This report was mailed for Kerry Turley by http://birdnotes.net

Date: February 2, 2003
Location: Yakima County, Washington


Today I only had a few hours in the evening to bird, but I couldn't
pass up on all the flooding that was going on at the refuge. I birded
mainly around the headquarters and the observation deck with a quick
drive around Pumphouse Rd., Lateral "C", Marion Drain Rd.

At dusk I pulled along side of a harvested corn field that still held
lots of stubble and watched as out of the dark gray sky, against the
backdrop of steal colored clouds, I could see the silhouettes of
thousands of ducks as they were accumulating over the corn stubble
forming a large vortex not unlike that of a tornado and suspended
about fifteen feet over the ground the ducks kept coming continuously
adding to the mass of the vortex. The only sound other than some
small feeding chatter was the whistle of their wings in the night
sky. This lasted for about twenty minutes, then slowly creeping
toward the ground first ten feet off, then five feet off, then for
better than fifteen minutes the mass of ducks poured into the field.
As I drove away there were still small groups of several hundred
ducks circling in to join the melee. This is a sight that, no matter
how often I see it, is truly awe inspiring. What a great hobby this is

Birds seen (in taxonomic order):

Great Blue Heron
Canada Goose
American Wigeon
Mallard
Northern Shoveler
Northern Pintail
Green-Winged Teal
Common Goldeneye
Bald Eagle
Northern Harrier
Red-tailed Hawk
American Kestrel
Ring-necked Pheasant
California Quail
Rock Dove
Mourning Dove
Great Horned Owl
Northern Flicker
Northern Shrike
Black-billed Magpie
Bewick's Wren
American Robin
European Starling
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Song Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Red-winged Blackbird
Western Meadowlark
House Finch
American Goldfinch

Total number of species seen: 30