I have just returned from my first week of studying birds in Pend
Oreille and Stevens counties of Norheastern Washington. Here are some of
the birding highlights.
My field house is located a mile down the road from 49 Degrees
North, the ski resort 10 miles above the town of Chewelah, Stevens Co. (40
miles north of Spokane). Around the house this week were WARBLING VIREOS,
NASHVILLE WARBLERS, YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS, DARK-EYED JUNCOS, and SWAINSON'S
THRUSHES singing. A pair of VIOLET-GREEN SWALLOWS are investigating a hole
in the roof of the house; a pair of Violet-greens nested there last year.
The hummingbirds have really been drinking the sugar water from the feeder.
They drank two cups in four days! That is a record for me. There are at
least two female RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD, a male RUFOUS, a female CALLIOPE
HUMMINGBIRD and a male BLACK-CHINNED HUMMINGBIRD.
The BOBOLINKS have returned to their traditional haunt in the fields
around the small town of Cusick, Pend Oreille Co. So far I have only seen
males but the females can't be far behind. They are still low in number but
they are there. More unusual were two males hanging out in a field just
outside of Chewelah, Stevens Co.
Most of the migrants have returned to the area: MACGILLIVRAY'S
WARBLER, TOWNSEND'S WARBLERS, ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER, AMERICAN REDSTART,
DUSKY AND HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHERS, WESTERN KINGBIRD, SWAINSON'S THRUSH,
SOLITARY VIREO, WARBLING VIREO, CHIPPING SPARROW and RED-NAPED SAPSUCKER.
Today I heard my first WESTERN TANAGER. The only migrants that are still
missing are WILLOW FLYCATCHERS, OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHERS, and COMMON NIGHTHAWK.
I will be in the field again for at least a week so I won't be
sending another update for a while.

Good birding!
Deb Beutler
Washington State Univerisity
Pullman, Whitman Co., WA
dbeutler at wsunix.wsu.edu