Tweeterfolk,

This morning I kayaked over to Jetty Island for a delightfully peaceful 2
hours of birdwatching. The highlights were a single SNOWY OWL and a 15
minute "chase scene" of a bald eagle going after an unidentified gull.
The eagles flight appeared quite labored as it tried to gain altitude to
stoop on the gull and I was exhausted at the end of it. The eagle was
really extending itself as it made several serious attempts to bring down
the gull. There were 2 near misses, one of which appeared to just graze
the gull.

Other birds of note were ~180-200 DUNLIN and 4 SANDERLINGS at the spit on
the north end of the island, 3 REDTAIL HAWKS, 2 NORTHERN HARRIERS, a
single NORTHERN SHRIKE and ~25 FOX SPARROWS.

As it was still only 10 A.M., I decided to stop by Spencer Island and was
immediately rewarded with another SNOWY OWL. The bird was approximately
80 yards to the south and 30 yards to the east of the barn that is
directly across the bridge onto the island. SNOWY OWLS, if left
undisturbed, seem not to move around much during the day. This bird
remained in the general vicinity for over 2 hours and hopefully it will
stay for a while and provide some of you yet another excuse to visit
Spencer Island!

Cheers,
Tom Cotner