Hello Tweets,

My mother and I enjoyed a very rewarding three day trip to northcentral eastern WA from February 8th-10th with a total of 100 species that were observed. We had exceptional weather all three days, as our main concentration of birding was spent in Douglas and Grant Cos.,with a visit on our way home this afternoon to the Vantage area. We encountered many highlights during our trip to be listed below. We had a rewarding experience checking and birding many of the areas we visited along with having great birding weather in addition to running into Mike and MerryLynn Denny on the 8th east of Mansfield who both gave us excellent tips on their recent encounters of large groups of Snow Buntings they had observed earlier that day along with other species they observed. Throughout our trip we had great success at most areas we visited although the most slowest and less worthwhile area that hosted little birdlife was from along S.R.172 from Farmer to Wood Rd.(east of Mansfield in Douglas Co.)on the Waterville Plateau,BUT the areas that hosted the most diverse species included and began on the 8th in the dense stands of Russian Olive trees and other vegetation along Hwy.2/97 at Longview Rd.(south of Orondo)and today at the Oasis Park along S.R.283 south of Ephrata in Grant Co. Our main route consited of areas surrounding the Waterville Plateau,as well as areas surrounding Grand Coulee on the 8th and 9th,then checking a few areas from Grand Coulee to Vantage on our way home on the 10th.We managed to locate many of the highlights that we anticipated on with additional species that we located along the way which include:

Yellow-billed Loon
1 lingering bird at the Wanapum Dam spillway(south of Vantage),Kittitas Co.(KT)on the 10th(with 3 nearby Common Loons)

Clark's Grebe
1 at Vantage on the 10th

Eared Grebe(unusually low numbers noted from predictable locations on the 10th)
1 at Lake Lenore,Grant Co.(GR)
3 at Soap Lake,GR
2 at Vantage,KT

Am.White Pelican
1 observed from Bridgeport Bar along Grange Rd. on the Okanogan Co.(OK)side of the Columbia River at Bridgeport on the 8th
3 south of Wanapum Dam along the Columbia River on the 10th

Tundra Swan
8 birds in a partially thawed pond along W NE(south of Grand Coulee),GR on the 8th

ROSS' GOOSE
1 bird with a very large flock of Canada Geese along Cranes Rd.,Douglas Co.(DO)(west of the Brewster bridge over the Columbia River)

Eurasian Wigeon
1 male at the south end of Lake Lenore on the 10th

Red-breasted Merganser
2 males at Dry Falls Dam,Douglas and Grant Cos. on the 9th

Northern Goshawk
1 immature at the base of Central Ferry Canyon,DO on the 8th

Golden Eagle
1 west of Leahy Junction,DO on the 8th
1along S.R.17 south of Bridgeport,DO on the 8th
1 along Bridgeport Hill Rd.,DO on the 9th

Merlin
1 at Bridgeport,DO on the 9th

Prairie Falcon
1 adult eating the remains of a freshly killed California Quail atop a telephone pole along Cranes Rd.,DO on the 8th

Gray Partridge
1 along Bridgeport Hill Rd.,DO on the 8th
2 at I-90/S.R.283 interchange,GR on the 10th

Sage Grouse
1 pair(1 male,1 female)west of Leahy Junction,DO on the 8th,with 3 males at the same location on the 9th(including 1 male observed in full display)

Sharp-tailed Grouse
10 birds along Bridgeport Hill Rd.

Glaucous-winged Gull
1 adult at the north end of Banks Lake at Electric City,GR on the 10th(with 2 immature Glaucous-winged/Western Gulls hybrids and 22 Herring Gulls)
1 first-year bird at Wanapum Dam,KT( on the 10th

Hairy Woodpecker
1 at Northrup Canyon,GR on the 9th

Pileated Woodpecker(last species of our trip)
1 along I-90 west of Easton,KT on the 10th

Horned Lark
relatively good numbers throughout most areas on the Waterville Plateau and in vast,open areas between Hartline to Grand Coulee in Grant Co. on the 8th. We observed up to two races of Horned Larks of considerable distinctions of color and physical markings including a very pale subspecies that was much more noticeably whiter on the upperparts(including the throat and cheeks)compared to the nearby brighter,more yellow subspecies overall. The pale subspecies of Horned Larks were only observed along Hwy.2 near Atkins Lake between MP 182 to MP 184 and were often seperated,but alos mixed with the brighter subspecies of Horned Lark.

BLUE JAY
1 lingering bird at Bridgeport,DO on the morning of 9th. We observed this very elusive,unvocal bird in a housing area west of the Marina Park at the intersection of Foster Ave. and 10th Street(north of the Fireman Park)amongst a roaming flock of 3 Steller's Jays. A check of the location in the afternoon of the 9th was unsuccessful in relocating any jays.

Brown Creeper
1 at Bridgeport State Park,OK

Rock Wren
5 along Wanapum Rd. south of Wanapum Dam,KT on the 10th

Bewick's Wren
1 bird singing at Northrup Canyon,GR on the 10th
1 at Oasis Park,GR on the 10th

Winter Wren
1 at Oasis Park,GR on the 10th

Townsend's Solitaire
1 at Northrup Canyon,GR on the 9th

Hermit Thrush
1 at Oasis Park,GR on the 10th

Varied Thrush
relatively good numbers at areas that hosted good or ample amounts of thick vegetation

NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD
1 at the base of Longview Rd. along Hwy.2/97 near MP 135.5,DO on the 8th. The bird was very active,but unvocal foraging alone in trees along the Columbia River immediately north of wide pulloff along Hwy.2/97 at Longview Rd.,then it flew east to a very large,extensive stand of Russian Olive trees.

Bohemian Waxwing
60 at Bridgeport State Park,OK(with 30 Cedar Waxwings)on the 9th. This species was very sought after even due to very,very few recent reports in eastern WA and this location was very productive area that we have recently been checking on winter visits due to a relatively good assortment of species that are often noted to this walk-in park. We encountered small numbers of Cedar Waxwings at several other locations during our trip,but this location hosted the largest flock.

Northern Shrike
Up to 12 birds noted on our entire trip in 2 counties.

Loggerhead Shrike
1 west of Leahy Junction,DO on the 8th

Am.Tree Sparrow
5 at Bridgeport Bar at Grange Rd. on the 8th

Swamp Sparrow
1 at Oasis Park,GR on the 10th

White-throated Sparrow
1 tan-striped adult observed amongst a small flock of White-crowned at a single Golden-crowned Sparrow at Longview Rd. along Hwy.2/97 on the 8th.1 immature observed at Oasis Park,GR on the 10th.

"Slate-colored"Junco
1 at Bridgeport S.P.,OK on the 9th

Lapland Longspur
4 west of Leahy Junction,DO on the 8th
8+ along Hwy.2 near Atkins Lake,DO on the 9th

Snow Bunting
400+ along S.R.172 west of S.R.17,DO on the 8th
4,800+ along Hwy.2 near Atkins Lake,DO between MP 182 and MP 184. This very,very large flock was observed swirling over large-open fields as well as along the immediate Hwy.2 foraging on gravel and available seeds and was a very exceptional spectacle to observe.

Red Crossbill
10 at Northrup Canyon,GR on the 9th(with 6 observed there on the 10th)

Pine Siskin
1 at Northrup Canyon,GR on the 10th



Notable mammals:

Mule Deers noted at several locations
1 Coyote at Central Ferry Canyon,DO on the 8th(with several others heard at this and nearby locations)
8 Yellow-bellied Marmots at Vantage,KT on the 10th



Good birding,

Ruth and Patrick Sullivan
godwit at worldnet.att.net