To Shep and the Black Hills Audubon group,
My 6-year-old son and I stumbled on your group when we first arrived
yesterday for our own birding adventure. The folks in your party were so
kind and patient with my very excited kiddo when we were repeatedly in the
same areas, and I'm so appreciative that you shared the black-necked stilts
sighting with us- my son was so excited to tell every person we passed
afterward about those birds!
We spotted that mink as we headed back to the parking lot and got to watch
it drag a dead rabbit up the road and into the brush. That and about a
dozen lifers made yesterday a truly magical experience for us. Thanks for
your part in it! I have some images from yesterday posted here, including
the mink and its prize:
https://www.instagram.com/birdsofthepnw/
Michelle Green
West Seattle
nomichelle at gmail.com
Date: Thu, 23 Jun 2022 11:55:57 -0700
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From: Shep Thorp <shepthorp at gmail.com>
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To: Tweeters <tweeters at u.washington.edu>
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Subject: [Tweeters] Wednesday Walk, 6/22/2022, Billy Frank Jr
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Nisqually NWR.
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Message-ID:
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<CALBsWnGfDaGk_v8wNLPt=
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YABHK5m0-23k1gKpm8knhykH25Kfw at mail.gmail.com>
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Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
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Dear Tweets,
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We had a very nice spring day at the Refuge with cloudy skies and light
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rain in the morning and sunny skies with sun in the afternoon.
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Temperatures were in the 60's degrees Fahrenheit and there was a High
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9.05ft Tide at 2:07pm. Highlights included many breeding birds including
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two BLACK-NECKED STILTS on 4 eggs in the freshwater marsh 75 yards south of
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the Nisqually Estuary Trail, new dike, 100 yards east of the Nisqually
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Estuary Boardwalk Trail. An unexpected second cycle SHORT-BILLED GULL
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continues with the many RING-BILLED GULLS and immature CALIFORNIA GULLS on
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the mud flats north of the McAllister Creek Viewing Platform.
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[...]
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We observed 67 species for the day, and have seen 152 species for the
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year. Mammals seen included Eastern Cotton-tailed Rabbit, Columbian
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Black-tailed Deer, Eastern Gray Squirrel, Harbor Seal and Coyote. A Mink
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was seen at the west entrance of the Twin Barns Loop Trail on Monday. See
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eBird report copied, click on report link to see photos.
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Until next time, happy birding.
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Shep Thorp
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--
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Shep Thorp
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Browns Point
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253-370-3742
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