If I had known a Snowy would be showing up on the UW campus this week I
might not have gone to Boundary Bay to see one. However, I'm glad I did
because it was a special time to be there. The weather was about perfect for
photography with frost every where in the early morning, the skies were
clear allowing unlimited views of Mt. Baker and Mt. Shuksan in the
background, yet in the afternoon it warmed to light sweater temperatures in
the full sun. I spent an afternoon and then the next morning there.

Thanks to the driving directions posted on the Tweeters web site I had no
trouble driving right to the area with no need to refer to my map. The
number of Snowys was surprising to me. We counted 29 in a small area
Wednesday morning, 2/5. I was pleased with the number of other birds there
as well. On arrival Tuesday afternoon while walking to the greenhouse site,
I counted 4 Short-eared Owls and three Northern Harriers hunting diligently
around the area (the Snowys must have been dining mostly at night though I
did see one fly off a greenhouse roof top and catch something on the ground
which was not quite visible). The Eagles are numerous and I saw one hawk
which I was unable to identify before it departed. I made no attempt to
identify the shorebirds, but did make note of a female Northern Flicker
feeding on the ground near the walking path. On another trip without the
Snowy Owls getting so much attention, I am sure I would see much more. It is
a neat place. When I went back on Wednesday morning I accessed the area from
64th instead of 72nd - a shorter walk by half to just get to where the
Snowys were hanging out. On the way out I saw a Cooper's Hawk on a lamp post
and a Red-tailed Hawk in a tree nearby.

Leaving Boundary Bay I made a brief trip to the Reifel bird sanctuary hoping
to see a Saw-whet Owl, but had no luck spotting one.

Jon Williams
Bellevue, WA
jon at wport.com