Hi Tweeters,

This evening a calling Swamp Sparrow briefly perched up along the cattail
stretch on the South-West side of the lake at about 6 PM. Overall the bird
was the size of a Lincoln's Sparrow. Calls were sharp and quite loud, and
although the bird had recently bathed I could see rufous on the crown and
gray on the face. The beak was fairly light colored.

It flew to the North and I did not immediately relocate it. Then later
while I was walking home, I heard it calling near the bathhouse before it
flew off and out of earshot. I suspect that I was able to actually hear the
bird leave the park, but it may have just been moving up the lake shore. By
then it was really too dark to see very well (6:40).


Louis Kreemer
Seattle