After reading what Brian Bell and his WOS field trip group managed to find on Tues the 24th, a day of rain, snow and lots of high wind (and probably some sun breaks ? ), I felt certain I would find quite a number of birds of many species, out taking advantage of the dry, warm and windless conditions that greeted me as I dropped down over the pass and into Kittitas Co. But, even though my first bird of the trip was a Turkey Vulture near North Bend (FOY for me), the skies and trees and wires and posts and fields were VERY and strangely, empty of avian attractions most of the afternoon and early evening. I was at most of my favorite spots at about the same time as I had been my last 2 trips, so that wasn't a reason. I did alter my route this time, spending more time in the areas north of I-90 (not just SR10, but a few spots north of and along the Old Vantage Hiwy). Then, instead of zipping back up from Vantage to Ellensburg, and heading down into the Yakima River Canyon, I refueled myself and my vehicle in Ellensburg and headed out along Umptanum Rd. By then the sun was getting ready to 'head for (or behind) the hills' (about 6 p.m.). I joined it for this part of it's daily routine. As usual, it was pretty much the best part of my day. The Western Meadowlarks serenaded all of us living creatures who were out to do some final activities and pay homage to the silence and the sky beauty that soon followed.

As for the birds and nests I saw, here's a list of them, in chronological order and by location:

Seattle to Cle Elum:
Turkey Vulture
Red-tailed Hawk (in tree)
Common Raven (in flight)

Cle Elum RR Ponds:
Red-Winged Blackbirds
Tree Swallows
Song Sparrow
Mallards
Common Mergansers
Buffleheads
Barrow's Goldeneyes

SR 10 - Milepost 94.5
saw no birds at the cliffs

SR 10 - MP 101
Great Horned Owl on nest - cottonwood leaves emerging now - views will soon be obliterated...
Red-winged Blackbird
Turkey Vultures (2)
American Robin
Red-tailed Hawk (in flight)
Black-capped Chickadee
California Quail calling "Chi CA go"
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
muskrat crossing gravel trail near parking pull-out
unknown small-bird calling in trees - 2 descending prs of calls - 1st pr. lower than 2nd pr.

Faust Rd.
Black-billed Magpie
American Kestrel (on a wire)
Red-tailed Hawk (in flight)
Mourning Doves

Reecer Crk Rd
GHOW in nest
RTHA in nest

Bender Rd, Brick Rd. and Game Farm Rds
RTHAs on several nests
several more empty nests

Old Vantage Hiwy (to Vantage)
Western Meadowlarks
Mt. Bluebird
Northern Harrier (female) - flying low
Blk-billed Magpies

Umptanum Rd.
Mourning Doves
Mt. Bluebirds - on wires
Western Bluebirds - on wires
Western Meadowlarks calling in the sagebrush
some unknown birds calling at the old shack with outbuildings and a nice tree...

I-90 near Thorp
Great Blue Heron (in flight)


link to photos in Flickr album "60's & Sunny - CWA - 3/26/15:

https://flic.kr/s/aHsk9FsgSX


Barb Deihl
Matthews Beach Neighborhood - NE Seattle
barbdeihl at comcast.net

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://mailman1.u.washington.edu/pipermail/tweeters/attachments/20150328/7b7651ae/attachment.htm