WEEKENDER
WASHINGTON
DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND WILDLIFE
600
Capitol Way North, Olympia, Washington 98501-1091
Internet
Address: http://www.wa.gov/wdfw
Celebrate
spring with crane viewing,
You know spring is off and running when thousands of outdoor recreationists descend on eastern Washington’s Columbia Basin to watch sandhill cranes or catch trout in early-opening lakes.
Hummingbirds are marking the season by brightening backyard feeders from Vancouver, Wash., to Vancouver, B.C and gray whales have been spotted off the coast, in the San Juan Islands, and even deep into Puget Sound.
Another
sure sign that spring is at hand is that fishing licenses expire March 31.
Anglers can purchase 2003-04 licenses on-line (www.fishhunt.dfw.wa.gov)
or at hundreds of license dealers throughout the state (see www.wa.gov/wdfw/lic/vendors/vendors).
The
sixth-annual Othello Sandhill Crane Festival runs March 21-23, with
wildlife- watching activities centered around the Columbia National
Wildlife Refuge, just northwest of Othello and southeast of Moses Lake.
Although many of the festival’s bus tours, field trips, and other events
are booked, there are thousands of cranes and other waterfowl to see now
throughout the area.
April
1 marks the opening of several dozen central Washington lakes containing
stocked trout and warmwater species. Many of these waters used to open
March 1 or were year ‘round fisheries. The change to an April 1 opening
date this year is designed to accommodate waterfowl management on the
Columbia National Wildlife Refuge, where many of the lakes are located.
North
and South Teal lakes will probably be the best bet for anglers, since they
were rehabilitated in 1999 and have been fair producers of 12-inch rainbow
trout. Dry Falls Lake, a
selective fishery at Sun Lakes State Park, should be very good with
14-inch rainbow, plenty of 16- to 24-inch carryovers, and possibly some
4-year-old triploid lunkers.
Current
fish and wildlife recreational opportunities around the state include:
Northern
Puget Sound:
Fishing:
There’s
still a week or two left in the North Sound winter blackmouth
fishery, and as long as the weather cooperates, this weekend (March 22-23)
could be a perfect time for some hot end-of-the-season action, says Tony
Floor, WDFW’s recreational fishing coordinator. “The tides on Saturday
and Sunday couldn’t be better for blackmouth in the North Sound,”
Floor said. “There’s lots of ebb and flood action, and the heavy
currents mean the bait will be concentrated, which is what brings on the
bite for blackmouth.” Anglers who have been fishing central Puget Sound
for blackmouth might want to head north into the San Juans for this last
weekend of good tides. Blackmouth fishing wraps up March 31 in Marine
Areas 7, 8-1 and 9, and April 10 in Marine Area 8-2. All areas have a
one-fish daily limit and a 22-inch minimum size restriction. Steelhead fishing
closures continue on portions of several rivers, including the Skagit,
Stillaguamish, Skykomish, Puyallup and Carbon rivers – check WDFW’s
emergency rule change page at http://www.wa.gov/wdfw/fish/regs/fishregs.htm
on the Internet, or call the emergency rule change hotline, (360) 903-2500
for closure boundaries and additional information. On April 1 the Skagit
River from the mouth upstream to the Highway 536 Bridge at Mt. Vernon
re-opens for bull trout/Dolly Varden. Selective gear rules apply, but it
will be lawful to fish from a motorized vessel.
A catch-and-release fishery for all game fish has also opened on
the Sauk River (from the mouth to the Darrington Bridge), and runs through
April 30. All selective rules apply. Fans of lake fishing should be
heartened by the warming water temperatures and WDFW’s recent
fish-stocking activities. A number of year ‘round lakes in King and
Snohomish counties have been planted lately with catchable-sized rainbow
trout. Angle and Marton lakes in King County were recently planted
with 3,000 and 8,600 ‘bows, respectively, while Blackmans, Flowing and
Roesiger lakes in Snohomish County also received fish – some in the ½-pound
range. Check out WDFW’s catchable trout plant weekly reports page, at http://www.wa.gov/wdfw/fish/plants/weekly/
on the Internet.
Wildlife
viewing:
Anyone who isn’t aware of spring’s arrival on March 21 need look no
further than the nearest bird feeder or nesting box: The skies are full of
springtime migrants, including violet green swallows, which have
been spotted throughout the Puget Sound region, scouting for springtime
nesting sights, rufous hummingbirds, with sightings from Seattle
north to British Columbia and turkey vultures corkscrewing their
way north. There are still a few trumpeter swans in Skagit and
Whatcom counties, although most of the big birds have already moved on.
Other migratory birds are also moving through the region, including brant
geese, which have one of the more spectacular annual migrations of any
bird. Brant breed in northern Alaska and Canada, some of them in the high
Arctic islands. While smaller populations overwinter in northwestern
Washington and lower British Columbia, the bulk of the birds fly from a
staging area in the Aleutian Islands in Alaska to estuaries at the
southern tip of the Baja Peninsula – nonstop. Tagged birds have made the
trip in 50 hours. To celebrate the brant’s annual appearance in northern
Puget Sound, the Washington Brant Foundation has scheduled the first Washington
Brant Festival, April 12-13 in Blaine and Birch Bay. Banquet with
wildlife art, hand-carved decoys, raffle, auction and brant experts, lots
of bird viewing, beach walks and other events are scheduled. More
information is available on the Washington Brant Foundation’s website,
at http://www.washingtonbrant.org
on the Internet. There have been plenty of whale sightings
throughout northern Puget Sound recently. Reports to the Orca Sightings
Network (http://www.orcanetwork.org/sightings/map.html)
detail observations of orcas near Elliott Bay in Seattle and at the
southern end of Whidbey Island. Gray whales have been spotted near
Tulalip, south Whidbey Head and Camano Island. Boaters who are fortunate
enough to sight a whale are reminded to steer clear and not harass the
animals in any way, as they are protected by federal law.
South
Sound/Olympic Peninsula:
Fishing:
Rough seas and heavy rain have put a damper on fishing in recent
days, but that could change as quickly as the weather report. Coastal
charters, for example, are just waiting for the waves to flatten out to
kick off this year’s lingcod fishery, which officially opened
March 16 from the Columbia River to Cape Alava (Marine Areas 1-3). “Last
year was one of the best lingcod fisheries we’ve had in a decade, and
this year is looking good too,” said Mark Cedergreen, executive director
of the Westport Charterboat Association. “Once it calms down, we’re in
business.” The daily limit for lingcod is two fish, which can run up to
40 pounds. In addition, anglers can take up to 10 rockfish, no more
than one of which can be canary rockfish and none of which can be
yelloweye rockfish. “Both are in a depressed state” and all yelloweye
rockfish must be released, said Phil Anderson, WDFW special assistant to
the director. No fishing is allowed in a special rockfish protection zone
off the coast of LaPush, as discussed on WDFW’s website. The good news
is that lingcod and black rockfish (also called seabass) are fairly
healthy, and should provide a good fishery this year, Anderson said.
While yelloweye and canary rockfish are easily identifiable by
their bright orange or yellow coloring, Anderson suggests that anyone in
doubt about visual differences between the species check out the
identification guide on page 20 of the WDFW “Fishing in Washington”
rule pamphlet. Most saltwater anglers have a pretty good idea what a blackmouth
salmon looks like, and they could see a lot more of them during the
weekend of March 22-23, said Tony Floor, WDFW recreational fishing
coordinator. While catch rates and participation have been fairly low in
the past week, tides that weekend should be “near perfect” for
blackmouth in the Strait of Juan de Fuca and northern Puget Sound, Floor
said. “Strong ebb and flood
tides tend to concentrate the baitfish – and, hence, the blackmouth –
near the bottom,” said Floor, who recommends trying Midchannel, Coyote,
Middle and Hein banks. It may be the “last best chance” to catch
blackmouth in the Strait this season, because Marine Areas 5 and 6 close
to blackmouth fishing April 10, Floor said. Steelhead fishing on
north coast rivers should also pick up over the next few weeks, “but it
all depends on the weather,” said Bill Freymond, WDFW fish biologist. As
of mid-March, flows in the Calawah, the Queets and the Hoh were all well
above normal, making fishing difficult even for dedicated plunkers. But
flows have been dropping since then, and wild steelhead runs have been
strong in all area river systems, Freymond said. “If the rivers fall
back into shape, we should see good fishing throughout the last few weeks
of the season,” he said.
Wildlife
viewing:
The northward migration of gray whales is in full swing, with
sightings reported everywhere from Ilwaco to southern Puget Sound.
Whale-watching charters operating out of Ilwaco and Westport offer a good
look at these leviathans as they pass along the Washington coast en route
between their breeding lagoons in Baja to the Bering Sea. Some apparently
detour into Puget Sound, and one was spotted as recently as March 16 in
Budd Inlet near Olympia. Weighing
up to 40 tons and measuring up to 50 feet in length, gray whales can make
for an unforgettable sight. But so can smaller animals – particularly
when they’re interacting with one another. A contributor to the
Tweeter’s bird-watching website (http://www.scn.org/earth/tweeters/)
recently filed this report about a contest between an eagle and an otter:
“I was walking on the beach in Discovery Bay (Port Townsend) this
morning and saw an eagle hounding an otter in the water which had a dead
looking seabird (possibly a bufflehead) in its mouth. Every time the otter
came up for air the eagle had a go at it, but the otter got back under.
The eagle was really working to hold its position in the strong wind. This
went on for 15 minutes or so and I was wondering who would tire first when
the otter ducked into the marina entrance. The eagle plunged down after it
again, came up with a small fish as a sort of consolation prize, and
headed off. I've never seen a bald eagle work so hard.”
Southwest
Washington:
Fishing:
Hatchery
spring chinook fishing is picking up on the lower mainstem Columbia
River below Bonneville Dam and the catch rates show it—two weeks ago
anglers were averaging one fish for every 12.5 rods, while by last week
that average had improved to one fish for per eight rods, said Joe Hymer,
regional fish biologist. The
spring chinook catches were 73 percent hatchery fish last week. Most
of the springers have weighed in between the low teens to the mid-30s,
Hymer said. “We are still seeing some really nice fish, and we should
continue to see improving catches and increasing effort as the salmon run
progresses, the smelt disappear, and the water clears,” Hymer adds. Last
Saturday (March 15), nearly 600 boats and 800 bank anglers fishing for
salmonids were counted from Bonneville Dam downstream to Longview.
Currently, the best Columbia River water conditions are above the
Cowlitz and Willamette river mouths, and fishing is strongest from
Vancouver up to Bonneville Dam. On the tributaries, a couple of spring
chinook were reported caught at Drano Lake but Wind River was still turbid
last weekend. Hymer expects gradually improving conditions and catches
there and in the Kalama, Cowlitz and Lewis rivers. To hedge their bets,
salmon anglers may want to visit the Fishing/Shellfishing section of the
WDFW web site at www.wa.gov/wdfw
for Southwest Washington Fishing Reports and a non-agency link to the
Corps of Engineers web site for fish counts at the various mainstem river
dams. Meanwhile, sturgeon
anglers have just a few more days – through March 23 – to
retain any fish they catch from the mainstem Columbia and its
tributaries from the Wauna powerlines upstream to Bonneville Dam.
Catch-and-release fishing is permitted after that time, and retention is
scheduled to re-open July 1. In the interim, fishers who want to keep
their catch will need to confine their fishing below the Wauna powerlines
or in the Bonneville, The Dalles or John Day pools, which will remain open
for retention. On the lakes, trout fishers are seeing good action
in Hazel Dell’s Klineline Pond, which was stocked last week with 2,000
nice-sized catchable rainbows. Bank
anglers were averaging three fish per rod there last week. Horseshoe Lake
also got 3,200 catchable-size rainbows last week, and some hatchery steelhead
reportedly are being caught. Boat
anglers are catching some kokanee at Merwin Reservoir.
Bass and walleye are starting to stir, with walleye
catches picking up between Vancouver and John Day pool. Checks last week
showed catches of two walleye per rod in The Dalles Pool and one per every
eight rods in John Day Pool. Bass fishers were landing an average of four
bass per rod in John Day Pool. The
smelt season is due to close March 31 and the small fish have begun
to disappear from the mainstem Columbia. However, a new batch was reported
in the Cowlitz River last week.
Wildlife
viewing: An
enthusiastic birder reports a recent trip through southwest Washington
where good numbers of turkey vultures were in evidence, including
two near Tokeland, four in the vicinity of Julia Butler Hansen National
Wildlife Refuge and eight kettling over the highway near the Cowlitz
County line along the Columbia River. Other highlights were a black
phoebe still at Julia Butler Hansen, and a rough-legged hawk in
the area as well. Tokeland held good numbers of marbled godwit,
along with one willet. Hundreds of shorebirds were on the
beach just south of the jetty at Westport, including two snowy plover,
and a stunning common loon in fresh breeding plumage in the boat
basin. A group of 25 intermediate plumage black-bellied plover were
present in the freshwater wetlands near Bottle Beach. At the River S Unit
of the Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge four swallow species were on
view—violet-green, northern rough-winged, barn and tree
swallows. WDFW staff recently reported the first rufous hummingbird
sighting of the season in Centralia.
Eastern
Washington:
Fishing:
The region’s winter-only fishing lakes – Fourth of July, Hog Canyon,
Hatch and Williams – close March 31. WDFW District Fish Biologist Chris
Donley reports that Fourth of July and Hog Canyon still have good numbers
of rainbow trout for these final days of fishing, and those who
take advantage of it won’t be crowded by others. Donley said the two
lakes have been relatively quiet since March 1 opening lakes provided
another focus of angling effort. Coffeepot Lake in Lincoln County and
Amber Lake in Spokane County have provided very good rainbow fishing, he
added. Both lakes have special restrictions and Amber is catch-and-release
only for now, so Donley advised checking the rules pamphlet before casting
a line. The Spokane River arm of Lake Roosevelt will be good for walleye
fishing until it closes April 1 to protect spawning fish until June.
Lake Roosevelt itself is “kind of hit and miss right now” for big
rainbows, says Donley. Year ‘round waters now warming up could be good
bets; Bonnie Lake in Whitman County has been decent for yellow perch,
and Spokane County’s Eloika Lake should be picking up for perch, largemouth
bass and crappie. If luck or weather keep you fish-less
outdoors, head for the fishing pond at the Inland Northwest Wildlife
Council’s 43rd annual Bighorn Outdoor Adventure Show at the
Spokane Interstate Fairgrounds, March 20-23. The show also features
hunting, hiking, camping, and water sports. You can buy a 2003-04 fishing
license at the WDFW booth and pick up information about all kinds of fish
and wildlife recreation.
Wildlife
Viewing: Spring
bird migrations are in full swing. Concentrations of tundra swans,
from a couple of dozen to thousands, have been reported by WDFW staffers
and others in several places: on East Swanson Lake of WDFW’s Swanson
Lakes Wildlife Area and near Coffeepot Lake and the wetlands between
Davenport and Creston in Lincoln County; at
the farm pond along Highway 395 just north of the cutoff road to Valley
and Waitt's Lake, in the valley south of Chewelah, and along the north
shore of Lake Roosevelt visible from Colville Flats in Stevens County; and
on Calispell Lake just southwest of Usk in Pend Oreille County. Local
birders also recently reported a lone trumpeter swan a few miles
south of Valley in Stevens County. Other waterfowl are also readily
visible now on local waters as they make migration stopovers to feed and
rest before journeying farther north. Pintail ducks have been most
abundant throughout Lincoln County’s potholes terrain and Colville
Valley in Stevens County. Canvasbacks, redheads, ring-necks, scaup,
gadwall, goldeneye and other ducks are also making appearances at
those and other spots, including Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge in
Spokane County. Turnbull has also been the site of many western
bluebirds, Says phoebes, violet green swallows, and red-winged
blackbirds. Bluebirds
have also been spotted along Lake Roosevelt on the Ferry County side, on
the Peone Prairie and Greenbluff areas of Spokane County, and in Palouse
country of Whitman County. Another
sure sight and sound of spring witnessed throughout the region is killdeer,
the ubiquitous “shorebird” that stakes out nesting territories from
gravel road shoulders to plowed fields. Several species of wrens
– Bewick’s, canyon, and rock – have been seen and heard in the
Tucannon River valley of Columbia County. Flocks of wild turkeys
are also very visible and audible now in that same area, as well as in the
northeast part of the region. Backyard bird feeding stations throughout
the region have been recently stormed with birds stocking up for the high
energy rituals of breeding and nesting; species reported include pine
siskin, junco, house finch, Cassins
finch, evening grosbeak, spotted towhee, red crossbill, varied thrush,
robin, chickadee, goldfinch, hairy and
downy woodpecker, northern flicker and California quail.
Northcentral
Washington:
Fishing:
This
year is the debut of the April 1 opener for more than two dozen waters,
many former March 1 openers and some year ‘round lakes, mostly on or
near the Columbia National Wildlife Refuge. The change is primarily to
accommodate waterfowl management practices on the refuge, with some nearby
waters added for regulation consistency in area drainages. WDFW District
Fish Biologist Jeff Korth said North and South Teal lakes will probably be
the best bet. “These formerly year ‘round lakes were rehabilitated in
1999 and have been fair producers of 12-inch rainbow trout
yearlings,” he said. “Herman and Lyle lakes have been a little less
consistent, but there’s a good chance some carryovers will be caught.”
Korth reports fingerling rainbow stocking rates as follows: North Teal –
6,300; South Teal – 9,000; Herman – 10,600; Lyle – 3,000. Upper and
Lower Hampton lakes are among the largest waters to open April 1,
Korth noted, but rainbow trout fingerlings stocked in these lakes are
being crowded by sunfish. “Year ‘round fish-eating birds also
play a role and trout survival has suffered,” he said, “but the trout
that make it are generally quite large.” Yearlings have been 13-14
inches and carry-overs make up around 10 percent of the catch. Just
don’t expect limits, Korth said. The same holds true for Hen Lake, just
below the Hamptons. Rainbow fingerling stocking rates are as follows:
Upper Hampton – 10,000 last spring and 10,000 last fall; Lower Hampton
– 4,000 spring, 4,000 fall; Hen – 1,000 spring. Para-Juvenile,
McManaman, Halfmoon and Morgan lakes, all below the Hamptons, are stocked
with both rainbow and cutthroat trout fingerlings. Sunfish, perch
and bass currently impact trout survival, Korth said, so expect a
few large fish, especially the cutthroat, rather than limits. Morgan Lake
and much of Halfmoon Lake are on private land, Korth notes, and access is
from the west end of Halfmoon Lake. Fingerling trout stocking rates are:
Para-Juvenile – 1,500 each rainbow and cutthroat; McManaman – 1,000
each rainbow and cutthroat; Halfmoon – 3,000 each rainbow and cutthroat;
Morgan – 4,000 each rainbow and cutthroat. The Pillar-Widgeon
chain of lakes is a small, walk-in lake unit spread over about a square
mile. “Past fishing has been inconsistent for various reasons,” Korth
said, “but recent reports indicate some good fishing for the persistent
angler. The best of the lot will probably be Widgeon, Sago and Pillar, but
never count any of the other waters out.”
Access is just southeast of Soda Lake. Fingerling rainbow stocking
rates are: Pillar – 4,000,
Gadwall – 1,000, Shoveler – 2,000, Lemna – 500, Poacher – 500,
Snipe – 2,000, Cattail – 2,000, Sago – 200, Hourglass – 200,
Widgeon – 2,000. Hutchinson and Shiner lakes, and Coyote, Bobcat, and
Hayes creeks and ponds are warmwater fisheries that also open April 1.
Korth said that since rehabilitations in 1997 these waters have sported
very good bass and bluegill fishing. A fair number of crappie and
some channel catfish have also been caught.
Only non-motorized boats are allowed on Hutchinson and Shiner, and
Coyote and Bobcat creeks and ponds are walk-in access only. Dry Falls
Lake, a selective fishery at
Sun Lakes State Park about three miles west of Coulee City, is the one
water in this group of April 1 openers that used to be on the
last-Saturday-in-April-opening season. An arrangement with the park
allowed for the change to the earlier opener. “Dry Falls should be very
good with 14-inch yearling rainbows and plenty of carryovers from 16 to 24
inches, “ Korth said. “Triploid rainbow trout were first stocked in
the lake in 1999, so the possibility for some true 4-year-old monsters is
very real.” Since 2000, half the rainbow fingerlings stocked in this
lake have been sterile, triploid fish. Except for the 2003 yearlings, the
normal, diploid rainbow are adipose-clipped, and the triploids are not
clipped. Dry Falls is stocked with 10,000 rainbow, 1,000 German brown
trout, and 1,500 tiger trout, (brown-brook crosses), all
fingerlings. Dry Falls has selective fishing regulations, including a
one-fish daily catch limit, single barbless hooks and no bait. See the
fishing rules pamphlet for all the details. Korth added that several other
waters close to many of the April 1 opening lakes are either closed
or no longer stocked, including Dollar, Dabbler, Marie, Hampton
Slough, Scabrock and Royal Lake and Slough.
Wildlife
Viewing:
There will be no shortage of sandhill cranes and other birds
to view for the sixth-annual Othello Sandhill Crane Festival, March 21-23.
This week Columbia
National Wildlife Refuge wildlife biologist Randy Hill reported at least
3,500 cranes, plus about 15,000 geese and 40,000 ducks, all
easily visible from Corfu Road (Road B SE, 13 miles west of Othello, south
of Highway 26.) Many of these birds are making a migration stopover to
feed and rest before journeying farther north in a few weeks. The festival
celebrates the spectacle, and centers around the refuge and the
surrounding farmland that the birds also use. Although many of the
festival’s bus tours, field trips, and other events are already booked,
there is still plenty to see on your own now throughout the area. Hill
advises crane viewers to give the birds some space, particularly in
roosting areas. “If the cranes don’t feel secure, they will abandon
the area, Hill said. For more information about the festival and cranes,
go to http://www.othello-wa.com
on the Internet. Other bird watching is excellent now throughout the
region, with local birders reporting tundra swans on Long Lake
along Grand Coulee Hill Road, common loons and even one Pacific
loon on Banks Lake along Highway 155, eared grebes on Soap
Lake, violet-green swallows where Kiner Road crosses Wilson Creek
just south of Almira, gray-crowned rosy finches off Road 50 NE
north of Hartline and a couple of great egrets on Crab Creek near
Highway 17. Farther north in
the region, WDFW
Wildlife Biologist Scott Fitkin of Winthrop reports good watchable
wildlife opportunities for deer, waterfowl, eagles and bighorn
sheep on the Sinlahekin Wildlife Area and around Loomis in Okanogan
County.
Southcentral
Washington:
Fishing:
Year
‘round waters are fully stocked and producing nice catches of rainbow
trout. Most notable In Yakima County is Granger Pond, I-82 Ponds 4 and
6, Myron Lake, Rotary Lake, Sarge Hubbard Park Pond and Wenas Lake. In
Kittitas County, Denmark Pond, North and South Fio Rito lakes, Mattoon
Lake, McCabe Pond and Woodhouse ponds have also been good. Time is running
out to fish for rainbows at North Elton Pond, the region’s winter-only
fishing water, which closes March 31. The Ringold area bank fishery for
hatchery steelhead opens April 1 and runs through April 15. The
fishery is allowed because there is a large number of hatchery-origin
steelhead from last year’s run still in the river near the Ringold
Spring Rearing Facility. Only the hatchery side (east bank) of the
Columbia River will be open, and for bank fishing only. Wild steelhead
must be released, but fishers can take two hatchery-marked (adipose or
ventral fin clipped and a healed scar) fish of 20 inches or more each day.
Except for this special fishery, hatchery steelhead fishing closes March
31 in the lower Hanford Reach from Highway 395 bridge in Pasco to the Old
Hanford Townsite wooden powerline towers.
Wildlife
Viewing:
Birds are on the move through the region, and that means lots of
opportunities to spot species not seen since last summer. Killdeer
are calling and flying in open fields. Meadowlark melodies are on
the wind in some of the same places. Western and mountain
bluebirds and violet-green and tree swallows are showing
up throughout the region. The Toppenish National Wildlife Refuge in the
lower Yakima valley is hosting greater white-fronted geese, cinnamon
teal, ruddy ducks, and many other waterfowl and songbird species. Tundra
swans, pintail ducks, and widgeons are using the ponds along
Interstate 90 just west of Ellensburg. Rock and canyon wrens
have been heard and seen along Huntzinger Road south of Wanapum Dam. Some
of the first chicks of the new season can be seen peering out of the Great
horned owl nest in a tree at the corner of Highway 24 and Bell Road in
Moxee, easily viewed from your passing car. WDFW Habitat Biologist Ken
Bevis reports a wood duck pair checking out possible nesting
cavities in some of the snags and trees in front of the WDFW regional
office in Yakima. Bevis also recently found the remains of a varied
thrush nearby and speculated the bird was either taken by a sharp-shinned
hawk he saw there the day before, or by a local great horned owl.
Birdwatchers are still seeing bald eagles and an occasional golden
eagle.
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