CASE ONE: THE SWALLOW

On Tuesday morning, something in the swirl of barn swallows over the Marsh caught Martin Ludtke’s eye, and he managed to get video of it. Check it out:

Video: Martin Ludtke.

Did you see that?

If not, watch it again, and note that one of those swallows is white.

Knowing nothing about birds, the Outpost went to its go-to Bird Man, Rob Fowler, who confirmed Ludtke’s ID. This is an ultrarare white swallow — hard to tell whether it’s albino or leucistic from this distance — and Fowler noted that other local Bird People have spotted this sucker around the bottoms as well.

“Pretty cool to see a Barn Swallow like this!” Fowler affirmed.

Indeed, once you think to pose the question the Internet shows that Bird People around the world habitually lose their shit over such a sighting. “One in a million!” enthuses Ebro Delta Birding. “Once in a lifetime!” NestWatch raves. “Lower mean phenotypic values than other birds!” gushes Evolution: International Journal of Organic Evolution.

CASE TWO: THE SEA LION

On a sadder note: Earlier this week people started to notice the strange sight of a California sea lion swimming in Klopp Lake.

The consensus seems to be that this sea lion has chosen this place to die.

This sea lion is known to science. According to a write-up by local biologist Dawn Goley, he was tagged up in Astoria in 2017, whence he wandered up to British Columbia and now down to Humboldt.

The important thing is to remember is that if you see this guy on your stroll around the Marsh, you must give him a very wide berth — not only for his sake, but your own. Sea lions can be aggressive and unpredictable and, as Goley says, they’re a lot quicker than you think.

There’s a chance that this animal could be suffering from leptospirosis. You’ll want to be especially aware of that if you’re bringing your dog to the Marsh, according to science-adjacent Friend o’ the LoCO Jen Kalt. As in: If your dog isn’t vaccinated for lepto, or if you aren’t sure if it is, you’ll want to avoid the area entirely.

Here’s a photo of an informational poster that the Northcoast Marine Mammal Center has erected at the site: