Tweets and Yaks -

Today I led a Yakima County shorebirds field trip, and we really had quite a good time. The heat was not quite as oppressive as promised, and the birds were fairly accommodating.

We started at Wenas Lake, where we had:
Killdeer 10+
Solitary Sandpiper 4
Spotted Sandpiper 1
Semi. Sandpiper 2
Least Sandpiper 4
Baird?s Sandpiper 4 Outstanding looks
Wilson?s Snipe 2

The Nob Hill Blvd Walmart Pond featured another SOLITARY SANDPIPER along with two KILLDEER and three LEAST SANDPIPERS.

The Union Gap Costco Pond had only KILLDEER for shorebirds, but did have a SAY?S PHOEBE

Kerry?s Pond, west of Outlook, was pretty quiet, with KILLDEER, SPOTTED SANDPIPER, yet another SOLITARY SANDPIPER, and a single GREATER YELLOWLEGS.

Some flooded fields just west of the intersection of Yakima Valley Highway and W Sunnyside Rd., (just east of the ?town? of Outlook), had many BLACK-NECKED STILTS and a WILSON?S SNIPE.

Our next stop was the Grandview Sewage Treatment Plant, where we ran into John Hebert, who joined us (and helped guide us) for the rest of the day. We managed to see 7 species of shorebirds there: KILLDEER, BLACK-NECKED STILT, SPOTTED SANDPIPER, WESTERN SANDPIPER, LEAST SANDPIPER, and LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER, and WILSON?S SNIPE.

We then hiked a half-mile into the WDFW site at Byron off SR-22 (really just the southern portion of the Grandview STP area), where our best birds were a couple of BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERONS. Our only shorebirds there were KILLDEER and WILSON?S SNIPE. We also heard VIRGINIA RAILS there.

At the Satus Wildlife Area, we had probably more than 10 BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERONS, mostly juveniles but 1-2 adults as well. For shorebirds, we finally tracked down a few: GREATER YELLOWLEGS, WILSON?S SNIPE, and a few unidentified peeps.

The day was winding down, but we made a final swing past Kerry?s Pond and Outlook. The second time around, Kerry?s Pond had a LESSER YELLOWLEGS, and the flooded fields near Outlook (after much scrutiny) turned out to hold a couple of PECTORAL SANDPIPERS and yet another SOLITARY SANDPIPER.

So we ended the trip with 13 species of shorebird, plus some great looks at Black-crowned Night-Heron for good luck.

== Michael Hobbs
== Kirkland, WA
== http://www.marymoor.org/birding.htm
== http://www.marymoor.org/BirdBlog.htm
== birdmarymoor at frontier.com