Hello Tweets,

This afternoon at 3:45pm my mother and I observed a single light-morph Northern Fulmar off Steilacoom in Pierce Co. approxiatemetly 70 yards offshore in Puget Sound north of Sunnyside Beach Park in Steilacoom accessed from a large parking lot off of Steilacoom-Dupont Rd. The bird was observed in good lighting swimming on the surface of the water and never flew,as the bird was observed in our spotting scope. Conditions were much different compared to yesterday afternoon with widely scattered rain showers and increasing southerly winds at times. Overall waterbird numbers were quite low at three areas we checked this afternoon including Titlow Beach and Day Island with the Steilacoom waterfront producing the most diversity and numbers of species. Perhaps Northern Fulmar(s) will continue south into Thurston Co. and perhaps west into Mason Co. with enough searching by other observers. Other notable species that occurred along the Steilacoom waterfront(including species noted from the mouth of Chambers Creek)included the following:

1 Pacific Loon
5 Common Loons
6 Red-necked Grebes
270+ Western Grebes
8 Brandt's Cormorants
25 Surf Scoters
9 Hooded Mergansers
17 Common Mergansers
1 Red-breasted Merganser
1 Red-tailed Hawk
5 Common Murres
25+ Rhinoceros Auklets


Good birding,

Ruth and Patrick Sullivan
godwit at worldnet.att.net