Whitaker Ponds Nature Park
One of my favorite parks is Whitaker Ponds Nature Park. Ever since my first time there I knew it was a special place. It’s a small (but productive) park at 24 acres with a 1/2-mile flat loop trail. Completely surrounded by urban land, it is a mini-oasis for birds. And for myself. Here I saw my first Common Merganser, Red-winged Blackbird, Common Goldeneye,…
January Birds
January was a good month for birds. Inspired by a fellow local birder friend, Jen, I’m trying out birding a 5 mile radius from home and using eBird’s “patch” options to track species. Basically, pick a few places to regularly bird and add them to a patch. It’s a good way to explore nearby parks,…
Seattle Part I: Reliable Redpolls
A couple of weeks ago, Jen invited me on a birding day trip to Seattle with her and her pups. How could I resist those faces?! To sweeten the deal, there were life-birds up for grabs. A flock of Common Redpolls was reportedly (reliably) camped out in the birch trees near Green Lake. Redpolls typically…