[Tweeters] Marymoor Park (Redmond, King Co.) 2023-03-30

[birdmarymoor]

Tweets - Not a bad day, with temps in the 40's, partly sunny skies, and with winds only coming in sporadic gusts.  Most of the time, though, it felt like we were watching reruns of the last three weeks at the park, only with fewer birds.  Except for American Robins which remain superabundant.  We did end up with some highlights, but they mostly came late.

Highlights:
     Turkey Vulture - one seen from the Rowing Club - First of Year (FOY)
     Five Woodpecker Day - Third time this month
     Three Species of Finch - House, Purple, American Goldfinch.  But a total of under 10 finches total
     Savannah Sparrow - Matt heard some singing this morning, though the rest of us found none

During a late scan of the lake, I spotted a passerine flying east-to-west across the north end of the lake.  I was trying to figure out if it was a swallow or perhaps a robin when it landed on a buoy, and then quickly moved to another, and then to a post.  It turned out to be a SAY'S PHOEBE (FOY)  Quite a surprise to see it flying across the lake!  It disappeared amongst the docks and boats of the condos on the west side of the lake, between Marymoor and Idlywood Parks.  It was visible from the Lake Platform while it flew, and it could end up visiting the meadows at Marymoor this afternoon.

Just before 7:00 I saw at least 5 American Beaver, simultaneously, from the Lake Platform.  Earlier, Matt saw a Virginia Opossum, a species we see only about once a year at the park.

Misses today included Rufous Hummingbird (though I saw one yesterday), Cooper's Hawk, Northern Shrike, and Pine Siskin

Besides the RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD, the other two species I saw yesterday but not today were BELTED KINGFISHER and WESTERN MEADOWLARK (the latter at the model airplane field).

I belatedly realized that today's survey starts the 30th year of our weekly visits to Marymoor Park.  I went on March 31, 1994 and decided to go back the following week, and the week after that, and so on, and so on, and so on.  I had only visited a few weeks each spring in the four prior years, and decided it might be a good idea to find out what's there the rest of the year.  Since then, we have missed very few weeks (average is over 51 weeks each year), and we are closing in on 1500 surveys (plus a couple of hundred additional visits to the park).   Brian Bell and Matt Bartels have done a great job filling in for me during the few weeks per year that I am out of town.  

= Michael Hobbs