutton's Vireo Joe Meche 2/8/14

This one found me this afternoon at Maritime Heritage Park, just upstream from the Holly St. bridge.

 

Joe Meche

today's tour de Bellingham report + wildlife photos Andrew Reding 2/7/14

I did another bicycle trip around Bellingham today.

At Lake Padden, saw hooded mergansers, lesser scaup, ring-necked ducks, ruddy ducks, belted kingfisher, and photographed male golden-crowned kinglets in flight, and a Pacific wren

At the Bellingham Cruise Terminal, saw a male belted kingfisher

At Boulevard Park, photographed common and Barrow’s goldeneyes

At Redtail Reach on Whatcom Creek, photographed male ruby-crowned kinglets, Audubon’s warblers, and beavers!

Photos posted on my Flickr account: http://www.flickr.com/photos/seaotter/

Andrew

Hooded Mergansers Joe Meche 2/7/14

There are good numbers of HOMEs and Wood Ducks in the slow-moving, ice-free stretch of Whatcom Creek between the rusty iron bridge and the Derby Pond.

 

Joe Meche

Peregrine Falcon‏ Barry Ulman 2/7/14

Peregrine Falcons don't just eat birds.

Taken at the Samish Flats.

Barry Ulman

Bewick's Wren Joe Meche 2/7/14

I've had increased BEWR activity at my suet feeders lately. This one was soaking up the morning sun on the window sill.

Joe Meche

I don't have a feeder up because I have chickens free ranging, but there has been 10-15 robins spending time in my yard near Elizabeth Park the last couple of days.  They have eaten all the purple berries off my beauty berry bush and they are really appreciating the pan of water I have out for my chickens.

Caroline

Hummingbird feeder solution‏ Susan Taylor 2/4/14

I have used this set up for 4-5 winters.  The nectar has never frozen.  I used a clay flower pot with a brim size that my feeder fits down into so the nectar is within the clay pot.  The LED light bulb puts off enough heat to keep the nectar from freezing but doesn't change the 'environment' around the feeder - except for the light that shows through the feeder.  Use an electrical cord that has a plug at one end.  Feed the other end through the hole in the base of the pot then wire a light bulb fixture to that end.  In spring, chickadees love to peel strains of the twine hanger for their nests.  

Tufted Duck at Iona Island ponds, Richmond, BC‏ Wayne Weber 2/18/14

Birders,

A drake TUFTED DUCK in fine plumage has been present with scaup at the Iona Island ponds in Richmond, BC since February 14 (near the Vancouver Airport--  if you’re not familiar with the locality, look up “Iona Island Regional Park” on the internet). The bird spends part of its time in the sewage ponds, which must be accessed through a locked gate, but seems to spend most of its time in the “outer pond” near the main parking area, where it is easily visible to all visitors to the park.

If you’ve never seen a Tufted Duck, this may be your best chance for awhile to see this species, which is very rare in North America. (I’m still waiting for one to show up in Whatcom County!)

Good luck and good birding,

Wayne C. Weber

 I saw a drake Tufted Duck years ago at Padden Creek estuary; seen from a bus. It was close t the sidewalk side at low tide. There is no doubt in my mind as to the identification. Although I have it in my eBird record, it was not recognized by officialdom.

Phil Hotlen
Bellingham, WA

Birds on Bellingham Bay Yesterday‏ Lynne Givler 2/13/14

I walked Taylor Dock yesterday after seeing the photo of the long-tailed duck that was taken there,  and I saw a group of 8 a bit off shore at about 2:30pm. At about 3pm I saw hundreds (500?) double-crested cormorants in the middle of Bellingham Bay. They were all pointing south and a few would occasionally fly a short distance to the south and settle down again. There must have been some food source out there yesterday.

Lynne

Hitting the send button too early‏ Alan Fritzberg 2/13/14

In my posting yesterday, I had intended to mention the recent reports on the decline in marine life in Bellingham Bay (http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2014/01/15/3422616/decline-in-bellingham-bay-marine.html) in thinking about the typically small numbers of birdlife seen along the boardwalk compared to the Semiahmoo-Blaine Harbor area.  Could be that the diving ducks and loons aren’t finding the food sources or in the amounts they need.  “The survey tests found "unusually low" numbers of clams, snails, sea stars, crabs, shrimp and other sea life, according to an Ecology press release.”

Alan
I would like to add that there has been an enormous decline in shore birds in the Blaine area in the last five years or so. Ten years ago there would be huge numbers of shore birds of at least ten species from August into October. In the last 3 to 5 years there have been little or no shore birds there during the same period save for Killdeer. Either the shore bird populations have crashed or have changed their migration routes due to a shift in the food supply.

Barry Ulman

The small numbers of birdlife at Boulevard compared to earlier years are evident when I look back at the journal I kept from 2004-5.

January 19 BP 10AM-12PM.

Ducks

pr. long-tailed, pr. Western grebes, pr mallards, many golden eyes, common, but mostly Barrows, many surf scoters,, 1 red-breasted merganser, I lesser scaup, 1 pied-bill grebe

 2 crested cormorants, 1 pelagic, 1 loon

Songbirds

Bewick's wren, varied thrush, fox sparrow, song sparrow, and blue jay

 

Feb 1, 2005 Boulevard Park and Trail

Many Common and Barrows goldeneyes, many surf scoters, 1 pr. red-breasted Mergansers, several Western  grebes, 1 pied-bill grebe, pr. harlequin ducks, 1 loon, 1 Ruddy Turnstone?, Black Oystercatcher, female Belted Kingfisher, 6 Cedar Waxwings, Robins, song sparrows, Chestnut-backed chickadees

1 river otter*. I harbor seal

Nowadays, I walk Boulevard Monday and Friday mornings and seldom see more than a couple of pairs of Goldeneyes, a loon  and some cormorants

To what extent could this also be attributable to the redevelopment of the park for public access? The impacts on habitat value as a result of park popularity are reflected in the city's shoreline inventory analysis. Yet the city continues to develop its shoreline parks as if there is no conflict at all between public access and habitat value.  This problem is going to increase as the city opens up the waterfront. 

 

The city and port refused to conduct an environmental analysis of impacts on plants and animals before it enacted the waterfront plan.  It did promise to do an after-the-fact review, but is now attempting to limit this to only nearshore species (i.e., fish).

 

The city and port need to hear from the bird community. They need to hear about your observations regarding declines in bird population.  They need to hear about your concerns regarding protection of Bellingham Bay birds.  They need to know that there is public support for preserving habitat for wildlife, whether nearshore, aquatic or terrestrial, and that we need to provide habitat connectivity.

 

Tell the city council and the mayor.

 

Wendy Harris