Subject: [Tweeters] a bit more about Neah Bay
Date: Nov 13 16:08:15 2016
From: Dennis Paulson - dennispaulson at comcast.net


I don?t have much to add to all the posts and eBird lists from Neah Bay this fall, but Netta Smith and I were there from 10:40 on 11 November to about the same time the next day and found a few things. We couldn?t find the Lark Sparrow recently reported or any of the other rare passerines, except Tropical Kingbirds. Weather was good on the 11th, much more rain on the 12th, so we left in mid-morning.

Geese - we have on both visits seen the flock in the Wa?atch Valley that Ryan Merrill reported on 9 Nov. On 11 Nov, the flock contained a weird goose, all black on head, neck and foreparts, brown on the back with extensively white undertail. It looks as much like a Brant as anything but so different that I can only speculate about its parentage.

Eurasian Wigeon - 2 have been consistently reported, but we have seen 3, including a male and female together in which the male had a lot of brown feathers on the body as well as a moderate patch of green behind the eyes, possibly indicating hybrid genes. In addition, another male without those characteristics was present. We never saw them together.

Northern Fulmar - still large numbers visible from the jetty that goes out to Waadah Island on 11 Nov. They fly back and forth, so it?s hard to estimate numbers, but there were a lot, all dark morph. Also out there were hundreds of Common Murres flying west in small flocks as well as large numbers of loons, mostly Pacific, and many other birds. Many small alcids were too far out to be identified in the scope. Neah Bay itself is fabulous for seabirds in general, with large numbers visible throughout the bay.

Rough-legged Hawk - still present in Wa?atch Valley on 11 Nov.

Black-legged Kittiwake - 3 at the westernmost stream that drains into the bay on 11-12 Nov. They bathe and roost with the large numbers of Glaucous-winged, Western, their hybrids, Mew and California Gulls, the latter presumably heading south soon. We saw a single Heermann?s on 12 Nov, a species we had not seen on our earlier visit on 29-30 Oct. The scarcity of Heermann's was surprising, as there are still lots of them in Puget Sound and the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Also a few Thayer?s and Herring Gulls in these flocks.

Pomarine Jaeger - beautiful light-morph adult flew past heading east during my scoping off the jetty on 11 Nov.

Tropical Kingbird - 4 at one spot at Lincoln & 2nd in town on 12 Nov. One of them called, always a delight to hear them confirm their identity. Another about a mile away on 11 Nov was surely an additional bird.

Orange-crowned Warbler - one at Lincoln & 2nd on 11 Nov.

(Myrtle) Yellow-rumped Warbler - one in town on 12 Nov.
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Dennis Paulson
1724 NE 98 St.
Seattle, WA 98115