Tweets,

We spent the long weekend in and around Wenatchee (and the birding at the Confluence park is wonderful, by the way!), and I have a couple of questions:

1) We saw a Great Egret in the Quincy Lakes region (Dusty Lake, to be precise); this struck me as unusual. Is it? My Peterson's guide lists them as unusual up here. (Also saw a SPECTACULAR pair of Lazuli Buntings there. Just gorgeous.)

2) We saw a flycatcher in the Confluence park we were unable to identify, despite a good fifteen minutes of looks from no more than fifty feet. It looked for all the world like an Eastern x Western Kingbird hybrid: is this possible? Pretty much looked like an Eastern, but lacking the distinct terminal tail band.

3) [OT] That entire area, and east to Grand Coulee and the Soap Lake area, is carpeted with a smallish tree or big bush with dusty gray leaves, elongate rather like willow leaves, studded with small (< 1cm) yellow and white flowers, that smells glorious - to me, reminiscent of the ylang-ylang trees on the grounds where I stayed in Costa Rica. Can anyone tell me what this is? (No doubt some noxious weed, as pretty plants so often are these days. :( ) [/OT]

TIA,

Josh Hayes, now back home in Licton Springs
coralliophila at live dot com