Subject: [Tweeters] Camano Island Report
Date: Oct 5 20:55:49 2008
From: MEYER2J at aol.com - MEYER2J at aol.com
Hi Tweets:
The following has been posted on the Eastlake Audubon website:
October 4th 2008 Camano Is. Bird Trip
All Eastside Audubon 11 participants arrived in foul weather gear which
proved prophetic because we experienced the entire gamut of Washington weather.
But we were ready and willing! We heard later that Seattle had powerful
winds, loss of electrical power and torrential rains. We had it Good at Camano.
After crossing the Camano Island bridge, we stopped to watch flocks of
Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs while dueling Merlins displayed overhead. We also
saw our first squadrons of Snow Geese arriving at the marshes.
At Iverson Spit we counted several more raptors including a Bald Eagle
chasing a Greater White-fronted Goose, Northern Harriers, a Sharp-shinned Hawk
buzzing us a few feet away, another Merlin, great looks at a Peregrine harassing
a Red-tailed Hawk, an American Kestrel, and an Osprey that was late
departing or just passing through from the North. Looking over the bay we were
greeted by several beautiful Red-throated Loons in breeding plumage. The bushes
held many passerines such as singing Lincoln?s Sparrow, Gambelii White-crowned
Sparrow and Savannah Sparrow. The marshes had Virginia Rails that saw fit to
answer our beckoning calls while providing only brief glimpses of
themselves.
The Four Springs Lake Preserve provided a pleasant walk but the wind was
beginning to pick up which made the rain more of a hassle. The birds were
elusive here but we did manage to get two species of chickadees, a Winter Wren,
and a Golden-crowned Kinglet.
The Utsalady Boat Launch area initially had minimal winds but before we left
the white caps were blowing foam and the rain was blurring our optics.
However, we did manage to find several alcids, including at least one Marbled
Murrelet. Also seen were a beautiful pair of Harlequin Ducks that were
swimming near a shark. Have to be there to see it.
English Boom usually provides great sea birding, but by this time the
weather had worsened to the point that we only looked with binocs from under a
covered platform.
Without padding our count with ducks at the Stanwood sewage treatment plant
which is now essentially closed to birding, we found a total of 69 species
(plus one dowitcher ?species,?).
Joyce Meyer
_meyer2j at aol.com_ (mailto:meyer2j at aol.com)
**************New MapQuest Local shows what's happening at your destination.
Dining, Movies, Events, News & more. Try it out!
(http://local.mapquest.com/?ncid=emlcntnew00000001)