Spent a couple days around the Equinox out at Sand Point in Olympic
National Park. While sitting in the sand enjoying the morning coffee a
platoon of 14 Brown Pelicans did their undulating flap and glide and landed
on the rocks by the point. They were the first of many bands of these birds,
some in groups of 50, others just in pairs all heading to the same morning
confab on the rocks. I counted more than 500 in about an hour. Later on a
hike up the beach a cloud of them were well offshore doing their corkscrew
dives, so something tasty was available.

Later, as I was packing up I heard a harsh scream overhead and two
peregrine falcons were teaming up on a gull. The falcons took turns
stooping on the gull who was having none of it. Just a second before the
falcon would make contact the gull would twist away. It was an amazing show
of aerial talent, driven by survival at its most raw. At one point both
falcons stooped together, coming down on the bird from 60 degree angles on
either side. The wind was blowing pretty well and the gull used this, it
flipped over and instantly went shooting upwards, doing a kind of a
cartwheel between the two falcons who could not close the gap between them,
and as they tried, the falcons almost collided in midair. I realized I had
been hold my breath with the drama of it all. The show continued as the
wind blew the trio to the north and I lost sight of them around the bend. As
I was hoisting on my way too heavy pack (I have a rock collecting problem)
a falcon flew past beating wings hard against the wind. So I figured the
gull lived to dance another day.

Rob Sandelin
Naturalist, Writer, Teacher
Snohomish County