Subject: Pygmy Owl, Ruffed Grouse at Harry Osborne State Forest
Date: Feb 28 19:10:06 2004
From: Gary Bletsch - garybletsch at yahoo.com


Dear Tweeters,

After not being able to find any Northern Pygmy Owls
in Skagit County for several years, one finally turned
up today. It was in the Harry Osborne State Forest,
just north of Hamilton. I was doing an imitation of
one when it answered me. Meanwhile, my imitation had
aroused a bunch of Bushtits, Bewick's Wrens, American
Robins, and Song Sparrows. Then the real owl started
calling back to me, with both the single toot call and
the rapid one. I consider the rapid one an agitation
call. The bird was about two hundred meters up the
hill past the horsemen's parking area.

At dusk, there was a nice trio of Ruffed Grouse
feeding on flowers in a small tree. I think they were
willows. A fourth grouse flew by the tree but did not
light. Although two of the grouse in the tree flew
off, one let me approach to within three or four
meters, directly below it in the tree. It must have
forgotten what it had learned in the fall hunting
season.

The second-growth forest and trail system at Harry
Osborne mainly attract horsemen and motor-heads, but
during rainy weather it can be nice and quiet, and
pretty good for birding. The streamside parking area
looks good for Western Screech Owl, but I have yet to
find one here.



=====

Yours truly,

Gary Bletsch

near Lyman (Skagit County), Washington

garybletsch at yahoo.com


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