Tag: Black-capped Chickadee

Random Images

by John Rakestraw, posted in behavior, nesting

Here are some random birds from recent weeks. This Great Blue Heron was wading deep at Commonwealth Lake. The white face and yellow eye really popped, giving her a creepy look.

A Black-capped Chickadee was excavating a cavity in a dead tree at Commonwealth Lake. It is a little early for nesting, but birds will be pairing up soon.

This is a lousy photo, but it documents the Yellow-billed Loon that hung out at Hagg Lake for a few days in early January. Lifers are few and very far between for me, so it is great when one shows up relatively close to home.

This Black Turnstone was taking shelter from the high tides on the little lawn at the Seaside Cove.

Western Gull at the Seaside Cove

The marbled pattern on the bill and the bit of dark smudging on the tail suggests this is a third cycle Western Gull.

Varied Thrush at Summer Lake Park in Tigard

Black-crowned Night-Herons have been regular at Koll Center Wetlands for several years now. They used to be a little more accommodating, but lately they have remained in dense cover most of the time.

This Bushtit was hanging out in the back yard for quite a while. I hope the extreme puffiness of this bird was due to it being cold and was not an indication of illness.

Happy Winter

Random Images

by John Rakestraw, posted in seasonal movements

Once again, here are a few photos from the past few weeks’ ramblings.

While one can admire the adorableness of this Black-capped Chickadee, the real bird of interest is his drinking buddy in the background, a Pine Siskin. Siskins were pretty much non-existent last year as their population took a big downturn (as it does every few years). This fall has brought good numbers of Pine Siskins to the Willamette Valley already, so it looks to be a good year for them.

This Short-eared Owl flushed from Broughton Beach and flew out over the Columbia River before heading downstream. Short-eareds winter at this site with some regularity. I felt bad about flushing the bird. If she had just sat still, I probably would have walked right by and not seen her. I would think that birds who roost in such a high-traffic area would learn to adjust to passers-by.

My gull class went to the coast last weekend. We found nine species of gull, one less than last year but still great diversity. One of the first was this first cycle Ring-billed Gull.

Bonaparte’s Gulls get the award for cutest gull on the Oregon coast.
Even though they lose their black hoods in winter, you can still see the white eye crescents when they turn just so.

The Seaside Cove hosted several Surfbirds along with a flock of Black Turnstones. Both of these species are reliable at this site in fall and winter, but it still feels like a treat to find them every time I’m there.

The forecast for the next week calls for cool and rainy weather, so we shall see what changes that brings to the birding.

Fernhill Wetlands and Jackson Bottom

by John Rakestraw, posted in behavior, nesting, OR Birding Sites

I made a quick trek around Washington County’s two prominent wetlands. There was nothing unusual to report, but there is plenty of bird activity at these sites this time of year.

green heronGreen Heron, lurking

gb heronGreat Blue Heron, not lurking

californiaJuvenile California Gulls are very common lately.

spotty 2I didn’t find many migrant shorebirds this trip, but the resident Spotted Sandpipers posed nicely.

killdeerKilldeer

pelicansFifteen years ago, White Pelicans in the Portland area were a pretty big deal, but now they are expected in the larger wetlands in summer.

kingfisherBelted Kingfishers like the perches that have been installed at Fernhill.

ospreyOsprey over the lake at Fernhill

treeClouds of swallows are hanging out at Jackson Bottom. This Tree Swallow spent a long time just sitting in the opening of her nest box.

chickadeeThey have installed a water feature near the visitor center at Jackson Bottom. This soggy Black-capped Chickadee was enjoying a dip.

lesser goldLesser Goldfinch on the fountain

As nesting season wraps up and water levels drop, I can soon start obsessing on migrant shorebirds.

Chickadee Trifecta

by John Rakestraw, posted in rarities, seasonal movements

I had three species of chickadees attending my feeder recently. The Black-capped Chickadees are year-round residents and visit every day.

Chestnut-backed Chickadees appear occasionally, most often in winter, although I have been seeing them more often in recent months.

The star attraction on this day was a Mountain Chickadee. While common along the crest of the Cascades and points east, they are a rare treat in the Willamette Valley. This bird is the seventh record for Washington County.

I believe the Pacific Northwest is the only place where you might find three species of chickadees in one flock. Range maps indicate that in southeastern Alaska, you might be able to find four species in the same area. That sounds like a worthy birding challenge.

Stalled Spring

by John Rakestraw, posted in seasonal movements

This March has been one of the coolest and wettest on record in the Portland area. Aside from keeping me indoors far more than I would like, the weather has created a bit of a stall in spring’s progress.


The winter residents, like this skulking Varied Thrush, have started to thin out. There are still a lot of waterfowl around, but gull numbers are greatly reduced.


A long walk on the beach north of Gearhart produced a few Sanderlings, but the northbound shorebirds haven’t arrived yet.


Activity at the bird feeder has slowed down as the winter flocks are breaking up and the local birds start pairing up. Here is one of the resident Black-capped Chickadees.


A Norway Rat has been taking advantage of the seeds the birds drop.


Despite the dreary weather, there are signs of the coming breeding season. This Yellow-rumped Warbler (Audubon’s race) is showing off his fresh breeding plumage.

When we experience long bouts of bad weather, and spending the month of March in Arizona sounds very appealing, we still need to get out into the field. Spring may be slow in coming, but there are still birds out there. Slow birding gives you the chance to study the common local species more carefully, and you never know what might turn up.

Northern Flickers

by John Rakestraw, posted in species profile

northern flicker male front
Northern Flickers have been visiting the bird feeder lately. Their bills are not designed to crack open seeds, so they just pull all the seeds out of the feeder until they find one that is already open.

northern flicker female
Females lack the red mustaches found on the males.

northern flicker male
Since they are a common backyard species, we tend to take Northern Flickers for granted, or focus on their destructive habit of drilling into house siding. But on close inspection, we see that these are truly stunning birds.

P1070674
This Black-capped Chickadee, a more common species at bird feeders, is dwarfed by the monstrous flicker. Northern Flickers normally eat ants and other insects, but will come to feeders offering suet or sunflower seeds.

Finley NWR

by John Rakestraw, posted in OR Birding Sites

I walked around much of William L. Finley NWR, one of the three in the Willamette Valley National Wildlife Refuge Complex. Of the three, Finley has the greatest diversity of habitats, as it lies right at the edge of the Coast Range.


At the heart of the refuge is Cabell Marsh, home to waterfowl, herons, and a small flock of American White Pelicans. Notable flyovers that day included White-tailed Kite and Red-shouldered Hawk.


Black-capped Chickadees were everywhere, in the woods where you would expect them, and in the cattails which seemed a little odd.


Lazuli Buntings inhabit brushy areas in the oak savannahs.


A family of Bewick’s Wrens were in a brush pile near the top of Pigeon Butte.


On the way home I stopped by Baskett Slough NWR, another refuge in the Willamette Valley complex. Most of the wetlands here were dry. South Slough Pond was actually being plowed. Cottonwood Pond still held water and was hosting these three American White Pelicans.


This Black-tailed Deer was panting as she walked across the dry grassland and crossed the road.