Subject: [Tweeters] Skagit Birding Today
Date: Jan 26 20:45:25 2009
From: Carol Riddell - cariddell at earthlink.net
Hi Tweets,
I woke up to 18 degree weather here in Edmonds and watched a WINTER
WREN scratching about under the evergreen huckleberries, a rare yard
bird for me. It felt like it would be a good day so I loaded the
optics and my Sorels in the car and headed north. First stop was
Valentine Road, near Rexville, where I arrived about fifteen minutes
before the BLUE JAY did. Great feeding stations and lots of good
birds, including the WHITE-THROATED SPARROW. EVENING GROSBEAKS were
feeding at the house next to the cemetery a little further north on
Valentine Road, where it turns east back to Best Road.
I then drove over to Lake Erie for my second attempt to ID the TUFTED
DUCK hen. Lighting was good and the ducks were closer to the public
access area today so I was able to get her in my scope several
times. (Thanks, Gary Bletsch, for finding this great duck.) My next
stop was the West 90, which was quiet. No hunters but few birds
about. One ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK, several BALD EAGLES, a couple of
NORTHERN HARRIERS, COMMON RAVENS, and RED-TAILED HAWKS. A huge raft
of AMERICAN WIGEONs was on the bay but I couldn't see any Eurasians
among them. Then I stopped along Bayview Road, in the area where the
Padilla Bay Gun Club signs are. I scoped another large flock of
Wigeons on land. I quickly counted five EURASIAN WIGEON drakes and
one drake hybrid. The hybrid's green head band was prominent when it
would turn its head into the light. There could have been more
Eurasians out there, but I just did a quick overview. There isn't
much shoulder along that section of road so I wanted to minimize my
time standing there.
As I drove back across Fir Island on my return trip, I got to enjoy
the classic scene of hundreds of SNOW GEESE lifting off the fields
and flying in front of Mt. Baker. Beautiful. A great day NOT to be
in the office.
Good birding,
Carol Riddell
Edmonds