Subject: [Tweeters] Spencer Island Anomoly, Stillwater Sora
Date: Aug 28 06:52:11 2006
From: Thomas Mansfield - tmiseattle at msn.com
Saturday morning at Spencer Island an all black bird with an orangy-red head
flushed from cattails and flew east across the island. About the size of a
blackbird, it was too fast for a photo and barely time for binocs as it
dipped out of sight by the mid-island bridge. Headed over there but could
not locate it. Can't find anything similar in Sibley but I thought it could
either be a yellow-headed blackbird with anomoly burnt orange or possibly a
bobolink? Any suggestions welcomed. Otherwise, a wonderful four hour visit
(only encountered 3 other people the entire time) with waves of distant
peeps, sanderlings and killdeer as the water level rose, large flock of
resting Canadian geese and mallards with what appeared to be a lone black
scoter, dueling kingfishers, numerous herons, swarms of barn swallows, a
murder of about 30 crows, many waxwings, warblers (Wilson's, yellow, orange
crowned, common yellowthroat), flycatchers (Pacific Slope, pee wee, willow),
woodpeckers (pileated, downy, flicker), a towhee, many finches (gold,
house), black-headed grossbeaks, black-capped chickadees and bushtits, great
long views of a low flying northern harrier, two turkey vultures soaring
over mid-island, a red-tailed hawk, Cooper's hawk, and all but one of the
ospreys has fledged - a total of 9 ospreys present along the Snohomish
River. What a wonderful close-in resource (and no tipping allowed).
On Sunday morning at Stillwater, a sora was observed feeding along the edge
of "Pat's Pond." It was too fast in and out of reeds for a photo but the
yellow shorter bill and coloring observed with binocs were consistent with
sora. (Also, another Seattle Auduboner earlier reported seeing a sora at
the same location.) The American bittern that has been around the pond
regularly also was present (as was Pat), there were 2 blue heron to the east
end, a green heron and kingfishers at the Harris Creek bridge, pairs of
red-winged blackbirds foraging in the cottonwoods, wrens (marsh and
Bewick's), a lone tanager, Swainson's thrush, waxwings, goldfinches, a
female black-headed grossbeack, yellow and orange crowned warblers and
yellowthroats, woodpeckers (downy, hairy, flicker), a brown creeper,
red-breasted sapsuckers, flycatchers (only pee wee and Pacific slope
observered), common ravens, and many low-feeding warbling and red-eyed
vireos, including a red-eyed diligently foraging for (or maybe trying to out
run) its parasitic cowbird fledgling. With hunting season only 3 weeks
away, enjoy Stillwater while you can...
Tom Mansfield
Seattle