It's time to get out an umbrella if you own one and think about joining a volunteer sandbagging team.

At this time, 8 of the WDFW-released ring-necked pheasants have taken up occupation under the hedgerows on my property- 5 m/3f. I know they don't belong here, but it is hard not to admire their stunning, intricate plumage and wonder if it is an artifact of human cultivation or serves a natural purpose. They're liking the worn out garden and the horse poo compost (probably finding bits of undigested grain). I'm hoping we don't get too much overtopping flood this weekend- the birds leftover in 2005 bred the summer of 2006, then disappeared (along with the skunks, oddly)after the November floods that filled the valley up to the dikes.

One evening grosbeak is coming to a feeder. I saw a black-headed grosbeak last summer, but both are very rare visitors in my area.

What looks like a sharp-shinned hawk is making daily rounds. I'm not great at telling similar birds apart, but this one is distinctly smaller than the usual teeny bird eating visitors, which I had thought to be Coopers.

I work near Pioneer Square and was a long time coming to appreciate the crows, pigeons and seagulls there after I watched a homeless man sitting on the plaza sharing bread with the birds by the International Station on 5th and Jackson. The birds visit the water feature by a sandwich shop/Starbucks seating area for water and dropped crumbs. The urban St. Francis of Assissi turned to me at one point as I ate and said, "These are my brothers and sisters in nature" and I realized that he as much as I is a wildlife lover, but he will never travel to beautiful natural areas to view wildlife living independent of our handouts and leavings.

Well, yesterday as I was walking toward 2nd and Jackson, a great commotion occurred overhead. A seagull was flying with an entire glazed donut in its beak - eureka!!- with a band of seagulls and a lone crow in hot pursuit. The chasing gulls barreled into the bandit gull mid-air, and the donut dropped, only to be grabbed by the crow. The crow dropped to the sidewalk with his prize, upsetting the gang of gulls, which screamed and flew around the rooftops but would not drop down to the crow's level. A girl stopped to take a cell phone photo of the crow, which was banded and appeared to pose proud for her with his ankle bling (he was probably looking for something to go with the donut). A few other people stopped on the adjacent corners, so I don't think I was the only one startled by the scene!

Cheers,
monica