I had one more day in the Seattle-Tacoma area before I had to catch my "red-eye" flight back to Newark. Using my list of four possible Red-breasted Sapsucker sites, I headed for the first spot, which was Wallace Swamp Creek Park, and got there around sunrise. I was the only one there. I started down the trail from the parking lot and saw two "Sooty" Fox Sparrows along with several Black-capped Chickadees and 2 Chestnut-backed Chickadees. A little farther along, I heard and then saw a Spotted Towhee, which perched nicely for a photo.
Along the way, I found Golden-crowned Kinglet, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, American Robin, and Song Sparrow, but no sign of any woodpeckers.
The next spot on my list was Ravenna Park. This park contains a deep ravine surrounded by the Ravenna subdivision of Seattle. I parked in the Mid Ravenna Park parking lot and headed towards the loop trail that runs through the ravine. As I left the open area and started into the woods, I saw a pair of Northern Flickers, which being in the West, were the "Red-shafted" form. The "Red-shafted" males have a brown head crown, gray face, and a red moustachial stripe whereas our "Yellow-shafted" males have a gray head crown, tan face, and a black moustachial stripe. Also, our "Yellow-shafted" males sport the red crescent on the back of the head. The "Red-shafted" males lack any crescent marking. I took some photos of the pair as they worked over the one tree.
As I was taking the photos, I realized that there was a good-sized group of birds working their way through the trees and brush. I ended up counting 16 Black-capped Chickadees, 7 Chestnut-backed Chickadees, 2 Golden-crowned Kinglets, a Ruby-crowned Kinglet, 9 Dark-eyed "Oregon" Juncos, and 2 Song Sparrows.
While scanning through the group, I discovered a Red-breasted Sapsucker hammering on a pine tree! Thankfully, it stayed long enough for me to get several photos of it.
Now that I had attained my third and last goal, I continued down into the ravine to see what other birds I could see. I took two photos while down in the bottom showing the trail and the walk bridge that spans the ravine.
Down along the bottom, I came across about a dozen American Crows loudly squawking and flying around a small group of evergreens. I figured they were probably harassing either a hawk or an owl. I carefully looked in the trees and eventually found a Barred Owl, my second one of the trip! I took some photos from two different angles.
I then walked back out of the ravine and onto the walking bridge that crosses it. From there, up near the tops of the trees that were in the ravine, I saw more chickadees and a Townsend's Warbler. Unfortunately, it continued on before I could grab a photo of it.
I left the park and drove to the next park on my list, which was Fenster Nature Park in Auburn. This park is located along the Green River, the same river that gave the "Green River Killer" his notorious name. I walked over to the river and found 8 Barrow's Goldeneye, 2 Common Goldeneye, 2 Common Mergansers, and a Bufflehead, plus 3 Mallards.
I got this photo of a pair of Barrow's Goldeneye together with the male Common Goldeneye showing the differences between the two males. Note the white crescent patch on the head and the dark back with the row of white bars on the male Barrow's compared to the more circular white patch on the face and the mostly white back on the male Common. Also note the more purplish head feathers of the Barrow's compared to the more greenish head feathers of the Common that is only noticeable when the heads are at the right angle to the sun.
Other birds seen at the park included 2 Spotted Towhees, a Black-capped Chickadee, a Ruby-crowned Kinglet, and a Song Sparrow.
From there, I headed for Point Defiance Park by the Tacoma suburb of Ruston. I got there with about an hour of sunlight left and checked a pond that held American Wigeon and Mallards.
A Chestnut-backed Chickadee and a Golden-crowned Kinglet were also seen there. I walked the path over to the Dune Peninsula to look for birds in Commencement Bay. Along the way, I noticed at least 300 American Crows and many Yellow-rumped Warblers of the "Audubon's" form. I conservatively estimated there were at least forty of them there, which allowed ample opportunities for photos.
Along the Dune Peninsula, I spotted 18 Bonaparte's Gulls, 5 Red-breasted Mergansers, 3 Rhinoceros Auklets, and a Common Goldeneye in addition to numbers of Glaucous-winged and Short-billed Gulls, and Double-crested and Pelagic Cormorants.
I got this comparison photo showing the differences between a Double-crested Cormorant and a Pelagic Cormorant. Note the orange facial patch by the grayish bill and larger size of the Double-crested (left) compared to the skinny neck and thin, dark bill of the Pelagic Cormorant (right).
Farther up the peninsula, I found an estimated 60 Dunlin along the shoreline and a few Harbor Seals resting on rocks just offshore.
Before sunset, I took some photos of Mount Rainier from the peninsula.
My last bird of the trip was an adult Bald Eagle that was perched atop an evergreen near my car just after sunset.
I headed for the Seattle Airport and stopped nearby for dinner before dropping off the rental car with 532 more miles on it. I boarded my "red-eye" flight around 11:00 PM and slept most of the way back to Newark, New Jersey.
Monday, January 19, 2026
Just before I left on my trip, the weatherman said that we might get a coating of snow over the weekend. It turned out that about five inches of snow had fallen while I was away, so after I landed and took the shuttle to my car, I had to spend about a half-hour cleaning it off. I also knew that I had some shoveling to do when I got back home. On the way back on I-78, I pulled over and took this photo of the snow-lined trees.
I ended up seeing 62 species during the 4-day trip. Obviously, the Taiga Flycatcher was a 'lifer', plus I "officially" got Short-billed Gull as a 'United States' and 'Lower 48' bird, and the Red-breasted Sapsucker for my photo list, which is now at 776 species. For those interested in seeing many more photos from this trip, you can go to my British Columbia Adventures Photos Album and my Washington Adventures Photos Album.
British Columbia and Washington Trip List - January 15-19, 2026
1) Canada Goose (BC)
2) Trumpeter Swan (WA)
3) Mallard (BC, WA)
4) American Wigeon (BC, WA)
5) Ring-necked Duck (WA)
6) Surf Scoter (WA)
7) Harlequin Duck (WA)
8) Barrow’s Goldeneye (BC, WA)
9) Common Goldeneye (WA)
10) Bufflehead (BC, WA)
11) Common Merganser (WA)
12) Red-breasted Merganser (WA)
13) Hooded Merganser (WA)
14) Red-throated Loon (WA)
15) Pacific Loon (WA)
16) Common Loon (WA)
17) Horned Grebe (BC, WA)
18) Eared Grebe (WA)
19) Red-necked Grebe (WA)
20) Western Grebe (BC)
21) Pelagic Cormorant (BC, WA)
22) Double-crested Cormorant (WA)
23) Great Blue Heron (WA)
24) Bald Eagle (BC, WA)
25) Cooper’s Hawk (BC, WA)
26) Red-tailed Hawk (BC, WA)
27) American Kestrel (WA)
28) Black Oystercatcher (WA)
29) Black Turnstone (WA)
30) Dunlin (WA)
31) Bonaparte’s Gull (BC, WA)
32) Short-billed Gull (BC, WA)
33) Western Gull (WA)
34) Pigeon Guillemot (WA)
35) Rhinoceros Auklet (WA)
36) Rock Pigeon (BC, WA)
37) Mourning Dove (WA)
38) Barred Owl (WA)
39) Anna’s Hummingbird (BC, WA)
40) Belted Kingfisher (WA)
41) Northern (Red-shafted) Flicker (WA)
42) Red-breasted Sapsucker (WA)
43) American Crow (BC, WA)
44) Common Raven (WA)
45) Black-capped Chickadee (BC, WA)
46) Chestnut-backed Chickadee (BC, WA)
47) Brown Creeper (WA)
48) Red-breasted Nuthatch (WA)
49) Pacific Wren (WA)
50) Golden-crowned Kinglet (WA)
51) Ruby-crowned Kinglet (WA)
52) Taiga Flycatcher* (BC)
53) American Robin (WA)
54) European Starling (BC, WA)
55) Yellow-rumped “Audubon’s” Warbler (WA)
56) Townsend’s Warbler (WA)
57) Spotted Towhee (WA)
58) Fox Sparrow (WA)
59) Song Sparrow (WA)
60) Dark-eyed “Oregon” Junco (BC, WA)
61) Brewer’s Blackbird (WA)
62) House Sparrow (WA)
* Denotes a 'life bird'.
(BC)-seen in Britsh Columbia.
(WA)-seen in Washington.
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