Tweeters,

Today as Ollie and I were birding our way home from attending our 1st
Othello Sandhill Crane Festival; which by the way was an outstanding
festival from our perspective; at 60 mph heading East on hwy 262 crossing
the O?Sullivan Dam (Grant Co.), I spotted a large white lump on a small
grouping of rocks that is surrounded by water such that only their tops are
out of water. Ollie found a pull off, we used spotting scope to determine
that ?my goodness ? that?s a Snowy Owl?, and then we walked back at least ?
mile to get close to this small group of rocks for better photo op. There
is a large island further out that the gulls populate. This small group of
rocks is much closer to the dam. Finding a Snowy Owl surrounded by water
and perched on rock was quite a surprise to us. Owl was observed by us for
30-45 minutes (approx. 10:45-11:30am) and it stayed there and had not flown
or moved significantly when we left. It was actively looking around. It
was not flushed by a boat that went by at one point. I have no idea what
food items it may be looking for out there; unless it might be gulls? No
other birds were sharing these rocks. There were no ducks or lemmings seen
in the area. This snowy owl is moderately marked with black markings. So
it is not a full adult male; since it?s not white enough. But it is not an
obvious 1st year owl since it is not really heavily marked.



Then we found 2 Eurasian Collared Doves east of the dam; between the dam and
hwy 17.



Interesting weather this weekend; with the sun and snow and rain coming and
going. Wind was consistent and strong.

Grace and Ollie Oliver

Redmond, WA