Public is gone and the birds are back

Well the Eagle Festival is over for another year and with sunny skies both days it was the busiest yet.  Depending on your point of view, a great success, or, if you are concerned about the natural aspects of this area, a great pressure.  Reports abound of persons wandering out on the flats where they shouldn't be and walking all along the foreshore in the gravel where salmon had already spawned....

anyway, it is over.....

and with no one disturbing them....the Bald Eagles are back...88 visible in this photo and this was just one small section...

and in the trees all along the shoreline....

and feeding down on the shore....

and perched on pilings......

and with just the regulars walking, staying respectfully on the trails and with their dogs kept close by on leashes.....the birds all stayed put.

Of course, not just eagles either...

pilings that didn't sport eagles, had Great Blue Heron instead.

There weren't as many ducks today as there have been but....

there were quite a few smaller birds, like this  young White-crowned Sparrow, just one of a small flock, mixed with lots of Dark Eyed Junco and some House Finch.

Spotted Towhee....

and interestingly, quite a few American Robins still around.  There is quite the crop of fruit on the native Pacific Crab apples this year and birds are still feasting on them.

yesterday, that included a Varied Thrush, the first one I've seen this season....

and also, yesterday, in the pouring rain there were a pair of Pileated Woodpeckers over at Harrison Bay, also feeding on the crab apples.

In fact at one point, these 2 Pileated joined a Downy Woodpecker and a Northern Flicker, all on the same tree - unfortunately it was just too dark and wet to get a picture!