Last Tuesday, 7/24, while conducting surveys for Marbled Murrelets,
Katrina Olthof, Amy Willoughby, Chad Norris and I came across an adult
LONG-BILLED MURRELET just a kilometer west of the Point of Arches. It
was on the water near a pair of Marbled Murrelets which made for a
nice comparison between the two species. The Long-billed Murrelet was
noticeably larger, had a white throat that contrasted sharply with the
dark sides of the neck (compared to Marbleds that have a pale side of
the neck), had pale spots on the back of the head, was a colder,
darker brown, had a white ring around much of the eye, and did have a
longer bill than a typical Marbled. After watching and photographing
it for awhile it took off, flying south toward Cape Alava.

For those interested in the occurrence of Long-billed Murrelet in
North America, the article written by Steve Mlodinow and published in
Birding back in 1997 is available online:

http://www.birdchat.net/birdingmlodinow.pdf

We also saw four Manx Shearwaters that day, bringing my summer total
to sixteen. The best part of the coast for them are the waters around
Alexander and Destruction Islands. Exact or approximate locations are
entered in eBird. I would think that scoping from shore around
Kalaloch or Ruby Beach would give you a decent shot at seeing one.

Photos of the LBMU, MASH, and other shots from the season are online here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rjm284/sets/72157630829177680/

Good birding,
Ryan Merrill
Kirkland