I've been away from the list for a while; when I last was reading it, scrub
jays were just starting to be spotted in the Seattle area. I see by the
latest digest that more and more of them have shown up, which is how I could
with confidence identify the scrub jay that came to my feeder today-very
exciting for me, even though I know it's hardly the first in the area. I
couldn't help taking note of the juxtaposition of this bird expanding its
range northward and the lavish (although now fading) blooms on the crepe
myrtle tree, as crepe myrtles are southern trees that rarely have a long and
hot enough summer here in Seattle to actually bloom, but did well this
summer. Changing weather patterns are troublesome, of course, but I can't
help thinking that maybe I'll be visited next by another southern bird that
I learned to love when I lived in the northeast-the northern mockingbird.



Barbara Miller

Bellevue, WA

Bmill07ATcomcastDOTnet