Hello birders, this is the Bird Brain, voice of Seattle
Audubon's Bird Sightings Hotline for FRIDAY, DECEMBER 30,
1994, at 10 AM.

To skip the details and just leave a message punch 5 and
wait for the tone.

For sick or injured birds call the Wild Bird Clinic at 941-
2174 [or PAWS at 743-3845 or 743-1884].

A female GARGANEY has been positively identified at
Richland, WA, Dec. 15 and was still present there through
Dec. 27. Look for it just upriver from the Richland Yacht
Club marina. Call Bob Woodley at 509-943-4826 for details.
A PACIFIC LOON was feeding nearby among the yachts and three
AMERICAN WHITE PELICANS foraged here in mid-stream.

GULLS in the news include a winter adult COMMON BLACK-HEADED
GULL seen off Pt. No Point Dec. 22 and at the Edmonds
fishing pier December 27. An adult LITTLE GULL was reported
at the south end of American Lake south of Tacoma through
December 28. Both were with flocks of BONAPARTE'S GULLS.
The adult SLATY-BACKED GULL may be back for a second winter.
It was reported Dec. 24-27 on the Puyallup River tide flats
at Tacoma at last year's spot. Look for it among the
hundreds of gulls roosting on roofs at a rendering plant
near the Gog-le-hi-te wetland or downstream toward the mouth
of the Puyallup. Also present there is a 1st winter
GLAUCOUS GULL and numerous THAYER'S GULLS. Another 1st
winter GLAUCOUS GULL has been seen at Coulon Park in Renton
in the huge flock of large gulls that frequents the
southeast shore of Lake Washington.

Two GYRFALCONs were seen December 10 on the Samish Flats
northwest of Mt. Vernon and one was reported there on the
17th. Look for them at the "West 90," which is the 90
degree bend in Samish I. Rd. just west of the T-junction
with the Bayview-Edison Rd. Another good spot for them is
between Field and Sunset Rds. and on poles along Farm-to-
Market Rd. On December 10 five species of falcons were on
the Samish Flats including a PRAIRIE FALCON at the T-
junction, 3-4 PEREGRINES, 2-3 MERLINS, and a pair of
AMERICAN KESTRELS.

A GREAT EGRET were spotted in Snohomish Co. It was first
reported along Hwy 530 just west of Arlington Dec. 22, then
Dec. 27 at Smoky Pt. east off I-5 at exit 206 at the corner
of 51st NE and NE 152nd. Consult your DeLorme Atlas, pg.
95, D-7.

The Sauvie Is. CBC Washington side team reported a RED-
SHOULDERED HAWK, said to have been present for the past two
months, along with a PRAIRIE FALCON, 3 GREATER WHITE-FRONTED
GEESE, and 11 GREAT EGRETS, all on Dec. 18. Call Wilson
Cady at 206-835-5947 for details.

The adult male BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLER remains a regular
visitor at Marilyn & Bill Hatheway's Mercer Is. feeder
through Dec. 27. Call ahead at 232-6199 to arrange a visit.

Odd hawk sightings in the Seattle area include a bird
suspected of being an out-of-place ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK along
the Burke Gilman Trail beside Pacific Ave. on the UW campus
in Seattle. A very pale buteo seen near Monroe on the
Tualco Loop Rd. near the grange was suspected of being an
even more out-of-place FERRUGINOUS HAWK. However, beware
albinistic RED-TAILED HAWKS. Further details on either of
these birds is needed.

An imm. HARRIS'S SPARROW was conspicuous in a flock of
GOLDEN-CROWNEDS at the Edmonds Marsh near Observations
Platform #4 in mid-December. The Edmonds Marsh in just back
of the ferry landing. Another HARRIS'S was reported at a
feeder in Marysville about the same time. For information
call Shelly Jay at 206-659-8159.

A TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE was in north Seattle in the View
Ridge area in the 6500 block of 40th NE. A WESTERN
MEADOWLARK was at Juanita Bay Park in Kirkland Dec. 10. A
GREEN HERON was on the the Tacoma CBC at the Dec. 17 at the
Day Island Marina in W. Tacoma. A male COMMON YELLOWTHROAT,
quite a late lingerer, was at the Kent Ponds Dec. 11.

Several ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERs were seen at the Everett STP
and on nearby Spencer Is. Dec. 25 & 26. A flock of five
PINE GROSBEAKS was at Pt. No Point Dec. 21.

The EMPEROR GOOSE reported Dec. 10 at the Olympic Game Farm
nw of Sequim turned up on Dungeness Spit Dec. 25. A blue-
phase SNOW GOOSE was spotted with a GREATER WHITE-FRONTED
and several CACKLING CANADA GEESE in a flock near the
junction of Kitchen Dick and Buckhorn Rds. Dec. 15.

East of the Cascades there are above average numbers of
BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS in many locations. A flock of 200 has
been seen daily in Ellensburg in crab apple trees in an
alley 1/2 block east of 4th and Maple. SNOW BUNTINGS were
reported east of Mansfield along SR 172 on the Waterville
Plateau ne of Wenatchee Dec. 11 and two BLUE JAYS have been
visiting a feeder in East Wenatchee through Dec. 11. To
find the Jays take Grant St. east from the highway along the
river to Kansas, the north of Kansas to Kenroy, then right
to the feeder. A white-phase GYRFALCON, very rare in
Washington, was reported along Dodson Rd. south of I-5
sometime in the not too distant past.

For SAS field trips, or for information on conservation and
education issues please call the office at 523-4483 during
office hours, 10-4 Monday through Friday and 10-2 Saturday.

That's all for now. If you have news to report, wait for
the tone, then give your name, phone number, and the
details. Thanks and good birding.

****

Hello birders, this is the Bird Brain, voice of Seattle
Audubon's Bird Sightings Hotline for TUESDAY, JANUARY 3,
1995, at 10 PM.

To skip the details and just leave a message punch 5 and
wait for the tone.

For sick or injured birds call the Wild Bird Clinic at 941-
2174 [or PAWS at 743-3845 or 743-1884].

A male COMMON GRACKLE was reported near Walla Walla at the
Walla Walla College farm west of College Place on Whitman
Ave. Please park sw of the house in the big open area
rather than drive into the farm itself.

A BRAMBLING was reported Jan. 1 with a flock of JUNCOS in
Everett in the 400 block of 75th St.

The immature male GARGANEY found at Richland, WA, Dec. 15
was still present there through Dec. 31. Look for it just
upriver from the Richland Yacht Club marina. Call Bob
Woodley at 509-943-4826 for details. A PACIFIC LOON was
feeding nearby among the yachts and three AMERICAN WHITE
PELICANS foraged here in mid-stream.

GULLS in the news include a winter adult COMMON BLACK-HEADED
GULL seen off Pt. No Point Dec. 22 and at the Edmonds
fishing pier December 27. An adult LITTLE GULL was reported
at the south end of American Lake south of Tacoma through
January 1. Both were with flocks of BONAPARTE'S GULLS. The
adult SLATY-BACKED GULL may be back for a second winter. It
was reported Dec. 24-27 on the Puyallup River tide flats at
Tacoma at last year's spot. Look for it among the hundreds
of gulls roosting on roofs at a rendering plant near the
Gog-le-hi-te wetland or downstream toward the mouth of the
Puyallup. Also present there is a 1st winter GLAUCOUS GULL
and numerous THAYER'S GULLS. Another 1st winter GLAUCOUS
GULL was seen at Coulon Park in Renton in late December and
at the mouth of the Cedar R. at the north end of the Renton
Airport runway January 2.

A GYRFALCONs were seen January 1 on the Samish Flats
northwest of Mt. Vernon. Look for it at the "West 90,"
which is the 90 degree bend in Samish I. Rd. just west of
the T-junction with the Bayview-Edison Rd. or between Field
and Sunset Rds. and on poles along Farm-to-Market Rd.

A GREAT EGRET were spotted in Snohomish Co. It was first
reported along Hwy 530 just west of Arlington Dec. 22, then
Dec. 27 at Smoky Pt. east off I-5 at exit 206 at the corner
of 51st NE and NE 152nd. Consult your DeLorme Atlas, pg.
95, D-7.

The Sauvie Is. CBC Washington side team reported a RED-
SHOULDERED HAWK, said to have been present for the past two
months, along with a PRAIRIE FALCON, 3 GREATER WHITE-FRONTED
GEESE, and 11 GREAT EGRETS, all on Dec. 18. Call Wilson
Cady at 206-835-5947 for details.

The adult male BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLER remains a regular
visitor at Marilyn & Bill Hatheway's Mercer Is. feeder
through Dec. 31. Call ahead at 232-6199 to arrange a visit.

Odd hawk sightings in the Seattle area include a bird
suspected of being an out-of-place ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK along
the Burke Gilman Trail beside Pacific Ave. on the UW campus
in Seattle. A very pale buteo seen near Monroe on the
Tualco Loop Rd. near the grange was suspected of being an
even more out-of-place FERRUGINOUS HAWK. However, beware
albinistic RED-TAILED HAWKS. Further details on either of
these birds is needed.

The Seattle CBC Dec. 31 tallied 120 species including a
BARRED OWL at Seward Park, an ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER in the
Arboretum, and three WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS. The Kent-
Auburn CBC January 1 had 111 species including a WHITE-
THROATED SPARROW with JUNCOS at the Christian Farm off
Frager Rd. 1/4 mi s of 212th St. and a SWAMP SPARROW heard
at the sw corner of the Kent Ponds. Also at the Kent Ponds
Jan. 1 was a lone TRUMPETER SWAN flying over. A male COMMON
YELLOWTHROAT, quite a late lingerer, was at the Kent Ponds
Dec. 11. If you bird the pond leave a note on your
windshield identifying yourself as a birder and do not block
the gates.

The EMPEROR GOOSE reported Dec. 10 at the Olympic Game Farm
nw of Sequim turned up on Dungeness Spit Dec. 25. A blue-
phase SNOW GOOSE was spotted with a GREATER WHITE-FRONTED
and several CACKLING CANADA GEESE in a flock near the
junction of Kitchen Dick and Buckhorn Rds. Dec. 15.

For SAS field trips, or for information on conservation and
education issues please call the office at 523-4483 during
office hours, 10-4 Monday through Friday and 10-2 Saturday.

That's all for now. If you have news to report, wait for
the tone, then give your name, phone number, and the
details. Thanks and good birding.