Snoqualmie Falls Bird Survey Underway

Snoqualmie Falls Bird Survey Underway

Written by Andy McCormick

The Snoqualmie Tribe and Eastside Audubon have begun a year-long, once-a-month bird survey of the area around Snoqualmie Falls. The survey team is comprised of Tribal Government employees, some of whom are Tribal Members, and the local Audubon chapter. This work is the first joint bird count in the Snoqualmie Falls area. Parcels in the area were recently purchased by the Snoqualmie Tribe and the Audubon group has often had birding groups in the area. The collaboration grew from a mutual interest in studying the birds around Snoqualmie Falls. The tribe is working with the Audubon to provide appropriate access to some of their land for the survey team. 

By meeting once-a-month to cover the same area, the team will learn which birds are year-round residents and when they are joined by migrating birds in spring and fall. The survey will also help determine which bird species are breeding in the area as nesting birds are observed in spring and summer. The knowledge gained during the survey will be helpful with habitat protection for birds and other wildlife, which is a goal shared by both the Tribe and Audubon. 

The first survey morning was held on January 19. During the three-hour survey the team located 17 species of birds. It was a winter morning with overcast skies and temperature hovering around 40. Birds which winter in this area are hardy and many were busy feeding, and a few sang during the morning.  

Song Sparrow by Andy McCormick

Flocks of Cackling Geese and Canada Geese got the day started as they flew over the area early in the day. Around the upper parking area across from the Salish Lodge, a large flock of Dark-eyed Juncos was foraging in the grass. The shrubs around the parking lot were alive with Golden-crowned Kinglets and Ruby-crowned Kinglets, a Spotted Towhee, and some Song Sparrows. Steller’s Jay, Red-breasted Nuthatch, and Varied Thrush were heard calling. In the trees near the gift shop, which is being remodeled, the team found Black-capped Chickadees and one Chestnut-backed Chickadee, and more kinglets and towhees.  

A pair of Mallards made their way along the Snoqualmie River below the falls and three gulls patrolled the area until a Bald Eagle flew in and perched on a snag across from the confluence of Tokul Creek. From the bridge over the creek three American Dippers were seen hopping into and out of the water as they foraged upstream. Dippers have been nesting in the Tokul Creek area for many years and it was good to see them.  

Here is the list of birds and how many were seen and/or heard:

Brown Creeper by Andy McCormick

Spotted Towhee by Andy McCormick

• 25 Cackling Geese

• 4 Canada Geese

• 2 Mallards

• 3 Western X Glaucous-winged hybrid gulls

• 1 Bald Eagle

• 1 Steller’s Jay

• 3 Black-capped Chickadees

• 1 Chestnut-backed Chickadee

• 4 Ruby-crowned Kinglets

• 10 Golden-crowned Kinglets

• 1 Red-breasted Nuthatch

• 1 Brown Creeper

• 3 American Dippers

• 1 Varied Thrush

• 19 Dark-eyed Juncos

• 5 Song Sparrows

• 3 Spotted Towhees

Misty Morning Bird Walk in the Snoqualmie Valley

Misty Morning Bird Walk in the Snoqualmie Valley – Jan. 16th , 2022

Written by Kendall Wiggins

Kendall Wiggins, Master of Education

On a foggy winter morning, it’s easy to miss the nondescript turn into the Snoqualmie Wildlife Area at Stillwater, located between Carnation and Duvall in the Snoqualmie Valley. One by one, cars pull off the highway into a tiny dirt parking lot surrounded by ponds and grasses. Here, among the reeds and water-filled potholes, a group of eager birders has gathered. The group comprises members of all ages and from many places, with a wealth of experiences to share. Chilly and excited, we set out along the Snoqualmie Valley Trail, binoculars and scopes in hand.

Almost immediately, we are greeted by droves of vocal European starlings, red-winged blackbirds, and American robins perched at the tops of the bare winter trees. We spend time observing a mixed flock of ruby and golden-crowned kinglets, black-capped chickadees and brown creepers which seem to move with us down the trail. We wonder: Are we following them, or are they following us? 

Throughout the walk, song sparrows, spotted towhees, and Pacific wrens keep us company as they forage in the brush and on islands of grasses in the ponds along the trail. Keen eyes spot chestnut-backed chickadees, Bewick’s wrens and a fox sparrow in the nearby shrubs. Intermittent Steller’s jays undulate between trees overhead and a common raven calls from behind the tall conifers. In the distance, double-crested cormorants fly above the Snoqualmie River as it winds its way through the valley. 

Red-naped and Red-breasted Sapsucker Hybrid by Raghav Mehta

The trail is quiet for a while until we see a large flock of bushtits flitting through some low shrubs, accompanied by lone kinglets and chickadees. These adorable little birds lift our spirits as the fog begins to clear and we glimpse blue sky. Some group members continue ahead to spot the first waterfowl of the day, while others stick around and discover a sapsucker conundrum. 

After many minutes of deliberation with many group members weighing in, we decide this bird is most likely a red-breasted and red-naped sapsucker hybrid, though its call was clearly that of a red-breasted sapsucker. A bald eagle watches the entire exchange from a tree across the field.

Cover photo credit by Mick Thompson.