Hello All- I sent a couple posts already about the ptarmigan at Mt. Fremont, out of Sunrise, Mt. Rainier NP. All the birds could be seen from the base of the fire tower, but were moving around quite a bit. The female with 2 chicks were very cryptic, but she vocalized softly which made finding her easier. The chicks were actively feeding so were easier to locate as they moved about. This family was on the east side of the ridge close to the fire tower. The 3 males were associating with each other, including some chasing and vocalizing, on the west side of the ridge. I saw all of these birds from about 11-11:40am. Spend some time here if you want to find these birds, listening for their soft clucking, and watching for movement among the rocks. I also saw an immature Golden Eagle, perhaps the same bird that was seen yesterday. It was soaring over the ridges to the north of Frozen Lake. There were lots of passerines moving around, including quite a few Townsend's Warblers. The other highlight was a Black Bear not far from Shadow Lake, feeding in a large meadow on the way back to Sunrise. The flowers were still fantastic and the wind helped keep the bugs at bay. Just a beautiful day all around. Good birding! Alan

AJ Knue
vireolanius at live.com
Seattle, WA