Dear Tweeters,

On Saturday morning, December 17, a flock of 65 or
more Common Redpolls delighted me and Bob Kuntz in
Newhalem. The hamlet of Newhalem is on State Route 20,
Whatcom County, in the upper upper Skagit Valley (east
of Skagit County). The birds flew in to various alders
in the residential areas. Another party on the North
Cascades Christmas Bird Count saw a smaller flock.
Interestingly, these were pure flocks--as I recall, no
Pine Siskins were seen at all on the count. By the
way, we had our usual NCCBC type of day, minus rain
and freezing temperatures. About 32 species were found
in all.

I thought I would pass along another good Whatcom
County bird, before it dies. Apparently, there is a
White Pelican on Wiser Lake in Bellingham. I am told
that this bird likes to sit on a paddle boat anchored
in the middle of the lake, and that the bird looks
like a plastic replica to the casual observer who
drives by. During the Bellingham CBC on Sunday, the
bird was observed spending the entire day just sitting
on this blue boat. Since the bird was not seen eating
anything for quite a long period, some concerns were
voiced as to the prospects for its survival.



=====

Yours truly,

Gary Bletsch

near Lyman (Skagit County), Washington

garybletsch at yahoo.com




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