Via Peggy Rodgers:
>........Anyone in the Northwest know about the US Fish and Wildlife Service
>>scientists' plan to kill about 40 scoters to try to dertermine why their
>>numbers are declining? This came out of Tacoma, WA. I just saw a blurb in a
>>weekly newspaper today with no more information than what I just
>mentioned......

Surf Scoters in Commencement Bay, Tacoma, probably. They're assessing
contaminant levels in the scoters, which are known to be high.
One might check with Mary Mahaffy, USFWS, Olympia or Dave Nysewander,
WDFW, Olympia for more information.
Also look at this reference, especially if you enjoy chemistry:

Henny, CJ; Blus LJ; Grove RA; Thompson SP. 1991. Accumulation of trace
elements and organochlorines by Surf Scoters wintering in the Pacific
Northwest. Northwestern Naturalist 72:43-60.
--
Scott Richardson
NE Seattle
salix at halcyon.com