I almost had a repeat of my feeder-filling this morning.  While filling the ball feeder a chickadee flew to the feeder, while it was in my hands, took a sunflower seed kernel and flew into the nearby madrones.  This one didn't land on my finger but was well less than a foot from my face.  I just realized that I failed to note the species of the chickadee. 

Yesterday I strayed a little further from home and visited the Headquarters Unit for the Fish and Wildlife Department.  As most of you know there has been work to breech the dikes for the past year or so and this was my first trip out there in several months.  I was encouraged by the new shorebird habitat but noted that many of the ponds/waterways had cattails started and in a few years I doubt that the ponds will be visible from the shore.  I was also disappointed in that some kind of trees (mulberry?) have been planted around the perimeter of the pond at the entry, thus screening the pond from observers who would like a casual car tour to see what birds might be frequenting the pond.  There weren't even any provisions for observation points along the trail! 

After a short hike I was walking along the trail which is between the entry road and the pond when I spied some kind of male warbler in the bushes/trees.  I carefully crept along the trail trying to get a photo of the bird, but it kept moving along the hedgerow in front of me.  I finally paused and tried "pishing"... and was suddenly rewarded with a Spotted sandpiper popping up onto the fence post less than ten feet in front of me!  The bird had flown from the small grassy strip between the gravel trail and the parking lot, so it was totally unexpected.  I managed to squeeze off three photos before the bird flew down to the pond. 

There were also a pair of Greater yellowlegs (pictured) and a single Lessor yellowlegs in the pond by the parking lot. 

Upon arrival back at the house I was treated to more birding opportunities... a Black-headed grosbeak feeding a juvenile in the front yard.