I stopped by the Union Bay Natural Area yesterday (10/29) and from some distance away watched a fellow photographing a bird. I couldn't see what it was but my curiosity eventually got the best of me and I slowly wandered over to his position. Thankfully, he was not upset to see me and pointed to an adult Northern Shrike on a branch of a downed tree from our last windstorm. For the next 15 minutes or so I watched this bird flit from branch to branch and, in the process, eat several yellow jackets. This was in an open area between the northern most and central ponds. I managed a couple decent photos and have posted two (the first two) at the following location should you care to take a look: www.pbase.com/saxman/birds.

Chris Picard
Seattle, WA
altosaxc at aol.com