Tweeters,

Today, November 3, I birded the Skagit Wildlife Area (headquarters
area) and vicinity near Conway, Skagit Co. I had two main target
birds, the Northern Waterthrush seen last week at the Wildlife Area,
and the Cattle Egret seen not far west of there along Fir Island Road.
I dipped out on the waterthrush, but succeeded in finding the CATTLE
EGRET, which apparently has been there every day for at least a week.

After an initial unsuccessful look for the egret, I began to walk the
loop trail at the Skagit Wildlife Area. I met a man who was jogging
along the trail with his dog, and we started to talk about birds and
the future plans for the Wildlife Area. I didn't ask the man his name,
but he told me that he told me that he owned land nearby, and that his
neighbors at Cowtown had had a CATTLE EGRET in their yard for several
days. Bingo! The egret spends most of its time in an outdoor pen with
captive geese (the fellow at Cowtown breeds Nenes, Brant, and other
geese). I thanked him for the information, and decided to wait till I
finished walking the loop trail before looking for the egret again.

About 3:30 PM, I went to look for the egret. The address is 15925 Fir
Island Road (on the north side, opposite the Hayton Sanctuary), and
there are two signs-- one says "Cowtown", and one says "Firdell Farm".
I was prepared to knock on the door and ask the owners if the egret
was still there, and if they would mind if I had a brief look for it.
However, that proved to be unnecessary. As I approached from the east,
the egret was out in the field with several cattle which were grazing
between the goose pens (visible from Fir Island Road) and the road. I
made a brief stop (not recommended-- the shoulder is narrow and there
are "No Stopping" signs), and shortly the egret flew into the goose
pens, where it could still be seen (or at least its head!), but was
not nearly as visible.

It seems likely that the egret will stay for a few more days. Since I
did not talk to the property owners (I was in a hurry to get home), I
don't know if they would be accommodating to birders who wanted to see
the egret, but it wouldn't hurt to ask them.

As for the Skagit Wildlife Area, although I did not see the
waterthrush, I did find a few other interesting birds. I tallied a
total of 47 species between about 11:30 AM and 3:30 PM. For about
half the time, I was joined by Chuck Pell from Seattle. Highlights
included:

Peregrine Falcon-- one flying over the marsh near the southern tip of
the
west dike
Bald Eagle-- 5 adults seen circling overhead at one point
Dunlin-- At least 5000 in 3 large flocks milling about over Skagit
Bay-- maybe
as many as 10,000
Long-billed Dowitcher-- flock of 90 roosting on a log in the outer
marsh
Hermit Thrush-- one seen at close range along the east dike; late, or
possibly wintering
Orange-crowned Warbler-- one with chickadees and kinglets along the
east
dike (seen by Chuck only); late, or possibly wintering
Lincoln's Sparrow-- at least 12 seen; good numbers, but probably not
unusual at this locality, which has a reputation as "sparrow
heaven".
Swamp Sparrow-- one heard calling repeatedly, and briefly glimpsed,
in a
wet field across a bridge from the east dike trail
White-throated Sparrow-- two seen together near the southernmost
bridge
(third bridge) along the east dike trail.

A gorgeous day, mild, sunny, and calm, and only my second Washington
sighting of Cattle Egret!

Good luck and good birding,

Wayne C. Weber
Delta, BC
contopus at telus.net