Birding Festival

Homer's Bird Festival was two weeks ago and ours in Kenai is this weekend. I hope we can attend part of it. We've been down to the K River Flats almost every day to see what is new and also to enjoy the birds who are hanging out for more than 2-3 days. The late afternoon-evening is a great time to go, as many of the birds on the flats are on the east side of the highway, and the setting sun lights them up so perfectly. Since it's been cloudy the last few days, who knows how the light will be? So almost any time is ok. Our backyard seems a bit too quiet for my taste. I have heard robins, kinglets, white-crowned sparrows, juncos, and other calls, but not to the degree and intensity that I recall from other years. My heart soars when we have a backyard full of birdsong. We have been hearing and seeing a couple of robins regularly, so that is encouraging. Our spruce grouse keeps coming back, we see her on the feeder, the ground below the feeder, and just around. We are hoping she has a nest and baby grouses nearby. I don't know what they're called, but I do know they are precocial, so they may show up themselves with her one day. Yesterday I thought I saw a golden-crowned kinglet in the spruce near our bird watering station. And we continue to see the Myrtle Warbler too. All good. Just keep 'em coming.

Large Visitor to our Feeder

Two days ago, we saw a spruce grouse under our feeder. We've been seeing grouse around our yard off and on for a couple of years, but more lately in the past winter. Then yesterday and today, we've seen her on top of the bird feeder. It's a bit of a double-take, when you look out expecting to see the tiny delicate pine siskins or something approximately that size, and there sits that enormous bird. The squirrel even avoids the top of the feeder when she's up there, as mild-mannered and shy as grouse are, still a big bird.

We've had a robin, myrtle warblers, white-crowned sparrows, and our usual suspects to the watering stationg. Still chilly out, so hopefully soon more sunshine will bring out more birds. Hearing kinglets, sparrows, robins, juncos singing all around in the early morning, even during the day. Nothing new to report on the Kenai River Flats.

Myrtle Warbler, Yellow-Rumped

Today, both of us spent the whole day outside working, hearing robins, white-crowned sparrows, juncos, and kinglets singing all around. Then around 1 PM, we saw a Myrtle Warbler show up at the water in our backyard. So exciting to see a Myrtle Warbler today,our first sighting of the summer, and one of those birds whose call we're not familiar with. And then a bit later, finally, we saw a white-crowned sparrow! Wonderful spring day.

White-crowned Sparrow

This morning, heard the unmistakable song of the W-C Sparrow in our back "40" somewhere. Absolutely springy and fresh sounding. Have still not seen one, but would expect we will sometime soon.

Black-Bellied Plovers!

One of our favorite spring migratory birds! We saw several of them last night on the Kenai Boat Dock road. Along with dowitchers (we're assuming long-billed), green-winged teal, Hudsonian Godwits, some sort of sandpiper, just could not get a good enough look to ID, dunlins, and then a bit later, on the KR Flats, parked in the pullout, we saw a flock of red knots! Also - a long ways away to the east, there was an enormous flock of something UFO, white bellies, black and white when they turned. They flew up and back and forth and landed several times. With the setting sun shining against them, it was very flashy, even without binoculars, you could see them across the flats. Large flocks of Canada geese and white-fronted geese. Also about 20 sandhill cranes. A great evening for birds.

Robins Yes

Yesterday we saw and heard robins in our yard. One fed at our bird feeder. Also heard and saw juncos, varied thrush, and ruby-crowned kinglets, all singing away joyously this morning. Yesterday a trip down the Kenai Boat Dock road, yielded a sighting of two dowitchers mating, and many other dowitchers in the vicinity. Also a small sandpiper, could not get a clear view or ID. Sandhill cranes, shovelers, pintails, mallards, widgeons, green-winged teal, and godwits. Three swans. Anxious to visit later today, maybe we'll see a black-bellied plover. Every day things are changing.

Not So Silent Spring

A lot of spring birds are officially here. Snow geese, sandhill cranes, widgeons, the usual pintails and mallards, teal (blue-winged), ruby-crowned kinglets. We checked our book from last year, by this date we had seen a white-crowned sparrow. Have not seen nor heard one yet. Yes to the varied thrush. Thought I heard a robin tonight. Swallows. Our neighborhood trees have changed so much, I'm concerned about habitat loss. The thought of a silent spring is in the back of all of our minds some way or another. Some places are alive with birdsong. We are hopeful for more spring birds in our neighborhood soon.