Washington and Oregon 2012 - Nisqually Wildlife Refuge

On our way out to Ruby Beach and the Hoh Rainforest my friend Brian had pointed off the highway to a massive wetland area with a super long boardwalk.  I asked him what it was and he said it was Nisqually.  I remembered Brian saying that him and his older brother had been out there a year or so earlier when there were more hiking trails.  I later found out through him and his brother that the Nisqually tribe owns that land and had recently decided to remove several man-made damns.  In doing so the natural cycles of high and low tide are now restored to this area.  Natural wetlands are back!

Nisqually Wildlife Refuge is the largest wetland in the state of Washington.  There are several habitat types in the refuge.  The main attraction is definitely the river delta that empties into the Puget Sound, however, other habitats include: prairie, riparian woodlands, freshwater pond and another river that did not appear to be tidal.

I arrived early in the morning and the delta was at maximum low tide.  The trail first led me by the pond, where I found a couple spring hatchling Wood Ducks watching their mother preen herself.  Next I came to the prairie, where I found three Northern Harriers playing in an old snag.  They soon dispersed and began hovering throughout the grasses to hunt.  After walking through the prairie I came to a really nice boardwalk that was probably close to a mile long.  It went out along the exposed river channels and ended at a gazebo with an amazing view of the delta.

After spending a few moments at the gazebo I quickly hiked back to the prairie and then over to a beautiful river.  A friendly couple admiring the river informed me about a riparian woodlands trail not far away. The end of that trail offered one last surprise at Nisqually...Chestnut-sided Chickadees!

What is mother doing?

Freeze frame!

Norther Harrier hunting in the prairie.

Marsh Wren hiding out among the grasses.

Why did this duck have to be a female Mallard?  Still pretty cool sight I guess.

Remnants of an old bridge or dock.  The algae and mussels growing on them gave an added effect.

The last six pics depict a sequence of a Great Blue Heron catching and eating a fish.

This GBH was collecting tiny fish stranded in this muddy bank.

Another GBH!  I wasn't able to see any other herons at Nisqually.  They seemed to have a monopoly.

Getting closer to the boardwalk!

Almost to the end!

Views from the gazebo.  If you look closely you can see an adult and immature Bald Eagle along the banks of the first picture.

Turning back from the gazebo.  Quite a long boardwalk indeed!

Shot of the delta area at low tide.  There was an adult Bald Eagle at the tops of those conifer trees in the background.  Probably the mate of the other eagle with its young on the mudflats.

Quick story:  I was walking out towards the gazebo and most of my attention was to my lefthand side.  This was where the main channel to the river was located and thus contained most of the bird activity at the time.  At one moment most the the herons, gulls, terns and ravens took off in flight in a big chaotic frenzy.  I looked up and this eagle was flying up towards the large tree line to the West.  Had I been a little more vigilant I might have caught him coming which would have surely produced some great photo opportunities.  The next three photos explain the rest of the story...

What ensued was one of the most memorable moments I have had thus far as a birder.  A Peregrine Falcon attempted to use the temporary chaos to his or her advantage.  I saw the falcon swoop in following the flow of water.  It then picked a gull as its target.  These previous three pictures are scenes from the hunt.  Once the gull sensed the falcon was close enough, it dove into the water.  The falcon just barely missed as it swooped up into the air!

The last two pics are of the Least Sandpiper.

Semipalmated Plovers

This crow did not seem to mind my close encounter.

Caspian Tern

Ring-billed Gull

Glaucous Gull

I was not sure what this guy was.  Looks like a juvenile icterid.

GBH that appeared to be fixing its tongue.  He or she flew in from the river channel to a little drainage ditch in the prairie.  Perhaps this area was a safer place to let down its guard.

The riparian woodlands trail where I saw the Chestnut-sided Chickadees (below).

Before I left Nisqually I ran into the couple that had informed me about the riparian woodlands trail.  I noticed they were looking at some plants near the visitor's center.  I asked what they were looking at and they said that they always try to count how many frogs they can see.  A couple photos (below) of the frogs.