Banner Day for Yard BIrds!

I could be offering some sad news in this post, but when the chips are down the yard and birds keep coming through for me. 

Last Tuesday I had a friend stop by early in the afternoon and we sat outside for maybe an hour with almost no bird activity in the yard.  Part of the problem may be an accipiter that my wife has seen in the yard twice over the past couple of weeks, and I’m at least grateful that it cut down on the European starlings and temporarily on House sparrows. 

Thursday I took an excursion over to the swan reserve north of Mount Vernon and then to Milltown and finally back across Fir Island.  I took three photos, all of the same Whidbey jet flying overhead!  There was a distinct lack of bird photography! 

Saturday, 8/25/2012, I spent over an hour in the yard and only managed a few photographs, the better ones of one or more Red-breasted nuthatches making rare trips down to the watercourse. 

I had noticed that there seemed to be more birds in the yard in the mornings, so this past Sunday morning I went outside about 9am.  I had no sooner gotten seated with my camera than a very drab warbler landed on some of the staging areas around the watercourse and allowed me to take maybe 15-20 photos.  It wasn’t until I processed my photos that I decided that it was a male Yellow-rumped warbler of the Audubon race.  The second photo reveals a little yellow on the rump and if you look closely in some of the photos there's a slight hint of yellow on the throat.  It’s probably a product of this year’s breeding.  

 Soon after it left I had a visit from a Song sparrow (photograph in my prior post), hardly an unusual bird but one that’s been absent from our yard for most, if not all, of the summer. 

Next up was a male Red crossbill which, from what I can determine, is a visitor two to three times a day.  This visit was without the female but later in the day, while I was distracted by attempting to photograph a Spotted towhee, the male and female both sneaked in for a quick drink.  While they briefly use my staging props when coming to our watercourse they always fly directly out of the yard after drinking.  They use a small nook of the watercourse which I can’t photograph, so my only chance to photograph them is when they are incoming.  

Soon after the crossbill left I had a visit from an Orange-crowned warbler, which I had to confirm externally with a birding friend who is more skilled at identification than I.  Any time I get a warbler in the yard, and into a photographable location, it makes for a great day… and this was my second warbler species for the day!  

Next up was a Swainson’s thrush, a bird I’ve seen in the yard on only one or two occasions although on rare occasions I hear them calling from the forest.  This one took a leisurely bath in the watercourse and offered me an opportunity for many photographs. 

My next visitor was a male Northern flicker.  They used to be regular visitors to the yard but have been scarcer for the past several months.  And those I do get now enter the yard singly and seem to be much more concerned about human presence than in the past.  This flicker entered the watercourse (another rare occurrence since they seem to usually prefer one of the bird baths) and I had ample opportunity for photographs.   

 

A female Anna’s hummingbird visited the watercourse but didn’t actually interact with the water, which seems to be a common habit this year.  I had the shutter set for 1/200^th of a second and was lucky to be able to focus and obtain this photo of the bird in flight.  

Next to arrive at the watercourse was a very shy Cedar waxwing.  This makes me even more certain that what I had seen in the watercourse the previous week was a Bohemian waxwing.  

And just when I thought things couldn’t possibly get any better, I had visits from a female Western tanager, the first I’ve seen this year.  The first time I photographed it I thought I was photographing an American goldfinch and didn’t realize my mistake until I was processing my photos.  The goldfinches are appearing in every hue of yellow and gold and there are often so many that it’s difficult to keep track of all the activity.  The tanager later returned with an apparent juvenile but I couldn’t tell it from the parent. 

While the unusual traffic was taking place I occupied myself with taking photos of some of the regular visitors.  Some of their photos are featured in my prior post.  These birds included:

·         Chickadees (I estimate on occasion we can have over a dozen at one time)

·         Nuthatches

·         Spotted towhees of several different juvenile stages

·         Pine siskins of many different colorations

·         American goldfinches, mostly females and juveniles

·         House finches of both sexes

·         House sparrows of both sexes

·         European starlings

In addition I had both Downy and Hairy woodpeckers visit but I didn’t obtain more photos of them.  

All in all this might have been my best day ever for yard photography.  I had some rare visitors to the yard and was able to obtain photos of them. 

Due to a banner day of yard photography on Sunday, I'm posting a few photos of my regular visitors.  But be sure and check back in a day or so because I have some really nice photos of some rare visitors.  I need a little more processing time and I need to find someone to assist with an identification or two.  

Male House finches (this might or might not e the same bird)  

A Song sparrow.  Song sparrows have been absent from the yard for most of the summer.  This hopefully marks their return for the winter. 

 

A couple of young American robins, in different stages of maturation, of which we now have a very plentiful supply!  

 

A couple of Spotted towhees in different stages of maturation...

 

A European starling, most of which have apparently been frightened from the yard by an accipiter... 

What Have I Done to Deserve This?

My birding on Sunday started when I looked out the kitchen window about noon and saw in the watercourse a bird that took my breath away.  It was a waxwing, but it had a yellow crown and a lot more color on the ends of its wings.  I verified that it was a waxwing by the band of yellow on the terminus of its tail and the red spots on its wings, then I ran for my camera.  As I exited the patio door it flew.  I stuck around for a few minutes but it didn't return while I was outside.  I went back inside and my wife said that there was a waxwing in the watercourse again, but again it flew, this time before I could even get a photo. 
After due research and reflection I'm virtually certain that I saw a Bohemian waxwing, exceedingly rare but not unheard of in the county. 

At that point, although needing a nap, I decided to spend some time outside in the hope that the bird would return.  It didn't, but next up was a male Red crossbill.  (I think my wife saw both the male and female later in the afternoon but I didn't get a photo of both. 

I had mentioned a continuing string of juvenile Spotted towhees in the yard, and it's obvious that we aren't finished yet.  This young towhee came to the watercourse.

While I was photographing the Red crossbill a yellow bird in the background caught my eye.  I assumed it was an American goldfinch but it turned out to be a female Wilson's warbler.

Later a male Wilson's warbler made an appearance and took a bath.  I'm now the 'go to 'guy for wet male Wilson warbler photos... I have many!

During the afternoon this male Hairy woodpecker made a rare visit to the watercourse after spending a significant amount of time on the suet feeder.  

And finally, just before turning in for the mid-afternoon nap, I got this visit from a Cedar waxwing, a rare visitor to my yard.  This just reinforces my belief that what I saw this morning was a Bohemian waxwing.  

And I mentioned in my last post one or more Pine siskins that seemingly have extra yellow on their wings.  Here's a photo...

On Friday I drove through the Samish Flats area and saw two Red-tailed hawks on power poles.  But the really welcome find was what I presume was a Peregrine falcon on another power pole… the same one for which it has shown a preference for the past several years.  This particular afternoon it was cooling off by holding its wings out from its body to provide more shade and air circulation. 

Closer to home, on Friday morning my wife photographed what was apparently a Cooper’s hawk sitting on a log in our yard.  This visitor is highly overdue… we’ve had a yard full of House sparrows and European starlings for months.  They apparently finally attracted the hawk’s attention. 

We’ve had a visitor and other factors have mostly kept me from the yard for the past week and I was lamenting that I didn’t have much material for a post as Saturday afternoon rolled around.  I took my camera out in the yard for about an hour and a half.  The sky was fairly heavily overcast which would mean lower shutter speeds but no shadows.  I had few hopes that I was going to get any interesting sightings or material for a post.  Was I wrong! 

After quite a period of very little action a juvenile American robin arrived at the water feature.  As is their habit, this robin spent a good deal of time between movements which gave me ample opportunity for some good photos (at a relatively slow shutter speed).  

 After the robin left I saw a single bird fly into the tops of one of the fir trees, always a hopeful sign since most of the ‘trash’ birds tend to move around in groups.  I lost track of it briefly but then I spied a reddish-colored bird, reminiscent of the robin, in the shadows of our Golden Chain tree, now just a mass of a few leaves and many seed pods.  I thought it was probably another robin, but I looked through my telephoto lens and discovered a rare visitor… a male Red crossbill, only our third crossbill sighting this season!  

Unfortunately once it left the Golden Chain tree the crossbill made a rather rapid approach to our watercourse, not pausing on any of my staging props in the area.  And when it did settle for a drink, I could just barely see its head sticking out from behind a rock.  So much for the photography.  Then another bird landed right beside it and I at first thought that it was a Pine siskin (which are all around the yard) but it seemed too close to the male crossbill.  When I examined the situation through my lens I could see that it was a female Red crossbill!  Unfortunately when they left they flew directly out of the yard, again not pausing on any of my staging props. 

I next saw activity on the side of one of our large fir trees and thought it was probably a Brown creeper.  Again a look through my lens clarified things… it was a Bewick’s wren.  (By now you’re probably wondering why I don’t get and wear a good pair of glasses!)  We only have a few sightings of these a year.  I obtained a photo, but it was in poor light and taken from a greater distance than I would prefer for such a small, well-camouflaged bird. 

By now I was thinking that things couldn’t get much better, but Mother Nature wasn’t through.  I noticed a good deal of activity around our brush pile (located in the front yard!) and again a closer examination through my lens revealed a family unit of Bush tits.  (As I write this Sunday morning I can see from my office that they’re back!)  We live in prime Bush tit habitat but seldom see them in the yard.  This group was relatively small (5-6 individuals) so I expect that it was a single family group that had yet to combine with others.  It’s not uncommon in the winter to find groups composed of 15-20 individuals… if you want a challenge try counting them sometime!  

While I was out the following individuals also visited the yard:

·         Both male and female Hairy woodpeckers, female pictured here (suet feeder and water) 

 

 ·         Both male and female Downy woodpeckers, male pictured below (suet feeder and water) 

 

·         Dark-eyed junco, Oregon race

·         Red-breasted nuthatches

·         Spotted towhees

·         Chestnut-backed and Black-capped chickadees

·         Belted kingfisher (flying overhead, which I count as a yard bird)

·         Pine siskins

·         House sparrows

·         European starlings

·         House finches

·         Rock pigeons

I may have omitted a species or two.  Earlier in the day my wife saw a White-crowned sparrow in the yard.  Late in the afternoon, after I had given up the photography, I flushed a Northern flicker from the watercourse. 

I should mention that one of our Pine siskins has a fairly large yellow patch on its flanks, separate and distinct from the slender yellow lines along the wings.  And I have a friend who lives in the Old Town area who has reported a single visit by an albino Pine siskin. 

Species Preference for Watering Features

So what does the photo above have to do with this post? 


It's been a rather dull week around here as far as birds are concerned.  We're overrun with European starlings (which are costing me plenty in terms of suet), House sparrows and Pine siskins.  As I watched a very young pair of American goldfinches take baths in the watercourse yesterday a thought came to me.

We have combinations of water features in the yard for birds... hanging bird baths, bird baths on the ground and a running watercourse.  As I watched the young goldfinches bathe, it occurred to me that some of the species seem to have a preference for the kind of water feature they prefer.  (Their choices would probably be more limited in the wild, but here I get to create my own 'improved' habitat!)  I believe that I can create a chart, consisting of our most common birds, and indicate the type of water feature they prefer.  For safety reasons, some of their preferences may have something to do with the location of the water features but in many cases it would seem that some species of birds have a preference for one type or another... at least in my yard.

So my task now is to create that chart... if I'm happy enough with it you may see it here.

On a sadder note, I lost one of my 'followers' last week... one of my best friends who dates back to our time in Austin, Texas in the 1970s.   Rest in peace, Bob! 

Birds of the Yard

Here's the male Black-headed grosbeak that I mentioned in a separate email that some of you received earlier this morning. 

 

Here's one of the adult Dark-eyed juncos (Oregon race) that has spent the summer with us... 

 

And this is one of its offspring...

 And here is an adult male Spotted towhee, perhaps the same one I posted on the blog a while back...

And one of its offspring, which seems to differ from some we've been seeing in the yard...

For the most part it's the same birds, but they're always interesting and I always learn something when I watch them.