Hey tweets, I just got back from the Fill to report that Katie Lloyd
and I found an ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER! It was working the little
trees and bushes on the east side of the Southwest Pond, where the
Loop Trail gets close to the pond. Then it flew into a little fruit
tree on the east side of the trail, dove into some tall grass, and we
could not relocate it. We found it around 9 a.m.

Field marks: Long, bright-russet tail. Crested head. Very pale throat.
A wash of yellow on the belly. Wing bars. Gray-brown head. Flycatcher
hairs sticking out around its bill. Probably a juvenile.

I suspect it will hang around for today at least, so you might want to
chase. It is truly a spectacular bird, what I call a hundred-year bird
- meaning, you'll be lucky if you see it once in your lifetime; or
meaning more literally, a bird like this appears about once in a
hundred years. (As far as I know, only one Ash-throated Flycatcher has
ever been recorded at the Fill before (in more than a hundred years of
records!). That one was seen by Gene Hunn in 1975 - oddly enough, on
August 31. )

It just goes to show, although exactly what it just goes to show, I'm
not sure. Katie and I were standing around yakking, so does that mean
that if you yak long enough, you'll see something good? Does yakking
attract birds? The flycatcher popped up out of nowhere and foraged
very close to us at first. Was it soothed by the sound of our
mellifluous voices, or did it think we were so wrapped up in chatting
we wouldn't notice it?

Maybe it goes to show what I've been saying for a long time now: I
should figure out a way to just live at the Fill. I'm sure there are
many tweets out there who would say the same about Marymoor, or
Juanita, Washtucna, or any number of other great birding spots.

The one thing I am sure of is that nature is full of wonder, and if
you lucky enough to happen upon a great wonder, then you should
recognize it, savor it, share it, and remember the feeling.

Also present:
one Red-necked Phalarope on the Main Pond (present yesterday as well)
two Northern Rough-winged Swallows (coursing and perching on the
Southwest Pond, and sometimes the Main Pond)
Yellow Warbler (Main Pond)
Warbling Vireo (Main Pond)
two Spotted Sandpipers (on the lily pads in the Lagoon) - Connie,
Seattle

constancesidles at gmail.com