Hello,

Vic Nelson called me to report some birds of interest showing up at Point no
Point (Northern tip of Kitsap peninsula) this week. Along with the 4 Brown
Pelican Vic had on Wednesday, he observed one adult Long-tailed Jaeger and
one Cassin's Auklet yesterday. George Gerdts and I joined Vic this morning
for some fantastic bird-viewing from the shoreline. For George and I, it
made up for the weather cancellation of the Westport Seabird's pelagic trip
that was scheduled for today. Highlights this morning included:

Sabine's Gull - 2 adult birds with their distinctive upper wing pattern
"stood-out" from the hundreds of Bonaparte's Gulls and Common Terns. We also
got nice scope looks at the two birds sitting on the water - they mostly
stuck together.

Long-tailed Jaeger - I assume this likely was the same bird Vic had
yesterday. We got a diagnostic scope-look at a flying adult bird near the
point.

Parasitic Jaeger - There must have been at least 20 birds present this
morning (mostly adults). It was great fun to watch them (sometimes 4 at a
time) give chase to the gulls and terns. Point no Point is a great spot
right now to observe jaegers!

Peregrine Falcon - The three thousand or so (minus one) Red-necked
Phalaropes were a nervous bunch and in constant motion as a Peregrine Falcon
flew about. George watched the falcon successfully grab it's breakfast in
mid-flight. Vic and I were out in a boat searching for the Cassin's Auklet
at the time. We were unable to re-locate the auklet.

Black Swift - George and I had a flock of about 20 birds flying over the
point during the mid-morning.

It was a nice way to spend a morning birding in our own backyard. In Vic's
case it would be his own front yard.

Brad Waggoner
Bainbridge Island,Washington
mailto:wagtail at sounddsl.com