Blair, Green Herons can be seen in Issaquah often but they are tricky. There are lots of very tiny wetland areas throughout the downtown area and they can be in just about any of them. I just had one fly over me while in the rear parking lot at Stan's BBQ on Front St. last Friday afternoon. Lake Sammamish SP has a small pond on the south side of the main parking area that often hosts a Green Heron as well. Also, for a couple of winters in a row a Green Heron has wintered at the Old Fishing Hole in Kent. I haven't looked for it recently though. Good luck, Amy Schillingerschillingera at hotmail.comRenton, WA
> Date: Wed, 20 Jun 2012 19:36:23 -0700
> From: blair at washingtonadvisorygroup.com
> To: tweeters at u.washington.edu
> Subject: [Tweeters] More on Purple Martins and Green Herons Including Some Sightings
>
> Thank you to all who responded to my question re:
> Green Herons and Purple Martins both at Tweeters
> and Offline directly. General consensus on Green
> Herons was that some have been seen, irregularly,
> less often and less reliably than last year but
> that they are or have been around. The story on
> Purple Martins was quite different. Ranging from
> "They have not been seen here (fill in the blank)
> this year to I saw them here (same place) this
> year - but generally again not as often or as
> regularly as last year or still early. Today I
> conducted a brief expedition checking out a few
> local (to Seattle Eastside) spots. Success at two
> places (two birds each) and a strike out at another.
>
> At Marymoor Park where I had them last year and
> where some saw them this year and some did not, I
> saw no PM's. At the gourds there was clearly
> nesting activity as I could hear young birds
> inside at least one gourd. Either the babies are
> not PM's or a Tree Swallow (seen entering twice)
> is raising them. Other birds seen along the loop
> included Black Headed Grosbeaks, Ospreys, Willow
> Flycatchers, a Kingfisher, a Female Wood Duck,
> Bald Eagle, many swallows, Vaux Swifts, Cassin's
> Vireo and MAYBE a Red Eyed Vireo. The latter was
> seen only for a split second and heard singing
> what sounded to my very poor ears as a Red Eyed
> but not going to count it.
>
> My next stop was along East Sammamish Parkway and
> 187th per Brian Bell's post. Not great access but
> yes the lake could be viewed from next to the
> "Honeybucket" and 15 minutes of diligent scanning
> picked up two very large dark swallows flying
> North over the lake. A good view as they swooped
> back confirmed that they were Martins. There are
> a number of potential nesting boxes out there, but
> I did not see anyone stop by.
>
> The last stop was Juanita Bay Park. Lots of Black
> Headed Grosbeaks and a couple of very photogenic
> Red Breasted Sapsuckers (including one on the
> nothern trail/roadway) on a tree with the telltale
> sapsucker rows of holes. AND again a pair of
> Purple Martins skying over the north end of the lake.
>
> I stayed at the Marymoor gourds for perhaps 20
> minutes without success but a longer stay may
> indeed have found them there as well.
>
> AND lots of Herons as well ... sadly all BLUE
> which I am too since not finding GREEN which I
> also am - as in GREEN with envy for those who have
> seen them this year.
>
> --
> Blair Bernson
> Seattle
>
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