From the Contact Station March 2021

Great Backyard Bird Count

After putting up the feeder next to the Contact Station in June of 2018, I was planning to make it a focal point for the Great Backyard Bird Count (GBYBC) in Mid-February.  Being a weekend volunteer, I could monitor the feeder during my shift and get the River S contact station on the map.  That worked in 2019, then I was out of town last year (as Covid started to unfold) and this year, well we all know how that went.  I was going to grab the feeder, clean it, dry it, fill it and do a one-day couple hour sit Saturday or Sunday of the BYBC weekend to capture our usual visitors.  But the refuge was to be closed all week for road work, WDFW was issuing ‘take down your feeder’ guidance and it really, really snowed.  Darn.

Thinking about this year, we have had a huge influx of Pine Siskins, an irruption.  I started noticing them mid-November when I started doing my annual Feeder Watch program, also coordinated by Cornell, at my Ridgefield home.  First there were 20, then 40, then 137 and then an estimate of 200 in mid-December.  They were scattered between feeders and the small trees in my yard and the neighbors’ yard.  Pine Siskins like to feed in flocks. Individual distance is undefined, but probably a few centimeters, sufficient to allow foraging and

takeoff.  No one told them about social distancing the wingspan of a Vulture.  Migrating from breeding grounds in greater numbers and for long distances this year puts a lot of stress on the birds.  Gathering at feeding spots has resulted in an outbreak of Salmonella with the loss of several (probably) weakened birds competing for food in close quarters.

Looking at the weather for the GBYBC weekend, I knew I was not going to get down to the refuge to do a count, so I focused on my yard.  First order of business was to take down the feeders and give them a good scrubbing.  Just like our Covid habits, we need to practice good bird feeder hygiene to prevent disease spread.  I have platform feeders and tube feeders.  I pulled out all the screens on the platform feeders to dislodge any build up of stuff (like old seed and bird poop).  Everything gets taken apart and scrubbed with soapy hot water.  For extra safety, a 9-part water/1 part bleach solution soak is a good strategy.  Then a thorough rinse.  If you have a pair of disposable latex gloves, wear them while cleaning along with safety glasses for any splashing.  You do not want to pick up a nasty case of Salmonella either.  Make sure you wash your hands, just like you do for Covid, when you are done. Let the feeders dry overnight, then fill with seed.  Given the problem with sick birds this year, a good strategy is to limit how much seed you put out at once.  It requires you to refill more often, but then you can clean between refills.  I also took the dish off the bottom of my tube feeder so there would be less accumulation of goop and less opportunity for the birds to congregate closely.  The snow/sleet/ice made it not possible to collect my feeders, so I threw out some seed on top of the crusty snow.  A wide scattering allowed for better bird social distancing at least and I got to enjoy a great BYBC weekend.

I can only imagine what might have turned up at the contact station.  Certainly, the Scrub Jays would have been there within a minute of filling the feeder.  The Black-capped Chickadees and the White-breasted Nuthatches are exceptionally reliable.  The Red-winged Blackbirds have been increasing again recently so they probably would have stopped by.

Golden-crowned Sparrows, Dark-eyed Juncos and Starlings could have flown in.   Woodpeckers or a Sapsucker maybe?

But meanwhile at home the snow brought in a lot of visitors.  The Hummingbird feeders were distanced from the other feeding areas and two Anna’s frequented the thawed feeders.  My Pine Siskin numbers were smaller than usual, with maybe half a dozen showing up briefly each day.  But I had the largest number of Dark-eyed Junco so far this winter.  The Spotted Towhee finally showed up, along with a Purple Finch and a smattering of House Finch and American Goldfinch.  But an exciting find was Varied Thrush that came in to eat the last berries off my pyracantha bush.  I am not close to forest or big trees, so I do not see them very often, but I know they are seen in winter on the Carty Unit of the refuge.  They were around two days for the count.  A Coopers Hawk made a couple of passes but left without lunch.  And, most exciting of all was seeing my first backyard Lincoln’s Sparrow.  I had been looking for one on the refuge but had not been lucky enough to spot it this winter.  They are often with flocks of other sparrows.   Such a lovely little sparrow.

Well, another interesting chapter in this last year of challenges.  I look forward to next year when we can again do the Great Backyard Bird Count including the feeder at the Contact Station.  I am storing my feeders, including the one at the Contact Station, for the remainder of the season and will have them clean and ready to go as spring approaches.

-Susan Setterberg, Contact Station Volunteer
Photos by Susan Setterberg