I headed out to the burn near White Pass where Patrick Sullivan reported
finding Black-backed Woodpeckers. This species has eluded me on about 5
prior attempts, but with several sightings in the area it seemed like my
luck might change. I scraped the bottom of my Subaru on road on the way in,
and the trail in is a bit of a scramble. I was trying to figure out how I
would console myself if I missed them once again, when I ran into a group of
four young birders coming out who had seen five Black-backeds! My spirits
were lifted by this news, and when I hit the burn I followed a rough trail
up the hillside and waited. After an anxious and very quiet 25 minutes I
heard some tapping and had very nice looks at a female BLACK-BACKED
WOODPECKER working a tree just a few yards away. I heard at least one other
individual nearby, but could not locate it after a pair of CLARK'S
NUTCRACKERS came storming through squawking and chasing each other. Other
birds in the area included CASSIN'S FINCH, HERMIT THRUSH, BROWN CREEPER,
DARK-EYED JUNCO, PINE SISKIN, TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE. Killer views of Mount
Rainier and beautiful weather were the icing on the cake.
So I finally got a look at a Black-backed....
#496 in the ABA area....
Only 4 to go ....


Jack Stephens
Edmonds, WA
jsteph02 at sprynet.com