Bird Sightings -- Summer, 2005
by Bob Boekelheide

The “Bird of the Summer” award must go to the Red-necked Stint, first seen on 7/28/05 by the Shorebird and Gull class from the Dungeness River Audubon Center. While class members surveyed shorebirds feeding on the mudflat at 3 Crabs, Sally Marrone, who had just moved to the Northwest from Georgia and was taking her first River Center class, called out something like “Look at that one with the red face!”  

All our scopes focused on a very distinctive small sandpiper feeding close by with a group of other peeps. The bird immediately stood out as something different, with rufous-red all over its face and neck. We studied the bird for at least 10 minutes, sometimes as close as 50 feet as it picked on the mud and dried Ulva right in front of us. What could it be, with that gaudy plumage but very small body, just slightly larger than the nearby Least Sandpipers but not quite as long and lean as the juvenile Western Sandpipers?

Thinking the bird was likely a stint, I rushed for some references books stashed in my car nearby.  A quick glance confirmed that it was a Red-necked Stint in fading breeding plumage, never before seen in Washington State.

What brought this wanderer to this mudflat?  We’ll never know the whole answer, but there are a few records of Red-necked Stints in British Columbia and Oregon, so perhaps it was just a matter of time before one appeared in Washington. This species is apparently the most common breeding peep across much of the Siberian Arctic, migrating south to spend the winter in Southeast Asia and Australia.  Like many shorebirds, it occasionally strays off course.  A few pairs breed in western Alaska including at the tundra patch on the Point Barrow spit, the northernmost point of land in the United States where I last saw them in 1976.

The bird fortunately stayed around for the next five days, making occasional visits to the same mudflat at the mouth of Meadowbrook Creek just west of 3 Crabs Restaurant.  Several hundred observers flocked here from all over to see it, most of whom got a good glimpse if they were patient.  

It was as good a study in human behavior as in vagrant birds, watching the eager birdwatchers line up with thousands of dollars in optical equipment hoping to see the little bird.  Some drove long distances for their glimpse, as far as from Portland, OR, Othello, WA, and Vancouver, B.C.   One lady from Maine even called the River Center asking directions to see the bird, but we’re not sure if she actually made the trip.

Besides the Red-necked Stint, it’s been a very good migration for other shorebirds at Dungeness Bay and 3 Crabs, many of which remained in the area for days or weeks.  Three or 4 Baird’s Sandpipers and 2 or 3 Pectoral Sandpipers were present from at least 7/30 until 8/13, seen by many observers.   Steve Mlodinow reported 6 Semipalmated Sandpipers at 3 Crabs on 7/23, and 2 more frequented Helen’s Pond for a couple weeks in early August, allowing excellent comparisons with other peeps.  A very high number of 7, and possibly 9, juvenile Stilt Sandpipers fed at Helen’s Pond at 3 Crabs on 8/13, viewed by Igor Uhrovic, Bob Kiernan, and Bob Boekelheide.  Striking Ruddy Turnstones in breeding plumage fed in Dungeness Bay through late July and early August, with 4 visible on 8/10.  Lesser and Greater Yellowlegs lingered together, with a high of 6 Lessers visible on 7/8 at Helen’s Pond.  Three Marbled Godwits fed on the 3 Crabs mudflat on 7/8, 2 of which are still here in late August.  

Nigel Ball, birder extraordinaire from Bainbridge Is., spent a week at the Dungeness Spit lighthouse in July, reporting many birds in addition to the ones above, including a high of 15 Whimbrels on 7/9, 5 Red Knots on 7/12, and up to 30 Red-necked Phalaropes from 7/14 to 7/16.  The high count for Red-necked Phalaropes comes from Valerie Elliott, who spotted over 100 on a cruise around Protection Island on 7/16.

The Caspian Tern colony on Dungeness Spit had a spectacular year, beyond anyone’s wild imagination.  Over 1000 terns attended the colony, with many fledglings out and about starting in early July.  Arctic Terns again nested near the Caspians, this year successfully fledging chicks.  We hope to get the final numbers from the USFWS for our next report.

All these Dungeness Bay birds attracts Peregrine Falcons, two of which have been seen regularly strafing the mudflats between mid-July and 8/10.    

The most exciting raptor news is a possible White-tailed Kite seen by Sally Abella kiting near Costco on 7/18. There are other kite reports from our area, but, as Bob Norton says, most have been “undercompelling,” due to likely confusion with male Harriers. Kites are moving north from California and Oregon and are now regular in southwest WA, so watch for them.

John Woolley reported the first Turkey Vulture breeding record that I know of for our area.  While walking near Webb Mountain south of Fulton Creek in southeastern Jefferson County, he came across a large downy vulture chick lying on the ground near Forest Service Rd 2510-090.  This is most intriguing, since vultures normally nest in caves or ledges of cliffs.  If you know of any other vulture nesting attempts, please let us know.

Among seabirds, the news is not good.  This has turned out to be one of the warmest water years on record along the Pacific Coast, caused by windless conditions and no upwelling.  Even though this is not a large El Nino year in the central Pacific, warm water and deep thermoclines exist all along the Pacific Coast, causing food webs to fail and birds to abandon their breeding efforts from California to Canada.  Large numbers of dead seabirds have washed ashore on the outer coast.  

If this is truly one of those warm water years, we should closely watch for stragglers from the south.  Remember the last warm water year when pelicans lined up in Port Angeles harbor and an Elegant Tern showed up in Sequim Bay?   Pelicans are here in good numbers right now on the west coast, and Heermann’s Gulls seem particularly abundant this year, including about 100 counted by Bob Norton, Diane Mulholland, Dick Johnson, and Jesse Stewart at Pt. Hudson on 7/21.

We’ve had a large gull migration so far this summer, with thousands of California Gulls and hundreds of Ring-billed Gulls now lining Dungeness Bay shorelines.  Mew Gulls have shown up early, with the first seen on 6/15 by Russell Rogers at Pt. Whitney and 10 reported by Steve Mlodinow at Twin Rivers on 7/24.  Steve reported an unusual summer Thayer’s Gull at Dungeness Landing on 6/2 and a Herring Gull at the Elwha River dike on 6/3.  Bob Norton and Judy Mullally reported an immature Glaucous Gull at Sekiu on 6/18, and Tim O’Brien saw 5 Black-legged Kittiwakes roosting on the beach at Kalalock on 7/2.
 
Despite the poor conditions, seabirds will gather where they find food.  On 7/2, while returning from Alaska with my family on a cruise ship, we spotted a huge concentration of seabirds feeding at Swiftsure Bank, inside Canadian waters but only a few miles WNW of Cape Flattery.  There were at least 1000 Black-footed Albatrosses, 5000 Sooty Shearwaters, 5000 Northern Fulmars, 500 Fork-tailed Storm-Petrels, numerous Pink-footed Shearwaters, and one Laysan Albatross feeding behind several fishing boats working the area, with great lines of birds following the boats.  Swiftsure Bank is worth watching, if we could ever visit the area on a regular basis.

At Cape Flattery, Steve Mlodimow reported upwards of 6000 Common Murres flying north on 6/4, and another 500-1000 present on 7/24 at Tatoosh Is.  Steve also reported a feeding flock of about 350 Brandt’s Cormorants off Tatoosh on 7/24, which is most interesting because this is more Brandt’s Cormorants than breed in WA.  Were these failed breeders from the south, or just pre-breeders that didn’t return to their southerly colonies this year?

Russell Rogers noted several Green Herons this summer, including one at the south end of Sequim Bay on 6/20, 2 flying over Quilcene on 7/11, and one at Crocker Lack on 7/13.  Tom Schaafsma also reported an immature Green Heron on the west side of Bell Hill on 8/7 and 8/8. It would be very nice to know if Green Herons are breeding in our area, if they’re consistently seen during spring and summer.  A Sandhill Crane made a summer appearance near Sequim, first seen on 7/27 by Jim and JoAnn Roberts on the northeast side of town and later seen by others in the same area.

Not many owl reports this time of year, but the best comes from Bob Hutchinson, who saw 2 Short-eared Owls flying over the Dungeness Recreation Area at dusk on 6/14.  Since Short-eareds were present in that area through from late winter to summer, perhaps they bred there this year.

Among water birds, there were interesting reports of birds that should be further north during summer.  Judy Mullally and Doug and Pipper Watkins reported a Trumpeter Swan at Crocker Lake on 6/4, perhaps unable to fly.  Steve Mlodinow and Doug Schonewald saw a Brant in Dungeness Bay on the same day.  Steve and Doung saw a Greater Scaup at Ediz Hook on 6/3, and 2 Greaters showed up at the moth of Morse Ck. on 6/22, reported by Judy.  As many as 300 Pacific Loons swam offshore 3 Crabs on 7/29, seen by Russell Rogers, and over 100 swam off Morse Ck. on 7/17, also seen by Judy.  Steve and Doug reported as many as 52 Red-throated Loons seen on their ventures around Clallam County on 6/2.  Why are these birds still here in summer?

The high counts for Common Nighthawks this summer comes from Wayne Weber, who saw 3 over Crocker Lake on 6/24, and from Diann MacRae, who saw the same number flying over Sequim about 7/15.  Black Swifts made appearances for Judy Mullally near Cape Flattery on 6/18, for Jesse Stewart and Diane Mulholland on Hurricane Ridge on 7/14, and a high number of 24 seen at Cape Flattery by Steve Mlodinow on 6/4.  

Gray Jays are typically mountain birds this time of year, but Judy Mullally had one immature at her home by Morse Ck on 7/4.  Judy also reported the only Red-eyed Vireo of the period, one singing along Morse Ck on 7/6.  Cassin’s Vireos continued singing in RR Bridge Park by the Dungeness River until 7/25, plus Russell Rogers reported one singing in downtown Sequim on 6/11 and Scott Atkinson reported 2 singing at Graysmarsh on 6/18.

Western Bluebirds successfully bred this year in at least two locations, at Melanie Perry’s home near Discovery Bay, where 6 healthy chicks fledged, and at Larry Rymon’s home near Cassidy Ck, where 2 chicks fledged.

Purple Martins have staged a comeback at 3 Crabs, thanks to Stan Kostka, Bob Iddins, and Eftin Strong, who placed 6 new boxes on the pilings in spring, making a total of 11 boxes.  At least 15 martins have been visiting the boxes, with several successful pairs.  Wallace Teal and Beverly Jones also have martins visiting their gourds at Diamond Pt, but I’m not sure if they are nesting there this year.

Among vagrant passerines, Gene Kridler observed a Common Grackle west of Sequim Bay on 6/21, perhaps only the second seen in Clallam County.  He says it had a much longer tail than a Brewers and a much heavier bill, so keep your eyes out for grackles in blackbird flocks.  Gretchen Naehrig reported a Brown Thrasher hopping around in her yard in west Dungeness on 6/20, also a vagrant eastern bird that occasionally shows up in our area.

Bruce Moorhead reported 2 Pine Grosbeaks along the Klahane Ridge Trail in Olympic National Park on 8/2, including one adult male that apparently fed an immature.  Even though we think that Pine Grosbeaks breed in the Olympics, we have little proof that they do, so this is a very worthwhile sighting.  On 8/4, by coincidence, Bob, Eric, and Isaac Boekelheide, while backpacking by Grand Lake, also heard Pine Grosbeaks calling in the subalpine firs, doing their “chee-vli” notes.

Jim Roberts reported this month’s “drama in the skies,” watching an adult Bald Eagle give chase to a small gull at Sequim Bay in Blyn for about 20 seconds, then saw the eagle grab the gull in mid-air, clutching it tightly in its talons and flying away with it.  Don’t mess with eagles!  Bill Jenkins also reported intense drama at Hurricane Ridge on 8/5, where he watched 2 American Kestrels chase after a crow, which luckily escaped.

Fall migration is officially underway, with new birds arriving daily.  Keep an eye out, and call Bob Boekelheide at 681-4867 (h) or 681-4076 (w) (email at bboek@olympus.net) or Bob Norton at 928-3053 (email at norton360@aol.com) when you see something interesting or unusual. Thank you very much for your sightings.