Hi folks,

While walking the kids and the dog on the beach just north of Three Tree =
Point (Burien/Seahurst in King Co.) yesterday noon, a flock of five sea =
ducks didn't look quite right to be the usual suspects of Surf Scoters.

I threw the binocs up, and 4 males and a female (young?) Harlequin Ducks =
flew in and landed - about 1/2 mile north of the point. Beautiful!. =
I've walked this beach off and on for about 14 years, now, and these are =
the first Harlequins I've seen there.

There were a few other birds in the vicinity:

Glaucous-winged Gull - 40=20
California Gull - 1
Bonaparte's Gull - 1
Common Loon - 3
Horned Grebe - 24
Western Grebe - 9
Red-necked Grebe - 12
Surf Scoter - 45
Mallard - 6
American Wigeon - 18 (plus another ~300 flying past)
Double-crested Cormorant - 4
Great Blue Heron - 1
Crow - 6
House Sparrow - one flock of about 40!
House Finch, Robin, Bewick's Wren, both chickadees, N Flicker, =
Golden-crowned Sparrows, etc, etc, in brush and yards. Didn't see the =
Monk parakeets I saw down at the point earlier this summer.
Jon. Anderson
Olympia, Washington
festuca at olywa.net