After being stuck indoors in Ellensburg yesterday as hundreds of Evening
Grosbeaks were wandering all around the CWU campus, I decided today had to
be out of the house, yard, and town. My first heard bird this morning
sounded like an Evening Grosbeak right outside my front door, but couldn't
find the calling bird before I left the house eastbound. Hatton Coulee
wastewater pond had the usual stilts, avocets, Spotted Sandpipers, and one
Red-necked Phalarope. No passerine migrants! Washtucna did not have many
migrants left either. Other than kingbirds and phoebes, only WW Pewee for
flycatchers. Wilson's Warbler the only parulid. There were several Western
Tanagers, Cassin's, Warbling and one Red-eyed Vireo, flocks of Pine Siskins
and Cedar Waxwings, at least two Swainson's Thrush, and a Gray Catbird. The
rye is at full bloom, so if you're bothered by grass pollen now isn't the
best time to be walking through the Russian-olives.



Moving on to Hooper, at least one YB Chat has returned to the Palouse River
along old SR26, and Vaux's Swift is still around the McGregor Building.
Beware of a dog at the west end of the street in Hooper; it can and will
bite! Had to cut the trip short so went up to Benge and Ralston (nothing
much) and toward Lind. Lots of Brewer's Sparrows a few miles east of Lind.
Also found 4 Sage Thrashers singing and displaying at noon on the
Lind-Hatton Road just before crossing the RR tracks.



Back in Othello there was one male Tricolored Blackbird on the potato
settling pond.



Randy Hill

Othello