This is an immature male Western Tanager Piranga ludoviciana. Western Tanagers are a neotropic migrant, breeding in forests of the western U.S. and Canada, and spending winters in Mexico and Central America. Their arrival each spring is fun, not just because they are one of our more colorful birds, see this adult male, but because they rush past in huge numbers on some days in May.
In certain places, and I am lucky enough to live very close to one such area, on a mid to late may morning with just the right gentle winds well over 1000 of this species may be seen flying past. On a recent day, a couple of top local birders counted over 4000 from a gravel parking lot overlooking Point Defiance Park. This seems to be a natural funnel for migratory spring songbirds as they follow the land to the peninsula, then gather their courage to cross the several miles of open water ahead.
This is a female Western Tanager.
Migration is a miracle, a wonder and a joy to behold.
Good birding.
