Summer is upon us, if only in name, and birding has slowed to reflect it. Until yesterday, that is, when a Black Phoebe was discovered by Kerry Finley at Roberts Bay in Sidney. This is apparently the first documented record for Vancouver Island (and second record overall), and the bird delighted birders all day, yours truly included. The bird was at times cooperative and at times elusive, moving from one end of the bay to the next, and hawking insects over the water from various perches. I always try to guess what the next bird will be, and this time, as always, I wasn't even close!
There also must be something to this "if you will it, it will come" (or Will-et?). Last month, Jeremy Gatten and I were talking lists, and he had mentioned that he had never seen Sabine's Gull in Victoria. Of course, it was the very next day that he "stumbled" upon one at Tower Point. Anyway, Mike McGrenere, Rick Shortinghuis, and I were chatting yesterday (again with the bad birding pun) about Bullock's Orioles, and the apparent lack of this year, even at all of their traditional spots. I know Mike has been visiting their haunts frequently, and I have been checking them out as well, all to no avail. This morning Mike called me, having just found a male Oriole at the corner of Welch and Livesay, in an area that has been checked pretty well every day. I made my way out there, and had no trouble locating the bird being very showy and vocal in the tall cottonwood on the east side of Welch Rd, about 30m south of Livesay. Down goes another target!
This brings me to 204 for my Big Year quest, with 48 to go!
On another note, my wife is coordinating a shoreline cleanup area (Albert Head) for September 17. If anyone is interested, please email me at vanislebirder@yahoo.com.
Good birding,
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Monday, June 20, 2011
50 to go!
Now that Ontario's Cerulean Warblers and Black-billed Cuckoos are but a memory, it is time to get back to some serious birding!
This past weekend I headed out to catch a few of the more common birds that I hadn't found yet this year. First on my list was Ruffed Grouse, and on Friday I headed out to Sooke to an area where Jeremy Gatten and I heard them drumming a few weeks back. Unfortunately the wind was up and the grouse were down, so another dip. Good thing there are six months left in 2011! On the way in, I did inadvertently flush 13 Turkey Vultures and a Bald Eagle off of a bear carcass, and when I returned from the short hike, the Vultures were still in the surrounding trees, waiting for me to leave. Also along the hike were a Hutton's Vireo and a Red-breasted Sapsucker feeding young.
Saturday was an up-island day, and my wife and I started at Spectacle Lake. Instead of walking through the park and around the lake, we decided to hike north from the parking area, and up along a power line cut. There were a couple of bright male Western Tanagers calling around the parking lot, and as the forest turned to brush, everything else started calling as well. There were a couple of House Wrens chattering, a MacGillivray's Warbler feeding, and three species of woodpecker in the trees. Pacific-Slope, Willow, and Olive-sided Flycatchers were also very obvious. It took a bit more walking to find my target for the area, number 200 for the year, Hammond's Flycatcher. The walk back down the hill took me past a small patch of willows, which held number 201, a singing Warbling Vireo!
Our second and last stop of the day, owing to a dinner engagement, was Cowichan Bay, where we hoped to pick up Red-eyed Vireo. I am convinced that Cowichan Bay is probably the best place on the island to find these handsome critters, and they didn't disappoint! There were at least eight singing, and I ended up getting fantastic, eye-level looks at three, for 202! Also along the path were three singing Black-throated Gray Warblers, another missing bird, but they stayed inconveniently and uncooperatively out of sight.
Just under six and a half months to go, with 50 species left to find! There are still 10 days in which I will be out of town as well, unfortunately (a Westport Pelagic followed by a lightning drive down to SE Arizona and back).
Good birding always,
This past weekend I headed out to catch a few of the more common birds that I hadn't found yet this year. First on my list was Ruffed Grouse, and on Friday I headed out to Sooke to an area where Jeremy Gatten and I heard them drumming a few weeks back. Unfortunately the wind was up and the grouse were down, so another dip. Good thing there are six months left in 2011! On the way in, I did inadvertently flush 13 Turkey Vultures and a Bald Eagle off of a bear carcass, and when I returned from the short hike, the Vultures were still in the surrounding trees, waiting for me to leave. Also along the hike were a Hutton's Vireo and a Red-breasted Sapsucker feeding young.
Saturday was an up-island day, and my wife and I started at Spectacle Lake. Instead of walking through the park and around the lake, we decided to hike north from the parking area, and up along a power line cut. There were a couple of bright male Western Tanagers calling around the parking lot, and as the forest turned to brush, everything else started calling as well. There were a couple of House Wrens chattering, a MacGillivray's Warbler feeding, and three species of woodpecker in the trees. Pacific-Slope, Willow, and Olive-sided Flycatchers were also very obvious. It took a bit more walking to find my target for the area, number 200 for the year, Hammond's Flycatcher. The walk back down the hill took me past a small patch of willows, which held number 201, a singing Warbling Vireo!
Our second and last stop of the day, owing to a dinner engagement, was Cowichan Bay, where we hoped to pick up Red-eyed Vireo. I am convinced that Cowichan Bay is probably the best place on the island to find these handsome critters, and they didn't disappoint! There were at least eight singing, and I ended up getting fantastic, eye-level looks at three, for 202! Also along the path were three singing Black-throated Gray Warblers, another missing bird, but they stayed inconveniently and uncooperatively out of sight.
Just under six and a half months to go, with 50 species left to find! There are still 10 days in which I will be out of town as well, unfortunately (a Westport Pelagic followed by a lightning drive down to SE Arizona and back).
Good birding always,
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
11th Hour Chat
I had pretty much given up on the Yellow-breasted Chat still being around, as I went looking for it on Monday with no luck, and there were no reports yesterday.
Then last night, I read Aziza Cooper's report of hearing a call in the evening. Looking outside, I took the cloud cover to be a potential plus, in that hopefully it would stop the Chat from trying to move on. I decided to give it a go this morning.
When I got out of the car at 8:25 this morning, I immediately heard the Chat calling from an area up the hill from the trail. By the time I reached the area, the bird had moved, and was in the area of broom, small oak, and willow between the trail and Prospect Lake Rd. For half an hour I was treated to the birds full vocal repertoire as it moved back and forth between shrubs, making full use of the entire area, and occassionally popping up to provide great looks. What a treat to see this bird in Victoria! Hopefully it sticks around a bit longer.
I am now one short of 200, and starting to wonder what the milestone bird will be............
Then last night, I read Aziza Cooper's report of hearing a call in the evening. Looking outside, I took the cloud cover to be a potential plus, in that hopefully it would stop the Chat from trying to move on. I decided to give it a go this morning.
When I got out of the car at 8:25 this morning, I immediately heard the Chat calling from an area up the hill from the trail. By the time I reached the area, the bird had moved, and was in the area of broom, small oak, and willow between the trail and Prospect Lake Rd. For half an hour I was treated to the birds full vocal repertoire as it moved back and forth between shrubs, making full use of the entire area, and occassionally popping up to provide great looks. What a treat to see this bird in Victoria! Hopefully it sticks around a bit longer.
I am now one short of 200, and starting to wonder what the milestone bird will be............
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Trading Off.....
After a missed flight, rescheduling, and eight extra hours of travel, I finally made it home late Sunday night from 10 days in Ottawa, 3 of which were dedicated birding days.
The first day of birding was spent in the field with Larry Neily (www.neilyworld.com) looking for regional specialties and birds I missed last time I was in Ottawa. We managed to pick up several of them, starting with Ovenbird and Ruby-throated Hummingbird, progressing through Eastern Towhee and Scarlet Tanager, and finishing off with four of my top targets - Least Bittern, Red-headed Woodpecker, Sedge Wren, and an Upland Sandpiper that I first spotted on a telephone wire as we drove by.
Day two was spent driving south to Chaffey's Locks and Skycroft, where I was told that birding along Opinicon Rd would provide easier access to some of my targets. After many kilometres of slowish birding, we stumbled upon a pair of Blue-Gray Gnatcatchers, another of my top targets. The other birds I was after proved elusive, and we were about to turn around when we ran into Jeff Skevington and his dad, Richard, both from Ottawa. I had pulled over to ask them if there was anything good around, to which Jeff replied "the usual". It turned out that at that particular spot, the usual was Golden-winged Warbler, Cerulean Warbler, and Yellow-throated Vireo, the remainder of my targets for the day. We had incredible looks at the Golden-winged Warbler and, further down the road, Cerulean Warbler, but we never got any closer to the Vireo than hearing it sing. We also added a Pine Warbler, which flew across a lake to check out Jeff's iPod, and one new Canada bird (Red-shouldered Hawk).
The plan for day three was Gatineau Park, where I hoped to clean up the missing warblers and maybe add a few other birds. Getting out of the car at the Champlain Lookout, my first two birds were Chestnut-sided Warbler and Least Flycatcher, two more targets! We added Veery along the way, but despite hearing in the neighbourhood of 20 Wood Thrushes, we couldn't get a visual. The park provided great looks at many other species, but the thrill of the day came along when least expected. We had pulled over to try out one of Quebec's roadside poutine stands and, having finished lunch, were getting back into the car when a distinctive, long-tailed bird flew overhead, and into a tree across the road. I fumbled getting my binoculars out of the car and ran across the highway, ending up with fantastic looks at a Black-billed Cuckoo!
All in all a great trip, with 16 lifers and 2 new for Canada.
But....... technology makes it impossible to adopt an "ignorance is bliss" approach, and I was well aware of everything I was missing here, from the Brewer's Sparrow that I heard about upon landing in Ottawa on June 3, the Lazuli Buntings, etc, etc.
I tried yesterday for the Chat, with no luck (it was seen an hour before I got there and several hours after I left), but did add Willow Flycatcher for 198. I also tried today for Great Egret with no luck.
5 missed rarities in a week away, now its time to play catch-up!
Good birding,
The first day of birding was spent in the field with Larry Neily (www.neilyworld.com) looking for regional specialties and birds I missed last time I was in Ottawa. We managed to pick up several of them, starting with Ovenbird and Ruby-throated Hummingbird, progressing through Eastern Towhee and Scarlet Tanager, and finishing off with four of my top targets - Least Bittern, Red-headed Woodpecker, Sedge Wren, and an Upland Sandpiper that I first spotted on a telephone wire as we drove by.
Day two was spent driving south to Chaffey's Locks and Skycroft, where I was told that birding along Opinicon Rd would provide easier access to some of my targets. After many kilometres of slowish birding, we stumbled upon a pair of Blue-Gray Gnatcatchers, another of my top targets. The other birds I was after proved elusive, and we were about to turn around when we ran into Jeff Skevington and his dad, Richard, both from Ottawa. I had pulled over to ask them if there was anything good around, to which Jeff replied "the usual". It turned out that at that particular spot, the usual was Golden-winged Warbler, Cerulean Warbler, and Yellow-throated Vireo, the remainder of my targets for the day. We had incredible looks at the Golden-winged Warbler and, further down the road, Cerulean Warbler, but we never got any closer to the Vireo than hearing it sing. We also added a Pine Warbler, which flew across a lake to check out Jeff's iPod, and one new Canada bird (Red-shouldered Hawk).
The plan for day three was Gatineau Park, where I hoped to clean up the missing warblers and maybe add a few other birds. Getting out of the car at the Champlain Lookout, my first two birds were Chestnut-sided Warbler and Least Flycatcher, two more targets! We added Veery along the way, but despite hearing in the neighbourhood of 20 Wood Thrushes, we couldn't get a visual. The park provided great looks at many other species, but the thrill of the day came along when least expected. We had pulled over to try out one of Quebec's roadside poutine stands and, having finished lunch, were getting back into the car when a distinctive, long-tailed bird flew overhead, and into a tree across the road. I fumbled getting my binoculars out of the car and ran across the highway, ending up with fantastic looks at a Black-billed Cuckoo!
All in all a great trip, with 16 lifers and 2 new for Canada.
But....... technology makes it impossible to adopt an "ignorance is bliss" approach, and I was well aware of everything I was missing here, from the Brewer's Sparrow that I heard about upon landing in Ottawa on June 3, the Lazuli Buntings, etc, etc.
I tried yesterday for the Chat, with no luck (it was seen an hour before I got there and several hours after I left), but did add Willow Flycatcher for 198. I also tried today for Great Egret with no luck.
5 missed rarities in a week away, now its time to play catch-up!
Good birding,
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
And they keep coming.....
Spring was late this year, but it is now upon us with a vengeance, if the birds showing up are any indication.
Yesterday morning, Mike McGrenere called me about my old nemesis, Mountain Bluebird. The bluebirds have been evasive all year, with 6 twitches, and six dips. Mike had found his fourth of the year, a female, at Panama Flats. Unfortunately for me, I was in and out of meetings all day, with no chance to make it out there (for more stories along the same lines.....). When 4:00 rolled around, I wasted no time in getting to Panama Flats, where the bluebird was very obliging, flying right over my head after 30 seconds of searching, as if to make up for what its counterparts have put me through this year. I had great looks at the bird perched in the oak it was frequenting, before heading off to my next stop.
Mike had also located another nemesis bird of mine that morning, a Sora at Charlton Pond. This is a bird I have seen frequently in the interior (Creston, mainly, where you have to watch you don't step on them) but has always eluded me on the island. Last year, the birds were calling everywhere I went, but none showed. This stop proved a bust, so I went home, grabbed some dinner, and headed back to Charlton Pond.
After standing nearly motionless for an hour, watching reeds and grass moving mere feet from me as rails slipped through, the local Bird Whisperer, Jeremy Gatten, pulled up. It didn't take long for a young Virginia Rail to start putting on a show at the far end of the pond, and some scanning along the edges finally revealed an adult Sora! This was my first Sora for the Victoria Checklist Area, which Jeremy G would not let me forget. Quickly thereafter, a flock of Cedar Waxwings flew over, making it three new birds for the day.
I was pretty sure this morning that I was done birding until Saturday in Ottawa, but the birds had other ideas. With my cell phone on very low battery, I had been turning it on every hour or so to check missed calls and messages. When I turned the phone on at 11am, I had a voicemail, and noticed a missed BCVIBIRDS post about a Magnolia Warbler at Swan Lake. I hustled down to the lake following Chris Saunders' directions, and quickly found a crowd listening to the bird sing from out of sight. Some pacing back and forth ensued among all, and finally the bird broke cover, giving some of us a quick look as it flew across the path. A look, but not a very satisfying one. The bird continued to sing, which let us track it, and finally Chris relocated it in a willow, where it was working left to right. I missed it, but quickly located it 5 feet left of where he had seen it, as it worked its way into an opening. The stunning look of bright yellow and black was a great follow up look to the path episode. This is the third record of Magnolia Warbler for the Victoria Checklist Area, my 197th bird of the Big Year, and the first Lifer I have gotten on to this year, many thanks Chris!
Maybe now I am done until Saturday, when I will be chasing down Red-headed Woodpecker, Upland Sandpiper, Golden-winged Warbler, and Eastern Towhee.
Good birding,
Yesterday morning, Mike McGrenere called me about my old nemesis, Mountain Bluebird. The bluebirds have been evasive all year, with 6 twitches, and six dips. Mike had found his fourth of the year, a female, at Panama Flats. Unfortunately for me, I was in and out of meetings all day, with no chance to make it out there (for more stories along the same lines.....). When 4:00 rolled around, I wasted no time in getting to Panama Flats, where the bluebird was very obliging, flying right over my head after 30 seconds of searching, as if to make up for what its counterparts have put me through this year. I had great looks at the bird perched in the oak it was frequenting, before heading off to my next stop.
Mike had also located another nemesis bird of mine that morning, a Sora at Charlton Pond. This is a bird I have seen frequently in the interior (Creston, mainly, where you have to watch you don't step on them) but has always eluded me on the island. Last year, the birds were calling everywhere I went, but none showed. This stop proved a bust, so I went home, grabbed some dinner, and headed back to Charlton Pond.
After standing nearly motionless for an hour, watching reeds and grass moving mere feet from me as rails slipped through, the local Bird Whisperer, Jeremy Gatten, pulled up. It didn't take long for a young Virginia Rail to start putting on a show at the far end of the pond, and some scanning along the edges finally revealed an adult Sora! This was my first Sora for the Victoria Checklist Area, which Jeremy G would not let me forget. Quickly thereafter, a flock of Cedar Waxwings flew over, making it three new birds for the day.
I was pretty sure this morning that I was done birding until Saturday in Ottawa, but the birds had other ideas. With my cell phone on very low battery, I had been turning it on every hour or so to check missed calls and messages. When I turned the phone on at 11am, I had a voicemail, and noticed a missed BCVIBIRDS post about a Magnolia Warbler at Swan Lake. I hustled down to the lake following Chris Saunders' directions, and quickly found a crowd listening to the bird sing from out of sight. Some pacing back and forth ensued among all, and finally the bird broke cover, giving some of us a quick look as it flew across the path. A look, but not a very satisfying one. The bird continued to sing, which let us track it, and finally Chris relocated it in a willow, where it was working left to right. I missed it, but quickly located it 5 feet left of where he had seen it, as it worked its way into an opening. The stunning look of bright yellow and black was a great follow up look to the path episode. This is the third record of Magnolia Warbler for the Victoria Checklist Area, my 197th bird of the Big Year, and the first Lifer I have gotten on to this year, many thanks Chris!
Maybe now I am done until Saturday, when I will be chasing down Red-headed Woodpecker, Upland Sandpiper, Golden-winged Warbler, and Eastern Towhee.
Good birding,
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