From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Jan 1 07:34:13 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Jerry Neufeld-Kaiser via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 1 07:34:27 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Taiga flycatcher in Vancouver In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <63512C1B-F932-45EA-8C35-DD0FC0142C65@gmail.com> An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Jan 1 09:05:55 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Dennis Paulson via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 1 09:06:00 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Annual Christmas owl surveys and song In-Reply-To: <2C6590F0-4C55-4DBC-8D20-3781CFC4E312@gmail.com> References: <2C6590F0-4C55-4DBC-8D20-3781CFC4E312@gmail.com> Message-ID: <65F5F38B-2A39-4497-8A9C-B2E93A6546FA@comcast.net> It?s because there is no L in Horned and Barred and Screech and Saw-whet and Pygmy, and Boreal and Long-eared are too scarce. May everyone?s new year be full of peace and joy and lots of birds! Dennis Paulson Seattle dennispaulson at comcast dot net > On Dec 31, 2025, at 6:30 PM, Dan Reiff via Tweeters wrote: > > Hello Tweeters community, > Each year, I begin doing owl surveys beginning Christmas day- always a little early in the seasons to find them. > Well after dark, my wife calls me to check to ask if I have found them. > Standing in the forest in the darkness, I answer by sadly singing the beginning of my adaptation of a Christmas song: > > ? NoooOwl, NoooOwl? NoooOwl, NoooOwl?.? > > Best regards, > Dan > > Sent from my iPhone > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Jan 1 09:09:19 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Louise via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 1 09:09:32 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] First Bird Message-ID: My first bird of the year was house finch, a male, and very pretty he was! An unusual one for me - I don't get them at my feeder a lot. They tend to show up daily for about a week, the disappear for several months, Louise Rutter Kirkland -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Jan 1 09:25:47 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Teresa Michelsen via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 1 09:25:52 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] First Bird In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: My first bird in Lake Kokanee was an Oregon Junco, as in so many years past :) Good morning all from Hoodsport! Teresa Michelsen From: Tweeters On Behalf Of Louise via Tweeters Sent: Thursday, January 1, 2026 9:09 AM To: TWEETERS tweeters Subject: [Tweeters] First Bird My first bird of the year was house finch, a male, and very pretty he was! An unusual one for me - I don't get them at my feeder a lot. They tend to show up daily for about a week, the disappear for several months, Louise Rutter Kirkland -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Jan 1 09:57:24 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Chuq Von Rospach via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 1 09:57:29 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] First Bird In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: > > My first bird of the year was house finch, a male, and very pretty he was! > An unusual one for me - I don't get them at my feeder a lot. They tend to > show up daily for about a week, the disappear for several months, > First bird this year was a Fox Sparrow, who popped out as I put out the feeders this morning before the rest of the crew arrived. That included the Juncos, Spotted Towhees, Black-capped and Chestnut chickadees, Red-Breasted Nuthatches, Anna?s Hummingbirds and Stellar?s Jays. Chuq --------------------------------------- Chuq Von Rospach (http://www.chuq.me) Silverdale, Washington Birder, Nature and Wildlife Photographer Email me at: chuqvr@gmail.com Mastodon: @chuqvr@fosstodon.org Stay Updated with what I'm doing: https://www.chuq.me/6fps/ My latest e-book: https://www.chuq.me/ebooks -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Jan 1 10:40:27 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Dennis Paulson via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 1 10:40:32 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] First Bird In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: My first bird of the year was a Dark-eyed Junco, completely expected as they are overrunning the yard this winter, far more than we have ever had before?probably around 20 birds. But the next bird was a real surprise, a Golden-crowned Sparrow. We had two of them in the yard daily from 9/20-10/9, then not a sighting of them until this morning. There were two adults, while the October birds were an adult and an immature. It?s hard to imagine these birds are the same birds, as we would surely have seen them if they had been around during that gap period. We look forward to seeing if they hang around. We also have another welcome visitor to the yard, an Orange-crowned Warbler that appeared on 12/30, the first wintering one we?ve had since 2014. The bird is very visible daily, and I can envision its thinking ?wow, why didn?t I know about this feast before?? Our warblers (we also have Yellow-rumped and Townsend?s) visit our suet and bark butter, and what has long been surprising to me, they eat bird seed, perhaps only sunflower chips. Haven?t seen the Orange-crowned do that yet. Dennis Paulson Seattle dennispaulson at comcast net > On Jan 1, 2026, at 9:09 AM, Louise via Tweeters wrote: > > My first bird of the year was house finch, a male, and very pretty he was! An unusual one for me - I don't get them at my feeder a lot. They tend to show up daily for about a week, the disappear for several months, > > Louise Rutter > Kirkland > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Jan 1 10:48:18 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Tom Benedict via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 1 10:48:33 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] First Bird In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <16534FC3-52D7-4CEC-AA0F-4FB673BE0CB3@comcast.net> My first bird of 2026 was a Bewick?s Wren. And my last bird of 2025 was a Pileated Woodpecker. Both were at the suet feeder outside our kitchen window. Tom Benedict Seahurst, WA From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Jan 1 11:13:44 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Diann MacRae via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 1 11:13:47 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] first bird (and last) Message-ID: An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Jan 1 11:24:54 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Louise via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 1 11:25:08 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] First Bird In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: I envy you your Townsend's warblers, Dennis. I always had them regularly at my suet feeder over the winter, but the last two winters, and this one as well so far, they've been missing for some reason. Louise Rutter Kirkland On Thu, Jan 1, 2026 at 10:40?AM Dennis Paulson wrote: > My first bird of the year was a Dark-eyed Junco, completely expected as > they are overrunning the yard this winter, far more than we have ever had > before?probably around 20 birds. > > But the next bird was a real surprise, a Golden-crowned Sparrow. We had > two of them in the yard daily from 9/20-10/9, then not a sighting of them > until this morning. There were two adults, while the October birds were an > adult and an immature. It?s hard to imagine these birds are the same birds, > as we would surely have seen them if they had been around during that gap > period. We look forward to seeing if they hang around. > > We also have another welcome visitor to the yard, an Orange-crowned > Warbler that appeared on 12/30, the first wintering one we?ve had since > 2014. The bird is very visible daily, and I can envision its thinking ?wow, > why didn?t I know about this feast before?? Our warblers (we also have > Yellow-rumped and Townsend?s) visit our suet and bark butter, and what has > long been surprising to me, they eat bird seed, perhaps only sunflower > chips. Haven?t seen the Orange-crowned do that yet. > > Dennis Paulson > Seattle > dennispaulson at comcast net > > > On Jan 1, 2026, at 9:09 AM, Louise via Tweeters < > tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > > > > My first bird of the year was house finch, a male, and very pretty he > was! An unusual one for me - I don't get them at my feeder a lot. They tend > to show up daily for about a week, the disappear for several months, > > > > 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 Thu Jan 1 11:53:36 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Sue Welsh via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 1 11:53:49 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] First Bird In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: FOY. Flock of juncos On Thu, Jan 1, 2026 at 11:25?AM Louise via Tweeters < tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > I envy you your Townsend's warblers, Dennis. I always had them regularly > at my suet feeder over the winter, but the last two winters, and this one > as well so far, they've been missing for some reason. > > Louise Rutter > Kirkland > > On Thu, Jan 1, 2026 at 10:40?AM Dennis Paulson > wrote: > >> My first bird of the year was a Dark-eyed Junco, completely expected as >> they are overrunning the yard this winter, far more than we have ever had >> before?probably around 20 birds. >> >> But the next bird was a real surprise, a Golden-crowned Sparrow. We had >> two of them in the yard daily from 9/20-10/9, then not a sighting of them >> until this morning. There were two adults, while the October birds were an >> adult and an immature. It?s hard to imagine these birds are the same birds, >> as we would surely have seen them if they had been around during that gap >> period. We look forward to seeing if they hang around. >> >> We also have another welcome visitor to the yard, an Orange-crowned >> Warbler that appeared on 12/30, the first wintering one we?ve had since >> 2014. The bird is very visible daily, and I can envision its thinking ?wow, >> why didn?t I know about this feast before?? Our warblers (we also have >> Yellow-rumped and Townsend?s) visit our suet and bark butter, and what has >> long been surprising to me, they eat bird seed, perhaps only sunflower >> chips. Haven?t seen the Orange-crowned do that yet. >> >> Dennis Paulson >> Seattle >> dennispaulson at comcast net >> >> > On Jan 1, 2026, at 9:09 AM, Louise via Tweeters < >> tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: >> > >> > My first bird of the year was house finch, a male, and very pretty he >> was! An unusual one for me - I don't get them at my feeder a lot. They tend >> to show up daily for about a week, the disappear for several months, >> > >> > Louise Rutter >> > Kirkland >> > _______________________________________________ >> > 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 Jan 1 11:58:41 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 1 11:58:50 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] foy Message-ID: <004001dc7b59$07d3f770$177be650$@olympus.net> Anna's, Jan Jan Stewart 922 E Spruce Street Sequim, WA 98382-3518 jstewart@olympus.net -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Jan 1 12:12:18 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Tim Brennan via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 1 12:12:23 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] First Bird 2026 Message-ID: White-crowned Sparrow, singing outside my window. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Jan 1 12:13:22 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Jeff Harrell via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 1 12:13:37 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] First Bird In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: red-breasted nuthatch on the sunflower feeder, and then later a ruby-crowned kinglet on one of our hidden away suets I?ve never seen them on before :) On Thu, Jan 1, 2026 at 11:54?AM Sue Welsh via Tweeters < tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > FOY. Flock of juncos > > On Thu, Jan 1, 2026 at 11:25?AM Louise via Tweeters < > tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > >> I envy you your Townsend's warblers, Dennis. I always had them regularly >> at my suet feeder over the winter, but the last two winters, and this one >> as well so far, they've been missing for some reason. >> >> Louise Rutter >> Kirkland >> >> On Thu, Jan 1, 2026 at 10:40?AM Dennis Paulson >> wrote: >> >>> My first bird of the year was a Dark-eyed Junco, completely expected as >>> they are overrunning the yard this winter, far more than we have ever had >>> before?probably around 20 birds. >>> >>> But the next bird was a real surprise, a Golden-crowned Sparrow. We had >>> two of them in the yard daily from 9/20-10/9, then not a sighting of them >>> until this morning. There were two adults, while the October birds were an >>> adult and an immature. It?s hard to imagine these birds are the same birds, >>> as we would surely have seen them if they had been around during that gap >>> period. We look forward to seeing if they hang around. >>> >>> We also have another welcome visitor to the yard, an Orange-crowned >>> Warbler that appeared on 12/30, the first wintering one we?ve had since >>> 2014. The bird is very visible daily, and I can envision its thinking ?wow, >>> why didn?t I know about this feast before?? Our warblers (we also have >>> Yellow-rumped and Townsend?s) visit our suet and bark butter, and what has >>> long been surprising to me, they eat bird seed, perhaps only sunflower >>> chips. Haven?t seen the Orange-crowned do that yet. >>> >>> Dennis Paulson >>> Seattle >>> dennispaulson at comcast net >>> >>> > On Jan 1, 2026, at 9:09 AM, Louise via Tweeters < >>> tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: >>> > >>> > My first bird of the year was house finch, a male, and very pretty he >>> was! An unusual one for me - I don't get them at my feeder a lot. They tend >>> to show up daily for about a week, the disappear for several months, >>> > >>> > Louise Rutter >>> > Kirkland >>> > _______________________________________________ >>> > 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 Thu Jan 1 13:08:59 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Tom and Carol Stoner via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 1 13:09:28 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] FOY Message-ID: Robin, then Dark-eyed Junco, Song Sparrow, Anna's Hummingbird, and a Cooper's Hawk appeared as I was eating my breakfast. :) Carol Stoner West Seattle -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Jan 1 13:25:44 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Stef Neis via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 1 13:26:03 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] FOY Message-ID: ?I?m going to claim a varied thrush for my FOY bird. He was feeding amongst a group of juncos and obviously drew my eye directly to him! My last of 2025 was a pair of flickers at the suet feeder. And, just like everyone else, lots of juncos, towhees and chickadees about at all times now. Stef Neis Whidbey Island Sent from my iPad > On Jan 1, 2026, at 1:11?PM, Tom and Carol Stoner via Tweeters wrote: > ? > Robin, then Dark-eyed Junco, Song Sparrow, Anna's Hummingbird, and a Cooper's Hawk appeared as I was eating my breakfast. :) > Carol Stoner > West Seattle > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Jan 1 15:23:10 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Dee Dee via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 1 15:23:49 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Four-eagle morning to start 2026 References: Message-ID: My FOY this morning was, not-surprisingly to me, an immature White-crowned Sparrow yardbird. Shortly thereafter, however, breakfast was graced with seeing not the usual one, but two eagles perched very near one another on a couple of the fir tree branches near the Puget Sound shoreline, where one is often seen hanging out?sometimes for hours. While those two were still on their branches, two more eagles appeared, flying rapidly from north to south and pretty much paralleling the shoreline. A quick look with the glasses reviewed an immature with an adult not far behind. They passed just slightly inland of the trees where the other two eagles were perched and continued south at the same rapid pace. While it is not totally unusual at certain times of year to see two eagles at the same time in this neighborhood, it has not been so usual to see four at the same time in one binoculars view, so I found it a treat. Dee Warnock Edmonds From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Jan 1 17:14:09 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Kenneth Brown via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 1 17:14:13 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Nisqually Wednesday in December Message-ID: <1401665762.235623.1767316449953@connect.xfinity.com> The last Wednesday, the last day of 2025, started out cold and crisp. The weather report earlier indicated fog for the first hours but it must have lifted before expected, as the pale blue sky was clear. The covered path to the deck at the Visitors Center was a bit slick with frost and the entrance pond it spans had a a thin skin of ice. The good weather or the calendar may have inspired birders, 30 or so attended the start. A few Mallards and Bufflehead occupied the pond, a Muskrat went about its business, its tail making a snake-like wake. A Marsh Wren and a couple Song Sparrows worked in the reeds just off the deck, a half dozen Ruby-crowned Kinglets flitted in the nearest bushes. Consulting a Tide Chart, we deviated from our default route to get out to the dike sooner. A quick check of the south half of the fields west of the maintenance road produced a few Red-winged Blackbirds, Mallards, American Wigeon, Northern Shovelers. Northern Pintail, Canada and Cackling Geese, and an occasional American Coot. From the boardwalk west of the pond we saw a pair of Pied-billed Grebes, a few Ring-necked Ducks, and Marsh Wrens in the swamp grass. The blackberry and Willow thicket on the other side of the walkway held Bewick's Wren, Golden-crowned and Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Song and Fox sparrows. The north half of the boardwalk still closed, we moved back on the maintenance road. An adult Tundra Swan stood out against the line of willow on the far side of the field. The field's north half populated with the same species of waterfowl.as the south. The sky had turned gray and clouded over by the time we reached the dike. Bald Eagles were scattered along the distant trees that line the banks of the Nisqually River. Green-winged Teal and American Wigeon were the dominant ducks on the surge plain, fewer Pintail, Shovelers and Greater Yellowlegs among them. A Northern Harrier hunted the grass closer in, a female American Kestrel perched in the top of a small Spruce tree. A large flock of Dunlin flashed in a brief murmuration. American Robins and Northern Flickers perched up in the small bare Alders, including a female Yellow-shafted Flicker. At the base of the willows on the south side, Golden-crowned Sparrows, a White-crowned and a Lincoln's Sparrow scratched and skittered in the leaf litter. The clouds seemed to descend on us in the space of few minutes and visibility dropped rapidly. We made out the form of a Cygnet (immature Swan), it's white body and gray neck and head barely contrasting with the fog that enveloped it and us. The fog lightened periodically as we walked the boardwalk along McAllister Creek. We were able to see a few Common Goldeneye, Surf Scoters, Bufflehead and Wigeon on the water. Gulls, mostly Ring-billed, roosted on the exposed mud. A few Greater Yellowlegs patrolled the shore while Great Blue Herons stood guard. A bit south of the north end, a small flock of Least Sandpipers swooped under the boardwalk and landed along side, giving us a close up opportunity for appreciation. It was still too foggy from the gated terminus to see the channel markers, out on the reach, even the piling in front of Luhr Beach, but we did see a few Double-crested Cormorants, and a couple Horned Grebes closer to us in the creek proper. The fog thickened again as re returned to the dike. At the foot of the boardwalk we argued about whether that raptor perched out in the thick fog was a Red-tailed hawk or a Northern Harrier, then it flew to the dike and was harassed by another bird, it was both raptors. Walking the north part of the loop trail boardwalk we encountered a mixed flock of Brown Creeper, Chestnut-backed and Black-capped Chickadees, Golden-crowned and Ruby-crowned Kinglets, then were treated to both a Downy and Hairy Woodpecker. At the Nisqually River overlook, the water was still murky, though less muddy than last week. It was once again high, this time because it was near peak high tide, not so much from runoff. No birds and no Sea Lion either. The east side of the loop trail and the riparian side spur were quiet. The play area and the orchard were similarly devoid of bird sightings but in the area around The Land Trust building the ground was hopping with Spotted Towhees, Robins, Golden-crowned and Song Sparrows and a Dark-eyed Junco. A flock of Purple Finches flew into the tops of the bare fruit trees, joined by Chickadees and Kinglets. On our way back to the Visitors Center for the final tally, we scanned the fields again for something new, to no avail. End of walk, end of 2025. See the checklist below.. Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually NWR, Thurston, Washington, US Dec 31, 2025 7:55 AM - 3:20 PM Protocol: Traveling 5.38 mile(s) Checklist Comments: Wednesday Walk. The walk began on a clear and calm, 28? F morning with skim ice on the puddles and marshes. The fog settled in from the northwest by 10:00 a.m., significantly lowering the visibility, and the fog remained until the walk ended at 3:30, the temperature having risen to 39? F. We had a +8.79-foot low tide at 8:29 a.m., flooding to a +14.46-foot high water at 1.29 p.m. Mammals seen included eastern grey squirrel, Columbian black-tailed deer, a long-tailed weasel, and harbor seals in McAllister Creek. Of all things, we had Himalayan blackberries in flower near the Environmental Education Center. 60 species (+5 other taxa) Cackling Goose (minima) 555 Cackling Goose (Taverner's) 15 Canada Goose 28 Tundra Swan (Whistling) 2 Adult in flooded field west of the Visitors' Center, and an immature bird landed in the estuary restoration area north of the north dike. Northern Shoveler 70 American Wigeon 650 Mallard 85 Northern Pintail 235 Green-winged Teal 435 Ring-necked Duck 5 Visitors' Center pond Surf Scoter 26 White-winged Scoter 1 McAllister Creek Bufflehead 48 Common Goldeneye 20 Hooded Merganser 2 Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) 1 Entrance Gate Mourning Dove 1 Virginia Rail 2 Vocalizing from cattail marsh American Coot 16 Wilson's Snipe 1 Foraging on the saltwater side of the north dike. Greater Yellowlegs 9 Dunlin 1000 One large flock Least Sandpiper 11 Ring-billed Gull 18 Western Gull 1 Dark grey mantle, black primaries, no smudging on all white head Western x Glaucous-winged Gull (hybrid) 3 Western/Glaucous-winged Gull 14 Pied-billed Grebe 1 Visitors' Center Pond Horned Grebe 2 McAllister Creek Double-crested Cormorant 12 Great Blue Heron 8 Northern Harrier 1 Bald Eagle 12 Red-tailed Hawk (calurus/alascensis) 3 Belted Kingfisher 3 Downy Woodpecker (Pacific) 2 Hairy Woodpecker (Pacific) 1 Northern Flicker 1 Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 1 * Continuing female, red nape, buffy face, yellow flight feathers Northern Flicker (Red-shafted) 3 American Kestrel 1 female Peregrine Falcon 1 California Scrub-Jay 1 Entrance Gate American Crow 3 Black-capped Chickadee 21 Chestnut-backed Chickadee 14 Bushtit 6 Ruby-crowned Kinglet 19 Golden-crowned Kinglet 15 Brown Creeper 5 Pacific Wren 2 Marsh Wren 13 Bewick's Wren 6 European Starling 16 American Robin 15 Purple Finch (Western) 23 Fox Sparrow (Sooty) 5 Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon) 1 At Land Trust office White-crowned Sparrow 1 Golden-crowned Sparrow 44 White-throated Sparrow 1 Song Sparrow (rufina Group) 24 Lincoln's Sparrow 1 Spotted Towhee (oregonus Group) 9 Red-winged Blackbird 4 View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S291653163 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Jan 1 18:22:31 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Bruce LaBar via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 1 18:22:46 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Westport Seabirds 2026 schedule Message-ID: <3E9D3C65-DE4E-4CB0-BEFA-A6486A52CE0D@harbornet.com> The schedule is now posted for this year. If interested please google Westport Seabirds for all the information. Bruce LaBar From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Jan 1 18:29:15 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Dave Hayden via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 1 18:29:19 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] First Bird of the year Message-ID: tMy first bird of the year was a Bald Eagle, followed by Rock Doves. But my 3rd bird was the TAIGA FLYCATCHER. Got to Sunset Beach park in Vancouver BC at 9:00 am, walked to the west side of the Aquatic Center, and there were the birders looking at the bird.? Dave Hayden Centralia WA dtvhm AT nwrain DOT com Sent with Mailbird [http://www.getmailbird.com/?utm_source=signature&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=SentWithMailbird_Normal] -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Jan 1 21:16:58 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Philomena O'Neill via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 1 21:17:14 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] First Bird In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <0FC2F5D8-EEC6-4C47-8EAC-4EFC902E4B57@comcast.net> An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Fri Jan 2 09:59:58 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Tom and Carol Stoner via Tweeters) Date: Fri Jan 2 10:00:27 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Northern Flickers Message-ID: We haven't had many Flickers so far this year. Now that the colder weather has brought the 25+ Robin flocks to the yard, we had two male red-shafted flickers visit the suet feeder today. One had red malars and the other had black malars. Very striking. Carol Stoner West Seattle -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Fri Jan 2 11:42:07 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Zora Monster via Tweeters) Date: Fri Jan 2 11:42:20 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Northern Flickers In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <7E120101-0CBB-46EE-976F-D44AF93F1BFF@mac.com> The one with the black malars is an intergrade if it has red-shafted feathers. Zora Dermer Seattle Sent from my iPhone > On Jan 2, 2026, at 10:00?AM, Tom and Carol Stoner via Tweeters wrote: > > ? > We haven't had many Flickers so far this year. Now that the colder weather has brought the 25+ Robin flocks to the yard, we had two male red-shafted flickers visit the suet feeder today. One had red malars and the other had black malars. Very striking. > > Carol Stoner > West Seattle > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters From tweeters at u.washington.edu Fri Jan 2 12:16:12 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Bea Harrison via Tweeters) Date: Fri Jan 2 12:16:17 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] FOY Message-ID: <48E7BA88-2427-4045-9533-F5A55A125FB5@gmail.com> Spotted towhee. First one at our feeder in a while. Eastern WA. Bea Harrison From tweeters at u.washington.edu Fri Jan 2 18:51:42 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Marcus Roening via Tweeters) Date: Fri Jan 2 18:51:56 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] =?utf-8?q?This_Year=E2=80=99s_Inductee_to_the_253_Club?= Message-ID: Hi Tweets, Congratulations to our newest 2025 member of the 253 Club, here in Pierce County - Area Code 253. By achieving this lofty mile stone, new members are entitled to a beverage of their choice from yours truly! Ryan Shaw #253 - finding a Short-tailed Shearwater off of Dune during the massive influx of these wonderful tubenoses into Puget Sound waters. Massive extra credit for achieving this goal while living in Texas! Dune Peninsula at Point Defiance Park, continues to be the spot to see pelagic birds from land. With a sweeping view to Des Moines to the Northeast, Commencement Bay to the East and Dalco Passage to the Northwest, it is the #1 eBird Hotspot in Pierce County with 229 species seen. Accessed near Point Ruston, this park was created in 2019. Amazingly, this year tallied all 3 Shearwaters: Short-tailed, Sooty and Manx and a shocking trifecta of Storm-Petrels: Fork-tailed, Leach?s & Wilson?s (the latter under WBRC review). Unfortunately, the 5 Mile Drive that went around the tip of Point Defiance has been closed to cars due to severe erosion of the bluffs, but it is still a wonderful place to bike and walk - now without cars. New Pierce County Big Year Record ? 246 species by Craig Miller Special Kudos to Craig, for surpassing Will Brook?s Pierce County record of 243 species, with a final Tundra Swan on Lake Tapps in the last week of the year. I can attest to his many hours out in the field and up in the mountains. The most amazing sighting that I personally witnessed with him was of a White-tailed Ptarmigan off of Panorama Point on Mount Rainier. While it is possible to see ptarmigan right off the trail, it is a rare occurrence, often requiring as many as 6 dedicated trips. Craig had carried his scope all the way up the snow field in June with us and found the bird a 1000 feet below us off of Pebble Creek! Certainly not identifiable with binoculars and an amazing find. For completeness, here are the prior 253 members as divined by a combination of eBird and WA Birder records. And for those below who?d like to share, let me know your 253th bird and any story you?d like to share. Patrick Sullivan <2007 Charlie Wright 2011 Bruce LaBar 2014 Marcus Roening 2016 - Cassin?s Auklet Ed Pullen 2017 Mike Charest 2017 Heather Ballash 2021 - Barred Owl Tom Mansfield 2021 Wayne Sladek 2021 Peter Wimberger 2021 Heather Voboril 2022 Will Brooks 2022 Bryan Hansen 2023 ? Black-legged Kittiwake Scott Saunders 2023 ? Tufted Puffin Craig Miller 2023 ? Nazca Booby Michael Hobbs 2024 ? Marbled Godwit Ryan Shaw 2025 ? Short-tailed Shearwater Good birding to all in the New Year, Marcus Roening Tacoma WA, The 253 - Pierce County Marcus Roening Tacoma WA -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Fri Jan 2 18:52:20 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (David Cook via Tweeters) Date: Fri Jan 2 18:52:34 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] space available for Oaxaca birding trip Message-ID: I am organizing a birding trip to Oaxaca, Mexico in March 2026 and we could add 1 or 2 more people to our trip. We will be going to locations north, south and east of Oaxaca city, but not touring the entire state of Oaxaca. It is likely to last 8-10 days. If you are interested in possibly joining us, please contact me at my personal email, 41cdcook@gmail.com and I can provide you with more details. Dave Cook Seattle -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Fri Jan 2 19:24:24 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Trileigh Tucker via Tweeters) Date: Fri Jan 2 19:24:34 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] OT: South Africa birding Message-ID: Hello Tweets, A friend has invited us to accompany him to South Africa in September. He?s not a birder, but would be willing for us to take some birding days while there. I believe he?s thinking he'll plan things himself rather than hire a tour guide/company. So, a couple of questions for those who?ve been there in recent years: The State Department has some pretty unnerving risk alerts for SA, which make me wonder whether it?s actually a good destination in current times, or whether it?d be better to wait until it seems safer. If you?ve been there, either on your own or with a tour company, I?d be interested to hear how safe you felt. In terms of birding, are there companies or guides you would recommend for outings? Any other thoughts welcome. Thanks much, Trileigh Trileigh Tucker Gw?alali Valley, West Seattle NaturalPresenceArts.com tri@seattleu edu -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Fri Jan 2 19:51:51 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Diane Yorgason-Quinn via Tweeters) Date: Fri Jan 2 19:51:57 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] =?windows-1252?q?This_Year=92s_Inductee_to_the_253_Clu?= =?windows-1252?q?b?= In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Wow! Nice list and good news! Now Dune-rs will have to reach 229! I hope you'll share this at our celebration meeting on Jan 21 at 5:30 to 7 (darn library's restricted hours)! It's only fitting that the originator of the 253 list and one of the early champions should be there. Maybe with a mug for the drink. Now about Craig, I still don't know him. Could you talk him into coming? Diane ________________________________ From: Tweeters on behalf of Marcus Roening via Tweeters Sent: Friday, January 2, 2026 6:51 PM To: Tweeters Subject: [Tweeters] This Year?s Inductee to the 253 Club Hi Tweets, Congratulations to our newest 2025 member of the 253 Club, here in Pierce County - Area Code 253. By achieving this lofty mile stone, new members are entitled to a beverage of their choice from yours truly! Ryan Shaw #253 - finding a Short-tailed Shearwater off of Dune during the massive influx of these wonderful tubenoses into Puget Sound waters. Massive extra credit for achieving this goal while living in Texas! Dune Peninsula at Point Defiance Park, continues to be the spot to see pelagic birds from land. With a sweeping view to Des Moines to the Northeast, Commencement Bay to the East and Dalco Passage to the Northwest, it is the #1 eBird Hotspot in Pierce County with 229 species seen. Accessed near Point Ruston, this park was created in 2019. Amazingly, this year tallied all 3 Shearwaters: Short-tailed, Sooty and Manx and a shocking trifecta of Storm-Petrels: Fork-tailed, Leach?s & Wilson?s (the latter under WBRC review). Unfortunately, the 5 Mile Drive that went around the tip of Point Defiance has been closed to cars due to severe erosion of the bluffs, but it is still a wonderful place to bike and walk - now without cars. New Pierce County Big Year Record ? 246 species by Craig Miller Special Kudos to Craig, for surpassing Will Brook?s Pierce County record of 243 species, with a final Tundra Swan on Lake Tapps in the last week of the year. I can attest to his many hours out in the field and up in the mountains. The most amazing sighting that I personally witnessed with him was of a White-tailed Ptarmigan off of Panorama Point on Mount Rainier. While it is possible to see ptarmigan right off the trail, it is a rare occurrence, often requiring as many as 6 dedicated trips. Craig had carried his scope all the way up the snow field in June with us and found the bird a 1000 feet below us off of Pebble Creek! Certainly not identifiable with binoculars and an amazing find. For completeness, here are the prior 253 members as divined by a combination of eBird and WA Birder records. And for those below who?d like to share, let me know your 253th bird and any story you?d like to share. Patrick Sullivan <2007 Charlie Wright 2011 Bruce LaBar 2014 Marcus Roening 2016 - Cassin?s Auklet Ed Pullen 2017 Mike Charest 2017 Heather Ballash 2021 - Barred Owl Tom Mansfield 2021 Wayne Sladek 2021 Peter Wimberger 2021 Heather Voboril 2022 Will Brooks 2022 Bryan Hansen 2023 ? Black-legged Kittiwake Scott Saunders 2023 ? Tufted Puffin Craig Miller 2023 ? Nazca Booby Michael Hobbs 2024 ? Marbled Godwit Ryan Shaw 2025 ? Short-tailed Shearwater Good birding to all in the New Year, Marcus Roening Tacoma WA, The 253 - Pierce County Marcus Roening Tacoma WA -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Fri Jan 2 21:58:21 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Michael Hobbs via Tweeters) Date: Fri Jan 2 21:58:37 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Marymoor Park (Redmond, King Co.) 2026-01-02 Message-ID: Tweets - We started the new year with a remarkably nice day. There was early morning fog and chill, but the fog lifted. Temps in the 40's and no wind. Water levels are dropping and the birding is picking up; several species were singing today. Highlights: Greater White-fronted Goose - Five just below the weir Three species of goose, after a few weeks of one species or no geese at all Anna's Hummingbird - Male back in his spot near the windmill Wilson's Snipe - Three giving good looks below the weir Horned Grebe - Two, closer than usual to the Viewing Platform Downy Woodpecker - Quite a few sightings, good looks Merlin - One flew west just north of the Viewing Mound White-throated Sparrow - Two? Four? We had two WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS immediately south of the Dog Meadow. Then 2+ hours later, and 100 yards away across the river, I had two again behind the Rowing Club boathouse. Same birds found twice or four??? Hard to decide. I don't have my cheat sheet with me, so no official list of "Misses" (Species seen on 50% or more years during this week, but not today), but I can unreliably report Ring-necked Duck, Common Goldeneye, Hooded Merganser, Killdeer,.Bushtit, Pine Siskin, and American Goldfinch as the probable list. Despite that list of Misses, we did have 52 species to start our 2026 list. = Michael Hobbs = BirdMarymoor@gmail.com = www.marymoor.org/birding.htm -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sat Jan 3 15:46:37 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (via Tweeters) Date: Sat Jan 3 15:47:04 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Bobbing Message-ID: <3B3AD9F7-AF0D-4676-A100-85AAFEEEFDC5@comcast.net> ?A group of us birding at Juanita Bay Park in Kirkland on December 29 enjoyed observing a Wilson?s snipe bobbing away. We were interested in learning more about bobbing as an evolutionary adaptation. The head appears to stay level while the body bobs. One of our group found references in Birds of the World postulating enhanced visual and depth perception, improved balance, avoidance of predation, and stimulating movement of prey in the mud. Can anyone offer further explanation regarding the above possibilities? Or offer other explanations? Thanks. From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sat Jan 3 16:57:39 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (DEENA HEG via Tweeters) Date: Sat Jan 3 16:57:43 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] South Africa In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <1338611930.251769.1767488259509@connect.xfinity.com> Trileigh, my husband and I went to South Africa last August with friends who live in Cape Town part of the year. We spent 6 days in Kruger National Park with tour guide Khalanga Safaris. They were great and their owner does birding tours in Kruger. The park has fabulous birds. We then spent a week in Cape Town staying with our friends in their flat. Also fabulous birds on the Cape Peninsula and in the botanical garden there. I would not do this without either a tour guide or people like our friends who are familiar with what areas are safe and what areas to avoid. We loved South Africa and would go back again. The birds are amazing. > On 01/03/2026 12:00 PM PST via Tweeters wrote: > > > Send Tweeters mailing list submissions to > tweeters@u.washington.edu > > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to > tweeters-request@mailman11.u.washington.edu > > You can reach the person managing the list at > tweeters-owner@mailman11.u.washington.edu > > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific > than "Re: Contents of Tweeters digest..." > > > Today's Topics: > > 1. FOY (Bea Harrison via Tweeters) > 2. This Year?s Inductee to the 253 Club (Marcus Roening via Tweeters) > 3. space available for Oaxaca birding trip (David Cook via Tweeters) > 4. OT: South Africa birding (Trileigh Tucker via Tweeters) > 5. Re: This Year?s Inductee to the 253 Club > (Diane Yorgason-Quinn via Tweeters) > 6. Marymoor Park (Redmond, King Co.) 2026-01-02 > (Michael Hobbs via Tweeters) > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Message: 1 > Date: Fri, 2 Jan 2026 12:16:12 -0800 > From: Bea Harrison via Tweeters > To: tweeters@u.washington.edu > Subject: [Tweeters] FOY > Message-ID: <48E7BA88-2427-4045-9533-F5A55A125FB5@gmail.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii > > Spotted towhee. First one at our feeder in a while. Eastern WA. > Bea Harrison > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 2 > Date: Fri, 2 Jan 2026 18:51:42 -0800 > From: Marcus Roening via Tweeters > To: Tweeters > Subject: [Tweeters] This Year?s Inductee to the 253 Club > Message-ID: > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" > > Hi Tweets, > > Congratulations to our newest 2025 member of the 253 Club, here in Pierce > County - Area Code 253. By achieving this lofty mile stone, new members are entitled to a beverage of their choice from yours truly! > > Ryan Shaw #253 - finding a Short-tailed Shearwater off of Dune during the massive influx of these wonderful tubenoses into Puget Sound waters. Massive extra credit for achieving this goal while living in Texas! > > Dune Peninsula at Point Defiance Park, continues to be the spot to see pelagic birds from land. With a sweeping view to Des Moines to the Northeast, Commencement Bay to the East and Dalco Passage to the Northwest, it is the #1 eBird Hotspot in Pierce County with 229 species seen. Accessed near Point Ruston, this park was created in 2019. Amazingly, this year tallied all 3 Shearwaters: Short-tailed, Sooty and Manx and a shocking trifecta of Storm-Petrels: Fork-tailed, Leach?s & Wilson?s (the latter under WBRC review). > > Unfortunately, the 5 Mile Drive that went around the tip of Point Defiance has > been closed to cars due to severe erosion of the bluffs, but it is still a wonderful place to bike and walk - now without cars. > > New Pierce County Big Year Record ? 246 species by Craig Miller > > Special Kudos to Craig, for surpassing Will Brook?s Pierce County record of 243 species, with a final Tundra Swan on Lake Tapps in the last week of the year. I can attest to his many hours out in the field and up in the mountains. The most amazing sighting that I personally witnessed with him was of a White-tailed Ptarmigan off of Panorama Point on Mount Rainier. While it is possible to see ptarmigan right off the trail, it is a rare occurrence, often requiring as many as 6 dedicated trips. Craig had carried his scope all the way up the snow field in June with us and found the bird a 1000 feet below us off of Pebble Creek! Certainly not identifiable with binoculars and an amazing find. > > For completeness, here are the prior 253 members as divined by a combination of eBird and WA Birder records. And for those below who?d like to share, let me know your 253th bird and any story you?d like to share. > > Patrick Sullivan <2007 > Charlie Wright 2011 > Bruce LaBar 2014 > Marcus Roening 2016 - Cassin?s Auklet > Ed Pullen 2017 > Mike Charest 2017 > Heather Ballash 2021 - Barred Owl > Tom Mansfield 2021 > Wayne Sladek 2021 > Peter Wimberger 2021 > Heather Voboril 2022 > Will Brooks 2022 > Bryan Hansen 2023 ? Black-legged Kittiwake > Scott Saunders 2023 ? Tufted Puffin > Craig Miller 2023 ? Nazca Booby > Michael Hobbs 2024 ? Marbled Godwit > Ryan Shaw 2025 ? Short-tailed Shearwater > > Good birding to all in the New Year, > > Marcus Roening Tacoma WA, The 253 - Pierce County > > Marcus Roening > Tacoma WA > -------------- next part -------------- > An HTML attachment was scrubbed... > URL: > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 3 > Date: Fri, 2 Jan 2026 18:52:20 -0800 > From: David Cook via Tweeters > To: tweeters > Subject: [Tweeters] space available for Oaxaca birding trip > Message-ID: > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" > > I am organizing a birding trip to Oaxaca, Mexico in March 2026 and we could > add 1 or 2 more people to our trip. We will be going to locations north, > south and east of Oaxaca city, but not touring the entire state of Oaxaca. > It is likely to last 8-10 days. > If you are interested in possibly joining us, please contact me at my > personal email, 41cdcook@gmail.com and I can provide you with more details. > > Dave Cook > Seattle > -------------- next part -------------- > An HTML attachment was scrubbed... > URL: > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 4 > Date: Sat, 3 Jan 2026 03:24:24 +0000 > From: Trileigh Tucker via Tweeters > To: via Tweeters > Subject: [Tweeters] OT: South Africa birding > Message-ID: > > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="windows-1252" > > Hello Tweets, > > A friend has invited us to accompany him to South Africa in September. He?s not a birder, but would be willing for us to take some birding days while there. I believe he?s thinking he'll plan things himself rather than hire a tour guide/company. So, a couple of questions for those who?ve been there in recent years: > > The State Department has some pretty unnerving risk alerts for SA, which make me wonder whether it?s actually a good destination in current times, or whether it?d be better to wait until it seems safer. If you?ve been there, either on your own or with a tour company, I?d be interested to hear how safe you felt. > > In terms of birding, are there companies or guides you would recommend for outings? > > Any other thoughts welcome. > > Thanks much, > Trileigh > > > > Trileigh Tucker > > Gw?alali Valley, West Seattle > > NaturalPresenceArts.com > > tri@seattleu edu > > > -------------- next part -------------- > An HTML attachment was scrubbed... > URL: > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 5 > Date: Sat, 3 Jan 2026 03:51:51 +0000 > From: Diane Yorgason-Quinn via Tweeters > To: Tweeters , Marcus Roening > > Subject: Re: [Tweeters] This Year?s Inductee to the 253 Club > Message-ID: > > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="windows-1252" > > Wow! Nice list and good news! > > Now Dune-rs will have to reach 229! > > I hope you'll share this at our celebration meeting on Jan 21 at 5:30 to 7 (darn library's restricted hours)! It's only fitting that the originator of the 253 list and one of the early champions should be there. Maybe with a mug for the drink. > > Now about Craig, I still don't know him. Could you talk him into coming? > > Diane > ________________________________ > From: Tweeters on behalf of Marcus Roening via Tweeters > Sent: Friday, January 2, 2026 6:51 PM > To: Tweeters > Subject: [Tweeters] This Year?s Inductee to the 253 Club > > > Hi Tweets, > > Congratulations to our newest 2025 member of the 253 Club, here in Pierce > County - Area Code 253. By achieving this lofty mile stone, new members are entitled to a beverage of their choice from yours truly! > > Ryan Shaw #253 - finding a Short-tailed Shearwater off of Dune during the massive influx of these wonderful tubenoses into Puget Sound waters. Massive extra credit for achieving this goal while living in Texas! > > Dune Peninsula at Point Defiance Park, continues to be the spot to see pelagic birds from land. With a sweeping view to Des Moines to the Northeast, Commencement Bay to the East and Dalco Passage to the Northwest, it is the #1 eBird Hotspot in Pierce County with 229 species seen. Accessed near Point Ruston, this park was created in 2019. Amazingly, this year tallied all 3 Shearwaters: Short-tailed, Sooty and Manx and a shocking trifecta of Storm-Petrels: Fork-tailed, Leach?s & Wilson?s (the latter under WBRC review). > > > > Unfortunately, the 5 Mile Drive that went around the tip of Point Defiance has > been closed to cars due to severe erosion of the bluffs, but it is still a wonderful place to bike and walk - now without cars. > > > > New Pierce County Big Year Record ? 246 species by Craig Miller > > > > Special Kudos to Craig, for surpassing Will Brook?s Pierce County record of 243 species, with a final Tundra Swan on Lake Tapps in the last week of the year. I can attest to his many hours out in the field and up in the mountains. The most amazing sighting that I personally witnessed with him was of a White-tailed Ptarmigan off of Panorama Point on Mount Rainier. While it is possible to see ptarmigan right off the trail, it is a rare occurrence, often requiring as many as 6 dedicated trips. Craig had carried his scope all the way up the snow field in June with us and found the bird a 1000 feet below us off of Pebble Creek! Certainly not identifiable with binoculars and an amazing find. > > For completeness, here are the prior 253 members as divined by a combination of eBird and WA Birder records. And for those below who?d like to share, let me know your 253th bird and any story you?d like to share. > > Patrick Sullivan <2007 > Charlie Wright 2011 > Bruce LaBar 2014 > Marcus Roening 2016 - Cassin?s Auklet > Ed Pullen 2017 > Mike Charest 2017 > Heather Ballash 2021 - Barred Owl > > Tom Mansfield 2021 > Wayne Sladek 2021 > Peter Wimberger 2021 > Heather Voboril 2022 > Will Brooks 2022 > > Bryan Hansen 2023 ? Black-legged Kittiwake > > Scott Saunders 2023 ? Tufted Puffin > > Craig Miller 2023 ? Nazca Booby > > Michael Hobbs 2024 ? Marbled Godwit > > Ryan Shaw 2025 ? Short-tailed Shearwater > > Good birding to all in the New Year, > > Marcus Roening Tacoma WA, The 253 - Pierce County > > > > Marcus Roening > Tacoma WA > -------------- next part -------------- > An HTML attachment was scrubbed... > URL: > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 6 > Date: Fri, 2 Jan 2026 21:58:21 -0800 > From: Michael Hobbs via Tweeters > To: Tweeters > Subject: [Tweeters] Marymoor Park (Redmond, King Co.) 2026-01-02 > Message-ID: > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" > > Tweets - We started the new year with a remarkably nice day. There was > early morning fog and chill, but the fog lifted. Temps in the 40's and no > wind. Water levels are dropping and the birding is picking up; several > species were singing today. > > Highlights: > Greater White-fronted Goose - Five just below the weir > Three species of goose, after a few weeks of one species or no geese > at all > Anna's Hummingbird - Male back in his spot near the windmill > Wilson's Snipe - Three giving good looks below the weir > Horned Grebe - Two, closer than usual to the Viewing Platform > Downy Woodpecker - Quite a few sightings, good looks > Merlin - One flew west just north of the Viewing Mound > White-throated Sparrow - Two? Four? > > We had two WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS immediately south of the Dog Meadow. > Then 2+ hours later, and 100 yards away across the river, I had two again > behind the Rowing Club boathouse. Same birds found twice or four??? Hard > to decide. > > I don't have my cheat sheet with me, so no official list of "Misses" > (Species seen on 50% or more years during this week, but not today), but I > can unreliably report Ring-necked Duck, Common Goldeneye, Hooded Merganser, > Killdeer,.Bushtit, Pine Siskin, and American Goldfinch as the probable list. > > Despite that list of Misses, we did have 52 species to start our 2026 list. > > = Michael Hobbs > = BirdMarymoor@gmail.com > = www.marymoor.org/birding.htm > -------------- next part -------------- > An HTML attachment was scrubbed... > URL: > > ------------------------------ > > Subject: Digest Footer > > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@mailman11.u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > > ------------------------------ > > End of Tweeters Digest, Vol 257, Issue 3 > **************************************** From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sat Jan 3 20:44:16 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Peter Cavanagh via Tweeters) Date: Sat Jan 3 20:44:21 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] South Africa birding Message-ID: Trileigh: I have travelled twice with Lawson's Birding, Wildlife and Custom Safaris? once to Krueger National Park and once to Namibia.. Both trips were excellent: Lawson's Birding, Wildlife and Custom Safaris P O Box 16849 Nelspruit 1200 South Africa Tel: +27 (0)13 741 2458 mavourneen@lawsons-africa.co.za Peter Cavanagh -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Jan 4 08:18:58 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Tom Mansfield via Tweeters) Date: Sun Jan 4 08:19:03 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] =?utf-8?q?This_Year=E2=80=99s_Inductee_to_the_253_Club?= In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Hi Marcus ? My 253rd in Pierce was the Emperor Goose that paid a November 2021 visit to Puyallup. It was a full circle moment for me. The first time I went birding by myself was at Marymoor in 2006, a ?test run? before I joined Michael Hobbs? weekly walks. I had no identification skills. Armed with bins and a field guide in my pocket, I was slowly walking the loop when I came upon a friendly couple with bins who asked if I were a birder. Hmmm?I didn?t think of myself that way but I responded I was learning. With that, Ellen and Andy Stepniewski walked me around giving me many lifers ? starting with Common Yellowthroat. That was the beginning of an long friendship. When health issues arose and I had to step away from birding pre-pandemic I sort of lost track of Ellen and Andy. But as I drove W. Pioneer that November day, I spotted a couple on the shoulder intently scoping a field. I pulled over and lo and behold, it was Ellen and Andy, over from Yakima. I joined them scoping and within minutes I had the goose and got them on it. Full circle! Tom Mansfield (still birding on rare occasions) in Seattle. From: Tweeters On Behalf Of Marcus Roening via Tweeters Sent: Friday, January 2, 2026 6:52 PM To: Tweeters Subject: [Tweeters] This Year?s Inductee to the 253 Club Hi Tweets, Congratulations to our newest 2025 member of the 253 Club, here in Pierce County - Area Code 253. By achieving this lofty mile stone, new members are entitled to a beverage of their choice from yours truly! Ryan Shaw #253 - finding a Short-tailed Shearwater off of Dune during the massive influx of these wonderful tubenoses into Puget Sound waters. Massive extra credit for achieving this goal while living in Texas! Dune Peninsula at Point Defiance Park, continues to be the spot to see pelagic birds from land. With a sweeping view to Des Moines to the Northeast, Commencement Bay to the East and Dalco Passage to the Northwest, it is the #1 eBird Hotspot in Pierce County with 229 species seen. Accessed near Point Ruston, this park was created in 2019. Amazingly, this year tallied all 3 Shearwaters: Short-tailed, Sooty and Manx and a shocking trifecta of Storm-Petrels: Fork-tailed, Leach?s & Wilson?s (the latter under WBRC review). Unfortunately, the 5 Mile Drive that went around the tip of Point Defiance has been closed to cars due to severe erosion of the bluffs, but it is still a wonderful place to bike and walk - now without cars. New Pierce County Big Year Record ? 246 species by Craig Miller Special Kudos to Craig, for surpassing Will Brook?s Pierce County record of 243 species, with a final Tundra Swan on Lake Tapps in the last week of the year. I can attest to his many hours out in the field and up in the mountains. The most amazing sighting that I personally witnessed with him was of a White-tailed Ptarmigan off of Panorama Point on Mount Rainier. While it is possible to see ptarmigan right off the trail, it is a rare occurrence, often requiring as many as 6 dedicated trips. Craig had carried his scope all the way up the snow field in June with us and found the bird a 1000 feet below us off of Pebble Creek! Certainly not identifiable with binoculars and an amazing find. For completeness, here are the prior 253 members as divined by a combination of eBird and WA Birder records. And for those below who?d like to share, let me know your 253th bird and any story you?d like to share. Patrick Sullivan <2007 Charlie Wright 2011 Bruce LaBar 2014 Marcus Roening 2016 - Cassin?s Auklet Ed Pullen 2017 Mike Charest 2017 Heather Ballash 2021 - Barred Owl Tom Mansfield 2021 Wayne Sladek 2021 Peter Wimberger 2021 Heather Voboril 2022 Will Brooks 2022 Bryan Hansen 2023 ? Black-legged Kittiwake Scott Saunders 2023 ? Tufted Puffin Craig Miller 2023 ? Nazca Booby Michael Hobbs 2024 ? Marbled Godwit Ryan Shaw 2025 ? Short-tailed Shearwater Good birding to all in the New Year, Marcus Roening Tacoma WA, The 253 - Pierce County Marcus Roening Tacoma WA -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Jan 4 08:46:56 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Dana Greeley via Tweeters) Date: Sun Jan 4 08:47:11 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] OT: South Africa birding Message-ID: Saw your post below and here's my 2 cents. I was last in S Africa in April of 2018. I flew into Durban, rented a car and drove from Durban up to St. Lucia and back. I birded 3 days with Themba and highly recommend him as an incredibly knowledgeable guide! Here's a link to contact him if you like: https://www.stluciabirding.com/ Before that trip I flew into Cape Town, years earlier, March of 2009. I stayed in the cape town area and though I hiked down table mountain, I didn't go on any guided birding trips. Both times I had no problems with crime or theft. Both times I was solo for much of the trip. I think the usual advice about not flashing your expensive binoculars and cameras when in the urban grittier places is well advised. AND, though I know of a guy who was robbed in Cape Town, I personally had no problems. I was more scared of meeting big game or a snake when hiking in the parks by myself. Lots of hippos at night in St. Lucia! -Dana Seattle/ La Conner djgreel1 at gmail dot com -------------- Message: 4 Date: Sat, 3 Jan 2026 03:24:24 +0000 Subject: [Tweeters] OT: South Africa birding Hello Tweets, A friend has invited us to accompany him to South Africa in September. He?s not a birder, but would be willing for us to take some birding days while there. I believe he?s thinking he'll plan things himself rather than hire a tour guide/company. So, a couple of questions for those who?ve been there in recent years: The State Department has some pretty unnerving risk alerts for SA, which make me wonder whether it?s actually a good destination in current times, or whether it?d be better to wait until it seems safer. If you?ve been there, either on your own or with a tour company, I?d be interested to hear how safe you felt. In terms of birding, are there companies or guides you would recommend for outings? Any other thoughts welcome. Thanks much, Trileigh -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Jan 4 10:58:30 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Louise via Tweeters) Date: Sun Jan 4 10:58:45 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Ross's goose Message-ID: I was planning a Carnation trip this afternoon for hte Roos's goose, but I'm not seeing any ebird reports of it yet today. I'm guessing that means people are looking but haven't found the flock? Louise Rutter Kirkland -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Jan 4 12:29:11 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Teri Martine via Tweeters) Date: Sun Jan 4 12:29:26 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] South Africa birding Message-ID: Trileigh, I highly recommend The African Birdwatching Company. Their website lists tours all over southern Africa but the owner/guide, Martin Taylor, lives right by Kruger -- I expect he may be available for shorter excursions or tours, and sometimes uses private lodges right outside Kruger. Teri Martine Seattle From tweeters at u.washington.edu Sun Jan 4 12:34:15 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Ann Kramer via Tweeters) Date: Sun Jan 4 12:34:54 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Ross's goose In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Hi Louse, Further north, at Port Susan Bay off Boe road in Stanwood, we saw a flock of over 5000. On Sun, Jan 4, 2026 at 10:58?AM Louise via Tweeters < tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > I was planning a Carnation trip this afternoon for hte Roos's goose, but > I'm not seeing any ebird reports of it yet today. I'm guessing that means > people are looking but haven't found the flock? > > 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 Jan 4 13:26:58 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Hans-Joachim Feddern via Tweeters) Date: Sun Jan 4 13:27:11 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Ross's goose In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: 5000 Ross?s geese? *Hans Feddern* Twin Lakes/Federal Way, WA thefedderns@gmail.com On Sun, Jan 4, 2026 at 12:35?PM Ann Kramer via Tweeters < tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > Hi Louse, > > Further north, at Port Susan Bay off Boe road in Stanwood, we saw a flock > of over 5000. > > On Sun, Jan 4, 2026 at 10:58?AM Louise via Tweeters < > tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > >> I was planning a Carnation trip this afternoon for hte Roos's goose, but >> I'm not seeing any ebird reports of it yet today. I'm guessing that means >> people are looking but haven't found the flock? >> >> Louise Rutter >> Kirkland >> _______________________________________________ >> 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 Sun Jan 4 13:27:56 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Ann Kramer via Tweeters) Date: Sun Jan 4 13:28:11 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Ross's goose In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Eeeeeek!! Snow Geese. So sorry! On Sun, Jan 4, 2026 at 1:27?PM Hans-Joachim Feddern wrote: > 5000 Ross?s geese? > > *Hans Feddern* > Twin Lakes/Federal Way, WA > thefedderns@gmail.com > > > On Sun, Jan 4, 2026 at 12:35?PM Ann Kramer via Tweeters < > tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > >> Hi Louse, >> >> Further north, at Port Susan Bay off Boe road in Stanwood, we saw a flock >> of over 5000. >> >> On Sun, Jan 4, 2026 at 10:58?AM Louise via Tweeters < >> tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: >> >>> I was planning a Carnation trip this afternoon for hte Roos's goose, but >>> I'm not seeing any ebird reports of it yet today. I'm guessing that means >>> people are looking but haven't found the flock? >>> >>> Louise Rutter >>> Kirkland >>> _______________________________________________ >>> 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 Sun Jan 4 13:29:22 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Nancy Crowell via Tweeters) Date: Sun Jan 4 13:29:26 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Ross's goose In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: ?. I was wondering! Nancy "Images for the imagination." www.crowellphotography.com ________________________________ From: Tweeters on behalf of Ann Kramer via Tweeters Sent: Sunday, January 4, 2026 1:27:56 PM To: Hans-Joachim Feddern Cc: Louise ; TWEETERS tweeters Subject: Re: [Tweeters] Ross's goose Eeeeeek!! Snow Geese. So sorry! On Sun, Jan 4, 2026 at 1:27?PM Hans-Joachim Feddern > wrote: 5000 Ross?s geese? Hans Feddern Twin Lakes/Federal Way, WA thefedderns@gmail.com On Sun, Jan 4, 2026 at 12:35?PM Ann Kramer via Tweeters > wrote: Hi Louse, Further north, at Port Susan Bay off Boe road in Stanwood, we saw a flock of over 5000. On Sun, Jan 4, 2026 at 10:58?AM Louise via Tweeters > wrote: I was planning a Carnation trip this afternoon for hte Roos's goose, but I'm not seeing any ebird reports of it yet today. I'm guessing that means people are looking but haven't found the flock? Louise Rutter Kirkland _______________________________________________ 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 Sun Jan 4 13:30:23 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Ann Kramer via Tweeters) Date: Sun Jan 4 13:31:05 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Ross's goose In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Note to self: Read carefully! LOL On Sun, Jan 4, 2026 at 1:29?PM Nancy Crowell wrote: > ?. I was wondering! > > Nancy > "Images for the imagination." > www.crowellphotography.com > ------------------------------ > *From:* Tweeters on behalf > of Ann Kramer via Tweeters > *Sent:* Sunday, January 4, 2026 1:27:56 PM > *To:* Hans-Joachim Feddern > *Cc:* Louise ; TWEETERS tweeters < > tweeters@u.washington.edu> > *Subject:* Re: [Tweeters] Ross's goose > > Eeeeeek!! > Snow Geese. So sorry! > On Sun, Jan 4, 2026 at 1:27?PM Hans-Joachim Feddern > wrote: > > 5000 Ross?s geese? > > *Hans Feddern* > Twin Lakes/Federal Way, WA > thefedderns@gmail.com > > > On Sun, Jan 4, 2026 at 12:35?PM Ann Kramer via Tweeters < > tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > > Hi Louse, > > Further north, at Port Susan Bay off Boe road in Stanwood, we saw a flock > of over 5000. > > On Sun, Jan 4, 2026 at 10:58?AM Louise via Tweeters < > tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > > I was planning a Carnation trip this afternoon for hte Roos's goose, but > I'm not seeing any ebird reports of it yet today. I'm guessing that means > people are looking but haven't found the flock? > > Louise Rutter > Kirkland > _______________________________________________ > 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 Sun Jan 4 15:37:17 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Martha Jordan via Tweeters) Date: Sun Jan 4 15:37:46 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Swan -Union Bay Message-ID: Hi all, Yes, I am aware of the Tundra Swan who has moved to Carp Pond from Canoe Island. Yes, it is a Tundra Swan. It is very likely it is sick. That said, it is still too lively to attempt a capture in this tricky, muddy location. Please report your sightings directly to me: text to 206-713-3684 or call me. At this point in time WDFW and I will be monitoring the situation. If you observe the bird over the next day or so, please let me know the location, and what it is doing: sitting, standing, feeding, head tucked, shaking head, bill gaping or any other behavior. If you find it dead, DO NOT TOUCH. WDFW has protocols for picking up dead waterfowl. I am permitted to pick it up and have the gear to do so. Please call me immediately and let me know. Avian influenza is still out in the wild population and this is a precaution. Thank you all for your assistance. Martha -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Mon Jan 5 08:00:00 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Kathleen Snyder via Tweeters) Date: Mon Jan 5 08:01:20 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] =?utf-8?q?To_California=2C_Brazil=2C_and_Back_?= =?utf-8?q?=E2=80=93_GPS_tracking_of_Vesper_Sparrow_and_Purple_Mart?= =?utf-8?q?in=2E_Thursday_Jan_8=2C_7_pm_via_Zoom?= Message-ID: Dr Sarah Rockwell of Klamath Bird Observatory is using lightweight archival GPS tags to track the migratory routes and overwintering locations of both Oregon Vesper Sparrow and Western Purple Martin, two imperiled subspecies unique to the western U.S. The birds have returned with fascinating information, revealing new discoveries about their incredible journeys. There are two ways to enjoy this program. You can come to Temple Beth Hatfiloh (201 8th Ave. SE, Olympia) to watch the program on the large screen as well as to enjoy the company of others *OR* you can register below to watch from home via Zoom. Social time at the Temple starts at 6:30. This is a free program from South Sound Bird Alliance (formerly Black Hills Audubon). Zoom registration: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/gl1KKqqSR4-rgFYwCEqZFw -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Mon Jan 5 10:50:38 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Joan Miller via Tweeters) Date: Mon Jan 5 10:50:53 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Yellow-shafted flicker Message-ID: Hello all, I have a yellow-shafted flicker coming to my suet. It clearly has yellow shafts, black malar and red on nape. I thought to call it an intergrade, but the internet says this is yellow-shafted. Just mentioning in case anyone has seen these around. I don't think it's that rare here. But I also have our "regular" red-shafteds! Joan Miller West Seattle jemskink at gmail dot com -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Mon Jan 5 11:15:35 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Dennis Paulson via Tweeters) Date: Mon Jan 5 11:15:40 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Yellow-shafted flicker In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <8D6AFB7C-6B18-4490-AB52-005DC181548D@comcast.net> Joan, Yellow-shafted flickers breed to the north of us in Alaska and northern Canada, and small numbers travel down to Washington every winter. We seem to have more hybrids than pure yellow-shafted, but the latter are to be watched for. Dennis Paulson Seattle dennispaulson at comcast dot net > On Jan 5, 2026, at 10:50 AM, Joan Miller via Tweeters wrote: > > Hello all, > > I have a yellow-shafted flicker coming to my suet. It clearly has yellow shafts, black malar and red on nape. I thought to call it an intergrade, but the internet says this is yellow-shafted. > > Just mentioning in case anyone has seen these around. I don't think it's that rare here. But I also have our "regular" red-shafteds! > > Joan Miller > West Seattle > jemskink at gmail dot 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 Jan 5 11:28:28 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (via Tweeters) Date: Mon Jan 5 11:28:32 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Yellow-shafted flicker In-Reply-To: <8D6AFB7C-6B18-4490-AB52-005DC181548D@comcast.net> References: <8D6AFB7C-6B18-4490-AB52-005DC181548D@comcast.net> Message-ID: <001b01dc7e79$78b913d0$6a2b3b70$@olympus.net> I have seen one. Jan Jan Stewart 922 E Spruce Street Sequim, WA 98382-3518 jstewart@olympus.net From: Tweeters On Behalf Of Dennis Paulson via Tweeters Sent: Monday, January 5, 2026 11:16 AM To: Joan Miller Cc: TWEETERS tweeters Subject: Re: [Tweeters] Yellow-shafted flicker Joan, Yellow-shafted flickers breed to the north of us in Alaska and northern Canada, and small numbers travel down to Washington every winter. We seem to have more hybrids than pure yellow-shafted, but the latter are to be watched for. Dennis Paulson Seattle dennispaulson at comcast dot net On Jan 5, 2026, at 10:50 AM, Joan Miller via Tweeters > wrote: Hello all, I have a yellow-shafted flicker coming to my suet. It clearly has yellow shafts, black malar and red on nape. I thought to call it an intergrade, but the internet says this is yellow-shafted. Just mentioning in case anyone has seen these around. I don't think it's that rare here. But I also have our "regular" red-shafteds! Joan Miller West Seattle jemskink at gmail dot 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 Jan 5 13:40:59 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Martha Jordan via Tweeters) Date: Mon Jan 5 13:41:29 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Tundra Swan injured Message-ID: This is an update note on the Tundra Swan in the Union Bay area. This post is to let those with an interest in the injured Tundra Swan in the Union Bay/Montlake Fill area know that it is being monitored daily. Yes, it is a Tundra Swan and not associated with the small flock of Trumpeter Swans in the same general area. It is injured and is moving to different locations around the Union Bay area. At this time, it is capable of flying, thus making it not possible to capture. It also can feed and do some preening. If any capture attempt was to be made at this time it highly likely will result in further injury or death for this swan. Please do not attempt to go near or try to touch the swan. At this time both Washington Dept of Fish & Wildlife and NWSCA are monitoring the situation and are available to respond should the swan's situation change. If you have photos or video of the swan to help us update us on its health, please send them to: mj.cygnus at gmail.com Martha Jordan 206-713-3684 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Mon Jan 5 18:36:50 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Michael Price via Tweeters) Date: Mon Jan 5 18:37:03 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Yellow-shafted flicker Message-ID: Hey tweets, In the early 90s I was part of a breeding-bird inventory in north-central BC, near Manson Creek just W of Williston Lake. It's an area where due to openings in the boreal forest caused by *very* extensive clear-cutting, eastern avifauna were able to penetrate more and more widely into the region*, and one result was that we saw a *lot* of intergrading between Red- and Yellow-shafted Flickers, between Oregon and Slate-colored Juncos ( *cismontanus* was the norm), and Red-breasted X Yellow-bellied Sapsucker hybrids. *that clear-cutting of the boreal forest and consequent westward colonisation resulted in a lot of eastern sparrows extremely rare in the 1970s have now become not only regular but increasingly common as wintering birds along the mid-Pacific flyway: Swamp Sparrow, Clay-colored Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow are now regular wintering species and in good numbers when once upon a time their single?even first-time?occurrence would have resulted in dropped tools and unfinished meals. best, m Michael Price Vancouver BC Canada loblollyboy@gmail.com Every answer deepens the mystery. -- E.O. Wilson -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Mon Jan 5 18:41:14 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Steve Hampton via Tweeters) Date: Mon Jan 5 18:41:29 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Yellow-shafted flicker In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Intergrade flickers are quite common here (Port Townsend) in winter-- probably 25% of all birds. I also see them regularly (though maybe 5-10% of total) in summer as part of the breeding population, feeding young, etc. Usually those are red-shafted in most features but have a red nape mark. I've only seen pure Yellow-shafted once or twice in the last 5 years, in winter. On Mon, Jan 5, 2026 at 6:37?PM Michael Price via Tweeters < tweeters@u.washington.edu> wrote: > Hey tweets, > > In the early 90s I was part of a breeding-bird inventory in north-central > BC, near Manson Creek just W of Williston Lake. It's an area where due to > openings in the boreal forest caused by *very* extensive clear-cutting, > eastern avifauna were able to penetrate more and more widely into the > region*, and one result was that we saw a *lot* of intergrading between > Red- and Yellow-shafted Flickers, between Oregon and Slate-colored Juncos ( > *cismontanus* was the norm), and Red-breasted X Yellow-bellied Sapsucker > hybrids. > > *that clear-cutting of the boreal forest and consequent westward > colonisation resulted in a lot of eastern sparrows extremely rare in the > 1970s have now become not only regular but increasingly common as wintering > birds along the mid-Pacific flyway: Swamp Sparrow, Clay-colored Sparrow, > White-throated Sparrow are now regular wintering species and in good > numbers when once upon a time their single?even first-time?occurrence would > have resulted in dropped tools and unfinished meals. > > best, m > > Michael Price > Vancouver BC Canada > loblollyboy@gmail.com > > Every answer deepens the mystery. > -- E.O. Wilson > > > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > -- ?Steve Hampton? Port Townsend, WA (qat?y) -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Mon Jan 5 21:28:14 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Richard James via Tweeters) Date: Mon Jan 5 21:28:20 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Purple Martins In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: On 2026-01-05 12:00 p.m., via Tweeters wrote: > Message: 8 > Date: Mon, 5 Jan 2026 08:00:00 -0800 > From: Kathleen Snyder via Tweeters > Subject: [Tweeters] To California, Brazil, and Back ? GPS tracking of > Vesper Sparrow and Purple Martin. Thursday Jan 8, 7 pm via Zoom > Oregon Vesper Sparrow and Western Purple Martin, two imperiled subspecies > unique to the western U.S. Kathleen, For the record, there are well-documented colonies of Western Purple Martin in BC, so not unique to western USA. https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Purple_Martin/maps-range https://www.birdatlas.bc.ca/accounts/speciesaccount.jsp?sp=PUMA&lang=en states: "In 2014, a total of 1,060 pairs nested at 74 marine and 6 freshwater sites, an increase of 110 pairs and 12 sites from 2013; the breeding range now extends to Barkley Sound and the Broughton Archipelago in the Coast and Mountains Ecoprovince (Western Purple Martin Foundation 2014)." Also stated in the 1st para of https://klamathbird.org/science/projects/western-purple-martin/ -- From an Island in the Pacific, Richard James, Victoria, BC, Canada From tweeters at u.washington.edu Tue Jan 6 05:35:44 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Matt Bartels via Tweeters) Date: Tue Jan 6 05:36:00 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Washington Bird List Reports for 2025 - time to send them in Message-ID: Happy New Year, everyone! Now?s the time to wrap up those listing details from 2025 to clear the way for 2026 surprises and goals.. January 31, 2026 is the deadline to send Washington Birder your 2025 List Report. List Report and Big Day forms are available on the WA Birder website at: http://www.wabirder.com/forms.html It is easiest if you use the online forms to send in reports, but other options are provided as well if needed. The annual list report is a great chance to look at the community and appreciate all the many accomplishments out there. I believe for 2025 several very high state year lists and I?m sure we have many personal listing personal highs as well - it would be excellent receive that info for the overall report. Regardless of how high or low your totals are, this is a chance to join in the community summary of accomplishments. You don?t have to enter details for every category listed, just send in info for those important to you. For 2025, we?ve once again added an option to report lists for your 5MR ?5 mile radius? list, for those who track that as an extended yard list. we recommend using the eBird status decisions on local countability of introduced/exotic species.If you are on eBird, almost all the totaling is done for you. Most notably, most western WA counties no longer ?count? Ring-necked Pheasant in county life list totals. Enjoy the new year, and send in the [reports of the] old! Matt Bartels Washington Birder mattxyz [at] earthlink[dot] net -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Tue Jan 6 10:59:04 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (J Christian Kessler via Tweeters) Date: Tue Jan 6 10:59:42 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] a festival in Jackson Wyoming Message-ID: for anyone so inclined, here's an announcement of a birding festival all the way over to western Wyoming Jackson Hole Birding Festival < jacksonholebirdingfestival@wildexcellencefilms.ccsend.com> Chris Kessler -- ?Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass ? it?s about learning how to dance in the rain.? Deborah Tuck -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Tue Jan 6 11:36:56 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (DEENA HEG via Tweeters) Date: Tue Jan 6 11:36:59 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Yellow-shafted flicker (Joan Miller via Tweeters) Message-ID: <1027404992.201763.1767728216135@connect.xfinity.com> I have had what I'm pretty sure is an intergrade flicker coming to my suet feeder for the last several years: red nape crescent, red malar, brown face, and very yellow shafts. And this year, a family member showed up with orange shafts. Deena Heg deenaheg@comcast.net From tweeters at u.washington.edu Tue Jan 6 12:08:33 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (J Christian Kessler via Tweeters) Date: Tue Jan 6 12:09:12 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Jackson, Wy. correct address Message-ID: turns out the correct address for the Jackson, Wy. Birding Festival announcement is https://www.jacksonholebirdingfestival.com/. just clicking on the announcement title does not take you there, for some reason. Chris Kessler -- ?Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass ? it?s about learning how to dance in the rain.? Deborah Tuck -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Tue Jan 6 14:11:59 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Julie M Crudele via Tweeters) Date: Tue Jan 6 14:12:05 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] South Africa In-Reply-To: <1338611930.251769.1767488259509@connect.xfinity.com> References: <1338611930.251769.1767488259509@connect.xfinity.com> Message-ID: Trileigh, When I was in South Africa I met a guide (Richard Anderson, South African) who was trying out the camp we were staying in. We by happenstance traveled together for a few days, and I found him to be a great guy and an avid birder. He has a company, Anderson Expedition, that has a naturalist and birder on staff. You could check them out and see what they have to offer. If/When I go back to subsaharan Africa they will be who I use. https://www.andersonexpeditions.com I haven't been to South Africa since 2015, but at the time felt perfectly safe in Sodwana Bay, Cape Town and wine country by ourselves (I was with my mom, so we were two women traveling) and in game reserves with guides. Obviously, a lot can change in 10 years, but I think most reputable tour companies will be honest about the safety situation and make suggestions accordingly. Most countries (and cities) aren't a monolith, and a lot of the risk historically for South Africa has been in townships. Some tourists choose to go to them; we did not for both personal safety and ethical reasons. I hope you have a fabulous time. I still think of some of the birds I saw there and that was before I considered myself a "birder." Julie ________________________________ > On 01/03/2026 12:00 PM PST via Tweeters wrote: > > > Send Tweeters mailing list submissions to > tweeters@u.washington.edu > > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to > tweeters-request@mailman11.u.washington.edu > > You can reach the person managing the list at > tweeters-owner@mailman11.u.washington.edu > > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific > than "Re: Contents of Tweeters digest..." > > > Today's Topics: > > 1. FOY (Bea Harrison via Tweeters) > 2. This Year?s Inductee to the 253 Club (Marcus Roening via Tweeters) > 3. space available for Oaxaca birding trip (David Cook via Tweeters) > 4. OT: South Africa birding (Trileigh Tucker via Tweeters) > 5. Re: This Year?s Inductee to the 253 Club > (Diane Yorgason-Quinn via Tweeters) > 6. Marymoor Park (Redmond, King Co.) 2026-01-02 > (Michael Hobbs via Tweeters) > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Message: 1 > Date: Fri, 2 Jan 2026 12:16:12 -0800 > From: Bea Harrison via Tweeters > To: tweeters@u.washington.edu > Subject: [Tweeters] FOY > Message-ID: <48E7BA88-2427-4045-9533-F5A55A125FB5@gmail.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii > > Spotted towhee. First one at our feeder in a while. Eastern WA. > Bea Harrison > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 2 > Date: Fri, 2 Jan 2026 18:51:42 -0800 > From: Marcus Roening via Tweeters > To: Tweeters > Subject: [Tweeters] This Year?s Inductee to the 253 Club > Message-ID: > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" > > Hi Tweets, > > Congratulations to our newest 2025 member of the 253 Club, here in Pierce > County - Area Code 253. By achieving this lofty mile stone, new members are entitled to a beverage of their choice from yours truly! > > Ryan Shaw #253 - finding a Short-tailed Shearwater off of Dune during the massive influx of these wonderful tubenoses into Puget Sound waters. Massive extra credit for achieving this goal while living in Texas! > > Dune Peninsula at Point Defiance Park, continues to be the spot to see pelagic birds from land. With a sweeping view to Des Moines to the Northeast, Commencement Bay to the East and Dalco Passage to the Northwest, it is the #1 eBird Hotspot in Pierce County with 229 species seen. Accessed near Point Ruston, this park was created in 2019. Amazingly, this year tallied all 3 Shearwaters: Short-tailed, Sooty and Manx and a shocking trifecta of Storm-Petrels: Fork-tailed, Leach?s & Wilson?s (the latter under WBRC review). > > Unfortunately, the 5 Mile Drive that went around the tip of Point Defiance has > been closed to cars due to severe erosion of the bluffs, but it is still a wonderful place to bike and walk - now without cars. > > New Pierce County Big Year Record ? 246 species by Craig Miller > > Special Kudos to Craig, for surpassing Will Brook?s Pierce County record of 243 species, with a final Tundra Swan on Lake Tapps in the last week of the year. I can attest to his many hours out in the field and up in the mountains. The most amazing sighting that I personally witnessed with him was of a White-tailed Ptarmigan off of Panorama Point on Mount Rainier. While it is possible to see ptarmigan right off the trail, it is a rare occurrence, often requiring as many as 6 dedicated trips. Craig had carried his scope all the way up the snow field in June with us and found the bird a 1000 feet below us off of Pebble Creek! Certainly not identifiable with binoculars and an amazing find. > > For completeness, here are the prior 253 members as divined by a combination of eBird and WA Birder records. And for those below who?d like to share, let me know your 253th bird and any story you?d like to share. > > Patrick Sullivan <2007 > Charlie Wright 2011 > Bruce LaBar 2014 > Marcus Roening 2016 - Cassin?s Auklet > Ed Pullen 2017 > Mike Charest 2017 > Heather Ballash 2021 - Barred Owl > Tom Mansfield 2021 > Wayne Sladek 2021 > Peter Wimberger 2021 > Heather Voboril 2022 > Will Brooks 2022 > Bryan Hansen 2023 ? Black-legged Kittiwake > Scott Saunders 2023 ? Tufted Puffin > Craig Miller 2023 ? Nazca Booby > Michael Hobbs 2024 ? Marbled Godwit > Ryan Shaw 2025 ? Short-tailed Shearwater > > Good birding to all in the New Year, > > Marcus Roening Tacoma WA, The 253 - Pierce County > > Marcus Roening > Tacoma WA > -------------- next part -------------- > An HTML attachment was scrubbed... > URL: > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 3 > Date: Fri, 2 Jan 2026 18:52:20 -0800 > From: David Cook via Tweeters > To: tweeters > Subject: [Tweeters] space available for Oaxaca birding trip > Message-ID: > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" > > I am organizing a birding trip to Oaxaca, Mexico in March 2026 and we could > add 1 or 2 more people to our trip. We will be going to locations north, > south and east of Oaxaca city, but not touring the entire state of Oaxaca. > It is likely to last 8-10 days. > If you are interested in possibly joining us, please contact me at my > personal email, 41cdcook@gmail.com and I can provide you with more details. > > Dave Cook > Seattle > -------------- next part -------------- > An HTML attachment was scrubbed... > URL: > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 4 > Date: Sat, 3 Jan 2026 03:24:24 +0000 > From: Trileigh Tucker via Tweeters > To: via Tweeters > Subject: [Tweeters] OT: South Africa birding > Message-ID: > > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="windows-1252" > > Hello Tweets, > > A friend has invited us to accompany him to South Africa in September. He?s not a birder, but would be willing for us to take some birding days while there. I believe he?s thinking he'll plan things himself rather than hire a tour guide/company. So, a couple of questions for those who?ve been there in recent years: > > The State Department has some pretty unnerving risk alerts for SA, which make me wonder whether it?s actually a good destination in current times, or whether it?d be better to wait until it seems safer. If you?ve been there, either on your own or with a tour company, I?d be interested to hear how safe you felt. > > In terms of birding, are there companies or guides you would recommend for outings? > > Any other thoughts welcome. > > Thanks much, > Trileigh > > > > Trileigh Tucker > > Gw?alali Valley, West Seattle > > NaturalPresenceArts.com > > tri@seattleu edu > > > -------------- next part -------------- > An HTML attachment was scrubbed... > URL: > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 5 > Date: Sat, 3 Jan 2026 03:51:51 +0000 > From: Diane Yorgason-Quinn via Tweeters > To: Tweeters , Marcus Roening > > Subject: Re: [Tweeters] This Year?s Inductee to the 253 Club > Message-ID: > > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="windows-1252" > > Wow! Nice list and good news! > > Now Dune-rs will have to reach 229! > > I hope you'll share this at our celebration meeting on Jan 21 at 5:30 to 7 (darn library's restricted hours)! It's only fitting that the originator of the 253 list and one of the early champions should be there. Maybe with a mug for the drink. > > Now about Craig, I still don't know him. Could you talk him into coming? > > Diane > ________________________________ > From: Tweeters on behalf of Marcus Roening via Tweeters > Sent: Friday, January 2, 2026 6:51 PM > To: Tweeters > Subject: [Tweeters] This Year?s Inductee to the 253 Club > > > Hi Tweets, > > Congratulations to our newest 2025 member of the 253 Club, here in Pierce > County - Area Code 253. By achieving this lofty mile stone, new members are entitled to a beverage of their choice from yours truly! > > Ryan Shaw #253 - finding a Short-tailed Shearwater off of Dune during the massive influx of these wonderful tubenoses into Puget Sound waters. Massive extra credit for achieving this goal while living in Texas! > > Dune Peninsula at Point Defiance Park, continues to be the spot to see pelagic birds from land. With a sweeping view to Des Moines to the Northeast, Commencement Bay to the East and Dalco Passage to the Northwest, it is the #1 eBird Hotspot in Pierce County with 229 species seen. Accessed near Point Ruston, this park was created in 2019. Amazingly, this year tallied all 3 Shearwaters: Short-tailed, Sooty and Manx and a shocking trifecta of Storm-Petrels: Fork-tailed, Leach?s & Wilson?s (the latter under WBRC review). > > > > Unfortunately, the 5 Mile Drive that went around the tip of Point Defiance has > been closed to cars due to severe erosion of the bluffs, but it is still a wonderful place to bike and walk - now without cars. > > > > New Pierce County Big Year Record ? 246 species by Craig Miller > > > > Special Kudos to Craig, for surpassing Will Brook?s Pierce County record of 243 species, with a final Tundra Swan on Lake Tapps in the last week of the year. I can attest to his many hours out in the field and up in the mountains. The most amazing sighting that I personally witnessed with him was of a White-tailed Ptarmigan off of Panorama Point on Mount Rainier. While it is possible to see ptarmigan right off the trail, it is a rare occurrence, often requiring as many as 6 dedicated trips. Craig had carried his scope all the way up the snow field in June with us and found the bird a 1000 feet below us off of Pebble Creek! Certainly not identifiable with binoculars and an amazing find. > > For completeness, here are the prior 253 members as divined by a combination of eBird and WA Birder records. And for those below who?d like to share, let me know your 253th bird and any story you?d like to share. > > Patrick Sullivan <2007 > Charlie Wright 2011 > Bruce LaBar 2014 > Marcus Roening 2016 - Cassin?s Auklet > Ed Pullen 2017 > Mike Charest 2017 > Heather Ballash 2021 - Barred Owl > > Tom Mansfield 2021 > Wayne Sladek 2021 > Peter Wimberger 2021 > Heather Voboril 2022 > Will Brooks 2022 > > Bryan Hansen 2023 ? Black-legged Kittiwake > > Scott Saunders 2023 ? Tufted Puffin > > Craig Miller 2023 ? Nazca Booby > > Michael Hobbs 2024 ? Marbled Godwit > > Ryan Shaw 2025 ? Short-tailed Shearwater > > Good birding to all in the New Year, > > Marcus Roening Tacoma WA, The 253 - Pierce County > > > > Marcus Roening > Tacoma WA > -------------- next part -------------- > An HTML attachment was scrubbed... > URL: > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 6 > Date: Fri, 2 Jan 2026 21:58:21 -0800 > From: Michael Hobbs via Tweeters > To: Tweeters > Subject: [Tweeters] Marymoor Park (Redmond, King Co.) 2026-01-02 > Message-ID: > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" > > Tweets - We started the new year with a remarkably nice day. There was > early morning fog and chill, but the fog lifted. Temps in the 40's and no > wind. Water levels are dropping and the birding is picking up; several > species were singing today. > > Highlights: > Greater White-fronted Goose - Five just below the weir > Three species of goose, after a few weeks of one species or no geese > at all > Anna's Hummingbird - Male back in his spot near the windmill > Wilson's Snipe - Three giving good looks below the weir > Horned Grebe - Two, closer than usual to the Viewing Platform > Downy Woodpecker - Quite a few sightings, good looks > Merlin - One flew west just north of the Viewing Mound > White-throated Sparrow - Two? Four? > > We had two WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS immediately south of the Dog Meadow. > Then 2+ hours later, and 100 yards away across the river, I had two again > behind the Rowing Club boathouse. Same birds found twice or four??? Hard > to decide. > > I don't have my cheat sheet with me, so no official list of "Misses" > (Species seen on 50% or more years during this week, but not today), but I > can unreliably report Ring-necked Duck, Common Goldeneye, Hooded Merganser, > Killdeer,.Bushtit, Pine Siskin, and American Goldfinch as the probable list. > > Despite that list of Misses, we did have 52 species to start our 2026 list. > > = Michael Hobbs > = BirdMarymoor@gmail.com > = https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://www.marymoor.org/birding.htm__;!!K-Hz7m0Vt54!h4Nl4KlPYyud_Edn7hTSOLi6K-a3Dri1bU3yEF0x_cj3F6GSh-YsTfhpgMkd9ERn6A4paQMKTTw0mT0LA6BQNeTm8nIPdfI$ > -------------- next part -------------- > An HTML attachment was scrubbed... > URL: > > ------------------------------ > > Subject: Digest Footer > > _______________________________________________ > Tweeters mailing list > Tweeters@mailman11.u.washington.edu > http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters > > ------------------------------ > > End of Tweeters Digest, Vol 257, Issue 3 > **************************************** _______________________________________________ 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 Jan 7 12:32:50 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Tim Brennan via Tweeters) Date: Wed Jan 7 12:32:55 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Pacific County Birding - first trip of the year Message-ID: Hey Tweets! Looking at the weather, it looked like Jan 4-5-6 was going to be giving me rain-beautiful-awful out on the coast, so I made a ran for it. Interesting to see that I can get to Pacific County in about 1:45 (from Renton to the Lewis/Pacific line on Hwy 6), but to get to the far reaches of Leadbetter Spit is nearly 3 and a half hours! This year was supposed to feel closer... and it does... but it's interesting to see that chasing a bird in Leadbetter or McNary could be about the same amount of time. 89 species for the trip! I was able to get American Dipper on Elk Heights Road at a little pulloff. Continuing in towards Raymond on Sunday afternoon, American Kestrel and Eurasian Collared-Doves were found along Highway 6. I went up to the Willapa River Airport and found three Snow Geese mixed in with the hordes of Cackling and Canada Geese. Early to bed, early to rise - I used the wee dark hours to do some owling on my way from Raymond to Grayland. An early stop on a backroad got me a Northern Saw-whet Owl, probably a feat that is possible up many many similar backroads if a person enjoys looking for owls. I made 5-6 stops along the way from the airport to the cranberry bogs outside of Grayland, picking up 4 Great Horned Owls at three stops. Grayland Beach State Park was beautiful - the whole day was. I got a little twilight shorebirding done, with a nice long look at a Snowy Plover, and a nice mix of other shorebirds (Least, Western, Dunlin) feeding on some flooded sand. Down on the shore itself, I caught a Horned Lark. Back in the park, there were typical passerines, and close to a dozen Varied Thrushes. Tokeland was full of shorebirds behind the Tradewinds Hotel - Black-bellied Plover, Least and Western Sandpipers. I also got my only Northern Pintails of the day here. After a year of birding in Columbia County, it's nice to have the ducks back... and I really don't mean to complain, but... all of them are Buffleheads. Not ALL of them, of course, but... Pacific County almost felt like a marginally better Columbia County, plus 3 billion Buffleheads. Other duck species were tough to come by! At the Tokeland Marina, I got a flyover of three shorebirds - two Willets and a Marbled Godwit. An Eared Grebe feeding in very close was a nice surprise. Plenty of Common Loons, and a couple Red-throated Loons were out in the water. The Cedar River was a great stop. I picked up Trumpeter Swans here, and there was a lot of shorebird activity, with high numbers of Long-billed Dowitchers and Greater Yellowlegs visible from the trail, and a lot of distant peeps. I also had a Black Phoebe here. Exciting for the moment, as my checklist has it as a code 5 bird, although I am sure that will change. Potter Slough was a nice walk, and added Lincoln's Sparrow, Marsh Wrens, Northern Harrier, Western Meadowlarks, and Virginia Rail. Nearby Carruthers Slough had a nice flock of American Wigeon, including at least one Eurasian. Bay Center gave me a couple more ducks I'd been missing - a single Hooded Merganser, and a single Common Goldeneye. A Merlin also made a pass at some shorebirds, making for some excitement. Tuesday was awful! ? I birded through some rain in Chinook Valley to add a few more birds: Sharp-shinned Hawk, Common Merganser, and Wilson's Snipe. At Cape Disappointment, I had steady rain, and steady winds with gusts in the 20s. Here I added Pelagic Cormorant and Pigeon Guillemot. I poked around on my way up to Long Beach, hoping to look at some feeders, but the weather was just pretty miserable! So I headed back after a bowl of chowder. The blog at pacificcountybirding.blogspot.com will get updated in the next few days. Cheers, Tim Brennan Renton -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Wed Jan 7 12:45:52 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Philomena via Tweeters) Date: Wed Jan 7 12:46:08 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Pacific County Birding - first trip of the year In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <9E2258AA-8BD0-45B6-AF7D-3876DFB5C63D@comcast.net> Fun to read of your trip and bird sightings Tim, thanks for sharing. Philomena Sent from my iPad > On Jan 7, 2026, at 12:33?PM, Tim Brennan via Tweeters wrote: > > ? > Hey Tweets! > > Looking at the weather, it looked like Jan 4-5-6 was going to be giving me rain-beautiful-awful out on the coast, so I made a ran for it. Interesting to see that I can get to Pacific County in about 1:45 (from Renton to the Lewis/Pacific line on Hwy 6), but to get to the far reaches of Leadbetter Spit is nearly 3 and a half hours! This year was supposed to feel closer... and it does... but it's interesting to see that chasing a bird in Leadbetter or McNary could be about the same amount of time. > > 89 species for the trip! I was able to get American Dipper on Elk Heights Road at a little pulloff. Continuing in towards Raymond on Sunday afternoon, American Kestrel and Eurasian Collared-Doves were found along Highway 6. I went up to the Willapa River Airport and found three Snow Geese mixed in with the hordes of Cackling and Canada Geese. > > Early to bed, early to rise - I used the wee dark hours to do some owling on my way from Raymond to Grayland. An early stop on a backroad got me a Northern Saw-whet Owl, probably a feat that is possible up many many similar backroads if a person enjoys looking for owls. I made 5-6 stops along the way from the airport to the cranberry bogs outside of Grayland, picking up 4 Great Horned Owls at three stops. > > Grayland Beach State Park was beautiful - the whole day was. I got a little twilight shorebirding done, with a nice long look at a Snowy Plover, and a nice mix of other shorebirds (Least, Western, Dunlin) feeding on some flooded sand. Down on the shore itself, I caught a Horned Lark. Back in the park, there were typical passerines, and close to a dozen Varied Thrushes. > > Tokeland was full of shorebirds behind the Tradewinds Hotel - Black-bellied Plover, Least and Western Sandpipers. I also got my only Northern Pintails of the day here. After a year of birding in Columbia County, it's nice to have the ducks back... and I really don't mean to complain, but... all of them are Buffleheads. Not ALL of them, of course, but... Pacific County almost felt like a marginally better Columbia County, plus 3 billion Buffleheads. Other duck species were tough to come by! > > At the Tokeland Marina, I got a flyover of three shorebirds - two Willets and a Marbled Godwit. An Eared Grebe feeding in very close was a nice surprise. Plenty of Common Loons, and a couple Red-throated Loons were out in the water. > > The Cedar River was a great stop. I picked up Trumpeter Swans here, and there was a lot of shorebird activity, with high numbers of Long-billed Dowitchers and Greater Yellowlegs visible from the trail, and a lot of distant peeps. I also had a Black Phoebe here. Exciting for the moment, as my checklist has it as a code 5 bird, although I am sure that will change. > > Potter Slough was a nice walk, and added Lincoln's Sparrow, Marsh Wrens, Northern Harrier, Western Meadowlarks, and Virginia Rail. Nearby Carruthers Slough had a nice flock of American Wigeon, including at least one Eurasian. > > Bay Center gave me a couple more ducks I'd been missing - a single Hooded Merganser, and a single Common Goldeneye. A Merlin also made a pass at some shorebirds, making for some excitement. > > Tuesday was awful! ? I birded through some rain in Chinook Valley to add a few more birds: Sharp-shinned Hawk, Common Merganser, and Wilson's Snipe. At Cape Disappointment, I had steady rain, and steady winds with gusts in the 20s. Here I added Pelagic Cormorant and Pigeon Guillemot. I poked around on my way up to Long Beach, hoping to look at some feeders, but the weather was just pretty miserable! So I headed back after a bowl of chowder. > > The blog at pacificcountybirding.blogspot.com will get updated in the next few days. > > Cheers, > > Tim Brennan > Renton > _______________________________________________ > 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 Jan 7 15:43:27 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (pan via Tweeters) Date: Wed Jan 7 15:43:34 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Sikes Lake, King County, rarities Message-ID: <1002681826.82360.1767829406905@ichabod.co-bxl> Tweets, The Kumlien's Iceland Gull continues today in a small flooded pasture pond on the north side of 100th north of Sikes Lake (west of Carnation, King County), arriving a few minutes before 1 p. m. today.? The Glaucous Gull was in that pond much of the morning, starting sometime around/after nine, and sometimes coming right up to the shoulder under the fence.? Nearby, I got to see the Rough-legged Hawk drop to catch a rodent, then carry it to a tree to eat.? The Ross's Goose continues with a flock of hundreds of Cackling Geese in the fields north of Carnation Farms, though distant.? This flock arrived sometime after 8:30 a. m.?? New, I found a female Common Yellowthroat in brambles on the south side of 100th just west of the first curve in the road as approached from the west, loosely associating with a flock of mixed sparrows and one Ruby-crowned Kinglet.?? Also around, a bittern on the edge of the lake, passing swans, kestrels, harriers, Brewer's Blackbirds, and such.? I did not see owls, but I didn't stay for evening.?? Happy new year. 7 January, 2026, 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 Thu Jan 8 05:26:22 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Shep Thorp via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 8 05:26:37 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Wednesday Walk at Billy Frank Jr Nisqually NWR for 1/7/2026 Message-ID: Dear Tweets, Happy New Year! Approximately 20 of us enjoyed a wet and wild one at the Refuge yesterday with cloudy skies, intermittent rain, breezy to windy conditions and temperatures in the 40's degrees Fahrenheit. There was a High 15'4" Tide at 8:57am, so a nice tidal push and we did our routine walk despite a few trail closures from fallen trees. The intrepid birding crew of the Wednesday Walk joked about how this was the nicest weather they had seen since my trip to Tanzania, I left the second week of December and returned last Monday, and I was very impressed that they kept it going through some stormy conditions. Highlights included Michael reporting two BARN OWLS returning to the Twin Barns around 7:18am in the morning. This is wonderful news after the diagnosis of Avian Influenza in two Barn Owls that recently died in the Twin Barns over the last 2-3 weeks. I suspect we had several owls roosting/breeding in the Twin Barns with the departure of our breeding Great Horned Owls which we have not seen in over a year. Other notable sightings included reliable looks of RED-BREASTED SAPSUCKER in the Pear Trees by the Technician or Land Trust Building adjacent to the maintenance yard, breeding plumage waterfowl with observed copulation in NORTHERN PINTAIL and MALLARD, two WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS hanging out with a large flock GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROWS in the picnic area adjacent to the Twin Barns, good looks of VIRGINIA RAIL walking the bramble line south of the Nisqually Estuary Trail or dike just before the Leschi Slough aqueduct runs under the dike, Ken spotted our wintering Yellow-shafted NORTHERN FLICKER in the surge plaine, as well Matt spotted both LINCOLN SPARROW in the surge plain and two WESTERN MEADOWLARKS flushed by NORTHERN HARRIER from the marsh plain along Leschi Slough were it runs parallel to the dike. A single WESTERN SANDPIPER was observed foraging with a flock of approximately 100 DUNLIN. For the day we had 62 species with numerous fun sightings despite the wild weather. And according to the Wednesday Walk team, it was the best weather they had seen in a month. See our eBird report pasted below. I'll share more information about our 2025 round up soon. Until we meet again at 8am at the Visitor Center Pond Overlook on Wednesday next week, happy birding... Shep -- Shep Thorp Browns Point 253-370-3742 Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually NWR, Thurston, Washington, US Jan 7, 2026 7:35 AM - 3:17 PM Protocol: Traveling 3.06 mile(s) Checklist Comments: Wednesday Walk. Cloudy skies with intermittent rain, temperatures in the 40?s degrees Fahrenheit. A High 15?4? Tide at 8:57am. Others seen include Douglas Squirrel, Columbian Black-tailed Deer, and California Sea Lion. 62 species (+5 other taxa) Cackling Goose 500 Cackling Goose (minima) 200 Cackling Goose (Taverner's) 4 Canada Goose (moffitti/maxima) 50 Northern Shoveler 150 Gadwall 30 Eurasian Wigeon 1 American Wigeon 1500 Mallard 200 Northern Pintail 800 Green-winged Teal (American) 500 Ring-necked Duck 6 Surf Scoter 30 Bufflehead 75 Common Goldeneye 30 Hooded Merganser 3 Common Merganser (North American) 2 Red-breasted Merganser 1 Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) 5 Anna's Hummingbird 1 Virginia Rail 1 American Coot (Red-shielded) 34 Greater Yellowlegs 24 Dunlin 500 Least Sandpiper 50 Western Sandpiper 1 Seen at 100-500 feet with spotting scope foraging with Dunlin for 5 minutes. Peep sized shorebird with white throat and dark legs. Short-billed Gull 75 Ring-billed Gull 25 Glaucous-winged Gull 2 Western x Glaucous-winged Gull (hybrid) 10 Western/Glaucous-winged Gull 30 Pied-billed Grebe 1 Horned Grebe 3 Brandt's Cormorant 15 Double-crested Cormorant 25 Great Blue Heron (Great Blue) 20 Northern Harrier 2 Bald Eagle 20 Red-tailed Hawk 3 American Barn Owl 2 Belted Kingfisher 1 Red-breasted Sapsucker 2 Downy Woodpecker (Pacific) 2 Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 1 Observed for 5 minutes. Red nape, brown face, and yellow shafts. Previously reported. Northern Flicker (Red-shafted) 6 Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted x Red-shafted) 0 Peregrine Falcon 1 American Crow 175 Black-capped Chickadee 10 Chestnut-backed Chickadee 8 Ruby-crowned Kinglet 6 Golden-crowned Kinglet 6 Brown Creeper 5 Pacific Wren (Pacific) 3 Marsh Wren 4 Bewick's Wren (spilurus Group) 2 European Starling 150 American Robin 40 Purple Finch (Western) 6 Fox Sparrow (Sooty) 3 White-crowned Sparrow (pugetensis) 1 Golden-crowned Sparrow 50 White-throated Sparrow 2 Song Sparrow (rufina Group) 20 Lincoln's Sparrow 1 Spotted Towhee (oregonus Group) 5 Western Meadowlark 2 Red-winged Blackbird (Red-winged) 30 View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S293046392 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Jan 8 12:36:13 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Trileigh Tucker via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 8 12:36:40 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] South Africa advice - thank you Message-ID: Many thanks to all the Tweeters who responded to my query about birding and safety in South Africa, both publicly and privately. I am so grateful you took the time to help educate me as my husband and I contemplate this Big Trip. Pretty much everyone who addressed the safety issue said they had had no problems, that staying alert and taking sensible precautions (like not showing around a huge fancy camera and staying away from more sensitive areas) make it likely we?ll have an excellent experience. I was really glad to hear this, and feel very encouraged about going ahead and making the trip. I also got a bunch of recommendations for excellent guides, so now I have a very useful list to refer to. I?m happy to share the list with those interested - just email me (info below). With much appreciation for this generous group, Trileigh Trileigh Tucker Gw?alali Valley, West Seattle NaturalPresenceArts.com tri@seattleu edu -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From tweeters at u.washington.edu Thu Jan 8 15:53:25 2026 From: tweeters at u.washington.edu (Matt Bartels via Tweeters) Date: Thu Jan 8 15:53:40 2026 Subject: [Tweeters] Marymoor Park (Redmond, King Co.) 2026-01-08 Message-ID: <10BD3863-D499-4E4C-9C1F-2DC86762C3A9@earthlink.net> Tweets - It was a clear, crisp day at Marymoor Park today. 4 of us filled in for a traveling Michael. We enjoyed the clear weather, but the day was peppered with long stretches where the birds seemed to disappear. Nevertheless, several good highlights for the relatively new year: Trumpeter Swans - 14 flew overhead Barn Owl - 2 before dawn in the East Meadow/Model Airplane Field Northern Shrike - 1 in the east meadow Varied Thrush - we speculated the snow in the mountains would bring us one today, and sure enough one obliged Western Meadowlark - our wintering flock of ~14 made another appearance Notable misses today included: Ring-necked Duck, Hooded Merganser, Anna?s Hummingbird, Rock Pigeon, Killdeer, Bushtit, Purple Finch and American Goldfinch. For the day, we came up with 48 species, about 7 of which look like new Marymoor walk year birds, bringing the year total to about 59. Matt Bartels Seattle, WA -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: