Hi Tweets,

I wandered around the Edmonds Bowl this morning (2-21-12). It started
out rainy. I was the only person on the public pier and I could barely
see across to Kitsap County although the water was calm. It was a
three alcid morning with one Rhinoceros Auklet in breeding plumage,
one Common Murre, and a number of Pigeon Guillemots in various stages
of molt. One was quite interesting. The transition to black plumage
was more complete but the feathers on the bird's head had a beautiful
scaled appearance. Several Canada Geese flew over but I did not see
any Brant from the pier. Surf Scoters continue to be the dominant
duck, accompanied by a couple of Common Goldeneyes, a few Red-breasted
Mergansers, several Buffleheads, and one Harlequin drake that flew
from north to south. There was one Common Loon fly-by, also north to
south. Three grebes were present: two Western Grebes fairly far out,
and a number of Red-necked and Horned Grebes much closer to shore.
Cormorants included Pelagic and Double-crested. One Sanderling
scurried along the shore break on Olympic Beach between the pier and
the ferry dock. Gulls were Mew and Glaucous-winged, including Olympic
hybrids. Then a single Bonaparte's flew in from the south and plopped
down on the water.

The areas on both the north and south side of the Edmonds Marsh,
including the Willow Creek Hatchery and Point Edwards, were birdy. The
Marsh proper had six Canada Geese, about ten Gadwalls, two Northern
Shovelers, and three Green-winged Teal. There were six Great Blue
Herons and nine Killdeer. Several Anna's Hummingbirds were on the
south side, along with mixed feeding flocks of Black-capped Chickadees
and Ruby-crowned Kinglets. One male had it's red pate raked forward
like a punk rocker. Spotted Towhees and Song Sparrows completed the
bird activity on the north side.

The south side of the Marsh offered large flocks of Zonos, mostly
Golden-crowned Sparrows. There was one juvenile White-crowned Sparrow.
Neither White-throated Sparrow was among any of these flocks. I also
saw a couple of Fox Sparrows and one Lincoln's. More mixed feeding
flocks of chickadees, kinglets, and House Finches were around, as were
Golden-crowned Kinglets in some young Douglas firs. A number of Red-
winged Blackbirds were perched in alder above the Point Edwards
retention pond. On the ponds on the south side of the Marsh there were
several Buffleheads, some Mallards, a few more Green-winged Teals, one
American Coot, and three Ring-necked Ducks (one drake, two hens). The
Ring-necked Ducks were especially exciting because it is a new species
for my Edmonds list. There were a number of Northern Flickers, lots of
Robins, and one Varied Thrush at the Hatchery. A juvenile Red-tailed
Hawk was perched on the light standard by the retention pond and was
being mobbed by Crows. It ignored the Crows for a long time and then
finally, in its own good time, flew off slowly.

Good birding,

Carol Riddell