A Few Feathered Friends of Fall

Hello! Hope everyone is having a nice beginning to autumn!
 
We’re so lucky to live in an area with great birding year-round. Fall is an especially fun time for birding in the county — an exciting mix of spring-breeder stragglers on their way out, migrants passing through, and wintering birds just arriving! Here are a few birds we’ve had the pleasure of encountering recently.
 
One evening as we relaxed on the riverbank at Steelhead Beach Regional Park, these Wood Ducks lazily swam past us. Wood Ducks are often a bit shy, so it was a real treat getting to see their beautiful feathers and colors up close.

A bevy of busy birds delighted us on a recent stroll along West County Regional Trail. We came upon this Pileated Woodpecker hammering away at a large snag.

Towards the top of the snag 10 feet above, an Acorn Woodpecker looked disapprovingly down at the Pileated’s handiwork.

Now and then, the Acorn Woodpecker dive-bombed the Pileated — here’s a short video of the Acorn’s harassment and the Pileated Woodpecker’s wing-flashing response.

 
Each time the Acorn Woodpecker lost steam, the Pileated returned to hammering away, unfazed by the harassment attempts.

Several Yellow Warblers flitted about a stand of willows. Their bright yellow bodies disappear into the yellowish-green foliage, so it was difficult to photograph them.

A Wilson’s Warbler also bopped around the lower foliage — as you can see, it has similar camouflaging amid the willow leaves.

Nearby, a Great Egret came in for a graceful landing, then made its way toward a farm pond.

This little Pacific-slope Flycatcher had a brief beef with a Willow Flycatcher, and ran the Willow off from its bramble patch.

Western Tanagers have been on the move in recent weeks, and we spotted a couple along the trail.

Chestnut-backed Chickadees can be quite bold, and we enjoyed watching this one hang from some dried blackberry right in front of us.

This small group of Canada Geese noisily circled overhead before landing in the water treatment pond.

As evening approached, the light along the shady trail began to grow too dim for photographs — but we managed to capture this Spotted Towhee.

We’re enjoying the arrival of our wintering birds — on recent excursions, a handful of White- and Golden-crowned Sparrows have made an appearance, as well as some darling Lincoln’s and Fox Sparrows. And, just today, we just heard our first Ruby-crowned Kinglet of the season!
 
If you’d like a refresher on distinguishing between the wintering Ruby-crowned Kinglet and the year-round Hutton’s Vireo, check out our post: Ruby-crowned Kinglet vs. Hutton’s Vireo
 
Happy fall birding, everyone!