Hello Tweets,

Yesterday we observed a very cooperative immature Northern Shrike at the Oyhut Wildlife Area at Ocean Shores(accessed behind the Ocean Shores STP)and on two separate occasions from a perch allowed great photos. While observing this particular bird we observed the "coughing up" or regurgitation of a pellet from past meal that the bird must have had and is a behavior we have never encountered in the field to date. We captured this behavior in photos and at the time weren't sure what the bird was doing until later reading up in reference books about this act. After releasing the pellet the bird flew from it's perch to an unknown location perhaps after another meal.We would be interested to know if any other birders have experienced this behavior with the release of a pellet by a Northern Shrike. We are sure it is a common behavior,but not one you may observe in the field that often! Anyhow, it is neat to observe behaviors of birds beyond than just seeing the bird! We have placed 6 photos of the Northern Shrike onto our website along with photos of a pair of Rufous Hummingbirds and single male Anna's Hummingbird from our yard taken on the 11th of March. These recent photos can be reached at the following link: http://www.pbase.com/godwit/march_photos/


Sincerely,

Ruth and Patrick Sullivan
Fircrest,WA
godwit at worldnet.att.net