Bird Lore

The Gray-crowned Rosy-Finch is a winter bird of the inland western parts of the U.S. and Canada. The species has been seen in Edmonds twice, both events at Brackett’s Landing…

The Sabine’s Gull is a common migrant off the West Coast but is rare inland. When seen in Puget Sound, it is usually September and early October. There have been…

A new bird, a male Rose-breasted Grosbeak, arrived in Edmonds on June 18 and stayed at the Willow Creek Hatchery long enough to be noticed by two birders. This is…

The Wandering Tattler is an uncommon shorebird due to a small global population, remote breeding grounds and a geographically expansive wintering range (Pacific Ocean islands). This shorebird breeds in the…

Birds put their feathers through a lot of wear and tear in a year’s time. Depending on the species, they can undergo a shedding and replacement of their worn feathers…

A colorful bird of migration, the Lazuli Bunting has only been reported twice in Edmonds, most recently at Puget Drive feeders May 1, 2023. It was seen once previously at…

The American Bittern can be difficult to see. It is a large but secretive bird of fresh water wetlands. It is an uncommon but widespread northern breeder that has been…

A Black-necked Stilt appeared in the Edmonds Marsh in May 2007. This species is regularly seen in summer on Eastern Washington ponds. While it is rare in Western Washington, a…

One fine spring day Joan Poor glanced into her yard and spotted an unusual Edmonds visitor, a Red-naped Sapsucker (adult female). With her April 16, 2021, sighting, Red-naped Sapsucker became…

A birder found a White-rumped Sandpiper in Edmonds Marsh on June 1. It is a shorebird that had never been reported in Edmonds in the 30-plus years of modern recordkeeping….

There is a genus of drab flycatchers called Empidonax, a word that means king of the gnats. The genus has eleven species that spend time in the United States. The…

A Snowy Egret is always a great sighting anywhere in Washington. Edmonds hosted one and only one in the marsh on May 21, 2002, and for a couple of days…

Hutton’s Vireo, a resident of Western Washington, is not an in-your-face kind of bird. In this region it occupies the understory of Douglas fir forests and thickets along lowland streams….

There are over 90 species in the swift family on six continents. There are two species that summer and breed in Washington, Black Swift and Vaux’s Swift. The latter is…

The Common Nighthawk was a fairly common summer sight in Western Washington decades ago. It is now spotted irregularly in Puget Trough cities during migration, which is from late May…

Owls come in all sizes. The largest North American owl, the Great Gray Owl, is 27 inches in length. The Northern Saw-whet Owl is only eight inches in length. It…

The Great Horned Owl is native to the Americas. It is a resident species in all of the contiguous states and Alaska, as far north as tree line. It can…

On the morning of Dec. 14, 2015, an unlikely visitor appeared in Edmonds offshore waters — a Laysan Albatross. This albatross, a West Coast species, is rare but regular within…

The American Dipper is gray and plump, an aquatic songbird that inhabits western rivers and streams from Alaska to Central America. This is a bird that can’t stand still. It…

The Sandhill Crane is an elegant bird, long of leg and neck with a crimson forehead. There have been several sightings in Edmonds over the years, most recently in September…

The Ring-billed Gull, often mythical in Edmonds, is common in other parts of Snohomish County. This is a gull of more quiet waters, one that does not spend much time…

Common over much of North America, the Chipping Sparrow has adapted well to landscapes altered by humans. In the 19th Century it was the common sparrow of cities until introduction…

The Nashville Warbler passes through Edmonds on its way to breeding sites in the Cascades and other mountain ranges of Eastern Washington. Look for it in second growth forests in…

The Bullock’s Oriole is a brilliantly colored songbird that passes through Edmonds in small numbers in spring migration, usually in May. It favors riparian habitat and has been seen around…

Although Mountain Bluebirds breed in Eastern Washington, they can wander quite a bit in spring migration and can be seen in small numbers in Western Washington. An adult female appeared…