How to identify it:  Black covering top of head, white below the eye, black below bill.

This active and acrobatic bird is common and widespread in many brushy and forested habitats. It readily comes to feeders, especially those with sunflower seeds or suet.  It feeds in branches, often hanging upside down to spot insects, their eggs or larvae.  It is a cavity nester but because of its small beak it needs soft well decayed wood, often preferring old alder snags for nesting. It will use woodpecker nests where they are available.  Birds nest in early April, young hatch in early May and fledge 20-25 days after birth, young of the year often start showing up at feeders around Memorial day.   Chickadees are  vocal all year a round, making  a  variation of deedee calls.  In the winter months it joins other birds in mixed species flocks often with kinglets, nuthatches and creepers which wind through the forest in waves, gleaning insect eggs from even the tiniest of branches.  
 

How to Identify it:  Similar to black-capped chickadee with reddish/brown patches  under and over the wings.

This bird is similar in feeding, nesting and behavior habits to the black-capped chickadee although it is more closely aligned with coniferous forest habitat and is not as widespread.   It readily comes to feeders near conifers, although it is smaller than the Black capped, and so at feeders where the two species mix the chestnut backed must wait patiently for the larger black-capped to finish. 

How to Identify it::  Black stripe through eye, bordered by white, light brownish underside, often seen on tree trunks.

This small bird forages in the crevasses of tree trunks for insects, their eggs or larvae. It often walks upside down, down the tree trunk or branch.  They are cavity nesters and sometimes smear sticky sap around the outside of the nest hole to discourage predators. The call of this bird is a distinctive nasal, "Yank".   They often join chickadees and other small birds in mixed winter flocks.
 

How to Identify it:  Small uniformly gray bird with a long tail.

This small, nondescript bird makes an interesting, hanging nest, often shaped like a sock made of mosses, grasses and lichen, often glued together with spider web.  This nest is so warm and cozy that the parent birds can spend less time incubating the eggs than other birds do.  In winter bushtits band together in groups of 5-10 or more and keep up a regular twittering chatter to stay together. I have seen them take over a feeder from larger birds by landing on the feeder all at once and using superior numbers to stake their claim. 
 

How to Identify it:  Mottled brown with white underside, light brown line through eye, curved bill with long stiff tail, on trunk of tree

This bird forages on tree trunks by flying in low, then climbing up the trunk, using its curved bill to find insects, insect eggs, larvae and spiders.  It has a fluttering flight when it drops from upper part of the trunk to the lower, perhaps to mimic falling leaves. It typically nests in bark fissures, where the bark has pulled away from the tree. During winter season it often joins with flocks of chickadees, nuthatches and other small birds.
 

How to Identify it:  Black and white striped head, dark wing with white wing bar, yellow stripe at top of head.

This is an active little bird, often fluttering under branches to seek out insects. Even when perched they nervously flick their wings.  They typically nest high in a conifer, with a small hanging cup nestled between two branches.  They lay 9-11 eggs and in some years manage to raise two broods of young, the male tending to the feeding of the fledglings as the female starts laying a second brood of eggs.  During the winter they join bands of chickadees, nuthatches and other birds. often foraging on the underside of branches.

How to Identify it:  Small bill, gray above with noticeable wingbars and ring around the eye.

This is similar in behavior and nesting to the Golden-crowned Kinglet. The small, thin bill and dark bar below the second white white bar helps to separate this bird from the very similar Hutton's vireo. It often forages low to the ground in winter and only flashes its red to orange crown during breeding season.  It can occasionally be seen in mixed flocks in winter.
 

How to Identify it: Short stout bill, brown stripes on head, back and chest, pumps tail when it flies.

This is the most common sparrow in our area and is found in brushy habitats. Its song usually starts with 2 or 3 clear notes then ends in a warbling improvisation but there is a lot of variation in their song. When on territory the males perch in a prominent place and sing, often 5-8 feet off the ground.  Song sparrows build a cup nest of grass and small sticks often deep in Salmonberry or other brushy plants close to the ground and typically underneath something.  If disturbed, the female sometimes will do a distraction display, and run around on the ground, with wings held out behind the body, chipping loudly.  They are early first nesters, and males begin singing on territory as early as late February and first nest fledglings appear in early May.  

How to Identify it:  Bold black and white stripes on its head and no stripes on the chest.

There are both resident and  migrant populations,  with migrants showing up in late April. White-crowns  usually prefer open habitats such as fields, river bars and grassy parks.   It has a distinctive call, which can be thought of as, me, me, pretty pretty me. Males begin singing in April and nesting in May. Young birds of the year are abundant in early July.  Wintering birds form loose flocks in open brushy areas, sometimes associating with other sparrows.  Nests are built on the ground or low in brush and made up of sticks and grass. If disturbed the female with sneak off the nest into the surrounding brush, a habit which makes them especially vulnerable to ground predators such as house cats.
 

How to Identify it: Short, thick beak, gray on top of head, black "beard" under beak.

This is the common urban sparrow, found in city parks and outside fast food restaurants. They are cavity nesters, nesting in any small hole in buildings, street lights or other man made structures. It is rarely found outside of human contact, perhaps its loud and slow mannerisms make for easy prey for country hawks.  English sparrows begin breeding in March and may raise up to 3 sets of young per year. Given its urban nature there are few predators other than house cats to diminish its numbers. This is not a native bird, but it has been around since the late 1890's and so it is well established.  It is widely considered a "pest" in that it takes over cavity nests and competes for food from native birds and contaminates grain in rural areas.  It is a common at urban bird feeders.

How to Identify it: Heavy striped bird, with a forked tail and shows yellow on wingbars.

This bird is a year around resident and forms large noisy flocks of 50 to 200 birds or more in the winter.  The winter flocks typically swirl around  a tree before landing and they birds make an almost constant chatter.   Siskins are  dependant upon the cone crop and it widely moves from forest to forest in search of seeds, favoring the smaller seeds of alder, hemlock and cedar. The winter flocks break up in late March and early April into breeding pairs although several birds may nest in the same tree and smaller groups of a dozen or so are not uncommon in summer.  Nests are usually in Douglas firs, high from the ground and well concealed out on the branches.  They begin nesting in March and continue through the summer.
 

How to Identify it:  Curved bill, striped tail and white eyebrow with dark brown line through eye.

This year around resident bird has a remarkable variety of calls and can be found in brushy areas often in alder forests and along conifer forest edges. It nests in snag cavities, upturned root wads of fallen trees and occasionally in deep brushy tangles.  It begins singing on territory in March and nests in April through June.  It is quick to spot a trespasser and may follow and scold you as you move through its domain.
 

How to Identify it:  Small brown forest floor bird, with a striped, upturned tail.

This is a bird of dark coniferous forests, rarely perching more than 6 feet off the ground. It moves around the forest floor, in search of insects and spiders. It is often the only bird in the darkest of conifer forests.  As you enter its territory it will suddenly appear perched on a fallen log, or under a sword fern and make a series of Chek chek calls.   The song of this bird starts in mid to late February, and is a rolling tinkling warble sounding not unlike a squeaky bicycle wheel.  The song comes in bursts of 4-10 seconds, and is longest in duration at the height of the breeding season, March and April.  Nests are typically made of moss and a few sticks and are very well concealed, often under a dense tangle of logs and brush, tucked into a root wad of a fallen tree, or on a fallen branch.  As if this was not good enough, these birds also construct dummy nests as decoys, although in the dark dense forest tangles it is hard to imagine many predators even finding the decoys, so perhaps this exuberance of nest building is how a male impresses a female.  Young birds stick together for a couple of weeks after leaving the nest and are common in early May. If you sit patiently and quietly, they may fly up quite close to investigate.
 

How to Identify it: Greenish yellow hues on back and underside, short slender bill, 2 white wingbars. Flies from a perch then returns.

This is a common flycatcher and is one of 5 several very similar looking birds. Expert bird watchers are often confounded by flycatchers and tell them apart by their calls. The call note of this bird is a distinctive P-sweet! The Genus name Empidonax means, Lord of the mosquitoes.  Flycatchers catch insects on the wing, usually flying out from a perch, nabbing a bug, then returning to its perch.   This bird winters in Mexico and arrives in late April to early May, nesting relatively low in  trees. They occasionally nest on horizontal surfaces of human structures such as barns, outbuildings or porches. The nest is made of grass, moss and other handy materials and the young fledge in late July.
 

How to Identify it:  White eye-ring, white wingbars, yellow-greenish breast and belly. Very similar to Ruby Crowned Kinglet with a slightly thicker bill.

This is a small resident bird of deciduous forests and brushy edges. It is almost identical to the Ruby-crowned Kinglet, and is best distinguished from the kinglet by its call, a distinctive Zuweet, or Chuweet.  Their song is a repeated Zwee zwee zwee which is heard in late April through May.  It is a gleaner of insects and in winter sometimes joins mixed flocks of chickadees and other birds.  Nests are concealed and often low, typically in deciduous trees, made of mosses, grasses and occasionally decorated on the outside with spider webs and fluffy cottonwood or willow down.  Eggs are laid in June and young fledge in mid to late July.

How to Identify it:  Black head, red eye, spots on back, orange brown sides, white at edges of tail feathers.

This is a common bird of shrubby edges. They forage on the ground by kicking up leaves with a back and forth motion of their feet and eating the insects they disturb.  They nest on the ground, typically nests are found under a fern or other thick cover. Males perch prominently in Mid April and give a loud continuous trill to mark their territory. Should their be a dispute with another towhee, or another bird, the males may bow and then open their tail, flashing the white feather edges.   Eggs are laid in May and young appear in late June. They are often found attracted to suburban bird feeders that have adequate cover. Resident pairs stay on territories year around.  The Spotted Towhee has a distinctive Creeeet call.
 

How to Identify it:  Black head, short ivory bill, brown back, no stripes or spots, the feathers at the edge of the tail are white and often show when the bird flies

Juncos are a common lowland sparrow of suburban backyards and brushy areas and they are a common winter bird at feeders, preferring smaller millet to sunflower seeds.  They are resident although migrants move down slope during the winter and join the resident birds.  Juncos begin singing in March, a long high pitched trill and pairs begin nesting in April. They are ground nesters, typically nesting under a fern or other dense plant.  Young can leave the nest by late May, and sometimes nestlings who are disturbed may flee a nest before they can fly, running about on the ground and hiding in cover.  During the winter Juncos form loose flocks of  a dozen or more birds, often joining larger ensembles of birds. At a feeder juncos show a distinct pecking order of dominance, with the most dominant bird feeding the longest and rushing and pecking at subordinate birds.  In mid-summer you can find Juncos high in the mountain meadows, where they nest and raise young in August and September.