winter

Western Sandpiper

February 10, 2013
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The Western Sandpiper (Calidris mauri) is a small shorebird that can be found year round on the Pacific Northwest coast. Small flocks work their way up and down sandy beaches and mudflats in winter and much larger congregations pass through on their migration journeys in spring (April and May) and…

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Wintering Waterfowl in the Willamette Valley

January 12, 2013
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Winter seems like a quiet, dormant time in the natural areas of the Pacific Northwest. In many ways it is– in winter, the songbirds, frogs, and insects that make such a racket in summer are either hibernating, in another country for the season, or keeping a vow of silence. The deciduous trees are leafless and skeletal, and a blanket of gray clouds covers everything. But the months of December, January, and February are actually boisterous times in and around the valley wetlands of western Washington…

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Stink Bugs

April 4, 2012
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Stink bugs are common insects that look sort of like beetles. However, stink bugs are only distantly related to beetles and belong to a separate group: the Pentatomidae family in the order Hemiptera (which also includes Boxelder Bugs). There are thousands of…

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Anna’s Hummingbird in Winter

March 3, 2012
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Back in October, I wrote a post about the Anna’s Hummingbird that was hanging around in my backyard. It was king of the hummingbird feeder back then but I wondered if it would stick around through the cold winter months. As these recent photos show, the little hummer is still with us. It perches on the same branches every day and chases off any other hummingbirds that come to drink from the feeder. This bird…

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A Foggy Day at Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge

January 17, 2012
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Dense fog filled the lowlands on the day of my most recent visit to Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge. The scenery was ghostly, cold, and calm. The refuge encompasses a complex of wetlands, grasslands, and oak forests along the eastern banks of the Columbia River in Washington. I drove the 4.2 mile auto tour of the ‘S Unit’ for the first time. I rolled along slowly in my car, in the middle of a procession of cars…

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Snowberry

January 9, 2012
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Snowberry (Symphoricarpos albus) is a common shrub in low to mid elevation forests of the Pacific Northwest. It prefers drier sites, in shade or open areas. The oval-shaped leaves of Snowberry are abut 1″ long (2.5 cm) and are arranged oppositely on very thin stems. The whole plant grows up to 6 ft tall (2 m). The small clusters of pink, bell-shaped flowers…

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Boxelder Bugs

November 27, 2011
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As the weather cooled down this Autumn, some little bugs showed up at my house. Dozens of them have been creeping around on the exterior walls for the last two months. Small groups of them huddle in the corners of the windowpanes. You have probably seen these insects before– they are Boxelder Bugs (Boisea rubrolineata). They are especially conspicuous in autumn

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