12:42pm start - water level going up with some mudflats visible
1:17pm end

Tweeters,
Yet another warm (mid-80s) day today on the river, but with a mild breeze to reduce the apparent temperature. Two GREATER YELLOWLEGS showed up today on the mudflat directly across the river just north of the pier. This is the same area that another GRYE spent some time in late April. (I've reports from another Duwamish observer that a Greater Yellowlegs was seen near Kellogg Island last week.)

For a while, I thought I was going to have my first day since March 31 with no Osprey to be seen, but an adult and a juvenile eventually showed up at the Hamm Creek nest. The adult was there first, feeding on a fish; the juv. showed up later after touring Turning Basin #3.

Ten COMMON MERGANSERS were loafing/preening on the mudflat to the south. This is the largest group I've seen at TB3 since I've been observing. Although I could only determine one adult female was visible (based on size only), there could have been another. (Not knowing social interactions of COME family groups puts me at a disadvantage here. Not certain that family parties of these commingle.)

BARN SWALLOWS were active nearby, with 8 of the fork-tailed wonders plying the skies.

Note: Gillnets went out yesterday afternoon for the first time since last year. It must have been a short fishing span because although the nets were out this morning (6am), they weren't there at noon today.

Birds seen during this scan include the following:
Canada Goose (42)
Mallard (24, including a female herding a duckling; probably the late nester I reported on previously)
Common Merganser (10)
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
Osprey (2)
Greater Yellowlegs (2)
Glaucous-winged Gull (4, including one feeding on a salmon carcass)
Rock Pigeon (23)
Belted Kingfisher
American Crow (8)
Barn Swallow (8)
Black-capped Chickadee
European Starling (210)
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow (3)

May all your birds be identified,

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