8 // COASTWEEKEND.COM
The Columbia-Pacific region is ‘for
the birds’ — and that’s a good thing
By MARILYN GILBUAGH
f you’re a bird, winter in the Pacific Northwest is a good
place to be. While the majority of us people-types can’t
help nattering about the long damp and gloomy season,
most of our feathered friends — whether here for the
short, medium or permanent stay — find the mild dark
days a bountiful wonderland.
“To get some perspective, what we’re observing is not
just another bird at a feeder, but a bird as a life,” said avid
birder and well-known local conservationist Neal Maine about
bird watching. “We’re looking at a creature that weighs around
16 ounces on a good day, and it might be one that flies the
length of the planet each year for its reproduction. It’s way more
than a bird that we’re watching; it’s part of the entire universe.
“I wonder what the quality of our lives could be like if we
learn to be quiet, pay a little bit more attention to what sur-
rounds us and learn to listen?” he asks.
According to birder, scientist and North Coast Diaries
blogger, Mike Patterson, in 2011 somewhere around 375 dif-
ferent bird species had been documented in Clatsop County;
250 of them alone making Seaside and its surroundings their
year-round or seasonal home. Today the count remains about
the same, though each winter provides a few new-to-the-area
sightings. This winter there’s been a flurry of birder buzz as
at least two new species not seen around here before dropped
in. A mocking bird came to call, (or as is its talent, to imitate
many other calls), showing up in Seaside. And another first
timer, a gorgeously marked Baltimore oriole is also visiting in
the area.
All birds have basic needs: water, food and resting. Our
year-round locals don’t migrate, getting what they need by
staying put. They are able to find adequate year-round water,
food and shelter in grasses, trees or burrowing alternatives.
Escaping the cold can be a migrating bird’s motivating
factor. But many species, including local hummingbirds, can
withstand freezing temperatures as long as an adequate supply
of food is available.
Migrating birds move seasonally. Some travel only short
distances just like our four-legged wildlife, moving from
higher elevations to lower. Some birds make medium moves,
traveling a few hundred miles. Long-distance migrants cover
thousands of miles, typically moving from breeding ranges in
the United States and Canada to wintering grounds in Central
and South America. Despite the demanding journeys involved,
long-distance migration is a feature of some 350 species of
North American birds.
The red knot (Calidris canutus)
is a migrating bird you may see in the Columbia-Pacific area.
Continued on Pg. 9
WHAT’S
THAT BIRD?
Several bird-identifica-
tion apps are available
on your smartphone.
If you’re a novice, try
Merlin Bird ID, which is
free. Other good apps
include Audubon Birds
of North America (free)
and iBird Pro ($14.99).
NEAL MAINE/PACIFICLIGHT IMAGES
This red knot, a type of sandpiper, was observed on Del Rey beach in the spring migration of 2016. The bird was banded
in 2006 in the Gulf of Mexico. The red knot has one of the longest migrations of any bird, nesting and breeding in the
arctic and migrating as far south as the southern tip of South America.
PHOTO BY JOY JAEGER
NEAL MAINE/PACIFICLIGHT IMAGES
A snowy plover enjoys Gearhart beach in January. The
bird was banded as a nestling on the Central Oregon
Coast.
Western bluebirds appreciate nesting boxes in which to make
their homes. Their summer breeding range extends north into
the Pacific Northwest, and more breeding pairs have been
spotted locally in recent years.