Hi all,
My sister Valerie and I spent Sunday birding on Fir Island. We were not
successful in locating the Gray Catbird reported in the area, but even so it
was a great day anyway.
We did spot a pair of birds that had both of us stumped. They had the
appearance of a large finch (in comparison to the Cedar Waxwings close by,
they appeared larger). The birds had notched tails, they had brown backs
with a very faint suggestion of a wing bar. The breast was white with soft
brown markings/spots. Their beak was typical finch shape. Over all they were
bulkier than the finches we saw in this area. They were moving along in the
willows and other low growing trees along the trail. Any ideas??
One very special experience was to see Black-capped Chickadee, Bushtit,
Willow Flycatcher, Orange-crowned Warbler and a Downey Woodpecker all in one
single tree at the same time!
Our sightings are as follows:
Canada Goose
Glaucous-winged Gull
Glaucous-winged X Western Gull
Caspian Tern
Great Blue Heron
Green Heron
Sora
Greater Yellow Legs (Flying overhead calling)
Dowitcher (single bird, flying overhead-not calling)
Shorebirds, probably westerns
Northern Harrier
Red-tailed Hawk
American Bald Eagle
Peregrin Falcon
Belted Kingfisher
Mourning Dove
Rock Dove
Downy Woodpecker
Willow Flycatcher
Violet-Green Swallow
Barn Swallow
Crow
Raven
Black-capped Chickadee
Bushtit
Bewick's Wren
American Robin
Swainson's Thrush
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing (is it just me, or are they in abundance this year??)
Warbling Vireo
Orange-crowned Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Wilson's Warbler
Spotted Towhee
Song Sparrow
Brown-headed Cowbird
Red-winged Blackbird
House Finch
American Goldfinch
Pine Siskin
House Sparrow

Happily Birding,
Beth Thompson
Arlington, Wa
calliopehb at aol.com