It was a rare sunny morning, so my son and I took off to the fish hatchery. We were greeted by a covey of about eight California quail at the entrance. The quail walked ahead of us on down to the hatchery grounds.?? I walked down Willow Creek below the hatchery to the edge of the marsh where I photographed a ruby-crowned kinglet, a varied thrush, a spotted towhee, and a Bewick's wren.

It was an unusually warm morning which felt more like spring than winter. From the marsh we returned to the pickup to shed parkas and grab something to drink before walking up the hill to Pt. Edwards. I took photos of a northern flicker high up in a dead tree and a song sparrow in the blackberry bramble near my pickup.? I heard, but did not see, stellar jays and hummingbirds. ?
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On the Pt. Edwards walkway we spotted the resident red tail hawk perched high up in the tallest fir tree on the fish hatchery grounds.??Further down the walkway,?a scattering of numerous feathers on the?asphalt led me to believe that the sharp shinned hawk or the red tail hawk we spotted yesterday had a small bird for dinner after we departed.

While we were on the walkway, the red tail hawk left its perch and cruised lazy circles over themarsh (and us) as it headed west.? We last saw it quite a ways out over the Sound.
Bill Anderson; Edmonds, WA.