As Ruth Sullivan noted on a recent post, Hutton's Vireo was relatively
plentiful on the Seattle Christmas Bird Count (December 27). In fact, the
total of 15 was an all-time high, nine being the previous high. Hutton's
Vireo was found on 18 of the previous 30 counts (1967-1996), and when
found, averaged 4.38 individuals/year.

Maybe some people would be interested in knowing where they were found, as
their Seattle distribution appears to be quite local. The count circle is
centered at Pioneer Square. The circle's top is just above the Northgate
shopping mall; it passes just east of Wilburton, on the other side of
I-405 from downtown Bellevue; the south edge cuts across Tukwila, south of
Boeing Field; and on the west, the circle includes about one kilometer of
Restoration Point on Bainbridge Island. Much of the west half of the
circle is salt water (Puget Sound, Elliott Bay).

Seven of the Hutton's Vireos were in West Seattle (2 each in Lincoln Park
and Camp Long, one each in Schmitz Park, Fauntleroy Trails Park, and the
former UW research area along 21st Avenue SW, north of Puget Park). The
remaining eight were in the east part of the circle, adjacent to Lake
Washington: five in Pioneer Park on the south end of Mercer Island, and
three in Fairweather Park at the base of Evergreen Point in Medina. Some
observers noted that the birds they found were in mature second-growth
mixed forest with healthy understory -- either in the forest or along the
edges, but not in clearings -- foraging rather low to the ground, not in
the canopy.

Hal Opperman
Medina, WA