Hi Tweets,

With the return of the good ol' wet weather, I have been able to get out in
the privately owned forestlands to the north of Elma once again. On
Thursday, I encountered about 10-15 quail in the middle of one of the
logging roads. Being that I had been out in the rain all morning, my binos
were fogged (yes I own cheapo binos) so I couldn't get a good look at the
quail. They hurried down the road in front of me quickly and then
disappeared off the edge of the road. I've been back to the same spot the
past two days with no luck. I'm hoping to confirm an ID soon since both
California and Mountain quail are considered rare in Grays Harbor county.

Also, this morning I had a lone Gray Jay in the top of a hemlock tree. This
is my first Gray Jay for the county. I've been hoping to run into one of
these for some time. I also have been seeing large flocks of Mourning Dove,
Band-tailed Pigeons, and American Goldfinch in the hills.

This afternoon, I took a quick walk into the Chehalis Wildlife area at the
end of Schouweiler Rd.. Bird activity was quite slow at this time of day.
The usual assortment of waterfowl was present including 2 American Wigeon
and 1 Northern Shoveler. One Double-crested Cormorant was perched along the
side of one of the ponds. Also, 2 Turkey Vultures were seen flying
overhead. No Osprey were present which makes me wonder if they have
departed already.

Good birding,

Tim O'Brien
Elma, WA
kertim7179 at centurytel.net