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Transcribed by: Bob Norton, Joyce, WA (near Port Angeles)
norton360 at aol.com
(360) 928-3053

(My apologies to anyone whose name I have mangled. If anyone can supply
correct spellings of peoples names or place names, I am trying to keep a
list of correct spellings so those corrections would be appreciated).

[BirdBox previously checked at 7:35 AM, Monday, July 7.]

7:54 AM, July 7 - Hi! This is Stephen Mlodinow. Yesterday Jim Flynn, Chris
McInnery and myself went up to Whidbey Island and birded the Port of Everett
a little bit. Most importantly, Crockett Lake has now returned to its usual
level of shorebirddom. There was 4000 or so PEEPS, mostly WESTERNS but
including about a dozen SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPERS. Also between Crockett and
Swantown there were SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHER, LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER, GREATER
YELLOWLEGS, LESSER YELLOWLEGS, SEMIPALMATED PLOVER and at the end of Hastie
Lake Road there were 6 BLACK OYSTERCATCHERS and a WHIMBREL. At Swantown Lake
there was the OLDSQUAW. This time on the lake and hanging out and snoozing
with a bunch of MALLARDS. Then on private property on Whidbey Island there
were 3 LESSER SCAUP broods found and in a small pond just north of Freeland
on the right as you're heading north there was a GREEN-WINGED TEAL with 6
young and at Admiral's Cove near Crockett there was a COMMON GOLDENEYE.
That's about it. The Port of Everett once again failed to turn up any ARCTIC
TERNS. I do believe they've gone. Couldn't find any of the interesting GEESE
yesterday and I had about 400 CASPIAN TERNS all rafted up together on one of
the logbooms at high tide. That's it! Good luck and good birding!

1:12 PM, July 8 - Hi! This is Stephen Mlodinow. Today July 8th there was a
PEREGRINE FALCON at the Port of Everett. The ARCTIC TERNS seem to be gone. At
the Edmunds Marsh there was a nice variety of shorebirds. The only
interesting one of which was a SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER. Also I heard word from
Paul Lehman today. He birded Whidbey Island. There's a lot of shorebirds at
Crockett, but the highlight was a YELLOW-BILLED LOON off of Swantown. That's
on the west side of Whidbey Island opposite Swantown Lake. The OLDSQUAW was
apparently still there as well and he had some CASSIN'S AUKLETS between Port
Townsend and Keystone on the ferry run. That's it. Good luck and good
birding.

5:02 PM, July 8 - Hi! This is Paul Lehman from out of town. I just finished
leading a Wings Tour through the northwest the last 10 days and here are some
highlights. Today, the 8th, we found a basic plumaged YELLOW-BILLED LOON
right off the beach - sort of adjacent to the south end of the pond or lake
at Swantown on Whidbey Island. This same stretch from there down to Hastie
Lake Road has quite a few LOONS: about 12 COMMONS of both basic and breeding
plumage, about 7 or 8 RED-THROATEDS and at least a couple of PACIFICS. The
YELLOW-BILLED LOON started just south of that pullout adjacent to the south
side of the lake and then drifted north diving a lot and ended up opposite us
where we lost it because it was staying under the water after awhile so much.
So, this is a basic plumaged YELLOW-BILLED LOON. The male OLDSQUAW is still
there also.
Earlier in the day on Keystone-Port Townsend Ferry we had a CASSIN'S
AUKLET. We had two other CASSIN'S AUKLETS just off Port Angeles [transcribers
note: I presume from the Victoria Ferry]. We also had about 6 CASSIN'S
AUKLETS fiom shore at Victoria, B.C. So clearly, there are CASSIN'S AUKLETS
moving farther inland than usual.
Yesterday, the 7th at Dungeness on the Olympic Peninsula at the 3 Crabs
Restaurant, we had another male OLDSQUAW, 3 PURPLE MARTINS were around the
restaurant and if you make the right turn just before the restaurant and go
down the road a quarter mile there is a nice farm pond on the right that was
chock full of SHOREBIRDS at high tide and also a WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE.
Back at the beginning of the trip on the 29th of June, we had a
BLACK-THROATED SPARROW about 5 miles south of Vantage near the old railroad
bridge and then to the north of that we had an adult TUNDRA SWAN on the 29th
at a place called Atkins Lake which is about 5 miles west of the Dry Falls
Dam. An adult TUNDRA SWAN. So those are the highlights of the trip. Have a
good summer everybody. Bye Bye.

[Birdbox last checked at 6:42 AM, Monday, July 9.]