Nisqually Wildlife Refuge, April 1, 2012

The weather was overcast, and lightly drizzled on and off, wind was negligible until about mid-day when it picked up, and strong gusts blew for several minutes before calming down again.

Many impressive species of bird were encountered here, most of the birds of prey are listed on my iNaturalist observations attached here, species such as the bald eagle, spotted owl, and red tailed hawk.

The canopy here consisted almost entirely of deciduous trees, Big Leaf maple,as well as others, it was extremely difficult to identify them due to distance, as well as lack of foliage.

Along with the more charismatic birds to be seen here, there were also several plant species along the trails, some expected in the marshy habitat such as skunk cabbage, but also those that were unique to me; for instance finding a member of the carrot family, Cow Parsnip, was a wonderful surprise.

A flock upwards of 40 ducks was also am impressive sight to behold, several species were included in the flock such as the;
Ring Neck Duck
Northern Shoveler
American Widgeon
and Northern Pintail

Chikadees and songbirds were also common, although not seen their calls were heard throughout the trip.

Posted on June 5, 2012 03:35 PM by jjensen