This past weekend I spent some time birding in Franklin County --

Best bird of the outing was a MARBLED GODWIT, seen Sunday [may 16] at
Scooteney Reservoir.

A basic run-down of my stops:

Saturday:
Smith Canyon - my first stop at this place - looks promising for more
I had: Grasshopper Sparrow right away, many Lark Sparrows, Rock
Wren, Burrowing Owl & Long-billed Curlew.

Ringold area- after poking around right at the first spot, I headed
way north on the road. Not super birdy, but some decent ponds up
there. - Black-necked Stilt, Forster's Tern, Black-headed Grosbeak
Blue-winged Teal & 3 Great Horned Owl-lets

Pasco Humane Society Pond - pretty quiet in the mid-day heat.

Sacajawea Park - picked up county bird #150 w/ a Virginia Rail
popping out. Yay.

I continued on via the Pasco Kahlotus road -- Roadside pond not far
outside of Pasco had Cinnamon Teal, Blue-winged Teal,& Black-necked
Stilt, and looked good for more shorebirds in another visit.

Sunday [after starting the day in Columbia & Garfield Counties], I
stopped at Scooteney Reservoir before heading back to Seattle: I was
hoping for shorebirds, having missed most of them so far this
weekend. . It took making a longer hike to the north, but I finally
got shorebirds. American Avocet, Long-billed Dowitcher [4], Least
Sandpipers [5] & a MARBLED GODWIT. I also had several Eared Grebes
out on the water looking sharp.

All of these stops are detailed w/ maps at the Lower Columbia Basin
Audubon Society's website -- a great resource for birding stops in
the Tri-Cities.

Good birding,

Matt Bartels
Seattle, WA