I saw the two snowy owls Marv mentions below. I also watched several
short-eared owls actively hunting in the same area, and guarding their turf
from each other and the harriers. The snowys seemed indifferent to the
presence of the short-eared owls. For the first time ever, I saw more owls
than harriers here. A great way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

-jody

Jody Breckenridge, north of Monroe
rural Snohomish County

-----Original Message-----
From: Marv Breece [mailto:mbreece at earthlink.net]
Sent: Monday, November 28, 2005 6:51 AM
To: tweeters at u.washington.edu
Subject: [Tweeters] Snowy Owls on Fir Island


Yesterday I took my sister and brother-in-law to Big Ditch in Snohomish
County. They wanted to see a Snowy Owl. We didn't find one there. A
couple of WESTERN MEADOWLARKS flew overhead near the dike. A PEREGRINE
FALCON perched in a tree. And thanks to the help of my friends Ginger, Amy
and Betsy, we observed an AMERICAN PIPIT and a young NORTHERN SHRIKE.

Gary Bletsch had posted about a snowy at North Fork Access on Fir Island.
Later in the day we visited that location. This time we fared better. We
were treated to 2 SNOWY OWLS. One was a 1st year bird and the second much
whiter, possibly an adult. Thanks, Gary.

We also had a SHORT-EARED OWL at North Fork.

It was a good day.

Marv Breece
Seattle, WA