before the storm, the worst our intrepid band of birding enthusiasts had to
worry about was humidity, which was somewhere around north carolina standard
(you are clean and dry, then you venture outside, and before you've finished
your first step, you are drenched)...

starting at the marymoor pea patch, we enjoyed the company of both anna's
and rufous hummingbirds, including anna males jetting into the stratosphere,
only to plummet to ground over and over again...

at juanita bay park, we were told the virginia rails and chicks were in
evidence all over, but unfortunately they didn't even call once while we
were there... even so, we had good looks at a green heron at the end of the
western boardwalk...

at marina park, nothing unusual with the exception of the pompom mallard;
she has been at marina for a few years now...

at bellevue botanical, we learned why the hummingbirds weren't around in
numbers seen over previous years (the fuchsias on hummingbird alley died
back hard last year, have yet to return to former glory), but numerous other
flowers were in spectacular colour...

finally, our friend from singapore puts in the really good karma and we
spend about 10 minutes photographing two long-billed dowitchers at union bay
natural area, at the point closest to the UW boathouse, just before the
skies unleashed... we also photographed a white-crowned sparrow with silver
band (left leg), a wood duck male in eclipse, and a dragonfly species none
of us had seen before...

even though weather more than once threatened, we were barely spit on once,
and managed 40+ species for the day, which was considered quite a success...

photos are available in "photos of the month" gallery... i hope you enjoy
:)

00 caren
http://www.parkgallery.org
george davis creek, north fork