Hello Tweets,

Today my mother and I birded the Ocean Shores area along with a stop made at Bowerman Basin and the Hoquiam STP between 11:30am-1pm. The weather was fairly good with the only moderate winds at times at Bowerman Basin and at the Ocean Shores Jetty,but we managed to locate a few highlights for a half days worth of birding. We began our day with a visit to Bowerman Basin and the Hoquiam STP,then we drove to Ocean Shores with 2 visits made at the Ocean Shores Jetty during the afternoon/early evening along with a visit to the base of Damon Point and the Ocean Shores Game Range behind the Ocean Shores STP.Our main highlights of the day were a LEACH'S STORM PETREL 10-15 yards off the Ocean Shores Jetty observed foraging loosely in fairly heavy surf amongst a small flock of Red Phalaropes and the previously reported Priblof race(nominant race)of the Rock Sandpiper at the Ocean Shores Jetty reported by Charlie Wright on the 20th of December as noted on Tweeters. The Priblof race of the Rock Sandpiper was easily observed roosting amongst a flock of other "rockbirds" during our last visit to the Ocean Shores Jetty at outgoing tide in which the bird was clearly visible by it's very pale gray plumage,overall larger,plumper size among a few other subtle features noted including a thicker,brighter slightly decurved bill. Our visit to Bowerman Basin and the fields accessed from the east end of K Street in Hoquiam yielded lingering flocks of Canada Geese(but NO Bean Goose)and the 3 lingering Snow Geese at the west end of the Bowerman Airport along with a few other highlights to be mentioned below. A list of our most notable highlights at selected locations follows:

Red-throated Loon
4 off the Ocean Shores Jetty

Pacific Loon
7 off the Ocean Shores Jetty

Red-necked Grebe
1 off the Ocean Shores Jetty

Northern Fulmar(dark-morph)
9 off the Ocean Shores Jetty

Short-tailed Shearwater
2 off the Ocean Shores Jetty

LEACH'S STORM PETREL
1 off the Ocean Shores Jetty

Snow Goose
3 at Bowerman Basin

"Black"Brant
2 at the base of Damon Point

"Dusky"Canada Geese
8 at the east end of K Street at Hoquiam
4 at Bowerman Basin
9 along Marine View Drive/Tonquin Ave. at Ocean Shores

Eurasian Wigeon
2 males at Bowerman Basin

Canvasback
1 male at the Hoquiam STP

Black Scoter
17 at the Ocean Shores Game Range

Ruddy Duck
2 at the Hoquiam STP

Sharp-shinned Hawk
1 adult at Ocean Shores

Rough-legged Hawk
1 light-morph adult at the Ocean Shores Game Range

Peregrine Falcon
1 tundra race adult at Bowerman Basin

Virginia Rail(heard only)
1 at Bowerman Basin

Black-bellied Plover
5 at Bowerman Basin

Greater Yellowlegs
10 at Cyber Lake near Ocean Shores

Black Turnstones
13 at the Ocean Shores Jetty

Least Sandpiper
1 at Bowerman Basin

Rock Sandpiper(dominant race)
18 at the Ocean Shores Jetty

Dunlin
2,400+ at Bowerman Basin

Long-billed Dowitcher
2 at Cyber Lake near Ocean Shores

Red Phalarope
33 at the Hoquiam STP
48+ off the Ocean Shores Jetty

Black-legged Kittiwake
57+ off the Ocean Shores Jetty

Common Murre
12 off the Ocean Shores Jetty

Rhinoceros Auklet
1 off the Ocean Shores Jetty

Western Scrub Jay
1 along Hwy.12 at Elma

Lincoln's Sparrow
1 at Bowerman Basin

Western Meadowlark
14 at the east end of K Street at Hoquiam
1 at the base of Damon Point


Good birding,

Ruth and Patrick Sullivan
godwit at worldnet.att.net



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