Five lucky birders saw a Mongolian Plover at the Game Range in Ocean Shores at 11:30 AM (high tide) on Wed, August 29. Going in from the Tonquin Ave entrance, we had to circle the entire pond, and ended up in some very mucky footing. We were at the spot where the Buff-breasted Sandpiper had been seen recently, and in fact saw it saw it a few minutes before spotting the Mongolian Plover. It was hanging around with Semi-Palmated Plovers. There were thousands of shorebirds at the Game Range today - what an incredible experience.


When we saw the Plover, Janeanne Houston and I were together with a couple from Virginia and a birder from Portland. They had some big glass, and may eventually be willing to share on Tweeters - we did let them know about the list. The gal from Virginia spotted the bird, and Janeanne ID'd it, also remembering that it had been seen here in recent years.... A lifer for all of us. We did the dance.



For those wondering about gobblty-gook phone messages and so on, I did post to Tweeters in the field from my Android phone while we were observing the bird, for whatever that adds to understanding of the issue...


Finally, with apologies to serious photographers, here are a few pics I was able to grab, to verify the sighting:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ahlness/7891163558/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ahlness/7891164384/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ahlness/7891165880/


Mark Ahlness
Seattle, WA