.................River S Unit of Ridgefield NWR---Sunday aft. July 15th.:

.................Walked and drove around while 'flea-bombs' did their
their thing in my house. (-: Weather cloudy with occ. very light
showers peppering the area. Seasonal wetlands pretty well dried up,
though some permanent ponds remain.
.................1 Horned Owl heard and seen flying overhead . 3 Great
Egrets and plenty of Blue Herons present.
.................Area where Black-necked Stilts are usually located is
dried up, but 4 Black-necked Stilts were in another rather remote
area(required a spotting scope to observe clearly). Both females and
males were seen, but no chicks were seen(though may have been present
hidden in grass and or not easily seen at the distance). With the
Stilts were 5 Common Snipes; 1 Am. bittern ; and.....with the right
size, shape and colonization a Black Night-crowned Heron( who retreated
into the tall grass as soon as I got the spotting scope out,and....never
showed himself again!!!!) ----We will let that one wear a question
mark!!! Oh, amusing was the sight of 1 Stilt being chased around by what
appeared to be a River Otter( "paddle-like tail--smaller than beaver).
...................2 Black Terns were seen flying at a distance, but no
*closeup* observations of such in the places they were seen before.
Savannah, Song Sparrows, and Bewick's and Marsh Wren seen. What looked
like 2 Hermit Thrushes were seen on the path (I know, I know---they
are* not *supposed to be present in the summer in this area, but they
sure fit the field guide description. I rest my case!!!)
...................Spotted Towhees; Red-winged and Yellow-headed
Blackbirds, Goldfinches; Killdeer, and...........Barn, Rough-winged,
Cliff, and Tree Swallows everywhere. Lots of Pied-billed Grebes---most
still in summer breeding plumage And .......the usual resident 'dipping
ducks'.
...................Last, but not least 2 female Wood Ducks swimming on
the ponds and sloughs. Each Wood Duck had 3-5 cute "little ones"
following her around.

...................And......"a salute" to all my feathered friends I
*didn't* see.
...................Gerald Hamilton
Brush Prairie, Wash.
gerald at e-z.net