Today a good birding buddy and I drove to Renton, WA to look for a Burrowing Owl that has been seen there for the last several days. We also had hopes of finding a White-throated Sparrow and a Slaty-backed Gull. After a good deal of looking we found the owl. It is a very cute little owl, with long legs, and a tendency to walk around rather than fly, and to hide in cavities. This bird was seen today in heavy rain as it emerged from a man-made "burrow" that in its primary purpose is a cinder block. The bird was very well hidden in grass and no photos were taken that the owl can be seen from, so no photo is included here.
We also found the sparrow, but not the gull.
Another cool part of the day was seeing other birders there. While looking for the gull, Noah Strycker, famous for his "Birding Without Borders" worldwide big year and the book of that title, as well as other regional birding friends.
The ride home was a nightmare, with 2.5 hours of traffic on a usual 35 minute drive, mostly due to flooded highways.
Fun to see three first King County life birds for me (Western Gull was the 3rd) and get out with friends.
Good birding.
