Dear Tweeters,

Yesterday there were a lot of birds on the Skagit River at Lyman (Skagit County east of Sedro-Woolley). A flock of 55 Canada Geese also included "Whitey," an odd white goose known to local folks around here for several years. Whitey seems to be an escaped barnyard goose, but looks surprisingly like a Snow Goose in a quick look. He has been flying hither and thither in the Skagit Valley for some time, always with Canadas; I suspect he migrates with the flock, as he never seems to be around in summer (bird summer, not calendar summer).

Also in the river were two juvenile REDHEADS. I have not seen them in Skagit County in August before. They were hanging out with a Northern Shoveller and a pair of eclipse-plumage Mallards. The Redheads are quite drab brown, and might indeed pose an identification challenge, were it not for their biggish grey bills and grey wings.

Small, separate flocks of Western and Least Sandpiper were there, along wih a Belted Kingfisher, a Bald Eagle, a Peregrine, and a Turkey Vulture.

It is a good time of year to check the large sandbar here. There is always a chance of something interesting in the river at Lyman around the end of August and early September. Early swans, uncommon shorebirds, and migrant passerines are possible; the birds are often different here from one day to the next.

Yours truly,

Gary Bletsch ?

Near Lyman, Washington (Skagit County), USA ? garybletsch at yahoo.com ? ?

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