I spent the better part of the day near Stanwood sitting at the edge of the
marsh north of the Camano end of the bridge. There were about 200
short-billed dowitchers feeding and resting and they were quite unafraid of
me. A northern harrier seemed to get a kick out of doing fly-bys every 15
minutes causing the dowitchers to scatter. They always came back right in
front of me and gave me great photo opportunities. I saw another hawk
approach from a distance and watched it stop and hover a few times, much
like a kestrel. As it came closer I realized it was a rough-legged hawk -
the first one I have seen this fall. I was surprised at how few eagles I saw
- only 3 all day. I saw a beautiful adult northern shrike near the parking
lot of the Hayton Reserve but it did not stay around for pictures. Also seen
were 2 peregrine falcons, one of which was standing in the water in a
flooded field near Rawlins Road. It also didn't want its picture taken.



I have uploaded a few images to my website in the "last uploads" album for
those who might be interested.



www.photos.rlkimages.com <http://www.photos.rlkimages.com/>



Bob Kothenbeutel

Woodinville