Hello Grace and Tweeters
I spend all day yesterday in Ocean Shores manly looking for Gulls and Terns.I was in Ocean Shores at around 9.00 AM,but could not doing any far sighting close to 1I.00 AM do to heavy fog.I started at the Sewage Ponds what had only few bird like 8 Western 15 Canada Geese ,7 Mallards with all young.On the close by Jetty,there where many Gulls,but no Terns.I went down to the beach ,it looked deserted almost stepping on some Least Sandpipers 6.saw a group of Gulls with 1 Caspian Tern.On the Ocean side I saw 15 Surf Scoter most all females.But there where one Marbled Murrelet in all dark brown breeding Plumage.I walked further to the beach where we always had so many Shorebird,including the breeding early date Stilt Sandpiper.But there where no birds at all beside two Marsh Hawks patrolling the dunes.Also the wetlands looked dried out This was one of this days where you think that this is the wrong day for birding.I also like to mention THE STRONG WIND what was there the whole day,making it harder walking on the beaches.I was on my way to Bills Spit where around the Marina I saw 1 Green Heron,close to the boardwalk.Behind the Ocean Community Club I found 1 Great Egret.
BEST for LAST!!! As I enter Bills Spit I know this is it,I SAW SHOREBIRDS ,but not this alone THERE WHERE SO MANY GULLS AND TERNS.The Gulls was farther away,so I concentrated first what was close by counted all 45 Long-billed Curlews,75 Whimbrels,35 Black-bellied Plover's and 15 Marbled Godwit's in the distance there where long line of peeps flying in long lines ,going right,to hard to guessing.As the tide was coming closer all the Curlews where flying away,the rest staying around.
Now I concentrated on the Terns there where about 20 ,the Gulls was coming to a resting time where nothing was flying,when I spotted 2 smaller Terns,but there bill was tucked for resting,at one moment one of this bird lifted the head where I saw this for one moment the bill and partly the forhead what had no white at all,so it was an adult bird.I could not see the tuft head .I stayed quite long time with my scope focussed on this two birds,In case some one going there tomorrow there should go to Bills Spit earlier,so there can watch the Gulls and Terns flying around.I took some photos ,but there are so small,and I don't know how enlarge them on the computer
Another place to looking for Terns and Gulls is Copalis Beach what usual have large concentration on Gulls Griffiths-Priday Park is further down what is also good


Cheers Ruth Sullivan
----- Original Message -----
From: Grace and Ollie Oliver
To: tweeters at u.washington.edu
Sent: Thursday, July 24, 2008 9:12 PM
Subject: [Tweeters] WA Pacific coast - Elegant Terns


Tweeters,

Ruth mentioned the Elegant Terns reported coming North from OR a few days ago.

Is anyone trying to watch our coastline - I know there's an awful lot of it - for the Elegant Terns being reported regularly along OR coast and now near Victoria, BC?

Any suggestion for best places to check out if we take a run over to coast this coming weekend?

Thanks,

Grace

Redmond, WA





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