Hi folks,

Got snowed-in up in Seahurst after Christmas, and just finally got home =
to Olympia last night to view the aftermath of the Silver Thaw. I lost =
a 30-year old Portugese Laurel that, although I didn't like it much, was =
a wonderful source of laurel fruits for the Robins, Varied Thrushes, =
etc. Many of my 'feral' cherries were pruned, so there'll be less fruit =
for the waxwings, Robins and starlings this coming summer.

I saw a neat behavior up in Seahurst on the 26th. My father-in-law has =
a place on the bluff just above the water, and there are a number of =
Madrona trees (Arbutus menziesii) along the top of the bluff. The first =
day of the snow covered a lot of area, and must have significantly =
reduced feeding sites for the gulls. Over coffee that morning, we =
watched as a flock of 10-12 Glaucous-winged Gulls hovered at the top of =
a large madrona - then a few actually *landed* on the uppermost =
branches!! I grabbed the binocs and watched the gulls picking wizened =
little madrone berries from the fruit clusters, then fly off and swallow =
the berries. Although most of the birds just hovered above the tree in =
the North wind to grab the fruits, It was pretty comical to watch some =
of these large gulls hopping about on the uppermost branches of the =
madrona like so many Robins.. robins with large webbed feet...

The other observation I made was on St John's Day (the 27th), after the =
ice had taken a number of trees/limbs down in the neighborhood, and ice =
on the roads kept the traffic to a minimum. Down at Three Tree Point, =
there were 2 Monk Parakeets fighting with the Robins and Thrushes for =
red berries (cotoneaster?) from a broken shrub/tree. The berries were =
coated with about 3/8" of ice, and all three species were having to =
'shell' the fruit before they could eat it.

Now, the Chinook that's blown in has taken the snow, which was still 3" =
deep in the yard last night, down to bare ground. I just might take a =
New Year's jaunt down along the Chehalis tomorrow to bird and watch the =
flooding....

Happy New Year to all, and enjoy a great year's worth of birding in =
1997!

Jon. Anderson
Olympia, Washington
festuca at olywa.net