Subject: [Tweeters] Belated Clallam Co report 9/12-15: terrific birding out
Date: Sep 17 09:12:33 2013
From: Scott Atkinson - scottratkinson at hotmail.com





Tweeters:

Just now I'm getting the chance to report on a four-day sojourn to Clallam County, built around showing the Sullivans from Boston some of the regulars out there. All told I found about 145 species during the period, and ran into Nigel Ball out at Neah Bay on Saturday. Conditions were foggy and the seawatch off Cape Flattery was pretty much a bust, but from east to west there were plenty of noteworthy migrants around, some of which Nigel has already mentioned.

Highlights as follows:

GRAYSMARSH PUBLIC BEACH ACCESS 9/12 (Sequim)

Eared Grebe 1
Vaux's Swift 175
Black Swift 1
Selasphorus, sp. 1
LEWIS' WOODPECKER 1 (third for Grays, end of Wilcox Lane)
Violet-green Swallow 1400
Barn Swallow 500
Cliff Swallow 1
Horned Lark 1
CHIPPING SPARROW 1 (juv)
Fox Sparrow 1 FOS
House Finch 350

SCHMUCK ROAD 9/12

Merlin 1
Savannah Sparrow 125
BOBOLINK 1 (fall-plumaged, flew from main hedgerow on west side, rich buff
bird, pointed wings, very strong flight+)

OYSTER HOUSE on DUNGENESS BAY 9/13

HUDSONIAN GODWIT 1 (seen earlier in week by others)
Marbled Godwit 2
Pectoral Sandpiper 1

(former) THREE CRABS access at Dungeness River mouth

Greater Scaup 1 FOS (6 off Ediz Hook 9/15 also)
VESPER SPARROW 1 (dunes along north side of former restaurant)
Savannah Sparrow 30
Also: Cedar Waxwing 300 (DRA 9/13), Lapland Longspur 1 (Grays beach 9/13)

NEAH BAY 9/14

RED-SHOULDERED HAWK 1 (had it closer to town dump than other observers, about 3:45 pm)
UPLAND SANDPIPER 1 (heard-only late in day--returned to bridge over Waatch R., where
had thought I'd heard one earlier but passed off as Starling; this time heard clearly far
overhead, but too much fog for visual)
Sandhill Crane 3 (several heard above in fog at Cape Flattery, FOS)
Purple Martin 1 (Nigel had 5, late birds)
Horned Lark 1 (along Waatch R.)
PALM WARBLER 3 (in company of many Savannah Sparrows near central Waatch R)

GRAYSMARSH PUBLIC BEACH ACCESS 9/15

Eared Grebe 1 continuing, good counts of Horned and Red-necked also
BROWN PELICAN 1 (3rd for Graysmarsh)
Heermann's Gull 120 (higher than average for Grays)
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 1 (Blyn, FOS)

ELWHA RIVER MOUTH 9/15

White-throated Sparrow 1 (FOS--at trail head that goes out to lagoon near mouth)

NOTES--I don't want to steal Denny van Horn's thunder but he had several more hot rarities, including several out at the Neah Bay beat. And I heard of a Golden Eagle up at Hurricane Ridge, as well as (!) a flock of Eur. Collared-Doves up there (the expansion has reached epic proportions) 9/14. A couple from Michigan reported both WANDERING TATTLER and TUFTED PUFFIN on 9/14 at Cape Flattery, despite poor viewing conditions.

MISSES--despite all the goodies, missed the recently-reported Elegant Terns in Sequim, and neglected to check my cell before leaving town, costing me a Buff-breasted Sand at Hobuck Beach that Nigel detected and texted me about!

VASCULAR PLANTS--most interesting for me were Trifolium incarnatum (Crimson clover), a less-common Eurasian species coming up at Carrie Blake Park in Sequim; and a native Impatiens near the Elwha River mouth, similar to, but not, I. noli-tangere.

Scott Atkinson
Lake Stevens
mail to: scottratkinson at hotmail.com