Friend Anne & I moseyed around Eide Rd. And other areas of the Stillaguamish River and the Stanwood area. We were most excited to watch a couple of Short-eared Owls, a Northern Harrier and a roosting Barn Owl. So were the group of spectators and photographers who showed up at Eide. No ugly scene as has occurred previously, especially in the winter of 2015, to view and chase some Long-eared Owls (there were no longears there yesterday) A dark Red-Tailed Hawk was on a wire down near Boe Rd., thousands of Snow Geese filled the sky with sound and criss-crossing skeins, no hunters were visible, robins filled bushes as they berry-picked, only one Great Blue Heron was seen, and a few other incidentals. Apparently there was a Merlin at Eide Rd. - we missed it. A smattering of swans was scattered on the landscape. A nice outing on a sunny, balmy, blue-sky afternoon, capped off by a tasty, pleasant Asian dinner afterward in Stanwood, at The Chatterbox.

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