Hello, tweeters.

I don't know how many of you stop at the Rye Grass Rest Area east of Ellensburg on eastbound I-90, but if you ever have, you've probably noticed the seed-eating birds feeding behind the bathrooms. And you couldn't miss the Least Chipmunks, sometimes present in what could only be described as swarms. Not that they are really a swarm; it's each chipmunk for itself. when it comes to packing away the sunflower seeds.

People have been feeding the chipmunks, and consequently the birds, for years, and we always stop there to see what is around. it's a great place for the photographer, as the chipmunks are totally tame, and many of the birds are approachable. I haven't seen a lot of species there, but they have included Horned Larks and Vesper Sparrows, two species not always easy to approach for photos, and I always have hope some other sparrows will come in out of the sagebrush. Why not Brewer's, which breeds right there?

We noticed last weekend and this that they weren't putting out seeds any more, at least not obviously, and the numbers of chipmunks were way down. We have been dropping off bags of sunflower seeds there in the past, but if they're not actively feeding the critters, that might not do any good. From now on, whenever we stop there, we will at least sprinkle around handfuls of sunflower seeds and/or mixed seeds, just to keep the chipmunks and birds there at some levels.

Yesterday we saw an example of the unforgiving nature of Nature. We had found a Pygmy Nuthatch nest hole at South Cle Elum and were excited about going back and getting more photos after the eggs hatched and the adults would be visiting constantly. We had found the nest the week before and watched an adult excavating it. This week when we arrived, we saw the tree had blown over. It's bad enough that people cut down snags everywhere, but the snags have their own natural mortality as well.
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Dennis Paulson
1724 NE 98 St.
Seattle, WA 98115
206-528-1382
dennispaulson at comcast.net