Subject: Pt Wells peregrine
Date: Jun 8 09:53:35 2001
From: Kevin Li - kdli at msn.com


During last night's gorgeous sunset I was bobbing around in a boston whaler at Pt Wells (Puget Sound, between Edmonds and Shoreline) when a peregrine burst into close view, pursuing a flock of hundreds starlings that were on the pier and buildings. I watched for about 15 minutes as the young falcon tried to pick off a meal, on the wing and even by foot. The starlings seemed to sense that they were safer in the labyrinth of metals beams, and tended to mass around the falcon, which was perched only a few feet away. At least once the falcon ran at the starlings, who merely hopped a short distance away. Mobs of starlings and an occasional pigeon joined the scene, and several times the peregrine made an aerial chase around and around the pier. It was reminiscent of the raptor show at the Woodland Park zoo, as the falcon looped around over and over toward prey that stayed in the one spot. The peregrine seemed to have little chance of surprising the starlings, and may also have been overwhelmed by the prey density.. Eventually the peregrine landed on the shoreward side of the building, and it was out of sight as the light grew dim. Much of the evening's action took place from only about 100 feet away, but would have been hard to see without a boat. I looked for a band, but don't think it had one.

Pigeon guillemots had been nearby on the water, and the day also included 5 Caspian terns (4 at Pt Wells, headed south just before sunset), about 5 marbled murrelets, several rhino auklets. Yesterday I saw just one Caspian tern, north of Edmonds at sunset, headed north.

Kevin Li
kdli at msn.com
Ballard, USA