Willows and Osoberry and Salmonberry are blooming, as well as some non-native flowering cherry or plum trees, such as the one in the photo above. The grass is greening up. But most other trees and shrubs are still bare sticks with, perhaps, some buds just starting to form.TREE SWALLOWS returned in force this week. A single BARN SWALLOW noted at the end of last week was present early this week. It is about 5 weeks early, generally not arriving until the first week of April. A VIOLET-GREEN SWALLOW was spotted March 3.
A EURASIAN-COLLARED DOVE put in an appearance for a few minutes at the bird feeder this week. They are still only occasional visitors to the Preserve; the wetlands habitat is not really ideal habitat for these recent invaders.
Amazingly, MARSH WRENS are singing away and we found a recently built nest. This is probably a "dummy nest" as described in this article in the 1990 issue of the Auk.
The Northern Shrike is still being seen near the Dogwood Viewing Area on Blue Heron Trail (map; key). The patagial marked Red-tailed Hawk seems to have taken up residence. The eggs of the Great Horned Owl must just about be ready to hatch.
This week's birdlist:
Cackling Goose
Canada Goose
Wood Duck
Gadwall
American Wigeon
Mallard
Northern Shoveler
Northern Pintail
Green-winged Teal
Canvasback
Ring-necked Duck
Lesser Scaup
Bufflehead
Hooded Merganser
Common Merganser
Ruddy Duck
Ring-necked Pheasant
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Bald Eagle
Northern Harrier
Red-tailed Hawk
American Kestrel
American Coot
Killdeer
Dunlin
Wilson's Snipe
Mew Gull
Glaucous-winged Gull
Eurasian Collared-Dove
Mourning Dove
Great Horned Owl
Anna's Hummingbird
Belted Kingfisher
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Northern Shrike
Steller's Jay
Western Scrub-Jay
American Crow
Tree Swallow
Violet-green Swallow
Barn Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
Bushtit
White-breasted Nuthatch
Bewick's Wren
Marsh Wren
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
American Robin
European Starling
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Spotted Towhee
Fox Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Golden-crowned Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Red-winged Blackbird
Western Meadowlark
House Finch
Pine Siskin
Lesser Goldfinch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow