Subject: [Tweeters] Guillemots, etc.
Date: Feb 22 14:26:32 2015
From: Jeff Gibson - gibsondesign at msn.com


Coming into Edmonds yesterday on the ferry, I was surprised , pleasantly, to find that all of the guillemots I saw (about 10), had changed into their striking breeding plumage, without any supervision by me. It seems like it was just a week or two ago, they were all in their light-toned winter garb, but I guess I have lost track of time lately, due to the effects of my current job of herding the elderly. Time waits for no one, regardless of mental state, and the guillemots have made their dramatic plumage change.
The water was a bit rough coming in to the dock - the type of cross - chop of sharp-crested waves that would surely challenge a human kayaker. I paddled through such stuff once, and was so exhausted trying to stay upright, that by the time I got to shore I could hardly lift my kayak on to my truck.
That's why I particularly admired the seabirds by the ferry dock - mostly guillemots, surf scoters, and horned grebes - riding out the rough water with remarkable buoyant ease. Pretty cool really.
Jeff Gibsonjust sayin'