The calendar still says winter, but bird-nesting season is coming fast. Are you ready for your feathered friends who like to use nest boxes?
Nest box birds prefer tree cavities or other natural features, but will use man-made nest boxes when natural sites are scarce. Some of these birds check out nesting accommodations by mid- to late-February, so it's not too early to ready nest boxes.
Building nest boxes, or simply cleaning out boxes you already have up, are fun family projects that set the stage for observing bird families through the spring. The first step is learning what kinds of nest boxes are used by birds in your area.
Many birds that winter in Washington are nest box users, including flickers, woodpeckers, chickadees and nuthatches. Others that winter in warmer climes return this month to set up housekeeping in our backyards. The migrants that make the earliest return– and one of the most popular and colorful nest box users– are bluebirds.
Probably more nest boxes have been built for bluebirds than any other species, partly because of the well-known need for nesting site replacements for these rather passive birds. Bluebirds are "secondary cavity nesters," meaning they rely on "primary cavity nesters" like woodpeckers to excavate and then abandon holes in trees. With trees becoming more scarce near open fields where bluebirds feed on insects, and competition fierce for nest sites, bluebirds need all the help they can get.
But any nest box won't do. Bluebirds, woodpeckers and other nest box birds have specific needs. The bigger the bird, the bigger the nest box needed. Placement also can make a difference. And size and design of the opening are important to keep out competitive exotic species such as English sparrows.
The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) offers information on nest box dimensions, construction, placement and maintenance for dozens of bird species through its Backyard Wildlife Sanctuary program. Ask your regional WDFW office for a "Nest Boxes for Birds" pamphlet, or better yet, purchase the whole program packet for $5 and learn how to attract wildlife to your property all year.
Other recreation opportunities this month include:
Westside fishing: Puget Sound opens to blackmouth fishing from Sekiu to Olympia in mid-February. With a little help from the weather, chances to catch a hatchery chinook are good, especially in central and northern Puget Sound. The limit is one salmon per person each day through April 10, regardless of species. The strategy is simple: Find the baitfish and you'll find the chinook (blackmouth are immature chinook). Steelhead fishing also continues to look good on the north Washington coast. Steelhead returns for this popular fishing area are coming in at or slightly above projections. The Quileute and the Hoh rivers, in particular, have produced quality catches this winter when river levels drop, improving water clarity.
Eastside fishing: Rainbow trout fishing is excellent now at several year-round "seep" lakes in Grant County southeast of O'Sullivan Dam and Potholes Reservoir. Windmill, North Windmill, Hart, and Canal lakes, west of the town of Warden, are producing catch limits of 12- to 14-inch fish. According to Joe Foster, WDFW regional fish program manager, this is "payoff" time for these waters that were treated a year and a half ago to rid them of undesirable fish and to restock trout. Fish Lake in Chelan County, near Lake Wenatchee, has been yielding lots of perch, some rainbow trout, and an occasional brown trout. Burbot or freshwater ling cod, more active feeders in winter, have been providing catches for boat fishers working the bottom of Lake Chelan. Small mouth bass fishing in Columbia River reservoirs — Banks and Rufus Woods lakes — is starting to pick up and should be good well into next month.
Great blue herons: Mid- to late-February is also the time when Washington's largest birds begin to gather at traditional nesting sites. At four feet tall, with six-foot wingspans, Great blue herons are hard to miss. When dozens to hundreds of pairs of these long-necked, long-legged, long-billed wading birds gather at "rookeries" or communal nesting areas, it's pure spectacle. The Great blue heron breeding and nesting season extends into April and May across the state. But for the next month, these handsome blue and gray plumed birds are most visible, while the deciduous trees that usually hold their nests are leafless. Heron rookeries are often seen in clusters of tall (over 50 feet) cottonwoods or other trees along waterways or wetlands. Huge nests of sticks are used year after year, with a few additions and rearrangements made each season. The exchange of nest sticks between pairs of herons is a mating ritual worth watching. Despite their formidable size, herons are shy birds that can be vulnerable to human disturbance. When you visit a rookery, keep your distance by using binoculars, scopes, and telephoto camera lenses, be quiet, move slowly and leave pets at home. Here are some of the most accessible Great blue heron rookeries in Washington:
- Samish Bay flats in Skagit County, west of Edison and north of Bayview State Park; rookery is at the east end of Samish "Island" (peninsula)
- Peasley Canyon marsh near Auburn in King County; at intersection of Peasley Canyon Road and West Valley Highway; from Interstate 5 take exit 143 and head east on 320th Street
- Dumas Bay Sanctuary west of Federal Way and north of Dash Point State Park in King County
- Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge, northeast of Olympia in Thurston County; rookery is on McAllister Creek, where bald eagles also nest and sometimes "quarrel" with herons
- Woodard Bay Natural Resource Conservation Area north of Olympia off Henderson Inlet in Thurston County
- Vancouver Lake/Shillapoo Wildlife Area, one of the largest rookeries in the region, is northwest of Vancouver and south of Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge in Clark County
- Reed Island State Park southeast of Washougal in Clark County; rookery can be seen from a walking trail on a dike along the Columbia River
- Potholes Wildlife Area south of Moses Lake in Grant County; rookery is near northeast arm of Potholes Reservoir (also communal nest sites of other herons, egrets, and cormorants)
- Little Spokane River Natural Area, northwest of Spokane; rookery is above the river about half-mile from trailhead on Rutter Parkway.
Tree frogs: Late February marks the start of a "listen-able wildlife" opportunity in western Washington's lowlands: the Pacific tree frog "chorusing" and breeding season. These common and tiny (less than two-inch) frogs are Washington's loudest natives, with the males repeating a two-syllable "rib-it, kreck-ek" call to attract females. The calling stimulates other males to join in and large concentrations of the frogs can be heard far away, especially on nights when air temperatures remain above 45 degrees. You can hear chorusing at many open wetlands and meadows, such as the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge in Thurston County or Tacoma's Snake Lake Nature Center. Tree frogs are found across the state, but eastsiders and those at higher elevations may not hear them chorus until later this spring. (Tree frogs have the longest breeding season of any amphibian in the state, chorusing well into July in some areas.)
