Tweets,

I took advantage of a great couple of hours of sunshine this afternoon to just go and sit in a lawnchair I have in my upper field. I've often birded this way - sitting in a place with great bird factors (forest / meadow edges, water sources, abundant food) and waiting for the birds to come to me. The real advantage of the spot I had today was that it also puts me at eye level with the top of the big maple, fir, hemlock, cedar and alder trees growing downslope - so I don't have get a neckache from looking up holding heavy binocs.

I was rewarded with great views of some nice birds today. In about 90 minutes I had:

Nashville Warbler - at least 3 and maybe as many as 5 - seem to be a lot this year
Black Throated Grey Warbler - 2
Wilsons Warbler - Beautiful bright male
Townsends Warbler - 3, 2 male, 1 female
Western Tanager - Very early for this bird - male
Evening Grosbeak - a flock of 20+ eating big leaf maple flowers
Black Headed Grosbeak - singing
American Robin - 20+ including 1 that came within 5 feet of me hunting for worms
Hermit Thrush - 1
Steller's Jay - pair making a nest in a dense medium sized cedar
Red Breasted Nuthatch - up and down and up and down an alder snag
Brown Creeper - I saw at least 2 - collecting insects, hatched brood?
Brown Headed Cowbird - the first I've seen on this property
Common Raven - only 2 today
Bald Eagle - Soaring very very high - beautiful and peaceful to watch
Coopers Hawk - I'm about 90% on this ID - really big bird but just didn't look Goshawky to me
Red Tailed Hawk - 2 calling - one very dark and one very light - interesting to compare them
White Crowned Sparrow - 2 singers in the blackberry patch
Song Sparrow - busy flipping through leaf litter
Spotted Towhee - with the song sparrow
Fox Sparrow - 2 - flying in circles like it was hawking insects
Rufous Hummer - had 3 birds at once in the Salmon Berry flowers
Vireo species - Not great looks - couldn't get in focus long enough to see eye ring detail
Ruffed Grouse - heard only up the slope
Pileated Woodpecker - calling loudly in a high flyover
Downy Woodpecker - working on a fallen alder snag - nearly on the ground!
Red-shafted Flicker - sounded like a crazy child laughing
Varied Thrush - heard only

also - a visit from 2 cow elk on the edge of the field - several neighbors who have been here for many years say this is the first time they have every seen elk in this area in the spring
coyote - ran right across the trail in front of me on my way up the hill
raccoon - coming out from the top of a big stump - female that was obviously lactating
bear sign everywhere - nothing to eat but grass now for them so the "sign" is big black and icky

I probably missed some other birds - the sun was so inviting I actually nodded off for a few minutes.

Cheers and good birding

Rob

Rob Conway Preston / Fall City, WAlatitude 47 32' 20" , longitude -121 54' 42" robin_birder at hotmail.com
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