Birdwalks with Victor Burgett

March

By late March, several species that wintered to the south have returned.  Already, Turkey Vultures are soaring with our resident Eagles, Rufous Hummingbirds are buzzing around like little embers (the males return ahead of the females to claim territories), Band-tailed Pigeons have slipped back into our taller forests, and Audubon's (Yellow-rumped) Warblers are singing & feeding in a variety of wooded habitats. Finally, Violet-green and Tree Swallow are flitting around - in small numbers now, but due to soon increase.

Resident birds - our hardy year-round species that overwintered here - are full of activity.  Some, such as various Owls & Woodpeckers, and Anna's Hummingbirds, are already nesting or getting ready to nest.  Loud Woodpecker (Pileated) drumming echoes from the woods.  And four songs in particular grab our ears island-wide during these early spring weeks: the rich burble of the Purple Finches, the monotonous slurred whistles of the Hutton's Vireos, the sweet & complex ringing songs of the Pacific Wrens rising from the dark forest floor - while the ubiquitous White-crowned Sparrow (local race: Pugetensis) sings from edge habitats all over the island. 

Also listen for song phrases of two Sparrow species that wintered here but will soon head to breeding ground farther north  - The Golden-crowned Sparrow ("weary willie") and the Sooty Fox Sparrow.

Most of the wintering waterbirds are still present - in fact, April is a great month to spot one of my favorite ducks - the Long-tailed Duck - from the ferry crossing, usually in mid-channel.  They are now molting into their alternate plumage - as are various other waterbirds, such as Loons, Grebes, Guillemots, etc.  For example, watch as the Horned Grebes acquire their "horns" (yellow feather tufts) & the Red-necked Grebes necks turn red.  

Other waterbirds are engaged in amusing courtship behaviors.  For example, in Legoe Bay, watch for Red-breasted Merganser males jostling for female attention (see photo).  Across the street in the slough, one might witness similar behavior from their more freshwater-oriented cousins - the Hooded Mergansers.  And Village Point is one of several likely spots to catch up with our lovely Harlequin Ducks.  Young males are molting into adult plumage, and there is much noisy squabbling going on.  Meanwhile, Virginia Rails are calling from just about every pond & marsh spot on the island (most frequently around dawn & dusk, but sometimes during the day as well), and our wintering flock of Barrow's Goldeneyes can still be found on the east side of the island - often near the ferry dock.

Over the next few weeks, we can look forward to the next "wave" of returning breeding species.  Typically, the next few birds to arrive will include the Orange-crowned Warbler, Osprey, Caspian Tern, Common Yellowthroat, and other Swallow species.  By mid to later April, we will begin to see & hear Townsend's and Black-throated Grey Warblers, and Pacific-slope Flycatchers.

April

Spring is now officially here, as far as our island avifauna is concerned.  Finches are singing (including glowing Goldfinches), Woodpeckers are drumming, Kingfishers are rattling, and Ducks are looking sharp. I encountered my first-of-season Orange-crowned Warbler not much more than a week ago, and they are now singing all over the island - their wet, wheezy trills are emanating from every patch of woods and every hedgerow.  Overall a dullish yellow-green bird; the "Orange-crown" is found on the males but is rarely prominent and often concealed.  An agitated, territorial-minded male may occasionally reveal the small orange crown. Orange-crowned Warblers are typically our second to return Warbler in the spring, lagging about 2 weeks behind the first returning Audubon's (yellow-rumped) Warblers.  Our Orange-crowned Warblers - the ones which breed along the coastal Pacific Northwest - are slightly brighter and yellower than the races found across the North American interior. 

Another Warbler species returning to our island about now is the Common Yellowthroat.  Preferring marshes & wet fields with hedgerows over woodland, this charismatic little bird can often be observed at the Curry Preserve along Centerview road.  Listen for its "Witchity witchity witchity" call.  The male sports a black, "raccoon-like" mask; the female is duller, brown and yellow.

Two more Warblers to expect back in the next week or two are the Townsend's - partial to tall Douglas Fir forest, and the Black-throated Gray - partial to mature deciduous forest. Their rather similar calls, which vary widely within a basic theme, can be quite confusing unless the bird is seen. But both of these prefer life in the upper canopy.  Also in the next week or two, look and listen for Warbling Vireos and Pacific-slope Flycatchers.  The latter is the Will-o-wisp of the Northwest forests - they are frequently heard but harder to catch sight of. 

Resident bird activity has also swelled with the season. Robins, robins everywhere!  They are in the woods, in the fields, along the edge of the beaches, and right underneath your window in the morning.  This widespread and successful thrush is easy to watch.  Many are having epic territorial battles at the moment, and others can be seen gathering beak-fulls of nesting material.

Speaking of territorial battles, the diminutive Pacific Wrens which haunt our darker forests are in full-throated song right now, as rivals seek to claim the choicest territories.  The Pacific Wren has the longest and most complex song of any North American bird.  More of a tiny symphony.  Luckily for us, it is easy to enjoy these musical duels, as the Wrens are widespread on the island, and often choose a road as a boundary.  The tall dark woods along Sunrise Road, for example, is one such place where the Wrens can be appreciated. 

Rufous Hummingbirds are here in considerable numbers now, and the first females are joining the males who showed up early to claim the best sites.  The males are proving their worthiness with dramatic swooping display flights, and the females are evaluating them.

Swallows of several species have swooped back here for the summer.  Keep an eye peeled for Violet-green, Tree, Barn, and Northern Rough-winged.

The Yellow-rumped Warbler complex is a superspecies made up of several closely related, regionally distinct species - which often hybridize where they overlap.  Audubon's Warbler is the western one, and is one of our most numerous Wood-warblers, as well as being one of the hardiest. They are the first to arrive in the spring, and are typically the last Warbler seen in the fall. Myrtle Warbler is the widespread eastern one, but its breeding range extends far west across the boreal forests of northern North America, and a few of them migrate and winter on the west coast. Every year I find a few of these Myrtle Warblers amongst the numerous Audubon's Warblers - both in the spring, and in the fall.  This year (two days ago) I finally got a good picture of a nice, breeding-plumaged Myrtle Warbler, in roadside bushes very near to the Community Garden.  It was feeding amidst blossoms and catkins with several Audubon's Warblers, Kinglets, and Chickadees.  Here are photos of both the white-throated Myrtle Warbler, and the much more numerous yellow-throated Audubon's Warbler.  Also note the masked appearance of the Myrtle, vs the grey-headedness of the Audubon's. Easy to tell apart in photos, but harder to get a proper look at as they dart around in thick cover! 

(FYI, a third member of the Yellow-rumped Warbler complex is Goldman's Warbler, which occurs in Mexican and northern Central American highlands. Collectively, Yellow-rumped Warblers are often called "butterbutts" by birders - a reference to the distinct yellow-rump patch that all forms feature - and that they retain in the fall and winter, even when they lose the rest of their colorful breeding plumage in favor of more plain and sombre attire.)

Savannah Sparrows are singing loudly in the fields these days!  Listen and look for them in fields & pastures, often sitting on fenceposts or other perches. Their song is rather dry and crisp and somewhat insect-y.  Look and listen along Centerview, or in the fields around the Community Garden, or the sheep pastures along West Shore Drive - and other, similar places.  

May

First of all, I got a message from Scott about Cliff Swallows. He lives on Granger Way reporting six pairs of nesting Cliff Swallows at his place. Great to hear that they are re-establishing a presence on the island. All our swallow species are here in good numbers; Barn, Tree, Northern Rough-winged, Violet-green, and now more Cliff Swallows than in recent years. Best of all, Purple Martins seem to be nesting in the ferry dock structure again this year, and can be heard and seen fairly easily.  

The Mourning Dove I mentioned a few weeks ago has been hanging around; I have seen and heard it a few times in the vicinity of the Sunrise / Seacrest intersection. It sometimes perches quite openly.  Also, I had a second encounter with a female Bullock's Oriole - the same bird or a different one - a few days later and about a mile away from my first sighting, out near Point Migley.  I was happy to obtain a slightly better hasty photo, but only one click before it was gone. For such a brightly-colored species, they can be quite elusive in our thick foliage. I have yet to run into a male Oriole on the island.

Baby birds of many species are popping up left and right now. Pacific Wren fledglings, for example, are adorable! Grumpy-faced, tiny, and tufted- and very active. The parent looked ragged. Also keep an eye (and ear) out for Barred Owl youngsters hissing in the woods - follow the hissing sound to the rotund, fluffy-white owlet glaring down at you.

On my walk today, I was relieved to finally hear, and then see, a Willow Flycatcher. I've been expecting them for days - and then today, the familiar, sneezy "fitz-bew" call.  Like the Pacific-slope Flycatcher, the Willow Flycatcher is in the genus Empidonax - notoriously similar to one another in appearance (there are subtle differences) but quite different in song and habits. I’m happy they are back, because now our summer woodland bird cast is complete. 

So much bird activity on the island this week!  The forests and hedgerows are buzzing with motion and ringing with song. Pert and bright Wilson's Warblers are all over the place already; their territories revealed by their forceful songs, even though the bird itself sometimes skulks amongst the leaves.  Wilson's Warbler is less of a treetop lover than some of the other woodland warbler species, and prefers the middle and lower stories of the forest habitat. Warbling Vireos also seem to be arriving in number now - look for them especially in good deciduous habitat. 

Also now in the deciduous woods, especially in riparian situations, is the Yellow Warbler.  The vivid male Yellow Warbler lacks the Wilson's black cap, but instead sports reddish stripes on the breast.  Our first Black-headed Grosbeak of the season was stuffing himself on sunflower seeds at our feeder on May 1st, but I am not yet hearing them in number.  Pacific-slope Flycatchers are all over the place though - they can be heard (and sometimes glimpsed) in all our forest types. 

I am still waiting for my first-of-year encounters with several species though; Swainson's Thrush, Cedar Waxwing, Western Tanager, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Western Wood-Pewee, and Willow Flycatcher are the last of the common Lummi Island summer residents still not back.  And I bet that all (with the possible exception of Willow Flycatcher) will be here within the coming week.  

One bird I ran into this week, just down the hill from the Otto Preserve, was a Mourning Dove. Mourning Doves are one of North America's most widespread and numerous bird species, but on Lummi Island, I only see or hear one every now and again - maybe two or three times a year at most.  They seem to me to be rather scarce in Whatcom County in general, as well.  This has been the case since well before the non-native Eurasian Collared Dove arrived in the region and on the island, so I don't think that they are to blame, even though the Collared Dove is now one of the most familiar of the island's birds.  I am curious if the island Mourning Doves are just passing through, or if there are a very few breeding on the island somewhere.  They are easy to distinguish from the chunkier, more pigeon-esque Collared doves by their slender build, the dramatically tapered, pointed tail, and lack of the collar marking on the nape of the neck.   The Eurasian Collared Doves have only been part of our island avifauna for a decade or so, but their hoots and wheezy brays are now very familiar island sounds.

Not a newcomer exactly, but far more numerous now than in decades past, is the House Wren. This migratory wren is now a numerous breeding resident on Lummi Island, although in times past it was uncommon and very local. It is one of our four Wren species, along with the common resident Pacific Wrens and Bewick's Wrens, and the Marsh Wren, which only visits our island in very small numbers. There is much to love about the House Wren. They live fearlessly in close proximity to humans, and often nest in our structures. They fill the air with loud and cheerful song, and their family-clan interactions and antics are fun to watch. But they also have a less pleasant habit of destroying the eggs of other nesting birds - of other bird species - within their territories. So even as I enjoy and appreciate them individually - it is with some reservations about their impact!

A few new species have begun to settle into our woodlands for the summer since my last update.  Pacific-slope Flycatchers are here again; our most numerous Flycatcher, the will-o-wisp of the forest.  Listen for their beckoning calls - and if you are lucky and persistent, you may spot the bird sallying forth after a small flying insect in the canopy. Also back now are Townsend's Warblers and Black-throated Gray Warblers.  These are two more treetop dwellers which prefer mature forest; coniferous forest for the Townsend's (esp. Douglas Fir), and deciduous for the Black-throated Gray.  They often occur side by side in tall mixed forest, such as at the Otto Preserve.  This morning I heard and then saw my first Wilson's Warbler of the year - a bright and perky male, bright yellow with a neat black cap.  I heard at least two others singing territorially as well, a forceful song that emanates from the lower or mid story of the forest.  Orange-crowned and Audubon's Warblers, which have already been on the island for a few weeks now, are still the most numerous species.

Over the course of the next two weeks, most of the rest of our summer avifauna will be showing up. Look and listen for Swainson's Thrush, Cedar Waxwing, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Western Wood Pewee, Warbling Vireo, Yellow Warbler, Western Tanager, Black-headed Grosbeak.

Willow Flycatcher usually seems to be the last regular species to return. When you start hearing its sneezy "Fitz-bew!" from the hedgerows and woodland edges near wet fields, then you know that everyone's back for the summer!

Also keep an eye peeled for passage migrants; birds which show up annually, but neither regularly winter nor breed on the island.  These include Townsend's Solitaire (an upright perching thrush), Hermit Thrush (sometimes many), Lincoln's Sparrow, and even one or two White-throated Sparrows.  Hermit Thrushes mostly move through ahead of the arrival of the closely related Swainson's Thrush - our breeding Catharus Thrush species.  One key difference is the tail is notably rufous compared to the color of the back, while the back and tail are even-colored on the Swainson's.  Both species prefer to be inconspicuous in the shadows, however, and getting a good look at tail color is not always possible.  Lincoln's Sparrow is another sneaky guy, somewhat similar to a Song Sparrow in appearance, but with a distinct buffy wash over thinner streaks on the breast, and a slightly peaked 'crest" over a grey face. During migration, they often skulk in thick brush.

Our wintering Golden-crowned Sparrows are looking sharp these days in their crisp spring plumage, and their numbers have been supplemented by migrants.  Many males are singing too, although not as heartily as they will on their Alaskan and British Columbian breeding grounds.  This species usually departs in early May, so enjoy them in the hedgerows and gardens now; they are also coming to feeders with their cousins, the White-crowned Sparrow.  It is their lazy, trailing song which has given this west coast specialty the nickname "Weary Willie."

And, of course, our resident birds are busy, busy, busy as well.  Some species already have fledged & active youngsters.  Downy Woodpeckers and Hairy Woodpeckers can be seen now in family groups, for instance. 

Our vivid blue Stellar's Jays are loud and more visible at this time of year.  Chickadees are fussing everywhere, and the Black-capped's "cheeseburger" song is frequently heard. And American Robins are hatching young; I am already finding bits of their blue eggshells - always carried away from the nest by a parent bird and dropped elsewhere.