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A Spectacle in White

Sky and I went to an agility event in Skagit County recently and we found ourselves with some extra daylight Sunday afternoon and Monday morning so we went bird watching. I have always wanted to see the huge flocks of Snow Geese that winter in the area and I was not disappointed! The images I made are lovely but they don’t fully convey the spectacle of 1000’s of white birds constantly shifting around the landscape. They feed in the rich agriculture fields (formerly the Skagit River estuary, now diked and drained) during the winter. Flocks lift off and fly around, seemingly at random, forming bigger and smaller flocks during the day. I highly recommend a trip to see these birds on their wintering ground. I was lucky to have nice weather. That’s not always the case. In addition to the geese, you can see a variety of raptors (I saw a Short-eared Owl and a Northern Harrier hunting at dusk), Trumpeter Swans and a wide array of water birds.

A New Yard Bird

Birders keep lists. Some keep LOTS of lists – life lists, country lists, state lists, county lists, trip lists, yard lists, etc. I have a not well defined life list and if I ever lose my copy of Sibley, I will lose my life list. But I/we have a yard list. We have a big yard – fifteen acres and we count every kind of bird we see or hear from our ‘yard’. This week, on two morning dog walks, I saw and photographed American Tree Sparrows. They are not a rare bird but I have never seen one in our county, let alone our yard, before this week. They breed in the far north and winter across much of the US. I have seen them in thick shrubs and weedy areas in the winter, generally south of here. Two other birders have seen them in recent weeks here in the valley so maybe there are more of them here this year or maybe we are more observant.

Some Birds

I saw most of these from my kayak. Except the last three. I struggled with the first one, the gray bird that appeared to be sitting on a nest but my friend quickly ID’ed it. I’m sure you will too! Then there was the constantly calling flycatcher which is probably more gray in normal light but the evening sun gave it a very warm tone. And then the zebra striped baby. Some ducks of various ages. Then there was another, very elegant, flycatcher. And then three forest birds. The last one had the most interesting call. I would not have guessed it but my friend recognized it and was able to locate it in the dappled forest. I have so much to learn!

Merlins Hunting Dragonflies

Last week I got to see a Merlin family actively hunting dragonflies around a small lake. There were at least three birds and some, most likely the youngsters, were very vocal. That made them easy to spot. When I was there earlier in the summer, I thought there might be a nest in the area. I mostly photographed them from my boat near dusk and in the early morning as they perched on snags waiting for the unsuspecting dragonflies. It made for challenging conditions.

My Sibley field guide says this about Merlins: “Uncommon in open habitats. Nests in trees in forests with open areas. Solitary. Pugnacious; often harasses much larger birds. An active and energetic hunter; spots prey from perch or during low fast flight, closes with incredible speed, and attacks with abrupt turns, often from below. Feeds almost entirely on small birds; also takes dragonflies in midair.” It’s a pretty good description of the birds I observed.

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