Subject: [Tweeters] Ridgefield NWR BLACKPOLL WARBLER and possible GYRFALCON
Date: Sep 17 19:50:45 2006
From: Gary Fredricks - gfredricks at wa-net.com


Tweeters,
If all the rare shorebirds at Ridgefield Refuge weren?t enough, there
was a juvenile BLACKPOLL WARBLER in the ash trees near the photo blind
this afternoon. This is starting to look like a classical Patagonia
Picnic Table effect. Killer looks at the sharp-tailed sandpiper today as
well, much better than we had on Friday.

My shorebirding weekend took me up through Damon Point, Oyhut Game Range
at Ocean Shores, Bottle Beach near Westport, Tokeland and Leadbetter
Point/Willapa Refuge on the Long Beach Peninsula. Overall, the shorebird
numbers were low (except for sanderlings!) but birding was great
nevertheless. Saturday?s highlights included three Pacific Golden
Plovers, one Lapland Longspur and a large gray falcon harassing gulls on
the Game Range. All of my views of the falcon were at a distance under
poor light conditions but the bird was much larger than the juvnile gull
it was chasing and a bit smaller than a red-tailed hawk it later
harassed. The light gray back, streaked breast and lack of strong facial
markings suggested a Gyrfalcon. I had one here last year a week or so
latter than this date, maybe the same bird? If anyone else saw this
bird, I would like to know their thoughts on it. Late in the day the
Tokeland marina had 600+ Marbled Godwits (and not one bar-tailed) and 15
Willets roosting on both sides of the access road. The Willapa Refuge
was a bit slow in the rain showers this morning but my long hike out
around the point turned up a pair of Ruddy Turnstones, four Baird?s
Sandpipers, a Snowy Plover and a pair of Peregrine Falcons. Odd not to
see one golden plover or a Pectoral out there. With all the driving and
hiking the best shorebirding of the weekend was still back at Ridgefield.

Gary Fredricks
Washougal, WA
gfredricks at wa-net.com