This photo was taken today at Brownsmead

For the second year in a row we have found territorial pairs of LAZULI BUNTINGS at Stanley Lake in Seaside.

There are at least 2 males and 1 female in the area which is not a spot I immediately think to look for buntings.

And here are a few snaps of other species seen.

Willow Flycatcher

Common Yellowthroat

Cinnamon Teal female with tealings.

Boy Scouts are not the only creatures that eat nettles, however. There are several butterfly species that use nettles almost exclusively for feeding larvae.

Larvae of the Red Admirable (pictured above) and the Milbert’s Tortoiseshell are nearly obligate Urtica feeders. Satyr Anglewings and West Coast Ladies are also closely associated with nettles, though their larvae have been recorded on other plant species.

All of which brings us to the definition of “noxious weeds”. Urtica is a native species and it belongs along stream banks and other wet spaces. Yes, it stings when you touch it and it may need a bit of management in places with high people densities, but it does not deserve to be eradicated as some park managers are inclined to do.

And after you’ve gotten used to nurturing your nettles, we can move on to native thistles…]]> 2008-06-18T00:56:37Z 2008-06-17T16:53:03+00:00 tag:,2008:/86.5384 2008-06-17T16:53:03Z

Kathleen Sayce led a botany hike up Saddle Mountain on Saturday. We were greeted by below normal temperatures and overcast, but the wildflowers were a spectacular mix of species slowed up by the cold spring and more typical early June species.

Dodecatheon austrofrigidum frigid shootingstar

Cardamine pattersonii Saddle Mountain bittercress

Erythronium revolutum pink fawn lily

Synthyris schizantha fringed synthyris

Viola adunca early blue violet

Here are two easy ones from today's banding. Or are they???

Answers Here

I went north to Pacific County and the Willapa National Wildlife Refuge this morning. My goal was to find the elusive VanDyke's Salamander (Plethodon vandykei). The nature trail at the the refuge headquarters is as much an art walk as it is a nature walk, with sculptures and painting around every corner. And one has to admire the refuge priorities that place the fate of a windthrown tree ahead of the convenience of a hiker.

I actually did pretty well on finding salamanders, turning up a Van Dyke's, 2 Western Red-backs, a Dunn's and and Ensatina, plus tons of Rough-skinned Newts.

VanDyke's Salamander (Plethodon vandykei)

Western Red-backed Salamander (Plethodon vehiculum)

Ensatina (Ensatina eschscholtzii)

And the ubiquitous Taricha granulosa

Here's a mystery bird that should shake some folks up.

The answer.

I managed to get photos of an interesting courtship behavior between CEDAR WAXWINGS in a apple tree near the Brownsmead Dike Road bridge. These two went on passing petals back and forth for several minute. Another pair in a different part of the tree was doing the same thing.

And as long as I'm on curious behaviors, here's a picture of a PURPLE MARTIN in the wrong box at Svensen Island.

There's been a lot of back and forth discussion about the subspecific ID of ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS this season. The three recognized forms differ in the amount and position of grays, greens and yellows in their plumage. The patient observer can, with practice, pick out the obvious individuals. But the careful observer will also begin to notice that light plays an important role in how we perceive these difference.

Below are photos of the same female lutescens Orange-crowned. The first was taken in bright sun, the second in the deep shade of a Sitka Spruce. Note how much grayer the bird looks out of the direct sunlight. The wing covert are most obviously different looking, but the eye-ring also appears whiter in the shade.

The second photo set is of just the wing of this same bird. Most striking here is the difference in inner and out webs of the flight feathers and the feather shafts. Also notice that the buffy tips of the greater coverts (which suggest this is a second year bird) all but disappear in the bright sun photo.

The point here is that there are advantages and disadvantages to seeing a bird in bright sunlight and part of the process of seeing the whole bird is seeing it in the right light.

Taken today at Cape Disappointment, Pacific Co.,WA.

For the answer click here.

I woke up this morning to find a female BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAK sitting in our apple tree and visiting the neighbor's bird feeder. Later in the day a male joined it and I was able to get a couple snaps through a kind of dirty kitchen window...

Yesterday, I was alerted to the presence of a PACIFIC GOLDEN PLOVER hanging out along the Astoria Waterfront at a place called the Mill Ponds. This used to be the site of an actual plywood mill, but was re-developed into up-scale housing. The bird was still there today and was remarkably cooperative.

Michelle and I first found the bird at about 15:00 feeding on stuff it was pulling out of the mud at the water's edge. I didn't have my camera, because the battery was re-charging. We returned at about 16:00 with a fully charged camera and found the bird feeding in the weedy area between the pond and the bike path. It was catching some sort of insects, possibly emergent Craneflies.

This is about 8% of the WHIMBREL flock now eating sod worms and cranefly larvae at Wireless Rd

Two the birds we caught today at the Neawanna Banding Station had bird ticks on their faces.

The ticks were removed and kept for identification.

As near as I can tell they were Ixodes brunneus which is a common and wide spread bird specialist.