SNOWBIRDS & MORE: 7 new views of West Seattle birds

Thanks to Sarah Chadd in Fauntleroy for the first two photos just in time for the bird-pic gallery we were already planning for today – two “snowbirds” photographed this morning, a Dark-eyed Junco above, Townsend’s Warbler below:

The bird photos below were received over the past few weeks. First, you might be noticing many American Robins out lately – Rainer Klett photographed this one in the Alki area:

At Alki Point, Gary Jones photographed this juvenile Bald Eagle:

A juvenile gull caught Megan Wood‘s eye along Elliott Bay:

Two waterbird views from Steve Bender – a family of Barrow’s Goldeneyes:

And a Great Blue Heron, dining:

Thanks again to everyone who sends photos – whether birds, breaking news, sightings, or … ? – westseattleblog@gmail.com is the best way if it’s not urgent; text 206-293-6302 if it is.

8 Replies to "SNOWBIRDS & MORE: 7 new views of West Seattle birds"

  • Brooke February 2, 2025 (2:24 pm)

    Thanks for sharing the great photos!

  • Karen February 2, 2025 (3:07 pm)

    👏👏 always enjoy these photos thank you!!

  • E February 2, 2025 (5:48 pm)

    Thanks for posting that Townsend’s Warbler, along with all the other great bird photos. You helped me identify my first sighting of one a few days ago.

    • JustSarah February 2, 2025 (6:52 pm)

      Awesome! No other birds in our area have that “bumblebee” coloring, so it’s a good one to learn and be able to easily ID. I personally only ever seem to see them in winter, though technically they’re year-round residents. 

      If you’re interested in identifying birds easily, I highly recommend the Merlin app from Cornell Lab of Ornithology. You can ID by pic or sound.

  • Amy February 3, 2025 (7:03 am)

    Thanks for the birds pics.  We’ve had a ruby-crowned kinglet visiting nearly daily for the last month or so. Pics nearly impossible as it doesn’t hold still ever! So fun to watch it darting in and out of our cedar hedge and along our deck looking for bugs.

    • JustSarah February 3, 2025 (8:19 am)

      Ugh yes, the ruby-crowned kinglet is such a jittery little one! I have so many pictures of blurs or just branches where the bird was when I pressed my camera’s shutter button, lol. I finally got one last week before she saw me and darted off. Of course she was on the ground, so the angle isn’t the best, but at least I can say I finally caught a clear pic of one!

  • FEED...THEM February 4, 2025 (9:25 am)

    This is very difficult weather for these birds to survive in. Please consider feeding them to help them make it through….. oddly I have a neighbor who feeds hummingbirds … except she stops when it’s freezing and snowy and cold(just when they need it:  they can actually die overnight in these temperatures)  So let’s do what we can to be supportive of birds being able to live through this cold winter we are in right now. FEED  them please.

    • JustSarah February 4, 2025 (9:51 pm)

      There are varying schools of thought on this, but I do (responsibly) feed my backyard birds. I have multiple suet, seed, and hummingbird feeders, as well as bird baths. I keep them all clean and filled. The feeders are all hanging in mature trees to give easy refuge in case of a predator. I also have food-source plants like huckleberry and elderberry throughout the yard. Wild Birds Unlimited in Burien is a great local resource for info and supplies. Their suet and seed options cost more than big-box options, but they draw great birds and minimal pests. My favorites are the hot pepper super suet and the no mess blend without millet. I get lots of warblers, woodpeckers, chickadees, nuthatches, kinglets, wrens, and thrushes. Nothing I don’t want (like starlings). 

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