[Tweeters] Wednesday Walk for Billy Frank Jr Nisqually NWR on 4/2/2025

[Shep Thorp via Tweeters]

Hi Tweets,

Fourty of us enjoyed a nice Spring day at the Refuge with mostly cloudy
skies, intermittent light rain and temperatures in the 40's to 50's degrees
Fahrenheit.  There was a High 13'9" Tide at 8:20am, so we skipped the
Orchard and Access Roads in the morning to make the most of the falling
tide.  Highlights included First Of Year COMMON YELLOWTHROAT, both
RED-BREASTED SAPSUCKER and HAIRY WOODPECKER working on nest cavities in the
snag to the right of the Visitor Center entrance, continuing hybrid
AMERICAN X EURASIAN WIGEON in the flooded field south of the Twin Barns,
continuing SNOW GOOSE and GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE on the Nisqually
Estuary Trail, two occupied BALD EAGLE nests one on the Nisqually River and
the other on the McAllister Creek, and upwards of three Mink seen on the
west side of the Twin Barns Loop Trail.

For the day we observed 72 species, and with FOY Common Yellowthroat and
EURASIAN COLLARED DOVE, we now have seen 114 species this year.  See our
eBird Report with details pasted below.

Additional observations included the increase in numbers of female
RED-WINGED BLACKBIRDS in the freshwater  marsh.  As well, we still have not
observed Cinnamon Teal or Osprey this spring which seems late to me.

Other sightings included Townsend's Chipmunk, Puget Sound Garter Snake,
Pacific Tree Frog and Harbor Seal.

Until next week when we meet again at 8am at the Visitor Center Pond
Overlook, happy birding.

Shep
-- 
Shep Thorp
Browns Point
253-370-3742

Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually NWR, Thurston, Washington, US
Apr 2, 2025 7:18 AM - 4:35 PM
Protocol: Traveling
6.953 mile(s)
Checklist Comments:     Wednesday Walk. Mostly cloudy with intermittent
light rain and temperatures in the 40’s to 50’s degrees Fahrenheit. There
was a High 13’9” Tide at 8:20am. Mammals seen included Townsend’s Chipmunk,
Eastern Cotton-tailed Rabbit, Mink x 3, Eastern Gray Squirrel, and Harbor
Seal. Others seen included Puget Sound Garter Snake, Pacific Tree Frog, and
Northwest Salamander Egg Mass.
72 species (+8 other taxa)

Snow Goose  1     Continues in fresh water marsh.
Greater White-fronted Goose (Western)  29     Nisqually Estuary Trail.
Brant (Black)  100     Nisqually Reach.
Cackling Goose (minima)  600
Cackling Goose (Taverner's)  18
Canada Goose (moffitti/maxima)  30
Wood Duck  4
Northern Shoveler  100
Gadwall  40
Eurasian Wigeon  3     Twin Barns Overlook, Fresh Water marsh along
Nisqually Estuary Trail, and McAllister Observation Platform.
American Wigeon  700
Eurasian x American Wigeon (hybrid)  1     Flooded field south of Twin
Barns.
Mallard  150
Northern Pintail  360
Green-winged Teal (American)  1000
Ring-necked Duck  9
Surf Scoter  30
Bufflehead  125
Common Goldeneye  20
Hooded Merganser  10
Common Merganser (North American)  12
Red-breasted Merganser  30
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon)  3
Band-tailed Pigeon (Northern)  5
Eurasian Collared-Dove  1
Mourning Dove  3
Rufous Hummingbird  4
hummingbird sp.  1
American Coot (Red-shielded)  150
Wilson's Snipe  5
Spotted Sandpiper  1
Greater Yellowlegs  30
Dunlin  600
Least Sandpiper  40
Short-billed Gull  200
Ring-billed Gull  30
Glaucous-winged Gull  1
Western x Glaucous-winged Gull (hybrid)  15
Western/Glaucous-winged Gull  30
Pied-billed Grebe  4
Brandt's Cormorant  12
Double-crested Cormorant  3
Great Blue Heron (Great Blue)  15
Northern Harrier  1
Bald Eagle  30     Occupied nests: 1) Large Cottonwood west side of
Nisqually River north of Nisqually Estuary Trail, 2) West Bank of
McAllister Creek across from Puget Sound Observation Platform.
Belted Kingfisher  3
Red-breasted Sapsucker  2     Left of entrance to Visitor Center and Twin
Barns Picnic Area.
Downy Woodpecker (Pacific)  4
Hairy Woodpecker (Pacific)  1     Left of entrance to Visitor Center
Northern Flicker  3
Northern Flicker (Red-shafted)  1
American Crow  10
Common Raven  2
Black-capped Chickadee  15
Chestnut-backed Chickadee  6
Tree Swallow  76
Violet-green Swallow  4
Barn Swallow  2
Bushtit (Pacific)  2
Ruby-crowned Kinglet  10
Golden-crowned Kinglet  1     Heard
Brown Creeper  15
Pacific Wren  1
Marsh Wren  11
Bewick's Wren (spilurus Group)  10
European Starling  35
American Robin  40
Purple Finch (Western)  5
Pine Siskin  25
Fox Sparrow (Sooty)  1
Golden-crowned Sparrow  18
Savannah Sparrow (Savannah)  1     Nisqually Estuary Trail.
Song Sparrow (rufina Group)  34
Lincoln's Sparrow  1
Spotted Towhee (oregonus Group)  1
Red-winged Blackbird (Red-winged)  200
Common Yellowthroat  2
Yellow-rumped Warbler  20
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle)  4
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Audubon's)  15

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S222570103
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://mailman11.u.washington.edu/pipermail/tweeters/attachments/20250402/cd4c644d/attachment.html>