Hay tweets, I was at the Fill yesterday and did not see the Say's phoebe,
sad to say. On the plus side, I saw my first Savannah Sparrow of the year,
a most welcome sight. Altogether, during 2 hours of birding I saw 45
species. The weather was very cold and windy in the morning, so many of the
ducks were on the main pond instead of on the lake

The most notable was a pair of Wood Ducks - the male was in glorious
breeding plumage. Also seen:

.. male Anna's Hummer (near wedding rock - seems to have established his
territory there)
.. Lincoln's Sparrow (in grove near east entrance of the Fill, just west of
wedding rock; I've seen it here several times lately, which is notable
because most of the other Lincoln sparrows seem to have fled when the
blackberries were cleared out)
.. yellow-shafted Northern Flicker (it's been around all winter)
.. large numbers of Violet-Green Swallows
.. large numbers of Yellow-Rumped Warblers, the males in breeding plumage

FYI: If you haven't been down the Tom Lord Nature Trail at the Villa
Academy lately, you should go. A pair (or maybe two) of Band-Tailed Pigeons
are setting up nesting. This is also a good site for Western Tanagers later
in the year, as well as Brown Creepers, Wilson's Warblers and various
bird-eating raptors (sometimes Peregrines, occasional Merlins, frequent
Sharpies). I've often thought that if this trail were birded regularly, it
would produce some interesting warblers in migration. Technically, this
trail is on the private property of the school, but the school has welcomed
Audubon birders in the past.

Speaking of possibilities, I'm going to pay special attention this year to
the creek at the Fill. With the fencing down along most of its length, I
think this might be a good site for Northern Waterthrushes. Bob Vandenbusch
(sp? my apologies, Bob) saw one striding out of the willows on the main
pond two years ago (or was it three?). So I know they pass through.
Wouldn't it be wonderful to find another?

Connie, Seattle
csidles at mail.isomedia.com