In a time that we are being asked to limit our contact with others we natural history types have an advantage. We can bird watch, photograph birds and plants, draw landscapes and trees, and generally have a good time by ourselves. I often feel some pity for people who do not have this outlet, which I, growing up as a usually solitary child, learned to utilize. I have decided to end my retirement as a Daily Kos diarist so that I can share more of the wild with you as my contribution to our mutual survival in these dire times. I cannot promise many more diaries, but I hope that these will be of some use to you all.
One of my favorite places a relatively short distance away is Pine Ridge Park, a stand of second growth forest in Edmonds, Washington. As it is primarily a location for hiking, jogging, dog walking, and birding, it has remained open as long as we keep our distance. Recent sightings of Hutton’s Vireo has brought several birders out, but most of the time I am either alone or share the trail with an occasional jogger, parent trying to deal with bored children, or dog walker. The nice part of the area is that it is a mix of Douglas fir, western red cedar and hemlock, interspersed with clearings partly edged with red alder, and a fairly large pond. A number of ecotones are thus involved and the bird diversity for about 20 or so acres hits nearly 100 species.
One of my favorite birds in the area is the Barred Owl. Recently I have been hearing their “Who Cooks for You? Who Cooks for You All? ringing through the Douglas fir and to hear the occasional discovery of their location by the local American Crows, which soon brings at least ten more to harass them. Once I discovered a birder pointing his camera at a spot in the forest that turned out to have a Barred Owl perched on a low stump while it was being mobbed by Black-capped Chickadees and Pine Siskins. It flew up onto a branch briefly before flying off into the woods. I got a lot of good photos then before the owl flew off into the tall trees.
Of the hawks, I have seen Cooper’s and Sharp-shinned, as well as a Bald Eagle and an Osprey. This is prime habitat for the accipiters, as they glide silently through the trees (I really do not know how they do that!) and nab a sleeping or careless bird from its perch. Of course they are very hard to photograph.
The woodpeckers are another group of birds that turn up fairly regularly. Pileated, Downy and Hairy woodpeckers and Northern Flickers mostly, but once I managed to photograph a Red-breasted Sapsucker (not a good photo, but it confirmed my ID!) The calls of Northern Flickers resound through the woods often, with the Hairy and Downy almost as common. Pileated Woodpeckers are fairly common, but I rarely see them as they often are in the top of some large dead or half dead tree back inside the forest.
Among the most common birds at the ponds are the ducks. Ducks of at least nine species have been sighted at Goodhope Pond, although Mallards have been a bit rarer lately. These include: Wood Duck, Northern Shoveler, Mallard, Green-wing Teal, Gadwall, American Wigeon, Ring-neck Duck, Bufflehead, and Hooded Merganser. The last is fairly rare, but I saw a male recently. Also recently a pair of Canada Geese found their way to the pond!
The other water birds are represented by the American Coot, the Pied-billed Grebe and the Great Blue Heron. All are rather uncommon, but the later has been seen several times on the edge of the cattails and in the water at Goodhope Pond.
There is only one common hummingbird, Anna’s Hummingbird. It is fairly abundant and the females can be seen searching low vegetation for spider webs with which to line their nests. The males often perch on high branches.
Of perching birds, there seems to be no end. Red-winged Blackbirds call from the cattails around Goodhope Pond, Black-capped and Chestnut-backed Chickadees forage in the trees along the main path, American Crows are abundant and are often heard mobbing Barred Owls or Cooper’s Hawks, Steller’s Jays scold from the tree tops, Ruby-crowned and Golden-crowned Kinglets bounce like molecules through the trees and bushes, the former often confused with the similar Hutton’s Vireo, American Robins and the related but shyer Varied Thrush show up along the trail, Red-breasted Nuthatches make their tin horn tooting calls through the forest, Song Sparrows, Dark-eyed Juncos and Spotted Towhees call from the undergrowth, Pine Siskins forage in the red alders, and Pacific and Bewick’s wrens call or sing from the forest floor and bushes.
All photos are by me.
My best wishes to you all to stay healthy and sane under these trying conditions.