After hours of trying “too hard” in my centering prayer, hours of waiting to hear the still, small voice of God, hours of sitting, piecing together scraps of discernment that may or may not be at my heart, I was moved to tears one twilight when I came upon the Fen Stone Circle.  The tiny cairn with its offerings in the center opened me.  “I want to belong,” I said aloud and fell to my knees, “I want to belong.”

Hooded Merganser and Chicks

On Thursday, July 23, at 8:58am PDT, with an Earth Sanctuary dawn bird chorus in the background, you can hear my BirdNote radio interview on KPLU 88.5 FM.  See www.birdnote.org for more info.

This slide show takes you through the development of these amazing, tiny birds.  Arleen Stebbins first saw this nest while conducting her Wood Duck survey at Earth Sanctuary.  Many, many birds nest at Earth Sanctuary. 

Photos and slide show by Craig Johnson

Rufous Hummingbird

Above is a female Rufous Humminbird on her nest.  Under her are two hatched chicks.

Two Hummingbird chicks at Earth Sanctuary.

12 days later here are the two chicks!

Here is a web cam of a Black-chinned Hummingbird

Here is a web cam of an Allen’s Hummingbird.

Western Tanager at Earth Sanctuary (Craig Johnson)

Craig and Joy Johnson, Whidbey Island bird experts and authors of Our Puget Sound Birds & Habitat, provided this list of birds they have seen in the past two weeks:

1. Black-throated Gray Warbler
2. Western Tanager
3. Black-headed Grosbeak
4. Yellow Warbler
5. Wilson’s Warbler
6. Pacific Slope Flycatcher
7. Red-breasted Sapsucker
8. Swainson’s Thrush
9. Cinnamon Teal
10. Green-winged Teal
11. Cedar Waxwings
12. Wood Ducks with chicks
13. Hooded Merganser with chicks
14. Rufous Hummingbird
15. Brown Creeper
16. Golden-crowned Kinglet
17. Osprey
18. Tree Swallow
19. Barn Swallow
20. Violet-green Swallow
21. Northern Rough-winged Swallow
22. Northern Flicker
23. Red-winged Blackbird
24. Song Sparrow feeding young
25. American Robin feeding young

Visit their beautiful web site!