NATURE WATCHING -- January's warm streak was cruel, luring buttercups to bloom prematurely west of Spokane.  But now they're blooming with confidence around town, and birds are flocking in all around us.

Spokane Auduboner Kim Thorburn takes a special interest in the Swanson Lakes Wildlife Area south of Creston, where she does bird surveys.  Read on for her report from Wednesday:

From Kim Thorburn, posted Wednesday:

At every visit to Swanson Lakes, spring gets spring-ier.  Today Lindell Haggin and I found lots of savannah sparrows, singing loudly and even acting territorial.  There was also a large flock of western sandpipers on the east Swanson Lake.
 
Waterfowl on Lake Creek and/or Swanson Lake included: Canada goose, mallard, northern pintail, American wigeon, green-winged teal, scaup (Didn't get a good enough look to identify.), common goldeneye, bufflehead, and hooded merganser.  There were also American coot.
 
We were also treated to a large flock of western bluebirds at Whittaker Lake.
 
The rough-legged hawks and American tree sparrows seem to be thinning out and instead of northern shrike, a Say's phoebe was singing loudly at the SLWA HQ.
 
In Spokane County, along with other water fowl, there's a large flock of tundra swans hanging out in a mowed wheat field on the West Plains at Coulee Hite and Wood. Rds.  Perhaps they're waiting for the Reardan Ponds to melt.