Fieldnotes18Winter

Date: February 12, 2018

Location: Ocean Shores
Observers: Dan Varland, Tom Rowley, Joe Buchanan and Ron Ydenberg.

Raptor Count

Bald Eagle	Gyrfalcon
3 (1 adult, 1 immature, 1 age uncertain)	1 immature

Individuals Marked

Species	Color Marker Code
Gyrfalcon	9
Bald Eagle	C/O

Dunlin resting on the leeward side of beach debris. Dan Varland photo.

"There's a peregrine", said Ron just a few minutes into our survey. I thought it

was a strange place to see a peregrine, not having ever seen one perched there

before. We've seen plenty of eagles use this perch, often two at a time, but never

a peregrine. Tom Rowley photo.

We were able to lure him closer at which point we realized our bird was a

Gyrfalcon! Gyrfalcons overwinter in Washington, but rarely. Tom Rowley

photo.

Joe with the Gyrfalcon and Ron with a Bald Eagle, a bird we captured in our

attempt to capture the gyr. Tom Rowley photo.

Measurements and plumage characteristics revealed the Gyrfalcon was a first-

year female. Tom Rowley photo.

Taking measurements. This photo and several others were taken by photographer

Tim Boyer, who happened by while we were processing the birds. Thanks Tim!

Collecting a blood sample from the Gyrfalcon. Tim Boyer photo.

Tom Rowley photo.

The Gyrfalcon settled in on a whale of a perch post-release.

Tim Boyer photo.

Plumage and measurements revealed that the Bald Eagle we captured

was a two-year old male. Tom Rowley photo.

Tom Rowley photo.

Our eagle's visual identification band. Tom Rowley photo.

Date: February 7, 2018

Location: Ocean Shores
Observers: Dan Varland, Tom Rowley, Stephanie Loggins, and Haley Loggins.

Raptor Count

Bald Eagle
11 adults, 11 immatures

Marked Individuals Observed

Species	Color Marker Code
Common Raven	ROYLGS
Bald Eagle	B/O
Bald Eagle	U/O
Bald Eagle	M/B

Haley Loggins and I getting the wind speed and direction next to Conner Creek

at the north end of the Ocean Shores study area. Stephanie Loggins photo.

Sanderlings foraging. Haley Loggins photo.

Common Raven scavenging a bird carcass. This is ROYLGS, an adult female

we banded at Ocean Shores on April 23, 2014; this re-sight is the 28th. All

re-sightings have been at Ocean Shores where she was banded. Tom Rowley

photo.

Immature Bald Eagle scavenging a bird carcass. We saw 22 Bald Eagles today,

marking the second highest total ever for a Coastal Raptors survey at Ocean

Shores (the highest count was 26 for a survey on March 8, 2014). Three of the

eagles we saw were banded, all by Coastal Raptors' efforts. Haley Loggins photo.

Bald Eagle with visual identification band B/O. Banded on the Ocean Shores

study area on June 12, 2015, today's encounter is the 36th re-sight. All re-

sightings of this individual, a male, have occurred at Ocean Shores. Haley

Loggins photo.

Bald Eagle with visual ID band U/O. This individual, a female, was banded on

June 9, 2012, on the Ocean Shores study area. Today's re-sighting is the 13th;

none have occurred more than four miles from where she was banded. In 2014,

U/O was observed nesting on the Grays Harbor side of the Ocean Shores

peninsula with M/D, a male we banded on March 18, 2012. Haley Loggins photo.

Bald Eagle with visual ID band M/B. Banded February 27, 2009 on the

on the Ocean Shores study area, today's re-sighting is only the 5th. The first

re-sight was only four months after banding, and that was on the Long Beach

study area. All others, one in 2010 and two in 2017, were at Ocean Shores.

Tom Rowley photo.

Date: January 19, 2018

Location: Ocean Shores
Observers: Dan Varland, Stephanie Estrella, Susan Burchardt, and Dave Murnen.

Raptor Count

Bald Eagle	Peregrine Falcon
4 adults	1 immature

Marked Individuals Observed

Species	Color Marker Code
Common Raven	ROYLGS

ROYLGS with her mate. She's been re-sighted on more than 20 occasions

since we banded her on April 23, 2014. Tom Rowley photo.

Further down, we saw this raven with a fish. Tom Rowley photo.

Bald Eagle in adult plumage. Tom Rowley photo.

Date: January 14, 2018

Location: Grayland
Observers: Dan Varland, Andetrius Lee, Scott Horton and Julia Bent.

Andetrius Lee with a Peregrine Falcon we re-captured on the Grayland beach.

Coastal Raptors banded this peregrine on November 17, 2014 when she was

age 1. This was the first re-sighting of this bird, Z/E; we found her less than two

miles from where she was banded. Dan Varland photo.

Dan Varland photo.

Andetrius secures Z/E before we take blood and feather

samples. Dan Varland photo.

January 14, 2018

Location: Long Beach
Observers: Dan Varland, Andetrius Lee, Scott Horton and Julia Bent.

Raptor Count

Bald Eagle	Peregrine Falcon	Gyrfalcon	Northern Harrier
2 adults	1 adult	1 immature	1 age uncertain

Individuals Marked

Species	Color Marker Code
Peregrine Falcon	P/S

Three fishermen at the south end of the Long Beach Peninsula. Dan Varland

photo.

Same photo. This close-up shows some friendly splashing going on. Dan

Varland photo.

We saw this first-year Gyrfalcon about a half-mile south of the Klipsan Road

beach access. We spent more than an hour trying to catch him (or her!), but luck

wasn't with us. We don't see Gyrfalcons often on surveys! The last time we did

nearly five years ago on March 3, 2013. Dan Varland photo.

Julia Bent noticed this banded Glaucous-winged Gull standing around. After

the survey, I submitted our sighting information to the Bird Banding Lab

(observer name, bird species, date, location and band ID H67). Dan Varland

photo.

Date: January 6, 2018

Location: Ocean Shores
Observers: Dan Varland, Dave Murnen, Pam McCauley and Virginia Molenaar

Individuals Marked

Species	Color Marker Code
Peregrine Falcon	P/S

Raptor Count

Bald Eagle	Peregrine Falcon
3 adults, 1 immature	1 adult 2 immatures

Marked Individuals Observed

Species	Color Marker Code
Peregrine Falcon	R/6
Peregrine Falcon	Z/P

New wood arrives! Dan Varland photo.

Young cat follows his owner, who paused to get a photo. Dan Varland photo.

Dan Varland photo.

Relaxing day at the beach, Pacific Northwest style! Dan Varland photo.

Pam McCauley with a first-year female Peregrine Falcon

we captured for banding and tissue sampling. Virginia

Molenaar photo.

Banding. Virginia Molenaar photo.

Weighing. Virginia Molenaar photo.

Dan Varland photo.

We ran across this Peregrine Falcon in adult plumage bathing in a creek. Photo

series by Dan Varland.

Banded bird! A closer look, first with an enlarged photo and later with a

spotting scope, indicated this was R/6. We banded R/6 not far from this location

on September 18, 2014. She's been re-sighted during our surveys and by others

52 times since then. This is the first re-sighting anyone's reported since last March.

The 'R' is just readable in this photo

enlargement. She flew south and landed,

at which point we were able to use a scope

and see a lower numeric was a '6'.

Date: December 21, 2018

Location: Ocean Shores
Observers: Dan Varland, Glenn Marquardt, Bill Morgan and Sandra Miller

Comments: Photos by Dan Varland

Raptor Count

Bald Eagle	Peregrine Falcon
1 adult, 1 age uncertain	1 adult

Marked Individuals Observed

Species	Color Marker Code
Peregrine Falcon	Z/D

A wonderful morning to be out on the beach, despite the chilliness.

Pat Hayes photographs a Bald Eagle perched in the dunes.

Common Ravens feeding on a skate or a ray. The one on the right is banded.

Most likely, it's one we banded at Ocean Shoes for the avian scavenger study.

We apply three color bands and a silver US Geological Survey band to each

raven captured, so if it's one of ours, he's removed the colorful ones.

Leaving the feeding site with a mouthful!

We saw this Peregrine Falcon and were able to identify it as banded when it

stood higher before take off.

This was Z/D, a female we banded as a first-year bird on the Ocean

Shores beach on January 21, 2017.

Date: December 11, 2017
Location: Grayland
Observers: Dan Varland, Tom Rowley, Mary O'Neil and Sandra Miller.

Raptor Count

Bald Eagle
11

Immature Bald Eagle on sea lion carcass. Dan Varland photo.

Gull on whale carcass. Dan Varland photo.

Dan Varland photo.

It was a chilly morning, as evidenced by ice crystals on the sand. Dan Varland

photo.

We saw four color-banded Snow Plovers during the survey. Dan Varland photo.

Tom Rowley photo.

We sent photos of the plovers to Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife

biologist Cyndie Sundstrom. Cyndie is the field biologist overseeing the Snowy

Plover monitoring effort on the beach in the Grayland area. Tom Rowley photo.

Snowy Plover tracks.

Date: December 8, 2017
Location: Ocean Shores
Observers: Dan Varland, Dan Miller, Bill Morgan and Albert Watters.

Raptor Count

Bald Eagle	Northern Harrier
7 adults, 1 immatures	1

Marked Individuals Observed

Species	Color Marker Code
Bald Eagle	B/O

Northern Harrier. Dan Varland photo.

Bald Eagle with Dungeness Crab. Dan Varland photo series.

Breakfast is interrupted by an incoming wave.

Date: December 1, 2017
Location: Ocean Shores
Observers: Dan Varland, Sandra Miller, Tom Rowley and Mary O'Neil.

Raptor Count

Bald Eagle	Northern Harrier
5 adults, 3 immatures	1

Marked Individuals Observed

Species	Color Marker Code
Bald Eagle	B/O

Bald Eagle with visual identification band B/O. Dan Varland photo.

Coastal Raptors banded B/O on June 12, 2015. Dan Varland photo.