David,

That's great news about the Bald Eagles in their initial nesting phase. Having witnessed that process here in West Seattle (Lincoln Park) a couple of years ago, I'll be on the lookout. About two weeks ago I witnessed two adults interacting in midair. I initially thought one of them had a fish the other was after, but my (distant) photos didn't show a fish, so I began wondering about a courtship dance.

I also want to note that that's a particularly felicitous typo in your message. I bet most small birds in fact think of their predator as a "Great Horned Ow"!

Cheers,
Trileigh
________________________________________
From: David Hutchinson [flora.fauna at live.com]
Sent: Wednesday, December 22, 2010 2:29 PM
To: tweeters at u.washington.edu
Subject: [Tweeters] early nesting

It is one of those trick questions of Washington birding: "what is the earliest nesting bird species in Washington State?" Non-intuitive or sometimes forgotten answers might be: Rock Pigeon, Anna's Hummingbird or Great Horned Ow. However an even better answer might be that 2011 Bald Eagles start nesting in 2010. On a walk on Magnolia Blvd this morning, an adult Bald Eagle was seen snapping bare twigs off a Big-leaf Maple tree and carrying it down to Perkins Lane where the large (as opposed to huge) nest was in a tall Cottonwood. Both adults were busy adding and tucking in twigs to the nest, while one of them spent time sitting, doubtless to assess long-term comfort levels. After all she will be sitting on the nest for two years.

--
David Hutchinson, Owner
Flora & Fauna: Nature Books
Discovery Gardens: Native Plants
3212 W.Government Way
Seattle,WA.98199
http://www.ffbooks.net/
206-623-4727