Hi:

Could these birds be Common Nighthawks? They swoop a lot like swallows as
they go for insects. 8:30 pm would also fit into the time of day they become
quite active, they have very sharp angled wings, and have white patches on the
underside of their wings. When I lived in Eastern Montana as a child I saw
many of them, and these were my favorite birds.

I live within a half mile of where Lydia saw these, and a couple of weeks ago
I thought I caught a glimpse of one out of the corner of my eye near my
apartment, but it disappeared so fast I couldn't be certain. "Birds of
Seattle and Puget Sound" does not list this bird in its regular index, but
under its "Checklist of King County Birds" indicates that the Nighthawk has
been confirmed to be nesting in King County.

Jim
Kent

> I was out walking along the Green River Trail in Kent, adjacent to the
> "Lakes" subdivision. It was around 8:30 in the evening. Some medium
> sized birds came swooping out of the trees on the west side of the river.
> They were white on the underside, wings very sharply angled. They were
> smaller than crows and bigger than robins. Their calls were thin and
> wimppy versions of hawk cries.
> They were flying very fast and swooping a bit like swallows. Any idea
> what they were?