Hi Tweets:
I finally got to go birding today in the bright sunshine. When I got home this afternoon, the temp was 78 degrees. Whoo hoo.
Up on Kent East Hill, our RAS group birded at Dan Streiffert's house, raising money for a Birdathon. Nice birds included a male Black-headed Grosbeak at the feeders, some very quick glimpses of a Wilson's Warbler near the bird bath, and a singing Org-crnd. Warbler that we couldn't see. Dan said he had singing Varied Thrushes in the woods in back of his house just a few days ago, when it snowed in the mountains. During a walk near Dan's, we heard several Virg. Rails at a wetland near his house, and saw a very-active Red-breasted Sapsucker.
About noon I left Dan's place, and dropped down to try to see shorebirds in the Green River Valley. At M St in front of Emerald Downs there was a single shorebird that appeared to be a Dunlin. Around the rt.-hand corner on 29th St, there was a very-small pond w/ a few Least Sandpipers, and one West. Sandpiper.
At the big mitigated pond on S 204th there were about 30 Least Sandpipers, 2 Western Sandpipers, and 2 Greater Yellowlegs. Bill and Mary Bush saw 2 Cinnamon Teal tucked in and sleeping in the pond to the north of 204th yesterday. I didn't try to find them today.
I then checked out the small pond on Southctr Parkway just north of S 200th, and east of the parkway, but there were no Black-necked Stilts. Darn it.
My last stop was a walk around Boeing Ponds at 3pm. It was hot. You can enter at the always closed 62nd St. barrier now. Construction to prevent flooding has apparently slowed down. I walked in there a ways and saw a male BLUE-WINGED TEAL hanging out w/ a couple of No. Shovelers at the edge of the large pond. Two Ospreys flew in at different times, and immed. caught small fish.
Yours, Carol Schulz
Des Moines