Subject: [Tweeters] Capitol Lake, Olympia
Date: Nov 1 23:21:46 2008
From: Kelly McAllister - mcallisters4 at comcast.net
I spent some time at Capitol Lake this afternoon, mainly looking to see what kinds of numbers and variety of waterfowl were present and the condition of the aquatic plant community that had been in such luxurious bloom during late summer.
There are thousands of ducks and geese on the lake. I also saw a subadult Bald Eagle doing some interesting stepping in a sideways shuffle on a log sticking up at a 45 degree angle out of the lake. I was driving to my next stop when I noted the eagle up in the air making passes at some duck on the water's surface. I stopped abruptly and found a vantage point to watch. I think he was harassing a diver but I scanned around a bit and noticed a White-fronted Goose closer to me. Not a moment after noticing the White-fronted Goose, I saw that the eagle had abandoned harassing the diver and was on a beeline for the whitefront. The whitefront took flight, making some really weak calls as it flew in a broad circle over the lake with the eagle in leisurely pursuit. They circled way off to the south, near the Old Brewery (maybe the new brewery is now the old Brewery and the Old Brewery might now be the ancient brewery... or something) and then west and out-of-sight somewhere up by the Red Lion Motel. Eventually, the goose reappeared and settled back on the water. The eagle landed on a tall snag on the other side of the lake.
There were plenty of wigeons to look through to find a Eurasian Wigeon. I found one male Eurasian Wigeon. This was at the south end of the middle basin, near the interpretive Center.
On the north basin, there were lots of scaup and ring-necked ducks. I counted ten Canvasbacks and there was a male Redhead hanging close to the Canvasbacks.
Not much else of note. Small numbers of Common Mergansers, Pied-billed Grebes, Shovelers, Green-winged Teal, and Ruddy Ducks. Lots of Mallards, Gadwall, Coots, and Buffleheads.
A woman asked me if I had seen the otters on a log south of Fifth Ave dam. I hadn't. She said they were repeatedly entering the water to chase fish or something, then returning to their log.
Looks like it's going to be a good winter for waterfowl watching beneath the Capitol dome.
Kelly McAllister
Olympia, Washington