Subject: Little Gulls at Pt.No Pt., Kitsap County
Date: Mar 18 21:03:28 2001
From: Scott Atkinson - scottratkinson at hotmail.com


Dear Sullivans and Tweeters:

I think the report of Mt. Quail from near Stavis Bay is intriguing. I wrote
ol' Bob Norton awhile back about my one-and-only Mt. Quail for WA, a bird
that I almost stepped on (no kidding) along Misery Pt. Rd. just northwest of
Seabeck in Kitsap County on June 12, 1974. This bird and the Sullivans'
have to be about as far north as the species has been found in WA in recent
decades. I also recall a neighbor (we had a family cabin near Seabeck)
insisting that he had once had a covey of Mt. Quail near Dewatto, closer to
the s.w. corner of the peninsula, where there have apparently been other
historic reports. Evidently, other than the more well-known Port Orchard
Airport birds, there would seem to remain a small population on the west
side of the Kitsap Peninsula....

I also recall then that Ruffed Grouse were reliable up Stavis Creek, and
that a couple of low foothills near there had resident Gray Jays, about as
low an elevation as I've ever seen them in WA (they're also sometimes low
around Lake Tahuyeh, apparently coming down from Green Mt.) A non-avian
oddity that one can sometimes find near Stavis Bay and southward through the
Holly/Dewatto area along glacial banks is Giant Chain Fern (Woodwardia
fimbriata), an evergreen (sometimes yellowish) species that can grow to 8'
or more in the best grottos, that hang right over the Northshore Rd. in
places approaching Belfair State Park. But beware of major colonies of
Poison-oak (Rhus diversiloba) also in this area.

Scott Atkinson
Lake Stevens
email: scottratkinson at hotmail.com

>From: "Ruth Sullivan" <godwit at worldnet.att.net>
>Reply-To: godwit at worldnet.att.net
>To: <tweeters at u.washington.edu>
>Subject: Little Gulls at Pt.No Pt., Kitsap County
>Date: Sat, 17 Mar 2001 16:33:47 -0800
>
>Hello Tweets,
>
>Today my mother and I birded Kitsap County, from 6am-2pm, where weather
>conditions were quite favorable, with mostly cloudy skies, and partial
>clearing at times during mid-morning, and isolated showers late in the day.
>We encountered several quality highlights including 2(1 adult winter, and 1
>first-winter-plumaged)LITTLE GULLS at Point No Point, off of the Hansville
>Lighthouse at 10:30am, being at out going tide, along with several other
>notable species throughout the day at listed key locations.
>
>Our day started along Stavis Bay Rd.NW, near Seabeck at 6am, where we
>observed our first bird of the day, being a RUFFED GROUSE foraging along
>the
>road, near Stavis Creek. Next we observed 6 MOUNTAIN QUAIL, with a pair
>well
>photographed, SW of Seabeck, as we carefully watched them for 2 hours
>during
>our stay, as they cautiously foraged along the ground, being very wary, as
>they kept close watch on our presence, before we returned back to Stavis
>Creek, where a singing AM.DIPPER was located in appropriate breeding
>habitat.
>
>At 9am we birded the Salsbury Point public boat launch, where good numbers
>of waterfowl were noted including 3,200 Surf Scoters, and 350 LONG-TAILED
>DUCKS, being both one of "our" personal highest count of both species in
>the
>state at one time, as these birds were seen foraging amongst other more
>common waterfowl, including both scaups, both goldeneyes, the other two
>scoters, and various other species, including 2 ANCIENT MURRELETS, being
>somewhat unusual in sheltered waters, away from areas that inhibit more
>current action. A quick stop made at Port Gamble produced better looks at
>the large concentrations of waterfowl, and other waterbirds including 2
>EARED GREBES, and a first-winter GLAUCOUS GULL.
>
>At 10:15am we arrived at Hansville, where lighting conditions improved,
>with
>the sun to our back, as we scanned the offshore waters to the west in
>search
>of gull flocks, which we managed to locate from the lighthouse, as they
>foraged along the rip current, just inside the Kitsap County line, and
>amongst several fishing boats. The gull flocks contained both Mew and up to
>200 Bonaparte's Gulls, and the 2 LITTLE GULLS, as noted before, but
>observations could have been better, if they were closer to shore. While
>scanning the offshore waters we also noted several breeding plumaged
>Red-necked Grebes, and 18 Black Brant, and a lone Long-tailed Duck. Other
>quality species of note at Hansville during our stay included:
>
>12 MARBLED MURRELETS
>1 tan-striped WHITE-THROATED SPARROW
>1 Lincoln's Sparrow
>
>Heading south, we checked Gorst Creek(accessed from Hwy.3, at the south end
>of Sinclair Inlet),at outgoing tide at 11:45am, where gull and waterfowl
>numbers were quite low, but we managed to locate most of the same species,
>as in previous recent visits, including:
>
>1 EARED GREBE
>1 EURASIAN WIGEON
>1 COMMON TEAL
>1 COMMON X Am. Green-winged Teal hybrid
>2 GREATER YELLOWLEGS
>1 first-winter GLAUCOUS GULL
>
>Next, we birded the Port Orchard waterfront, along Beach Drive E(accessed
>from Hwy.16, just NE of Gorst), to Manchester, where as in previous
>locations good numbers of waterbirds were observed, but the main highlight
>was a "rock shorebird" flock that contained: 16 SURFBIRDS, and 26 BLACK
>TURNSTONES. We managed to stop at most pull-offs along the main road, where
>available, and noted a few other notable finds including:
>
>230 PACIFIC LOONS(all noted in one major flock, possibly gathering for
>migration)
>6 EARED GREBES
>1 EURASIAN WIGEON
>5 Harlequin Ducks
>2 first-winter THAYER'S GULLS
>
>At Manchester, we noted the same flock of 100 Black Brant, as noted on the
>10th, with the addition of our third GREATER YELLOWLEGS of the day, noted
>at
>the south end of Little Clam Bay, just north of town. Our last stop of the
>day was made at Mace Lake, where up to 10 WOOD DUCKS, and 5 RUDDY DUCKS
>were
>noted, and both Tree and Violet-green Swallows, as they foraged over the
>lake, being all the highlight noted.
>
>
>Good birding,
>
>Ruth and Patrick Sullivan
>GODWIT at worldnet.att.net
>
>
>

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