I had intended to take a short walk down to Totem Park to check if any shorebirds were out that way and hopefully find a Rock Sandpiper – a species which I know is around, but had not been seen during yesterdays bird count. It didn’t quite work out that way, but that was because there were interesting things to be observing.

First up was a Western Screech Owl on Etolin Street – the first I’ve seen in daylight, and only about the third time I’ve actually seen one at all (though I’ve heard them many times).

Then down at the park I got distracted by conversation with a couple of different people – heard some interesting things about the goings-on of birds an other animals. Including ducks at Totem Park and Sea Otters out at Halibut Point Rec. (In one of the videos [update: no longer available] made by one of the people I was talking to – there is part of it you can observed Mallards working over the cobbles in Indian River for food, as well as seeing a Common Merganser try and come in to steal some bites – at least that’s what I think is going on.)

While out on the flats looking for the shorebirds, I looked up as the gulls and crows went into a bird plow. Spotted an eagle with something in its talons flying my way.

There was an odd duck out in the bay in front of Indian River mouth – too far away to get a very good look at. Also lots of birds out from Jamestown Bay, too far to identify as well.

Finally I started back home and then spent more time watching and photographing the owl, as well as showing some other passers-by.

The whole time there were interesting atmospheric displays as the clouds were breaking up in front of the sun.

In the end it was a fairly full day wandering around, seeing the sights, and then editing the photos later. I think the owl and eagle photos deserve their own post. The photos are in the album here, but I think I’ll write a separate post in the next couple of days to tell those stories a little better.

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Western Screech Owl found roosting in a spruce tree along Etolin Street.

Western Screech Owl found roosting in a spruce tree along Etolin Street.

Western Screech Owl found roosting in a spruce tree along Etolin Street.

A Great Blue Heron patrols a tidepool at Totem Park with Mt. Edgecumbe rising behind O'Connell Bridge in the background.

Bald Eagle flight with Common Murre prey.

Bald Eagle flight with Common Murre prey.

Snow-covered Mt. Edgecumbe as seen from Totem Park.

Sun rays radiate down over Eastern Channel with the Pyramids providing a dark background.

Sun rays radiate down over Eastern Channel with the Pyramids providing a dark background.

A Trumpeter Swan takes off from Indian River Estuary with storage containers making for a fairly developed looking background.

I was puzzled by this bird until getting a look at it in this full resolution (drastically cropped) scale. I believe it is a young White-winged Scoter.

Female Common Mergansers foraging in shallow water at Mouth of Indian River.

Female Common Mergansers foraging in shallow water at Mouth of Indian River.

Female Common Mergansers foraging in shallow water at Mouth of Indian River.

Sun rays shining from behind clouds with a bit of iridescence in the clouds at the lower left.

Cumulus clouds and sun rays.

Cumulus clouds and sun rays.

Western Screech Owl found roosting in a spruce tree along Etolin Street.

Western Screech Owl found roosting in a spruce tree along Etolin Street.

Bald Eagle flight with Common Murre prey.

Bald Eagle flight with Common Murre prey.

Bald Eagle flight with Common Murre prey.

The first has taken off and the next two are getting ready to get up to speed.

Common Merganser gaining speed to achieve flight.

Snow overnight with some scattered snow showers today left the ground covered in an inch or so of snow. Between the snow showers, the sun was actually shining for a good chunk of the day. Was nice to have another day of brightness as we approach the new year.

I did a little birding this afternoon, with the main goal to try and photograph a Lincoln’s Sparrow that has been visiting a feeder since at least late fall.

On a brief stop at Swan Lake, I was interested to see how aggressive the Trumpeter Swan was being with a couple of Mallards that were getting between it and the corn someone was tossing out. The swan would grab the mallard (male in each case) by the neck and swing it around a few times. The ducks seemed to get the idea and leave a little space around the swan. I thought it was funny to see the first year Glaucous Gull fly in and slip into the dense crowd of Mallards to try a bit of the corn. I didn’t get the impression it was much to the gull’s liking, as it didn’t make much effort to go after more.

Across the lake 24 or more Ring-necked Ducks were all gathered up in the open water near the little cove on the west side. This is the best time to observe the ducks, as when the lake is open, they tend to be scattered around and most of them are distant and hard to see very well. When the lake ices over completely they leave – and are rarely observed elsewhere. In the same opening was an American Wigeon – a bird I’ve not noticed lately.

I did get to see the Lincoln’s Sparrow. Wasn’t a great time for getting pictures of it, but did get one shot that was at least recognizable. Might try for a better photo on a future occasion when I have more time and the direction of the sun is a bit better.

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Swan Lake was partially covered in slush from the snow that had fallen overnight and this morning.

Snow squalls and a setting sun made for some soft light over the water and Mt. Edgecumbe this afternoon.

Snow squalls and a setting sun made for some soft light over the water and Mt. Edgecumbe this afternoon.

Snow squalls and a setting sun made for some soft light over the water and Mt. Edgecumbe this afternoon.

It is very unusual for a LIncoln's Sparrow to be found this late in Sitka.

There was a chance that frisbee might be played this morning at Moller Park, so the kids and I walked up the west side of Swan Lake to check it out. I figured in the likely scenario that frisbee was not happening, we could at least get some birding in – see if there was anything of particular interest as we head in to count week for the Christmas Bird Count this Sunday. As it turned out, there were a couple people playing catch, so we joined them for a bit, before continuing on.

Rowan was surprisingly interested in birding today, while Connor was much less so. Usually it’s the other way around. Rowan had played on the playground for part of the time Connor and I were playing catch and she opted to go with me along the Path of Hope while Connor decided to play on the playground for a while. I sent her off into the lower brushy area to see if there were any sparrows or thrushes lurking about. She ended up coming up through a (very) minor unofficial trail to try and sneak up on me while I was at the overlook checking out what was on Swan Lake (and there wasn’t much I could see). She wanted to return the way she came, so I went over to the parking for the path of hope – noticing mostly juncos and a few Pine Siskins in the parking lot and at the feeder across the street (earlier Rowan heard then we saw a couple of small flocks flying over – perhaps 30+ birds in all).

Walking down the road, Connor came out to meet me, but Rowan still hadn’t found her way out of the forested area. While waiting for her, Connor and I spotted a Downy Woodpecker – a bird I’ve only seen a handful of times around here over the years. I sent Connor to find Rowan so she could see it also, while I tried to take some pictures. The photos didn’t turn out that great, but fortunately it stuck around long enough for Rowan to get a look at it.

Rowan had found a bird skeleton in the bushes along the ‘trail’ she had been on. She picked up the skull and wanted to pick up some of the other bones, but it sounded like after looking away to get a stick to use, she couldn’t find where the remainder of the skeleton was. She thought the skull might be a sparrow, but I suggested a warbler was more likely, since there were still yellow feathers associated with it. Also, the bill looked better for a warbler, though she and I didn’t talk about that at the time. She carried the skull all the way home so we could keep it. At the time she was talking about trying to figure out what it was by looking in the bird book, but by the time we got home, I think she just wanted to eat lunch, and then forgot about that project.

Rather than retrace our steps, we continued around on Cascade Street, then down Lake Street. Connor decided to head on home to start lunch warming up, while Rowan and I stopped to check out the birds on Swan Lake. I was able to count 15+ Ring-necked Ducks, as well as some scaups and mallards near the radio station. At the peninsula there was the lone Trumpeter Swan, many more Mallards and a few gulls, including the first year Glaucous Gull.

Rowan noticed all the tracks in the snow at the peninsula and said she thought the swan had been walking around a bunch. I’m not sure what made her think they were swan tracks instead of gulls and mallards, but she realized the difference when a couple people came and spread some corn out for the birds. The swan walked over to get some, and then Rowan was able to check out the tracks where she had seen the swan walking. We were both impressed with the size.

Overall it was a quiet day – a bit of wind, but not too much, bird activity seemed pretty low, and there wasn’t a lot of precipitation. What did fall was kind of a heavy wet snow, but there wasn’t enough to add any depth to the thin ground covering that we got overnight.

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This Downy Woodpecker foraging on trees near Moller Park.

Rowan found this bird skull (probably a warbler) in brush near the Path of Hope.

Rowan found this bird skull (probably a warbler) in brush near the Path of Hope.

Two Glaucous-winged Gulls and a Glaucous Gull at Swan Lake.

Trumpeter Swan tracks in the snow at Swan Lake.

Trumpeter Swan tracks in the snow at Swan Lake.

It turned out to be pleasant weather for Christmas. Winds were calm and the clouds broke up a bit in the afternoon. I took a short walk to Swan Lake to see what was around before going to eat dinner with family.

Was fairly quiet at the lake, though I was interested to a male Common Merganser cruising around – they mostly stick to salt water and rivers around here, in my experience. A lone Trumpeter Swan was resting near the peninsula, offering easy views, and a first year Glaucous Gull was bathing in the lake before coming to shore to preen.

Before I left, the sun broke out a bit on Verstovia – it was nice to see the bright snow and blue sky behind the broken clouds.

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First year Glaucous Gull at Swan Lake.

Trumpeter Swan at Swan Lake

Trumpeter Swan at Swan Lake

First year Glaucous Gull at Swan Lake.

Trumpeter Swan at Swan Lake

Sunlight on snow and broken clouds behind Verstovia made the lighting a little more dramatic than it would otherwise be.

Sunlight on snow and broken clouds behind Verstovia made the lighting a little more dramatic than it would otherwise be.

The kids and I had time to stop by Swan Lake after lunch today. Two juvenile Trumpeter Swans are still spending most of their time on the lake, though the adults they wintered with seem to have moved on.

After stopping by Marge and Tedin’s to start getting caught up on several weeks of cards, I noticed some Skunk Cabbage up and getting ready to bloom – the first I’ve seen this year.

The gathering of gulls at Swan Lake this time of year provides a good opportunity to practice identifying them.

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Gulls can still be a challenge, but this seems to be a fairly typical Thayer's Gull (Larus thayeri).

Gulls can still be a challenge, but this seems to be a fairly typical Thayer's Gull (Larus thayeri).

Gulls can still be a challenge, but this seems to be a fairly typical Thayer's Gull (Larus thayeri).

Two similar pictures - slightly different postures. Probably a pale-eyed Thayer's Gull.

Two similar pictures - slightly different postures. Probably a pale-eyed Thayer's Gull.

Trumpeter Swan feeding on grass at Swan Lake.

This gull is a little confusing to me; very pale eye and apparently dark underside of primaries (plus minimal white on primary tips) lead me toward Herring Gull, but orbital ring appears pink rather than yellow and both bill and overall size seems small, suggesting Thayer's Gull.

This gull is a little confusing to me; very pale eye and apparently dark underside of primaries (plus minimal white on primary tips) lead me toward Herring Gull, but orbital ring appears pink rather than yellow and both bill and overall size seems small, suggesting Thayer's Gull.

A fairly typical dark-eyed Thayer's Gull.

Another confusing gull for me. Overall structure relatively small - I'm not great at judging bills, but it doesn't seem particularly large. Underside of primary tips looks fairly pale. All pointing toward Thayer's Gull. On the other hand, very pale yellow eye and orbital ring looking closer to orange than pink suggest Herring Gull.

Another confusing gull for me. Overall structure relatively small - I'm not great at judging bills, but it doesn't seem particularly large. Underside of primary tips looks fairly pale. All pointing toward Thayer's Gull. On the other hand, very pale yellow eye and orbital ring looking closer to orange than pink suggest Herring Gull.

This gull seems to be a fairly typical Thayer's Gull (Larus thayeri)

Was fairly busy today with various things and ended up running late so had to hurry to get to UAS in time for class, but still thought it worth taking a couple of minutes to enjoy the Trumpeter Swans that flew in and landed at Crescent Harbor. We were walking along the harbor by the cruise ship lightering float when I heard a brief honk and noticed four swans flying over the Lincoln Street side of the harbor coming from the direction of Totem Park. I thought they might fly over to Swan Lake, but instead the banked left towards us and landed in front of the lightering float.

As I walked down the ramp to see about getting a picture, they swam over to check me out as well – so I suspect they’ve been getting handouts somewhere. I took a few pictures and they seemed to decide I wasn’t offering anything they were interested in, so started swimming away. As I was heading back up the ramp, the kids asked about going down to get a better look, so I let them. The swans came back a little closer to make sure they didn’t have anything as well. Rowan told me it was the closest she had ever been to a swan and Connor said they just about could have reached out and touched them.

It’s been a good year for swans along the road system. There have been as many as 12 at Starrigavan – where they seem to stay pretty consistently. At various times I’ve heard of other swans being seen at Jamestown Bay, Thimbleberry Lake, Swan Lake, and now Crescent Harbor. I saw 11 swans at the upper end of a largely frozen Thimbleberry Lake yesterday, and I suspect these 4 I saw today were part of that bunch. I’m not sure why the swans at Starrigavan would tend to stay put more, while these others are apparently more inclined to move around.

Weather today was overcast with little precipitation through daylight hours. This evening it did start raining, however. Winds were calm in town, though it appeared there might be a breeze out of Silver Bay into Eastern Channel when I looked that way from Crescent Harbor.

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Two adult and two juvenile Trumpeter Swans in Crescent Harbor.

Trumpeter Swans in Crescent Harbor.

Trumpeter Swans in Crescent Harbor.

Trumpeter Swan in Crescent Harbor.

Two adult and two juvenile Trumpeter Swans in Crescent Harbor.

Two adult and two juvenile Trumpeter Swans in Crescent Harbor.

Two adult and two juvenile Trumpeter Swans in Crescent Harbor.

Connor, Rowan and I went for a hike to Heart Lake from the Thimbleberry Lake side. There was plenty of snow on the ground and Heart Lake was entirely frozen. Thimbleberry Lake had a bit of open water near the outfall. In addition to the Ring-necked Ducks and Mallards we saw on the open water, there were at least 11 Trumpeter Swans at the upper end of the lake, barely visible against the snow.

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Connor and Rowan couldn't resist the opportunity to throw snowballs in the water.

Connor and Rowan discuss their thoughts on sledding the hill in front of them.

Rowan runs for safety from the snowball that Connor threw at her.

Bear Mountain dominates the skyline east of Heart Lake.

Connor and Rowan exchange snowballs at Heart Lake.

Connor and Rowan exchange snowballs at Heart Lake.

Connor and Rowan exchange snowballs at Heart Lake.

Skies have started to clear as Connor nears the top of the hill from Heart Lake.

There are nice views from the trail between Thimbleberry and Heart Lakes, but they usually include power lines stretching through them.

Layers of volcanic ash lie on top of glacial till.

Layers of volcanic ash lie on top of glacial till.

This is the section of trail right before the hill up to the pass.

Ring-necked Ducks on Thimbleberry Lake.

Ring-necked Ducks on Thimbleberry Lake.

Unidentified moth collected in 2010.

Made a brief trip out the road today. Highlights include 4 Trumpeter Swans swimming up to the river’s edge at Starrigavan to see if we had any handouts. Also noticed 5 or more Gadwall – a fairly high number for Sitka in any season, but especially winter.

The view from Sea Mart’s parking lot can be pretty stunning – though it was fairly muted today. I suspect most people primarily think of the view to the west out over the sound with Mt. Edgecumbe rising above the lowlands of a distant Kruzof Island. While that is no doubt the more striking view, a look inland reveals Harbor Mountain looming above in a view that isn’t too shabby either.

This evening I took a photo of one of the moths we accumulated last summer/fall.

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Thinking there might be handouts, Trumpeter Swans approach fairly close.

Thinking there might be handouts, Trumpeter Swans approach fairly close.

Mt. Edgecumbe seen from Sea Mart parking lot.

Mt. Edgecumbe seen from Sea Mart parking lot.

Harbor Mountain seen from Sea Mart Parking lot.

Variable Girdle (Enypia venata) collected Summer 2010.

Winds picked up through the morning and by this afternoon it was blowing Southeast with strong enough gusts that the crew working on roofing the new house decided it was prudent to shift their efforts to parts of the job that didn’t have quite so much exposure. Accompanying the winds was a moderate rain that seemed heavier as it was driven by the stronger gusts.

Connor and Rowan had seen four Trumpeter Swans on Swan Lake this morning, so they wanted to stop by and check to see if they were still there. I had arrangements to test drive a pick up just up the street, so we all walked to the lake together. There were 40 or more Mallards and a few gulls resting on the ice around the open water adjacent to the peninsula. It was interesting to see the wind whipping the rain and surface water across the ice that remained over much of the lake. The south end of the lake had opened up quite a bit since I walked by on Monday, and I saw at least two Ring-necked Ducks along with a handful of scaups.

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Gusty winds blow water across the surface of the remaining ice on Swan Lake.

Gusty winds blow water across the surface of the remaining ice on Swan Lake.

Wind driven waves and rain made for a blustery wet afternoon at Sandy Beach.

Trumpeter Swan: At first I was not even sure this was an animal call. After a couple of listens I realized it sounded like a swan, and a quick check of the Birds of Alaska CD confirmed it. Download Trumpeter Swan

Hairy Woodpecker: I am not absolutely sure about this call, but I’m confident that it’s a woodpecker. Although it seems clear the woodpecker must be flying from left to right, the wingbeats that are heard in this clip are probably from a Raven, not the woodpecker.
Download Hairy Woodpecker

Dark-eyed Juncos: These juncos were getting after each other a bit. In recent days I have been realizing that I have not seen many Dark-eyed Juncos around lately. I’m not sure why that is, but apparently they’ve returned to the neighborhood for at least one morning.
Download Dark-eyed Juncos