Report for May 16, 2013 Birding at Marymoor
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The rather heavy overcast of the early morning slowly thinned to broken sunshine by late morning, and the threatened showers never happened. So it was kind of dark for the first hour which made viewing difficult, but otherwise, the weather was very nice. The birding was great. It was really, really birdy, and it was often difficult to hear the less common species over the cacophony of American Robins, Black-headed Grosbeaks, Warbling Vireos, and Wilson’s Warblers. Highlights: Northern Shoveler
At least 1 of a flyby flock of 5; unsure of the rest Great Blue
Heron
Several of the young are quite large For the day, 71 species! For the year, adding SPOTTED SANDPIPER, OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER, WESTERN WOOD-PEWEE, and PACIFIC-SLOPE FLYCATCHER, I think we’re up to 129 species. == Michael Hobbs |
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![]() Bullock's Oriole pair, shortly after copulating in a nearby birch tree. Photo by Hugh Jennings |
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![]() Male Black-headed Grosbeak. Photo by Michael Hobbs |
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![]() Male Western Tanager. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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![]() Adult Bald Eagle. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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![]() Violet-green Swallow at windmill. Photos by Ollie Oliver |
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![]() Three of the six Osprey kettling over the river near the windmill. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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![]() Song Sparrow. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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Report for May 9, 2013 Birding at Marymoor
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A big group of us enjoyed a great day at Marymoor, despite the rather dark overcast skies. But it was a comfortable temperature with no wind and it was birdy, so there were few complaints. There were a few birds that could have been more cooperative, but... It was a day of many First of Spring birds (FOS). Highlights: Mallard
At least 3 females with ducklings For the day, 70 species. For the year, adding BLUE-WINGED and CINNAMON TEAL, VAUX’S SWIFT, SWAINSON’S THRUSH, CEDAR WAXWING, YELLOW WARBLER, BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAK, and BULLOCK’S ORIOLE, we’re up to 124 species, I believe. == Michael Hobbs |
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![]() Male Western Tanager. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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![]() Singing Marsh Wren. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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![]() Male Hairy Woodpecker in nest hole near windmill. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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Report for May 2, 2013 Birding at Marymoor
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We stumbled around (four of us had done a King County Big Day on Wednesday, and had gotten VERY little sleep) for about 4 1/2 hours under too-beautiful sunny skies. It was freezing (literally) when we started, but it warmed up fast. There were definitely birds about, but there weren’t many perched up singing so we had to work at getting looks at just about everything. But it was a very good day. Highlights: Common Goldeneye
1 female. Latest spring sighting ever For the day, 69 species. WESTERN TANAGER were new for the year. == Michael Hobbs |
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![]() Warbling Vireo. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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![]() "Myrtle's" Yellow-rumped Warbler. The white lower eye arc, the exact facial pattern, and the touch of yellow at the wing corner distinguish this from a female Black-throated Gray Warbler. Photo by Lillian Reis |
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![]() Osprey with nest material. Photo by Lillian Reis |
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![]() Golden-crowned Kinglet. Photo by Lillian Reis |
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![]() Hermit Thrush. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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![]() Nashville Warbler, 2013-05-01. Photo by Graham Hutchinson |
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![]() Least Sandpipers, 2013-04-28. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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![]() Hairy Woodpecker, 2013-04-27. Photo by Dough Schurman |
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![]() Male Red Crossbilll, 2013-04-27. Photo by Dough Schurman |
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Report for April 25, 2013 Birding at Marymoor
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A clear, full-moon night followed by a chilly but sunny morning... It was really pretty, and this time of year there ought to be a lot of birds about, but the morning was amazingly quiet, especially for the first three hours. It was as if all of the birds who were thinking of leaving their wintering grounds decided that the last couple of days and nights were perfect for migration, while everything that was already migrating found no reason to stop. But sometime after about 10 a.m., we started to find some “good” species and more of them. We were a big group today – 17 I think! Highlights: (LOS – probable last sighting for this spring) Ring-necked Duck
Still a pair at the Rowing Club – LOS? The best early highlight was a MUSKRAT swimming around the slough below the weir, followed by getting great looks at a BEAVER eating willows nearby. The beaver was hugely plump, and we wondered if it might be a pregnant female. We’re still searching for our first Green Heron of the year, and we haven’t had a Belted Kingfisher for the last eight weeks. Also, no owls this morning, but otherwise we found all of the usual birds for this time of year. Even so, it didn’t seem very birdy much of the time; many species were heard-only, glimpsed-only, seen-by-only-a-few, or seen in small numbers. And there were 11 species seen Monday or Tuesday that we didn’t have today. But there were lots of new species this week: Since last Thursday, we’d had GREATER YELLOWLEGS, DUNLIN, CASSIN’S VIREO, HERMIT THRUSH, CHIPPING SPARROW, and BREWER’S BLACKBIRD. Today, we added COMMON LOON, TURKEY VULTURE, LEAST SANDPIPER, NASHVILLE WARBLER, and BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER, which I believe brings the 2013 total to 107. For the day, 67 species; and if I add in Tuesday’s and Wednesday’s birds, it totals 78 species! == Michael Hobbs |
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![]() Double-crested Cormorant. Photo by Lillian Reis |
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![]() Black-capped Chickadee excavating nest hole. Photo by Lillian Reis |
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![]() Tree Swallows. Photo by Michael Hobbs |
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![]() Black-throated Gray Warbler. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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![]() Cliff Swallows. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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![]() White-crowned Sparrow. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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![]() All eleven Least Sandpipers. Photo by Dasha Gudalewicz |
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![]() Least Sandpiper. Photo by Dasha Gudalewicz |
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![]() Golden-crowned Kinglet. Photo by Lillian Reis |
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![]() Turkey Vulture. Photo by Dasha Gudalewicz |
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![]() Tree Swallow, 2013-04-24. Photo by Lillian Reis |
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![]() Female Brewer's Blackbird, 2013-04-23. Photo by Michael Hobbs |
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![]() Brown-headed Cowbirds, 2013-04-23. Photo by Michael Hobbs |
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![]() Hermit Thrush, 2013-04-22. Photo by Michael Hobbs |
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![]() Chipping Sparrow, 2013-04-21. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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![]() Dunlin, 2013-04-20. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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Report for April 18, 2013 Birding at Marymoor
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Marymoor was dark and cloudy early, did lighten up later, but no rain. Michael was absent on the east coast, so Matt & I substituted. None of this kept the birds from singing - lots and lots of singing today, particularly early. Matt did have Barn Owl early, first time since March 14th. We also had a high flying Short-eared Owl at about 8 AM over in the direction of the East Meadow, and at the same time a high flying (and then perched) American Kestrel. Highlights: Barn Owl It was a good day with 66 species for the day, but nothing new for the year. Brian H. Bell Woodinville, WA |
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![]() Short-eared Owl. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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![]() Brown Creeper. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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![]() Rufous Hummingbird. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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![]() Male California Quail. Photo by Dasha Gudalewicz |
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![]() Golden-crowned Kinglet. Photo by Dasha Gudalewicz |
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![]() Common Mergansers. Photo by Dasha Gudalewicz |
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![]() Common Goldeneye female. Photo by Dasha Gudalewicz |
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![]() Trying to increase blog traffic with cute dog picture. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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![]() Western Meadowlark, 2013-04-17. Photo by Lillian Reis |
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![]() Red-tailed Hawk, carrying what looks like a snake... |
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![]() Bushtit, 2013-04-14. Photo by Lillian Reis |
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![]() American Robin, 2013-04-14. Photo by Lillian Reis |
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![]() Bushtit nest, 2013-04-13. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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![]() Golden-crowned Sparrow, 2013-04-13. Photo by Ollie Oliver |
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