Fall birding is in full swing

With the shorter days and leaves turning color, it’s no mystery that autumn has arrived. And with the turning of the seasons, our Thurston County bird life has changed as well. 

For the most part all the summer-only residents have departed for their wintering territories, with some flying quite a distance. Purple martins, for example, will fly all the way to South America for the winter. Others, like the diminutive rufous hummingbird, fly to Central Mexico, a distance of 1,500 miles or more. 

At the same time, birds that left our area last spring for breeding in other locations are now returning. In the last week or so, I’ve been hearing varied thrush males vocalizing their flutelike whistle, both the morning and evening. They are related to robins and of similar size, and because of that black mask, children sometimes call them “robber robins.” These birds breed in the Cascades, up to the edge of the tree line.  

A varied thrush up close.

Liam Hutcheson | For The JOLT

As I mentioned several weeks ago, we are being visited by numerous red crossbills this fall. They are frequenting tall conifers, feasting on this year’s abundant seed production. Among the flock are non-red females and young of the year. Females have a greenish appearance and juveniles look like large sparrows, brownish with streaked breast, but you cannot mistake that crossed bill. 

A female red crossbill.

Liam Hutcheson | For The JOLT

For unknown reason, the red-breasted nuthatches have been especially common and noisy this fall. I suspect this might have been a productive breeding season for this species. They vocalize their location to each other using an amusing back and forth “yank, yank,” sounding like a toy horn. I am hearing them almost everywhere. 

A red-breasted nuthatch.

Liam Hutcheson | For The JOLT

Many waterfowl species breed in the far arctic or in the seasonal wetlands of the interior United States and Canada. They generally do not arrive in big numbers here until those breeding areas freeze. However cackling geese, breeding birds of the Arctic Ocean shore and tundra, have already reached Thurston County in good numbers. We are seeing flocks of several thousand flying back and forth in the lower Nisqually River valley. 

Cackling geese.

George Walter | The JOLT

Decades ago, this species was considered as a population variation of Canada goose, and they do look like miniature Canadas. Genetic and other research established that they constituted a separate species, with very limited breeding territory in the far north. Their common name reflects their distinctive “cackling” vocalization, which is much different from the “honking” of the Canada goose. 

Finally, I want to mention shorebirds. October is the final part of shorebird migration through our county, and many of these seasonal visitors are still being seen along marine shorelines. Monitoring the tide stage is crucial for finding shorebirds. They feed at or near the water’s edge, so at low tide they may be far away. But at mid-tide to high tide stages, they come in close and at some locations, for example North Point at the point of Olympia or the boardwalk at Nisqually, you may be able to see them up close. 

A least sandpiper.

Liam Hutcheson | For The JOLT

The smallest of the migratory shorebirds, the least sandpiper, has been seen regularly for the last month on the mudflats of North Point and elsewhere. These small characters are noisy, peeping to each other often. Thus, if you are uncertain about your identification, the Merlin app might help. 

George Walter is environmental program manager at the Nisqually Indian Tribe’s natural resources department; he also has a 45+ year interest in bird watching. He may be reached at george@theJOLTnews.com.

Photos for this column are provided by Liam Hutcheson, a 19-year-old Olympia area birder and avid photographer. Additional photos this week provided to The JOLT by Jon Anderson.