Birding in Neighborhoods - North Report
On April 9, ten birders met at Joseph Whidbey State Park on a cool gray morning. We walked into a forest full of spring green leaves and birdsong. Among the species we identified were Dark-eyed Junco, Pine Siskin, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Black-capped Chickadee, Ruby-crowned Kinglet and Golden-crowned Kinglet.…
Birding in the Neighborhoods - South Report
We’ve nearly doubled our species sightings in just a couple weeks! Back in early April at Waterman Shoreline Preserve, even missing the usual shore-type ducks and peeps, we did identify at least 30 species, plus a couple who were too quick for us….
Birding in Neighborhoods - North Report
In spite of the cold and windy weather, eight birders joined the BINN outing on March 12. We visited three marine environments and were rewarded by seeing 29 species.
Our first stop was Mueller Beach Access on Madrona Way to see what birds were sheltering in Penn Cove. There we found numerous Common Goldeneye and a few Barrow’s Goldeneye, Scaup and Bufflehead….
Field Trip Report: Costa Rica 2025!
We had a wonderful trip to Costa Rica. The weather was very good and except for two short episodes, we had no rain. Roger Melendez was a remarkable guide and provided great accommodations, good meals, excellent birds, a few remarkable mammals, and good history and culture….
Best Intentions: Skagit County 2025
The traditional February trip to the bottomlands of the Skagit and Samish rivers did not come off as planned this year. Trip leader Jay Adams and I had looked forward to at least one—and possibly two—visits with Whidbey birders, but we were thwarted by persistent rains and high winds.
However, we did have good luck on a reconnaissance trip on January 29….
Birding in the Neighborhoods - South Report
Early in the month, on the Deer Lagoon West dike, we identified over 40 species, and then later for the first day of spring, we mixed it up over at Sunlight Beach and the East Dike, with at least 35 species, including four Northern Harriers swooping together over the fields. Four! Two of each, male and female….
Field trip report: Hoypus Point
Hoypus Point is truly one of the gems on Whidbey. Located on the east side of Deception Pass Bridge, it is home to one of the last old-growth forests on the island. On the day of our field trip, it was overcast with a moderate wind advisory. But Hoypus Point seemed to shelter us from the wind….
Birding in Neighborhoods - North Report
On February 12, five hardy birders donned appropriate clothing and braved the cold to walk the Windjammer Park shoreline to Flintstone Park. We were rewarded with a gorgeous blue sky and more than 1,000 American Wigeons (by Denise’s count) grazing on the lawn and swimming in the lagoon and in the harbor. It was the most thrilling sight and sound (!) when the Wigeons took flight all around us. ….
Deception Pass State Park, West Beach
On February 8, about a dozen people met at the south end of West Beach parking lot of Deception Pass then walked the Dune Trail. They spotted birds including Surf Scoters, Red-breasted Mergansers, Horned Grebes, and a Common Loon downing a flatfish during the two-hour walk. This was one of a series of bimonthly trips coordinated by the park’s AmeriCorps staff and led by Whidbey Audubon Volunteers.
Birding in Neighborhoods - South
At the end of January, we bundled up and rolled ourselves out into the sun on the dikes at Deer Lagoon, where we identified at least 39 species–a little of everything, including those beautiful and entertaining Hooded Mergansers at the edge in the slough foraging for tiny fishies, then gobbling them down with their adorable little serrated bills! A Killdeer and some Greater Yellowlegs were taking advantage of what little shore there was, along with the Crows and Mallards. Of course, the eagles and harriers were scaring up the ducks and Dunlin. While we were looking for the Snipe that Carlos had spied, a Lincoln’s Sparrow was a nice surprise….