This morning (5/23) I drove over to east Fort Lewis to bird Muck Creek and the adjoining 13th Division prairie, looking for Horned Larks and Vesper Sparrows. No larks, but one singing Vesper Sparrow, plus two Chipping, and the usual Savannah and White-crowned. Plenty of migrants in the trees, tanagers, warblers, and one Willow Flycatcher. No Evening Grosbeaks, though, but yesterday, at Ft. Steilacoom park in Lakewood, there were several loose flocks of the Grosbeaks in the treetops, hard to see, but lots of calls. Also, lots of Cedar Waxwings, a few Black-headed Grosbeaks, Western Tanagers, Warbling Vireos, and Yellow and Wilson's Warblers.



Also, at Johnson Marsh on Ft. Lewis this morning was a Swainson's Thrush gathering nesting material, several Yellow Warblers, and a Warbling Vireo. Also, about 8 or 10 Purple Martins at their usual location away from the Sound, but this time they weren't out over the marsh, but were flying around the grove of trees near the spillway, and even seemed to be harrassing me. The bird houses out in the marsh seemed to be occupied by Tree Swallows, at least when I was there...could the martins be nesting in holes in the big old trees on the shore? A pair of Red-breasted Sapsuckers nested there a couple years ago.