Pixieland WETlands!

Pixieland, one of several marshes in the Salmon River Estuary, opened to the public in August 2012.

Open to Foot Traffic!

In September, I started visiting Pixieland and became enchanted with the dry, grassy "wet"land.  From the downed logs to the ribboned new plantings, evidence of hard work was everywhere.  Birds seemed to be everywhere too!

Song Sparrow

A SONG SPARROW enjoys a newly planted tree, while a GREAT BLUE HERON (below) takes advantage of a long-time resident fir. 

Great Blue Heron

Basking in the work that many other people had done, in fact, were still doing, I roamed around discovering the spots where LINCOLN'S SPARROWS loved to play and the favorite riverside tree where the RED-SHOULDERED HAWK watched patiently for his next meal.

As our coastal autumn advanced, the rains came to the beautiful wetlands.  I added wellies and muck boots to my outdoor gear...

Killdeer

The KILLDEER came...   and the WILSON'S SNIPE.









The MALLARDS came... and PINTAIL and WIGEON and...

Mallards

The tides ebbed and flowed...

and, thanks to hundreds of hours of planning and hard work, the wetlands KNEW...







 ... and now, spring is coming - my first spring with Pixieland.  I can't wait, can you?

Birds encountered at Pixieland (9/23/2012 to 2/10/2013)

1. Canada Goose
2. American Wigeon
3. Mallard
4. Northern Pintail
5. Green-winged Teal
6. Bufflehead
7. Common Goldeneye
8. Hooded Merganser
9. Common Merganser
10. Red-breasted Merganser
11. Pacific Loon
12. Pied-billed Grebe
13. Double-crested Cormorant
14. Great Blue Heron
15. Great Egret
16. Turkey Vulture
17. White-tailed Kite
18. Northern Harrier
19. Sharp-shinned Hawk
20. Cooper's Hawk
21. Bald Eagle
22. Red-shouldered Hawk
23. Red-tailed Hawk
24. Rough-legged Hawk
25. Killdeer
26. Greater Yellowlegs
27. Long-billed Dowitcher
28. Wilson's Snipe
29. Western Gull
30. California Gull
31. Eurasian Collared-Dove
32. Anna's Hummingbird
33. Belted Kingfisher
34. Northern Flicker
35. American Kestrel
36. Merlin
37. Peregrine Falcon
38. Olive-sided Flycatcher
39. Steller's Jay
40. American Crow
41. Common Raven
42. Black-capped Chickadee
43. Chestnut-backed Chickadee
44. Bushtit
45. Red-breasted Nuthatch
46. Pacific Wren
47. Marsh Wren
48. Golden-crowned Kinglet
49. Ruby-crowned Kinglet
50. Hermit Thrush
51. American Robin
52. European Starling
53. Cedar Waxwing
54. Common Yellowthroat
55. Yellow-rumped Warbler
56. Townsend's Warbler
57. Spotted Towhee
58. Fox Sparrow
59. Song Sparrow
60. Lincoln's Sparrow
61. White-throated Sparrow
62. White-crowned Sparrow
63. Golden-crowned Sparrow
64. Dark-eyed Junco
65. Red-winged Blackbird
66. Brewer's Blackbird
67. Purple Finch
68. House Finch
69. Red Crossbill
70. Pine Siskin
71. American Goldfinch