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

NCAS newsletter‏ Twink Coffman 2/12/14

North Cascades Audubon Society

Here's a link to the current newsletter for people to download

http://www.northcascadesaudubon.org/newsite/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/NCASfeb2014.pdf

northcascadesaudubon.org

-- 

happy birding

Twink

Birds.amr‏ Holly Roger 2/12/14

If this sound bite works for you, please give it a listen. Trying to identify this bird by call! Does it sound like a Bewick's Wren to you?
Anyone?
Your help is appreciated. Thank you!
-holly

Thank you for the offers to help identify the mysterious bird song that won't transfer from my smarter-than-me phone to email. I'm waiting on the original sender to send me his audio file so I may pass it on to youse...

Stay tuned. Thanks!
-holly

Swan Watch 2/12/14

The Friends of Tenant Lake and Hovander Park are sponsoring a Swan Watch and talk Saturday  at 7 AM at Tenant Lake.  Come watch the swans lift off of Tenant Lake and learn about our wintering Swan population.  There will be light refreshments. 

Lonely green-winged teal‏ Tedd Judd 2/10/14

Last night at dusk we spooked a small duck walking around the high tide line at low tide on Chuckanut Bay. Unusual to see a lone duck walking there. Too dark to identify it clearly. A half hour later saw a lone duck leave the Bay headed towards Hoag's Pond. There has been a lone male teal hanging out at frozen Hoag's Pond all day today; no other ducks. Lost from his flock?

tedd

White -winged Crossbills‏ Ken Lane 2/9/14

hey whatcom birders, While gearing up for the legendary banked slalom snowboard fest at mt baker  I observed a mixed  flock of crossbills in a spruce tree next to the white salmon parking lot. 4 Red Crossbills and 3 White-winged Crossbills, also a small flock of Pine Siskin. What a great day! Sunshine, mountain peaks and White-winged Crossbills not to mention all the fun on the slopes.

Good birding,

Ken Lane

Agate Pond Preserve‏ Tricia Otto 2/9/14

First Band Tailed Pigeon of the spring today. Also the lone White-Throated Sparrow is still here since fall. At first light there were 41 Varied Thrush in the feeding areas. Great Horned Owl still calling softly from her nest every late afternoon. Tricia.

yellow variant of house finch‏ Wynne Lee 2/5/14

Yesterday I saw a male bird that looked JUST like a house finch, and was hanging out with others, but it had kinda golden yellow instead of reddish markings. Thought I was crazy although Sibley shows a 'yellow variant'. But today, in the article below on (bad) effects of urban density on birds, using house finches as an example, the right photo shows exactly what I saw here on Lummi Island yesterday. Never thought of LI as especially 'urban density'. Maybe it's a refugee from B'ham? 

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/02/140205103657.htm

PLOS ONE: Diving-Flight Aerodynamics of a Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus)‏ Fred Sears 2/6/14

• http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0086506;jsessionid=1A92B86BDA8948C34728C963829E7C02
  
  
  For those interested.
  
  Fredrick Sears

Dead peregrine with leg band‏ Fred Sears 2/4/14

Would some one know where this might go?

Fredrick Sears

"Peregrine"‏


The bird in questioned turned out to be a Coopers hawk. Paul D. Has the carcass so we will have to await his report as to the origin of the band.

Fredrick Sears

No shame on Fredrick as he hadn't actually seen the "carcass," funny how unidentified raptors now are all thought to be peregrines until proven otherwise.  I had a similar call recently that did turn out to be a peregrine so I figured when going after this one that it probably was a cooper's hawk.  It was an immature mail banded by Bud that was trapped at Sea-tac and released in Bow.  Paul

Lake Padden Joe Meche 2/4/14

Took an afternoon stroll around the lake, because it was a beautiful day and a good post-Super Bowl thing to do. Sizable rafts of Lesser Scaup, Buffleheads, coots, Pied-billed Grebes, and a lone Varied Thrush were the minimal highlights.  

 

Spring is right around the corner,

Joe Meche

all hummingbird aficionados John Bower 2/3/14

To your stations!

Best,

John

Deformed bill raven A Fritz 2/3/14

This raven was hanging around cabin 16 at Manning Park, BC. It must be getting enough food handouts that it seems fairly healthy. Alan

• Better images of raven‏

I’ve posted the raven images to my flickr account (http://www.flickr.com/photos/fritz_bham/sets/) for better quality than the low res attached to my previous email.

If you’re interested in more deformed bill examples there is a Flickr community group: http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=deformed+bird+bills

Did Monsanto get a hold of this Raven? It looks like they injected crossbill genes into this bird.

Barry

Three Geese?‏ Fred Sears 2/2/14

Attached is a photo from last month of a large flock of birds was off Ferndale road. Not sure if this is two or three forms of geese. 

Fredrick Sears

Swan Joe Meche 2/1/14

Took a break yesterday and headed north in the sunshine to see if I could find any swans, and I did. I located several foraging flocks in the expanse of open fields south of Lynden, east and west of Hannegan Road.

 

Joe Meche

January hummers, Bellingham‏ Andrew Reding 1/27/14

I did a 17-mile bike trip around Bellingham yesterday with my camera.

Highlights included hooded mergansers and ruddy ducks on Lake Padden (too far out to photograph well).

A solitary bufflehead on the estuary lagoon where Padden Creek empties into Bellingham Bay.

At Boulevard Park, a great blue heron: http://www.flickr.com/photos/seaotter/12166157183/

And a double-crested cormorant drying its wings: http://www.flickr.com/photos/seaotter/12165928305/

At Redtail Reach on Whatcom Creek, a red-tailed hawk overhead: http://www.flickr.com/photos/seaotter/12165931155/

And a male Anna’s hummingbird singing and doing courtship flights: http://www.flickr.com/photos/seaotter/

Andrew

Blaine/Semiahmoo field trip‏ Joe Meche 1/27/14

The heavy fog never lifted today so everything was muted, with gray overtones. Lunch at the Marina Café was just what we needed to help us locate the female Mountain Bluebird.

 

Joe Meche

Bushtits Eric Ellingson 1/25/14

Yesterday for about 5 minutes my suet feeder was covered with Bushtits. About 15-20 trying to all feed at the same time then they flew off.  Today I just saw a single one their briefly.  I'd not seen Bushtits since October.

Eric Ellingson

Dunlin Joe Meche 1/21/14

I was down at Squalicum Harbor yesterday when a flock of >100 Dunlin dropped in to take a break from all that synchronized flying.

 

Joe Meche

snowy owls on east coast‏ John Bower 2/1/14

This NY Times article discusses a large influx of snowy owls in the NE. Interesting given the two years in a row of owls showing up here. Anybody seeing them at Boundary Bay or elsewhere this winter?

Best,

John

Mitch Blanton and I saw one today at Boundary Bay, south of the 64th St. dike entrance, flying from the area of the white tower out to sit on a piece of beach driftwood, where it was immediately bonked on the head a couple of times by a very agile Northern Harrier that then just flew off.  The owl seemed not bothered at all by the interaction.  Nice to see at least a single Snowy in the air this year.

Joan Bird

I was up at Boundary Bay last week. I saw no Snowy Owls (although two were reported by someone on Tweeters). Also, I saw NO SHORT-EARED OWLS; very unusual, in my opinion. To make up for this, I did see three LONG-EARED OWLS roosting in bushes and trees close to the dike, near 64th Street.

Barry Ulman

Breeding Plumage, SE AZ, and Scopes‏ Caanan Cowles 1/30/14

Hi All,

Yesterday, while sitting on a flybirdge of a boat looking for MAMUs, I saw 3 Pelagic Cormorants in breeding plumage.  I feel this is pretty early in the year, but I'm not certain.  I have also been seeing loads of Pigeon Guillemots in breeding plumage for the past two weeks.  I'm not sure how many are up in Bellingham Bay (my 3 month old boy is not into birding yet) but down here in the Hood Canal (were I work) there are lots of them.  

I am heading down to SE Arizona in late April/May and am looking for any suggestions on campgrounds or nice places to stay during my 10 day bird trip.  I have the books and such but was hoping for some input from people who have been down there.

And lastly, I am going to buy a new scope here in the near future and am hoping for some reviews or advice on which ones are the best or if there is someone out there looking to sell their old scope.  I have to be able to connect my Nikon DSLR to it too.  

Thanks and enjoy the bird!

Caanan

Hawaii field guide needed‏ Judy Krieger 1/27/14

Can anyone recommend a field guide for Hawaiian birds? Library's only copy of the Audubon guide  is lost, not replaced. I'd be happy to buy a decent one if any are available. Thanks, Judy

Thanks to all who responded. I now have what I need, and thanks to Barry Ullman I found the material in the older book I had. Petersons Western Birds 2nd edition has a section on Hawaiian birds and my mother's copy was sitting on the shelf where I left it. Sometimes being sentimental pays off.

Bird On,

Judy

• 
  

WA Birder 2013 List Reporting‏ Laurie Knittle 1/27/14

A reminder: Washington Birder List Report form is available on the Washington Birder website:http://wabirder.com/forms.html 
We encourage all who are interested in reporting 2013 totals to submit their List Report to Washington Birder at: info at wabirder.com
 by January 31, 2014.
 
Laurie Knittle

Washington Birder prefers that Washington State List and Big Day Report submissions generally follow the ABA Recording Rules and Big Day Count Rules. 
A quick check of those would be a good review for all, as they seem to have been enhanced in scope and clarity since we last checked them several years ago. 
 
ABA Recording Rules:  http://listing.aba.org/aba-recording-rules/
 
Big Day Count Rules:  http://listing.aba.org/big-day-count-rules/

Thank you Kevin for reminding us all to review and follow these guidelines when submitting our Reports.
 
Laurie Knittle

Washington Birder online 

 

---

Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2014 08:30:53 -0800
Subject: Re: [Tweeters] WA Birder 2013 List Reporting

Since the submission deadline is coming soon, can anyone offer guidance here?

Earlier I posted to BirdYak a reminder about the Washington Birder List Report, and wrote,

"I think it's safe to assume that the ABA listing Rules apply. The rules include the ABA Code of Ethics, prohibiting trespassing, and for Big Day list submissions, as Scott Downes reminded others, Big Day participants may not solicit help from other birders during that day.

http://www.aba.org/about/ethics.html"

Scott replied to BirdYak,

"In regards to the comment: "I think it's safe to assume that the ABA listing Rules apply." I would not make that assumption. On the Washington Birder website, it does say that Big Day reporting must follow the ABA Big Day Count Rules.

 

However, for the regular listing the rules laid out on the site are:

1. Within the reporting area and time period when observed, and

2. Alive, wild and unrestrained when observed.

 

Many groups (including Ebird) use the ABA Code and listing rules as a guideline but many do not follow all aspects of the listing rules. Certainly the ABA Code of Ethics is a good model to strive for in birding. Ken Knittle does subscribe to this list and I would assume he might chime in if he requires strict adherence to the ABA listing guidelines for non-Big Day list reports."

Thanks for your guidance,
Kevin Lucas

Whatcom birds‏ Ken Lane 1/25/14

Hey Whatcom birders,

Fanter and I have been out the past couple days enjoying the sun and today not enjoying the fog mid afternoon at semiahmoo.But even with the limited scoping we did find a flock of close to 500 Ruddy ducks jn the harbor viewed from the beginning of the spit. Amazing. We found Western and a Thayer's gull on the dock amongst the hybrids and a Herring xGlaucous-winged gull.Yesterday we birded Lake Terrell there were 1000's of ducks.Highlights: 1 Redhead, 18 Canvasback, 1 Eurasian Wigeon, 8 Pied-billed Grebes, 70+ Ring-necked Ducks, 1 Savannah Sparrow. In the fields along Mountain view and olson rd we found the previously reported Cackling Geese mixed with a large flock of Trumpeter Swans, Canada Geese, 1 Snow Goose. Lummi flats late in the day. Highlights: 350+ Green-winged Teal in the bay, nearly 100 Black Scoters in the aqua pond, a Harlan's Red-tailed Hawk, and Mt Baker turning pink in the fading light. Nice days.

Good Birding,

 Ken  Lane

Owl Judy Krieger 1/25/14

Barred owl just floated into a tree overlooking the feeder. Whoops. its gone into the dusk

Blaine pier is closed for 6 weeks Nancy Taylor 1/24/14

Hello Birders,

For your information, the Blaine pier is closed for repairs for 6 weeks.  You can stop along the causeway, and view to the north toward White Rock, but parking is limited, the shoulder is narrow, and there is industrial traffic.

Nancy Taylor

Sandy Point Shorebirds‏ Doug Brown 1/24/14

Chirp,

On a visit to Sandy Point this afternoon, we found about a dozen Black-bellied Plovers, twenty Sanderlings, and two hundred Dunlins.
The tide was quite low and ebbing.

db

RFI Big Bend National Park‏ Gayle Stebbings 1/22/14

Hello,

 

Am going to be spending much of February in Texas:  Big Bend Ranch State Park and Big Ben National Park. Looking for information regarding birding sites. 

 

Thank you in advance.

 

Gayle Stebbings

NCAS Twink Coffman 1/22/14

Hi everyone, this is just a quick reminder that the NCAS membership meetings are now being held in the **Rotunda Room in the Old City Hall building of Whatcom Museum** -- the next one is January 28, Tuesday, at the usual time, 7pm. More details are on our website. Happy Birding! North Cascades Audubon Society

-- 

happy birding

Twink

Peregrine Falcons Doug Brown 1/22/14

Chirp,

There were two PEFAs on the Semiahmoo water tower today.
Can we hope that they are pairing up and choose to stick around and nest?

db

Northern Yellow-shafted Flicker Eric Ellingson 1/21/14

This Flicker showed up to my feeder with a male Red-shafted Flicker today at the same time. What’s the story with the yellow ones ... and does this look like one to you?

 

Ground feeding Golden-crowned Kinglets at Birch Bay State Park. I’ve seen about 6 at a time the last few visits. Makes for much better viewing than the usual treetop foraging.

 

 

Eric

I saw a ground feeding Golden-crowned Kinglet while walking on the Fragrance Lake Road a few days ago.

Diane

Red-throated Loon‏ Pat Buhl 1/19/14

This Red-throated Loon was in Squalicum Harbor today. It spent well over an hour quite close to the sidewalk, preening and lazing about, before swimming off and out of sight. The Dunlin were in their usual spot, mostly sleeping. The Barrow's Goldeneye flock also made an appearance.
Pat Buhl

Geese Fred Sears 1/15/14

At the current moment there is a mixed flock of; Trumpeters, Tundra's, White fronted and Canada geese( duskies an the regulars) off ferndale rd.


Fredrick R. Sears

I went out there today, and in addition to the birds you mentioned, I saw one Snow Goose. 1/16/14

Barry Ulman

Request for ID help‏ Nancy Taylor 1/12/14

Hello Whatcom Birders,

A friend sent me these photos and requested ID help. I can't figure out
what kind of Thrush it is.

Pictures taken near Chicago in October 2013. 30-40 birds were in the flock,
in a park near water.
Thanks,

Nancy Taylor
South Bellingham

Evening grosbeaks Eric Ellingson 1/7/14

Watching the hundred or so Bald Eagles was great but the highlight for me was the Evening Grosbeaks. I rarely see them. There were a dozen to maybe 20 high up in a Big leaf Maple tree noisiy eating the seeds. They were a mile or so past the eagle bridge 48.838233,-122.154378,  on the left there is a sign that states the area is an eagle reserve. A rough trail goes thru it where trees have been planted. No eagles in this area though.
Eric Ellingson