..............Sat.Aug. 8th.: Hiked the Ridgefield NWR River-S auto tour
route and Kiwa Trail.(....north of Vanc. Wash.)
..............Ponds and sloughs reduced mostly to mudflats or shallow
algae covered water-----not so good for ducks, but great for shorebirds.
30-40 Greater yellowlegs (with juveniles among them) observed along one
stretch of slough and on a very shallow pond( Some Long-billed
Dowitchers were noted on this same pond, along with the usual dabbling
ducks). 4 Pectoral Sandpipers were noted (2 on one slough bank and 2 on
another), along with 5 Least Sandpipers along the southern part of the
road Also......Killdeer were seen..
.............Long-legged waders were in *abundance*----about 25 Great
Blue Herons in one large area along with about 30 Great Egrets(don't
know how many may have been hidden in the tall grass that I didn't
see.). One Sandhill Crane was both seen and heard as it circled overhead
before landing.
............2 female Harrier Hawks amused me as they flew low looking for
their supper. A few Turkey Vultures were seen high overhead.
.............Goldfinches everywhere---juveniles, females and mostly
winter plumaged. Belted Kingfishers, Scrub Jays; Song and other species
of Sparrows; Barn and Cliff Swallows, and some very small birds that
darted around too fast to identify.
.............Ducks are in the middle of eclipse---all brownish. Cinnamon
and Green-winged Teals, Mallards, and 1 Northern Shoveler(not
eclipsing), and Coots-----the usual summer residents.
.............Nothing really that unusual...........just a very pleasant,
sunny afternoon to enjoy what late summer has to offer.