Dear Tweeters:
Yup, Black-headed Grosbeaks appeared at my feeder on the Southern tip of San
Juan Island on 14 May. As with many such seasonal appearances, its
interesting how the Straits of Juan de Fuca don't seem to pose much of a
delay factor for some species. Rufous Hummers seem to appear here at about
the same time as mainland hummers. On the other hand, we almost never see
Stellers Jays on San Juan Island but they do appear on hilly Orcas Island.
We have 600' elevations on San Juan - should be enough for Stellers at this
latitude. I don't recall seeing any on Lopez either, although Lopez has
lesser elevations. I haven't checked Waldron (who has?) or Shaw Island
(approximately a thousand yards from Orcas, across Harney Channel) but I
intend to do so soon.

Best regards,
Francis Smith