Hi all,

Yesterday, I spent most of the day in Ocean Shores with one target bird in mind. Luckily, after several attempts I found the female King Eider in the bay behind the Ocean Shores STP. I first could not locate it from the base of Damon Point so I moved over behind the STP. It was inside the old jetty rocks and not very far out in the water. Crazy-big waves out there yesterday!

Also, in the back of the Ocean Shores Game Range, there were Greater White-fronted Geese and Cackling Geese with a lone Snow Goose. I spotted an Eurasian Wigeon amid the all the ducks here too. On the sand just behind the STP, a few shorebirds were present which included one Black-bellied Plover, about 10 Dunlin (some near alternate plumage), and 25 Least Sandpiper.

Brady Loop yielded another Eurasian Wigeon and 2 more Snow Geese. Also, Greater Yellowlegs were working the flooded fields along Shafer-Boom Road on the west side of the Loop.

Today, Jeff Jendro and I birded Cowlitz County. Jeff knows this county well and we had some great birds today.

Up the Mt. St. Helens highway (HWY 504) to Coldwater Lake was pretty quiet except for a good sized flock of Evening Grosbeaks. At Coldwater Lake, the action picked up with singing Yellow-rumped Warblers everywhere. On the lake was a single Bonaparte's Gull and a pair of Barrow's Goldeneye.

Making our way back down the highway, just before the run-a-way truck ramp, the road erupted in a swirling mass of finches which quickly circled and landed back on the side of the road. It was amazing to see some many Gray-crowned Rosy-Finches! I estimated the flock to be about 150 birds. I snapped a few photos of them as well.

We scoured the Woodland Bottoms in the afternoon and found Sandhill Cranes. There were probably close to 400 cranes in the fields with several Great Egrets and Great Blue Herons around too.

In Longview, Jeff had a staked-out Eurasian Wigeon to show me and it did not disappoint. It was feeding with American Wigeon on Lake Sacajewa in the middle of Longview.

Good birding!

Tim O'Brien
Cheney, WA
mailto: kertim7179 at yahoo dot com