Hi Tweets,

On Sunday, December 3, Bruce LaBar and I found a young Snowy Owl on the
Tacoma Tideflats. It was seen at the northwest corner of the intersection
of Taylor Way and Hwy 509. Taylor Way is the first Fife exit from I-5
coming from the North and Hwy 509 is the new highway across the tideflats.

The young bird was seen at 0800 hr and again at 0900 hr sitting on top of a
brand new white semi-truck cab, among a sea of new white semi-truck cabs.
If you looked at it just right, it was like a white tundra of new trucks -
makes you wonder.

According to a local longshoreman, the bird has been seen sitting on the new
cars all week, but in different places, with the center of the
non-accessible new car import/export dock being 2510 S Alexander on the
Blair Waterway. There are literally a thousand cars all covered in white
plastic to choose from. The owl seems to disappear once all the loading
activity gets started at dawn.

If you decide to make a trip down to Tacoma, there are some other areas that
are worth some additional time.

Mouth of the Hylebos Waterway at E 11th St and Marine View Dr:
Am Wigeon, Eur Wigeon, Dunlin

Log Booms 1 1/2 miles further north on Marine View Dr:
Black Turnstones, Least Sandpipers, Dunlin, All 3 cormorants
Harbor Seals and CA Sea Lions

Gog-le-hi-te Wetlands at the corner of Lincoln Ave and Portland Ave:
The gulls are starting to come back in large numbers. Nothing
unusual yet, but you could find the first. Plenty of Thayer's gulls to
practice on and dark? Western Gulls to encourage thoughts of another
Slaty-backed Gull.

Ruston Way along the west side of Commencement Bay:
The albino YELLOW-BILLED LOON was seen as late as November 30th. It
has been seen most often between the Old Fire Boat Station (Big Red Boat on
land is hard to miss) and northwards toward the Asarco slag pile (the site
of a large surprise Caspian Tern colony last year).

11th Street Bridge over the Puyallup River:
The Peregrine Falcons nested on the eastern Counterweight last year.
One was seen today in the same spot.

Enjoy your day of industrial bird watching,
Marcus Roening Tacoma,WA
mdr51044 at glaxowellcome.com