Birds at Ridgefield

Birds of Prey

All of the wildlife refuges in this part of the Pacific Northwest provide a good opportunity to see birds of prey, but Ridgefield often allows especially close-views of these aerial hunters.

	Bald Eagles The winter months bring large number of waterfowl and the bald eagles that prey on them. The auto tour in the River S Unit provides close views of America's national bird.		Northern Harriers Harriers are commonly seen soaring low above the meadows and marshes, you'd be hard pressed to visit the refuge and not see one.
	Red-tailed Hawks Redtails are not only one of the most commonly seen hawks on the refuge at any time of year, the younger ones especially often allow viewing from just a few feet away.		American Kestrels North America's smallest falcon is common at the refuge, and on occasion I've seen them hunting right along the auto tour.
	Other Birds of Prey This gallery contains pictures of birds of prey not in my other galleries, such as rough-legged hawks, great horned owls, and short-eared owls.

Shorebirds

Killdeer

The parking lot of the River S unit and the first part of the auto tour are the places I see killdeer the most, not always up close but occasionally up really close.

Wilson's Snipe

Snipe don't congregrate in large flocks like some shorebirds so they can be harder to spot, but I always love encountering these little birds.

Songbirds

	Red-winged Blackbirds Spring is the best time for red-winged blackbird viewing as the males are actively displaying and singing to impress their potential mates, but good views are often had year round.		Yellow-headed Blackbirds Spring is also the best time for yellow-headed blackbird viewing, they are usually more difficult to see up close than the redwings but South Quigley Lake often offers up the best views of these lovely birds.
	Sparrows Savannah and song sparrows are easily seen singing either on the auto tour or on the Kiwa Trail. During the winter, golden-crowns and white-crowns can be seen around the auto tour.		Swallows Tree, barn, and cliff swallows put on an aerial display over the marshes in the springtime.
	Marsh Wrens The chance to watch these plucky little birds sing is one of my favorite activities of the spring.

Wading Birds

	American Bitterns The auto tour in the River 'S' Unit is a fantastic place for up-close and extended viewing of these elusive birds.		Sandhill Cranes The fall and winter are when I see cranes the most, but never for long, never close, and never in large numbers. Most of the other herons and egrets allow pretty close views but cranes remain elusive.
	Great Egrets Egrets aren't nearly as common as the herons that line the auto tour, but they can be seen year-round at the refuge, and sometimes at very close quarters.		Great Blue Herons The auto tour route is an excellent place to get close views of great blue herons. You can watch them hunt at close distance in the fields and ponds from the convenience of your car.

Waterfowl

	Pied-billed Grebes Pied-billed grebes are common at the refuge. They don’t exist in large numbers like some of the other waterfowl, but they can be seen pretty much anywhere along the auto tour route at the River ‘S’ Unit.		Northern Shovelers Winter provides a great opportunity to view these lovely ducks at close range on the auto tour.
	Tundra Swans Winter provides a great opportunity to view these lovely ducks at close range on the auto tour.		Other Waterfowl #1 A collection of waterfowl not in the other galleries, organized alphabetically from bufflehead to hooded mergansers.
	Other Waterfowl #2 A collection of waterfowl not in the other galleries, organized alphabetically from northern pintails to American wigeon.

Everything Else

Other Birds

A collection of birds that didn't fit in my other galleries. The short auto tour winds through marsh, meadow, and trees so a wide variety of birds can be viewed.

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July 30, 2011