Photo: Eastern Bluebird by John Larson
Hello everyone,
The snow drops were in bloom and the scilla has appeared but it sure didn’t feel like Spring during our walk. However, the birds are following their instincts and more and more are arriving in the park each week.
We had our first Golden-crowned Kinglets of the year in the Osaka Garden. Their yellow crowns looked so bright and beautiful on this dreary morning. Five Pied-billed Grebes were in the lagoon and an Eastern Bluebird was discovered in the middle of the Island. A Field Sparrow was a nice surprise as was a Fox Sparrow. And a Belted Kingfisher made an appearance, although it wasn’t calling as they usually do. Maybe it was too cold to speak.
BIRDERS: Jane, Mike, Jennie, Leslie, Cheryl, Eric, Becky, Chris, Marisa, Steve, Meghan, Nick, Yesenia and welcome to Lee who was visiting from Los Angeles.
TIME: 8:00am to 10:00am
WEATHER: 30 degrees, cloudy, light snow
Compiler: Cheryl
Photographers: Eric (Fox Sparrow and Kingfisher) and Steve (Bluebird)
Canada Goose Number observed: 34
Wood Duck Number observed: 5
Northern Shoveler Number observed: 1
Mallard Number observed: 11
Common Goldeneye Number observed: 1
Common Merganser Number observed: 1
Red-breasted Merganser Number observed: 49
Pied-billed Grebe Number observed: 5
Ring-billed Gull Number observed: 9
Double-crested Cormorant Number observed: 1
Belted Kingfisher Number observed: 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker Number observed: 1
Downy Woodpecker Number observed: 3
Black-capped Chickadee Number observed: 2
Golden-crowned Kinglet Number observed: 3
European Starling Number observed: 6
Eastern Bluebird Number observed: 1
American Robin Number observed: 47
Field Sparrow Number observed: 2
Fox Sparrow Number observed: 2
Dark-eyed Junco Number observed: 3
Red-winged Blackbird Number observed: 9
Brown-headed Cowbird Number observed: 1
Common Grackle Number observed: 1
Northern Cardinal Number observed: 6
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