Field Notes
Written accounts from Portland and the Oregon coast — what I found in city parks, backyards and refuges, what it was doing, and the photographs I came home with.
Trying to put a name to something you just saw? The field guide has 74 species with photographs and their calls, and works with no signal.
54 entries and growingEvery photograph here is my own. Most were made at Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge, which sits at the heart of this guide — but the range runs wider than one refuge: Sellwood and Willamette Park, the river itself, my own garden in Southeast Portland, and the beach at Neskowin on the coast.
Every entry pairs those photographs with real natural history — how a heron corrects for the way light bends in water, why screech owls depend on woodpeckers, what nearly wiped out the great white egret and what brought it back.
It is free, it has no paywall, and it always will.
Green Sweat Bee
The Birds and Bees of Oaks Bottom — field guide Green Sweat Bee Agapostemon sp. · family Halictidae · about 10mm When: April –…
Read the entry →The Hermit Thrush Sings in the Harmonic Series
A small brown bird on the Oaks Bottom lookout deck — and one of the very few animals shown to choose its notes from…
Read the entry →White Pelicans at Oaks Bottom: A First for Everyone on the Trail
Two American White Pelicans dropped into Oaks Bottom last week — a first for me, and for everyone I met on the trail that…
Read the entry →October at Oaks Bottom: What One Native Aster Was Holding Up
Go down to Oaks Bottom in October, after the summer crowds have stopped coming and the trail is mostly dog walkers, and look at…
Read the entry →Making the Light: Flash Macro, and a Field Guide I Have Been Quietly Planning
Two afternoons in eighty-degree heat with a Godox AD200Pro and a 40-megapixel Fuji taught me that the shutter is not what freezes a bee.…
Read the entry →The Damselflies of Oaks Bottom
Five eyes, two sets of genitalia, wings with no pigment in them, and a childhood spent underwater as an ambush predator. Fourteen photographs from…
Read the entry →The American Kestrel: Portland’s Smallest Falcon
Four ounces of falcon. Two foveae in each eye, ultraviolet vision, and a habit of landing on twigs that move. Seven photographs of Oregon's…
Read the entry →The Ospreys of the Willamette
The bird that fishes the Willamette by falling out of the sky feet-first — the hover, the dive, the miss, and the climb back…
Read the entry →The Hawks of Portland
Two completely different birds share the name hawk. Learn to tell a buteo from an accipiter and the whole city reorganizes itself. Red-tailed, red-shouldered…
Read the entry →The Owls of Oaks Bottom
There are owls in Oaks Bottom. Most people who walk the loop never see one, and that is not bad luck — it is…
Read the entry →Herons and Egrets of the Willamette
Three of them share the same water here, and most people only ever notice one. The great blue heron is unmissable — four feet…
Read the entry →Bald Eagles of Portland and Neskowin
There are two places I photograph bald eagles. One is a floodplain refuge inside the city of Portland, ten minutes from my house. The…
Read the entry →The Garter Snakes of Oaks Bottom
There is a moment, when something long and quick moves through the grass beside your foot, when the body decides before the mind does.…
Read the entry →The Bees Next Door
When people picture a bee, they picture a honeybee — hive, queen, honey, the whole operation. But most of the bees actually working your…
Read the entry →Plant the Flowers — Hummingbirds from Neskowin to Sellwood
Neskowin is a tiny village on the Oregon coast that has quietly turned itself into a bird sanctuary. The locals plant with intention —…
Read the entry →The Painted Cedar Waxwings: A Stunning Bird Profile
Of all the birds that pass through Portland, none looks less real than the cedar waxwing. Its plumage is so sleek it seems airbrushed…
Read the entry →A Curious Raccoon
Not every face at the water’s edge has feathers. Down at Oaks Bottom, this raccoon came ambling along the bank and stopped to size…
Read the entry →Backyard, Street, Refuge: Portland in Bloom
This year the garden is talking back. Last spring I planted about five new rose bushes along my street — the small, sun-loving variety…
Read the entry →After 54 Years, My First Western Skink
This morning at Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge in Portland, I saw something I’d never seen before. A Western Skink, sunning itself on the stone…
Read the entry →A Morning in the Cherry Blossoms —A variety of songbirds and woodpeckers
Spring has arrived in Portland, and my backyard fig tree has become a stage for some of the Pacific Northwest’s most beautiful small birds.…
Read the entry →A Perfect Birthday at Oaks Bottom
I spent my birthday exactly where I wanted to be—at Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge—surrounded by crisp fall air, dripping gold and copper leaves, and…
Read the entry →– Drummers of the Oaks: Woodpeckers at Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge
On a recent visit to Oaks Bottom, I had the good fortune to photograph four striking woodpecker species: the pileated woodpecker, the Downy woodpecker,…
Read the entry →Fluff and Fury: A Flock of Bushtits in Sellwood Oregon
That afternoon in Sellwood was a beautiful fall day with perfect golden hour lighting. I was wandering through Sellwood Park and I noticed a…
Read the entry →Up Close with a Great Egret: A Quiet Fall Afternoon on the Willamette
There are days when the river seems to hold its breath. On a recent fall day, the Willamette lay glassy and gold, fog lingering…
Read the entry →The End of SpringTitle: From Cosmos to Crimson — Saying Goodbye to Spring, Hello to FallThe End of Spring
The garden still hums with life as spring winds down. Cosmos sway in the soft late-afternoon light, butterflies flit from petal to petal, and…
Read the entry →Friendly Downy Woodpeckers Visit My Backyard
This fall noisy visitors showed up at my feeder and made my backyard a little wilder — Downy woodpeckers They are small, bold, and…
Read the entry →Up Close with a Great Blue Heron — Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge
On a peaceful late afternoon at the Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge I had an unforgettable close encounter with a great blue heron (Ardea herodias).…
Read the entry →River Otters — Playful Water Hunters of North America
River otters (Lontra canadensis) are sleek, energetic mammals often seen sliding, diving and hunting in rivers, lakes and marshes. Famous for their playful behavior…
Read the entry →A Tiny Visitor: Gray Hairstreak on My Cosmos
The other day a tiny gray butterfly landed on a cosmos bloom in my garden, and I was lucky enough to get a macro…
Read the entry →How a Feeder and a Fountain Brought Red‑breasted Nuthatches to My Backyard
After putting up a feeder and a small fountain, I never expected the tiny, steel‑blue-and-russet birds that began darting around my fig tree after…
Read the entry →The American Robin: A Beloved Symbol of Spring in Portland, Oregon
As the seasons change and the days grow longer, one of the first signs of spring in Portland, Oregon, is the cheerful song of…
Read the entry →The Majestic Male Wood Duck: A Treasure of Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge
Nestled within the serene landscapes of Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge, the male Wood Duck stands out as one of nature’s most stunning avian wonders.…
Read the entry →Springtime Splendor: The Spotted Towhee’s Courtship Dance
As spring unfolds and the world bursts into bloom, one of the most captivating sights in our backyards is the courtship display of the…
Read the entry →The Male Anna’s Hummingbird
The natural world is replete with wonders that both dazzle the senses and challenge our understanding of physics and biology. Among these marvels is…
Read the entry →The Courtships Rituals of The Green Winged Teal
Courtship Rituals of Green-winged Teals at Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge in December As the chill of December settles over Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge, the…
Read the entry →The Swainson’s Thrush and Its Beautiful Song: A Melodic Symphony of Nature
While in Neskowin Oregon, I was excited to get my first photos of the elusive Swainson’s Trush. They are very camoflauged birds and prefer…
Read the entry →Praying Mantis
Praying mantises are considered beneficial insects for gardens because they eat many types of insect pests that can damage crops and plants. These pests include…
Read the entry →The Beauty of a Steller’s Jay: A Marvel of Nature’s Artistry
Nature is a canvas upon which countless masterpieces are painted, each displaying its unique beauty and captivating observers with its intricate details. Among these…
Read the entry →The Common Merganser
Introduction: Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge is a flourishing ecosystem located in northern California, renowned for its diverse range of avian species. Among the notable…
Read the entry →Ruby Crowned Kinglet
Introduction: The Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge, located in the heart of a diverse ecosystem, is home to a plethora of plant and animal species.…
Read the entry →The Barred Owl The Barred Owl: A Fascinating Creature of the Night
Introduction: The barred owl (Strix varia) is a remarkable bird species that belongs to the Strigidae family. Known for its distinctive appearance and haunting…
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Red Breasted Sap Suckers
The Red-breasted Sap Sucker: A Fascinating Woodpecker Species Introduction: The Red-breasted Sap Sucker (Sphyrapicus ruber) is a unique and captivating woodpecker species found in…
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A Mink In Oaks Bottom
A rare sighting of an American mink at Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge in Portland. This post explores the ecological significance of mink in Pacific…
Read the entry →The Symbiotic Relationship between Sunflowers and Bees
Bees and sunflowers form one of nature's most elegant symbiotic relationships. Here's how the partnership works — what the bees get, what the sunflowers…
Read the entry →Cooper’s Hawk in Oaks Bottom: A Study of Urban Wildlife
Introduction: Urban environments are often associated with concrete jungles and bustling city life, leaving little room for wildlife to thrive. However, there are exceptions…
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River Otters in Oaks Bottom: An Ecological Perspective
Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge, located in Portland, Oregon, is a remarkable urban oasis that provides a sanctuary for a diverse range of plant and…
Read the entry →Discovering the Fascinating World of Katydids
Introduction: Welcome to our comprehensive guide to Katydid, the intriguing insect that belongs to the family Tettigoniidae. We will explore the fascinating world of…
Read the entry →The Green Heron in Oaksbottom Wildlife Refuge: A Hidden Gem of Avian Diversity
Title: Exploring the Enchanting Green Heron at OaksBottom Wildlife Refuge in Portland, Oregon Introduction: Welcome to the captivating world of OaksBottom Wildlife Refuge, a…
Read the entry →The Yellow Bumble Bee
The yellow bumble bee is one of the most recognizable native pollinators in the Pacific Northwest. This post covers its identification, habitat, behavior, and…
Read the entry →Zebra Back Jumping Spider
The zebra-backed jumping spider, scientifically known as Salticus scenicus, is a species of spider that belongs to the family Salticidae. As the name suggests,…
Read the entry →Long Tailed Weasel
While in Neskowin I photographed a long tailed Weasel. It had a burrow under the neighbor’s sidewalk. It kept popping out of its hole…
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Western Tanager
The Western Tanager: A Beautiful Bird of the American West The Western Tanager is a stunning bird that can be found in the western…
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Mallard Gallery
There is a thriving population of mallard ducks in Portland. There are many duck ponds that are protected and allow a safe habitat for…
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Northern Shovelers
Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge, situated in the heart of Portland, Oregon, serves as a vital habitat for a diverse array of flora and fauna.…
Read the entry →Nothing matches that yet
The guide is still growing — try a broader word like bird, owl, bee or heron, or clear the search to see every entry.
More on the way
New entries are added regularly. Still to come: the great blue heron rookery through a season, hummingbirds, the wood ducks, dragonflies, and the rough-skinned newt — which has its own long argument with the garter snakes already in this guide. Coast species from Neskowin are on the list too.
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