Happy Thanksgiving, tweeters.

Yesterday morning on the way to Samish Flats/Fir Island, we passed an immature red-tail hawk just sitting on the roadside dike at ground level on Rivershore Road in Snohomish. It didn't appear to be injured, and wasn't afraid of us when we took photos. I looked at the photos later and found it had a band, so I'm wondering if someone lost a falconry bird. I left messages on the WFA site and falconfinders.com, so hopefully that will help. I'm going to wander the fields and roads today to see if I can find it; falconfinders had helpful tips on capturing if it appears docile. I know these immature birds don't have a great survival rate the first year, and benefit from the assistance of falconers, and this one looked distinctly out of place and not either feeding or protecting itself. Band number was (at least) 0005, silver.

Lots of short eared owls flying at the Fir Island site- we camped in tall grass after the duck hunters wheeled out their decoys and left with their catch, and watched them fly and bark, bark, bark for a couple of hours. There were a few other photographer types there enjoying the show. The harriers were also out there and at other sites, cruising the wetlands and grasslands.

Monica Van der Vieren
Snohomish, WA