Today, I led a Grays Harbor Audubon field trip to Ocean Shores today. Our group of 10 observers encountered a few highlights and one amazing weather phenomenom today. We started the day by meeting at the Ocean Shores Convention Center at 7:45am and to our surprise we noticed a funnel cloud or possible water sput coming for a very dark cloud to the south over the ocean waters. I snapped a few photos of this funnel cloud and it soon dissipated with another small one forming and then disappearing quickly. The funnel cloud was a lifer for me! Luckily, no one was affected by this cloud.

Now to the birds...we covered Bill's Spit, the marina, the base of Damon Point, the STP, and a small portion of the game range. Here's the highlights:

Game range: 1 Pectoral Sandpiper, 1 Sanderling, 1 Dowitcher spp., 3 Whimbrel and 1 Pacific Golden-plover
Bill's Spit: 5 Black-bellied Plovers and about 40 Marbled Godwit (they flushed as we tried to get close)
Damon Point: 1 Merlin, 1 Spotted Sandpiper and 2 Black Turnstones on the rocks on the channel side, also one male Harlequin Duck, a Marbled Murrelet, and one Clark's Grebe

Also, we same one Blue-winged Teal in a small pond opposite the Lake Minard water tank. On the way home, a stop at the Hoquiam STP pond yielded an Eared Grebe.

It was a good trip!

Tim O'Brien
Elma, WA
mailto: kertim7179 at yahoo.com



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