From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sat Feb 1 00:03:31 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Dan Reiff via Tweeters) Date: Sat Feb 1 00:03:55 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] =?utf-8?q?Challenge_to_Endangered_Species_Act_=28ESA?= =?utf-8?q?=29_Regarding_the_Protection_of_Single_State_species=3A_?= =?utf-8?q?=E2=80=9CConservation_Groups_Take_Legal_Action_to_Ensure_Surviv?= =?utf-8?q?al_of_Declining_Florida_Scrub-Jay_-_American_Bird_Conservancy?= =?utf-8?b?4oCd?= Message-ID: ? https://abcbirds.org/news/florida-scrub-jay-lawsuit-2025/ Sent from my iPhone From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sat Feb 1 12:28:36 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Vincent Lucas via Tweeters) Date: Sat Feb 1 12:28:53 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Challenge to Endangered Species Act (ESA) Message-ID: I lived in Florida from 1997 to 2012. The Florida Scrub-Jay was declining even then due to loss of habitat. The Charlotte County Scrub-Jays were particularly affected. There are too many private companies in bed with Florida State politicians to effect change in that state. I?m so glad I got out of there! Vincent Lucas Port Angeles, Washington Sent from Gmail Mobile ??? ??? ??? -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sat Feb 1 20:23:15 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Alan Roedell via Tweeters) Date: Sat Feb 1 20:23:30 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Challenge to Endangered Species Act (ESA) In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: I'm boycotting all states that voted for the dump. On Sat, Feb 1, 2025, 12:29?PM Vincent Lucas via Tweeters < tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > I lived in Florida from 1997 to 2012. The Florida Scrub-Jay was declining > even then due to loss of habitat. The Charlotte County Scrub-Jays were > particularly affected. There are too many private companies in bed with > Florida State politicians to effect change in that state. I?m so glad I got > out of there! > > Vincent Lucas > Port Angeles, Washington > > Sent from Gmail Mobile ??? ??? ??? > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sat Feb 1 20:27:41 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Jon. Anderson and Marty Chaney via Tweeters) Date: Sat Feb 1 20:27:45 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] All-women Pelagic out of Garibaldi Message-ID: <1014301975.2030763.1738470461216@connect.xfinity.com> An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Feb 2 10:15:24 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Diann MacRae via Tweeters) Date: Sun Feb 2 10:15:28 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] snow~ Message-ID: An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Feb 2 10:28:54 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Odette James via Tweeters) Date: Sun Feb 2 10:29:05 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Northern Flicker References: <366296553.6326889.1738520934210.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <366296553.6326889.1738520934210@mail.yahoo.com> Over the last few days, an interesting intergrade Northern Flicker has been hanging around the northern edge of the property of the Lakeshore Retirement Community (11448 Rainier Ave S, at the south edge of Lake Washington) and the small park at the edge of the lake adjacent to the airport.? The bird is a male and has plumage intermediate between yellow-shafted and red-shafted.? The nape of the neck has the red patch.? The malar patch has a lot of red but is black at the lower edge, with some black penetrating into the middle of the patch.? I have only gotten a good look at the bird foraging on the ground and perching, so I did not see much of the underside of the wings, but the perching bird shows a lot of bright yellow on the underside of the tail near the undertail coverts.? Most of my birding experience has been on the east coast, Texas, and California, so I hadn't seen an intergrade flicker previously.? Fascinating. Odette James -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Feb 2 16:22:15 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Tim Brennan via Tweeters) Date: Sun Feb 2 16:22:20 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Walla Walla and Columbia County birding blog update Message-ID: Howdy! I made an early January trip to Walla Walla and Columbia Counties. The blog now has three posts to document that trip at wwccountybirding.blogspot.com (a formulaic, if cumbersome title!). https://wwccountybirding.blogspot.com/2025/01/january-6th-real-reason-im-doing-this.html https://wwccountybirding.blogspot.com/2025/01/january-7th-proper-start-in-columbia.html https://wwccountybirding.blogspot.com/2025/02/january-8th-first-trip-wrap-up.html Cheers, Tim Brennan Renton [https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4YJeFL8HpoUlbaP0ho2yMtBb_NjxNnQL3SS0RyV8VriyaTZykjR1_C6Xcfjm91wrh4u8EP16TkYsavEeph5cuP5U8ZdDYeAwoOK1hPi8L_6qRWhCphFXYVjfTdIiV7PFjT0oIw_GmbpPDTdRzO2n0hIieD7DHr25jg6Ywojo-_Ya0LsITv3ubTN5NbTdj/w1200-h630-p-k-no-nu/Varied%20Thrush!.JPG] January 6th - The Real Reason I'm Doing This But one recurring theme, I suppose, is that I am doing these birding years (one or two, or maybe four, counties each year where I go monthly, bird the wheels off the place, and try to see at least 150 species) for some single reason, only now revealed.I found the perfect BLT wwccountybirding.blogspot.com -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Mon Feb 3 15:31:13 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Jon Houghton via Tweeters) Date: Mon Feb 3 15:31:17 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Okanogan This Week? Message-ID: <1760872698.3522453.1738625473357@connect.xfinity.com> Hi Tweets - Kathleen and I will be heading through the Waterville Plateau to the Okanogan this week and would be glad to share info on conditions and sitings with anyone who may be birding in the area. My cell is (206) 601-0773 for calls or texting. Happy Birding! - Jon Houghton, Edmonds jonbirder@comcast.net mailto:jonbirder@comcast.net -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Tue Feb 4 10:11:46 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Elaine Thomas via Tweeters) Date: Tue Feb 4 10:11:57 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] birders and hunters In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Coming from a family of hunters and birders, it's nice to see the mostly respectful thoughts about hunting on Tweeters. (of course, there are obnoxious people in both camps, alas.) My brother wrote a book that might be of interest, "How Sportsmen Saved the World" (though the title is a stretch ?). Has some interesting history of hunting and conservation in the US. He makes the point that big environment-destroying corporations love it when different kinds of environmentalists fight each other instead of them! Another book I haven't read but which looks somewhat similar is "The Shotgun Conservationist" by MacDuff. In these times, the environment needs every friend it can get... Elaine T., Seattle Ethomas at salud dot unm dot edu -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Tue Feb 4 18:59:57 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Ellen Cohen via Tweeters) Date: Tue Feb 4 19:00:03 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Bird note References: <210378668.7300059.1738724397075.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <210378668.7300059.1738724397075@mail.yahoo.com> Tue Feb 4th 2025 - 1am Edition | | | | | | | | | | | Tue Feb 4th 2025 - 1am Edition Public radio's 'BirdNote' celebrates 20 years of birding joy | | | -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 5 07:47:41 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (pan via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 5 07:47:48 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] northwest Seattle rarities Message-ID: <1669645111.67685.1738770461476@ichabod.co-bxl> Tweets, As of at least yesterday afternoon, the Harris's Sparrow and Townsend's Solitaire continue in neighborhoods west of Green Lake in Seattle.? Both are in neighborhoods where one tries to be discreet among the homes while waiting and searching for the birds' next appearances.? Both do seem reasonably consistent about areas they're using.? A fair amount of fruit (berries) remain for the solitaire, and the sparrow is visiting feeders in a yard or two, so it's reasonable they might be around a while longer.? Though those feeders are not in easy sight, being behind fences.? At least some of the sparrow's neighbors are aware and seem okay with a few birders being about.? If you don't see information in other channels, I can give you more details.? Of 4 February, 2025, Alan Grenon Seattle panmail AT mailfence PERIOD com -- Sent with https://mailfence.com Secure and private email -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 5 09:06:34 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Jack Nolan via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 5 09:07:02 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] FOY YRW Message-ID: <7C4FF173-44F3-4CFF-B85E-AF3D1ED77FC7@comcast.net> I know butter butts are around all year but I don?t see them much. Happened upon a couple along the 520 bike trail on my ride home yesterday. Jack Nolan Shoreline, WA Sent from my iPhone. Pardon my brevity and typos. From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 5 12:14:38 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (stan Kostka lynn Schmidt via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 5 12:15:08 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Urban Skagit Ruby Crowned Kinglets Message-ID: <2EEBE31F-734C-4E61-8D63-36C3338AA9D5@earthlink.net> Hi Tweets, Yesterday morning while entering the Skagit Valley Food Coop in downtown Mount Vernon, I observed two Kinglets working the shelves and carts of potted plants next the the Coop parking lot entrance. Last place I would have expected to encounter this species. Everything was covered with a dusting of snow, and the birds spent much of the time concealed under plant foliage, flitting from one cart to the next. At least one was Ruby-crowned, occasionally flashing its bright red crown patch. Always lovely to encounter birds where you least expect them. Seems reasonable to assume the overnight snow cover had them adjusting their foraging. Checking eBird, I now see they are routinely reported in the nearby surrounding area. Stan Kostka lynnandstan at earthink dot net Arlington From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 5 12:53:22 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (BRAD Liljequist via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 5 12:53:27 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Pacific wrens in the City Message-ID: Don't know about others in Seattle, we've been noticing Pacific Wrens more frequently in the south Phinney Ridge area, around Woodland Park. We are at 54th and 2nd NW and have one in the area (including our yard), and also heard one Monday singing their awesome breeding song over at the 60th Street P patch east of 3rd NW. And the last several winters, seems like at least one is part of a typical Woodland Park walk through. Anyone else experiencing similar? We totally love them. I do wonder if the maturing evergreens and understory in the area help generally bring in more typical woodland birds. Brad Liljequist Phinney Ridge, Seattle -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 5 14:52:52 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Dan Reiff via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 5 14:52:58 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] =?utf-8?b?QmlyZCBuZXN0aW5n4oCULeKAnFBldCBmbGVhIHRyZWF0?= =?utf-8?q?ments_may_be_harming_wildlife=E2=80=94but_owners_can_help?= =?utf-8?b?4oCd?= Message-ID: <1FD043FF-1EE6-4F7E-8C49-14E66EB2C649@gmail.com> An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 6 07:00:58 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Ellen Cohen via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 6 07:01:03 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Bird note References: <1984947782.7881681.1738854058805.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <1984947782.7881681.1738854058805@mail.yahoo.com> https://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/article298143923.html -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 6 08:52:10 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Stephan Fjelstad via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 6 08:52:25 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Pacific wrens in the City In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: I live on the Seattle waterfront, Alaskan Way a bit north of the Aquarium. I've been tracking birds roughly between Pier 63 and Myrtle Edwards Park for over 25 years and just 2 days ago noticed a Pacific Wren foraging in the new landscaping along Alaskan Way across the street from Bell Harbor. I believe that is the first Pacific Wren I've ever observed in this area. I'll keep an eye out for more of them, particularly down in Myrtle Edwards. Stephan Fjelstad On Wed, Feb 5, 2025 at 12:53?PM BRAD Liljequist via Tweeters < tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > Don't know about others in Seattle, we've been noticing Pacific Wrens more > frequently in the south Phinney Ridge area, around Woodland Park. We are > at 54th and 2nd NW and have one in the area (including our yard), and > also heard one Monday singing their awesome breeding song over at the 60th Street > P patch east of 3rd NW. And the last several winters, seems like at > least one is part of a typical Woodland Park walk through. > > Anyone else experiencing similar? We totally love them. I do wonder if > the maturing evergreens and understory in the area help generally bring in > more typical woodland birds. > > Brad Liljequist > Phinney Ridge, Seattle > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 6 15:55:29 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Michael Hobbs via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 6 15:55:42 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Marymoor Park (Redmond, King Co.) 2025-02-06 Message-ID: Tweets - The morning was covered in snow, though not very deep. It varied from 0.5" to a max of about 2", but it was clinging to everything in the 32 degree weather. It cleared very soon after sunrise, and we had a very pleasant day with no wind and a few moments of sunshine. Birdwise, it was varied, with long stretches of not much at all, but occasional good stuff. Highlights: Greater White-fronted Goose - Six below the weir, with Canadas Wood Duck - Two drakes seen from the Lake Platform Cooper's Hawk - Adult, probably a male by size, seen from near the start of the boardwalk Red-breasted Sapsucker - One at the Rowing Club (FOY) Pileated Woodpecker - One heard distantly, then seen perhaps even more distantly. First of Year (FOY) Five Woodpecker Day - With all of them seen Merlin - One came and went as we finished the main loop HUTTON'S VIREO - One at the Rowing Club (FOY) Varied Thrush - One near the windmill Purple Finch - One singing, unseen, near the first Dog Swim Beach I saw a RIVER OTTER, far out from the Lake Platform. And Jordan and I saw a COYOTE walking towards us on the grass trail around the East Meadow. Both animals First of Year. A late scan of the lake turned up our only RING-NECKED DUCKS and confirmed HORNED GREBE. The surprise was 5 TRUMPETER SWANS just off the Lake Platform (FOY) The HUTTON'S VIREO was just our 5th sighting ever for February. We have one December record, and no sightings at all for January. But Hutton's isn't common at Marymoor, with fewer than 50 records over the last 30 years. Near Dog Central, we faced a problem I've never had to deal with before. There was a whole flock of GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROWS foraging from the ground, all the way up the trunks to the crown of large Cottonwoods. They were everywhere. And a BROWN CREEPER was singing. I've never been faced with trying to find the Creeper amongst the numerous Golden-crowned Sparrows that were probing the moss on the trunks and branches! Misses today were notable, including Green-winged Teal (after 45+ each of the last 2 weeks), Virginia Rail, Short-billed Gull, Ring-billed Gull, Bushtit (still none for us in 2025). We also had no Cackling Geese, owls, Northern Shrike, or Pine Siskin. For the day, though, we had 57 species, with 4 new for the year, putting us at 72 species in 2025. = Michael Hobbs = BirdMarymoor@gmail.com = www.marymoor.org.birding.htm -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 6 16:34:04 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Martha Jordan via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 6 16:34:35 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Pet flea treatments and harming birds Message-ID: Hi, Thank you Dan for bringing it to our attention. Here is a link to the article: https://theconversation.com/pet-flea-treatments-may-be-harming-wildlife-but-owners-can-help-248481 Martha Jordan -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 6 19:06:09 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Kenneth Brown via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 6 19:06:12 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Wednesday at Nisqually. Message-ID: <1636319098.2262141.1738897569277@connect.xfinity.com> Light snow fall overnight left a little frosting on the landscape, but it was not as cold as it has been. Attendance was lower, (16 or so) perhaps in anticipation of worse weather than actually materialized. The sun was out, shining on scattered ducks and a pair of early Barn Swallows swooping over the unfrozen pond. One landed briefly in a mud cup nest left over from last year, the bird's belly bright white, possibly a Eurasian subspecies? A Red-tailed Hawk perched in an adjacent Alder. Steve reported a Barn Owl and a solitary Snow Goose seen near the Twin Barns on his pre-dawn foray. Crows in large numbers flew west overhead as we started south in the parking lot. A pair of Hairy Woodpeckers flew out the Alders that separates the lot from the entrance road. In the play area and orchard, American Robins, Spotted Towhees, Golden-crowned and Song Sparrows, a Red-breasted Sapsucker, Northern Flicker and a few Mourning Doves drew our attention. The peek-a-boo pond west of the entrance road sported a single Green-winged Teal. A pair of Common Ravens perched in the fruit trees. A flock of hundreds of Cackling Geese flew south, apparently headed for the Farm fields south of the refuge. Departing from our usual route, we headed north along the east side of the loop trail seeing Ruby-crowned and Golden-crowned Kinglets, Bewick's Wren, a Pacific Wren, Song Sparrows, and Black-capped Chickadees. We searched in vain for the Great-horned Owl in it's known afternoon perch. At the River overlook we saw Common Mergansers, Common Goldeneye, Mallards and a Great Blue Heron. Common Ravens croaked unseen overhead. At the Twin Barns platform were the expected duck species, along with three Wilson's Snipe and half a dozen Long-billed dowitchers stitching the muddy ground. In the Willows sheltering the eastern part of the dike were a pair of Lincoln's Sparrows and more Golden-crowned Sparrows and both Kinglets. The tide was in, covering the mud. A Northern Harrier patrolled the surge plain, several Bald Eagles and a Red-tailed Hawk perched in trees and snags. A Peregrine Falcon crossed overhead. A pair of Western Meadowlarks sat up in a small bush on the north side. A few Killdeer flew north over the dike. On the freshwater side we found a pair of Eurasian Wigeon, drake and hen, mingling with their American cousins. They shared the marsh with Cackling Geese, a few Canada Geese, American Coots, Pintail, Shovelers, Mallards and a few Gadwall. Red-winged Blackbirds and European Starlings perched in the skeletal bushes and foraged on the top of the off-limit interior dike road. Marsh Wrens occupied the Cattails. A small flock of Least Sandpipers hunted for shoreline north of the dike. The small resident flock of Greater White-fronted Geese cropped the grass near the entrance to the McAllister Creek estuary boardwalk. The sky clouded up and a light snow/rain mix began to fall, the "feels like" temperature dropped and a breeze picked up as we walked the boardwalk north. In the creek we saw Wigeon, Bufflehead, Common Goldeneye, Surf Scoters and Red-breasted Mergansers. Several Greater Yellowlegs and a Spotted Sandpiper worked the shoreline. The Puget Sound viewing platform, closed off during duck hunting season, was again accessible to us. Out on the reach fog had settled in, but we found one Horned Grebe, more Bufflehead, Wigeon, Scoters, and Mergansers. Brandt's Cormorants sat on the channel marker, but like last week, we saw no Double-crested Cormorants, and no Loons. Returning south a huge flock of Dunlin moved erratically around but as we approached the dike again, a portion settled near the start of the boardwalk and gave us some time to pick through them. We found a few more Least Sandpipers among them. Back on the dike, the decomposing Sealion carcass looked like a wet gray leather-covered ribcage, no Eagles were on it but a few were on the ground nearby. The reliable little flock of Semipalmated Plovers were out on the mud flat, as was a cluster of Green-winged Teal. We turned south along the west side of loop trail and saw Brown Creepers, more Kinglets, Black-capped Chickadees, a Red-breasted Sapsucker, Downy Woodpecker and Northern Flicker. A short side trip to the north end of the flooded field south of the Barns, showed more of the same ducks and 30 or so Coots. The Visitors Center pond held 5 Ring-necked Ducks , a few Bufflehead and Mallards. A Yellow-rumped Warbler was flycatching from the Willows on the shore. The junction of the loop trail and the parking lot was still blocked off by a crew, with a dump truck and backhoe, they're prepping the ground for planting some native plants, so we completed our reverse loop by walking the service road south back to the entrance road. A quick sally to re-check the owl viewpoint was again unsuccessful. The Checklist follows. Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually NWR, Thurston, Washington, US Feb 5, 2025 7:48 AM - 3:05 PM Protocol: Traveling 5.7 mile(s) 67 species (+3 other taxa) Snow Goose 1 Greater White-fronted Goose 26 Cackling Goose 500 Canada Goose 7 Northern Shoveler 150 Gadwall 12 Eurasian Wigeon 2 American Wigeon 800 Mallard 150 Northern Pintail 400 Green-winged Teal 45 Ring-necked Duck 5 Surf Scoter 120 Bufflehead 125 Common Goldeneye 30 Hooded Merganser 2 Common Merganser 2 Red-breasted Merganser 15 Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) 40 Mourning Dove 4 American Coot 45 Killdeer 8 Semipalmated Plover 5 Continuing. Long-billed Dowitcher 6 Wilson's Snipe 3 Spotted Sandpiper 1 Greater Yellowlegs 25 Dunlin 2500 Least Sandpiper 35 Short-billed Gull 25 Ring-billed Gull 75 Western x Glaucous-winged Gull (hybrid) 15 Western/Glaucous-winged Gull 20 Larus sp. 50 Horned Grebe 1 Brandt's Cormorant 4 Great Blue Heron 10 Northern Harrier 2 Bald Eagle 25 Red-tailed Hawk 3 American Barn Owl 1 Belted Kingfisher 1 Red-breasted Sapsucker 2 Downy Woodpecker 3 Hairy Woodpecker 4 Northern Flicker 3 American Kestrel 1 reported by Laurie. Peregrine Falcon 1 American Crow 150 Common Raven 4 Black-capped Chickadee 12 Barn Swallow 2 Swooping over visitor center pond, landed briefly in last year's mud cup nest remaining in sheltered location. Bushtit 24 Ruby-crowned Kinglet 12 Golden-crowned Kinglet 8 Brown Creeper 6 Pacific Wren 2 Marsh Wren 4 Bewick's Wren 8 European Starling 25 Varied Thrush 1 American Robin 30 Fox Sparrow 1 Golden-crowned Sparrow 12 Song Sparrow 15 Lincoln's Sparrow 2 Spotted Towhee 6 Western Meadowlark 2 Red-winged Blackbird 20 Yellow-rumped Warbler (Audubon's) 1 View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S212134410 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 6 21:52:13 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Jon Houghton via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 6 21:52:17 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Okanogan chill (long - gazetteer recommended) Message-ID: <1510850509.3605336.1738907533358@connect.xfinity.com> Hi Tweets - Tuesday, Kathleen and I headed over Stevens Pass for a gala 3 days, of birding, hoping to enjoy some winter weather that always seems to skip by us in the Edmonds bowl. The road over the pass was quite passible, and the somewhat chilly temps (low 20s) were a harbinger of the next couple of days. We didn't plan any birding until we headed out of East Wenatchee and up over Badger Mt. Temps were in the teens with a small but chilly breeze - We don't usually see a lot of birds up there in the winter but have occasionally found some goodies like Pine Grosbeaks and Red Crossbills in the middle of the road. This transit was very notably bird-free, as was (regrettably) much of the Waterville Plateau drive through Waterville and out east on Route 2 - very few of the usual Horned Lark, flying up in front of the car, but one, very gorgeous black and white Rough-legged Hawk, hovering almost motionless in the very brisk breeze. Finally, on the south end of L Rd. SE, where it meets Rt. 2, near (and in) a field of an unharvested grain (millet??), we found a very large flock of Horned Larks with a small number of associated Snow Buntings. Heading north on Heritage Rd. (aka Woods Rd. NE), we again found few (non-Ravenous) birds. Near the north end of Heritage, we spied a suspicious lump on the leeward side of one of those monster fluvial boulders that litter the landscape which, with the aid of a shivering scope, turned out to be a Prairie Falcon. Nothing much to report between there and Bridgeport State Park, where we found one, extremely cute and mostly unconcerned No. Saw-whet Owl, cuddled in the lower branches of the first, smallest fir tree in the northern part of the park campground. Then on to Omak for fine dining at the Breadline. Wednesday morning was in the low teens in Omak (the car started!) and gradually cooled as we ascended from Tonasket up to Fancher Flats. Two Golden Eagles were soaring around the cliff face on Fancher Rd. and making frequent visits to what seemed like last year's nest. At the farm, Chukar and Ca. Quail were first heard up the mountain side, then seen in considerable numbers among the cattle, enjoying the smaller bits of hay. Siwash Rd, on the other hand, was very bird-free: no Sharp-tailed or Roughed Grouse, and no little birds responded to my repeated (Pygmy Owl) tooting. Clark's Nutcrackers were the ONLY birds seen all the way up to where No. Siwash Rd. heads left up to some gorgeous views out across the valley toward the Pasayton Wilderness. A formerly good birding area around the jct with Oberg Rd. has been severely degraded by thinning in the interest of fire-management. Farther north into some nice mixed ponderosa, spruce, and firs, we finally got some bird reaction to my toots, with Pygmy Nuthatch, Mt. Chickadee, and Red Crossbills getting quite excited. (I was a bit excited too because I somehow managed to NOT see a PYNU in all of 2024!?!). Not much to report along Havilla Rd. up to Nealy Rd. Along Nealy, we found a nice flock of Snow Buntings on one of the several stockpiles of hay bales and a few Mt. Chickadees (and Blackbacks) at the Nealy Rd. feeders. Then, again bird-free, except for occasional Ravens and Magpies, to and through Chesaw and out Bolster Rd. where we get the "welcome to Canada" message on the phone. Temps were in the high single digits as we went back up Chesaw Rd. to Mary Ann Creek Rd. Not very birdy (as usual) there but we did find 3 lovely Roughed Grouse in a thicket right next to the road. Just before we got to the Fields Rd. jct. we finally found one of the real trip targets - a nice little flock of Common (now Only) Redpoll, grazing in some fairly small alders. In beautiful downtown Molson, (3 degrees F.) we heeded sound advice from Darchelle W. and Brian P. and took a trip on a Life Road (Washington Ave.) to #11 where the nice people are feeding birds, including Mt. Chicks and Gray-crowned Rosy Finches. What followed was a pretty bird-free (if you want birds every couple of miles, don't repeat this trip - but the birds you see can be pretty cool) as we went east on Chesaw Rd. to the Havilla Rd. jct. and back to the Sno-Park. At dusk (single digits) the Sno-Park was very quiet (Ravens in the distance) no great views of perched up Great Grays and no owls perched on poles on the way down to Tonasket. Rancho Chico is closed indefinitely (bummer) so we settled for El Torito, right next door to the BW and the Omak Inn. This morning (Thurs) we were bummed to hear that it might have snowed in lower Edmonds but happy that it was only in the high teens in Omak. Our drive home deviated over the Timentwa Plateau (Cameron Lk. Rd.) - once a beautiful, high-steppe desert with patches of ponderosa, but now mostly burned to a crisp. No Am. Tree Sparrows, just Ravens, at the usually reliable spot (they were even there last December!). On Timentwa Rd. there were the usual Gray Partridge at the first (burned up) farm where the plucky ranchers continue to raise cattle. No Horned Larks or Snow Buntings, reportedly here last week, were seen, but we did find a few SNBU and little else (Ravens) along the Cameron Lk. road south and back to Rt. 97. We lunched on the causeway to Washburn Is. and were treated to a plethora of ducks including Redhead, Canvasback, both scaup, several grebes, mergansers etc. We capped the trip off with a stop at the Fort Okanogan site just west of the Okanogan R. mouth for great scope views of the Yellow-billed Loon that's been there for a couple of weeks (saving a trip to Semi-Ah-Moo!). No probs on the trip back over the pass and back to snow-free Edmonds. Sorry for the length of all this - Happy Birding - Jon Houghton, Edmonds. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Fri Feb 7 08:20:27 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Dennis Paulson via Tweeters) Date: Fri Feb 7 08:20:31 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Wednesday at Nisqually. In-Reply-To: <1636319098.2262141.1738897569277@connect.xfinity.com> References: <1636319098.2262141.1738897569277@connect.xfinity.com> Message-ID: Ken, we really should thank you and Shep (and Michael Hobbs in Marymoor) for posting these accounts every week, very informative and fun to read. With the vast majority of observations now shared only in eBird, it?s very helpful to have information such as this delivered in narrative form to our email! Dennis Paulson Seattle > On Feb 6, 2025, at 7:06 PM, Kenneth Brown via Tweeters wrote: > > Light snow fall overnight left a little frosting on the landscape, but it was not as cold as it has been. Attendance was lower, (16 or so) perhaps in anticipation of worse weather than actually materialized. The sun was out, shining on scattered ducks and a pair of early Barn Swallows swooping over the unfrozen pond. One landed briefly in a mud cup nest left over from last year, the bird's belly bright white, possibly a Eurasian subspecies? A Red-tailed Hawk perched in an adjacent Alder. Steve reported a Barn Owl and a solitary Snow Goose seen near the Twin Barns on his pre-dawn foray. > > Crows in large numbers flew west overhead as we started south in the parking lot. A pair of Hairy Woodpeckers flew out the Alders that separates the lot from the entrance road. In the play area and orchard, American Robins, Spotted Towhees, Golden-crowned and Song Sparrows, a Red-breasted Sapsucker, Northern Flicker and a few Mourning Doves drew our attention. The peek-a-boo pond west of the entrance road sported a single Green-winged Teal. A pair of Common Ravens perched in the fruit trees. A flock of hundreds of Cackling Geese flew south, apparently headed for the Farm fields south of the refuge. > > Departing from our usual route, we headed north along the east side of the loop trail seeing Ruby-crowned and Golden-crowned Kinglets, Bewick's Wren, a Pacific Wren, Song Sparrows, and Black-capped Chickadees. We searched in vain for the Great-horned Owl in it's known afternoon perch. At the River overlook we saw Common Mergansers, Common Goldeneye, Mallards and a Great Blue Heron. Common Ravens croaked unseen overhead. > > At the Twin Barns platform were the expected duck species, along with three Wilson's Snipe and half a dozen Long-billed dowitchers stitching the muddy ground. In the Willows sheltering the eastern part of the dike were a pair of Lincoln's Sparrows and more Golden-crowned Sparrows and both Kinglets. The tide was in, covering the mud. A Northern Harrier patrolled the surge plain, several Bald Eagles and a Red-tailed Hawk perched in trees and snags. A Peregrine Falcon crossed overhead. A pair of Western Meadowlarks sat up in a small bush on the north side. A few Killdeer flew north over the dike. On the freshwater side we found a pair of Eurasian Wigeon, drake and hen, mingling with their American cousins. They shared the marsh with Cackling Geese, a few Canada Geese, American Coots, Pintail, Shovelers, Mallards and a few Gadwall. Red-winged Blackbirds and European Starlings perched in the skeletal bushes and foraged on the top of the off-limit interior dike road. Marsh Wrens occupied the Cattails. A small flock of Least Sandpipers hunted for shoreline north of the dike. The small resident flock of Greater White-fronted Geese cropped the grass near the entrance to the McAllister Creek estuary boardwalk. > > The sky clouded up and a light snow/rain mix began to fall, the "feels like" temperature dropped and a breeze picked up as we walked the boardwalk north. In the creek we saw Wigeon, Bufflehead, Common Goldeneye, Surf Scoters and Red-breasted Mergansers. Several Greater Yellowlegs and a Spotted Sandpiper worked the shoreline. The Puget Sound viewing platform, closed off during duck hunting season, was again accessible to us. Out on the reach fog had settled in, but we found one Horned Grebe, more Bufflehead, Wigeon, Scoters, and Mergansers. Brandt's Cormorants sat on the channel marker, but like last week, we saw no Double-crested Cormorants, and no Loons. Returning south a huge flock of Dunlin moved erratically around but as we approached the dike again, a portion settled near the start of the boardwalk and gave us some time to pick through them. We found a few more Least Sandpipers among them. > > Back on the dike, the decomposing Sealion carcass looked like a wet gray leather-covered ribcage, no Eagles were on it but a few were on the ground nearby. The reliable little flock of Semipalmated Plovers were out on the mud flat, as was a cluster of Green-winged Teal. We turned south along the west side of loop trail and saw Brown Creepers, more Kinglets, Black-capped Chickadees, a Red-breasted Sapsucker, Downy Woodpecker and Northern Flicker. A short side trip to the north end of the flooded field south of the Barns, showed more of the same ducks and 30 or so Coots. The Visitors Center pond held 5 Ring-necked Ducks , a few Bufflehead and Mallards. A Yellow-rumped Warbler was flycatching from the Willows on the shore. The junction of the loop trail and the parking lot was still blocked off by a crew, with a dump truck and backhoe, they're prepping the ground > for planting some native plants, so we completed our reverse loop by walking the service road south back to the entrance road. A quick sally to re-check the owl viewpoint was again unsuccessful. The Checklist follows. > > Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually NWR, Thurston, Washington, US > Feb 5, 2025 7:48 AM - 3:05 PM > Protocol: Traveling > 5.7 mile(s) > 67 species (+3 other taxa) > > Snow Goose 1 > Greater White-fronted Goose 26 > Cackling Goose 500 > Canada Goose 7 > Northern Shoveler 150 > Gadwall 12 > Eurasian Wigeon 2 > American Wigeon 800 > Mallard 150 > Northern Pintail 400 > Green-winged Teal 45 > Ring-necked Duck 5 > Surf Scoter 120 > Bufflehead 125 > Common Goldeneye 30 > Hooded Merganser 2 > Common Merganser 2 > Red-breasted Merganser 15 > Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) 40 > Mourning Dove 4 > American Coot 45 > Killdeer 8 > Semipalmated Plover 5 Continuing. > Long-billed Dowitcher 6 > Wilson's Snipe 3 > Spotted Sandpiper 1 > Greater Yellowlegs 25 > Dunlin 2500 > Least Sandpiper 35 > Short-billed Gull 25 > Ring-billed Gull 75 > Western x Glaucous-winged Gull (hybrid) 15 > Western/Glaucous-winged Gull 20 > Larus sp. 50 > Horned Grebe 1 > Brandt's Cormorant 4 > Great Blue Heron 10 > Northern Harrier 2 > Bald Eagle 25 > Red-tailed Hawk 3 > American Barn Owl 1 > Belted Kingfisher 1 > Red-breasted Sapsucker 2 > Downy Woodpecker 3 > Hairy Woodpecker 4 > Northern Flicker 3 > American Kestrel 1 reported by Laurie. > Peregrine Falcon 1 > American Crow 150 > Common Raven 4 > Black-capped Chickadee 12 > Barn Swallow 2 Swooping over visitor center pond, landed briefly in last year's mud cup nest remaining in sheltered location. > Bushtit 24 > Ruby-crowned Kinglet 12 > Golden-crowned Kinglet 8 > Brown Creeper 6 > Pacific Wren 2 > Marsh Wren 4 > Bewick's Wren 8 > European Starling 25 > Varied Thrush 1 > American Robin 30 > Fox Sparrow 1 > Golden-crowned Sparrow 12 > Song Sparrow 15 > Lincoln's Sparrow 2 > Spotted Towhee 6 > Western Meadowlark 2 > Red-winged Blackbird 20 > Yellow-rumped Warbler (Audubon's) 1 > > View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S212134410 _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sat Feb 8 13:11:56 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Christina T bean 4 ever via Tweeters) Date: Sat Feb 8 13:12:10 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Curious about great horned owl nest on Umptanum Rd Message-ID: Hello, I was just wondering if anybody knows if the great horned owl still nests in that tall tree on umptanum road. Thanks Christina Tacoma -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sat Feb 8 13:28:16 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (MARVIN BREECE via Tweeters) Date: Sat Feb 8 13:28:20 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Kent Valley birding Message-ID: Today the continuing ADULT EASTERN RED-TAILED HAWK was still along Frager Rd, between 204th and 212th, in Kent. The bird has been in the area since at least 12.01.24. It was at this same location last winter as well, between 1.25.24 and 5.25.24. Videos of this bird from yesterday: https://flic.kr/p/2qKBbrx https://flic.kr/p/2qKAaVi More videos of this bird: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjBGYkj Today at 204th there was also an adult NORTHERN SHRIKE inside the track. Marv Breece Tukwila, WA marvbreece@q.com ....that the elected might never form to themselves an interest separate from the electors ... - Thomas Paine, from Common Sense -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sat Feb 8 23:54:28 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Dan Reiff via Tweeters) Date: Sat Feb 8 23:54:53 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] NOVA | Dino Birds | Season 52 | Episode 3 | PBS Message-ID: <8E9505DB-A549-45ED-92B9-3A9858741D71@gmail.com> Hello Tweeters, Another always excellent episode of Nova. Scientists present the current thinking about the evolution of birds. I would highly recommend it to anyone interested in this topic. Dan Reiff https://www.pbs.org/video/dino-birds-cgdyzw/ Sent from my iPhone From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Feb 9 10:24:16 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Rob Faucett via Tweeters) Date: Sun Feb 9 10:24:33 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Alaskan Song Sparrows Message-ID: My ?my? Alaskan Song Sparrows are back. Here we go!! Enjoy the birdy bowl!! Rob ? Rob Faucett +1(206) 619-5569 robfaucett@mac.com Seattle, WA 98105 From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Feb 9 12:32:05 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Stephen Elston via Tweeters) Date: Sun Feb 9 12:32:19 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Alaskan Song Sparrows In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: How does one tell if a Song Sparrow is an 'Alaskan' Song Sparrow? Thank you, Steve On Sun, Feb 9, 2025 at 10:24?AM Rob Faucett via Tweeters < tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > My ?my? Alaskan Song Sparrows are back. Here we go!! > > Enjoy the birdy bowl!! > > Rob > ? > Rob Faucett > +1(206) 619-5569 > robfaucett@mac.com > Seattle, WA 98105 > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Feb 9 15:46:11 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Rob Faucett via Tweeters) Date: Sun Feb 9 15:46:34 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Fwd: Alaskan Song Sparrows References: Message-ID: <521608F9-745E-480E-99D1-83530BC92183@mac.com> An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Feb 9 16:28:22 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Rob Faucett via Tweeters) Date: Sun Feb 9 16:28:39 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Alaskan Song Sparrows In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Feb 9 16:42:28 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Jack Nolan via Tweeters) Date: Sun Feb 9 16:42:50 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Herons in Kenmore Message-ID: <5F42758A-C28D-4D4A-AB6F-6A287025971E@comcast.net> Came to a friends house to watch the football game and noticed several Heron in the rookery. My friend says it?s the males and females too. Seems odd. Jack Nolan Shoreline WA. Sent from my iPhone. Pardon my brevity and typos. From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Feb 9 17:39:53 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Matt Bartels via Tweeters) Date: Sun Feb 9 17:40:09 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] 2024 Washington Birder List and Big Day Reports Message-ID: Hi all - Happy to announce the 2024 Year List & Big Day report for Washington Birder are up and available. It is always fun to pull together this glimpse of our community. Check out the files at the following link to see how everyone did in 2024 - http://wabirder.com/online.html List report here: http://wabirder.com/docs/listreport2024.pdf Big day report here: http://wabirder.com/docs/2024BigDayReport.pdf Highlights for the year: Four people reported year lists over 300: Darchelle Worley, Brian Pendleton, Greg Harrington and Bruce LaBar Three people reached 100 species in all 39 counties: Bob Flores Bill LaFramboise Nancy LaFramboise New County big year records were set this year for three counties: Jefferson: Steve Hampton, with 225 species Whatcom: Stephen Chase, with 250 species Whitman: RJ Baltierra, with 244 species Highest ever county big days were reported this year for four counties Benton County by Christopher Lindsey, Jef Blake and Laurie Ness Douglas County by Neil Paprocki, Joe Veverka and Tucker Jonas Klickitat County by Samuel Holman, Jacob Miller and Jonathan Lockwood Spokane County by Luke Thomas and Andrew Thomas All that, county-by-county life list totals and more is compiled in this year?s report. A direct link to the list report with all the state & county life and year list totals can be found here: http://wabirder.com/docs/listreport2024.pdf And a direct link to the Big Day report from 2023 is here: http://wabirder.com/docs/2024BigDayReport.pdf Thanks to everyone who sent in your totals, and here?s to many more updates and surprises in 2025. Matt Bartels Washington Birder -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Feb 9 21:52:34 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Stephen T Bird via Tweeters) Date: Sun Feb 9 21:52:50 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Fwd: Alaskan Song Sparrows In-Reply-To: <521608F9-745E-480E-99D1-83530BC92183@mac.com> References: <521608F9-745E-480E-99D1-83530BC92183@mac.com> Message-ID: I?ve found the best way to learn *Rufina (Alaska) ssp group* song sparrows (if you can?t see them all in person) is to compare photos when they?re the only birds present. You could do better, but I included reference notes in this list for a San Francisco Rufina Song Sparrow that might be a good starting point https://ebird.org/checklist/S159101798 For comparison, in the list?s ssp account I include links to papers; breeding notes and *morphology from Pyle*; and *links to photos of each subspecies* in their breeding range where and when they?re the only ssp present for comparison. I only include migratory ssp. Best, Stephen T Vagrant to south India On Mon, Feb 10, 2025 at 5:17?AM Rob Faucett via Tweeters < tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > For the group. > ? > Rob Faucett > +1(206) 619-5569 > robfaucett@mac.com > Seattle, WA 98105 > > Begin forwarded message: > > *From:* Rob Faucett > *Date:* February 9, 2025 at 2:44:46?PM PST > *To:* Stephen Elston > *Subject:* *Re: [Tweeters] Alaskan Song Sparrows* > > ?They are VERY dark and VERY HUMONGOUS. compared to ours. Those that stay > here to breed. > > Good question. > > Rob > ? > Rob Faucett > +1(206) 619-5569 > robfaucett@mac.com > Seattle, WA 98105 > > On Feb 9, 2025, at 12:32?PM, Stephen Elston via Tweeters < > tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > > ? > How does one tell if a Song Sparrow is an 'Alaskan' Song Sparrow? Thank > you, Steve > > > On Sun, Feb 9, 2025 at 10:24?AM Rob Faucett via Tweeters < > tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > >> My ?my? Alaskan Song Sparrows are back. Here we go!! >> >> Enjoy the birdy bowl!! >> >> Rob >> ? >> Rob Faucett >> +1(206) 619-5569 >> robfaucett@mac.com >> Seattle, WA 98105 >> _______________________________________________ >> Tweeters mailing list >> Tweeters@u.washington.edu >> http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters >> > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Mon Feb 10 07:29:14 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Kathleen Snyder via Tweeters) Date: Mon Feb 10 07:29:29 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] =?utf-8?q?An_evening_with_photographer/author_Peter_Ca?= =?utf-8?q?vanagh_=E2=80=93_Thursday_Feb_13_7pm?= Message-ID: Peter?s books ?100 Flying Birds? and ?How Birds Fly? include his amazing photographs to illustrate and explain the many aspects of flight to people who love birds. He will join us in person at Temple Beth Hatfiloh, 201 8th SE, Olympia to share some of his work. Social time starts at 6:30 pm. You can also view the program via Zoom with the registration link below. This is a free program from Black Hills Audubon. https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/c2fXB4I9T5OAxtAMv5qWEA -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Mon Feb 10 15:09:41 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (stan Kostka lynn Schmidt via Tweeters) Date: Mon Feb 10 15:09:56 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Missing Post Message-ID: Hi Tweets, On Feb 5, I posted to Tweeters my encounter with a couple Ruby-crowned Kinglets in Mount Vernon. And received two personal follow up emails, so I know the post was received by some, or maybe all, members of the Tweeters community. However, the post has never appeared on the ABA website, which is how I view Tweeters. So, now I?m wondering if I?m missing other peoples posts that may not be showing up there ? Thanks for any help. Stan Kostka lynnandstan at earthlink dot net Arlington WA From tweeters at u.washington.edu Mon Feb 10 15:23:29 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Rob Faucett via Tweeters) Date: Mon Feb 10 15:23:49 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Missing Post In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: I?ve had similar. We?re still trying to figure it out. ? Rob Faucett +1(206) 619-5569 robfaucett@mac.com Seattle, WA 98105 > On Feb 10, 2025, at 3:10?PM, stan Kostka lynn Schmidt via Tweeters wrote: > > ?Hi Tweets, > > On Feb 5, I posted to Tweeters my encounter with a couple Ruby-crowned Kinglets in Mount Vernon. And received two personal follow up emails, so I know the post was received by some, or maybe all, members of the Tweeters community. However, the post has never appeared on the ABA website, which is how I view Tweeters. So, now I?m wondering if I?m missing other peoples posts that may not be showing up there ? > > Thanks for any help. > Stan Kostka > lynnandstan at earthlink dot net > Arlington WA > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters From tweeters at u.washington.edu Tue Feb 11 10:26:26 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Elaine Chuang via Tweeters) Date: Tue Feb 11 10:26:34 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Missing Post - only from the ABA site [Urban Skagit Ruby Crowned Kinglets] Message-ID: Stan, thank you for your care in describing that a post of yours, properly sent in to Tweeters, did not appear on the ABA website, one of the listserve abstracting resources. To reassure you about your home team, yes, your nice post about Kinglets at the Co-op did appear in Tweeters. The time of your post happened to be 12:15, Wednesday, Feb 5, thus those who receive one-by-one posts saw it that day; Digest subscribers received it on Feb 6 (Tweeters Digest collects 24 hours of posts sent in up to about 11:55AM). It is possible, as you?ve wondered, that other Tweeters posts are occasionally not being carried over to the ABA site, a phenomenon that is simply outside of our control. I can point out that the other listserve abstracting resource, The Birding Lists Digest, does show the complete set of posts as seen in the Tweeters Digest, including yours. There are other Tweeters irregularities under review, once again relating to that security change with which UW had to comply in 2024. More to come as that becomes possible. Thank you, Stan. Elaine Chuang elc at uw dot edu Tweeters Administration Seattle From: Stan Kostka lynn Schmidt via Tweeters Sent: Monday, February 10, 2025 3:09 PM To: tweeters@u.washington.edu Subject: [Tweeters] Missing Post Hi Tweets, On Feb 5, I posted to Tweeters my encounter with a couple Ruby-crowned Kinglets in Mount Vernon. And received two personal follow up emails, so I know the post was received by some, or maybe all members of the Tweeters community. However, the post has never appeared on the ABA website, which is how I view Tweeters. So, now I?m wondering if I?m missing other peoples posts that may not be showing up there ? Thanks for any help. Stan Kostka lynnandstan at earthlink dot net Arlington WA = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Elaine -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Tue Feb 11 10:46:51 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (via Tweeters) Date: Tue Feb 11 10:47:27 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] =?utf-8?q?WOS_Monthly_Meeting=2C_March_3=2C_2025?= Message-ID: <20250211184651.46836.qmail@s401.sureserver.com> The Washington Ornithological Society (WOS) is pleased to announce our next Monthly Meeting: on Monday, March 3, Matt Farr and Toby Ross will present, ?Counting Seabirds in Puget Sound: How Difficult Could It Be?? Healthy seabird populations are an indicator of a healthy ocean. Unfortunately, many of our seabird populations are imperiled and in need of conservation action. Among those monitoring seabird species and assessing population trends is the Puget Sound Seabird Survey (PSSS), a citizen science effort in which volunteers conduct monthly surveys at sites around the South Salish Sea. Collection of data is however only the first step toward understanding the underlying ecology of seabird declines. In this presentation, our speakers will explore the underbelly of translating counts of birds to estimates of population trends. Matt Farr is a postdoctoral scholar at the University of Washington within the Washington Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit and School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences. His research topics span population and community ecology with emphasis on developing hierarchical models to estimate population abundance and dynamics. Matt?s current research uses quantitative methods to evaluate monitoring strategies for marine birds and estimate species population statuses and trends. Matt works with Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and Puget Sound Bird Observatory on sea duck and seabird research in the Salish Sea and with US Fish and Wildlife Service?s Alaska Maritime Wildlife Refuge on Tufted Puffin research across their North American range. Prior to coming to UW, Matt received his PhD in Zoology and Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior from Michigan State University in 2021 and his BS in Wildlife from Purdue University in 2014. Toby Ross holds a BS in Zoology and an MSc in Applied Ecology and Conservation from UK universities. He has been dedicated to global conservation efforts for more than 30 years. Toby's work has spanned invasive species eradication in the Caribbean, reptile research in Mauritius, and protected area development for Tree Kangaroos in Papua New Guinea. His passion for ornithology grew during his eight years as Science Manager at Seattle Audubon (now Birds Connect Seattle), overseeing citizen science programs. Toby has been director of, since its creation in 2007, the Puget Sound Seabird Survey (PSSS), now a program of the Puget Sound Bird Observatory (PSBO). This year he is responsible for training, coordinating 268 volunteers distributed at 157 sites. Interested individuals are welcome to visit the website to learn more and get involved. Toby also runs Alight Tours, guiding birding adventures worldwide with a focus on conservation and community engagement. This meeting will be conducted virtually, via Zoom (no in-person attendance). Sign-in will begin at 7:15 pm, and the meeting commences at 7:30 pm. Please go to the WOS Monthly Meetings page: https://wos.org/monthly-meetings/ for instructions on participation and to get the Zoom link. When joining the meeting, we ask that you mute your device and make certain that your camera is turned off. This meeting is open to all as WOS invites everyone in the wider birding community to attend and participate. Thanks to the generosity of our presenters, recordings of past programs are available at the following link to the WOS YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@washingtonornithologicalso7839/videos If you are not yet a member of WOS, we hope you will consider becoming one at https://wos.org Please join us! Elaine Chuang WOS Program Support From tweeters at u.washington.edu Tue Feb 11 10:48:31 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Rob Faucett via Tweeters) Date: Tue Feb 11 10:48:49 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Missing Post - only from the ABA site [Urban Skagit Ruby Crowned Kinglets] In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Tue Feb 11 13:03:27 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Brian Holsclaw via Tweeters) Date: Tue Feb 11 13:03:43 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] (no subject) Message-ID: Best Regards, Brian Holsclaw Seattle, WA USA -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 12 14:58:54 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Hubbell via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 12 14:59:10 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Union Bay Watch } Celebrating the Arboretum! Message-ID: <925B0290-B774-4D41-967C-8571488A9DF5@comcast.net> Tweeters, This post celebrates the Arboretum and the variety of life it supports. I hope you enjoy the photos! https://unionbaywatch.blogspot.com/2025/02/celebrating-arboretum.html Have a great day on Union Bay, where nature lives in the city and Black Birders are welcome! Sincerely, Larry Hubbell ldhubbell at comcast dot net -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 13 09:25:53 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Jamie Acker via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 13 09:26:00 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Okanagan Highlands / Waterville Plateau Trip Report Message-ID: Good morning Tweeters! I returned last night from a three day / two night trip to the Okanagan Highlands and the Waterville Plateau. I don?t think I could have picked three colder days to go. How cold was it? Coming down from the hill into Tonasket the needle on the engine temperature gauge went from a slightly below normal temperature to horizontal ??C?. (It returned to normal when I slowed down and reached the warmer temperature of Tonasket). I left Bainbridge Island Monday morning on the 0440 ferry and reached Bluett Pass at sunrise where it was 13 degrees. My first birding stop was at the intersection on 97/17, the orchards. I found a large flock of Cedar Waxwings and in the group were four Bohemian Waxwings, a great start for the trip. Cameron Lake Road was tough birding, the highlight being Gray Partridge at the first farm up Timentwa Road. Fancher Road had Golden Eagle, Chukar, and American Goldfinch. The stream and the feeder at the intersection of Havillah Road and Fancher Road were birdy. Siwash Creek Road in the afternoon produced Clark?s Nutcracker, White Breasted Nuthatch, Mountain Chickadee, and Red Crossbills. The feeder at Neely Road was empty, but just prior to arriving there I found a flock of Snow Buntings in with some stacked hay bales. The Sno Park was quiet ? really quiet. I was there at dusk and did not detect any owls. (I do not call for GGOW as that is harassment in my opinion. That bird is probably singularly targeted by many listers and subjecting it to make a response while trying to make a living in cold conditions with over a foot of snow on the ground is unethical (my opinion)). Normally I camp out at the Sno Park to listen for owls and to view the stars but with temperatures in the single digits at dusk I opted for a hotel in Tonasket. Tuesday morning found me back at the Sno Park at 0600 listening for owls. It was -12 degrees. I did hear a pair of Great Horned Owls calling. After watching the moon set over the meadow at the Sno Park I headed for Siwash Creek where I was treated to one of the highlights of the trip ? 22 Sharp Tailed Grouse. I suspect they spent the night in the creek bed seeking warmer temperatures as when I observed them they made their way out of the creek bed and headed for the uplands. I watched them forage for over 20 minutes until they went out of sight. The Neely Road feeders had been restocked and there were Mountain Chickadees and Red-Winged Blackbirds. The Okanagan Highlands were pretty much void of any bird life except for Ravens and Magpies. I covered a lot of roads, went north of Chesaw, and Davis Road. In my time in the Highlands I encountered only one Rough-legged Hawk, and no shrikes. Around noon I headed south and redid Cameron Lake Road but found nothing new there. There was enough daylight left to spend some time at Washburn Island, which was well worth it. Washburn Island provided looks at 40 Western Meadowlarks that got put up by a passing male Northern Harrier, a varied assortment of ducks, a Ring-necked Pheasant, two Cackling Geese mixed in with some overhead calling Canada Geese, and two American Tree Sparrows, a species I had looked for on Cameron Lake Road and Fancher Road. The Tree Sparrows were about as far south the cornfield in a brush pile near a very small pond/puddle. There were hordes of White-crowned Sparrows, but the Tree Sparrows were disassociated from them. They did respond to the playback chip call. It was almost sunset when I left Washburn Island. I usually enjoy camping out at Bridgeport State Park where I listen to the Northern Saw-whet and Great Horned Owls call, but with low temperatures forecast again I opted for a hotel in Pateros. Wednesday morning I left Pateros for the Waterville Plateau via Central Ferry Canyon Road. No waxwings at Crane Orchards. The grain elevators in Mansfield yielded the usual suspects. My big surprise was a Snowy Owl on H Road near 16th. It was active, but distant. At one point it flew across the road to another rock that was distant. Heritage Road had two Rough-legged Hawks. The millet field at the south end at the junction of Baseline and Heritage Road had a large number of Horned Larks. I could not find a Snow Bunting in with them. At one point a large number of birds took to the air and I could see a large number of smaller dark bird amongst the Horned Larks. When overhead against the blue sky, the rosy flanks of Gray-crowned Rosy Finch were visible. What a treat, but not a great look. From here I headed west and just before Jameson Lake Road in the cut was a huge flock of Rosy Finch. Pulling over to observe them was a bit dicey. Jameson Lake was frozen (15 degrees) but there was a Golden Eagle. Just west of Douglas I found the only Northern Shrike of the trip. Roads were bare and dry for the most part. There were icy patches in some places, mostly on the Plateau, but nothing that gave me a heart check. It was a great trip that I thoroughly needed. -Jamie owler637@gmail.com Bainbridge Island, WA -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 13 09:50:48 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Ronda Stark via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 13 09:51:03 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Union Bay Watch } Celebrating the Arboretum! In-Reply-To: <925B0290-B774-4D41-967C-8571488A9DF5@comcast.net> References: <925B0290-B774-4D41-967C-8571488A9DF5@comcast.net> Message-ID: Hi Larry, These are wonderful photos! Monty and Marsha wonder why they were not included. Ronda On Wed, Feb 12, 2025 at 2:59?PM Hubbell via Tweeters < tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > Tweeters, > > This post celebrates the Arboretum and the variety of life it supports. I > hope you enjoy the photos! > > https://unionbaywatch.blogspot.com/2025/02/celebrating-arboretum.html > > Have a great day on Union Bay, where nature lives in the city and Black > Birders are welcome! > > Sincerely, > Larry Hubbell > ldhubbell at comcast dot net > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 13 10:00:27 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Hubbell via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 13 10:00:44 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Union Bay Watch } Celebrating the Arboretum! In-Reply-To: References: <925B0290-B774-4D41-967C-8571488A9DF5@comcast.net> Message-ID: <5F94827C-9DD9-45D3-BB3C-8359722BC35C@comcast.net> Ronda, In this post I focused on birds in the Arboretum. Most of the time Monty and Marsha are north of the Arboretum. However, they occasionally visit the Arboretum - as do Eva and Albert from the Broadmoor nest. I guess it was mostly a mental block in my head given that their nests are outside the Arboretum. However, this morning there was a young eagle (leaving) and two adults (I would guess Eva and Albert) circling in the bitterly cold wind over Duck Bay. Larry > On Feb 13, 2025, at 9:50?AM, Ronda Stark wrote: > > Hi Larry, > > These are wonderful photos! > > Monty and Marsha wonder why they were not included. > > Ronda > > On Wed, Feb 12, 2025 at 2:59?PM Hubbell via Tweeters > wrote: >> Tweeters, >> >> This post celebrates the Arboretum and the variety of life it supports. I hope you enjoy the photos! >> >> https://unionbaywatch.blogspot.com/2025/02/celebrating-arboretum.html >> >> Have a great day on Union Bay, where nature lives in the city and Black Birders are welcome! >> >> Sincerely, >> Larry Hubbell >> ldhubbell at comcast dot net >> _______________________________________________ >> Tweeters mailing list >> Tweeters@u.washington.edu >> http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 13 12:32:40 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Becky Galloway via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 13 12:32:54 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Wylie: Swainson's Hawk, Short Eared Owl Message-ID: Hi, We drove Fir Island Rd yesterday, enjoying the sun and a variety of bird life. In the fields between Fir Is Rd and Hayman Reserve (the first Fish/Wildlife turnout to the south when going west on Fir Is Rd), I think we found a Swainson's Hawk. At first I couldn't figure out what it was: dark head and wing tips and light everywhere else. Not a red tail because of lack of dark patagial bands on the front of the wings. Then I remembered the Swainson's I'd seen in years past and thought, that's it! We also had great looks at a sharp shinned hawk from the path around the waterway. "Crippling views" as some have called it. Got really good scope looks at that enormous eye, the steep forehead and the heavy barring on the chest. Was fun to see the shovelers and pied bill grebes too, and there were tons of green winged teal. At Wylie Slough, we had a short eared owl for the first time; really great looks. The dunlin put on a great show across the water, flashing their white bellies. Not much else even with high tide; the ducks were elsewhere. We start counting raptors as soon as we get on the highway near Shoreline, and for the first time red tails came within a whisker of the eagle numbers: 24-26. Usually eagles are far and away the most numerous, but we didn't go north of Fir Island this time which gave the hawks a chance. -- Becky Galloway Shoreline, WA beckyg dot sea at gmail -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 13 13:09:20 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Kevin Lucas via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 13 13:09:50 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] New program on Bernie Krause Message-ID: A new program about Bernie Krause went live today. It is beautiful, stunning. Quoting Dr. Steven Shepard, "Hats off to you, Mr. Krause, for all you?ve done for us." Check it out here -- Video URL: https://youtu.be/w-0IzU1EDdk?si=sn3XNU5QhoaMB-mg Good Birding https://www.aba.org/aba-code-of-birding-ethics/ Kevin Lucas Yakima County, WA *Qui tacet consentire videtur* -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 13 14:07:55 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (krothnelson@yahoo.com via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 13 14:08:03 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Upcoming Bird Programs with North Cascades Institute References: <190862868.12383537.1739484475301.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <190862868.12383537.1739484475301@mail.yahoo.com> Hi there, North Cascades Institute has many upcoming bird-related programs taking place from the Salish Sea to the Methow Valley and online: - Finding their Way: How Birds Migrate?(Online): - Wednesday, March 19, from 5:45 - 7:00 PM - This online class taught by well-known naturalist and birding expert David Lukas will help answer the many puzzling questions about bird migration. - The class is only $10 to attend, and if you can?t make this particular date, you will receive the recording link to view the program at your convenience. - Spring Birding on the Snow Goose?(Boating Excursion): - Saturday, May 10, from 8:30 AM - 03:00 PM - With an expert guide, explore the waters of Bellingham Bay, Lummi Island and surrounding areas aboard the?Snow Goose?in search of harlequin, long-tailed ducks, pacific loons, black oystercatchers, surf scoters and more!? - This boating excursion is $215 to attend.?Scholarships and discounts?may be available. - Spring Birding in the Methow Valley?(Overnight Field Trip): - Friday, June 6 at 9:00 AM - Sunday, June 8 at 1:00 PM - Join birding expert Libby Mills for an immersive exploration of seasonal birdlife in the Methow Valley, a region rich in biodiversity, to observe fascinating breeding behaviors and melodious birdsong.? - This overnight field trip costs $350 to attend and includes expert instruction, in-program transportation, and up to 3 nights camping at Pearrygin Lake.?Only a few spots left! - North Cascades Natural History Seminar?(Overnight Learning Center Seminar): - Friday, September 5 at 10:00 AM - Sunday, September?7 at 1:00 PM - Join expert naturalist, tracker, and educator Chris Byrd to explore the North Cascades ecosystem and develop a strong foundation in regional wildlife, geology, ecology, climate, and tracking. - This immersive seminar costs between $345-625 and includes 2 nights lodging at the beautiful?North Cascades Environmental Learning Center, all meals, in-program transportation, and use of naturalist tools.?Scholarships and discounts?may be available. Learn more and sign up today at?www.ncascades.org?or?(360) 854-2599. -- Kim Nelson,?she/her/hersNorth Cascades Institute | Development & Executive Coordinator Thank you for supporting transformative learning experiences in nature by making a gift today at?ncascades.org/give ncascades.org?|?blog?|?facebook?|?instagram | | Virus-free.www.avast.com | -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 13 15:56:02 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Michael Hobbs via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 13 15:56:17 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Marymoor Park (Redmond, King Co.) 2025-02-13 Message-ID: Tweets - Strange Marymoor walk today. It was really cold and dry (29 degrees to start, but felt colder), sometimes breezy, never really sunny, and mostly birdless. We also had no access to much of the slough, as the entire slough trail through the Dog Area was closed for maintenance. It was also just Matt and I, as many of the usuals are birding far away in warmer climes. Despite the difficult slough access, we managed to do okay with waterbirds. It was all of the rest of the avian world that was almost entirely absent until around 10 a.m., at which point we started to find some things. The Rowing Club turned out to be, by far, the best location of the day. Highlights: Trumpeter Swan - Three, seen distantly and briefly from the Lake Platform; never seen before during Week 7 Scaup sp. - One female kept herself hidden along the slough edge; thus we still have no identified Scaup since October Bushtit - FINALLY - a small flock in the Big Cottonwood Forest - First of Year (FOY) Cedar Waxwing - 18 at the Rowing Club; seen only about 8% of February visits. (FOY) Pine Siskin - Only barely heard about 4 times Yellow-rumped Warbler - One on the ice at the Lake Platform >From the Lake Platform to the Viewing Mound, we had essentially no birds at all. There was a pair of RED-TAILED HAWKS sitting close to each other east of the meadow, and maybe one Song Sparrow along the way. But it hadn't been much better along the boardwalk, nor thought the Dog Area. Misses today included Ring-necked Duck, Virginia Rail, American Coot, Short-billed Gull, Ring-billed Gull, European Starling (first miss ever for Week 7), and Purple Finch. Picking up five species at the Rowing Club definitely helped our day total, which by the end hit a semi-respectable 51 species (including scaup sp.) With two FOY birds, we're up to 74 species for 2025. = Michael Hobbs = BirdMarymoor@gmail.com = www.marymoor.org/birding.htm -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 13 19:16:27 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Kenneth Brown via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 13 19:16:32 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Wednesday at Nisqually. Message-ID: <276147586.3853662.1739502987077@connect.xfinity.com> It was cold in the morning, (18? F) almost Okanogan-in-the-winter cold. The Refuge gate opens at 6:45 am. A couple of us came early to try for the Barn Owl but though we were on the platform before 7:00, we were unsuccessful. It was a clear night with a full moon and daylight keeps coming earlier. Seems likely that the owls had enough light to finish their hunt early and were already in their roost for the day. Might be difficult to see them in the coming months. We checked the Great Horned Owl viewpoint on our way back to the Visitor Center and came up empty again. Back on the deck we found two early Barn Swallows huddled together in an intact mud cup nest. What are they finding to eat in this frigid weather? There was enough open water in the pond to congregate American Wigeon, Mallards, Ring-necked Ducks, Northern Shovelers and Bufflehead close in for easy viewing. A couple Ruby-crowned Kinglets flitted in the bushes near by, a Northern Flicker perched on a snag and a Bald Eagle watched from atop the Fir we call the Eagle tree. A "murder" of 75+ American Crows were gathered in the Cottonwood trees on the west side of the entrance road, and many more flew over as we made our way south through the parking lot. A flock of Golden-crowned Sparrows flushed from the ground to the bushes and trees between the parking lot and the entrance road, a Flicker moved with them. In the play area and orchard we saw American Robins, Spotted Towhee, Golden-crowned Sparrows, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, a Northern Flicker, and Mourning Doves. The frozen ponds, west of the entrance road and south of the service road were icy and bird-less. A flock of hundreds of Cackling Geese flew noisily in the direction of the agricultural fields south of the freeway. West of the service road, on the off-limits access road that divides that field in two, a "herd" of American Coots sat, clustered together, (for warmth?) as if they had been rounded up. A Northern Harrier cruised the distant tree line, Red-winged Blackbirds perched singly in trees and on cattail stalks. >From the boardwalk on the west side of the loop trail we saw and heard Black-capped Chickadees, Ruby-crowned and Golden-crowned Kinglets, Brown Creepers, Spotted Towhee, Song, Fox, and Golden crowned Sparrows, Marsh and Bewick's Wrens, a Yellow-rumped Warbler, a Flicker, Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers. A short foray back to the the north end of the flooded field yielded more of the same ducks as before and a Eurasian Wigeon. From the Twin Barns overlook, the frozen field held only a couple Mallards and a small cluster of Cackling Geese. Out on the dike we saw more Golden-crowned Sparrows, a Lincoln's Sparrow, and more Kinglets. Bald Eagles perched in pairs and singly in the trees along the river, and a couple of Northern Harriers hunted low over the surge plain. A flock of seven Lesser Scaup flew southwest overhead. A scattering of Semipalmated Plovers, Killdeer and Greater Yellowlegs were out on the mudflats as were some Green-winged Teal, American Wigeon, Northern Pintail, and a few Gadwall. A Common Raven perched on a rib as it picked at the skeletal remains of the Sealion carcass. The Greater White-fronted Geese were once again in attendance on the dike while a Custer of Canada Geese, some Cackling Geese, and the usual ducks shared the freshwater side with Red-winged Blackbirds, European Starlings and a few Marsh Wrens. In McAllister Creek were Mallards, American Wigeon, a Eurasian Wigeon, Bufflehead, Common Goldeneye, Surf Scoters, a couple female Hooded Mergansers, Common and Red-breasted Mergansers, and two Horned Grebes. A few Great Blue Herons were stationed along the shore patrolled by several Greater Yellowlegs and a Spotted Sandpiper. Least Sandpipers foraged along the water's edge in smallish groups that couldn't seem to settle on a location, frequently picking up and resettling. Near the Puget Sound viewing platform two Dunlin foraged with a larger flock of Least Sandpipers. In the choppy water of the reach, we saw more of the same ducks as were in the creek and a Red-necked Grebe. Several more Bald Eagles perched on pilings. A solitary Double-crested Cormorant sat on the creek shore as we turned south. Back on the dike, we located the large flock of Dunlin we had expected earlier, very distant out on the tide flat. At the Nisqually river overlook a Double-crested Cormorant sat on a snag in the water, a Great Blue Heron perched in the brush on the bank. A Common Goldeneye swam out of sight in the bend of the river. As we walked the east side of the loop trail, we stopped again to check the Great Horned Owl's only known perch, once again unfulfilled. An owl-less but none the less beautiful day of birding. See the following checklist: Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually NWR, Thurston, Washington, US Feb 12, 2025 7:47 AM - 3:20 PM Protocol: Traveling 5.04 mile(s) Checklist Comments: Mammals: Brown Bats, Harbor Seals, Black-tailed Deer, Cotton-tail Rabbit, Eastern Gray Squirrel, Townsend Chipmunk. Temp. 18-36?F, Wind light and variable. 64 species (+2 other taxa) Greater White-fronted Goose 26 Cackling Goose 600 Canada Goose 50 Northern Shoveler 30 Gadwall 12 Eurasian Wigeon 2 American Wigeon 750 Mallard 120 Northern Pintail 150 Green-winged Teal 50 Ring-necked Duck 8 Lesser Scaup 7 Surf Scoter 75 Bufflehead 80 Common Goldeneye 50 Hooded Merganser 2 Common Merganser 3 Red-breasted Merganser 18 Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) 5 Mourning Dove 4 American Coot 75 Killdeer 2 Semipalmated Plover 5 Continuing small flock. Spotted Sandpiper 1 Greater Yellowlegs 30 Dunlin 1500 Least Sandpiper 100 Short-billed Gull 5 Ring-billed Gull 50 Glaucous-winged Gull 1 Western x Glaucous-winged Gull (hybrid) 10 Western/Glaucous-winged Gull 20 Horned Grebe 2 Red-necked Grebe 1 Double-crested Cormorant 2 Great Blue Heron 12 Northern Harrier 3 Bald Eagle 20 Red-tailed Hawk 1 Belted Kingfisher 1 Red-breasted Sapsucker 1 Downy Woodpecker 5 Hairy Woodpecker 3 Northern Flicker 3 American Crow 120 Common Raven 3 Black-capped Chickadee 20 Chestnut-backed Chickadee 1 Barn Swallow 2 Two adults together in nest on east side of bldg. Ruby-crowned Kinglet 30 Golden-crowned Kinglet 10 Brown Creeper 5 Pacific Wren 2 Marsh Wren 5 Bewick's Wren 3 European Starling 25 American Robin 35 Pine Siskin 10 Fox Sparrow 4 Golden-crowned Sparrow 36 Song Sparrow 27 Lincoln's Sparrow 1 Spotted Towhee 4 Western Meadowlark 1 Red-winged Blackbird 40 Yellow-rumped Warbler 1 View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S213048123 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Fri Feb 14 21:36:27 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (via Tweeters) Date: Fri Feb 14 21:36:46 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Hummingbirds References: <21AA9DCF-02EE-45BE-B141-615246A47544.ref@yahoo.com> Message-ID: <21AA9DCF-02EE-45BE-B141-615246A47544@yahoo.com> An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sat Feb 15 07:52:23 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (David Cook via Tweeters) Date: Sat Feb 15 07:52:39 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Northern Peru birdiing Message-ID: A week ago I returned home from a 13 day birding tour in northern Peru. Our group of four began in the far east of the country in the city of Tarapoto and traveled west to the city of Chiclayo with many stops along the way. We saw 328 species including 16 endemics. We experienced a variety of ecosystems and elevations from about 1,000 feet to 7,400 feet. I organized this trip and hired Danny Vargas of Manakin Expeditions to be our guide. He is the owner of a small local birding company that operates out of Cusco. He and his team did a wonderful job not only of finding us so many birds but looking after our wellbeing in every way possible. It was a pleasure to collaborate with Danny and I can highly recommend using his services. If I return to Peru in the future, he will be my guide. I would be happy to provide more details to anyone who is interested. Please email me privately at 41cdcook@gmail.com. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sat Feb 15 09:36:36 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Gene Beall via Tweeters) Date: Sat Feb 15 09:37:07 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Hummingbirds In-Reply-To: <21AA9DCF-02EE-45BE-B141-615246A47544@yahoo.com> References: <21AA9DCF-02EE-45BE-B141-615246A47544.ref@yahoo.com> <21AA9DCF-02EE-45BE-B141-615246A47544@yahoo.com> Message-ID: For those who don't have a subscription to the New York Times, the full text without photos is below.? For those who have a subscription to the NYT, here's the link to the article: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/14/science/hummingbirds-living-in-a-hive-found-for-the-first-time.html?unlocked_article_code=1.xE4.AvQI.4v4X26EQp3Jl&smid=url-share Gene Beall Sammamish, WA gene.beall@gmail.com *Hummingbirds Living in a Hive Found for the First Time In a remote mountain cave in Ecuador, hummingbirds were discovered sleeping and nesting together.* Image:? A male Chimborazo hillstar, a subspecies of high-altitude hummingbird native to the Andes of Ecuador and far southern Colombia.Credit...Dusan Brinkhuizen By Rachel Nuwer Feb. 14, 2025 Hummingbirds are tiny and delicate, but don?t be fooled: They are among the most aggressive birds in the avian kingdom. Their territorial fury is especially aimed at other hummingbirds. Competition over a patch of flowers or a mate often results in high-speed aerial chases, divebombing and beak jousting. So when Gustavo Ca?as-Valle, an ornithologist and birding guide, stumbled across a cave full of hummingbirds nesting and roosting together in Ecuador?s High Andes, he could hardly believe it. ?I thought, ?This looks like a colony,?? Mr. Ca?as-Valle said. He added, ?They were like bees.? He documented 23 adult birds and four chicks,all of the subspecies Oreotrochilus chimborazo chimborazo, commonly known as the Chimborazo hillstar. Mr. Ca?as-Valle?s discovery, described in the journal Ornithology in November, may be the first documented example of hummingbirds that nested and roosted communally. It is also notable that he found the birds engaging in both these behaviors in the same space ? something that even highly social species from other bird families tend not to do. Juan Luis Bouzat, an evolutionary geneticist at Bowling Green State University in Ohio and another author of the study who is also Mr. Ca?as-Valle?s former graduate adviser, said the finding raised fascinating questions about the role environmental factors can play in driving group living and in promoting the evolution of certain social traits. Dr. Bouzat and Mr. Ca?as-Valle at first hypothesized that harsh environmental conditions along the Chimborazo volcano where they found the nests had forced the birds together. The birds live more than 12,000 feet above sea level on a sparsely vegetated slope where it is hard to come by nectar-providing flowers, water or shelter from freezing temperatures and biting winds. ?Either you aggregate or perish,? Dr. Bouzat said. Image:? A view of a snow-topped mountain with a sparsely vegetated plain in the foreground.? The birds live more than 12,000 feet above sea level on a sparsely vegetated slope where it is hard to come by nectar-providing flowers, water or shelter from freezing temperatures and biting winds.Credit...Gustavo Ca?as-Valle The birds live more than 12,000 feet above sea level on a sparsely vegetated slope where it is hard to come by nectar-providing flowers, water or shelter from freezing temperatures and biting winds.Credit...Gustavo Ca?as-Valle But this may not be the full story. Mr. Ca?as-Valle explored the region and found six other examples of hummingbirds nesting and roosting together. He and Dr. Bouzat also surveyed concrete drainage pipes scattered around the area. The pipes had similar environmental conditions to the cave but could fit only one or two nests. The researchers found that just 45 percent of the pipes were occupied by nesting females ? significantly lower than the frequency expected by chance, according to computer simulations the authors conducted. There were significantly more nests found in groups, on the other hand, than there would have been if randomly predicted. Of the 74 total nests Mr. Ca?as-Valle documented, 82 percent were part of groups. Taken together, these findings implied that the birds were actively choosing group living over nesting alone. Dr. Bouzat suspects that environmental factors originally caused the birds to aggregate but that once they bunched together, they evolved traits that made them more social, helping them adapt to their environment. ?I was very surprised to read about a truly colonial hummingbird, because most are aggressive and intolerant of others of the same species,? said Scott Robinson, an ornithologist at the Florida Museum of Natural History who was not involved in the work. ?No one would have considered a hummingbird a candidate for coloniality.? Image:? A hummingbird nestled on orange-flowering shrubs. The hummingbird's plumage is a dull gray and orange, faintly mimicking the surrounding flora.? A female Chimborazo hillstar. Researchers have discovered nesting patterns for this hummingbird subspecies that imply its members are actively choosing to live as a group rather than alone.Credit...Gustavo Ca?as-Valle A female Chimborazo hillstar. Researchers have discovered nesting patterns for this hummingbird subspecies that imply its members are actively choosing to live as a group rather than alone.Credit...Gustavo Ca?as-Valle Charles Brown, a behavioral ecologist at the University of Tulsa who also was not involved in the research, said he was not convinced, however, that the hummingbirds observed in the study actually qualified as being colonial. Animals that live in true colonies often behave in ways that benefit their neighbors, Dr. Brown said, such as working together to find food or detect predators. While it was interesting to find hummingbirds in close quarters, ?there was no evidence of any social behavior on the part of the animals nesting in these clusters,? he said. Mr. Ca?as-Valle pointed out, however, that he observed the hummingbirds from the cave departing and returning together, suggesting a cohesive social group. ?It?s not that each one is doing their own thing,? Dr. Bouzat said. But the authors agree that more research is needed. They hope to conduct behavioral studies to determine if the hummingbirds are merely tolerating each other or are actively cooperating. They would also like to conduct surveys for other hummingbird species in similar High Andes environments to see if they are engaging in group living, too. ?I?m sure there are other unknown caves in the mountains where hummingbirds live,? Mr. Ca?as-Valle said. ?I?m expecting to find other species, for sure.? On 2/14/25 9:36 PM, via Tweeters wrote: > This is just the beginning of an article published in The NY Times. > ?Too long & too many pix to post the whole article > > > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Feb 16 17:52:02 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Denis DeSilvis via Tweeters) Date: Sun Feb 16 17:52:10 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] JBLM Eagles Pride Golf Course Monthly Birdwalk - Thursday, February 20 - 9:00AM Start Message-ID: Hi Tweeters, The Joint Base Lewis McChord (JBLM) Eagles Pride Golf Course (GC) birdwalk is scheduled for Thursday, February 20. The JBLM Eagles Pride GC birders meet the third Thursday of every month. We meet at 9:00AM through February 2025. (Change to 8:00AM in March.) Starting point is the Driving Range building, Eagle's Pride Golf Course, I-5 Exit 116, Mounts Road Exit. When you turn into the course entrance, take an immediate left onto the road to the driving range - that's where we meet. Also, to remind folks that haven't been here before, you don't need any ID to attend these birdwalks. Hope you're able to make it! Current weather forecast is 42-54degF and cloudy, but no rain forecasted thus far. However, ya'll know that can change at any time - dress for success! May all your birds be identified, Denis Denis DeSilvis Avnacrs 4 birds at outlook dot com -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Feb 16 18:37:54 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Jamie Acker via Tweeters) Date: Sun Feb 16 18:37:59 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] eBird and Sensitive Species Message-ID: Good evening Tweeters! First off, let me state that I am a huge fan of eBird. When I go on horizontal hold at least there will be some record of my tribal knowledge. I also am extremely grateful to those unsung heroes, the eBird reviewers who privately and politely educate us on why our ID is so misguided. I recently was the recipient of an eBird reviewer?s critique that questioned a mis ID?d Prairie Falcon. Which leads me to the topic of eBird and Sensitive Species. eBird is not perfect but it does a fairly good job of handling Sensitive Species. There are different degrees of sensitivity apparently. For instance, Sharp-tailed Grouse is listed as a Sensitive Specie, but an eBird search will highlight multiple observations on Siwash Creek Road, a well know location for them. Other species, such as Gyrfalcon, eBird leaves as a purple rectangle to presumably hide the exact location. HOWEVER, photographs will appear of Gyrfalcons in the ?Recent Photos? for a particular region, along with the photographers name. It doesn?t take a great deal of sleuth work to track down the route that the observer used. Especially if there is a checklist submitted with a ?0? under species but a lengthy period of time spent at the location. I am maybe overly sensitive to Gyrfalcon reports, as they are indeed a powerful, rare, and privilege to see. They are also highly prized by falconers. So, please don?t advertise your sitings of gyrs. There are at least two ways that I am aware of and utilize to do so in eBird. The first is to flat out hide your observation. This can take up to 24 hours to occur, so it is best not to submit the checklist for 24 hours and then hide it. It will also hide your photos from public view. The other method to hide the observation is to list several other species at that location. The gyr entry will not appear in public view but will appear on your checklist, just as a hidden record will. What the public sees is a list of the other species seen, the location, and the number of species (less one). However, in ?Recent photos? your photo of a gyr will appear to the public. My recommendation is to hide the observation. Thanks, and somewhere out there a gyr thanks you. Enjoy the Season! -Jamie owler637@gmail.com Bainbridge Island, WA -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Mon Feb 17 11:44:58 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Carol Riddell via Tweeters) Date: Mon Feb 17 11:45:14 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Edmonds Roundup - January 2025 Message-ID: <109A1F54-E007-4BC3-A417-6193117AA3C2@gmail.com> Hi Tweeters, There were 99 species with reliable reports in Edmonds in January 2025. In contrast, we ended January 2024 with 109 species. Some rarer species were not seen this January. Most expected waterfowl were reported in January. The only rarer species reported was Cackling Goose (code 3). We rejected a report of two Eurasian Wigeons (code 3) in the marsh for two reasons. First, they were in a checklist that did not include American Wigeon, which is seen regularly in the marsh. There actually were two reports of American Wigeons that same day. Second, there were no details of field marks and nothing to separate them from hybrids, which are increasing in numbers. This was most likely a data entry error in an eBird checklist. Among the pigeons and doves, Rock Pigeon, Band-tailed Pigeon, and Eurasian Collared-Dove (code 3) were seen in January. Among the rails and cranes, only Virginia Rail (code 2) in the marsh was reported. Shorebird sightings included Killdeer, Black Turnstone (code 3), and Surfbird (code 3). The expected winter alcids were reported: Rhinoceros Auklet, Pigeon Guillemot, Common Murre, and Ancient Murrelet (code 3). Two eBird checklists contained one Marbled Murrelet each, one of them being placed inside the Edmonds marina. Neither birder is known to us, there were no details of the sightings, and confusion with immature Pigeon Guillemots cannot be ruled out. We will wait to add this species when there are more complete reports. Along with the expected species gulls and hybrid gulls, there was one adult Ring-billed Gull (code 3) at Lake Ballinger and one adult Western Gull (code 4) reported on the waterfront. An immature Iceland Gull (Thayer?s) (code 4) was reported at Water Street. The expected grebes were Pied-billed, Horned, Red-necked, and Western. All threeexpected loon species (Red-throated, Pacific, Common) were reported at various sites along the Edmonds shoreline. All three cormorant species (Brandt?s, Pelagic, Double-crested) were reported. Among the pelicans and herons, only Great Blue Heron was reported. Birds of prey included Sharp-shinned and Cooper?s Hawks, Bald Eagle, and Red-tailed Hawk. Barred Owl (code 2) was reported at Hutt and Pine Ridge Parks, as was a Great Horned Owl (code 4) at Southwest County Park. There were two subsequent reports of Great Horned Owl at Chase Lake Elementary School. For the falcons, there were several reports of Merlin at Pine Ridge Park, the marsh, and in several neighborhoods. All of the expected woodpeckers were seen in January: Northern Flicker, as well as Hairy, Downy, and Pileated Woodpeckers. We missed Red-breasted Sapsucker. Hutton?s Vireo was heard several times during the month at Yost Park and once at the marsh. Steller?s Jay, American Crow, and Common Raven (code 3) were all reported. All of the expected smaller birds were reported: chickadees, kinglets, nuthatch, creeper, and wrens. American Robin and Varied Thrush were the most frequently reported thrushes in January. Hermit Thrush was reported several times at Yost Park and in the vicinity of the marsh. Cedar Waxwings were reported several times around the marsh/waterfront and in the Lake Ballinger neighborhood. January reports of finches included House Finch, Red Crossbill (code 3), Pine Siskin, and American Goldfinch. The adult male Lesser Goldfinch (code 5) continued intermittently at the feeders where it was first reported in late November. All of the expected sparrows appeared, including White-throated Sparrow (code 3). There were no reports of Lincoln?s Sparrow (code 3). Red-winged Blackbirds have been reported at Pine Ridge Park, the marsh, the waterfront, and the Edmonds Lake Ballinger area. There were no reports of Brewer?s Blackbird or Brown-headed Cowbird. Among the warblers there were reports of Orange-crowned Warbler (code 1) at the waterfront and near the upper part of Main Street. Townsend?s Warblers (code 2) were reported at Pine Ride and Yost Parks, as well as at the marsh. Yellow-rumped Warblers (code 1) were at multiple locations throughout the month. Please be careful with gulls. There are pretty high numbers of Glaucous-winged Gulls being reported in eBird checklists, one as high as 60. Most of these are probably the much more common Western x Glaucous-winged hybrids. I was once advised by an eBird reviewer that large white-headed gulls seen at a distance or in flight are best reported as Western/Glaucous-winged Gulls. These are situations in which it would be nearly impossible to separate Glaucous-winged from hybrid gulls. Western, Herring, and Iceland Gulls are code 4 species, difficult to find in Edmonds. There are documented reports of one each of Western and Iceland Gulls. Ring-billed Gull is a challenging code 3 species in Edmonds, seen annually but sometimes only a single bird. This gull does not favor exposed shorelines such as Edmonds, particularly in winter. The most promising winter location in Edmonds is the Edmonds portion of Lake Ballinger. Early cycle Short-billed Gulls get mistaken for Ring-billed Gulls in winter when a birder only notes a ring on the bill. We would not add any of these gulls to our year list without documentation of multiple field marks or a photo. We look for evidence-based sightings. Remember that just because a species is on a county basic checklist, it does not suggest even distribution throughout the county or even particularly high numbers. 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 2025 city checklist, please request it from checklistedmonds at gmail dot com. The 2025 checklist with January sightings 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 cariddellwa at gmail dot com Abundance codes: (1) Common, (2) Uncommon, (3) Harder to find, usually seen annually, (4) Rare, 5+ records, (5) Fewer than 5 records -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Tue Feb 18 12:35:48 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Alex Sowers via Tweeters) Date: Tue Feb 18 12:36:04 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Okanogan Valley & Waterville Plateau: Birding at WSU Trip Report (Washington State University birding club) Message-ID: Hey Tweets, This weekend, I and eight other Washington State University students had an incredible trip to the Okanogan/Mansfield area with WSU's birding club 'Birding at WSU'. As the president of Birding at WSU and a big fan of North Central WA, I figured it was only reasonable to suggest doing our first ever overnight multi-day birding trip a few weeks ago. As mid-February is prime time in this region, our expectations were high. So happy it came to fruition! Trip leaders: Alex Sowers, Jacob Miller, and Dylan Hasemann. Highlights included: Gyrfalcon, Yellow-billed Loon, Great Gray Owl, Snowy Owl, American Goshawk, Sharp-tailed Grouse, Long-eared Owl, Western Screech-Owl, Lapland Longspur, and more... *Saturday (2/15)* We left Pullman caravan-style around 6:30 Saturday morning so that we'd arrive at Bridgeport State Park just after 10am. On the drive over, a couple of us saw a couple Prairie Falcons along Hwy 23 in Lincoln county and a single SNOW BUNTING with a flock of Horned Larks in Whitman county (where they are somewhat rare). At Bridgeport State Park, we were successful quickly locating one of the famous roosting NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWLs. Next, despite seeing few waterfowl at Washburn Island during our brief stop, we were lucky to spot a rather close EARED GREBE near the parking area at the north end. For the next stop, we scoped Lake Pateros from WA Historical Marker #28. Last July I found this marker while finding a good spot to scope some Western Grebes. Since then, I've had quite a few waterfowl highlights from here! At this spot, we were successful relocating one of the YELLOW-BILLED LOONs Liam Hutcheson and I found in early January. An awesome bird to get for the club! We ended up watching it attempt to swallow a rather large fish for ~15 minutes before a Bald Eagle came in and it started disappearing underwater for longer periods. With the Okanogan River frozen over, Monse River Rd provided few waterfowl apart from a mixed flock of Common and Hooded Mergansers near the south end. Our best bird on this stretch of road ended up being a gorgeous adult dark morph HARLAN'S RED-TAILED HAWK hunting the opposite side of the river. Its tail was so white it could be mistaken for a Bald Eagle! After dipping on the continuing Swamp Sparrow and Lewis's Woodpecker by the Monse Bridge, we headed up to the expansive plateau above Monse. Despite missing a high priority mammal target, we successfully stumbled upon an adult GYRFALCON that has been hanging around the area. Though the bird was initially relatively close on a telephone pole, it flushed and perched quite distantly on a rock as soon as we crested the hill. A lifer for all! Not too many birds of interest after the Gyrfalcon, though a large flock of Gray Partridges was nice to see. As per Jamie Acker, I will refrain from responding to any queries regarding the exact location of this bird, though efforts from other birders to relocate the bird the next day were unsuccessful. After we had eaten dinner and sorted out our lodging, a few of us headed out towards the north end of Omak Lake to target Western Screech-Owl. Quite soon after arriving at the spot I had them last year, we were welcomed by the distinct sound of counter singing/calling WESTERN SCREECH-OWLs. Owl species #2 for the trip! Dinner was Chinese/Mexican at Los Gallos in Omak. *Sunday (2/16)* By leaving the motel in Omak at 7:30 Sunday morning, we were able to arrive at Siwash Creek Rd around 8:15 just in time to come across our target: 33 SHARP-TAILED GROUSE! A bit further up the road after watching the grouse, we all had good, though distant, views on an adult AMERICAN GOSHAWK perched atop a large fir. While we initially spotted it flying directly away from the first car, I followed it until it perched up distantly on the opposite side of the valley for scope views. Though we planned on spending a bit of time around Havillah and Chesaw in the mid-morning and afternoon, heavy snow and a lack of birds caused us to cut our time in the highlands short after driving Mary Ann Creek Rd looking for special finches. Despite thoroughly car-birding the highlands, the only birds located were corvids (nutcracker, magpie, raven). On the way back down to N Siwash Rd from Chesaw around 2pm, we were treated to nice views of a NORTHERN PYGMY OWL close by in a pine on Havillah Rd. While initially on a telephone wire, the bird only flew a short distance before providing excellent views to all club members of its false eyes! Continuing back down onto N Siwash Creek Rd, we stopped to scope and spotted a distant pair of adult GOLDEN EAGLEs perched atop the conifers. Also a fun club bird, Clark's Nutcrackers were abundant and quite vocal. We had a total of 91 during the trip. Though we unfortunately missed White-headed Woodpecker, at one spot on Siwash Creek Rd there were up to four Downy Woodpeckers, two Hairys, and a nice mix of Mountain and Black-capped Chickadees. Besides House Finch, our only finch species of the trip- Red Crossbill- were seen in a small flock soon after. After grabbing lunch in Tonasket and seeing up to 200 CHUKAR, another Golden Eagle, and ~500 Mallards on Fancher Flats, we headed down to the Waterville Plateau in an attempt to spot Greater Sage-Grouse around sunset. Despite arriving when there was still plenty of light, we had no success locating any sage grouse in the possible spots I know of. Cutting our losses on sage-grouse, we headed over to H Rd on the Waterville Plateau. Here, there had recently been a series of reports of a Snowy Owl hanging out on the rock piles on the west side of the road. Despite a thorough search of both sides of the road, we were unsuccessful finding any Snowy Owls and the sun had already set. Mildly defeated by our lack of success on the plateau, we turned down Rd E NE from Mansfield to continue back towards Bridgeport to the Inn at Gamble Sands (lodging). Maybe 5 miles north of the turnoff, I was driving on a stretch of road meandering below a steep hill when I noticed an abnormally tall and cylindrical shape perched atop a telephone poll on the hill above the road. I quickly hit the brakes and glassed the bird to confirm my suspicions, to my surprise, that the blob was in fact a GREAT GRAY OWL. I jumped out of the car to alert the two cars behind us and the whole club soon all had excellent scope views in the fading light. This was certainly an odd spot and the first time I've ever seen a Great Gray Owl with no trees in sight. After watching the bird for maybe 5 minutes, it flew away from us and became instantly obscured by the large hill directly above us. When we returned the next morning, we could not refind it. Somewhat surprisingly, this bird is actually the first eBird Douglas county record. After grabbing dinner and moving into our lodging for the night, we headed back out to owl Washburn Island. After covering a good half of the island scanning with the flashlight with only a couple Great-horned Owls and the strong scent (plus tracks) of a Striped Skunk, we decided to head back while hugging the row of trees bordering the west edge of the island. No later than a few minutes after we started our way back, a call was made by Jacob, and I was able to light up a curious LONG-EARED OWL flying over us for the whole club to see. Pleased by our success locating owl species #6 for the trip, we headed back to the Inn and fell asleep. *Monday (2/17)* After checking out of the Inn Monday morning around 6:30, we restarted the process of scanning the large tracts of sagebrush on Waterville Plateau as the sun was rising. Unfortunately, despite having good views of a dozen Gray Partridge and dark & light morph Rough-legged Hawks, no other special chickens were seen. Giving up on Greater Sage-Grouse, we headed back over to H Rd in hopes that the Snowy Owl had returned from the previous day's reports. With the same level of success as the evening before, despite a thorough search up and down the road, we decided to drive a bit down 16 Rd NE in an attempt to get on to Rd K NE to further search for the owls. During a routine scan of the large rocks off of 16 Rd, Jacob and I simultaneously got on a distant blob out against the horizon. As soon as I got the bird in the scope and confirmed it was a SNOWY OWL, Jacob realized that I was looking in a different direction as his bird and that there were actually two Snowy Owls. A sweet surprise and a lifer for many in the club! After watching them a bit longer, we decided to drive down L/Heritage Rd in search of anything else that might be perched up on a distant rock. Also a significant target at this point, the *whole *club had yet to find a single Snow Bunting on the field trip. Despite few other birds seen during the long drive down Heritage Rd, two huge flocks of Horned Larks (totalling ~1800 birds between both flocks) gave us an excellent opportunity to sift through them in search of Snow Buntings and Lapland Longspurs. Quickly upon scanning the first flock, everyone in the club was able to get good scope views of roughly a dozen SNOW BUNTINGs mixed in with 600 or so Horned Larks. It was fun watching the flock swirl around and sporadically hearing the distinct Snow Bunting rattle call. After scoping the larks for 15 minutes or so, I was finally able to locate and get one other club member on a single LAPLAND LONGSPUR before the flock reshuffled and I lost the bird. Further down the road at the next flock of over 1000 Horned Larks, we were successful spotting another Longspur, though once again only one other club member was able to get on it given the constant movement of the flock. With the final stop on the trip's itinerary finished, we headed back to Pullman very content with our weekend's excursion. Trip Report from the Okanogan/Mansfield area: https://ebird.org/tripreport/333173 *About Birding at WSU (important!)* I founded Birding at WSU mid January of 2024 with co-founders Jacob Miller and Luiz Stern. Since then, we have accumulated 30+ members and have sparked the birding-bug for a handful of now intrepid Whitman county birders. With weekly meetings every Wednesday and field trips occuring every Saturday morning, Birding at WSU has found quite a few notable birds over the span of less than a year. Notable Birding at WSU club finds around the Palouse include: Eastern Phoebe, Northern Mockingbird, Common Teal, Short-billed & Glaucous Gull, and Swamp Sparrow. However, *Washington State University has been unable to provide any funding for the club*. As a result, officers of the club and club members have had to cover all gas costs and other expenses out-of-pocket. This has been difficult for the club, as we have a very ambitious plan for expanding club membership and our diversity of club activities, but the club unfortunately consists of almost entirely broke college students. So, I ask if you have any interest in donating to Birding at WSU, please shoot me a message at (206) 775-9776 or alexander.sowers@wsu.edu. Any sum of money will count and will be greatly appreciated by myself and the other 30 birders attending Washington State University. Thank you so much! Good birding, Alex Sowers -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 19 10:47:14 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (creinsch via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 19 10:47:19 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] hummingbirds and Avian influenza Message-ID: <47fda0d5-b250-430e-b326-1f96594a57e2@comcast.net> Found a dead male Annas this morning which left me with questions.? Sitting on top of a rabbit feeding station, it looked healthy, but was soaked by the rain and had died sometime in the previous 12 hours.??? Note: It was not particularly cold last night, so I do not believe weather was a factor. Questions: Have there been verified reports of hummingbirds catching Avian influenza ("AI")? Have people suspended feeding hummingbirds (and other wild birds for that matter)? Have there been other reports in Tweeters possibly related to AI that I have missed? Any other thoughts? Chuck Reinsch Seattle, Magnolia From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 19 11:30:41 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Karen Deyerle via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 19 11:30:49 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] hummingbirds and Avian influenza In-Reply-To: <47fda0d5-b250-430e-b326-1f96594a57e2@comcast.net> References: <47fda0d5-b250-430e-b326-1f96594a57e2@comcast.net> Message-ID: <1831891869.1812935.1739993441838@mail.yahoo.com> you feed ... rabbits?! On Wednesday, February 19, 2025 at 10:48:09 AM PST, creinsch via Tweeters wrote: Found a dead male Annas this morning which left me with questions.? Sitting on top of a rabbit feeding station, it looked healthy, but was soaked by the rain and had died sometime in the previous 12 hours.??? Note: It was not particularly cold last night, so I do not believe weather was a factor. Questions: Have there been verified reports of hummingbirds catching Avian influenza ("AI")? Have people suspended feeding hummingbirds (and other wild birds for that matter)? Have there been other reports in Tweeters possibly related to AI that I have missed? Any other thoughts? Chuck Reinsch Seattle, Magnolia _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters@u.washington.edu http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 19 11:43:14 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Dennis Paulson via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 19 11:43:20 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] hummingbirds and Avian influenza In-Reply-To: <1831891869.1812935.1739993441838@mail.yahoo.com> References: <47fda0d5-b250-430e-b326-1f96594a57e2@comcast.net> <1831891869.1812935.1739993441838@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: And I?ll add to that ?what do you feed them?? I assume you?re talking about the Eastern Cottontails that are all over western Washington at this time. I had never heard of feeding wild rabbits, which are basically leaf-eaters. We have them in our yard in Seattle every once in a while, and as we have no garden for them to damage, I have often wondered if we could keep them around by feeding them something, as we do the birds and squirrels. Dennis Paulson Seattle > On Feb 19, 2025, at 11:30 AM, Karen Deyerle via Tweeters wrote: > > you feed ... rabbits?! > > On Wednesday, February 19, 2025 at 10:48:09 AM PST, creinsch via Tweeters wrote: > > > Found a dead male Annas this morning which left me with questions. > Sitting on top of a rabbit feeding station, it looked healthy, but was > soaked by the rain and had died sometime in the previous 12 hours. > Note: It was not particularly cold last night, so I do not believe > weather was a factor. > > Questions: > > Have there been verified reports of hummingbirds catching Avian > influenza ("AI")? > > Have people suspended feeding hummingbirds (and other wild birds for > that matter)? > > Have there been other reports in Tweeters possibly related to AI that I > have missed? > > Any other thoughts? > > Chuck Reinsch > Seattle, Magnolia > > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 19 11:43:33 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Karl Neice via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 19 11:43:50 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] =?utf-8?q?Where=E2=80=99s_tweeters=3F?= Message-ID: <4865D5D5-7DBB-4616-BF34-778492727DE0@icloud.com> Sent from my iPad From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 19 14:14:23 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Jenn Jarstad via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 19 14:14:38 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] hummingbirds and Avian influenza Message-ID: Chuck Reinsch, I would love to know if you get any actual answers to your questions regarding hummers and avian flu. Please share if you receive email responses. Thanks. Jennifer Jarstad Seattle, WA -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 19 14:51:15 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Ann Kramer via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 19 14:51:55 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] hummingbirds and Avian influenza In-Reply-To: <47fda0d5-b250-430e-b326-1f96594a57e2@comcast.net> References: <47fda0d5-b250-430e-b326-1f96594a57e2@comcast.net> Message-ID: Chuck, I strongly suspect it is not weather related. Last year, I lost around 15 hummingbirds as the male Anna's protected the feeders. I found several dead hummers bodies around the feeders, including a few males. It was during a cold spell, but we also had heaters on the feeder. I did a little reading and learned that Anna's will begin breeding in December. They will fight to exhaustion and I've heard, even death, to protect their nectar source. I would consider this as one possibility for it's death. You may want to try putting out a few more feeders in areas around the house where one male cannot fend off all the feeders. On Wed, Feb 19, 2025 at 10:47?AM creinsch via Tweeters < tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > Found a dead male Annas this morning which left me with questions. > Sitting on top of a rabbit feeding station, it looked healthy, but was > soaked by the rain and had died sometime in the previous 12 hours. > Note: It was not particularly cold last night, so I do not believe > weather was a factor. > > Questions: > > Have there been verified reports of hummingbirds catching Avian > influenza ("AI")? > > Have people suspended feeding hummingbirds (and other wild birds for > that matter)? > > Have there been other reports in Tweeters possibly related to AI that I > have missed? > > Any other thoughts? > > Chuck Reinsch > Seattle, Magnolia > > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 19 15:31:51 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Peggy Mundy via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 19 15:31:54 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] hummingbirds and Avian influenza In-Reply-To: References: <47fda0d5-b250-430e-b326-1f96594a57e2@comcast.net> Message-ID: <714961564.2243727.1740007911271@mail.yahoo.com> As to the question whether Avian Influenza has been found in Anna's Hummingbirds.? I checked the WDFW website, where they have a table listing the species in which APAI has been detected -- no hummingbirds are listed at this time.? But it is possible that no one has necropsied a hummingbird to check. Here is the WDFW link:??https://wdfw.wa.gov/species-habitats/diseases/bird-flu Peggy MundyBothell, WA peggy_busby@yahoo.com@scenebypeggy on Instagram On Wednesday, February 19, 2025 at 02:52:51 p.m. PST, Ann Kramer via Tweeters wrote: Chuck, I strongly suspect it is not weather related.? Last year, I lost around 15 hummingbirds as the male Anna's protected the feeders. I found several dead hummers bodies around the?feeders, including a few males. It was during a cold spell, but we also had heaters on the feeder.? I did a little reading and learned that Anna's will begin breeding in December.? They will fight to exhaustion and I've heard, even death, to protect their nectar source. I would consider this as one possibility for it's death.? You may want to try putting out a few more feeders in areas around the house where one male cannot fend off all the feeders.?? On Wed, Feb 19, 2025 at 10:47?AM creinsch via Tweeters wrote: Found a dead male Annas this morning which left me with questions.? Sitting on top of a rabbit feeding station, it looked healthy, but was soaked by the rain and had died sometime in the previous 12 hours.??? Note: It was not particularly cold last night, so I do not believe weather was a factor. Questions: Have there been verified reports of hummingbirds catching Avian influenza ("AI")? Have people suspended feeding hummingbirds (and other wild birds for that matter)? Have there been other reports in Tweeters possibly related to AI that I have missed? Any other thoughts? Chuck Reinsch Seattle, Magnolia _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters@u.washington.edu http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters@u.washington.edu http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 19 15:47:52 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Thomas Einberger via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 19 15:48:06 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Northern Hawk Owls Message-ID: There is very little information on Northern Hawk Owls. Their flight style is described as like an Accipiter, specifically a Cooper's. However, there are no clear videos anywhere to see if this claim is true. Can anyone provide a more detailed description of how they fly to help ID them? -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 19 16:02:56 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Doug Santoni via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 19 16:03:11 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Northern Hawk Owls In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Thomas ? There are a few online videos of Northern Hawk Owls in flight?this was one of the better ones I saw: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yHU0UnWiJZU Doug Santoni Seattle, WA Dougsantoni at gmail dot com > On Feb 19, 2025, at 3:47?PM, Thomas Einberger via Tweeters wrote: > > There is very little information on Northern Hawk Owls. Their flight style is described as like an Accipiter, specifically a Cooper's. However, there are no clear videos anywhere to see if this claim is true. Can anyone provide a more detailed description of how they fly to help ID them? > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 19 16:29:48 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Liam Joaquin Wallace via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 19 16:30:01 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Borrowing Nikon DSLR Message-ID: Hi Tweets, Just traded in my d7200 for a d500 which won?t arrive for awhile so I was wondering if anyone near Seattle has a f mount Nikon dslr that they would be willing to lend to me for this weekend. It would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Liam Wallace -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 19 16:48:48 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Martha Jordan via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 19 16:49:18 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] birds and rabbits Message-ID: While I have bird feeders up, I make sure I am not feeding the rabbits here. I put seed catchers just under my feeders to make a tray for ground feeding birds. Eastern cottontails were introduced here in the 1930s as a game animal and are still hunted. They are also proliferating at a rabbit rapid rate in urban neighborhoods, eating all manner of vegetation, including vegetable gardens. My neighbors are frustrated at all the fencing they now must use to keep the cute critters out of their gardens of all types. Of note: at least two wildlife rehabilitation centers in this area do not accept eastern cottontails into their facilities. This sends a message about prioritizing our native wildlife. Martha -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 19 16:57:38 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Martha Jordan via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 19 16:58:10 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Ireland's blank winter for Bewick's Swans Message-ID: Over the past few years I tracked the decline of wintering Bewick's Swans in Britain and Ireland. This decline is being seen all across the eastern hemisphere where warming climates are keeping swans further north. Here is an article on the issue: https://www.birdguides.com/news/blank-winter-for-bewicks-swan-in-ireland/ Martha Jordan Everett, WA -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 19 18:15:32 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Robert O'Brien via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 19 18:15:47 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Northern Hawk Owls In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: I don't have a lot of experience with them. But I have seen them hovering like a kestrel, when searching for prey at dusk, but still quite light. This was at the Kelley River mouth on the Noatak River, north of Kotzebue, Alaska. One hovered, moved a short distance and then hovered again. Quite spectacular. Bob OBrien Portland On Wed, Feb 19, 2025 at 3:48?PM Thomas Einberger via Tweeters < tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > There is very little information on Northern Hawk Owls. Their flight style > is described as like an Accipiter, specifically a Cooper's. However, there > are no clear videos anywhere to see if this claim is true. Can anyone > provide a more detailed description of how they fly to help ID them? > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 19 18:19:04 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Robert O'Brien via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 19 18:19:18 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Northern Hawk Owls In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Whoops. I had not seen the video when I just posted. Yes,, that's just what it looked like ! Bob OBrien On Wed, Feb 19, 2025 at 6:15?PM Robert O'Brien wrote: > I don't have a lot of experience with them. But I have seen them > hovering like a kestrel, when searching for prey at dusk, but still quite > light. This was at the Kelley River mouth on the Noatak River, north of > Kotzebue, Alaska. One hovered, moved a short distance and then hovered > again. Quite spectacular. Bob OBrien Portland > > On Wed, Feb 19, 2025 at 3:48?PM Thomas Einberger via Tweeters < > tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > >> There is very little information on Northern Hawk Owls. Their flight >> style is described as like an Accipiter, specifically a Cooper's. However, >> there are no clear videos anywhere to see if this claim is true. Can anyone >> provide a more detailed description of how they fly to help ID them? >> _______________________________________________ >> Tweeters mailing list >> Tweeters@u.washington.edu >> http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters >> > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 19 18:56:30 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (GENE BULLOCK via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 19 18:56:33 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Low risk of bird flu to wild song birds Message-ID: <48984992.3951597.1740020190095@connect.xfinity.com> Here is a link to an article entitled Avian influenza: Should you take down your feeders? on the Cornell Lab of Ornithology (allaboutbirds.org) website: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/avian-influenza-outbreak-should-you-take-down-your-bird-feeders/ There has been widespread transmission of avian flu to wild bird species including waterfowl and raptors. However, there have been relatively few documented cases of HPAI in songbirds https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/avian-influenza-outbreak-should-you-take-down-your-bird-feeders/#species-list and other typical feeder visitors to date, although this may change with increased testing or changes to the virus. That means there is currently a low risk of an outbreak among wild songbirds, and no official recommendation https://ask.usda.gov/s/article/Should-bird-feeders-be-taken-down-to-prevent-the-spread-of-diseases-such-as-bird-flu to take down feeders unless you also keep domestic poultry, according to the National Wildlife Disease Program. We do always recommend that you clean bird feeders and birdbaths regularly https://feederwatch.org/learn/feeding-birds/safe-feeding-environment/?__hstc=75100365.58a86efae10d6191919354d7046cd34c.1732410250228.1739311531293.1739994462121.7&__hssc=75100365.1.1739994462121&__hsfp=741388166 as a way to keep many kinds of diseases at bay. Gene Bullock, Kitsap Audubon Society -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 19 18:58:09 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Dennis Paulson via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 19 18:58:16 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Ireland's blank winter for Bewick's Swans In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Martha, I wonder if that could happen with our Tundra Swans. They seem less common on the Skagit Flats than previously, or perhaps I just haven?t found the flocks that are usually there. On the other hand, Trumpeters seem to be getting more common all the time. Is anything known about this? Dennis Paulson Seattle > On Feb 19, 2025, at 4:57 PM, Martha Jordan via Tweeters wrote: > > Over the past few years I tracked the decline of wintering Bewick's Swans in Britain and Ireland. This decline is being seen all across the eastern hemisphere where warming climates are keeping swans further north. > > Here is an article on the issue: https://www.birdguides.com/news/blank-winter-for-bewicks-swan-in-ireland/ > > Martha Jordan > Everett, WA > > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 19 19:46:28 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Hans-Joachim Feddern via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 19 19:46:44 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Ireland's blank winter for Bewick's Swans In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Good point and question Dennis! We are heading up to Blaine tomorrow and down to the Samish - and Skagit Flats on Friday and hope to find a Tundra Swan or two. Hans *Hans Feddern* Twin Lakes/Federal Way, WA thefedderns@gmail.com On Wed, Feb 19, 2025 at 6:58?PM Dennis Paulson via Tweeters < tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > Martha, I wonder if that could happen with our Tundra Swans. They seem > less common on the Skagit Flats than previously, or perhaps I just haven?t > found the flocks that are usually there. On the other hand, Trumpeters seem > to be getting more common all the time. Is anything known about this? > > Dennis Paulson > Seattle > > On Feb 19, 2025, at 4:57 PM, Martha Jordan via Tweeters < > tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > > Over the past few years I tracked the decline of wintering Bewick's Swans > in Britain and Ireland. This decline is being seen all across the eastern > hemisphere where warming climates are keeping swans further north. > > Here is an article on the issue: > https://www.birdguides.com/news/blank-winter-for-bewicks-swan-in-ireland/ > > Martha Jordan > Everett, WA > > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > > > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 19 20:31:52 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Shep Thorp via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 19 20:32:07 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Wednesday Walk at Billy Frank Jr Nisqually NWR for 2/19/2025 Message-ID: Hi Tweets, We had a pretty nice day of Winter Birding at the Refuge with temperatures in the 40's degrees Fahrenheit, intermittent light rain and wind, and a High 12'10" Tide at 9:11am. Approximately 20 birders joined the walk, and we said hello to Alec and the Brown Creepers (self named group of bird watchers) visiting the Refuge from the Seattle area. Highlights included two continuing BARN SWALLOW roosting in an old nest in the Visitor Center breezeway, SNOW GOOSE with CANADA GOOSE in the flooded field south of the Twin Barns, continuing SEMIPALMATED PLOVER in the surge plain and WHITE-WINGED SCOTER with flock of SURF SCOTER in the McAllister Creek. First of year included HERMIT THRUSH and TOWNSEND'S WARBLER on the Twin Barns Loop Trail and CALIFORNIA GULL roosting with SHORT-BILLED GULL on the surge plain. Alec and the Brown Creeper group from Seattle observed RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH around the Twin Barns and WESTERN MEADOWLARK between the dike and surge plain which we did not locate. There is a California Sea Lion carcass on the surge plain which was being foraged by BALD EAGLES. For the day we observed 70 species and have seen 102 species thus far this year. Mammals seen included Columbian Black-tailed Deer, Harbor Seal, River Otter in McAllister Creek, and Cotton-tailed Rabbit. Both Pacific Tree Frog and Red-legged Frog were reported. Please see our eBird report below with details. We will meet again next week at 8am on Wednesday at the Visitor Center Pond Overlook. Until then, have a nice week. Happy birding, Shep -- Shep Thorp Browns Point 253-370-3742 Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually NWR, Thurston, Washington, US Feb 19, 2025 7:20 AM - 3:56 PM Protocol: Traveling 6.954 mile(s) Checklist Comments: Wednesday Walk. Temperatures in the 40?s degrees Fahrenheit with intermittent rain and wind. There was a High 12?10? Tide at 9:11am and a Low 1?8? Tide at 1:26pm. Mammals seen included Columbian Black-tailed Deer, River Otter, Harbor Seal and Eastern Cotton-tailed Rabbit. California Sea Lion carcass continues on surge plain mudflats. 70 species (+6 other taxa) Snow Goose 1 Associated with a group of 20 Ca?ada Geese in a flooded field south of Twin Barns. Greater White-fronted Goose (Western) 26 Along dike or Nisqually Estuary Trail. Cackling Goose (minima) 800 Cackling Goose (Taverner's) 18 Canada Goose (moffitti/maxima) 28 Northern Shoveler 75 Gadwall 14 Eurasian Wigeon 1 Observed in freshwater marsh. American Wigeon 1200 Mallard 150 Northern Pintail 100 Green-winged Teal (American) 100 Ring-necked Duck 8 Surf Scoter 55 White-winged Scoter 1 Foraging with Surf Scoters in McAllister Creek. Photos. Bufflehead 100 Common Goldeneye 60 Hooded Merganser 4 Common Merganser (North American) 3 Nisqually River Overlook. Red-breasted Merganser 6 Mourning Dove 2 Orchard. American Coot (Red-shielded) 80 Killdeer 1 Semipalmated Plover 5 Previously reported winter residents. Observed in surge plain. Photos. Long-billed Dowitcher 12 Flooded field south of Twin Barns. Spotted Sandpiper 1 Greater Yellowlegs 18 Dunlin 1400 Least Sandpiper 80 Short-billed Gull 115 Ring-billed Gull 35 Western Gull 1 California Gull 1 Glaucous-winged Gull 2 Western x Glaucous-winged Gull (hybrid) 10 Western/Glaucous-winged Gull 10 Horned Grebe 1 Brandt's Cormorant 7 Nisqually River channel marker. Double-crested Cormorant 4 Great Blue Heron (Great Blue) 15 Cooper's Hawk 2 Northern Harrier 2 Bald Eagle 11 Red-tailed Hawk (calurus/alascensis) 2 Belted Kingfisher 1 Downy Woodpecker (Pacific) 3 Hairy Woodpecker (Pacific) 3 Northern Flicker 2 Northern Flicker (Red-shafted) 1 American Kestrel 1 American Crow 200 Black-capped Chickadee 8 Chestnut-backed Chickadee 1 Barn Swallow (American) 2 Previously reported. Roosting in last years nest in Visitor Center breezeway adjacent to administration office doorway. Photos. Ruby-crowned Kinglet 7 Golden-crowned Kinglet 40 Brown Creeper 2 Pacific Wren (pacificus Group) 2 Marsh Wren 2 Bewick's Wren 4 European Starling 32 Hermit Thrush 1 Observed by Rob and Kelly on the inside of Twin Barns Loop Trail just north of twin bench overlook before Twin Barn cut-off. American Robin (migratorius Group) 25 House Finch 4 Red Crossbill 4 Fly over in parking lot. Pine Siskin (Northern) 2 Fox Sparrow (Sooty) 1 White-crowned Sparrow (pugetensis) 1 Golden-crowned Sparrow 25 Song Sparrow (rufina Group) 22 Spotted Towhee (oregonus Group) 3 Red-winged Blackbird 34 Yellow-rumped Warbler 2 Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 1 Yellow-rumped Warbler (Audubon's) 4 Townsend's Warbler 1 Seen with a mixed flock of GCKI and BRCR along the east side of Twin Barns Loop Trail in ?rea of Beaver Deceiver. View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S214481769 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 20 09:26:17 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Nick Bayard via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 20 09:26:59 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] BIRDNOTE CELEBRATES 20 YEARS! Message-ID: Hello Tweets, Friday, February 21, 2025 marks 20 years since BirdNote first hit the radio airwaves on KPLU (now KNKX 88.5-FM)! Founded by Chris Peterson and an amazing launch team including John Kessler, Joey Cohn, Ellen Blackstone, Bob Sundstrom, Dennis Paulson, Nancy Rumbel, and many others, BirdNote's daily show has become one of the most popular North American public radio shows of all time. BirdNote also now produces a Spanish language version of the show and one of the top global longform nature/conservation podcasts, Bring Birds Back. It all started here in Western Washington! Please consider honoring BirdNote's legacy and invest in its future with a tax deductible donation or monthly gift: https://www.birdnote.org/about/great-ways-support-birdnote Here are links to the different ways we are marking the occasion: Special episode airing on 2/21/25: https://birdnote.org/podcasts/birdnote-daily/birdnote-celebrates-20-years 20th Anniversary Photo Contest: https://birdnote.org/explore/field-notes/2025/02/birdnotes-20th-anniversary-photo-contest-rules-and-requirements Lessons from our Feathered Friends in BirdNote shows: https://birdnote.org/explore/field-notes/2025/01/celebrating-20-years-lessons-our-feathered-friends Learn about limited edition 20th anniversary merch and news about special events by joining BirdNote's newsletter: https://www.birdnote.org/subscribe-email Tell us how BirdNote has inspired YOU as part of our 3-year campaign to inspire a million people to take action to help birds: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/2V5W3QC Happy Birthday, BirdNote! Nick Bayard Executive Director BirdNote -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 20 10:50:03 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Thomas Einberger via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 20 10:50:16 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Gyrfalcon ID Message-ID: The best media representation of what I saw is this: https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/412094 I only saw the full underside of the bird from a distance (naked eye), but I saw its belly, undertail, and right underwing through binoculars. 1. Can any vagrant juvenile Peregrine Falcon get anywhere close to as plain medium-gray underneath as the bird in the video? This theoretical Peregrine doesn't have to be fully unmarked, just subtly. Its belly, undertail, and especially underwing need to appear solid medium-gray with small minor hints of lighter gray. 2. The bird in the video and the one that I saw clearly have/had thicker wings than a Peregrine's except when a Peregrine does this with its wings (not my photo): https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/273072931 But, I only know of a Peregrine doing this for soaring. The bird that I saw was doing direct (straight and flat) flight constantly and quickly flapping its wings for 18 seconds straight. Would a juvenile Peregrine ever constantly and quickly flap its wings in direct flight with its wings held in the position pictured including during the flaps? 3. Another requirement is stiff shallow wingbeats. Juvenile Peregrines have stiff wingbeats, but would they still be stiff by mid-February? -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 20 12:24:39 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Teri Martine via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 20 12:24:56 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] requests for species info Message-ID: <96447FA5-CC12-41F0-8F94-FF632986F027@me.com> FYI re: requests for info about Northern Hawk Owls and other species -- Cornell's Birds Of The World website is an excellent in-depth resource. If you're not a subscriber / supporter, only limited info is shown -- but members of the Washington Ornithological Society get access to Birds Of The World with their membership. Teri Martine Seattle terimartineATmeDOTcom From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 20 13:23:31 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Jim Elder via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 20 13:23:39 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Question for Bob O'Brien (was RE: Northern Hawk Owls) In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: This post from Bob O'Brien caught my attention (I would have responded directly but Tweeters digest doesn't show email addresses any more). You've been to the Kelley River? Do tell. Some years ago there were reports of Siberian Tits (aka Gray-headed Chickadees) in that area. Were you looking for them? Did you see them? Anyone have any idea if they are still there? I'd love to hear more about your experience there. Considered trying to go there a few years ago but was overruled by other members of the party but still would like to go there some day. -----Original Message----- Message: 9 Date: Wed, 19 Feb 2025 18:15:32 -0800 From: Robert O'Brien via Tweeters To: Thomas Einberger Cc: TWEETERS tweeters Subject: Re: [Tweeters] Northern Hawk Owls Message-ID: Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" I don't have a lot of experience with them. But I have seen them hovering like a kestrel, when searching for prey at dusk, but still quite light. This was at the Kelley River mouth on the Noatak River, north of Kotzebue, Alaska. One hovered, moved a short distance and then hovered again. Quite spectacular. Bob OBrien Portland End of Tweeters Digest, Vol 246, Issue 17 ***************************************** From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 20 13:35:22 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Diann MacRae via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 20 13:35:30 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Northern Hawk Owls In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 20 13:40:30 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Michael Hobbs via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 20 13:40:47 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Marymoor Park (Redmond, King Co.) 2025-02-20 Message-ID: Tweets - Today felt so different from last week, and it felt like a real beginning to Spring. Birds were singing, and not just a few; many songs from many species. The weather wasn't too bad either, with temps in the mid-40's and come-and-go overcast. It was a touch breezy at times, but nothing too bad at all. Highlights: Greater White-fronted Goose - Seven at the weir Anna's Hummingbird - Some singing, though no display flights noted today Great Blue Heron - 35+ birds seen at the heronry Bald Eagle - My best estimate was 5 adults Black-capped Chickadee - quite a bit of singing Brown Creeper - Heard one song Pacific Wren - Spontaneous song from two birds Bewick's Wren - Many singing American Robin - A few songs, and many birds total Cedar Waxwing - Seven near the Dog Area portapotties House Finch - One song Dark-eyed Junco - Many, many singing Song Sparrow - Many singing Spotted Towhee - At least two heard singing Red-winged Blackbird - Quite a few Okalee songs We had a large, mixed flock of gulls that never landed where we could see them. Short-billed Gull calls were heard, and I believe that's what most of them were. There were also a couple of GWGUs. A Ring-billed Gull showed up during my late scan of the lake. Most years, all of these gulls have been easy to view every week; this winter, they aren't always spending time in the park, causing us to "miss" normally regular species. That late scan of the lake also turned up two HORNED GREBE, and in the trees at the NW corner of the lake at least two RED-CROSSBILLS, First of Year (FOY). Misses today included Virginia Rail, American Coot (1st miss for Week 8 ever), Cooper's Hawk, and Marsh Wren (may have heard, but couldn't confirm because of too many singing Bewick's). For the day, 55 species. With the addition of RED CROSSBILL, we're at 75 species for 2025. = Michael Hobbs = BirdMarymoor@gmail.com = www.marymoor.org/birding.htm -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 20 13:43:23 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Dennis Paulson via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 20 13:43:27 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Northern Hawk Owls In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <1800710873.3923988.1740087803173@connect.xfinity.com> Sounds like a hybrid between an accipiter and a kestrel to me! Dennis Paulson Seattle > On 02/20/2025 1:35 PM PST Diann MacRae via Tweeters wrote: > > > Hi, Jim > > Just a note to add to Bob's comment about hawk owls. We lived in New Hampshire for nine years and were lucky to observe these interesting owls a few times. They also did a lot of hovering - took off from a fairly high perch, hover, move on and hover a bit more until seeing something interesting. When not hover/hunting they would leave a tall perch and drop down to the ground quickly. Not a lot of wandering around. A very photgenic owl. > > Cheers, Diann > > Diann MacRae > Olympic Vulture Study > 22622 - 53rd Avenue S.E. > Bothell, WA 98021 > tvulture@gmx.com > > > > > > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 20 14:35:59 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Rob Faucett via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 20 14:36:19 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Question for Bob O'Brien (was RE: Northern Hawk Owls) In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: I?ve been up there 2-3 times in the past year and seen nothing close. And I?m familiar with the bird. rcf ? Rob Faucett +1(206) 619-5569 robfaucett@mac.com Seattle, WA 98105 > On Feb 20, 2025, at 1:24?PM, Jim Elder via Tweeters wrote: > > ?This post from Bob O'Brien caught my attention (I would have responded directly but Tweeters digest doesn't show email addresses any more). > You've been to the Kelley River? Do tell. Some years ago there were reports of Siberian Tits (aka Gray-headed Chickadees) in that area. Were you looking for them? Did you see them? Anyone have any idea if they are still there? I'd love to hear more about your experience there. Considered trying to go there a few years ago but was overruled by other members of the party but still would like to go there some day. > > -----Original Message----- > Message: 9 > Date: Wed, 19 Feb 2025 18:15:32 -0800 > From: Robert O'Brien via Tweeters > To: Thomas Einberger > Cc: TWEETERS tweeters > Subject: Re: [Tweeters] Northern Hawk Owls > Message-ID: > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" > > I don't have a lot of experience with them. But I have seen them hovering like a kestrel, when searching for prey at dusk, but still quite light. > This was at the Kelley River mouth on the Noatak River, north of Kotzebue, Alaska. One hovered, moved a short distance and then hovered again. > Quite spectacular. Bob OBrien Portland > > End of Tweeters Digest, Vol 246, Issue 17 > ***************************************** > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 20 19:13:39 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Denis DeSilvis via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 20 19:13:43 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Joint Base Lewis McChord (JBLM) Eagle's Pride Golf Course (GC) monthly bird walk - 02-20-2025 Message-ID: Tweeters, A slightly cool (43degF-50degF) and cloudy day for the 16 of us at the JBLM Eagle's Pride GC. However, it certainly beat having rain or biting cold that has been prevalent the past few weeks. Highlights included the following: EURASIAN WIGEON - a female at the 9th hole pond for the second month in a row. Definitely could see the difference between this and the American Wigeon females it was with. SNOW GOOSE - a single bird arrived at the 9th hole pond with seven Canada geese just as we were leaving this small water feature. This is the FIRST sighting of this species at this venue. PINE SISKIN - heard almost everywhere as we traveled the circuit. RED CROSSBILL - Lots (48) of these found today. And 83 golf balls were found and will be donated to the American Lake VA home. The JBLM Eagle's Pride GC birders meet the third Thursday of each month at 8:00AM except for November to February, when the start time is at 9:00AM. Starting point is the Driving Range building, Eagle's Pride Golf Course, I-5 Exit 116, Mounts Road Exit. (Turn left immediately after entering the parking lot to take the road leading to the driving range building.) Upcoming walks include the following: * March 20 (revert to 8AM start time through October) * April 17 * May 15 >From the eBirdPNW report: 39 species Snow Goose 1 Arrived with 7 Canada geese at 9th hole pond. First sighting of this species at Eagle's Pride GC. Canada Goose 10 Eurasian Wigeon 1 Darker head and different side coloration from female American Wigeon it was with. Second consecutive month for this species at the 9th hole pond. American Wigeon 15 All at the 9th hole pond. Mallard 25 21 at Hodge Lake and 4 at the 9th hole pond. Ring-necked Duck 4 Bufflehead 2 Hooded Merganser 4 Mourning Dove 4 Anna's Hummingbird 5 Cooper's Hawk 1 Red-tailed Hawk 1 Red-breasted Sapsucker 2 Northern Flicker 4 Hutton's Vireo 1 Well seen by most of the group; singing. Steller's Jay 10 American Crow 3 Common Raven 2 Black-capped Chickadee 10 Chestnut-backed Chickadee 25 Bushtit 2 Ruby-crowned Kinglet 2 Golden-crowned Kinglet 20 Red-breasted Nuthatch 15 Brown Creeper 4 Pacific Wren 4 Bewick's Wren 6 European Starling 2 Varied Thrush 14 American Robin 20 House Finch 2 Red Crossbill 48 Pine Siskin 200 Seeming everywhere - estimate of number. Fox Sparrow 1 Dark-eyed Junco 32 Golden-crowned Sparrow 12 Song Sparrow 21 Spotted Towhee 8 Red-winged Blackbird 5 View this checklist online at https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Febird.org%2Fchecklist%2FS214614439&data=05%7C02%7C%7C39a98e776bbf467c97dd08dd521ddd8b%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C638757010403149302%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=FmpXz3jT6FO4lBrKQfLuuy84GDxjwSPB1ELw9xEeMqc%3D&reserved=0 May all your birds be identified, Denis Denis DeSilvis Avnacrs 4 birds at outlook dot com -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 20 20:14:39 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Robert O'Brien via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 20 20:14:55 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Question for Bob O'Brien (was RE: Northern Hawk Owls) In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: I replied to Rob and Jim offline. As they surmised, my presence at Kelly Bar on the Noatak was indeed to find and photograph the Siberian Tit. (I don't accept the name change to Gray-headed Chickadee). The trip was successful and quite adventurous. My Tot photo appeared in the hard copy version of North American birds but has been replaced in the current World Birds online. If anyone is interested in these details drop me an email separately baro@pdx.edu and I'll send what I set separately. The sad upshot is that soon after my trip, the birds disappeared from that site and soon the entire Noatak Drainage. eBird shows a few scattered reports from Northern Alaska in 2016-17. But no reports at all in the last 5 years. Puzzling. My trip was in about 1980-85. I don't believe there are any theories to explain their disappearance. If anyone knows of such theories let us know. Bob OBrien Portland. On Thu, Feb 20, 2025 at 2:36?PM Rob Faucett via Tweeters < tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > I?ve been up there 2-3 times in the past year and seen nothing close. And > I?m familiar with the bird. > > rcf > ? > Rob Faucett > +1(206) 619-5569 > robfaucett@mac.com > Seattle, WA 98105 > > > On Feb 20, 2025, at 1:24?PM, Jim Elder via Tweeters < > tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > > > > ?This post from Bob O'Brien caught my attention (I would have responded > directly but Tweeters digest doesn't show email addresses any more). > > You've been to the Kelley River? Do tell. Some years ago there were > reports of Siberian Tits (aka Gray-headed Chickadees) in that area. Were > you looking for them? Did you see them? Anyone have any idea if they are > still there? I'd love to hear more about your experience there. Considered > trying to go there a few years ago but was overruled by other members of > the party but still would like to go there some day. > > > > -----Original Message----- > > Message: 9 > > Date: Wed, 19 Feb 2025 18:15:32 -0800 > > From: Robert O'Brien via Tweeters > > To: Thomas Einberger > > Cc: TWEETERS tweeters > > Subject: Re: [Tweeters] Northern Hawk Owls > > Message-ID: > > < > CABL+5aEzAzhJJ5iFXvVxOSi_RjTcm+TEeECATrwfqTi0KdOebw@mail.gmail.com> > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" > > > > I don't have a lot of experience with them. But I have seen them > hovering like a kestrel, when searching for prey at dusk, but still quite > light. > > This was at the Kelley River mouth on the Noatak River, north of > Kotzebue, Alaska. One hovered, moved a short distance and then hovered > again. > > Quite spectacular. Bob OBrien Portland > > > > End of Tweeters Digest, Vol 246, Issue 17 > > ***************************************** > > _______________________________________________ > > Tweeters mailing list > > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 20 20:18:21 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Robert O'Brien via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 20 20:18:36 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Question for Bob O'Brien (was RE: Northern Hawk Owls) In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: https://www.flickr.com/photos/159695762@N07/54340802394/in/dateposted-public/ Bob OBrien Portland On Thu, Feb 20, 2025 at 8:14?PM Robert O'Brien wrote: > I replied to Rob and Jim offline. As they surmised, my presence at Kelly > Bar on the Noatak was indeed to find and photograph the Siberian Tit. (I > don't accept the name change to Gray-headed Chickadee). The trip was > successful and quite adventurous. My Tot photo appeared in the hard copy > version of North American birds but has been replaced in the current World > Birds online. > If anyone is interested in these details drop me an email separately > baro@pdx.edu and I'll send what I set separately. > The sad upshot is that soon after my trip, the birds disappeared from that > site and soon the entire Noatak Drainage. > eBird shows a few scattered reports from Northern Alaska in 2016-17. But > no reports at all in the last 5 years. Puzzling. My trip was in about > 1980-85. > I don't believe there are any theories to explain their disappearance. If > anyone knows of such theories let us know. > Bob OBrien Portland. > > > > On Thu, Feb 20, 2025 at 2:36?PM Rob Faucett via Tweeters < > tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > >> I?ve been up there 2-3 times in the past year and seen nothing close. And >> I?m familiar with the bird. >> >> rcf >> ? >> Rob Faucett >> +1(206) 619-5569 >> robfaucett@mac.com >> Seattle, WA 98105 >> >> > On Feb 20, 2025, at 1:24?PM, Jim Elder via Tweeters < >> tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: >> > >> > ?This post from Bob O'Brien caught my attention (I would have responded >> directly but Tweeters digest doesn't show email addresses any more). >> > You've been to the Kelley River? Do tell. Some years ago there were >> reports of Siberian Tits (aka Gray-headed Chickadees) in that area. Were >> you looking for them? Did you see them? Anyone have any idea if they are >> still there? I'd love to hear more about your experience there. Considered >> trying to go there a few years ago but was overruled by other members of >> the party but still would like to go there some day. >> > >> > -----Original Message----- >> > Message: 9 >> > Date: Wed, 19 Feb 2025 18:15:32 -0800 >> > From: Robert O'Brien via Tweeters >> > To: Thomas Einberger >> > Cc: TWEETERS tweeters >> > Subject: Re: [Tweeters] Northern Hawk Owls >> > Message-ID: >> > < >> CABL+5aEzAzhJJ5iFXvVxOSi_RjTcm+TEeECATrwfqTi0KdOebw@mail.gmail.com> >> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" >> > >> > I don't have a lot of experience with them. But I have seen them >> hovering like a kestrel, when searching for prey at dusk, but still quite >> light. >> > This was at the Kelley River mouth on the Noatak River, north of >> Kotzebue, Alaska. One hovered, moved a short distance and then hovered >> again. >> > Quite spectacular. Bob OBrien Portland >> > >> > End of Tweeters Digest, Vol 246, Issue 17 >> > ***************************************** >> > _______________________________________________ >> > Tweeters mailing list >> > Tweeters@u.washington.edu >> > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters >> _______________________________________________ >> Tweeters mailing list >> Tweeters@u.washington.edu >> http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters >> > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 20 20:56:45 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (HAL MICHAEL via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 20 20:57:11 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Ireland's blank winter for Bewick's Swans In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <1953584340.3553934.1740113805104@connect.xfinity.com> My question would be what is happening to the whole population? Is it declining or are the birds just wintering in new areas? I believe that NA waterfowl, especially geese, ar wi tiring further north than a few decades ago. Which is creating problems for winter habitat and harvest. Hal Michael Board of Directors, Ecologists Without Borders http://ecowb.org/ Olympia WA 360-459-4005 360-791-7702 (C) ucd880@comcast.net > On 02/19/2025 7:46 PM PST Hans-Joachim Feddern via Tweeters wrote: > > > Good point and question Dennis! We are heading up to Blaine tomorrow and down to the Samish - and Skagit Flats on Friday and hope to find a Tundra Swan or two. > > > Hans > > Hans Feddern > Twin Lakes/Federal Way, WA > thefedderns@gmail.com mailto:thefedderns@gmail.com > > > On Wed, Feb 19, 2025 at 6:58?PM Dennis Paulson via Tweeters wrote: > > > Martha, I wonder if that could happen with our Tundra Swans. They seem less common on the Skagit Flats than previously, or perhaps I just haven?t found the flocks that are usually there. On the other hand, Trumpeters seem to be getting more common all the time. Is anything known about this? > > > > Dennis Paulson > > Seattle > > > > > > > On Feb 19, 2025, at 4:57 PM, Martha Jordan via Tweeters wrote: > > > > > > Over the past few years I tracked the decline of wintering Bewick's Swans in Britain and Ireland. This decline is being seen all across the eastern hemisphere where warming climates are keeping swans further north. > > > > > > Here is an article on the issue: https://www.birdguides.com/news/blank-winter-for-bewicks-swan-in-ireland/ > > > > > > Martha Jordan > > > Everett, WA > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > > Tweeters mailing list > > > Tweeters@u.washington.edu mailto:Tweeters@u.washington.edu > > > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > Tweeters mailing list > > Tweeters@u.washington.edu mailto:Tweeters@u.washington.edu > > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > > > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Fri Feb 21 04:17:14 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Dan Reiff via Tweeters) Date: Fri Feb 21 04:17:19 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Birds-of-paradise are biofluorescent | ScienceDaily Message-ID: It never occurred to me that they could be any more flashy or interesting: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/02/250211134617.htm Sent from my iPhone From tweeters at u.washington.edu Fri Feb 21 07:59:30 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (LMarkoff via Tweeters) Date: Fri Feb 21 07:59:42 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Northern Hawk Owls, at times like a Kingfisher? In-Reply-To: <1800710873.3923988.1740087803173@connect.xfinity.com> References: <1800710873.3923988.1740087803173@connect.xfinity.com> Message-ID: <005001db8479$99954f10$ccbfed30$@mycci.net> And sometimes they can remind one of a Kingfisher, as the one in Moscow, Idaho in 2014 did me. See here: https://www.flickr.com/gp/canyoneagle/9k6E6m1b50 Lori Markoff From: Tweeters On Behalf Of Dennis Paulson via Tweeters Sent: Thursday, February 20, 2025 1:43 PM To: Diann MacRae ; Diann MacRae via Tweeters ; jelder@meteorcomm.com Subject: Re: [Tweeters] Northern Hawk Owls Sounds like a hybrid between an accipiter and a kestrel to me! Dennis Paulson Seattle On 02/20/2025 1:35 PM PST Diann MacRae via Tweeters > wrote: Hi, Jim Just a note to add to Bob's comment about hawk owls. We lived in New Hampshire for nine years and were lucky to observe these interesting owls a few times. They also did a lot of hovering - took off from a fairly high perch, hover, move on and hover a bit more until seeing something interesting. When not hover/hunting they would leave a tall perch and drop down to the ground quickly. Not a lot of wandering around. A very photgenic owl. Cheers, Diann Diann MacRae Olympic Vulture Study 22622 - 53rd Avenue S.E. Bothell, WA 98021 tvulture@gmx.com -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Fri Feb 21 15:56:48 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Wayne Palsson via Tweeters) Date: Fri Feb 21 15:57:01 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Please remove Message-ID: -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Fri Feb 21 16:55:33 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Martha Jordan via Tweeters) Date: Fri Feb 21 16:56:03 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Wintering swans Message-ID: The latest information is that Tundra (Bewick's too), are wintering farther north all throughout the northern hemisphere. And Tundra Swans in the Skagit (esp around the La Conner/Dodge valley area, are known to breed in the Izembek area of Alaska.) These swans have shown, through collar projects, that they do spend some winters there as well, not migrating south. Thus, we will see fewer of them in the Skagit and surrounds. Tundra Swans in the Pacific Flyway population (east of the Rockies), breed along coastal areas of Alaska, and depending on where that is, they will winter in different locations along the west coast. It is not one big group of swans, but fidelity to the breeding/wintering areas that seem tied together. And the Tundra Swans that nest on the north slope (north of the Brooks Range) fly a long distance to winter on the east coast and are part of the Eastern population, mostly wintering in the Atlantic Flyway. NOTE: if you want to know more come to my presentation tomorrow, "White Birds of Washington's Winter" Sat Feb 22, at the Stanwood Snow Goose Festival. 2pm is my talk on swans and snow geese. I will also be presenting at the Othello Sandhill Crane Festival on Sat Mar 22 at 10:15 am. That focus will include both swans and snow geese but with an eastern Washington focus. Martha -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sat Feb 22 08:45:34 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (GENE BULLOCK via Tweeters) Date: Sat Feb 22 08:45:38 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Bird flud - should you take down your feeders? Message-ID: <84442657.4011759.1740242734742@connect.xfinity.com> Bird flu - should you take down your feeders? >From article on Cornell Lab of Ornithology website: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/avian-influenza-outbreak-should-you-take-down-your-birdfeeders/ There has been widespread transmission of avian flu to wild bird species including waterfowl and raptors. However, there have been relatively few documented cases of HPAI in songbirds and other typical feeder visitors to date. That means there is currently a low risk of an outbreak among wild songbirds, and no official recommendation to take down feeders Gene Bullock Kitsap Audubon Society -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sat Feb 22 13:36:49 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (David Kreft via Tweeters) Date: Sat Feb 22 13:37:05 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Information on Bobolink migration patterns Message-ID: Working on a potential project in NE Washington related to Boblink habitat. Questions come up as to where ?our? NE WA breeding Bobolinks go, their primary migration routes and wintering areas. Anyone with data or links to data on this would be appreciated. Thank you in advance and Good Birding, Dave Kreft Kettle Falls, WA 509-675-9375 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Feb 23 08:45:45 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Louise via Tweeters) Date: Sun Feb 23 08:46:07 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Duck ID Message-ID: Does anyone have thoughts on this weird duck seen from the Reykjavik sea wall? Large duck, dark brown but for a white breast and a white eye stripe. One shot with a common eider for scale. Sometimes on its own, sometimes associating with the eiders. https://eelpi.dreamwidth.org/file/193930.png https://eelpi.dreamwidth.org/file/193626.png https://eelpi.dreamwidth.org/file/193355.png https://eelpi.dreamwidth.org/file/193161.png My first thought was some kind of hybrid? It reminds me of some of the domestic-type mallards in apearance, but I wouldn't expect to find a mallard on the ocean. All suggestions gratefully considered! Louise Rutter Kirkland -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Feb 23 09:12:56 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Louise via Tweeters) Date: Sun Feb 23 09:13:15 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Duck ID In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Ah, thank you! A transitional phase would make sense. Louise On Sun, Feb 23, 2025 at 9:05?AM Patricia Taylor wrote: > It?s a young male common eider, > > Keith Taylor > Victoria BC > > Sent from my iPad > > On Feb 23, 2025, at 8:46?AM, Louise via Tweeters < > tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > > ? > Does anyone have thoughts on this weird duck seen from the Reykjavik sea > wall? Large duck, dark brown but for a white breast and a white eye stripe. > One shot with a common eider for scale. Sometimes on its own, sometimes > associating with the eiders. > > https://eelpi.dreamwidth.org/file/193930.png > > https://eelpi.dreamwidth.org/file/193626.png > > https://eelpi.dreamwidth.org/file/193355.png > > https://eelpi.dreamwidth.org/file/193161.png > > My first thought was some kind of hybrid? It reminds me of some of the > domestic-type mallards in apearance, but I wouldn't expect to find a > mallard on the ocean. > > All suggestions gratefully considered! > > Louise Rutter > Kirkland > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Feb 23 15:36:36 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Ian Paulsen via Tweeters) Date: Sun Feb 23 15:36:34 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] The Birdbooker Report Message-ID: <86b54d35-86a2-8d65-7344-7666c54dea0@zipcon.net> HI ALL: Just posted about 3 bird and 4 non-bird books at my blog here: https://birdbookerreport.blogspot.com/2025/02/new-titles.html Ian Paulsen, Bainbridge Island, WA. From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Feb 23 15:59:03 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (B B via Tweeters) Date: Sun Feb 23 15:59:12 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Blog Post Birding in Japan February 2025 References: <226463031.1964763.1740355143668.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <226463031.1964763.1740355143668@mail.yahoo.com> This is the first of three blog posts covering my fabulous 7 day birding trip to Japan earlier this month.? The trip was spurred by my search for the bird on the top of my bucket list - a male Smew.? We were successful, and this post covers that experience as well as many other great birds especially Baikal Teal and Mandarin Ducks.? Other posts will follow shortly. https://blairbirding.com/2025/02/23/my-bucket-list-takes-us-to-japan-part-i/ Enjoy and I am happy to share info if you wish to contact me. Blair Bernson -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Feb 23 16:54:42 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Hans-Joachim Feddern via Tweeters) Date: Sun Feb 23 16:55:25 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Wintering swans In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: We birded on Rawlins Road on the Skagit Flats on Friday, Feb. 21st .There were several thousand Snow Geese feeding in fields on both sides of the road. One muddy field also had swans mixed in with the geese and also Mallards and Northern Pintail.I was able to pick two Tundra Swans out of the Trumpeters. I suspected several others, which appeared smaller further from the road, to be Tundra Swans. It was a miserable rainy day, despite only showers in the forecast and I did not get out my scope. Well, I should not have gotten out of the car anyway! There were groups of swans in several locations in the Skagit - and Samish Flats. Hans On Fri, Feb 21, 2025 at 4:56?PM Martha Jordan via Tweeters < tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > The latest information is that Tundra (Bewick's too), are wintering > farther north all throughout the northern hemisphere. And Tundra Swans in > the Skagit (esp around the La Conner/Dodge valley area, are known to breed > in the Izembek area of Alaska.) These swans have shown, through collar > projects, that they do spend some winters there as well, not migrating > south. Thus, we will see fewer of them in the Skagit and surrounds. Tundra > Swans in the Pacific Flyway population (east of the Rockies), breed along > coastal areas of Alaska, and depending on where that is, they will winter > in different locations along the west coast. It is not one big group of > swans, but fidelity to the breeding/wintering areas that seem tied together. > And the Tundra Swans that nest on the north slope (north of the Brooks > Range) fly a long distance to winter on the east coast and are part of the > Eastern population, mostly wintering in the Atlantic Flyway. > NOTE: if you want to know more come to my presentation tomorrow, > "White Birds of Washington's Winter" Sat Feb 22, at the Stanwood Snow Goose > Festival. 2pm is my talk on swans and snow geese. > I will also be presenting at the Othello Sandhill Crane Festival on > Sat Mar 22 at 10:15 am. That focus will include both swans and snow geese > but with an eastern Washington focus. > > Martha > > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > -- *Hans Feddern* Twin Lakes/Federal Way, WA thefedderns@gmail.com -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Feb 23 21:23:30 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (B B via Tweeters) Date: Sun Feb 23 21:23:51 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] 2nd Blog Post - Birding in Japan - Blakiston's Fish Owl, Steller's Sea Eagle and More References: <1488626899.2001184.1740374610231.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <1488626899.2001184.1740374610231@mail.yahoo.com> This is the second of three blog posts about my recent birding trip to Japan - featuring Blakiston's Fish Owl, Ural Owl, Red Crowned Cranes, Steller's Sea Eagle, White Tailed Eagle and much more. https://blairbirding.com/2025/02/24/birding-in-japan-part-2-hokkaido/ Blair BernsonEdmonds WA -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Feb 23 23:59:23 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Hans-Joachim Feddern via Tweeters) Date: Sun Feb 23 23:59:42 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Band-tailed Pigeons and Eurasian-collared Doves Message-ID: Today I had a pair of Band-tailed Pigeons visit my feeders. Previously, on February 16th, I had a single Band-tailed Pigeon in my yard. This was a First-Of-Year sighting. I used to have these pigeons year round, even though years ago I would have 20 or more. Nowadays I only get 6 to 10. I have seen a lot of reports of Band-taileds spring appearances, while I had them all winter, not this winter! Another question I have is the lack of Eurasian-collared Doves. I have yet to see one this year. After we were being invaded over the last few\years, you used to find them almost anywhere. Now they seem to be gone and I do not think that they started migrating! Has anybody else seen any in Western Washington lately? Good Birding! Hans -- *Hans Feddern* Twin Lakes/Federal Way, WA thefedderns@gmail.com -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Mon Feb 24 09:15:19 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Dennis Paulson via Tweeters) Date: Mon Feb 24 09:15:26 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Band-tailed Pigeons and Eurasian-collared Doves In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <5D5F17E0-67E6-474B-A0AD-E43CC834B0D6@comcast.net> Hans, we do see a few Band-taileds coming to our feeders all winter, but for the most part I don?t think I?m seeing as many as I used to (36 in the yard was a maximum). However, 16 of them showed up in the yard at once on one day in December, and there are at least a few on most days now. There is no doubt that collared-doves have declined dramatically. I don?t see them at all at places in Skagit County where they were fairly common some years ago. I?m still seeing them in small numbers on visits to Dungeness and Ocean Shores, and I think they are still spread thinly over the landscape. But it has been noted before that they have declined, and this isn?t a rare thing after population booms. During what might be called an invasion, populations build up substantially, and then at some point they may start using up resources (hard to imagine in this case) and/or predators home in on them (more likely, as Cooper?s Hawks and Peregrine Falcons can?t get enough of them). But those are speculations, without any hard evidence, and there may be other factors in play (disease?). In any case, this dove is a striking example of that phenomenon in our region. Christmas Bird Counts would show this pattern well, and presumably eBird would with a lot more digging. Maybe Cornell has some data sets showing this clearly. Dennis Paulson Seattle > On Feb 23, 2025, at 11:59 PM, Hans-Joachim Feddern via Tweeters wrote: > > Today I had a pair of Band-tailed Pigeons visit my feeders. Previously, on February 16th, I had a single Band-tailed Pigeon in my yard. This was a First-Of-Year sighting. I used to have these pigeons year round, even though years ago I would have 20 or more. Nowadays I only get 6 to 10. > I have seen a lot of reports of Band-taileds spring appearances, while I had them all winter, not this winter! > Another question I have is the lack of Eurasian-collared Doves. I have yet to see one this year. After we were being invaded over the last few\years, you used to find them almost anywhere. Now they seem to be gone and I do not think that they started migrating! Has anybody else seen any in Western Washington lately? > > Good Birding! > > Hans > > -- > Hans Feddern > Twin Lakes/Federal Way, WA > thefedderns@gmail.com > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Mon Feb 24 13:29:34 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (B B via Tweeters) Date: Mon Feb 24 13:29:38 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Third Birding in Japan Blog Post - Cranes and Much More in Kyushu and Ending in Osaka References: <1160415109.2196036.1740432574270.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <1160415109.2196036.1740432574270@mail.yahoo.com> This is the last birding blog post for our Japan Trip.? Lots of Cranes, more ducks, lots of buntings and more. https://blairbirding.com/2025/02/24/birding-in-japan-part-3-cranes-in-kyushu-and-finishing-in-osaka/ Blair Bernson -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Mon Feb 24 13:46:15 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Tom Benedict via Tweeters) Date: Mon Feb 24 13:46:30 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Band-tailed Pigeons and Eurasian-collared Doves In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <1060E309-1297-480B-9FA1-07FB01FDFDCE@comcast.net> Don?t know whether these are FOY, but we?ve got seven BTPI perched near the top of their Western Red Cedar overlooking Puget Sound right now. They are among my favorite local birds. So handsome. Tom Benedict Seahurst, WA > On Feb 23, 2025, at 23:59, Hans-Joachim Feddern via Tweeters wrote: > > Today I had a pair of Band-tailed Pigeons visit my feeders. Previously, on February 16th, I had a single Band-tailed Pigeon in my yard. This was a First-Of-Year sighting. I used to have these pigeons year round, even though years ago I would have 20 or more. Nowadays I only get 6 to 10. > I have seen a lot of reports of Band-taileds spring appearances, while I had them all winter, not this winter! > Another question I have is the lack of Eurasian-collared Doves. I have yet to see one this year. After we were being invaded over the last few\years, you used to find them almost anywhere. Now they seem to be gone and I do not think that they started migrating! Has anybody else seen any in Western Washington lately? > > Good Birding! > > Hans From tweeters at u.washington.edu Mon Feb 24 16:36:21 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Nancy Morrison via Tweeters) Date: Mon Feb 24 16:36:37 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Hummingbirds fighting over fluff Message-ID: I have had a fluff dispenser out for many years, and all birds avail themselves of it during the nesting season. This year, for the first time, I am noticing that the Hummingbirds are fighting over the rights to the fluff. I will have 3 birds at one time trying to come in, but they are chasing each other off. Has anyone else noticed this behavior? Nancy Morrison -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Tue Feb 25 09:50:03 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Andy Stepniewski via Tweeters) Date: Tue Feb 25 09:50:38 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Okanogan Trip-17-21 February Message-ID: <004901db87ad$b4032ac0$1c098040$@nwinfo.net> Hello Tweeters, Ellen and I took a five-day trip to "Okanogan Country" this past week. We had a wonderful trip, with mostly okay weather. Birds were abundant and diverse, including quite a number of "northern" species which were targets. There were some misses, too! See our eBird trip report with narrative at: https://ebird.org/tripreport/332843 Andy (and Ellen ) Stepniewski -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Tue Feb 25 18:10:25 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Jack Nolan via Tweeters) Date: Tue Feb 25 18:10:41 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Spring is Springing Message-ID: Two days last week we had Flickers hammering on our chimney cap. I also notice the Male Goldfinches are starting to brighten up. And a male House Finch caught my eye this evening. Red breast really popped. It won?t b long now! Be well. Jack Nolan Shoreline WA. Sent from my iPhone. Pardon my brevity and typos. From tweeters at u.washington.edu Tue Feb 25 18:22:18 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Daoud Miller via Tweeters) Date: Tue Feb 25 18:22:32 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] RFI: Birding locations near Austin, TX Message-ID: <45099D67-3331-4ADB-96D8-58B3BE008DED@comcast.net> Hello Tweeters, I will be traveling to Austin, TX for several weeks next month (March), assisting family members with care. I am hoping to do some local birding (day outings) while there. If you have favorite spots you recommend I check out, please respond to me personally at daoud_miller AT comcast.net (or to the list if you want to let everyone know). Thank you! Daoud Miller Kenmore, WA From tweeters at u.washington.edu Tue Feb 25 20:36:27 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Tom Benedict via Tweeters) Date: Tue Feb 25 20:36:43 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Spring is Springing In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <39466F2A-1D44-494B-B10D-CCD86E53762A@comcast.net> Indeed, a bright male House Finch showed up at our suet feeder yesterday. And a couple of yellow crocuses popped up over the weekend too. Tom Benedict Seahurst, WA > On Feb 25, 2025, at 18:10, Jack Nolan via Tweeters wrote: > > Two days last week we had Flickers hammering on our chimney cap. I also notice the Male Goldfinches are starting to brighten up. And a male House Finch caught my eye this evening. Red breast really popped. > > It won?t b long now! > > Be well. > > Jack Nolan > Shoreline WA. From tweeters at u.washington.edu Tue Feb 25 22:15:56 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Robert O'Brien via Tweeters) Date: Tue Feb 25 22:16:11 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] RFI: Birding locations near Austin, TX In-Reply-To: <45099D67-3331-4ADB-96D8-58B3BE008DED@comcast.net> References: <45099D67-3331-4ADB-96D8-58B3BE008DED@comcast.net> Message-ID: The Austin area offers an incredible wealth of birds not seen in Washngton. But of special interest are the Black-capped Vireo and Golden-cheeked Warbler. Here's where they and many other more common specialities can be found near Austin. (from the internet). The golden-cheeked warbler and black-capped vireo can be seen in the Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge and the Barton Creek Habitat Preserve near Austin, Texas. Bob OBrien Portland Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge - *Warbler Vista*: A public area on the southern end of the refuge that's a good place to see the golden-cheeked warbler - *Shin Oak Observation Deck*: A viewing area designed for black-capped vireo habitat - *Rimrock trail at Doeskin Ranch*: A public area on the northern side of the refuge where both species have been spotted Barton Creek Habitat Preserve - Part of the Balcones Canyonlands Preserve system, this preserve provides habitat for both the golden-cheeked warbler and the black-capped vireo Other places to see these birds: - *Concordia University Texas Nature Preserve*: Part of the Balcones Canyonlands Preserve, this preserve is home to both species - *Kerr Wildlife Management Area*: Both species use this area during breeding and nesting seasons The golden-cheeked warbler and black-capped vireo are neotropical migrants that breed in central Texas. Their habitats have been threatened by fire suppression, overgrazing, suburban sprawl, and cedar eradication. On Tue, Feb 25, 2025 at 6:22?PM Daoud Miller via Tweeters < tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > Hello Tweeters, > > I will be traveling to Austin, TX for several weeks next month (March), > assisting family members with care. I am hoping to do some local birding > (day outings) while there. > > If you have favorite spots you recommend I check out, please respond to me > personally at daoud_miller AT comcast.net (or to the list if you want to > let everyone know). > > Thank you! > Daoud Miller > Kenmore, WA > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 26 06:14:39 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (LMarkoff via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 26 06:14:53 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] RFI: Birding locations near Austin, TX In-Reply-To: <45099D67-3331-4ADB-96D8-58B3BE008DED@comcast.net> References: <45099D67-3331-4ADB-96D8-58B3BE008DED@comcast.net> Message-ID: <003301db8858$c7ca38e0$575eaaa0$@mycci.net> Hello Daoud and Tweeters, Am replying to the entire list because other people might find the links useful. I lived in Austin for a while and, TBH, I didn't bird there much because I wanted to get away from the noise and traffic, but if you need to stay closer to Austin, this map, with its list of loops, might be of use. https://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/wildlife/wildlife-trails/hote When I did bird the Austin area, I usually went to the places listed in the East Austin Loop. My favorites were Webberville/Little Webberville Park, Richard Moya Park, and Hornsby Bend. https://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/wildlife/wildlife-trails/hote/east-austin-lo op Best wishes, and a safe journey to you, Lori Markoff -----Original Message----- From: Tweeters On Behalf Of Daoud Miller via Tweeters Sent: Tuesday, February 25, 2025 6:22 PM To: tweeters@u.washington.edu Subject: [Tweeters] RFI: Birding locations near Austin, TX Hello Tweeters, I will be traveling to Austin, TX for several weeks next month (March), assisting family members with care. I am hoping to do some local birding (day outings) while there. If you have favorite spots you recommend I check out, please respond to me personally at daoud_miller AT comcast.net (or to the list if you want to let everyone know). Thank you! Daoud Miller Kenmore, WA _______________________________________________ Tweeters mailing list Tweeters@u.washington.edu http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 26 09:22:45 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Dennis Paulson via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 26 09:22:52 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] RFI: Birding locations near Austin, TX In-Reply-To: References: <45099D67-3331-4ADB-96D8-58B3BE008DED@comcast.net> Message-ID: <43461CFB-DE94-4A9A-94A7-6EF550479173@comcast.net> I?ll add Garner State Park and Lost Maples Natural Area, both good places to look for both species. Dennis Paulson Seattle > On Feb 25, 2025, at 10:15 PM, Robert O'Brien via Tweeters wrote: > > The Austin area offers an incredible wealth of birds not seen in Washngton. But of special interest are the Black-capped Vireo and Golden-cheeked Warbler. Here's where they and many other more common specialities can be found near Austin. (from the internet). > The golden-cheeked warbler and black-capped vireo can be seen in the Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge and the Barton Creek Habitat Preserve near Austin, Texas. Bob OBrien Portland > Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge > Warbler Vista: A public area on the southern end of the refuge that's a good place to see the golden-cheeked warbler > Shin Oak Observation Deck: A viewing area designed for black-capped vireo habitat > Rimrock trail at Doeskin Ranch: A public area on the northern side of the refuge where both species have been spotted > Barton Creek Habitat Preserve > Part of the Balcones Canyonlands Preserve system, this preserve provides habitat for both the golden-cheeked warbler and the black-capped vireo > Other places to see these birds: > Concordia University Texas Nature Preserve: Part of the Balcones Canyonlands Preserve, this preserve is home to both species > Kerr Wildlife Management Area: Both species use this area during breeding and nesting seasons > The golden-cheeked warbler and black-capped vireo are neotropical migrants that breed in central Texas. Their habitats have been threatened by fire suppression, overgrazing, suburban sprawl, and cedar eradication. > > On Tue, Feb 25, 2025 at 6:22?PM Daoud Miller via Tweeters > wrote: > Hello Tweeters, > > I will be traveling to Austin, TX for several weeks next month (March), assisting family members with care. I am hoping to do some local birding (day outings) while there. > > If you have favorite spots you recommend I check out, please respond to me personally at daoud_miller AT comcast.net (or to the list if you want to let everyone know). > > Thank you! > Daoud Miller > Kenmore, WA > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 26 12:16:40 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Patricia Quyle Grainger via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 26 12:16:59 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Varied Thrush Message-ID: <89BDA585-DF37-44A8-B04C-7A2A6C2A0577@olypen.com> After enjoying a number of Varied Thrush in my yard last winter, this winter nary a one has appeared, until just now! On this spring-like sunny day, a beautiful male Varied Thrush just popped out from under some brush to kick some leaves. Makes this day even better. Pat Quyle Grainger Port Townsend From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 26 12:44:19 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Sally Alhadeff via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 26 12:44:34 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Tree Swallows Message-ID: I just saw and heard four Tree Swallows along Scatter Creek in Thurston county, just east of Tenino. As is typical, they are checking out the bird boxes along the fence line, a behavior they will exhibit for many weeks before nesting begins. I?m always relieved and happy when they return. Sally Alhadeff Sallya@scattercreek.com Tenino, WA From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 26 12:55:40 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Alan Roedell via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 26 12:55:59 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Tree Swallows In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: The birds are convinced it's Spring. On Wed, Feb 26, 2025, 12:44?PM Sally Alhadeff via Tweeters < tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > I just saw and heard four Tree Swallows along Scatter Creek in Thurston > county, just east of Tenino. > > As is typical, they are checking out the bird boxes along the fence line, > a behavior they will exhibit for many weeks before nesting begins. > > I?m always relieved and happy when they return. > > > Sally Alhadeff > Sallya@scattercreek.com > Tenino, WA > > > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 26 17:11:59 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Steve Loitz via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 26 17:12:15 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] FOY Say's Phoebe (Ellensburg) Message-ID: Looking at my FOY SAPH out the kitchen window as I type this. 1/2 mile E of Eburg city limits. It's right on schedule. In past years, I see my FOY SAPH in the final few days of February or first few days of March -- and always from our kitchen window. We have a SAPH nest each year under a roof overhang. -- Steve Loitz Ellensburg, WA steveloitz@gmail.com -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Feb 26 21:05:43 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (via Tweeters) Date: Wed Feb 26 21:05:48 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] =?utf-8?q?REMINDER=3A__WOS_Monthly_Meeting=2C_March_3?= =?utf-8?q?=2C_2025?= Message-ID: <20250227050543.58279.qmail@s401.sureserver.com> The Washington Ornithological Society (WOS) is pleased to announce our next Monthly Meeting: on Monday, March 3, Matt Farr and Toby Ross will present, ?Counting Seabirds in Puget Sound: How Difficult Could It Be?? Healthy seabird populations are an indicator of a healthy ocean. Unfortunately, many of our seabird populations are imperiled and in need of conservation action. Among those monitoring seabird species and assessing population trends is the Puget Sound Seabird Survey (PSSS), a citizen science effort in which volunteers conduct monthly surveys at sites around the South Salish Sea. Collection of data is however only the first step toward understanding the underlying ecology of seabird declines. In this presentation, our speakers will explore the underbelly of translating counts of birds to estimates of population trends. Matt Farr is a postdoctoral scholar at the University of Washington within the Washington Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit and School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences. His research topics span population and community ecology with emphasis on developing hierarchical models to estimate population abundance and dynamics. Matt?s current research uses quantitative methods to evaluate monitoring strategies for marine birds and estimate species population statuses and trends. Matt works with Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and Puget Sound Bird Observatory on sea duck and seabird research in the Salish Sea and with US Fish and Wildlife Service?s Alaska Maritime Wildlife Refuge on Tufted Puffin research across their North American range. Prior to coming to UW, Matt received his PhD in Zoology and Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior from Michigan State University in 2021 and his BS in Wildlife from Purdue University in 2014. Toby Ross holds a BS in Zoology and an MSc in Applied Ecology and Conservation from UK universities. He has been dedicated to global conservation efforts for more than 30 years. Toby's work has spanned invasive species eradication in the Caribbean, reptile research in Mauritius, and protected area development for Tree Kangaroos in Papua New Guinea. His passion for ornithology grew during his eight years as Science Manager at Seattle Audubon (now Birds Connect Seattle), overseeing citizen science programs. Toby has been director of, since its creation in 2007, the Puget Sound Seabird Survey (PSSS), now a program of the Puget Sound Bird Observatory (PSBO). This year he is responsible for training, coordinating 268 volunteers distributed at 157 sites. Interested individuals are welcome to visit the website to learn more and get involved. Toby also runs Alight Tours, guiding birding adventures worldwide with a focus on conservation and community engagement. This meeting will be conducted virtually, via Zoom (no in-person attendance). Sign-in will begin at 7:15 pm, and the meeting commences at 7:30 pm. Please go to the WOS Monthly Meetings page: https://wos.org/monthly-meetings/ for instructions on participation and to get the Zoom link. When joining the meeting, we ask that you mute your device and make certain that your camera is turned off. This meeting is open to all as WOS invites everyone in the wider birding community to attend and participate. Thanks to the generosity of our presenters, recordings of past programs are available at the following link to the WOS YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@washingtonornithologicalso7839/videos If you are not yet a member of WOS, we hope you will consider becoming one at https://wos.org Please join us! Elaine Chuang WOS Program Support From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 27 12:54:00 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (mary hrudkaj via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 27 12:54:08 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Early Turkey Vulture Message-ID: Just had a lone turkey vulture heading north in the north Mason County area east of the Canal. Very defined wing shape. It looked like it was taking advantage of the mild north breeze out here. Mary Hrudkaj Tahuya/Belfair -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 27 18:44:10 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Michael Hobbs via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 27 18:45:01 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Marymoor Park (Redmond, King Co.) 2025-02-27 Message-ID: Tweets - It was a gorgeous day, and while it was cold to start (33 degrees), it warmed up too fast and too much. It was 53 degrees when we finished at 11, so 20 degrees in 4 hours. Impossible to dress for that! There was a lot of singing today, but it was mostly AMERICAN ROBINS. Everything else was spread rather thinly. It was a somewhat disappointing day. Highlights: Great Blue Heron - At least 60 birds on the nests simultaneously, with several others around Red-breasted Sapsucker - Suddenly several sightings; almost certainly multiple birds. We've only had one bird once previously this year Gull sp. - One distant, flying gull was our only larid. That's VERY unusual for this time of year Northern Shrike - One popped up at the south end of the East Meadow just after I confidently declared that shrikes had likely moved north already TREE SWALLOW - They're back (I had a few yesterday, we had more today). Probably a little fewer than 10 birds, but hard to say. Overhead several times American Robin - Approximately 193 of them, all over everywhere all morning. They presented a full choir predawn chorus as well A late scan of the lake turned up the only Ring-necked Ducks (2 drakes). There was also a female LESSER SCAUP which gave sufficient looks for positive ID. First (confirmed) of Year (FOY). There was also a falcon that flew low over the lake. Had me thinking Peregrine Falcon, but I could not rule out Merlin. Displaying/etc. birds today: Bufflehead (some head bobbing), Common Goldeneye (extended displays ending with the head thrown back), Great Blue Heron bringing sticks to the nest, Northern Flicker drumming. Singing today: Anna's Hummingbird, Black-capped Chickadee, [Ruby-crowned Kinglet yesterday but not today], Golden-crowned Kinglet, Brown Creeper, Pacific Wren, Marsh Wren, Bewick's Wren, American Robin, House Finch, Fox Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, White-crowned Sparrow (gambelii), Golden-crowned Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Spotted Towhee, and Red-winged Blackbird. The mammal list was better than usual, unlike the bird list. Eastern Gray Squirrel, American Beaver, Muskrat (FOY), Eastern Cottontail, and Mule Deer (FOY). All but the squirrel were only seen before 7 a.m. Misses today were Green-winged Teal, Hooded Merganser, American Coot (never missed before during Week 9), Wilson's Snipe, Short-billed Gull, Ring-billed Gull, Glaucous-winged Gull (though I think that's what the larus sp. actually was), Purple Finch (may have heard), and Western Meadowlark (though I had one yesterday around 3 p.m.). For the day, just 50 species plus the gull and falcon. = Michael Hobbs = BirdMarymoor@gmail.com = www.marymoor.org/birding.htm -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Feb 27 22:19:30 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Kenneth Brown via Tweeters) Date: Thu Feb 27 22:19:36 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Nisqually Wednesday. Message-ID: <1612090266.2858169.1740723570764@connect.xfinity.com> It started off a bit cool and foggy in the morning but soon warmed and cleared, at least partially. It felt almost spring-like and the birds apparently agreed, as not only our early Barn Swallows hung around but their cousins, Tree Swallows, appeared in significant numbers. The Visitor's Center pond was active with Mallards, American Wigeon, Northern Shovelers, Bufflehead, Ring-necked Ducks, a pair of Hooded Mergansers and an American Coot. As we walked south through the parking lot, American Crows leaving their roost were in less than usual numbers. Are most leaving earlier as it gets light earlier? A few were mobbing a Common Raven in the top of a fruit tree in the orchard, successfully persuading it to move on. A Northern Flicker and Red-breasted Sapsucker shared the orchard with American Robins and a couple Mourning Doves. Near the Maintenance Compound another Sapsucker tended its perforated trees and Golden-crowned and Ruby-crowned Kinglets fast-danced in the nearby Alders. From the entrance road, some of us spotted Black-capped and Chestnut-backed Chickadees, more Kinglets, and a Downy Woodpecker. The flooded fields west of the service road were guarded on the south end by a Peregrine Falcon, and on the north end by a Red-tailed Hawk. In between were American Coots, Shovelers, Mallards, Northern Pintail, Green-winged Teal, lots of American Wigeon and one Eurasian Wigeon spotted by Kathleen. Red-winged Blackbirds were scattered on the cattails and European Starlings on the drier ground. A dozen Tree Herons (GBH) perched along the western tree line. On the west side of the loop trail we found Hairy Woodpecker and Northern Flicker, Both Kinglet species, Black-capped Chickadee, Brown Creeper, Spotted Towhee, Bewick's, Marsh, and Pacific Wrens, and Yellow-rumped Warblers. From the Twin Barns platform we saw several Tree Swallows investigating the nest boxes, another European Wigeon and all the expected ducks. A Lincoln's Sparrow popped up for a look at us in the Willows on the north side of the dike and just a bit west, a first of the year flock of Cedar Waxwings. Several Bald Eagles sat along the tree line to the north and a young, pale, Red-tailed Hawk flushed from the trees on the south side. A Northern Harrier hunted the surge plain. Golden-crowned and Song Sparrows made their appearance. Scanning the mud to the north revealed the continuing small flock of Semipalmated Plovers and that the rib cage of the deceased Sealion has collapsed. A large Gull pulled pinkish flesh from the carcass. Ring-billed Gulls were scattered along the mud. Past the Willows, on the freshwater marsh, dozens of Tree Swallows crisscrossed the air or perched on small dead bushes. A Virginia Rail called out. Hundreds of Cacking Geese browsed or roosted along the inner dike. McAllister Creek was busy with American Wigeon, Bufflehead, Mallards, Common Goldeneye, Surf Scoters, a few Red-breasted Mergansers, and a couple Horned Grebes. A couple Spotted Sandpipers worked the shoreline as did several Greater Yellowlegs. A single Double-crested Cormorant stood on the east bank. Harbor Seals were splashing up and down the creek, whether in pursuit of prey or in some sort of mating display was unclear. Flocks of Least Sandpipers dropped to the shore to feed, then picked up only to settle again briefly in another location. From the Puget Sound viewing platform we identified more Surf Scoters, Red-breasted Mergansers, American Wigeon, Bufflehead, and Common Goldeneye, and were finally rewarded with a cluster of Brant Geese. Brandt's Cormorants were on the channel marker. Returning south along the boardwalk we saw a flock of Short-billed gulls, more Least Sandpipers and a murmuration of Dunlin, flashing dark and white. Back on the dike, the resident flock of Greater White-fronted Geese we had missed on the way out had returned. At the Nisqually River overlook were Common Mergansers, Common Goldeneye, another solo Double-crested Cormorant, and a Great Blue Heron. South along the east side of the loop trail a large flock of Pine Siskin occupied a bare Cottonwood tree as if it had been decorated with drab, dancing ornaments. For the fourth consecutive week we were unable to locate the Great Horned Owl. In the slough, a pair of Hooded Mergansers seemed to think we had invaded their privacy. Back to the start to finalize our tally. The checklist follows: Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually NWR--Twin Barns Loop, Thurston, Washington, US Feb 26, 2025 7:53 AM - 4:03 PM Protocol: Traveling 4.93 mile(s) Checklist Comments: Mammals: Harbor Seals, Black-tailed Deer, Eastern Gray Squirrel and Little Brown Bat. 65 species (+4 other taxa) Greater White-fronted Goose 26 foraging on and along dike. Brant 18 seen from Puget Sound viewing platform. Cackling Goose 1200 Cackling Goose (Taverner's) 15 Canada Goose 20 Northern Shoveler 250 Gadwall 6 Eurasian Wigeon 3 American Wigeon 1200 Mallard 150 Northern Pintail 600 Green-winged Teal 200 Ring-necked Duck 5 Surf Scoter 180 Bufflehead 250 Common Goldeneye 150 Hooded Merganser 6 Common Merganser 4 Red-breasted Merganser 24 Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) 35 Mourning Dove 4 Virginia Rail 1 Heard only. American Coot 100 Killdeer 4 Semipalmated Plover 5 Continuing on mud flats. Spotted Sandpiper 2 Greater Yellowlegs 30 Dunlin 1500 Least Sandpiper 180 Several active flocks of 20-40, counted by 10's. Short-billed Gull 75 Ring-billed Gull 150 Glaucous-winged Gull 2 Western x Glaucous-winged Gull (hybrid) 10 Western/Glaucous-winged Gull 15 Horned Grebe 2 Brandt's Cormorant 9 Double-crested Cormorant 2 Great Blue Heron 30 Northern Harrier 1 Bald Eagle 20 Red-tailed Hawk 3 Red-breasted Sapsucker 3 Downy Woodpecker 1 Hairy Woodpecker 2 Northern Flicker 4 Peregrine Falcon 1 American Crow 50 Common Raven 2 Black-capped Chickadee 11 Chestnut-backed Chickadee 2 Tree Swallow 40 Barn Swallow 1 Continuing. Ruby-crowned Kinglet 4 Golden-crowned Kinglet 15 Brown Creeper 5 Pacific Wren 1 Marsh Wren 9 Bewick's Wren 11 European Starling 30 American Robin 50 Cedar Waxwing 8 Pine Siskin 90 Golden-crowned Sparrow 20 Song Sparrow 36 Lincoln's Sparrow 1 Spotted Towhee 2 Red-winged Blackbird 40 Yellow-rumped Warbler 6 Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 1 View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S215622101 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Fri Feb 28 12:14:07 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Steve Platz via Tweeters) Date: Fri Feb 28 12:14:16 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Early Turkey Vulture In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: I noticed an unmistakable Turkey Vulture myself yesterday afternoon, soaring over the road as I was traveling south on 525 near Greenbank. I'm glad others are noticing them, as well! From tweeters at u.washington.edu Fri Feb 28 14:28:47 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Josh Morris via Tweeters) Date: Fri Feb 28 14:28:59 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Bird and advocacy outing at Magnuson Park Message-ID: Hi all, Inviting anyone in the Seattle area to join a walk at the Magnuson Park wetlands on March 3 at 10 am. Free to join, just let us know you're coming by registering here: Bird and Advocacy Outing at the Restored Wetlands at Magnuson Park The restored wetlands are the third largest freshwater wetland complex in Seattle and are home to more than 100 native wildlife species, including 80 bird species, and are human made. They were constructed between 2008-2012 at a cost of more than $3 million to Seattle taxpayers, a major investment in wetland habitat enhancement and nature access. Now, the City of Seattle is threatening that investment with plans to build a noisy outdoor pickleball facility directly adjacent to the wetlands. As we look for signs of spring among the ponds, we'll talk about the history of the wetlands, why they are important to people and wildlife, and how you can help protect them. Thank you, hope to see you out there ? Joshua Morris Urban Conservation Manager Birds Connect Seattle -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Fri Feb 28 15:33:26 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Tom and Carol Stoner via Tweeters) Date: Fri Feb 28 15:34:00 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Merlin Message-ID: There was a Merlin circling and calling midday in West Seattle. Carol Stoner -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Fri Feb 28 18:02:26 2025 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (George Heleker via Tweeters) Date: Fri Feb 28 18:02:38 2025 Subject: [Tweeters] Rufous Hummingbirds Message-ID: Seems to have been an uptick in hummer numbers the past couple days. Was pleased to see my first Rufous of the year. Other early Rufous at this location on the south end of Whidbey Island have been on the 24th of Feb in 2016 and 2022. The other earliest birds arrived on the first of March in 2025, 2020 and 2019 I was surprised to see a female Rufous at the feeder about 30 minutes after I first spotted the male. This was the earliest ever spotting of a female at this location. A mediocre photo is on this eblrd checklist. https://ebird.org/checklist/S2780018 [1] George Heleker Whidbey Island, WA Links: ------ [1] https://ebird.org/checklist/S27800185 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: