[Tweeters] Wednesday Walk at Billy Frank Jr Nisqually NWR for 10/15/2025

[Shep Thorp via Tweeters]

Dear Tweets,

Approximately 25 of us had a beautiful Fall day at the Refuge with sunny
skies and temperatures in the 40's to 60's degrees Fahrenheit.  There was a
High 13'3" Tide at 3:08pm.  Highlights included a very birdy morning in the
Orchard with great looks of both RUBY-CROWNED and GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLET,
both BLACK-CAPPED and CHESTNUT-BACKED CHICKADEE, HUTTON'S VIREO, numerous
sparrows including FOX SPARROW, GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROW, SONG SPARROW and
SPOTTED TOWHEE, nice looks of RED-BREASTED SAPSUCKER, and fly over of
RED-TAILED HAWK and SHARP-SHINNED HAWK.  A large flock of CACKLING GEESE,
mostly minima and few taverners were in the mowed fields south of the Twin
Barns.  Several birders heard the 'keeyuur" cry of a distant First of Year
RED-SHOULDERED HAWK calling from the riparian stand west of the field
either side of the old McAllister Creek Access Road.  The Nisqually Estuary
Boardwalk Trail and Nisqually Estuary Trail (dike) had nice views of
WHIMBREL, GREATER YELLOW-LEGS, both peeps LEAST and WESTERN SANDPIPER,
BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER and LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER.  We had distant views of
First of Season DUNLIN.  There was a nice raptor show with good looks of
AMERICAN KESTREL, NORTHERN HARRIER x 4 birds (male, female, 2 immature),
and MERLIN x 2 birds.

For the day we observed 80 species, with FOY heard only Red-shouldered
Hawk, we now have seen 173 species so far this year.

Other notables were Columbian Black-taile Deer buck with a nice antler
rack, Long-tailed Weasel on the dike near the Twin Barns, and numerous
Isabella Tiger Moth caterpillars on the trails.

See our eBird list with photos pasted below.

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
Oct 15, 2025 7:38 AM - 4:40 PM
Protocol: Traveling
3.014 mile(s)
Checklist Comments:     Wednesday Walk. Sunny, temperatures in the 30’s to
60’s. A High 13’3” Tide at 3:08pm.  Mammals seen Eastern Cotton-tailed
Rabbit, Townsend’s Chipmunk, Columbian Black-tailed Deer, Eastern Gray
Squirrel, Douglas Squirrel, Long-tailed Weasel, and Harbor Seal.  Numerous
Isabella Tiger Moth caterpillar on the trail.
80 species (+4 other taxa)

Cackling Goose (minima)  250
Cackling Goose (Taverner's)  15
Canada Goose (moffitti/maxima)  11
Wood Duck  2     Visitor Center Pond
Northern Shoveler  6
Gadwall  1     Visitor Center Pond.
American Wigeon  3500
Mallard  50
Northern Pintail  500
Green-winged Teal (American)  750
Surf Scoter  15     McAllister Creek and Nisqually Reach
White-winged Scoter  2
Bufflehead  4     Nisqually Reach
Hooded Merganser  1     Visitor Center Pond
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon)  50
Anna's Hummingbird  2
Virginia Rail  3     Heard only in the Freshwater Marsh
Black-bellied Plover  6     Surge plain, and mudflats west of Leschi slough.
Killdeer  15
Whimbrel (Hudsonian)  2     Previously reported. Photos. Observed along the
Nisqually Estuary Boardwalk Trail between the Observation Tower and
McAllister Creek Observation Platform.
Long-billed Dowitcher  8     Surge plain on high tide.
Wilson's Snipe  1
Spotted Sandpiper  1     West side of McAllister Creek.
Greater Yellowlegs  30
Dunlin  6     Seen on mudflats between Leschi Slough and Nisqually Estuary
Boardwalk Trail north of McAllister Creek Observation Platform.
Least Sandpiper  75
Western Sandpiper  15
Short-billed Gull  1
Ring-billed Gull  175
California Gull  2
Glaucous-winged Gull  2
Western x Glaucous-winged Gull (hybrid)  8
Western/Glaucous-winged Gull  20
Pied-billed Grebe  1     Visitor Center Pond
Common Loon  1     Nisqually Reach
Brandt's Cormorant  8     Nisqually Channel Marker.
Double-crested Cormorant  20
Great Blue Heron (Great Blue)  35
Turkey Vulture  1
Sharp-shinned Hawk  1     Orchard.
Cooper's Hawk  1     Riparian Forest Overlook.
Northern Harrier  4
Bald Eagle  8
Red-shouldered Hawk  1     Heard only. Repeated “keeyurr” call heard from
the stand of Riparian Forest west of the fields west of the west side
parking lot.
Red-tailed Hawk  3
Belted Kingfisher  2     McAllister Creek
Red-breasted Sapsucker  1     Orchard.
Downy Woodpecker (Pacific)  4
Hairy Woodpecker (Pacific)  1     Twin Barns Picnic Bench
Northern Flicker  2
Northern Flicker (Red-shafted)  2
American Kestrel (Northern)  1
Merlin  2
Peregrine Falcon  1
Hutton's Vireo (Pacific)  2     Education Center.
Steller's Jay (Coastal)  2
American Crow  100
Common Raven  8
Black-capped Chickadee  25
Chestnut-backed Chickadee  8
Bushtit (Pacific)  30
Ruby-crowned Kinglet  8
Golden-crowned Kinglet  15
Brown Creeper  8
Pacific Wren (pacificus Group)  4
Marsh Wren  6
Bewick's Wren (spilurus Group)  6
European Starling  400
Varied Thrush  2
American Robin  31
Cedar Waxwing  30
Evening Grosbeak  1     West End. Parking Lot Area.
House Finch  4     West End Parking Lot
Purple Finch (Western)  10
American Goldfinch  4
Fox Sparrow (Sooty)  5
White-crowned Sparrow (pugetensis)  1
Golden-crowned Sparrow  26
Savannah Sparrow (Savannah)  8
Song Sparrow (rufina Group)  33
Lincoln's Sparrow  2
Spotted Towhee (oregonus Group)  7
Red-winged Blackbird (Red-winged)  70
Yellow-rumped Warbler  3

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S279722977
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