Banding Season Again!!

Banding and census season is upon us again at Rocky Point Bird Observatory! MAPS began at Witty's lagoon this morning, and Rocky Point's nets officially open on Sunday morning for what promises to be another great season!

I will be out there doing censuses, while hoping to catch up with some of the goodies that tend to turn up which, in past years, have ranged from Rose-breasted Grosbeak to Alder Flycatcher to Pomarine Jaeger, Crested Auklet, and Tufted Puffin offshore. Broad-winged Hawks and Swamp Sparrows are annual fixtures, as are many others!

On the topic of Rocky Point, Alison Moran has put together two beautiful cards that will be sold as a fundraiser for the Hummingbird Project of BC. Mike Yip (www.vancouverislandbirds.com) has generously provided the stunning images of a male and female Rufous Hummingbird which appear on the front of the cards, while species information can be found on the back (actual cards shown below).



These 4X6 cards are sold in packages of 10 (5 of each card with envelopes) for $10 per package, plus shipping if applicable. Please email hummingbird@rpbo.org to order yours!

Don't forget to check out Rocky Point's website at www.rpbo.org to keep on top of news, happenings, and to find out how you can support the banding station or any of it's projects.

Now off to find some shorebirds........

Coho Birding, Take 3

After a trip up to Cowichan Bay on Saturday, which netted my first Ring-billed Gull of the year for the checklist area, I decided to take trip number three aboard the Coho to Port Angeles and back, in hopes of some early pelagic-type birds.



We left the dock a little late, just after 10:30am on Sunday. Alcids were immediately evident, with Pigeon Guillemot, Rhinoceros Auklet, Marbled Murrelet, and Common Murre well represented. The weather looked a little ominous, and we were to have a five hour wait in Port Angeles before the return ferry. We had just reached the middle of the crossing with nothing new seen, when a small flock of shorebird-types flew up from in front of the boat and settled a short distance away. My first Red-necked Phalaropes of the year! A moment of panic ensued, in which I was unsure of just what side of the border we were on. A quick map check on the ole Blackberry confirmed that we were indeed still in Canadian waters.

At the end of Ediz Hook, at the entrance to Port Angeles, there were 60+ Heermann's Gulls lounging on the beach. This species has yet to reach Victoria in good numbers, and it was a nice touch to see so many in one spot this early in the year. There were another 30 or 40 scattered along the waterfront as well.

My wife and I grabbed lunch right away at the Port Angeles Crabhouse, which wasn't too bad, if a little on the pricey side. Following lunch we played tourist, and explored the antique shops and bookstores. I found it a little surprising that the Sibley Guide is $40 once you cross the border, as opposed to the $57 it costs up here. Picking up two copies and bringing them home would pay for the ferry ride! The birding in Port Angeles was a little slow, but I did manage to add (according to eBird) American Goldfinch to my Clallam County list, which up until this year, I didn't even know I had!

The return trip was also uneventful. There was a bit of swell on the water which, combined with the rain, meant I had the bow of the boat mostly to myself. Nothing new was added, but we had light enough back in Victoria to check for the Wandering Tattler that had eluded me over the weekend. A quick check of the breakwater revealed nothing, after which I quickly located the bird roosting on the rocks over near the pilot boats.


Wandering Tattler is a fairly regular summer bird here, but it can be missed. I feel a lot better having added it now, and not having to scramble or camp out in August.

I added three birds over the weekend, to bring the Big Year total to 213, with a few months left to find 39 more. However, a few common birds have still managed to avoid me, including Ruffed Grouse (heard, not seen) and Common Nighthawk (heard, not seen, numerous times). Shorebirding continues to pick up, and hopefully it won't be long until we have our first Baird's Sandpiper, followed closely by the others. The first Pectoral Sandpiper has already been reported as well.

Good birding,

The Summer Doldrums are Here.... For Now

Well, maybe the birding doldrums have finally set in for the summer. Hopefully they are here only briefly, as there seems to be a lot of shorebird action here and at points south (2 Little Stints in California, for example).

The last couple of weeks have added only two birds to my year list, being Semipalmated Sandpiper last week at Panama Flats (thanks to David Caudwell's sharp eyes), and Lesser Yellowlegs at Panama Flats this morning. There is undoubtedly more to come, and with any luck some of our annual or almost annual shorebirds will show up this year. Buff-breasted and Stilt Sandpiper would not only be great additions to the Big Year, but lifers for me as well. Sharp-tailed is also a possibility.

It is also pelagic season! I will be doing my first Coho Mini Pelagic to Port Angeles on Sunday, in hopes of Tufted Puffin, Shearwaters, Jaegers, or the Brown Pelican that was reported earlier in the week by a whale watching boat. The Coho leaves Victoria at 10:30am, and leaves Port Angeles just after 5pm. There are lots of great lunch stops down there, and it should be a good trip! Stay tuned for results!

Lastly, there is still one spot left on the mini-pelagic that I have set up for August 27, a two hour jaunt from Sooke out to Otter Point, then the US Border, and then back. This is a lightly birded area, so who knows what could be out there!

Good birding always,

And they keep coming......

Wow!

Just when you think you have hit your allowance for spectacular birds for the month, one of the local bird whisperers does it again!

Hot on the heels of Kerry Finley finding the Black Phoebe, Ian Cruickshank discovered 3 Black Terns at 10 Mile Point last night! This is a species which is listed as hypothetical for Victoria as of the 2001 Checklist, and I dare say it isn't hypothetical anymore, having been seen well by 8 or so birders last night, as well as being photographed by Ian. Also kicking around at 10 Mile last night were 2 early Heerman's Gulls, bringing me to 206 for the year.

This morning I got an early start, and managed a peek at the Gray Catbird that has been serenading birders near Blenkinsop Lake. This bird is unfortunately singing from private property, which is not accessible to the public. After watching it sing for 15 minutes, I decided to finally put to rest one of my long-standing Big Year wants, and called Rick Shortinghuis, who led me to a reliable, vocal, and somewhat uncooperative Black-throated Gray Warbler at the north end of Thetis Lake Park. We finally got great looks at it singing from the treetops.

The weekend hasn't even begun, and I now need 44 more..... dare I ask what is going to show up next?????

Good birding,