Tweets - we got lucky with the weather this morning. We faced only a breeze
and a few showers, much better than the night-before and the
afternoon-after! Eleven of us wandered around, feeling blessed, and not
getting very many good looks at birds.

Highlights:

Cackling Goose 2 in a small flock of Canadas flying overhead
California Gull New for 2007 - one with Mews and Ring-billed on
grass fields
Bald Eagle Adult on new nest, pair way off to the east of
the East Meadow
Barn Owl Matt had one early, East Meadow
Great Horned Owl 1 NE of the mansion
Tree Swallow 10+, at several parts of the park
Northern Shrike Adult at the Rowing Club
Western Meadowlark Singing! in Snag Row
Pine Siskin Six at the Rowing Club

Notable singers: Meadowlarks, Fox Sparrow, Purple Finch, Ruby-crowned
Kinglet, many more. Tuesday I heard a few notes out of a Northern Shrike in
the East Meadow, as well as a heard-only Orange-crowned Warbler.

Normally we don't see CACKLING GOOSE after the first week of February, but
this is the second time we've had Cacklers during the 2nd week of March.
Must be individuals who wintered further south passing through.

We had a LONG discussion about a group of four scaup in the slough. They
were only about 20 yards away, but they were actively diving. We finally
decided that there was one Greater and the rest were Lesser. You'd think a
group with four or five Master Birders plus several other good birders
wouldn't have to work so hard on scaup.

Today's BALD EAGLE sightings do more to confirm that there will be two pairs
breeding within Marymoor this year.

TREE SWALLOWS were visiting nest boxes on Tuesday; today they were just
flying around.

Our WESTERN MEADOWLARK sighting was absurd. We were at Dog Central, the
biggest dog swim beach with the bulletin board. We wandered over towards
the Dog Meadow, and Ollie thought he heard a meadowlark. We all listened.
Sure enough, meadowlark song tinkled down from far to the northeast.
Miraculously, Ollie noted one in flight, and we were able to make out two
meadowlark-sized, yellow-fronted birds high in a cottonwood in Snag Row. We
could hear singing coming from that direction. Distance - 1000 feet. I
presumed we'd see them at the end of the loop, but no go. Tuesday, I had 3
chorusing in full song right over my head at the Interpretive Lot.

Pacific Tree Frogs were chorusing (very loudly in the sun on Tuesday,
quieter today). Some of the non-native plums and cherries are blooming, as
are the Oso Berry (Indian Plum), and a few species of willow.

For the day, 59 species. The week list is at least 61. For the year, I
think we're up to 87 species, having added California Gull, Orange-crowned
Warbler, and Pine Siskin since last Thursday.

== Michael Hobbs
== Kirkland, WA
== http://www.marymoor.org/birding.htm
== birdmarymoor at verizon.net