Hello Tweets,

Today Dave Hayden,and my mother, and I birded the Ocean Shores area,
including some additional birding from Ocean City to Copalis Beach at
Griffiths Priday State Park, as we were fortunate to have a very successful
day, unlike our fairly disappointing trip that Rolan Nelson, and my mother
and I had on the 10th, as far as shorebird diversity. We encountered several
highlights during the day at most locations that we visited to be listed
later, despite rather gloomy weather conditions throughout the day within
the general Ocean Shores area, as we encountered persistant foggy conditions
until 11am, turning to mostly cloudy skies, and rather brisk wind after
11:30am, then skies turned to partly sunny skies as we left Ocean City at
5pm, but we managed to much better results for birding than on the 10th, as
we mentioned. A list of the most notable species as they occured follows,
including time and location:

Ocean City State Park, Grays Harbor Co.(GH) 7:15am-7:30am

12 Wood Ducks

Bill's Spit,GH 8am-8:50am(outgoing tide)

1 female RED-BREASTED MERGANSER
32 Black-bellied Plovers
28 Semipalmated Plovers
33 Whimbrel
14 MARBLED GODWIT(notable high count for location)
3 Sanderlings
1 juvenal SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER
11 Western Sandpipers
125 Least Sandpipers
17 Short-billed Dowitcher
118 California Gulls

Ocean Shores Game Range(accessed from Marine View Drive),GH 9am-9:50am

6 Black-bellied Plovers
11 Semipalmated Plovers
2 Whimbrel
3 juvenal LONG-BILLED CURLEWS(notable early date, and for
location)(photographed)
23 Western Sandpipers
62 Least Sandpipers

Ocean Shores S.T.P.,and western portion of the O.S.Game Range,GH
10am-10:20am

2 Common Loons
30 Brown Pelicans
3 female Northern Shovelers
2 female RED-BREASTED MERGANSERS
3 Sanderlings
6 COMMON TERNS

Ocean Shores Jetty,GH 10:25am-11:50am

24 Pacific Loons
1 Western Grebe(notable for an August record)
1 RED-NECKED GREBE(as above)
380+ Sooty Shearwaters
1 MANX SHEARWATER(observed from the mouth of Grays Harbor(south of the
jetty) approxiametely 3 yards offshore at 10:50am,amongst a large feeding
seabird flock)
43 Surf Scoters
1 Black-belled Plover
3 Wandering Tattlers
3 Ruddy Turnstones
1 Black Turnstone
44 Surfbirds
16 Least Sandpipers
3 juvenal PARASITIC JAEGERS
1 adult LONG-TAILED JAEGER(well observed, being quite rare from shore, as it
was foraging loosely with 3 juvenal Parasitic Jaegers, chasing small terns
and various gulls)
5 Black-legged Kittiwakes
37 COMMON TERNS
1 ARCTIC TERN
4 Marbled Murrelets
1 Rufous Hummingbird

Cyber Lake,GH(north of Ocean Shores along S.R.115) 12:20pm-12:40pm

96 Greater Yellowlegs(high count for location)
1 LESSER YELLOWLEGS

Ocean City beach access,GH 1pm-1:40pm, 4:45pm(incoming tide)

41 Pacific Loons(high count)
32 Sooty Shearwaters
12 Brown Pelicans
9 female Green-winged Teal
1 Ruddy Turnstone
300+ Sanderlings
13 Black-legged Kittiwakes

Copalis Beach,Griffiths-Priday S.P.,GH 2pm-4:30pm

This location was a very rewarding area, as very large numbers of gulls were
noted along the exposed shoreline at close range, among relatively good
numbers of other waterbirds.

23 Pacific Loons
2 Western Grebes(notable for time of year for location)
1 PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER(found dead, and partially eaten along beach)
38 Sooty Sheawaters
28 Brown Pelicans
5 Brandt's Cormorants
1 GREAT EGRET
1 adult Green Heron
7(6 female, 1 male) Green-winged Teal
22 Surf Scoters
7 White-winged Scoters
3 female Common Mergansers
1 Black-bellied Plover
2 Semipalmated Polvers
6 Greater Yellowlegs
1 Spotted Sandpiper
5 Whimbrel
3 Ruddy Turnstones
315 Sanderlings
93 Western Sandpipers
230 Least Sandpipers
4 juvenal BAIRD'S SANDPIPERS(photographed)
15 Short-billed Dowitchers
2 Long-billed Dowitchers
21 RED-NECKED PHALAROPES
1 juvenal Bonaparte's Gull
1150+ California Gulls(notable high count)
53 Black-legged Kittiwakes(as above, with several photographed at close
range)
85 COMMON TERNS(3 small to moderate sized flocks noted offshore, as well as
several roosting birds along the shoreline with various gulls, and Caspian
Terns)

Hoquim STP,GH 5:30pm-5:55pm

5 female Northern Pintail
1 female Cinnamon Teal
1 male Greater Scaup
1 female COMMON GOLDENEYE
1 female BUFFLEHEAD
87 Least Sandpipers
1 juvenal RED-NECKED PHALAROPE

Brady Loop Rd.,GH 6:25pm-6:55pm

2 young Pied-billed Grebes
1 juvenal Am.Coot
2(1 male, 1 female)Cinnamon Teal
13 Least Sandpipers
1 BANK SWALLOW(very rare for Grays Harbor Co.)

Good birding,

Ruth and Patrick Sullivan
GODWIT at worldnet.att.net