This astute aerial predator stands a little more than six and a half inches tall, from its sharp-clawed feet to its stubby, ear-like tufts. Just over three million. When all the eggs are laid, incubation begins, so all the eggs hatch about the same time. They occasionally crowd into suburban bird feeders, nudging out smaller birds.
Listen quietly at dusk in the evergreen forests of the Puget Lowlands, and you are likely to hear the melodious, spiraling song of the Swainson's Thrush.
The hawk will attack that part of the bird, perhaps coming up with a mouthful of tail-feathers, while allowing the bird to escape.
Often called the Camp Robber or Whiskey Jack, the mountain-dwelling Gray Jay will crash a picnic faster than hungry ants. Yes, the large clutches may include eggs from more than one female.
Flashy tail-feathers can help a bird escape a predator. The Osprey suffered great declines in the past century as a result of DDT, an eggshell-thinning pesticide.
But beneath the waves, with its flipper-like wings partly extended, it is a streamlined, masterful swimmer. Movie-makers love to add bird sounds to a film, to evoke a mood or set a scene.
What birds you see depends upon the time of year and the route of your ferry.
When all the eggs are laid, incubation begins, so all the eggs hatch about the same time.
When returning rains improved breeding habitat, duck abundance rebounded.
Look farther out, and you might see Pigeon Guillemots. Not really a hawk at all, the nighthawk is closely related to the more fully nocturnal nightjars, such as the Whip-poor-will of eastern North America. Merlins, compact birds of prey about ten inches long with a two-foot wingspan, are swift, powerful fliers, true thunderbolts on long, pointed wings. In late summer, juvenile Glaucous-winged Gulls are taking flight over downtown Seattle. After hatching, baby robins spend up to fifteen days in the nest, growing and preparing for the world outside.
But beneath the waves, with its flipper-like wings partly extended, it is a streamlined, masterful swimmer.
Listen for the rattling call of a Belted Kingfisher as it flies out over the water, looking for a fish. When returning rains improved breeding habitat, duck abundance rebounded. When a hawk-predator chases a smaller bird, the hawk focuses on the strongly contrasting feathers of its prey.
Ever wonder how birds were named?