It was a beautiful day for the July Turnbull birding field trip. It was warm and sunny and that “fledging” time of year. We began our walk near the headquarters building and immediately began seeing young western bluebirds, that seem to be so plentiful this year. The pale blue, spot-breasted young were chasing their parents and begging to be fed.
Male Western Blue Bird
Another young bird lit on the fence and turned out to be a juvenile spotted towhee. This mostly brown bird had distinct white outer tail feathers and was soon seen with its parent, a beauty, with its black head and back and red underside.
Seven people joined Jim and Bea Harrison for this walk, some were experienced birders and others were just getting started, but all seemed to enjoy not only the birds, but the butterflies, dragonflies, turtles and other wildlife as well as the blooming wildflowers. One young man said it was his first time to visit the refuge. We saw a beautiful yellow swallow-tailed butterfly and got a great look at a large darner dragonfly.
Turnbull Participants
We stopped in the shade about 100 yards from the headquarters. A running stream runs through the trees there and we saw and heard many different birds. A pair of red-napped sapsuckers were going in and out of their nest hole in a dead snag and then someone spotted a western wood pewee on its nest! It was wonderful to see all the breeding activities taking place in this federally protected area.
House finches fed young, yellow warblers sang, red crossbills chattered nearby, and three species of nuthatches gleaned in the trees.
White-breasted Nuthatch
We decided to drive to Pine Lake Loop because the day was heating up. We were surprised to see 5 white pelicans in the lake, and they put on quite a show, getting up and soaring above us. We spotted Canada geese with half grown young and a pied billed grebe that seemed to be following them.
White Pelicans
In all, we counted 26 species in about an hour and a half. Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge is a 23,000 acre preserve in Spokane County. It is a jewel in the channeled scablands of Eastern Washington, open year-round and waiting for you to explore.
