My family and I spent a few hours at Bowerman Basin at low tide. The
crowd was treated to a spectacular display where a Peregrine Falcon
tried (unsuccessfully) to snag a bird from the flock of mixed shorebirds.
He first dove on the flock over land, which caused it to flush, and
then tried repeatedly to dive through the swirling flock. Then the flock
broke into many separate flocks each swirling in different directions
before the falcon broke off.

We saw many Western Sandpipers, Dunlins, Greater Yellowlegs, and
what I thought were primarily Short-billed Dowitchers. The reason I
thought this was the relatively clear reddish breast. I was using
the National Geographic guide and the heavy-spotting shown for the
breeding Long-billed Dowitcher now seems over-stated as compared to some
other guides. How do others readily distinguish these birds?

Also I watched the Greater Yellowlegs fishing for minnows in the surf
for quite some time. They were just hauling in minnows one after another.
Is this quite common? TIA.


Ed Rybak
Sequent Computer Systems
15450 SW Koll Parkway
Beaverton, OR 97006
phone: (503) 578-4336
fax: (503) 578-3811
rybak at sequent.sequent.com

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"You see, one thing is, I can live with doubt and uncertainty and not
knowing. I think it's much more interesting to live not knowing than to
have answers which might be wrong. I have approximate answers and
possible beliefs and different degrees of certainty about different things,
but I'm not absolutely sure of anything and there are many things I don't
know anything about..."

-Richard Feynman