An annual bird invasion

In spring, the birds that probe the mudflats of Grays Harbor — and fly in flowing formations — share a common characteristic with many of the people who peer at them from the nearby boardwalk.

Individuals from each group have traveled a long way, hundreds, maybe thousands of miles to get there.

The bird’s presence is a mere pit stop on the road to reproduction; a mandatory migration; an ancient journey to the arctic.

A pilgrimage of spectacle, the human’s journey is likely less crucial than the bird’s.

The 2025 Shorebird and Nature Festival at the Grays Harbor National Wildlife Refuge, will be April 25, 26, and 27. The Festival dates are based on the best high tides.

The refuge

In 1990 the federal government established the Grays Harbor National Wildlife Refuge — 1,400 acres of intertidal mudflats, salt marshes and open water tucked into the far northeastern corner of the Grays Harbor estuary. A major part of the establishment was based on the fact that the area is a prime feeding and resting area for shorebirds, according to Glynnis Nakai, the Grays Harbor National Wildlife Refuge Manager with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

The same is true for other refuges and wildlife protection areas on the Pacific coast. Shorebirds — and other migratory birds — that migrate seasonally use at least part of the Pacific Flyway, a chain of habitats stretching from the tip of South America to the arctic coast in Alaska.

Grays Harbor’s position in the flyway is critical — it was recognized as a site of hemispheric importance by the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network in 1995.

Some birds travel from Mexico or South America, and others lesser distances. Regardless, birds have to stop to eat and rest along the way.

While the whole estuary ecosystem is important for shorebird migration, Nakai said, the mudflats of the refuge are particularly suitable habitat. According to the fish and wildlife service, the refuge occupies only two percent of the intertidal habitat in the estuary but hosts up to half of the migrating shorebirds in spring.

Nakai said the area of the refuge is ideal partially because of tidal patterns: It’s the first area of tidal flat to be exposed when tides recede and the last to be covered when tides come back in. That maximized the amount of time available to gorge on the salty smorgasbord that is the intertidal mudflat.

“That area is ideal for shorebirds because they spend the most amount of time foraging,” Nakai said. “They rest during migration, but it’s most important for them to have a food source. It takes a lot of energy to migrate thousands of miles.”

On the refuge’s muddy menu: invertebrates — clams, worms and shrimp — buried in the sediment. A single square meter of mud could hold 50,000 invertebrates, according to the fish and wildlife service.

The tidal fluctuations also dictate the best times for shorebird viewing. Two to three hours before and after high tide will force birds to the section of mudflat closest to the shore, and therefore, the boardwalk at the refuge.

The birds

From late April to early May, hundreds of thousands of shorebirds stop by the mudflats of Grays Harbor. They stop on their way to Alaska or British Columbia, where they find prime nesting grounds.

The birds fly in bunches, clouds of bobbing feathers and beaks, flocks shaping and shifting as they glide into the flats. Part of what makes the spring migration so spectacular, Nakai said, is the sheer number of birds traveling together at once. Flocks can number in the thousands, she said.

“It’s important for all of them to be going at the same time, not just dwindling in, because they find their mate and they find their spot,” Nakai said. “When you are a breeder, it’s important for you to maximize your time that you’re going to be able to go up, connect with your mate, nest, and still have good resources through the summer for the chicks.”

Breeding also means the birds need to get noticed — some develop eye-catching plumage. Nakai said Black-bellied Plovers, for example, have a distinctive spring appearance, growing soot-black feathers from their chins to their underbellies.

When it comes to plumage, the Red knot also stands out. A member of the sandpiper family, the Red Knot’s chest is reminiscent of a Robin’s when breeding season comes around.

These birds have experienced population declines over the past few decades, leading one subspecies to be listed under the Endangered Species Act.

But when it comes to numbers, the Western Sandpiper is one of the most abundant species during spring at the refuge, and one of the most numerous shorebirds in Washington. Its breeding plumage brings a reddish brown color to its cap, cheeks and wings, while its medium length bill seldom prods deeper than two inches into the sand.

Along with Dunlins, Western Sandpipers compose about 80% of shorebirds at the refuge in the spring.

Shorebirds are the main draw of the festival, but other resident birds live at the refuge year-round and make themselves visible from time to time. Tiny brown marsh wrens and black-capped chickadees flutter between the willows and sedges, while geese and ducks bob in the chop. What is perhaps more thrilling, however, is seeing a peregrine falcon or a bald eagle on the hunt for shorebirds.

“It’s pretty exciting when it does happen,” said Arnie Martin, who serves on the board of directors with the Grays Harbor Audubon Society and helps organize the festival.

With so many different birds fluttering and poking around the refuge in springtime, amateur — or even experienced — birders might feel overwhelmed. But as the birds begin to assemble at the refuge in April, so will birders and bird experts from far and wide who aim to educate and entertain at the Shorebird and Nature Festival.

The people

For one festival a few years back, Nakai said, a woman on a shorebird tour came all the way from Australia to Grays Harbor to witness the migration. People also travel from all around the United States, Martin said.

“There’s a lot of people who come from quite a ways to see these shorebirds, and those people tend to stay in a motel as well,” Martin said.

Nakai said the festival is a partnership between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Grays Harbor Audubon Society and the city of Hoquiam, and is intended to boost the local economy as well as celebrate shorebirds.

During the festival, volunteers and festival organizers will be out on the boardwalks helping viewers distinguish between shorebird species, and pointing out important behaviors.

“The volunteers out there are able to show them and discuss with them how to ID the shorebirds,” Martin said. He added that he’ll be out on the boardwalk helping visitors identify birds during the festival.

A shorebird expert will deliver a guided walk on the Sandpiper Trail, the boardwalk at the refuge that gets birders up close and personal with their subjects. The trail features several spotting scopes free to use for up-close bird identification, and festival-goers are encouraged to bring binoculars as well.

While the Grays Harbor National Wildlife Refuge is the main draw of the festival, it’s not the only place where people can see birds. Nakai said the festival will feature field trips to other places around Grays Harbor such as Ocean Shores, Westport and Grayland. The field trips will provide a more complete shorebird experience, Nakai said, since not all migrating birds venture into the refuge.

“It’s not just the refuge, it’s the whole area of Grays Harbor that is a great birding opportunity,” Nakai said.

The Sandpiper Trail is open every day from sunrise to sunset, and does not require admission.

For more information on the 2025 Grays Harbor Shorebird and Nature Festival, visit /www.shorebirdfestival.com/.

For more information about the Grays Harbor National Wildlife Refuge, visit www.fws.gov/refuge/grays-harbor.

Jan Wieser / U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Western Sandpipers scurry across the sand in search of food in the mudflats. Sandpipers are the most prevalent bird at the refuge during the festival.