Birding and Wildlife on the Olympic Peninsula

A Unique Lodging for Bird Viewing with Wetlands & Forested Areas

Private Vacation Rental for Couples & Small Family Retreats

Getaway to Washington's Olympic Peninsula

Featuring
Nature * Photograph Wildlife * Tranquil Setting * Hot Tub * Fireplace
Deer * Fish * Ducks * Geese * Coyotes * Woodpeckers * Kitchens
Eagles * Osprey * Butterflies * Bears * Bobcats * Elk * Family Friendly   

Hiking * Biking * Waterfalls * Lakes * Rivers * Cut Throat Trout    

      Fly Fishing * Kayaking * Rowboat * Barbecue * Fire Ring

Please see the bottom of this page for a list of commonly sited birds

Hank the Heron is an avid Seattle Mariner's fan. He stops by regularly to see if he can scout any new recruits for his fan club - the Cutthroat Trout.

Elvis the King Fisher comes by often to sing a song for his supper.

Mr. Squirrel is a frequent visitor to our decks but he is yet to be photographed. He likes to sit up looking out over the area while he shucks a fir cone, a peanut, nuts, or an ear of dried corn.  They are Douglas Squirrels that live at Beaver's Pond and they nest in the tall cedar trees in the property. 

There are also many chipmunks on the property who also love to eat any nuts or goodies you leave for them.  They are little red chipmunks and have burrowed tunnels all over the garden areas for quick escapes and disappear quickly if you move to fast around them but are fun & cute to watch.

Bunnies - We had a bunny cage but they are now living free in the back yard. They are frequent visitors around the property and is just one of the reasons we ask that you drive 5 MPH on the property, they seem to have taken up permanent residence in our woods. There are also many wild bunnies that are natural to our area and fall prey to the coyotes. This picture is of a wild baby bunny.

Mr. Raccoon and his family can be a highly seen visitor although we do not encourage him.  They love to raid the bird feeders and nuts put out for the squirrels and chipmunks and can be seen waddling away after gorging himself.  He and his cousins are very prolific in the area.

Belfry Bat is seen at dusk but is quite elusive when it comes to being photographed. He swoops down over the pond and helps keep down the mosquito population. He is very cute from a distance but rather scary up close although their sonar is great and they won't get too close.  Our bats are very small and black but fly so fast you may not even know what flew by although bats scare some people they are very good for our environment. I don't know where they hang out during the day. ?

Bears: Black bear have been seen on neighboring properties but have never come onto Beaver's Pond Retreat. One instance included a mother and two cubs. They travel a circuit that has not crossed our property but they have been sited recently as close as a 1/4 mile from our property.  This picture was taken with a powerful telephoto lens and was not on our property. 

Deer - There are many deer in the greater Port Ludlow area. When we first moved to the area it was in the Spring. I gave up counting deer when I reached 20 because there were so many around. I continued to count fawns though, and saw over 10 of those in a two week period. In fact there was one doe that had triplets! They cross our property in the early morning hours to water themselves and have been . They are usually black tailed deer that visit our property. A neighbor found a beautiful antler that must have dropped off a young buck this spring. They also come to eat the apples from an old apple tree we have down by the pond. 

Ducks of many varieties visit us. The most frequent visitors are Mallards. There are also Bufflehead, Wood duck, and Ring necked duck that have been identified. A Muscovy duck lives here on the pond and she has been joined by two others: a brown, semi domestic duck and a wild, male mallard - Mr. Duck.

Bobcats and Cougars - Not seen at Beaver's Pond Retreat but seen all around the general area of Larson Lake Road and the Eagle Mount area.

Pets: We do not accept pets here at Beaver's Pond but do have a family pet that is very friendly.  Although we attempt to keep her out of guests way she loves people and will try to visit you while bringing you a pine cone in hopes that you will throw it for her to fetch.  Some people mistake her for a coyote as she comes out of the woods or even a little hyena and most people beg us to let her stay. She is trained to leave the wildlife alone. 

Beavers - I have seen our resident beavers twice but they are hard to catch a glimpse of.  It is easier to find and see their gnawing marks on tree stumps and branches left behind. The engineering of their dams is quite amazing and they can hold back a tremendous amount of water. The new dams they have built this last year have created numerous new ponds on the property.  It is what makes the back wetlands so attractive to wildlife.

Bald Eagles can be seen flying overhead at Beaver's Pond on many days and feed from the Pond.  They are plentiful in Ludlow Bay and throughout Beaver Valley as they hunt for fish or field food.  I watched two the other day either fighting or mating as they locked, dove and free fell over the property.  This picture was taken by a guest of an eagle sitting on an old snag watching for dinner to arrive.

Coyotes - again not a frequent visitor and certainly not encouraged to stay. However, they have been seen on the edge of the pond or headed down the drives.  You will hear them at times during the evenings yipping as they try to circle their prey. 

Birding around Beaver's Pond, Ludlow Bay and our Lagoon

Ducks
While many are here throughout the year, winter is the best time to see most of these birds in Ludlow Bay.

American Widgeon
common on lagoon in winter, 18" to 23".
In flight recognized by white patch on forewing. White top of head, green behind eye, the remainder of body buff

Rednecked Merganser
20" to 26". A diving fishduck, similar to Hooded Merganser. This one is a common in winter around the bay. Red bill, green head, black back on male. Female is gray with buffy head.

Barrow's Goldeneye
Dramatic black and white coloration on male. White patch in front of yellow eye on a dark head. Larger than bufflehead at 21"

Bufflehead
Usually in lagoon in small groups during winter. Small, on 13" to 15". White patch on head, smaller in female, is distinctive.

Western Grebe
25". The only large black and white diver with a long yellow bill and swanlike neck.

Common Loon
Listen for the loon's famous cry in spring. 28" to 36", large and low-swimming. Summer birds are black and white, winter birds are gray and white.

Pacific Loon
25" with smaller body and more slender bill than common loon. Usually here only in winter, summers in far north.

Pelagic Cormorant and Double crested Cormorant
Large all-black birds with long necks. Feed by day out near Colvos Rocks, returns to roost in the trees of the back-bay.

Pied-billed Grebe
13" with a "chicken-like bill, and almost no visible tail. In summer it heads for freshwater to breed and nest.

Horned Grebe
12" - 15", with a thin straight bill. In winter they are dark above and white below. In summer they turn red and black and migrate to Canada and Alaska to nest.

Red-necked Grebe
18" and heavier-appearing than most grebes. In winter they are gray with a white crescent on the chin. They nest in Canada and Alaska.

Evening Grosbeak

5" -  8", Black with a beautiful yellow to orange coloring on their breast always seen late spring and into the summer.

Pigeon Guillemot
12" - 14". A resident of the bay with nesting sites in ground holes on the two little island in the inner harbor. Guillemots are all black except for white wing patches and red feet.

Surf Scoter
Here all year. 19" and all black except two white patches on top of head. Distinctive orange and red on bill. Dives for shellfish.

Osprey
Usually seen soaring over the bay. White wings have dark wrist patches. Dives, whereas eagles only Skirt the surface to pick up fish.

Bald Eagles
There are residents in Ludlow Bay. Seen anytime of the year flying out to Colvos Rocks to hunt fish, or returning to a nest or roost tree in the back bay. White head and tail, dark body and wings. A very large bird.

Great Blue Heron
A large blue, gray and white bird seen on the docks or shoreline. Long thin neck, long legs and a loud croaking voice. A favorite bird in the marina where it fishes from the docks.

Belted Kingfisher
Often seen diving for fish. Hovers over water, then plunges to catch small herring. Heavy beak, large head, blue and white body. Nests in holes along banks.

Barn Swallow and Violet-green Swallow
Swallows nest under eaves and docks, and eat quantities of insects by flying in graceful loops. Especially common around the marina area.

Purple Martin
A large and vocal swallow. Nest boxes in the marine provide a home for these birds. Eats mosquitoes and other insects. In early to mid summer, watch the young attempt first flights around the marina.

Glaucous-winged Gull
Locally, our most common gull. Almost all white, with pale gray back and wings. Large red spots on lower bill. Gulls that are brownish and undistinguished are usually juveniles.

Common Raven
22" to 27". Large black bird, bigger than a crow. Look for wedge-shaped tail, croaking or "tok" sounds, shaggy throat and hawk-like flight.

Visiting Summer Birds
They spend their winters to the south. Some travel all the way to South or Central America, yet return each summer to our area to nest.

Rufus Hummingbird
Less than 4" long, this is our common summer hummingbird.

Oregon Junco
6" Juncos are small ground feeders and nesters. White out tail feathers show in flight. Juncos frequent local bird feeders for seeds.

American Robin
8" Common on summer lawns across America, we have great flocks of robins here in wintertime because of the moderate climate. Look for the robin's "read breast"

Stellar's Jay
13" the "Blue Jay" of the West. Black topknot, brilliant deep blue sides and raucous habits. Bold and unafraid, this bird is at home in forests and suburbs alike.

Song Sparrow
6" A common small brown bird with a dark breast spot that sings from a conspicuous perch, where it chatters and warbles. Likes thickets and hedgerow.

Chestnut backed Chickadee
You'll hear these little black, reddish-brown and white forest birds before you see them Hangs upside down in trees. 5" long.

Red-breasted Nuthatch
4 1/2". Tiny, spirals down tree trunks looking for insects.

Hairy Woodpecker
9 1/2". Black and white with a red patch on the back of the male's head. Drills holes in trees searching for insects. The speed of hammering can indicate the woodpecker species. We also have Downy and Pileated woodpeckers

Red-shafted race of Northern Flicker
12" to 14 : Brownish and black woodpecker that is most often seen eating ants on the ground. The flicker's undulating flight and white rump are conspicuous.

Resident Birds
These birds spend both summers and winters in our area.

Winter Wren
Loud bubbling, almost continuous sound, and mouse-like. Found in forest thickets and brambles, this 4" brown bird will fearlessly defend its territory.

California Quail
Quail are in Washington because of deforestation that has provided easy habitat in new fields and meadows. 9" to 12", black head plume like and explanation mark.

Birds identified this year:

Cormorant, red tailed hawk, barn swallow, violet green swallow, Mallard, bufflehead duck, Wood Duck, robin, Swainsons Thrush, Black Headed Grosbeak, Morning Grosbeak, Pacific Slope Fly Catcher, song Sparrow, Oregon Junco, Stellar's Jay, Northwestern Crow, Warbling vireo, Wilson's Warbler, Common Yellow Throat, Red breasted sapsucker, spotted towhee, Bald Eagle, Blue Heron, western tanager, pileated woodpecker, red breasted nuthatch, winter wren, bevicks wren, willow fly catcher, black capped chickadee, brown creeper, gold finch, pine siskin, starling, red winged blackbird, cowbird, belted king fisher, barrel tailed pigeon,

Butterflies: Western Tiger Swallowtail, Satyr comma, Mourningcloak butterfly,

The pine butterfly, Woodland skipper, Checkerspot

Dragon Flies: Pacific Fishtail, swift fishtail, Aeshnidae

Phone: (360) 732-7148. Please let this number ring! If not immediately answered, it rolls to a cellular phone and then to voice mail. We try to be reachable!