Hi Tweeters,



I birded the Port Townsend area today.? The weather was dry and nearly windless and it was a beautiful day to bird the coast.? I started out at the marina at Pt. Hudson in order to find the flock of BLACK TURNSTONES that roost on the dock while the tide is high.? As usual, I could hear them before seeing them.? I counted 80+ birds and I'm certain that several others were hidden from view by the pilings.? I also saw 2 SURFBIRDS roosting with the turnstones.? There were also 8 SANDERLINGS and 2 DUNLINS feeding on the nearby rocks.? PIGEON GUILLEMOTS were common?offshore (as they were at all of my stops).? Also seen were 5 MARBLED MURRELETS and 1 COMMON MURRE.



I arrived at Pt. Wilson at 11:45 (I ran into Bob Whitney on my way out about an hour later who told me that he?had been informed that a pod of orca had passed by around 11:15; rats!).? When I arrived at the usual viewing spot, the YELLOW-BILLED LOON was fishing less than 30 feet from the shore.? It only stayed around for about 5 minutes, and then it vanished.? Several flocks of ANCIENT MURRELET, ranging in size from 3 to more than a dozen, flew by during my first half hour, and then became less common.? In all, I had counted 200+ in the first 10 or 15 minutes before I stopped tallying them.? You definitely need a scope to see them clearly.? There was a strong current along the coast moving in a westerly direction, and several times groups of Ancient Murrelets would come flowing by facing backward, often within 100 feet of shore.? The lighting was perfect and their colors really stood out, including the yellow bills.? A much smaller number of MARBLED MURRELET also flew by in the distance, mostly a single bird at a time or in pairs.? Several small flocks of COMMON MURRE also came by.? Other birds seen were HARLEQUIN DUCKS and 1 RED-THROATED LOON.



On my way to Fort Flagler SP I made a quick stop at Mystery Bay SP and spotted 1 GREATER YELLOWLEGS.? At the beach by the Marrowstone Island Marine Station at Fort Flagler SP, I encountered more SANDERLINGS.? There were also a few MARBLED MURRELETS, 2 COMMON LOONS, and a few BONAPARTE'S GULLS offshore.? I finished off by gong to the campground (going left at the?4-way intersection) and walked to the end of the spit.? Along the way, I encountered scattered flocks of?HARLEQUIN DUCKS, totalling 15+ birds.? Other species seen were 4 LONG-TAILED DUCKS, BLACK-BELLIED PLOVERS, SANDERLINGS, 2 BRANTS (at the end of the spit), and 2 BLACK OYSTERCATCHERS were on the rocks that form (I believe) the tip of?Rat Island.? Finally, I saw a large loon to the north of the spit that I think might have been a juvenile YELLOW-BILLED LOON, but it was too far offshore for me to be certain.? If anyone is planning on birding out there in the near future, it might be worth eyeing all of the Common Loons carefully.



Good birding,



Lonnie Somer

Olympia

wheelermombi at comcast.net








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