Hello everyone,

It was a chilly morning but we had some nice sightings.  High drama ensued when a young Cooper’s Hawk was relentlessly harassed by Crows.  Poor hawk. We had a lingering male Bufflehead and a first of year Brown Thrasher singing his heart out at the top of a tree on the Island. A pair of Wood Ducks were perched high up in a tree scoping out nest holes. I know that’s where they nest but it still seems odd to me to see a duck in a tree.  We also had a bevy of Bluebirds on the east side of the Columbia Basin. They are so vibrantly blue this time of year that they almost look like they’re glowing.

BIRDERS: Kristin, Barbara, Cathy, Gary, Marian, Cheryl, Jane, Eric, Pam, Leslie, Ka Yee, Nigel, Joel, Megan, Nick, Karin, Kaumudi, Sebastian, Renate, Marisa, Joe, Rachel, Jennie.

TIME:   8:00am to 10:30am   

WEATHER:  Mostly sunny, high 30s to low 40s

Compiler:  Cheryl       

Canada Goose   Number observed: 29

Wood Duck   Number observed:

Blue-winged Teal   Number observed:

Mallard   Number observed: 8

Bufflehead   Number observed: 1

Hooded Merganser   Number observed: 1   Details: Female

Red-breasted Merganser   Number observed: 6

Pied-billed Grebe   Number observed: 1

Ring-billed Gull   Number observed: 23

Caspian Tern   Number observed: 2

Double-crested Cormorant   Number observed: 13, Flyover

Great Blue Heron   Number observed: 2, Flyover

Cooper's Hawk   Number observed: 1

Belted Kingfisher   Number observed: 1

Northern Flicker   Number observed: 1

American Crow   Number observed: 5

Black-capped Chickadee   Number observed: 2

Northern Rough-winged Swallow   Number observed: 2

Golden-crowned Kinglet   Number observed: 2

Ruby-crowned Kinglet   Number observed: 5

Brown Creeper   Number observed: 1

European Starling   Number observed: 4

Brown Thrasher   Number observed: 1

Eastern Bluebird   Number observed: 5-6, both Males and Females spotted, Grove East of the Museum

Hermit Thrush   Number observed: 1

American Robin   Number observed: 11

House Sparrow   Number observed: 5

American Goldfinch   Number observed: 4

Dark-eyed Junco   Number observed: 1

White-throated Sparrow   Number observed: 1

Song Sparrow   Number observed: 2

Eastern Towhee   Number observed: 1

Red-winged Blackbird   Number observed: 9

Brown-headed Cowbird   Number observed: 1

Common Grackle   Number observed: 8

Northern Waterthrush   Number observed: 1

Yellow-rumped Warbler   Number observed: 9

Northern Cardinal   Number observed: 3

If you’d like more information about a bird, check out the All About Birds ID guide:

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/

Corrections, additions and comments are welcome.

Recordings are not used to attract birds.

The Walks are free and open to one and all. They are held year-round. Newcomers are warmly welcomed. 

Saturday morning walks: Start at 8:00 a.m. and cover a distance of two miles.  Birders walk from the meeting spot counterclockwise onto Wooded Island. Exiting Wooded Island at the south end, the birders walk along the soccer field and enter the south end of Bobolink Meadow. The Meadow’s path leads to the Music Bridge. After crossing the Music Bridge birders walk through the parking lot and around the Columbia Basin (North Lagoon) and return to our meeting spot.  In late fall, winter and early spring, the birders check for birds on the lakefront at the Outer Harbor near LaRabida Hospital and the Inner Harbor after the Wooded Island walk.

Meeting Spot:  Birders meet on the west shore of the Columbia Basin (North Lagoon).  Park on Stony Island Avenue near 59th Street, walk east across the parkland area, then cross Cornell Drive to reach the spot.

Good birding everyone,

Jennie