Hey tweets, this morning at the Fill, things were really popping. The two
peregrine falcons that have been hanging around keeping birds invisible
seem to have disappeared, at least for now. A mixed blessing. Peregrines
are great birds, of course, but they do have a way of clearing out
everything else.

The highlight this morning has to be the sora who was foraging out in the
open on the lily pads in Union Bay. I came upon him unexpectedly. At first
he just stood there, like a skinny dipper caught in the altogether,
projecting nonchalence. Then he thought better of his attitude and made a
beeline for the brush along the shore. I heard him uttering the sora
version of imprecations, and then he must have stalked off.

On the main pond were two pectoral sandpipers, a least and a very
dull-colored dowitcher (short-billed, I think). They were happily engaged
hunting little critters in the shallows on the north side of the pond, when
a crow came up and decided to chase them. Now it was my turn to utter
imprecations. That darn crow kept after the quartet of shorebirds so
persistently that when they finally managed to return and start foraging
again, the mere sound of a distant caw was enough to make them crouch for a
launch. I tried my very best to turn the pectorals into sharp-tailed
sandpipers but had to give it up.

On Cinnamon Teal Pond (near the dead beaver trees) I found a house wren,
very unusual for the Fill. This pond is all dried up now, but earlier in
the year it was a very good site for shorebirds. In years past, it's been a
nesting site for sora, too. This year it hosted a common yellowthroat and a
marsh wren who hated each other's guts and would spend inordinate amounts
of time chasing each other. Both are gone now.

In other locations around the Fill, I found yellow warblers, common
yellowthroats, an Anna's (near the wedding rock), three wood ducks (on
Union Bay), and several Vaux's swifts. The green heron is still prowling
around Union Bay, and two kingfishers (these are vocal ones) patrol the
entire area. Empids are still coming through, very quietly. The ones I see
(western wood-pewees and willow flycatchers) seem to like to stay in the
densest part of the bushes, which I don't remember them doing before. Maybe
it's a reaction to the falcons?

Tomorrow morning I'm leading a walk for Gig Harbor Auduboners. Last time I
did this, our group saw an incredible array of birds, including pileated
and a yellow-shafted flicker. Have you ever noticed that some birders just
seem to pull birds out of the sky? They're good birders, yes, but they seem
to be shot with luck, too. The Gig Harbor folks are like that, so I am
really looking forward to tomorrow. I'll let you know what we find. -
Connie, Seattle

csidles at isomedia.com