Summer is now in full swing. We have many birds in the yard but most of them are House sparrows, American goldfinches, House finches or Pine siskins. So I thought it might be a good time for a couple of excursions.

My first excursion was to Fir Island on July 30 where, to my surprise, I found the Black phoebe, seriously out of range, still at Wylie Slew after two years or so.

My second expedition, on July 30, was to the Samish Flats and associated highlands areas. There I found Barn swallows feeding juveniles.

While photographing the Barn swallows, this single Tree swallow added itself to the mix…

While I obtained some interesting photos, I didn’t see enough interesting birds to repeat my excursions anytime soon. I’ll probably stick to the yard for the rest of the month.