Hello Tweets,

Yesterday(July 15th)with a late start due to an evening high tide we birded at different coastal locations between the Johns River WRA and Tokeland in search of shorebirds and anything else that may be around. We had great birding conditions all day,although winds were quite strong at times at a few locations. Shorebird numbers were relatively light at all the locations we visited with the great diversity noted at Bottle Beach during the afternoon incoming tide. Our main non-shorebird highlight of the day was a NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD observed at photographed behind the Beachcomber Market and Deli along S.R.105 in Grayland in southern Grays Harbor Co. The bird was actually first noted silhouetted by the sun,as we drove by at 3pm after we made a nice beach walk at Midway Beach Rd. then we safely pulled off and parked in the small parking area at the Beachcomber Market and Deli. The bird soon flew from the original tree it was perched on then flew to the fence along he side of the market allowing great close views for a few minutes. The bird then flew directly to an clump of deciduous trees directly south of the market and sang and chattered loudly,as it remained hidden in the dense foliage for several more minutes then eventually flew to a large evergreen tree along Jado Place,which is the residential street directly south of the market and accessed west from S.R.105. The bird perched high atop this evergreen tree for several more minutes before eventually flying east across the highway to a likely neighborhood that we did not pursue.

If many of you recall this is the same location where a Northern Mockingbird occurred in May 2005,where it was first discovered/reported by Charlie Wright on the 2nd of May and remained thereafter in the general vicinity to the latter portion of that month. During that period we observed the bird 4 times and noticed yesterday it showed a very similar behavior and routine than in 2005,so perhaps this could be the same bird. We will also note that like in 2005 the bird was very vocal and yesterday we heard it chatter alot,as well as sing and whistle in typical fashion for the species. A few birds that the bird imitated included a Greater Yellowlegs,Olive-sided Flycatcher and Western Scrub Jay and Steller's Jay during the 15 minutes we observed the bird.

We have placed a few photos of the Northern Mockingbird onto our website for your viewing,which can be accessed at the following link: http://www.pbase.com/godwit/recent_photos/


Going back to our main itinerary of the day which was shorebirds we did locate small assortments at most favored locations,as mentioned earlier and overall the tide conditions weren't the best until mid afternoon,which made a for a very slow beginning of the day. We moved around alot due to the tide conditions,but in the end made up for what time was lost. Our best shorebird highlight of the day went to 5 WILLETS at the Tokeland Marine that all rested alone and together at high tide in a secluded area just south of the marina. This was the first personal sighting of Willets for us at this location since the 22nd of April,2006 so we were equally pleased,as well as being a nice summer record for the location. Our next shorebird highlight were 6 SNOWY PLOVERS observed in the newly constructed Snowy Plover nesting area at Midway Beach Rd.,which included 5 adult birds and one very young bird. All the birds were within or just outside the Snowy Plover nesting area,but as we remained at a safe distance a few of the birds became very tolerable including one adult bird that allowed for some great photos to be taken of it. One of the adult Snowy Plovers couched low on the ground motionless,as a Turkey Vulture flew overhead then the bird began to become active again. It was a pleasure seeing all the Snowy Plovers we did and equally nice seeing the nesting area,so hopefully breeding will of these birds will increase in their population here with less disturbances.

We have placed several photos of the Snowy Plovers and the Willets onto our website for additional viewing,which can be accessed at the following link: http://www.pbase.com/godwit/recent_shorebirds/

Our visit to Bottle Beach itself was great during the evening high tide with a nice gathering of shorebirds included 7 Marbled Godwits,150 Whimbrel, and 400+ Short-billed Dowitchers that all made the greatest portion of the group. There were many more shorebirds that were noted flying to the north just as we arrived that remained unidentified and we could never relocate. Our visit to a nice sandy spit area at Westport was equally nice in itself since it produced our only LONG-BILLED CURLEWS of the day with a total of 7 adult birds,as well as several flocks of Western Sandpipers flying by and never landing. Our last 2 species of the day were noted along Hwy.12 between Brady and Elma and included a Green Heron at Brady and an American Kestrel hovering at Schouweiler Rd.


A list of additional highlights for our day included the following species:

Wood Duck
1 female with 2 young at the Ocosta Third Street wetland

Turkey Vulture
2 birds over Hwy.12 at Elma
1 juvenile bird along Hwy.12 at Devonshire Rd(Montesano)feeding on the remains of a Raccoon
4 birds over Hwy.12 at Central Park(near Aberdeen)
3 birds over S.R.105 west of Aberdeen
10 birds at the Johns River WRA
2 birds over Ocosta
8 birds at Westport
3 birds over Midway Beach Rd.
2 birds over Tokeland
2 birds along S.R.105 over North Cove

Osprey
1 bird at the Johns River WRA

Northern Harrier
1 bird at the Johns River WRA
2 bird at Midway Beach Rd.

Peregrine Falcon
1 bird pursuing a flock of shorebirds off Bottle Beach

Black-bellied Plover
22 at Bottle Beach

Semipalmated Plover
2 at Westport
25 at Midway Beach Rd.

Greater Yellowlegs
14 birds roosting together at high tide at the mouth of Perry Creek(Mud Bay)in Thurston Co.

Whimbrel
150+ birds at Bottle Beach
15 birds at Westport
25 birds at the Tokeland Marina

Marbled Godwit
7 birds at Bottle Beach
1 bird at the Tokeland Marina

Sanderling
65 birds at Midway Beach Rd.

Western Sandpiper
45(with 3 Least Sandpipers)along the Johns River at the Johns River WRA
250+ at Bottle Beach
500+ at Westport
75 at Bottle Beach
35 at the Tokeland Marina

Short-billed Dowitcher
400+ at Bottle Beach
68 at the Tokeland Marina

Long-billed Dowitcher
6 at the Johns River WRA

Olive-sided Flycatcher
1 along S.R.105 north of North Cove

"Streaked"Horned Lark
2 adult birds at Midway Beach Rd.

Western Scrub Jay
2 birds along Hwy.12 at Satsop
1 bird along Hwy.12 at Elma

Warbling Vireo
1 at the Johns River WRA



Good birding,

Ruth and Patrick Sullivan
Fircrest,WA
godwit513 at msn.com