Hi Tweets,

I went for a boat ride today. I was hoping to travel up the east-side of
Bainbridge Island and search for shearwaters and such. The cool
northeast wind limited my east-side efforts and I was unsuccessful at
locating any shearwaters. However, I was rewarded at the end of the day
with a Red Knot on Blakely Rock. Bainbridge Island has no previous
records and this is only the 2nd Kitsap County record. A lone
Black-bellied Plover, a Surfbird, a Dunlin, and a few Black Turnstones
were with the Knot.

An earlier check of Blakely Rock close to the high tide revealed two
Rock Sandpipers, 20 Black Turnstones and 250 Brandt's Cormorants. The
Knot and the Plover were not present at this time and usually there are
many more shorebirds roosting on the rock at high tide. The cormorants
give the rock quite a smell at this time of year.

A Clark's Grebe was in a small flock of Western Grebes at the south end
of Bainbridge Island. I also visited Yukon Harbor for the first time. It
is a bay about two miles west of the Southworth ferry landing in
southeast Kitsap County. There is quite a large flock of American Wigeon
(3500+-) hanging out in the bay.

Despite the cool winds, it was a pleasant day out on the water.

Cheers, good birding, & happy Thanksgiving,

Brad Waggoner
Bainbridge Island, Washington
mailto:wagtail at sounddsl.com