Tweets,



George Gerdts, myself, and the spouses celebrated the new year at Tokeland
and started our year lists birding the coast between Tokeland and Westport,
with stops at Hoquiam and the Brady Loop on our way home today.



Highlights include a close fly-over by an adult, gray phase GYRFALCON at the
Bowerman Basin airfield (Lana?s Caf?). The bird buzzed us, then landed on a
tall structure nearby. It has just one working eye! The left eye appears
covered by scar tissue.



At Westport Marina, from the long boardwalk that fisherman use on the east
side of the marina there was a roosting flock of ca. 200 rock shorebirds
which included besides many SURFBIRDS and BLACK TURNSTONES at least 13 ROCK
SANDPIPERS. Three BROWN PELICANS and a small group of HEERMANN?S GULLS were
roosting on the breakwater to the south. The immature GLAUCOUS GULL was in
attendance at the marina, just one of three different immature GLAUCOUS
GULLS noted.



In high winds Friday we watched 1000 or so MARBLED GODWITS, 20 WILLETS, and
20 LONG-BILLED DOWITCHERS (which cooperated with distinctive vocalizations)
at the Tokeland Marina and found a single LONG-BILLED CURLEW at low tide on
the sand flats behind the Tradewinds Hotel in Tokeland. We watched a young
PEREGRINE take a DUNLIN nearby.



A female LONG-TAILED DUCK was at the Hoquiam ponds and a ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK
perched at the junction of Paulson Rd. and the highway west. A flock of
maybe 200 TRUMPETER SWANS grazed fields at the southeast corner of the Brady
Loop. A single TUNDRA SWAN was with them as were two GREATER WHITE-FRONTED
GEESE and a nice mix of CANADA/CACKLING GEESE, including minima,
occidentalis, and a range of paler fronted forms.



Gene

Lake Forest Park, WA

enhunn323 at comcast.net