Hello Tweeters,
I had another incredible day out on the coast with 125 species (20 shorebirds)
in the Hoquiam/Ocean Shores area.

The very best highlights were first thing in the morning, when I stopped at
Hoquiam STP. When I first arrived, there was obviously a big grounding of
Black-throated Gray and other warblers in the shrubby alders along Paulson Road.
I started working through the flock and right off the bat found a bright, first
fall TENNESSEE WARBLER in the isolated trees near the chain link gate. The bird
was feeding in the treetops, but came down to eye level in pursuit of a couple
insects.

After the Tennessee flew to the south with a number of other warblers, I found a
small empid with a bold, even, white eyering, white throat, relatively large
rounded head, medium bill, jet black wings and buffy wingbars, and short primary
projection. The bird called with a full whit, close to Willow Flycatcher. It
flicked its wings and tail simultaneously. It was a nice view of a LEAST
FLYCATCHER, which appears to be a first county record (first for the outer
coast?).

By the time I left the area at 10:00, there were no migrants apparent in the
area, so I consider myself very lucky to have happened upon this great flock!
I headed out to Ocean Shores after Hoquiam. There was just enough haze/fog
offshore the jetty to make seawatching a frustrating experience, and there was
only a thin trickle of Sooty Shearwaters going by, so I didn't linger there. I
birded Damon Point (birdless, again) and the Game Range from Tonquin Avenue. The
game range again produced, with 13 BUFF-BREASTED SANDPIPERS, 11 Pacific
Golden-Plovers (all adults) and two American Golden-Plovers (1 adult, 1 juv). I
was surprised to find adult golden-plovers here so late in the year, still with
various amounts of breeding plumage.

HOQUIAM STP/PAULSON ROAD (7:45-10:05am), among 90 species:
REDHEAD (2): 1 imm., 1 ad. male.
Greater Scaup (12)
Surf Scoter (1)-in STP.
Bufflehead (1)
Hooded Merganser (3)
Brown Pelican (50)
Turkey Vulture (1)
Sharp-shinned Hawk (1)
Short-billed Dowitcher (6)
Red-necked Phalarope (4)
Bonaparte's Gull (1)
Ring-billed Gull (180)
California Gull (320)
Herring Gull (1)
Caspian Tern (2: 1ad., 1 juv.): very small numbers on the coast this year.
Vaux's Swift (1)
Willow Flycatcher (1)
LEAST FLYCATCHER (1)
Pacific-slope Flycatcher (1)
Violet-green Swallow (3)
Northern Rough-winged Swallow (1)
Barn Swallow (6000)
Swainson's Thrush (1)
Cedar Waxwing (24)
TENNESSEE WARBLER (1)
Orange-crowned Warbler (2)
Yellow Warbler (14)
Yellow-rumped Warbler (1-Myrtle)
Black-throated Gray Warbler (35)
Townsend's Warbler (2)
Common Yellowthroat (17)
Wilson's Warbler (9)
Western Tanager (2)
Savannah Sparrow (12)
Lincoln's Sparrow (1)

POINT BROWN JETTY (11:00-11:25):
Sooty Shearwater (200)
Whimbrel (1)
Wandering Tattler (1)
Horned Lark (2)

OCEAN SHORES GAME RANGE (12:45pm-3:00):
Surf Scoter (35)
White-winged Scoter (8)
Black Scoter (2)
Brown Pelican (80)
Double-crested Cormorant (1000)
Green Heron (1)
Turkey Vulture (1)
American Kestrel (1f.)
Peregrine Falcon (1 juv. female)
AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER (1ad., 1 juv.)
PACIFIC GOLDEN-PLOVER (11ad.)
Greater Yellowlegs (12)
Baird's Sandpiper (1)
Pectoral Sandpiper (2)
BUFF-BREASTED SANDPIPER (13)
Wilson's Snipe (1)
Red-necked Phalarope (8)
Heermann's Gull (800)
American Pipit (17)
Lapland Longspur (1)-heard.

Cheers!
Charlie Wright
Bonney Lake, Washington