Hello Richard,
What a fantastic story this is,this certainly should make front page of
WOS-NEWS. I am still on a high from seeing the Rustic Bunting, but getting
so close to the Northern Pygmy-Owl did it all. I could not help myself to
to show my exitment. I found this Rustic Bunting much more colourful than
the one in Dezember15 1986 and stayed to March 22 1987. And the other one
came in Dezember 11 1988 and stayed to through April 1989.Hopfull this Bird
in Leavenworth will show up again, so more birders have a chance to see
it, without going to ATTU.
Ruth
----------
> From: Pterodroma at aol.com
> To: tweeters at u.washington.edu
> Subject: Bathroom birding in Leavenworth
> Date: Monday, January 11, 1999 12:55 AM
>
> 99-01-10, godwit at worldnet.att.net writes:
>
> << The immature male RUSTIC BUNTING, initially present since November,
and
> only recently comfirmed was again seen and photographed today for about
one
> hour between 8:25am-9:15am.... >>
>
> 9:15am ehh?!? Oh just fine; I arrive at 9:20am, and 5 minutes too late.
> People are gleeful, some giddy, others leaving after having seen the now
to
> become famous Leavenworth RUSTIC BUNTING. Meanwhile I'm full of optimism
> figuring this little birdie was as good as in the bag, and so, from 9:20
> onwards, I take up a spot in one of three bathrooms which offer the best
> overview of the bunting's preferred feeding grounds. I must tell you,
I've
> never spent sooo long in a bathroom, nor with soooo many people. Hmmm...
> interesting.... At least there was a place it sit down :-)) The flock
of
> juncos and finches would come and go. Flock departure was often abrupt
with
> the periodic passing Cooper's Hawk and Northern Pygmy Owl patroling the
area.
> 4 hours into this, my butt's tired and the final straw was with the
> simultaneous arrival of the Pygmy Owl AND Cooper's Hawk, both of which
> descended abruptly into the middle of the yard and precipitating the
explosive
> immediate departure of every little finchy thing in the neighborhood.
>
> Still, not a bad consolation prize just the same. I think I've never
seen a
> Northern Pygmy Owl so close and so well for so long (except for the one
that
> got loose inside my car once-upon-a-time). Only about 10-12 inches off
the
> snow covered ground at 20-30 feet. In the scope (Leica of course) at
that
> range, every minute feather filament was sharply discernable. Ruth of
course
> was just totally beside herself with the exquisite photo opportunity
which
> indeed 'twas! The Cooper's Hawk, an immature (female I think) put on a
> spendid show as well a few feet further away spreading and preening it's
> disproportionate long and rounded white tipped tail and showing off it's
other
> key field marks. Okay, so no lifer Rustic Bunting for Pterodroma-san.
Oh
> well, there's always next time ...maybe; I hope that mean ol' Pygmy Owl
didn't
> snatch it up when we weren't looking. Oh horrors... what if... caput...
> gone... and I blew it by 5 minutes! The trip to Leavenworth was still a
> delight and the warm hospitality of the Rustic Buntings host, Connie
McCauley,
> was most splendid.
>
> Richard Rowlett (Pterodroma at aol.com)
> 47.56N, 122.13W
> (Seattle/Bellevue, WA, USA)