Tweets,

I've actually had some time to bird over the past several weeks - what a
pleasure to take things at leisure. Today, Thursday December 7, 2006 I had
a pair of Pine Grosbeaks in a big Madrone patch near the SE corner of Cougar
Mountain Regional Wildland Park (Newcastle/Renton area). The birds were
feeding on the remaining Madrone berries and then flew to the top of a dead
fir nearby and called repeatedly. One bird was red-rufous (assume male) and
the other a gold tone (assuming female).

In the Redtown section of the Park (near the intersection/change of Lakemont
Blvd - Coal Creek Newcastle road) I had 3 Redpolls feeding in alders along
with a flock of almost 200 Pine Siskins. The birds stayed near the edge of
the flock and had a distinctly different jizz than the Siskins. In the same
area there was a mixed flock of both Kinglets (5-6), 2 Brown Creepers, an OC
Warbler, 3 Townsends warblers, 30 or so Bushtits, 4 RB Nuthatches, AND 3,
YES 3 CHICKADEE SPECIES - BLACK CAPPED (4-5), CHESTNUT BACKED (6) AND
MOUNTAIN (1). It was very interesting listening to the 3 vocalizations,
compare feeding patterns, and interactions. A really rare opportunity to do
such a comparison.

In other news I made it to the upper field of my Preston property and saw
that during the recent floods the Raging River took out quite a number of
very large trees along the bank including the Kingfisher/Goshawk perch (a
large Doug Fir) that extended over the river and that I saw the drama of a
Kingfisher being plucked out of midair by a Goshawk earlier this year. I
also had a Ruffed Grouse in the field that let me walk within 10 feet before
it slowly moved off into the salal at the edge of the meadow.

Cheers, and good birding

Rob


Rob Conway
Newcastle and Preston, WA

robin_birder at hotmail.com

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