The Patooties Return!

Stepping out late in the day to feed our chickens, I startled a Bewick's wren from our back porch.  I presume it was setting up housekeeping; if so, this will be the sixth year in a row we've had a Bewick's family nesting on or near the back porch.

Bewick's are cavity nesters, but also set up decoy nests to fool predators.  The first year we saw them here, they nested between two Coleman fuel canisters on a shelf by our back door.  Here's mom (or dad) on the nest:

And a few weeks later....

In one of the subsequent years, they built a fake nest in a large hollow tube on a windchime hanging near the porch.

They are sweet little birds, quite bold when they get used to you, and I will often see them out of the corner of my eye as they creep near while I'm gardening in the spring.  We've dubbed the wren family the "Cutie Patooties," and I am happy to know that Mr. and Ms. Patootie are joining us again this year!

Today's Distraction

I find that many of my wildlife sightings come from observing my fellow primates' behavior.  A small crowd gathered on the shore across the road from home this afternoon, pointing and staring at something I couldn't see but that was attracting a lot of seagulls.  I knew the SRKW had been spotted quite a ways north, but I had seen some Dall's porpoises earlier in the day and I was curious what might be causing all the fuss.  Heading over to inspect I discovered a sea lion (or several?) rolling and thrashing as they fed; the gulls were diving after scraps.  That makes four marine mammal species sightings in 24 hours (SRKW yesterday, a harbor seal spotted while watching them, and todays sightings), not bad for not being out on the boat.

Nice Surprise

Well, it's been awfully busy around here.  Lots of deadlines to meet, not so much time to enjoy being outdoors or  write. But this afternoon turned out to include some unexpected down time, made even better by the appearance of part of Jpod traveling close to shore past the house.

It isn't usual for them to come in so close to the eastern shore of Puget Sound, but there they were.  I was able to follow them for the better part of an hour, along with a crowd of neighbors armed with binoculars and cameras.  When February came and the SRKW hadn't been spotted in my local waters for more than three months, I figured I was out of luck and would have to wait for summer and the San Juans to see them again.  Today was a lovely surprise.

Here's hoping life doesn't keep me too busy to be present here.  There's a lot to say, if I can find the time to get it down.