My parents are in town and my dad and I went over to the airport to pick some strawberries. We also went down to the park this evening so he could see what spearscale looked like and to check out the cherry tree.
Weather: Very wet. The rain did actually stop briefly for a time this evening, but not for too long. Winds seemed to be light, when they were noticable.
Birds: The fall migration is getting started. There were at least 50 Black Turnstones down at the park this evening as well as one probably Rock Sandpiper and one bird that I believe was a dowitcher. The bird that I think was a dowitcher had a flight call that seemed a bit different than I remember from the Short-billed Dowitchers, so I am wondering if it could be a Long-billed Dowitcher.
There were some gulls along the beach, with quite a few of them looking like Mew Gulls.
Off-shore aways from the mouth of Indian River, there was a single Surf Scoter.
On the way back from the park this evening, we saw a juvenile Hermit Thrush hopping about catching inch worms.
Flora: Despite the abundant blooms a month or so ago, I could not find any still developing cherries on the tree.
I picked a couple of carrots today. They are doing well. The kids and Melissa both liked their taste.
My dad and I went over to the airport strawberry patch and got about a quart of strawberries. Since the strawberries I tried to transplant a few days ago do not look like they are doing so well (it didn’t help that I waited two or three days to replant them). My dad and I got some new plants and planted them when we got home. Hopefully they will do a little better.
Other Notes: I have heard that there are a number of bears around town currently. There were signs on the trails near the Raptor Center indicating that a bear had been seen in the area recently. I also heard about a couple of bears out at Starrigavan and one up along Edgecumbe drive. With the poor berry crop, I wonder if bears will wander into town more than they have the last couple of years. Hopefully, for the sake of the bears, the salmon run is not too bad. They have started to move up into Indian River and there were quite a few jumping along the shore by Arrowhead Trailer Court near the mouth of Indian River.
There was a seal that was hanging out in the water of what would be the southern large tidepool. It seemed to be staying in one spot, though it would sometimes dip its head under the surface. We saw it on our way down the beach, and also on the way back, 15 or 20 minutes later.