Hi all,
Steve Pink and I headed over to Jetty Island this afternoon in hopes of seeing the Long-billed Curlew found yesterday by Phil Dickinson. Thanks to directions from Maxine Reid and Mike Bacon, who saw the bird earlier in the day, we were soon looking at the curlew foraging on the outer beach near the southern end of the island. Surprisingly, there were seven Whimbrel and two godwits with it. One of the godwits was clearly a Marbled--presumably the one that has been seen on the island over the last few days--but the other turned out to be a Bar-tailed! (See eBird for ID notes and distant photos:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S59389324)
We watched these birds for close to an hour. At about 3 pm, the tide was beginning to advance and the shorebirds were getting restless. The two godwits flew off together headed west towards Hat Island, then turned north towards Tulalip, and finally curled east towards Priest Point. We lost them as they got very distant. They may have ended up on the flats scopable from Legion Park.
Meanwhile, the Long-billed Curlew remained on the beach but was soon flushed by marauding children. We headed to the lagoon on the north end and were pleased to see the curlew fly in with two attendant Whimbrel, providing much better views than they had on the beach. Later, as we were waiting for our return ferry, they flew over the dock giving us one last look.
Other shorebirds on the island included Black-bellied and Semipalmated Plovers, Short- and Long-billed Dowitchers, Sanderlings, and Western, Least, and Baird's Sandpipers. We missed the Red-necked Phalarope and Dunlin that Maxine and Mike found earlier.
There is a free ferry that goes to Jetty Island from the 10th Street Boat Launch in Everett. Unfortunately, this coming Monday is the last day of the season.
Good birding,
David Poortinga
Arlington, WA
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