Subject: [Tweeters] Redhead and partial albino Redtail near Blaine
Date: Oct 29 23:03:27 2010
From: Jim Flynn - merlinmania at comcast.net




Howdy Tweets,



Did a little birding in the Blaine area today. A couple of interesting birds were around - most notable was a male REDHEAD in Drayton Harbor, viewed about half way out on Semiahmoo Spit. It was in a flock of about 450 scaup.



Also interesting in a different way was a partially albino RED-TAILED HAWK near the entry gate to the BP Cherry Point refinery in the Birch Bay area. I'm wondering if others have seen this bird. It may be resident as it was displaying by doing a series of "roller coaster" maneuvers before diving, and landing in a Douglas Fir.



About half of the birds primaries and secondaries are pure white, in an alternating pattern with normally colored feathers, like black and white keys on a piano keyboard. Very striking when well lit, as it was in today's sunny weather.



I couldn't see the upper parts well, as the bird was mostly viewed soaring overhead.?I did note though that the back and upperwing coverts appeared mostly white with at least some darker speckling and the head was brownish. The under parts appear normally colored for a light morph western Redtail although there is little or no belly band. Very cool looking bird!



Jim Flynn
Seattle, WA




Jim Flynn
Seattle, WA