This weekend at San Juan Island, a golden eagle was sitting on the dunes at American Camp, and a female red crossbill (olive-yellow in color) sang from the top of an evergreen tree in the backyard in Friday Harbor.

Highlight of the weekend, though, was at Lime Kiln Park: a gull dove into the water and evidently picked up a small fish. As it flew off with its catch, a bald eagle raced from the trees on the shore and engaged in a fabulous swooping race with the gull to take the fish. They both looked like top-notch ace fighter pilots. Eventually, it appeared that the gull dropped its catch into the water and both eagle and gull flew their separate ways....the eagle back to its perch in the trees...

In Conway, I was happy to see that hundreds of snow geese are still in the area.

Also, on Wednesday at the Black River Riparian Forest in Renton, saw a coyote on the east side of Springbrook Creek. The great blue herons there are actively tending and building nests now, and are expanding the rookery to additional trees.

Didi Anstett
mailto: didianstet at aol.com