[Tweeters] Grosbeaks - and more ...

[jimbetz at jimbetz.com]

Hi,

   Our backyard feeder is attracting more and more Grosbeaks.
Both Dark-Headed and Evening varieties.  All day long and
coming and going repeatedly.  And the number that can be
seen at one time is growing - I've seen as many as 5 and
even 6 (once).
   Also seeing Cowbirds, Brewer's Blackbirds, Chickadees,
White-capped Sparrows, Finches (House, Purple, etc.),
Robins, Towhees, Doves, Flickers, Anna's Hummers, and
even the odd Lazuli Bunting.  And lots of Goldfinches!

   And, of course, there are Bald Eagles and Red-Tailed
Hawks that use the updrafts on the hill to their
advantage.  The Turkey Vultures, Crows, and Ravens
are here every day as well.

   The ever present Red-Winged Blackbirds are a treasure.
I am seeing them in the pond at the foot of the hill
where they were not present last year ... perhaps they
moved here from Wiley ... *G*

   Oh yes, I caught a pair of Gadwalls at Wiley Slough
Tuesday.  The location continues to make me want to
cry - it is only now getting any level of 'recovery'
from the spraying this Winter.  What could they have
been thinking?

   One species I am NOT seeing are the GBHs.  The new
bird cam shows young in the nest(s) so they are probably
"staying closer to home" until the young have fledged.

   I miss the Trumpeters and Snows and the concentrations
of the raptors on the flats ... but the birding is still
good here in Skagit County.

   The ever changing weather is good - it keeps us aware
and awake   Some wind, sun, clouds, rain ... you name it
and we are seeing it ... almost all of them almost every
day.
                                      - Jim in Burlington