Hi Tweeters,

I just had to share the results of our trip to see the spring migration arrivals in the Waterville Plateau and Loup Loup Pass area. We did a "loop" starting at Alta Lake Campground on Friday evening (May 29), travelling SR 17 and?172 south to Highway 2 within the Waterville Plateau area, ending at Loup Loup Campground on Saturday evening. Sunday am we drove and hiked the Buck Mountain Road and then visited Sullivan Pond outside Twisp.?Highlights of the trip for us were grasshopper sparrow, eastern kingbird in the Waterville Plateau, white pelicans at the Cassimer Bar, Williamson's sapsucker at Loup Loup, Townsend's solitaire and?evening grosbeak on?Buck Mountain Road, Golden Eagle, lazuli bunting, Cassin's finch and western bluebirds at Sullivan pond and area, as well as catbirds and a flock of approximately 30+ evening grosbeaks, male and female, making a large noise at Pearygynn Lake riparian area. We logged over 50 species for the trip. ?The flock of grosbeaks was an impr!
essive and delightful site, as well as the Harrier hawk repeatedly harrassing the golden eagle pair on the road to Sullivan pond, then perching on a rock between the two eagles.? We saw two bluebirds at two different nest boxes set up on fenceposts along the road, one with a male posted outside the nest box, another with the female bringing nesting material to the box.? Most commonly seen bird was the western kingbird. We were dissapointed that we did not see the pygmy nuthatch or hear the poorwill.? Loup loup campground is a great area for birds!

Here's our list of sited or heard species:
American robin
European Starling
Canada goose
Pied-bill grebe
Mallard
Ruddy duck (male and females, several pairs)
Red head duck
Gadwall
Great blue Heron
Western meadowlark, males and females
Western kingbird
Eastern kingbird
Song sparrow
Chipping sparrow
Grasshopper sparrow
Red breasted nuthatch
White breasted nuthatch
Cassin's finch
Lewis's woodpecker
Williamson sapsucker
Red breasted sapsucker
Townsend's solitaire
Western wood pee-wee
Dusky flycatcher
California quail
Western bluebird
Lazuli bunting
Golden eagle (male and female pair)
Harrier hawk
Red tailed hawk
Northern flicker
American coot
White pelican
American widgeon
Double crested cormorant
Yellow-rumped warbler (male and female pair)
Yellow Warbler
Blackheaded grosbeak
Evening grosbeak
Kildeer
House wren
Mountain chickadee
Blackcapped chickadee
Ring bill gull
California gull
White throated swift
Cliff swallow
Bank swallow
Tree swallow
Violet green swallow
Barn swallow
Osprey (fledgling in the nest)
Spotted towhee
Brown headed cowbird
Red-winged blackbird
Yellow-headed blackbird
Warbling vireo (we believe this is what we heard)
Swainson's thrush (heard)
Common raven
Stellar's jay