The Yakima CBC counted a preliminary total of 85 species on Dec. 19 which
ties the count record set last year. The total for individuals has not been
calculated but appears to be well below the average. Many of the larger
ponds and small lakes in the circle were open but just a day or two later
all were frozen.

The highlights were:

1 Burrowing Owl - new for the count
1 White-throated Sparrow - new for the count
4 Sage Grouse
3 Lincoln's Sparrows
1 Double-crested Cormorant

We braved fairly chilly weather between 20 and 32 degrees. The wind was not
a problem with only occasional breezes of less than 5 mph. We had 27
participants which was higher than I expected because of the forecast of
quite low temperatures.

Denny Granstrand
Yakima, WA

osprey at nwinfo.net