Kay and I drove the Orting Farm Loop, across the Puyallup River on Calistoga, today and enjoyed sunny skies and the ride but only a likely juvenile Am. Kestrel was of any note for birds. This was on our way to the Bellevue Arts Museum where the shows were excellent and we visited with Stephanie and Dave Allgood. Lunch at Araya’s Vegan Thai Restaurant was extraordinary.
Category: Kay
Cassin’s Aucklet Today
About 11:30 AM today Bruce texted to let me know he had a Cassin’s Aucklet off Dash point. I had to work the Rotary Lot 1-5 today so was not able to dash over. I thought it was unlikely the bird would remain long, but after dinner Kay and I went over to check it out and watch the sunset. Nothing at all at Dash Point, but at Brown’s Point Lighthouse sure enough the CAAU was in flat water, just about 200-250 M off shore. We had nice if distant looks, and are confident of the ID. Digiscope attempts in waning light were useless, but the small size, round head, very pointy bill, grayish color overall with whiter below just at the water without a sharp demarcation line, lack of white wing patch and no strong head pattern exclude most other options, and the general shape especially head shape exclude MAMU. A Pierce first for us.
Out with Kay this Morning
This morning Kay and I intended to first bird several areas at Point Defiance, but after checking Owen’s Beach were unable to do the 5-mile drive as it was closed until 10AM. We then went to the Chamber’s Bay beach access where two sanderlings remained, and enjoyed the sunshine and fresh air, but not much else for birds of note.
Shorebirding in Pierce Heating Up
Mid August is here and the juvenile vagrants are starting to show up in Pierce County. Yesterday I got out intending to do the usual Levy Pond, Fife Saddle Creek Oxbow, and 56th St. Stormwater Ponds loop, but got stalled at Levy Pond where I found a Solitary Sandpiper, and wanted to take plenty of time to assure myself of the ID and get photos good enough to convince eBird.
Today I took Kay back to Levy Pond to see the SOLS without success but instead we found a Baird’s Sandpiper, another really good Pierce Co. bird. This was a Pierce lifer for me. I contacted Bruce and he got there just after I left, and he had the Solitary. After success finding the Black Phoebe at the Fife Saddle Creek area Kay and I headed back to spend a while visiting with Bruce and Peter W. but the SOLS seemed to have gone back into hiding.
From there we headed for Brown’s Point to look for alcids, Common Tern, Parasitic Jaeger, and have a sit in the sun, but on our way Bruce called to tell us about a Semi-palmated Plover at Middle Waterway. We pulled a u-turn, headed there and found that FOY Pierce species. Overall a great 2-day, low effort shorebirding time.
