11:23am start - water level high, but some mudbanks exposed on the opposite shoreline to the south and near the goose-exclusion area
12:12pm end

Tweeters,
Aerobatic OSPREY displays were taking place above the river during this scan. I verified that the female was on the nest when I first went outside, but heard, from above me, an Osprey calling. Two Ospreys were in the air, quite high up, and one put on an exceptional display of aerobatics before going into a steep dive to join its mate at the nest. Later, when the "intruding" Osprey came back upstream and circled Turning Basin #3, it was quickly joined in what I'd call a "shadow" flight by the local male: everywhere the intruder flew, the local bird followed, generally at a higher elevation. Eventually, the intruder left and the local male flew back to the nest platform. If all goes well, the first Osprey hatching at the Hamm Creek site should occur about the first week of June. (At least the Ospreys at this site shouldn't be predated by raccoons, unlike the Steller's Jay nest outside our bedroom window. Just before 1am, a raccoon decimated the nest--this was the nearest jays have nested to our home in 10 years, and we were looking forward to seeing them mature.)

LEAST SANDPIPERS appear to be moving through. At 6:10am, when I first got to work, four LESA were working the mudflat near the goose-exclusion area. During my noontime scan, 9 LESA were on the mudflat to the south, but they left and went downriver when the two CASPIAN TERNS (oh, did I fail to mention that 2 terns were loafing on that same shoreline?) took off, heading north downstream. In less than 10 minutes, 16 more LESA were working the area near the same mudflat. They were spooked a couple of times by crows, but were still in about the same area when I had to get back to work.

Birds seen during this scan include the following:
Gadwall (2)
Mallard (2)
Bufflehead (6)
Double-crested Cormorant (3)
Great Blue Heron (3)
Osprey (3)
Least Sandpiper (25)
Glaucous-winged Gull (3)
Caspian Tern (2)
Rock Pigeon (9)
American Crow (3)
Violet-green Swallow (2)
Barn Swallow (3)
European Starling (6)
Song Sparrow (2)
White-crowned Sparrow
Red-winged Blackbird (2)
House Finch (3)
House Sparrow

May all your birds be identified,

Denis DeSilvis
Seattle, WA
mailto:denis.j.desilvis at boeing.com