Weather: High clouds, some hazy sunshine.
No wind. 45F/8C
Count conducted 07:15 - 08:45

A bit about the lake, for those not familiar with it:
Originated after last ice age, 12000-15000 years ago.
(Naturally) eutrophic. Has supported algal blooms for at least past 7000
years.
First European homesteader arrived 1856. Native American name for the lake:
Dutlech (spelling varies), we have not idea what that means.
1950 calculation on carrying capacity for fish 300 lb./acre (many times higher
than "normal"). Stocked with rainbow trout annually, also present perch, carp,
crappies, bullheads, sticklebacks, sculpin etc.
Water surface: 103 ha/256 acres.
Shallow: mean depth 4m/13 feet, deepest point 9 m/29 feet.
Contains 1.1 billion gallons/~ 4 billion liters, replaced every 1.1 years
(average).
Main water sources: rain water (36 inches/ 0.9 m/year) & Cedar and Tolt River
water, through overflow drainage and seepage catchment from two City Water
reservoirs.
Drains into storm water pipeline to Lake Union as well as sewer pipeline to
treatment plant.
Surrounded by 150 acres public park in the north end of Seattle.
Path around the lake 2.83 miles/4.5 km

Remarks: Some kind of fish (small, 5"-8") have been spawning for the past few
weeks along the reeds in the northwest corner, the Great Blue Herons loving
it. The water lilies are dying back, now it's open enough to the mergansers'
liking too. The cormorants don't venture among the lilies yet, give it another
week of cool temperatures and reduced plant density. However, spawning
activity is now evident along the southwest shore also, including underneath
the docks (the longest one) near the Aqua Theater. Most piscivorous species
were found there this morning.

Legend: before the comma: males, after: females

Pied-billed Grebe 32
Horned Grebe 1
Western Grebe 1
Double-crested Cormorant 27
Great Blue Heron 3
Greater White-fronted Goose 1
Canada Goose 193
Domesticated Goose 11
American Green-winged Teal 0,1
Mallard 88,60
Northern Shoveler 1,4
Gadwall 105,68
Eurasian Wigeon 2,0
American Wigeon 135,93
Lesser Scaup 1,1
Common Goldeneye 2,1
Barrow's Goldeneye 1,0
Bufflehead 3,4
Hooded Merganser 0,1
Common Merganser 38,22
Ruddy Duck 2,3
Domesticated Duck 10
Bald Eagle 1 ad
American Coot 276
Mew Gull 230
Ring-billed Gull 42
California Gull 1
Herring Gull 1
Thayer's Gull 1 (?)
Glaucous-winged hybrid gulls 6
Glaucous-winged Gull 32
Rock Dove 45
Belted Kingfisher 1,0
Downy Woodpecker 2
Northern Flicker 2,1
American/Northwestern Crow 74
Black-capped Chickadee 24
Chestnut-backed Chickadee 2
Bushtit 40
Red-breasted Nuthatch 2
Brown Creeper 1
Golden-crowned Kinglet 12
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 3
American Robin 2
European Starling 48
Yellow-rumped Warbler 3
Song Sparrow 6
Red-winged Blackbird 56
Brewer's Blackbird 14
American Goldfinch 36
House Sparrow 25

Exiting news: the Seattle Department of Parks and Recreation (especially its
Urban Forester Paul West) and the Green Lake Park Alliance (especially Jeany
Taylor) have been working on a wildlife habitat enhancement project along the
north shore of the lake. As a result, an experiment is underway which marks a
radical departure from standard parks department policies and practices (and
consequently will me watched intently). Some trees with a lot of dead wood
weren't just cut down (liability drives a lot of actions), but they were
trimmed to reduce the "sail" of the still live parts. We now have several nice
landmark snags. Dead wood has been distributed below the trees to form a
"natural" barrier and later native understory plants will be added (GLPA has
applied for and received several grants, the City is providing plants as
well).
In cooperation with some schools (especially fourth graders at Tops) nearby
sections of shoreline have been cleared of blackberries. Native plants,
including sedges and marsh plants will be planted, Tops applied for and
received a small grant to buy plants from the City. One already somewhat
inaccessible section of shoreline around a small bay, will be given an
especially wide margin of vegetation, to further provide wildlife with
habitat.
After having watched the Parks Department fight anything natural in the lake
and park for the past 15 years, it is very exciting (and rewarding) to see
these changes come about.
It is not the intention to wholesale change the this park over to wildlife
habitat, but to diversify the park's functions and acknowledge it as a place
for wildlife too. To see the Parks Department go ahead and purposefully create
"messy" placed with dead and decaying wood and bare snags, is "neat" :)
Knowing how often the Parks Department only hears from park users when
something is bad/wrong/obnoxious/dangerous, I would like to urge anybody who
uses this park and thinks this is a good thing, to call the department's
compliments or concerns number (206) 684-4837 and express your opinion. You
know, give them positive feedback (I hope). Or you can write:
Ken Bound, Superintendent
Seattle Department of Parks and Recreation
100 Dexter Avenue
Seattle WA, 98109

Letters do get through the system to those actually in charge of this kind of
project; it doesn't hurt to let the whole chain-of-command know.

With special thanks to those of you who will take the trouble to call or
write,

Happy birding

Martin Muller, Seattle WA
MartinMuller at classic.msn.com