The 15th Annual Conference of the Washington Ornithological Society, September 2003
was held at the Chautauqua Lodge in Long Beach from Friday, September 19, through Sunday, September 21, 2003. Field trips, led by experienced birders, were conducted Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. The Conference also featured Friday night's speech by Marie Fernandez, Wildlife Biologist at the Willapa NWR, entitled “Wildlife, Habitats, and Management at the Willapa National Wildlife Refuge,” and Saturday night's speech by Dennis Paulson, Director of the Slater Museum of Natural History and noted shorebird expert, reflecting on “Shorebirds in Autumn”, a time period comprising late June through October.

A complete write-up of the Conference appears on the cover of WOSNews 88.  What follows here is a bit more detail on the field trips and species seen.

Field Trips:

On the way: Tokeland to/from Long Beach - Friday's trip started in Tokeland, at the mouth of Willapa Bay, and included stops along the southward trip to Long Beach.  Sunday's  homeward car caravan included stops at Raymond Airport, Bay Center-Dike Road, and Tokeland.  OF-1 — Friday — Ruth and Patrick Sullivan, OS-1 — Sunday — Brian Bell

Julia Butler Hansen NWR to Long Beach This trip was run as an on-the-way trip Friday and Sunday, and as an out-and-back trip on Saturday.  OF-2 — Friday — Ken Knittle, SA-2 — Saturday — Kraig Kemper, OS-2 — Sunday — Kraig Kemper

Fort Canby State Park With an interesting mix of open ocean, rocky and sandy shores, both deciduous and coniferous forests, alder swamps, freshwater marshes, and lakes, Fort Canby State Park deserves a full day of exploration. North Head Lighthouse. Beard’s Hollow, McKenzie Lagoon, Lake O’Neil, and the trail to Cape Disappointment Lighthouse were visited.  FR-6 — Friday — Brian Bell, SA-6 — Saturday — Marv Breece, SU-6 — Sunday — Mike and MerryLynn Denny

Leadbetter Point Due to the cancellation of the pelagic trips, a total of six trips were run from Long Beach to Leadbetter Point.  The routes varied, with some making more stops along the peninsula at locations like the marina at Nahcotta, ,Oysterville Cemetery, and Stackpole Road, while other trips spent more time at Leadbetter Point State Park and the sandy trails of the Leadbetter Unit of Willapa NWR. PF-9 — Friday — Kraig Kemper, SA-4 — Saturday — Charlie Wright, SU-4 — Sunday — Ruth and Patrick Sullivan, SA-5 — Saturday — Ruth and Patrick Sullivan, SU-5 — Sunday — Charlie Wright, PS-9 — Saturday — Brian Bell

Willapa National Wildlife Refuge - This trip was to have been to the Lewis Unit, but the ponds there had been drained for weed control.  Instead a few other units were visited: Teal Slough, a 338 acre recent addition to the Willapa NWR, located off SR 1X1 one mile north of the Willapa NWR Headquarters. There is a moderate uphill walk of about (1/3) mile to a trail head. The trail of less than a (1/2) mile enters a 60 acre parcel containing old growth trees – some estimated to be 900 years old with circumferences up to 35 feet. Ellsworth Creek, a 7000 acre watershed owned by The Nature Conservancy has a mix of deciduous and conifer trees (a remnant of the coastal temperate rainforest) and a 350 acre estuarine wetland. The Riekkola Unit features some forest, some fields, a nice pond, and some estuarine habitat. SA-3 — Saturday — Rudy and Winona Schuver, SU-3 — Sunday — Gene Hunn

South Jetty of the Columbia River - Famous to birders in Oregon, this location has produced many rarities, including gulls, shorebirds, and passerines. This trip included both the “South Jetty” and the trail encircling Coffenbury Lake.
SA-7 — Saturday — Mike Patterson and Ken Knittle, SU-7 — Sunday — Mike Patterson

Ilwaco to Chinook Valley Road  Habitats featured on this trip included inshore saltwater bays,  fields and patches of shrubbery along Stringtown Road, then east along the shore of Baker Bay, on to Chinook Dike Road and Chinook Valley Road. Finally, a check of the Columbia River out to East Sand Island.  SA-8 — Saturday — Mike and MerryLynn Denny, SU-8 — Sunday — Ken Knittle