Re the much appreciated recent posting on Ocean Shores birds by Hugh
Jennings. I'm responding on tweeters rather than directly to Hugh not to
embarrass Hugh in any way but so all readers can share my cautionary
remarks. My birding mentor when I was just a sprout would be proud that I
carried on his critical tradition. Surveys such as this belong on the
record, and it's appropriate that they be scrutinized by peers.

Hugh, I don't know if you knew that both Forster's Terns and Eared Grebes
are quite rare (the former never recorded, to my knowledge) at Grays
Harbor. Any chance these were Common Terns and Horned Grebes? Also,
Herring Gulls, while present, would rarely if ever be in "large numbers"
(there are lookalikes--for example, Western x Glaucous-winged hybrids--to
beware of), and this seems rather early for a Swainson's Thrush (any
possibility of Hermit?).

This might just be my last posting for a while, as I'm off to the Texas
coast and hill country to see if Dave Nunnallee left some birds behind.
I'll let you know (but I guess not by laptop and modem).

Dennis Paulson, Director phone: (206) 756-3798
Slater Museum of Natural History fax: (206) 756-3352
University of Puget Sound e-mail: dpaulson at ups.edu
Tacoma, WA 98416