Hello Tweets,

Today my mother and I birded the Ocean Shores area,as weather conditions remained quite windy and wet,at times. We were fortunate to locate several highlights during our visit to Ocean Shores,of which mostly occurred from an extensive visit to Damon Point. Before arriving at Ocean Shores we made a short stop at the Hoquiam STP,where the immature Red-shouldered Hawk was briefly observed at 11am,where it was noted on the ground before flying into dense alder trees west of Paulson Rd. Other highlights noted at the Hoquiam STP included the following: 1 male Eurasian Wigeon,1 Am.Kestrel,77 Canvasbacks,34 Ruddy Ducks, and 5 Wilson's Snipe.

Next, our visit to Ocean Shores was worthwhile,where we began at Damon Point at 12:30pm by walking to the tip of Catala Spit and the "old"restroom area east of Damon Point "pond". We arrived back at the main parking lot at 2:30pm with our main highlights from this location consisting of the following:

1 Red-throated Loon
1 Clark's Grebe(observed at fairly close range with 20 Western Grebes in North Bay)
1 Leach's Storm Petrel(observed foraging over heavy surf conditions at Grays Harbor(south of Damon Point)
14 Black Scoters
2 Northern Harriers
1 adult Peregrine Falcon
13 Black-bellied Plovers
62 Sanderlings
120+ Dunlin
12 California Gulls
7 Herring Gulls
4 Short-eared Owls(observed after being flushed from dunes east of the Damon Point"pond")
5 "Streaked"Horned Larks
2 Palm Warblers(observed together in a patch of "blooming" Scot's Broom east of the Damon Point"pond")
1 Savannah Sparrow
2 Snow Buntings(observed together foraging along the shoreline near the tip of Damon Point)

Next, we checked the Oyhut Wildlife Area(accessed behind the Ocean Shores STP),which was quite slow,but a few highlights were encountered including the following:

1 Great Egret
1 Ruddy Duck(Ocean Shores STP)
2 Northern Harriers
1 adult Cooper's Hawk
6 Black-bellied Plovers
42 Black Turnstones
22 Sanderlings
205+ Least Sandpipers
3 Rock Sandpipers(1 at the Ocean Shores STP,2 with Black Turnstones at the Oyhut WA)
55 Dunlin
10 Herring Gulls
2 Thayer's Gulls

Our final stop at Ocean Shores was made at the Cabana"pond",where we encountered a group of 6 Redheads(3 males,3 females),which was our personal highest count of this species for Ocean Shores. A single male Eurasian Wigeon was also present among good numbers of other waterfowl species.


Good birding,

Ruth and Patrick Sullivan
Fircrest,WA
godwit at worldnet.att.net