Tweeters,

Due to the Stilt Sandpipers being seen all over W. WA, Keith Brady and I couldn't resist checking out the NW corner of the Nisqually NWR for freshwater ponds. Unfortunately Nisqually has let us down for yet another shorebird season as they have failed to maintain proper water levels INSIDE the dike. So shorebird viewing is again hampered. Arrgggg.

Despite this, we did find that at low tide some shorebirds were using the mouth of McAllister Creek for a change (they are in the hundreds or thousands on the Nisqually side). Here we saw many LESSER YELLOWLEGS with a few Greaters. Some WESTERN SANDPIPERS with the many LEAST SANDPIPERS. A handful of LONG-BILLED DOWITCHERS and SPOTTED SANDPIPERS too. Best birds of the day here were at least 3 SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPERS and a pair of SOLITARY SANDPIPERS.

On the flats were 15 SEMIPALMATED PLOVERS and a very distant unidentified bird that was either a Baird's or Semipalmated Sandpiper.

>From Luhr about an hour before high tide we saw the LONG-BILLED CURLEW and 6 close SANDERLINGS which was very nice to see. So McAllister paid off today, but we were left dreaming about the masses of shorebirds foraging over by Nisqually NWR.

Who's going to lend us their canoe?!

Jason Paulios
Jpaulios at earthlink.net
Olympia, WA