Date: 7/18/25 5:30 pm From: Kenneth Brown via Tweeters <tweeters...> Subject: [Tweeters] Wednesday at Nisqually
Summer doldrums. That's what some birders call this time of year, after spring migration, after the breeding birds have all hooked up, and most have fledged their young, but before the fall migration and the return of the waterfowl.
The season and the heat combined to reduce our species count. It started relatively cool in the morning but pretty quickly warmed up. Anticipating the hot afternoon, we varied from the usual route to get out to the exposed dike earlier. That worked as intended but it was still too warm for many. A moderate high tide peaked while we were on the dike, helping to push the shorebirds in for closer viewing. A flock of 25 Long-billed Dowitchers flew in, then dispersed, mixing in with Least Sandpipers, a couple Killdeer, a few Western Sandpipers, and Greater Yellowlegs. Red-winged Blackbirds, Swallows, and European Starlings dominated on the freshwater side.
From the McAllister Creek boardwalk it seemed that Double-crested Cormorants were holding a convention. They were in large clusters. There were a few Brandt's Cormorants on the Nisqually Reach channel markers, a number of Great Blue Herons on the exposed mud. A few Purple Martins were still using their gourd houses at Luhr Beach. As the temperature rose, we we were faster coming back to the dike than we were going out, stopping longest where there was shade.
In the shade of the deciduous forested loop trail, Swainson's Thrush, American Robins, Goldfinches, Chickadees, Flycatchers, and Bewick's Wrens were the most numerous of the smaller passerines When we finished, at least an hour earlier than usual, the thermometer read 97°.
Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually NWR, Thurston, Washington, US
Jul 16, 2025 7:51 AM - 4:15 PM
Protocol: Traveling
5.74 mile(s)
Checklist Comments: Wednesday Walk. Sunny with temperatures Sunny 68-97° F. with southerly breeze at 0-5 knots. There was a 10.1-foot high water at 10:00 a.m., ebbing toward a +1.8-foot low water at 4:12 p.m. Mammals included Columbian black-tailed deer, Eastern cottontail, the non-native American bullfrog, the native Pacific chorus frog, the non-native Eastern Grey squirrel, the native Douglas squirrel (chickaree) and Townsend’s Chipmunk, a river otter seen by Pete, and many harbor seals with pups.
56 species (+3 other taxa)
Canada Goose 7
Wood Duck 9
Mallard 25
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) 3 At entrance gate
Mourning Dove 2
Anna's Hummingbird 1
Rufous Hummingbird 1
hummingbird sp. 1
Virginia Rail 3
American Coot 1
Killdeer 2
Long-billed Dowitcher 25
Greater Yellowlegs 18
Least Sandpiper 95
Western Sandpiper 6
peep sp. 65
Ring-billed Gull 140
California Gull 45
Caspian Tern 8
Brandt's Cormorant 6 Nisqually Reach Channel Marker
Double-crested Cormorant 230
Great Blue Heron 48
Osprey 1
Bald Eagle 16 Juvenile in north McAllister Creek nest
Belted Kingfisher 2
Red-breasted Sapsucker 2
Downy Woodpecker (Pacific) 3
Northern Flicker 1
Northern Flicker (Red-shafted) 3
Olive-sided Flycatcher 1
Western Wood-Pewee 5
Willow Flycatcher 8
Western Flycatcher 1
American Crow 6
Black-capped Chickadee 22
Chestnut-backed Chickadee 2
Tree Swallow 9
Purple Martin 7 5 at the Luhr Beach nest gourds and 2 seen at the Nisqually River overlook
Northern Rough-winged Swallow 1
Barn Swallow 40
Cliff Swallow 58
Bushtit (Pacific) 10
Brown Creeper 8
Marsh Wren 5
Bewick's Wren 10
European Starling 75
Swainson's Thrush (Russet-backed) 41
American Robin 12
Cedar Waxwing 9
Purple Finch (Western) 5 Male offering food to begging female
American Goldfinch 32
Savannah Sparrow 5
Song Sparrow (rufina Group) 24
Spotted Towhee (oregonus Group) 4
Red-winged Blackbird 170
Brown-headed Cowbird 15
Common Yellowthroat 4
Yellow Warbler 12
Wilson's Warbler 1
