I rarely post, but yesterday I had such an unexpectedly birdy hike that I thought I’d share. I highly recommend the Stimpson Nature Reserve (https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/stimpson-nature-reserve) just east of Bellingham. It has 4 miles of trails winding around two ponds/wetlands and miles of mature forest. We identified 32 species for the day, but the most amazing thing was that the bird song never stopped. At any given time there were as many as 6-8 species singing, and there was always at least one. The most abundant were western flycatcher, Pacific wren, chestnut-backed chickadee, brown creeper, western tanager, Wilson’s warbler, and black-headed grosbeak. The challenge was that most of the birds stuck to the tall canopy, so for many I relied on my birding-by-ear skills (proficient), occasionally backed up by confirmation from Merlin. (Note that I did not accept all of Merlin’s suggestions – for example, I highly doubt that there was a hermit warbler in the vicinity.) We did get eyes on the warblers, sparrows, and many many creepers, plus the ducks and a few others. It was magical afternoon. I imagine the dawn chorus would be amazing. Lots of wildflowers, too! Below is our list for the day.
Happy birding,
Katie (<kfsauter...>)
Canada goose
Wood duck
Mallard
Band-tailed pigeon
Anna’s hummingbird
Hairy woodpecker
Pileated woodpecker
Western wood-pewee
Western flycatcher
Cassin’s vireo
Warbling vireo
Steller’s jay
Common raven
Chestnut-backed chickadee
Violet-green swallow
Bushtit
Golden-crowned kinglet
Red-breasted nuthatch
Brown creeper
Pacific wren
Varied thrush
Swainson’s thrush
American robin
Purple finch
Dark-eyed junco
Song sparrow
Spotted towhee
Black-throated gray warbler
Townsend’s warbler
Wilson’s warbler
Western tanager
Black-headed grosbeak
