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….
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….
Loons at Deception Pass
On January 25, more than 100 people participated in the annual Loon Field Trip to West Beach and Cranberry Lake led by Sarah and Steve Ellis. They spotted all three loon species, along with Surf Scoter, Common Goldeneye, Red-breasted Merganser, Red-necked Grebe, Horned Grebe, Pigeon Guillemot and many other birds.