Tweeters,
Here's a post that 2 of our Master Birders(Isadora and Kendrick Wong)
asked me to send to list.

Barry Levine
Seattle
levineb at bsd405.org

-----Original Message-----
From: wong [mailto:chupaflor at igc.org]
Sent: Sunday, March 13, 2005 10:35 PM
To: Levine, Barron
Subject: sage thrashers back



hi tweeters~
in search of early returning sage species, brenda senturia, kendrick
wong and i were delighted to find SAGE THRASHERS along old vantage
highway on saturday 3/12. HORNED LARKS were easily heard and seen, but
the expected SAGE SPARROWS were initially a bit of a challenge. our
experience and instincts told us that these little cryptic birds were
out there, but seemed to be hiding. instead, we noticed the song of the
thrasher, followed by some good sightings of several of these birds. we
believe that these birds are a bit on the early side, so were pleasantly
surprised to find them. not ready to give up on the sage sparrow, we
patiently continued our search, which finally paid off when we heard and
saw several. one LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE was also seen, as were a couple of
MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRDS and WESTERN MEADOWLARKS.

just before reaching ginkgo st. park, we saw two SAY'S PHOEBES. then,
as we approached the park visitor's center, we noticed a low-flying
large raptor. due to its close proximity, we were quickly able to
identify it as a GOLDEN EAGLE. a COMMON RAVEN seemed to be following it
closely, as the eagle apparently held a recent kill in its talons. when
we reached the parking lot, we were able to notice that the eagle had
made its way down to the beach just below. a scope view allowed us to
watch the eagle enjoy a lunch of what appeared to be a RED-BREASTED
MERGANSER. as the eagle finished its meal, a couple of ravens came in
to pick at the leftovers. then a BALD EAGLE flew over the area and
proceeded across the river, followed by the golden eagle. it all made
for some exciting and beautiful birdwatching!

along huntzinger road, we found two ROCK WRENS, a nice flock of
VIOLET-GREEN SWALLOWS, and more say's phoebes. our search for a PRAIRIE
FALCON in this area was successful, too.

next, on dodson road, we found two owl species: BURROWING OWL and a
GREAT-HORNED OWL. while viewing the burrowing owl, a flock of SANDHILL
CRANES showed up in the distance. on the frenchman hills ponds/marsh we
saw CANVASBACKS, TUNDRA SWANS, NORTHERN PINTAILS, GREEN-WINGED TEAL,
MALLARDS, and REDHEAD.

on I-90, a RED-TAILED HAWK on the nest finished off our sunny day.

isadora arevalo wong
seattle, wa
chupaflor at igc.org