Columbia Estuary Report - 5/4/97

The SOLITARY SANDPIPER seen on Friday (5/2/97) could not be relocated nor
could the LAZULI BUNTING on the same day.

A very few PACIFIC-SLOPE FLYCATCHERS were singing along the bike path near
Battery Russell on Saturday. Six species of warbler were seen or heard as
well. 2 YELLOW WARBLERS (missed on Saturday) were on the bike path Sunday.

Selected Passerines on bike path - 5/3/97
Pacific-slope Flycatcher - 2
Hutton's Vireo - 1
Orange-crowned Warbler - 30+ (apparent female movement)
Yellow-rumped Warbler - 2 (heard only)
Black-throated-gray Warbler - 7
MacGillivray's Warbler - 1 (in same spot as last week)
Common Yellowthroat - 20+
Wilson's Warbler - 15+

PURPLE MARTINS arrived at Hammond Boat Basin Sunday. None were seen on
Saturday; four (3 males, 1 females) on Sunday. A GREEN HERON was flying
over Fred Meyers in Warrenton on Sunday.

A female WOOD DUCK with a brood (9) of very recently hatched ducklets was
at Wireless Rd this morning.

The Clatsop Beach transect from Sunset Beach Access to Del Rey Access produced
the following:
Semipalmated Plover - 450
Dunlin - 1320
Sanderling - 400
Western Sandpiper - 50

Dead birds:
Surf Scoter - 2
Green-winged Teal - 1
Glacous-winged Gull - 2
Common Murre - 1
Rhinocerus Auklet - 2
Cassin's Auklet - 1

These are the first substantial numbers of dead birds encountered in the last
month.


--
*********************************** I got the blues so bad one time
* Mike Patterson, Astoria, OR * it put my face in a permanent frown
* mpatters at orednet.org * but I am feelin' so much better
*http://www.pacifier.com/~mpatters* I could cake-walk into town