Lately I've been running errands all over Seattle, and I have often
parked in residential neighborhoods near my destination. It seems
everywhere I go I see and hear Northern Flickers, often just flying
overhead. Some of these neighborhoods are totally open, with just
scattered trees, nothing like a woodland in sight. Obviously flickers
are doing very well in the urban setting. The only woodpecker that
normally feeds on the ground, they need trees only for nest holes,
and I guess they are finding enough of such places throughout the
city. I guess another possibility is that some of these birds are
wintering birds or migrants and aren't actually nesting in those
neighborhoods, but I have heard some birds giving their spring "song."

Interestingly, I've seen a fair number of starlings in these same
neighborhoods, and the flickers must be competing successfully. I
think flickers are here to stay.

My first Band-tailed Pigeons and Orange-crowned Warbler for the year
were in the yard today. Varied Thrushes, Townsend's Warblers, and
juncos (except one) all left during the spate of beautiful weather
last week.

Also, I reported two "female" Purple Finches in the yard a few days
ago, and, to my amazement, they have stayed around. This morning one
was singing away, much to my delight, so it's doubtless a first-year
male. I've noticed many times that it is the first-year males that
try to breed in suboptimal habitats, which the city clearly is for
many birds. Almost all the Black-headed Grosbeaks that have hung
around and sung persistently in this neighborhood in spring have been
first-year males. I'm not sure any of them ever attracted a mate; the
females know better.

-----
Dennis Paulson
1724 NE 98 St.
Seattle, WA 98115
206-528-1382
dennispaulson at comcast.net



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