Hi Tweeters,



Well, my first species of the new year was a Stellar's Jay in my yard.



I spent?the afternoon?birding the Brady Loop area and some of the Hoquiam spots that Ruth Sullivan showed me on the Grays Harbor CBC last weekend.? I saw the same species along Brady Loop that Carol Boyer posted earlier, with the only additions being a Cooper's Hawk and even more swans coming in.? Most were pretty far off, but based on bill and head shape, the majority of the swans were Tundra with a smaller number of Trumpeter mixed in.



I only had a couple of hours in Hoquiam before the light started to fade.? At the sewage treatment pond, a handful of Canvasback and Ruddy Ducks were mixed in with the more common species.? At the end of K-St., a Rough-legged Hawk was perched in one of the tall trees, probably the same bird that we saw on the CBC at this location.? In the nearby field next to the pumping station (still at the end of K ST.) was a mixed flock of Greater White-fronted Geese, Snow Geese, and Canada Geese.? This was the 3rd flock of Snow Geese that I had seen today in various locations in Grays Harbor county.? Toward 4:00, I managed to find the house with the feeder where Ruth, Jim Pruske, and myself saw the Mountain Chickadee? last weekend.? It was still there, actively feeding and flitting about in a more hyper manner than the Black-capped Chickadees that also came to the feeder.? The location is the corner of O ST. and 3rd ST., #823.? Remember, this is a private residence, so be considerate.



In all, 51 species for the afternoon including 6 species of raptors.? Happy New Year!



Lonnie Somer

Olympia, WA

wheelermombi at comcast.net