Hi Tweeters,

This is mostly just a reiteration of what Phil Kelly posted a couple of days ago, but I just wanted to let those interested in knowing that the Great Horned Owl family is still very visible at Nisqually NWR. I stopped by on Friday for an hour after work and returned this morning with my wife, and both juvenile owls and the adult were in plain view both times. As noted by Phil, the owls are on the right side of the trail as you are walking away from the twin barns toward the river. A little before you get to the t-intersection, the two juveniles were out in the open on a branch maybe 30' up, huddled together and looking very cute. The adult was in a nearby tree to the left and about 10' lower keeping guard.

Birds seen other than the usual suspects: 1 Cooper's Hawk flitting through the trees on the way to the twin barns and either the same one or another one on a shrub about half-way to McAllister Creek on the left. The Northern Shrike adult mentioned by Phil was very actively hunting about 3/4 of the way to the creek, also on the left. An American Bittern flew by and landed in the sedges to the right of the trail a couple of hundred yards before the creek. It took 2 or 3 steps and vanished from sight. About 2/3 of the way to the twin barns in a vernal pond to the left was a mixed flock of wigeon and Green-winged Teal; there were 2 Eurasian Wigeon males mixed in with them. Finally, in the same area, but closer to the trail, a Greater White-fronted Goose was hanging out with a handful of Canada Geese.

Get out there and enjoy the sun,

Lonnie Somer
Olympia, WA
wheelermombi at comcast.net