[Tweeters] Edmonds Roundup - April 2024

[Carol Riddell via Tweeters]

Hi Tweeters,

With April additions we have reach 143 species for our 2024 year list. In taxonomic order, the new species are:

Greater White-fronted Goose (code 3), 3 at Edmonds marsh (ID photo), 4-24-24

Rufous Hummingbird (code 2), 1 at Point Edwards, 4-1-24

Black Oystercatcher (code 4), 1 at waterfront (ID photo), 4-17-24

Whimbrel (code 3), 15 northbound at waterfront (ID photo), 4-20-24

Least Sandpiper (code 1), 3 at Edmonds marsh, 4-17-24

Western Sandpiper (code 1), 1 at Edmonds marsh, 4-19-24

Greater Yellowlegs (code), 4 at Edmonds marsh, 4-10-24

American White Pelican (code 4), 27 northbound over the Edmonds Bowl (ID photo), 4-18-24

Osprey (code 2), at waterfront and Lake Ballinger neighborhood, 4-9-24

Great Horned Owl (code 4), 4 in north Edmonds (subsequently 1 confirmed with a recording), 4-1-24

Hammond’s Flycatcher (code 2), 1 in Yost Park, 4-21-24

Western Flycatcher (code 2), 1 in Yost Park, 4-21-24

Warbling Vireo (code 2), 1 in Yost Park and 1 at Edmonds marsh, 4-22-24

Northern Rough-winged Swallow (code 3), 2 at Edmonds marsh (ID photos), 4-18-24

Purple Martin (code 3), 1 at Edmonds marsh, 4-12-24

American Pipit (code 3), 2 at Edmonds marsh, 4-10-24

Lincoln’s Sparrow (code 3), 1 at home near Pine Ridge Park (ID photos), 4-13-24 (followup sightings of another Lincoln’s at Edmonds marsh)

Brown-headed Cowbird (code 2), 2 at west end of Puget Drive, 4-7-24

Black-throated Gray Warbler (code 2), 1 at Yost Park, 4-21-24

Wilson’s Warbler (code 1), 1 at Yost Park, 4-21-24

Western Tanager (code 2), 1 at Edmonds marsh, 4-17-24

Several code 3 or rarer species have shown up as ticks in eBird checklists with no details. They will not be added to the collective year list. (Our decision does not affect any eBird numbers but should be a caution to those birders that use of the details field is helpful to others who use this public data base. It helps us know that the tick was not a data entry error, something that happens from time to time to all of us who enter eBird checklists. Range distribution is uneven. Birds that are not rare in a county may be quite rare in certain parts of that county.) They include Mourning Dove (code 3), Spotted Sandpiper (code 3), Ring-billed Gull (code 3), and Common Yellowthroat (code 3).

We had a photo-documented Chipping Sparrow (code 4) in March. There are now multiple undocumented eBird ticks of this species in April. These have proliferated with the appearance of Merlin’s Sound ID. Those of you relying on Sound ID as a definitive confirmation need to be aware of its confusion between Dark-eyed Junco and Chipping Sparrow. If you see the bird, say so in the details field of your checklist. Provide critical field marks that you saw. Or get a photo. If you are relying only on a Sound ID suggestion, state that in the details. The mistakes on Chipping Sparrow are common and we would not add it to our collective year list in the absence of evidence. It is rare enough in Edmonds that a tick on a checklist is insufficient for our purposes. There is growing evidence of checklist owners who are creating lists exclusively with the use of Sound ID suggestions. This makes it much more difficult, in the absence of details, to know if  any of those birds were actually detected by the human using Sound ID. One example is an April stationary, three minute checklist in Pine Ridge Park that lists one each of 15 species, including one Dark-eyed Junco and one Chipping Sparrow. Sound ID, at this time of year, frequently lists both species when it is actually a singing junco in that park. I don’t think there has ever been a documented Chipping Sparrow in Pine Ridge. There are, however, plenty of juncos. Please remember that Sound ID is a tool, but without more from the human user it is not birding.

Today I learned that one of the pair of Barred Owls in Pine Ridge Park was found dead in the parking lot. I’m not certain how recently this happened. My informant said it was the female. The owl I was looking at today seemed quite large so I asked how it was known that the dead bird was the female. It seems to be word of mouth and I don’t know if the carcass was given to the appropriate agency for a necropsy. This is the second time in maybe the last five years that one of the Pine Ridge owls has been killed. The Yost Park pair of Barred Owls seem to be doing well and are nesting successfully. Perhaps one of this year’s owlets will bond with the remaining Pine Ridge owl.

As always, I appreciate it when birders get in touch with me to share sightings, photos, or recordings. It helps us build our collective year list. If you would like a copy of our 2024 city checklist, with 281 species, please request it from checklistedmonds at gmail dot com. The 2024 checklist, with sightings through April, is in the bird information box at the Olympic Beach Visitor Station at the base of the public pier.

Good birding,

Carol Riddell
Edmonds, WA

Abundance codes: (1) Common, (2) Uncommon, (3) Harder to find, usually seen annually, (4) Rare, 5+ records, (5) Fewer than 5 records
Good birding,
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