Dungeness, Deception Pass and Larrabee

[Bill]

Hi,

We got away to Dungeness Spit, Deception Pass and Larrabee during spring break. Birding was good!! We did not see anything "strange" but we did see a lot of each species. We were privaliged to see our first warbler of the season at Deception Pass and Dungeness. The weather was great a we only had rain during the night. We were hoping to find a short eared owl in the Skagit Flats but did not. We did see a possible Snowy Owl ...... it was as far as the binos could see, we took pictures but it is a tough call so we did not add it to the list ( if only the scope was not in Florida!). That what keeps us going back!

Another interesting thing to note was that in a lake at Fort Ebey, I saw a Bald Eagle with only it's head above water. He was on the other side of the lake but as we came around we startled him. He tried to fly with wet wings and barely made it across the lake to a tree to rest and dry out. Has anyone seen this before?

Here is the list:

Pacific Loon
Common Loon
Horned Grebe
Red-Knecked Grebe
Eared Grebe
Double Crested Commorant
Pelagic Commorant
Great Blue Heron
Snow Goose (3000+)
Canada Goose
Brant
Trumpeter Swan
Wood Duck
Gadwall
American Wigeon
Mallard
Northern Shoveler
Northen Pintail
Green-winged Teal
Ring-necked Duck
Greater Scaup
Lesser Scaup
Harlequin Duck
Surf Scoter
White-winged Scoter
Black Scoter
Long-Tail Duck
Bufflehead
Common Goldeneye
Barrow's Goldeneye
Hooded Merganser
Red-Breated Merganser
Bald Eagle
Northern Harrier
Red-Tailed Hawk
Rough-legged Hawk
American Kestrel
Merlin
American Coot
Killdeer
Dunlin
Mew Gull
California Gull
Thayer's Gull
Glaucous Winged Gull
Pigeon Guilllemont
Rhinocerous Auklet
Rock Dove
Mourning Dove
Rufous Hummingbird
Belted Kingfisher
Hairy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Stellar's Jay
Northwestern Crow
Common Raven
Black-capped Chickadee
Chestnut-backed Chickadee
Bushtit
Red-Brested Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
Winter Wren
Golden Crowned Kinglet
Ruby Crowned Kinglet
American Robin
Varied Thrush
Starling
Orange Crowned Warbler
Yellow Rumped Warbler
Spotted Towhee
Fox Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Red-Winged Blackbird
Brewers Blackbird
Pine Grosebeak
House Finch
Pine Siskin
House Sparrow

[Chris]

I have never seen or read the behaviour that your bald eagle displayed. I wonder how it managed to get only it's head above water?

Great list of species and lots of waterfowl. I have been to Whidbey Island; mostly to Fort Ebey and it's a great place to go birding.

[Bill]

I think the eagle was sitting on a tree branch from a tree that had fallen into the lake. (Maybe he was sitting on that branch when the tree fell!!! ;D)