Went birding in Colville, just West of town, on Saturday, 2/27. It was a mix of rain and snow. Some of birds seen were:

Mountain bluebird (*first seen of the year)
Amer. Robin (in all the fields)
Killdeer
Rough-legged hawk
Red-tailed hawk
Am. Kestrel
N. pintails (most abundant bird in the valley 400+)
Mallards
Green-winged Teal
Hooded mergansers
Bufflehead
Common Goldeneyes
Barrow's Goldeneyes
Pied-billed Grebes
Great-blue Heron
Song Sparrow
House Finch
Red-winged Blackbird
Canada Geese

This was on my way back from a presentation I gave in Colville. At that presentation, one of the local farmers got on a rampage about how we should kill all the red-tail hawks like we used to since they are the critters responsible for having no pheasants in the area!! Sounds like PA, but just shows this isn't a unique individual, but probably widespread.

Howard Ferguson
Elk, WA
!