Tuesday, January 27, 2009 - Down(y) and Dirty

The Pacific Northwest Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers look very dirty to those of us more accustomed to the bright white parts.  They look like they have been dusting in soot and really need a good bath. 

This male Downy Woodpecker, who has become a regular at our feeder, is showing a distinct yellow at the base of his bill, his belly, and the underside of his tail.  Is this a breeding plumage not mentioned in field guides or just a color variation?

Added note:  A friend from Pittsburgh has suggested that the Downy is a Steeler fan wearing its Black and Gold for the Super Bowl - GO STEELERS!

Sunday, January 25, 2009 - Red-tailed Flicker

The Red-shafted race of the Northern Flicker (formerly Red-shafted Flicker) is named for the feather shaft color of the wing primaries.  There is a flash of red seen on the underside of the wings as they fly.  When they sit on the side of a tree or utility pole, the underside of the tail is hidden from view.   This one was showing off its tail color by resting on a small horizontal branch in a tree overhanging the drive down to Dungeness Landing Park.  They usually will fly before you could get underneath them.  It could also have been called the Red-tailed Flicker.

Friday, January 23, 2009 - The Eagle Tree

There is a tree we have started calling the Eagle Tree.  It often supports a group of as many as 5 Bald Eagles. 

Driving east on Lotzgesell Road, it is straight ahead where the road bends left at the entrance to the Dungeness Cemetery.  We first discovered the concentration on 12-Jan-09.  We stopped to see them and counted 17 Bald Eagles in that tree and neighboring trees.  That day was overcast with terrible lighting for photographing eagles.  The day was significant because the Philadelphia Eagles football team was playing the New York Giants in a playoff game.  I took seeing all those eagles as an omen – the Eagles won!  That area is also full of Common Ravens.  I stayed away the following week as the Pittsburgh Steelers were playing the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship game and I didn’t want to jinx the Steelers by seeing a bunch of ravens.  (The Steelers won!)

Today was nice and bright so I returned to the Eagle Tree to check the birds and try to get some photos.  We were there for about 10 minutes and saw over twenty in trees, on the ground, and flying by.  There is a nice parking spot so it is a good place to stop and enjoy the view.

The Super Bowl is coming up in a little over a week.  The Steelers are playing the Arizona Cardinals.  There are no Northern Cardinals in Washington state so I don’t have to worry about staying away from the area of the tree.

The reason the area is so popular with eagles and ravens is the Olympic Game Farm (http://www.olygamefarm.com/) has a pit nearby where they dispose of animals who have died.  They may like the idea of an easy meal.  This is the time of year when our national bird is most common around Sequim.

Tuesday, January 20, 2009 - Ruby flycatcher

Ruby-crowned Kinglets are primarily foliage-gleaning insectivores.  Yesterday at Salt Creek County Park, we watched one flycatching for about 10 minutes at the parking area at the edge of the developed campsites. There may have been a hatch of some little midge-like insects.  If here was they were too small for us to see – but not for the kinglet.   It would flick its tail, in usual Rub-crowned fashion, fly up from its perch and return.  Its usual perch was the fence; but it would also use the nearby shrubs.  It must have made 50 sorties – up 3-6’, back down, up 3-6’, back down - while we watched. 

Watching the kinglet perform with the backdrop of Vancouver Island and the Straight of Juan de Fuca was really special.  It is rare to see a kinglet out in the open in full sunshine, giving such great views for so long.  They are so often such a little blur in a mass of foliage.   When they are 30 feet up, hanging up-side down gleaning in a hemlock, you don’t notice that the feet are pink as compared to the more gray legs.

In the woods there were mixed flocks of more Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Golden-crowned Kinglets, and Chestnut-backed Chickadees, typical this time of year.  A couple of Golden-crowned Kinglets were feeding on the ground, allowing good views of their crowns.

There was also a group of about 5 Song Sparrows who responded quite well to pishing.  Will they be more territorial in breeding season?

The tide was out.  Since it was a federal holiday and schools were closed, several people were out at Tongue Point enjoying the tide pools.  Daytime low-low tides are rare in late fall and early winter here.  There are few opportunities to walk on these rocks in sunshine until later in the year.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009 - Chickadees in pairs

Black-capped Chickadee

Chickadees are fun little birds to watch.  They are common, energetic, come to feeders and respond to pishing very well.  They can be trouble birds to birders, however.  Pittsburgh, PA, is on the border between the territories of two species – Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus) and Carolina Chickadee (Poecile carolinensis).  The Black-capped is a more northern bird.  When you get much further north, certainly above I-80, you are in Black-capped territory.  The Carolina, as its name implies, is a southerner.  South of Washington, PA, you expect all Carolinas.  They are very similar – too similar for many birders.  They look very, very similar and sound quite similar to all but the Chickadee experts.  To many they are just “Chickadees” unless you need to differentiate for a Christmas Bird Count.  And there are hybrids to make ID even worse.  Many curse the experts who decided they should be different species. 

Black-capped Chickadee

When we moved to Sequim, WA, life got easier.  There are two species – The Black-capped and the Chestnut-backed Chickadee (Poecile rufescens).  While similar, the differences are distinct and much more obvious.  They will travel in mixed flocks and even come to a feeder together, giving a great opportunity to study the differences.  In the fall the Black-capped gets a little light rusty color on his sides but never the rich, chestnut color on its back.

Chestnut-sided Chickadee

Sunday, January 11, 2009 - Bird seed consumers

I thought I was seeing a lot of deer in Pennsylvania.  For several years I kept records of the numbers I saw driving through Sewickley Heights on my commute.  I think my record day was about 25.  I wasn’t prepared for the numbers in Washington.  Our neighborhood near Sequim is full of Columbian Black-tailed Deer (Odocoileus hemionus columbianus).  I have counted as many as 25 in the half-mile to the main road.  No one tries to plant a garden here.

A few days ago I went to fill a bird feeder in our side yard.  The deer were waiting for a treat with a higher fat content than Douglas Fir needles.  By the time I had the feeder filled two deer were about 10 feet in front of me waiting for some sunflower seeds.  I turned around and five more were behind me.  They are so tame they don’t seem bothered by people until they are quite close.

The local deer are smaller that the White-tailed Deer in Pennsylvania.  They appear stockier.  Lewis and Clark first described them on their expedition.  During their exploration of the coast north of Cape Disappointment on November 19, 1805, Clark observed,   “The Deer of this Coast differ materially from our Common deer in a much as they are much darker deeper bodied Shorter ledged horns equally branched from the beem the top of the tail black from the rute to the end    Eyes larger and do not lope but jump,” 

They are considered a sub-specie of the Mule Deer.  Further north is an even smaller sub-specie, the Sitka Deer.

Thursday, January 8, 2009 - Pine Siskin feeder flocks

Pine Siskins are rather common around Sequim.  There has been at least one year that the Sequim-Dungeness Christmas Bird Count led the country in counted Pine Siskins.  Back in Pittsburgh they are rare most years – not this year however.  They are showing up in flocks of 60 or more at feeders all over Pennsylvania and Ohio.  These were at our feeder near Sequim, WA, yesterday (7-Jan-09). 

I like the string lined up like chorus girls out of step.

Wednesday, January 7, 2009 - Red-necks in WA

Red-necked Grebes are the largest regularly occurring grebes in North America – heaviest – not longest.  In this non-breeding plumage I try, unsuccessfully, to turn them into Yellow-billed Loons because of the yellow on the bill.  From this photo you can understand why it is called Gray-cheeked Grebe in England.

On Monday. 5-Jan-09, there were several visible from the City Pier in Port Angeles, WA.  This one was only about 30’ from the pier, providing great views.

Tuesday, January 6, 2009 - Ducks in clown suits

Surf Scoters always make me think they are wearing clown costumes.  The bills look like they should also have glasses attached and have a Groucho Marx cigar.  What kind of duck did Groucho use when someone said the secret word?  When you get to see their bright red feet, you think, ”Are these real?”

These are part of a flock swimming very near the City Pier in Port Angeles, WA, yesterday.

Monday, December 22, 2008 - Santa hat on a bird

The Red-breasted Sapsucker breeds in areas similar to those of the subject of the previous blog, the Varied Thrush.  This year they seemed to flood the urban areas about the same time as the Varied Thrushes.  The Port Townsend Christmas Bird Count had many reported.  The red of their head is a good shade for Santa’s hat.

Sunday, December 21, 2008 - O Robin strange!

John Burroughs, in 1899 wrote:

O Varied Thrush! O Robin strange!
Behold my mute surprise.
Thy form and flight I have long known,
But not in this new disguise.

I think of Varied Thrushes as a shade specific version of American Robins.  Their coloring is said to blend with the dappled shade of West Coast coniferous forests.  The colors are the same; but the pattern is so, so different.

Yesterday’s snow brought them out in the best numbers of the season.  During the Port Townsend CBC, numerous American Robin flocks included Varied Thrushes.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008 - Shorebirds acting like pigeons

Last Thursday our fall bid class went to Ediz Hook with concentration on gulls.  With the mix of shades of the Olympic Gulls (Glaucous-winged X Western Gull hybrids) presenting enough of a challenge, there are more species expected and several more possible here this time of year.  We learned about the pale eye color to separate the Herring Gull from the Olympic Gull; the bill shape of the Thayer’s; the yellow leg color of the California (except the 2 year-olds have gray legs), the size and leg color of the Mew; and I've forgotten more of the marks but will need to remember them for the Christmas Bird Count.  We do have a neat chart to use as a cheat-sheet, however.  I think we found 10 species.  It can be work to have this much fun.

Near the end of the spit there is a spot where someone dumps a large amount of millet, which keeps about 50 House Sparrows (Sputzes to those back in Pittsburgh) very happy and fat.  It was a surprise to find that there are a flock of about a dozen Black Turnstones and even more Sanderlings that enjoy gorging themselves on the millet also.  I don’t know if they have any self-respect left – acting more like pigeons rather than shorebirds; but it makes for a wonderful opportunity for close photographs.  You can easily get within about 8’.  It also gives an opportunity to compare size.  It was overcast on Thursday; so I returned on Monday and took these photos under a clear sky.

And, for you gull lovers ..........

Tuesday, November 18, 2008 - West End part 2 - Beaches

The West End shore is a mix of wide sandy beaches, narrow cobble beaches, and rocky outcrops.  The driftwood is impressive.  Huge logs are scattered like matchsticks in many areas.  The diameter of some logs exceed my height.  The potential lumber in many could probably build a house.   They serve to help protect the shoreline in storms.  

Ruby Beach is the first beach along Highway 101 coming from the east.  It has a nice trail with breaks in the driftwood allowing access.

Many tall trees, such as these seen from the lodge at Kalaloch, are fine perches for the resident Bald Eagles.  

Since they almost all face west, they are great spots to watch the sun set.

Tuesday, November 18, 2008 - West End

West End has a very different meaning here than it did in Pittsburgh.  The West End is the western parts of Clallam and Jefferson counties – the parts that rob the moisture and allow the rain shadow around Sequim.  It is the land of mosses.  Moss and lichens hang on everything.

One of the more visited areas is the Hoh River Rain Forest Visitors Center of Olympic National Park.  There are several nature trails leaving from the visitor’s center that give a feeling of one of the wettest places in the USA.  We watched a Red-breasted Sapsucker branch and dry his wings in a rare bit of sunshine.  

An American Dipper worked a small stream for insects, keeping its head under water more than above.  It is well suited for the valley.  

Another local resident is the Banana Slug (Ariolimmax columbianus).   It's not as colorful as the California cousins - but just as slimy. 

As we drove back to the main highway we had to wait for a Roosevelt Elk to clear the road.  He was coming at us on the wrong side of the road (may have been British) and slowly meandered into the proper lane and passed.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008 - Hummers and Owl

Today’s Wednesday OPAS bird walk was a little damp; but the birds didn’t disappoint.  There are a couple of pairs of Anna’s Hummingbirds that have become regulars and are sighted almost every week.  One pair is usually near the building.  Today was no exception.  Having just moved from Pennsylvania, it is a delight to see hummingbirds in November.  They winter here.  This is one of the females.

A surprise today was a soaked Barred Owl.  A group of kinglets and chickadees led us to it with their mobbing.  Barred Owls have only recently colonized Western Washington.  They cause some concern, as indications are that they are displacing endangered Northern Spotted Owls and may be contributing to the spotted owl’s population decline.

Sunday, November 9, 2008 - Logbirds

Yesterday we went to Ediz Hook with the local Audubon chapter.  The new birds since our move were a flock of Barrow's Goldeneyes, Brandt's Cormorants, and some Theyer's Gulls - all possessives - hum - does that mean anything?  I'll miss those ducks in the summer.

There were rain squalls and sunshine making for several rainbows.  I’ve lost count how many we have seen since our move.  The clouds, mountains, and sunshine made for some dramatic scenes.  The rain made me leave the camera in the car most of the time – water and electronics don’t mix well.

At high tide you look for the shorebirds and gulls on log rafts.  The harbor at Port Angeles has floating rafts of logs.  I believe the logs are for the pulp plant that pulps them for a Japanese paper mill for phone books there.  The pulping operation does not create the stink of paper manufacture - thank goodness.  The bird list for the harbor follows:
Canada Goose
American Wigeon
Mallard
Green-winged Teal
Greater Scaup
Harlequin Duck
Surf Scoter
White-winged Scoter
Bufflehead
Barrow's Goldeneye
Red-breasted Merganser
Hooded Merganser
Common Loon
Horned Grebe
Red-necked Grebe
Double-crested Cormorant
Brandt's Cormorant
Pelagic Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
Bald Eagle
Sharp-shinned Hawk
American Coot
Black-bellied Plover
Black Oystercatcher
Black Turnstone
Sanderling
Dunlin
Mew Gull
California Gull
Thayer's Gull
Olympic Gull
Heermann's Gull
Pigeon Guillemot
Marbled Murrelet
Rock Pigeon
Belted Kingfisher
American Crow
European Starling
House Finch

Thursday, November 6, 2008 - It's the berries

When we arrived on the Olympic Peninsula, the berries of several plants were very prominent.  The ditch across the road from our cottage is loaded with these three.

Seeing blackberries just ripening in mid-September seems so out of season to someone moving from Pennsylvania.  I grew up in the Ozarks where I learned to plan berry gathering by the holidays.  Just after Memorial Day we picked gooseberries for a delicious pie that required cups full of sugar to mask the tartness.  Just after Independence Day we battled the thorns for blackberries for one of my favorite cobblers and other uses (such as Grandpa’s blackberry wine that was so sweet it could be used a syrup for pancakes).  In Pennsylvania I learned I had to wait until late July for harvests; but the berries were just as sweet.  Now it is early November in Washington State and the blackberries are still ripening.  Resetting my clock for daylight savings time was easier than resetting my calendar for berry time.  I’ll learn to enjoy it for the longer season and my stomach will not complain. 

The local blackberries are everywhere.  Almost all the roadsides are lined with blackberries.  This is a very invasive alien specie, the Himalayan Blackberry (Rubus discolor or Rubus armeniacus).  It is considered to be one of the worst pests in the Pacific Northwest but is now so widespread and established that there are few efforts to eradicate it.  The Washington State Noxious Weed List does not even list them as a regulated plant.  It is now believed to have originated in Armenia – not the Himalayas.  Luther Burbank is often blamed for getting it started on the West Coast.  There are other local blackberries – some even native.  The others are nowhere near as numerous as the Himalayans, however.  I plan to enjoy many, many Himalayan Blackberry cobblers.  If you can’t beat ‘em – eat ‘em.

The Pacific Slope Snowberry (Symphoricarpos albus var. laevigatus) is almost as common.  It is a native, however.  This western snowberry does have a bit of interesting history. Meriwether Lewis, of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, catalogued it in 1804 and even recognized it as a honeysuckle relative. Seeds were saved and sent to Philadelphia to a horticulturist named Bernard McMahon. In 1812, McMahon sent cuttings to Thomas Jefferson, who planted them in his garden. The cuttings thrived at Monticello and Jefferson wrote back to McMahon in October that they had "some of the most beautiful berries I have ever seen." The following year, Jefferson forwarded cuttings to a friend in Paris.  So snowberry bushes traveled halfway 'round the world on the basis of the pretty berries.

Snowberries are considered to be toxic to humans by many sources and too bitter to be eaten by others.  I’ll not try a Snowberry pie.

A third common “berry” or fruit is the hips of the Nootka Rose (Rosa nutkana).  The rose hips can be used as a source of vitamins A, C, D, and E.  They also contain essential fatty acids.  This last component is exceptional: fatty acids are very rarely found in fruit.  They can be gathered in the fall and folklore has it that they are tastier and richer in Vitamin C after the first frost. They are indeed an incredible source of Vitamin C, far richer than oranges. During the first and second world war people were advised to gather and prepare them as a vitamin supplement.

Notice how thorns protect the two that are edible.  In addition to thorns, some have additional defenders. 

Which ones will last the longest through the winter? 

Sunday, November 2, 2008 - Yet another rainbow

Port Townsend was today’s destination.  The wind had the sea a bit rougher than on our other visits.  Buffleheads, Harlequin Ducks, Surf Scoters, and Common Loons were bobbing off Hudson Point.

At the Marine Science Center in Fort Warden State Park, a family of River Otters played in the surf.  

A small flock of 4 Heermann’s Gulls sat on a breakwater.  They should be leaving for Mexico soon.  They are quite distinctive with their red bills.  The gull flying over them is probably one of our “Olympic” Gulls.

The "Olympic" Gulls are Western x Glaucous-winged hybrids.  This one looks to be close to the Western end of the spectrum except for the really dirty head.  

A rainsquall blew through leaving yet another rainbow.  When you see a rainbow in the USA about noon, you know you’re north and winter is close.

We returned to Sequim to sunshine in the blue hole.  There is a reason we are here.

Saturday, November 1, 2008 - Salt Creek - a real GEM

Today we ignored the prediction of rain and drove to Salt Creek County Park west of Port Angeles.  This park is a real gem.  It was Camp Hayden, part of the coastal defence system to protect Pugent Sound.  You can get details at http://www.clallam.net/CountyParks/html/parks_saltcreek.htm .

There are campsites that face the water or backup to the edge of the bluff.  What a view for $16 to $24 per night!  Across the Straight of Juan de Fuca is Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada.  If you tire of the view you can explore the concrete bunkers that housed the 16” guns,

We were there at about noon when the tide was about +5.7 feet.  This was the higher low tide for the day revealing little of the tide pools.  A diver was rinsing his gear outside the rest room.  He said he always sees Giant Octopus – some with heads as large as a “wash tub”.  I don’t know if this was a fish story; but they do grow to 16’ long.  The weather was overcast most of the time the sun broke through for a few minutes after a shower past.  We had a brief rainbow while my camera was back in the car staying dry.

Scoping the birds in the water and listening overhead, we found the following:

Pacific Loon

Common Loon

Horned Grebe

Western Grebe

Double-crested Cormorant

Pelagic Cormorant

Mallard

Black Scoter

White-winged Scoter

Surf Scoter

Harlequin duck

Long-tailed Duck

Common Merganser

Black Oystercatcher

Heermann’s Gull

“Olympic” Gull

Marbled Murrelet

Golden-crowned Kinglet

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

American Crow

These are all expected this time of year.  If the shower had held off a bit more and it had not been lunchtime, we should have had a longer list.  This is the site where we found our “life” Townsend’s Warbler and Black Oystercatchers several years ago.  That helps make it special to us.  The Washington Birding Trails map says that Rhinoceros Auklet nest on the little island off-shore. 

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 This rock had a dozen Black Oystercatchers who were joined by 10 more as we watched.

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Harliquins are right below you.

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 The far rock in the center is covered with Pelagic and Double-crested Cormorants.  The size and glossy appearance of the Pelagics makes them easy to seperate in a scope view.

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Wednesday, October 29, 2008 - Yard Snipe

Some recent highlights have included a trip to Dungeness Recreation area last Thursday, 23-Nov-08.  Watching Sanderlings from about 300 feet altitude gives a different perspective.  Flying …

..or running from the surf  - you only get the top view.

Bald Eagles from above also gives a different angle.

Friday, we saw Columbia Black-tails from the ferry terminal in downtown Port Townsend.

Sunday we visited the Port Townsend Marine Nature Center with its tanks of live critters.

On today’s bird hake at the River Center we watched an Anna’s Hummingbird bathe, a Winter Wren sing, a Western Meadowlark sit, and a flock of Bushtits glean some shrubs.  When we returned to our cottage we had a Wilson’s Snipe - not bad as a yard bird.