Went out to Spenser Island yesterday morning to see what I could see. As Kathy Andrich mentioned ,the changes in the vegetation , with the dike breaching, are pretty dramatic. It's changed quite a bit even in the last year. The tide way out - saw one Greater Yellowlegs, and a half dozen Killdeer's and nothing else in the shorebird department.

The Red Elderberries are in full fruit - many, many birds feeding on them. Despite it being a fairly hot morning, many birds singing ! Song Sparrow, Swainson's Thrush, Yellow Warbler, Goldfinch, Willow Flycatcher, ect.

The marsh full of 'immature' Yellowthroats - behaving immaturely as they flounced about out in the open unlike their more secretive parents. I was looking for Dragonflies and the cross dike had numerous Variegated Meadowhawks, and a few big 'blue' Darners going by all over the island, but not much else. (in contrast I saw many species at the Montlake Fill several days ago.). The dike breach has eliminated a lot of the fresh water out here, so I guess the Odonates will be changing along with the birds, plants,ect.

After Spenser ,and seeing a pair of Otters playing near a side creek, and a Sharpie being harassed by a flock of Waxwings at the bridge, I drove over to the road north of the sewage ponds. At the end of the road I walked north on an overgrown road that soon gets into some Doug-fir groves ( snohomish county preservation area, which I was 'unofficially ' enjoying) and saw many birds including Red Breasted Nuthatch, several Western Wood Pewee's and a very close look at a Pileated Woodpecker whomping on a rotten alder.

Walking back to the road I heard the familiar call of a Raven - somewhat of a surprise this close to town. It was flying up at about 200' with an Eastern Kingbird right on it's tail. The Raven had definitely lost it's cool and was trying all flight techniques to get away from the little tyrant. The last I saw of it , it was headed for the wilds of Otter Island, hopefully out of the kingbirds terrritory.



Jeff Gibson
Everett Wa