An update of some of the birds found around Othello during the Sandhill Crane Festival last weekend:

At Corfu Road the single Ross's Goose and now 6 Snow Geese are seen among 30K+ Canada and Cackling Geese I have not seen the Blue Goose there since Sunday. Cranes are above 3K there now morning and late afternoon. Many of the geese are going to the County Line Ponds, but I have not seen white, blue, or white-fronted geese there lately. Today there were American Avocets, Black-necked Stilts and a EURASIAN GREEN-WINGED TEAL south of the highway.

Mike Denny and I did not relocate the Eurasian Collared-Doves found by Dennis Paulson at SR 24 and Bench Road (just south of Othello), but we only looked briefly Sunday morning.

Tricolored Blackbirds are being found at the Para Ponds area along McManamon Road and along SR 26 about 7 miles west of Othello at Camano Island Cattle Company. Andy Stepniewski had a Rusty Blackbird Saturday near the Para Ponds that I have not relocated.

Burrowing Owls and Long-billed Curlews are still returning from a late winter down south, but many are found around Othello at traditional locations.

Say's Phoebes, Canyon and Rock Wrens are back, and 5 species of swallows were at Columbia NWR today. A Prairie Falcon is nesting at CNWR along Morgan Lake Road into Grant County, and a male Eurasian Wigeon remains at Migraine Lake (just south of Soda Lake.)

I'm sure I have missed a few species that some of you might be interested in, but it is bedtime.

Randy Hill
Othello