As some of you may know, I am not exactly a morning person.  I don’t need a lot of sleep, but I like it. Especially when I’m tucked in a nice warm bed and I can hear the pitter patter of raindrops above me.  I somewhat reluctantly pulled myself out of bed and into my raingear and headed out to see what the day would bring.  My plan for the day was to hang out around Winter Harbour, then take a side trip to a sandy beach about half an hour away.  By late afternoon/early evening, I’d hit the road back to Port Hardy without having to worry too much about logging trucks.

Winter Harbour doesn’t have sidewalks. Instead, the residents have built a walkway between the houses and the ocean.  In some places, timbers have been recently replaced and guardrails prevent you from falling over the edge.  In others, not so much!  Although there is a strip of shingles or roofing material all along the walkway for wet days (most days), some of the boards were quite soft and will be trouble sooner rather than later.

 

The boardwalk trail passes older homes lovingly restored and maintained and some that have seen far better days.

Sadly, it’s not just some homes that have been abandoned.  Although I only saw this one, I suspect there is a well-established feral cat population here, too.

 It could be a rough place to be a cat, but finding shelter in a storm would not be an issue.  I found myself using that strategy on several occasions as squalls passed through the area about every 40 minutes.

There were interesting plants along the walkway as well, including these ground cones under a salal plant.

Periodically, disorganized flocks of Greater White-fronted Geese would pass overhead, reminding me of which way was north.

 

In the distance, I could see at least 25 Sea Otters, but none were close to the Winter Harbour shoreline.

I ran into Arthur and Pamela again, this time outside the Post Office.  They were chatting with other people!  Maybe there were a few in town after all. Note the hours!

Singing birds included my first Hermit Thrushes for the trip, Marbled Murrelets in the bay and my first Brandt’s Cormorant for the Mount Waddington region.

A walk through the forest along the Bottel Trail takes you past an enormous Spruce tree and out to Greenwood Point.

 

Finally, a Sea Otter came close enough for photos!

About mid-afternoon, it was time to start out to Grant Bay.  I had been told about this beach by people on Sointula and again by Pamela and Arthur. Five minute hike to the beach I was told.  Pamela and Arthur had been there the day before and had noticed a couple of huge holes in the road that I should watch for.  I appreciated the advice.

It didn’t take long to be in the middle of nowhere, at least according to my GPS.

 

Along the way, I saw some wildlife that was destined to be photographed through the windshield.

I was driving below the speed limit, managed to avoid the giant potholes and eventually got to Grant Bay.  Then I saw this sign.
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Five km?!  I was told five minutes. Now what should I do?  I’d come a long way to just turn around and go back, but that’s what I was thinking I should do.  Since I’m travelling on my own, I’m being extra cautious about doing things that might get me in trouble.  It was already 3 o’clock and a 5K hike would take me at least an hour, plus the return, plus a bit of time at the beach.  I should just go back.  But two people had said 5 minutes.  I decided to give myself 20 minutes to get to the beach or turn around.

It was, in fact, a five minute walk.  I guess that little square in front of the “5” is meant to be a decimal point.  The walk from the road to the beach was about 500 m.   I would like to share you what should be the first thing you see when you get to this beautiful sandy beach.

In fact, this is what you see:

 

There is a large pile of debris, mostly plastic, right at the entrance to the beach.  Rumour has it that much has come from the Japanese tsunami, but most of it looked pretty local to me, or if not local, from North American boats and ships.

There were exactly zero shorebirds on this lovely shore.  I expected to see Sanderling doing their dance with the surf, but not today.  Instead, each round of waves brought something else to the beach.

Millions of Velella have been washed up on the west coast of Vancouver Island in recent weeks.  Seeing all of these still alive but helpless colonial jellyfish stranded on the beach was overwhelming.  Each one has its own little “sail”, giving it the common name of “By-the-wind-sailor”, and that’s just what it does. There was no point in putting any of them back in the water–they would just drift back to the beach on the next wave.  Their sails are made of a chitinous material that form a bent triangle that catches the wind. Beneath the sail is a blue float and from that are strands of colonial hydrozoans that catch their prey with stinging tentacles.  They, in turn, are eaten by Mola mola (Ocean Sunfish) and a predatory snail.  The sails can be found on the beaches long after the fleshy parts have decayed.

Although things had been going well with the driving, I had a nagging concern about the van’s plumbing.  When I fixed the septic hose last week, I replaced the zap-straps holding the access end, and during my drive to Holberg, they had come apart.  I rejoined them, and they were holding just fine, but I was worried.  If I’d thought about it at the time, I would have replaced the straps with a wire hanger.  It took 100km of logging road to make me think of that.  I took a bit of rope from the beach and jury-rigged an extra hanger to keep the access port out of harm’s way.  Feeling much better about the system, I headed back towards Holberg and then Port Hardy.

On the way back, I saw another adult bear and a cub. I was feeling pretty good by the time I returned from nowhere, which put me about 10km out of Winter Harbour. I love the GPS instruction “Continue on Road”.

 

I dodged rocks and potholes along the route until I was about 8 km from Holberg.  In the centre of the road was a strip of elevated gravel.  I hoped that the van had enough clearance, but in any case, it was just gravel.  The road wasn’t wide enough at this point to put one side of the van up on the gravel, which is what I wished I could do. And I really wish I could have done.  I could hear the gravel against the van’s undercarriage, and then there was a sound I really didn’t want to hear.  Something was dragging.  I pulled off the road in a wide spot and got out to see what was up.  Or more accurately, what was down.  It was my septic pipe.  The access end that I had secured with the rope was fine, but something–possibly a rock in all that gravel– had caused the connection end to shatter and the new septic hose was now exposed to the road.

The movement of the shattered pipe had also disconnected my fresh water holding tank drain, and my good water was now pouring out on the ground.

It’s at moments like this that you really know that you are on your own as far as decisions about what to do.  I could walk to Holberg and try to find someone to help.  That would have taken a couple of hours.  I could wait for someone to come by.  That could have been more.  Or I could do what I could to remedy the situation.  That’s the one!

I jacked up the van with the stock jack (I’ll be getting a better one.) and found a rock to act as a second support in case the jack failed.  I grabbed the rubber mat I have inside the van so that I didn’t have to get muddy on both sides and under I went with a knife and scissors to cut the brand new septic tube.  This isn’t the end of the world, as it can be put back on even though it’s a little shorter.  Leaving a piece on the connection pipe would offer it some protection from the elements during the rest of the trip.  Before I left, I went back down the road and picked up the plastic and metal pieces that had been left behind.  All in all, I was back on the road in less than an hour, albeit without functional plumbing.  I can still use the holding tanks, but I can’t properly dump them, so I will really need to be conservative.  Oh well, another thing for my “to do” list when I get home.

I’m happy to say that the rest of the drive was uneventful.  The Scarlet Ibis was hopping when I drove by, but given my muddy condition, I opted to pass on checking out the crowd. It was a relief to hit the pavement of Port Hardy.  I stayed at the Quatse River Campground again on Tuesday night, grateful that they offer free showers. It was good to be mud-free.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Northern Vancouver Island gets a lot of rain, but apparently not as much as it used to.  You couldn’t really tell that today.  Fortunately, it came in intermittent showers, which meant I could get some birding done.  Unfortunately, the rain was joined by wind later in the day.

I awoke to the sound of Varied Thrushes and American Robins, the same songsters from the night before. However a walk around the campground revealed many other birds, especially active when the rain would stop for a few minutes.  Golden-crowned Sparrows were abundant and very much in breeding condition.

There were a couple of songs that I was struggling with.  They were familiar, but not.  I followed one around (and around and around) and found it coming from my first Yellow Warbler of the year. I am struck by how different the song dialects are between the south and north ends of the island. The second song also forced me to get a look at the bird, even though there were several singing the same tune.  Wilson’s Warbler.  Another year bird for me, but yet another that doesn’t sing the same as at home.

 

By the end of the morning, I had only heard one do our typical ch-ch-ch-ch-ch song.  Townsend’s Warblers were singing a little more like I’m used to, but with a hint of a Malcolm Island accent.

The biggest surprise of the morning was a Ruffed Grouse, flushed from the edge of the river where it must have been either drinking or bathing. I’m not sure how surprised he was, but I sure jumped when he flew up in front of me. Pink Fawn Lilies were the most abundant wildflower in the area.  We don’t get this at all in Victoria, and I know of only a few small patches elsewhere.  Here, they were everywhere.

 

With the rain coming and going, I was trying to think of how to write a blog post but not miss birding opportunities.  Fortunately, there was a picnic shelter at the campground, so I grabbed my computer and binoculars, and wrote the post outside.

By 11:30, I was ready to check out and head to the town of Port Hardy. The Quatse estuary had been recommended, so that was my first stop.  Definitely a place that needs more birding!  There were thousands of shorebirds.  The tide was low, though, so they were quite far away.  I still managed to find Least and Western Sandpipers, Dunlin, Greater Yellowlegs, Killdeer, Short-billed Dowitchers and two Marbled Godwits!  I’m sure if I could have gotten closer, I might have turned up a few others as well.

 

I toured the waterfront parks a bit, picking up Black Scoter among other species, and then headed into town for some food and gas before hitting the road to Winter Harbour.  As much as I was enjoying the birding, the wind had really picked up and it wasn’t particularly pleasant.  Although I’ve never been to Port Hardy before, it’s easy to see that this town has suffered a significant economic downturn.  The malls have more closed stores than open ones, and there’s just a general sense of malaise in the demeanor of most of the people you see.  Resource industry jobs pay well when times are good, but when the resources fall off, people are often financially overextended and really lose out. I hope that the northern communities do better in the summer than they appear to be doing right now.

The road to Winter Harbour is an active logging road which means many things. Firstly, there are big trucks.  Really big trucks. I had planned to wait until 6 when the logging shuts down for the night, but given the weather, I was anxious to be on my way.  Secondly, there are potholes. Really big potholes!  I was seriously hoping there wouldn’t be a confluence of these two things.  As it happened, I only came across three logging trucks coming my way. There were probably about 15 other vehicles, but there was plenty of room on the road for us.  Surprisingly (and to my delight), there were no other vehicles going my way—at least not any faster than I was going. I didn’t have to pull over at all to let someone by.  Driving the van feels like driving a big truck.  In fact, my volunteer owl project in Boardman where they sometimes lend us a company truck probably was good training for today’s run.  I bounced and weaved my way to Holberg in time for dinner at the Scarlet Ibis.

 
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This restaurant is somewhat legendary as it is the gathering place for people on their way to and from the Cape Scott trail. I had heard several stories about what a fun place it was.  I like fun!  Today, however, there was only one couple and me in the restaurant.  They didn’t make eye contact with me, so I was on my own for fun.  Holberg used to be known for its floating homes. Now the only homes there are decidedly land-locked, a big change for those who visited many years ago, or even for new visitors like me that had a mental picture of what the town would be like.

There was a small glitch in my plan for Winter Harbour. One of the bridges on the road was damaged, so a detour was necessary. I was confused, though, when I got to the detour sign and it pointed to a parking lot full of big trucks.  I stopped and asked a mechanic that was working on the equipment, and it turned out that the detour was about 100m before the sign.

 

It was along more active logging roads, but thankfully, by the time I was going, there were no trucks.  In fact, there were no cars.  From Holberg to Winter Harbour, I saw no one on the road. A good thing about travelling in the van is that if I was to have a minor incident, I’d be fine just staying put and waiting on the side of the road. The bad thing about this particular road is that I have no idea how long I’d have to wait for help!

When I pulled into Winter Harbour, there was a campground right there that had been recommended.  I drove in, but there was no one there.  The sign said to check in at the office, but none of the buildings was labelled as an office.  The ground looked pretty wet, so I’m not sure it would have been a good idea to drive on the sites.  No matter, I’d just go into “town” and figure out where to go from there.  That was about two blocks.  I found the general store, which is apparently owned by the same people who own the campground.  Perfect!  Except…. Shades of Saturna! The general store is only open from 4 pm to 7 pm from Tuesday to Saturday. I arrived around 6:30 pm on Monday.

Well, the general store has a nice flat parking lot….

 

There was still lots of time for birding, so out I went.  There weren’t a lot of individuals around but in 90 minutes I managed to see or hear 31 species including singing Hermit Thrushes. A big surprise was a small flock of peeps in a parking lot including this particularly reddish Least Sandpiper.  I tried to turn it into something rarer, but with no luck.

It also took 90 minutes to see my first human.  Arthur and Pamela Bowman from Calgary have a vacation property here.  I’ll use the word “vacation” loosely here, as they were hard at work doing repairs and maintenance.  The wind and the rain take their toll on structures in Winter Harbour.  Other than the three of us, it seemed like there was nobody here!  It was  a ghost town.  I guess Winter Harbour is actually all about summer these days! It used to be a booming fishing town, but no longer.  It seems the primary industry now is tourism, and not at the end of April.

 

The highlight for me, though, wasn’t a bird or a human.  I saw six Sea Otters. They were a long way away, and I wouldn’t have seen them if I didn’t have my scope, but there they were.  The first I have ever seen on Vancouver Island.  I am told that they may come closer to the docks in the morning.  I can hardly wait!

 

Malcolm Island isn’t an easy place to get to, but it’s an easy place to be. On Sunday, I joined up with the group to conduct their 15^th annual Spring Bird Count, now named after one of their own, Doug Innes.

The birds on Malcolm Island know about island living and island time. Despite sunrise being about an hour earlier, they really didn’t become active until about 7 am. Perhaps more surprising (and civil), the bird count didn’t get underway until 9! As a result, they generally get a pretty good turnout, and since it’s a reasonably small island, all important areas can still get covered in the allotted time.

I was put on Gordon Curry’s team and rode with Ross and Linda Weaver.  I “know” Gord from eBird; most of the Malcolm Island eBird records are his.  The weather was about what you might expect for a Christmas Bird Count in Victoria.  The only problem was that it was a Spring Bird Count!  Windy, cold, and with a few showers, our team started out the day at Mitchell Bay with a Greater Yellowlegs.  Gord had picked up a few others by ear en route.

 

The bay offers shelter to ducks and other seabirds, but the highlight (really, really high) was a flock of about 350 Greater White-fronted Geese flying over the mountaintop on a nearby island.  Normally, you get alerted to these birds as they call while flying overhead. Their “V” is easily recognized as probably the worst “V” you’ve ever seen.  It looks like they are trying to form a proper “V” but the lead birds are reluctant and let the others catch up, forming more of a “U” before it all falls apart and they kind of bunch up and have to start all over again.

One of the greatest challenges was learning the Malcolm Island version of a Townsend’s Warbler song.  These were easily the most common migrant we came across, but they sound very little like the songs of the birds on the south Island.  Doug Innes was investigating the dialects of the birds from the northern Gulf Islands before he passed away.  I hope someone picks up the torch as this would make a very interesting study. (Ignore the raven at the beginning.)

To get out of the wind, we headed into the forest and picked up a Hutton’s Vireo as well as the expected Chestnut-backed Chickadees and Varied Thrushes.  A few years ago, Gord hosted a Mountain Chickadee at his feeder, but he couldn’t produce another one for this year’s count.

We headed back to Mitchell Bay to do the shoreline and adjacent properties.  We were about half way around when I got a call from Claudia Copley telling me that one our Victoria’s long-time birders was missing.  Bob Chappell had gone out the previous day and not returned. A few years ago, we had a similar situation when Daniel Bryant got lost on Salt Spring Island and had to spend a night in the woods.  Claudia asked if we could rally the troops to find Bob just as we had for Daniel.  Although I was hundreds of kilometres away, I promised to get right on it.  Thanks to modern technology, we really can do something like this.  I went to the Victoria Police Department website using my phone, with the intent of getting the URL of the relevant information, but instead I saw the good news.  Bob had been found and was safe.  He had needed assistance, though, and I feel bad that we didn’t know earlier.  I know the birding community would have been out in droves to help find him.

Emergency resolved, I was back to the bird count. The next stop was a private home with hummingbird and other feeders.  Their hummingbird feeders were abuzz with Rufous males and females taking their fill.  We only counted about fifteen at one time, but based on the food-use calculation of 1 cup a day to 30 hummingbirds, we estimated that around 500 birds were visiting their feeders. When the fledglings start coming, the consumption doubles.

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After all this hard work, it was only appropriate that we stop at team members Iris and Bob Field’s place for some warmth and lunch, don’t you think?  They have a charming cottage that they built themselves many years ago that overlooks the strait. It may have been modest in size, but everywhere you looked you could see the loving attention that had gone into their home.  We managed to pick up a couple of good species there as well: Red Crossbill and Band-tailed Pigeon.

After lunch, we headed to a beautiful beach known locally as Sam’s beach.  I can’t tell you where it it—they told me I’d have to kill all of you if I did. Truth is, I probably couldn’t get you there if I tried.  What I can tell you is that if you value the paint on your vehicle, you can’t go there.  Although someone has clearly trimmed the salal and other bushes over the years and there is something resembling a road, you definitely want a truck with good clearance and a strong sense of comfort with the sound of branches scratching the sides of your vehicle.  Oh, and should you go there, don’t drive over the bridge. It’s not safe.  Just drive through the creek beside the bridge! 

It was worth the trip, though, as we picked up several more pelagic species on the open water of the beach.

Out last stop of the day was at the community hall for more goodies and a presentation by Art Martell.  Art had looked at trends from this count over the first 14 years and gave us an overview of the birds that are always seen, birds that are rarely seen, and trends for some of the birds that are seen most years.  This was followed up by a presentation by Annie Koch with photos from previous Spring Bird Counts.

 

If you would like to join the Malcolm Island Bird Club, it’s not an onerous process.  Go to Malcolm Island.  Bird.  That’s it.  I suspect you can also join if you just say you want to go to Malcolm Island to bird. Buy your vest at the Co-op!  This is a great group of people who enjoy each other’s company and are anxious to learn more about birds.  What more could you want in a bird club?

A few of us headed back to the big island on the 7:10 pm ferry.  I was first on board.  After the crew member put chocks under my tires, he came to my window and said, with a smile, “This is only a 25 minute trip!”  Sheesh, my first trip to the island and I apparently already have a reputation!  He said that the captain doesn’t like it much when there’s a vehicle on the deck without a person.  There have been some “incidents” over the years, so that scenario makes everyone nervous.  I was first off the ferry this time around.

Heading towards Port Hardy, my destination was the Quatse River Campground, recommended by several people.  I arrived in time for a little sunset birding.  The Varied Thrushes were in fine form, but were outnumbered by robins. It would be interesting to see what might be in this area in the morning!

After finishing up my “must do” list on Friday morning, I left Victoria about two hours later than expected, eating well into any time that I might have had to go birding en route.  My GPS said that I had three hours to spare if I wanted to get the 6:40 pm ferry to Malcolm Island. I had originally planned on taking the 7:40 which stops at Alert Bay en route, ending up at Sointula around 9.  Annie Koch, coordinator of the Doug Innes Memorial Spring Bird Count recommended the earlier ferry so that I could partake in a pot luck dinner that had been arranged.  So I headed north (or northwest if you are a cartographic stickler) passing birding spots and Tim Hortons all along the way.  Okay, I did stop at a couple of Tims and I did spin by the Little Qualicum estuary for another chance at a glimpse of the avocet, but other than that and a quick stop for some groceries, I stuck to the plan.  My GPS is a wonderful tool, and I especially like the estimated time of arrival feature, but it clearly overestimates my capacity to follow the most direct and timely route.  It also doesn’t know about the capability of my van to do (or not do) the speed limit for some hilly or curvy stretches.  I noticed on my last trip that the speedometer in the car actually reads about 10% higher than my GPS.  This is not the case in my Honda.  I wonder how many campervan/motorhome drivers think they are going the speed limit when they are actually travelling an annoying bit under it!

As on my trip to Woss earlier in the year, the highway north of Campbell River was almost birdless. A few robins and ravens crossing over the field of view, but nothing else.  Lots of tempting places to stop, but I was on a mission.  Just as well, too, as I arrived at the Port McNeill ferry terminal a mere half hour before the 6:40 sailing.

Finally out of the van, I was able to do a bit of birding.  My first Port McNeill birds and new additions to my Mount Waddington county list. There was only one surprise—a Greater Yellowlegs on the shore, but great looks at Red-necked Grebes made my evening.  Crows, gulls, a few ducks, most of them new for my eBird records.

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The crossing to Alert Bay takes about 45 minutes, and then there is another 35 minutes aboard as the ferry heads to Sointula.  I was looking forward to this mini-pelagic.  I headed straight to the sundeck and watched for the seabirds as we made the crossing. The combination of the low sun and the calm waters made for some interesting shots.  As we approached the island, I snapped a picture of Alert Bay.

We docked and the boat unloaded.  I wondered how the cars from Alert Bay would board, as we were nose in to the dock. Years ago, I had to back onto a ferry in Digby, NS under a similar situation. Would they do that here as well?  I leaned over the sundeck railing to watch and saw the crew member advising the cars in my lane to back up and go around. Around???  Around me!!!!  I flew down the stairs to find mine was the only vehicle on the ferry and the folks on shore were waiting for me to clear the deck.  For future reference: The 6:40 ferry goes directly to Sointula on Malcolm Island.  Embarassing!

Birders from Comox had also travelled to Malcolm Island for the count and I met up with them and Annie at the Sea 4 Miles cottages. Art Martell, Fran, Pat, Maj Birch, Dave and Sue were all there!They’d saved me some dinner and dessert and we had time for some good conversation before turning in for the night in preparation for the next day’s count.

One thing I can tell you from a brief sunset foray is that the Townsend’s Warblers and Fox Sparrows on Malcolm Island don’t sound like the ones from southern Vancouver Island.  Doug Innes was studying the warbler dialects, but I think RPBO may have a special interest in investigating the Fox Sparrows on Malcolm!

If I was going to be totally strategic about it, I’d stick pretty close to Victoria unless I heard of a good bird to go after up island.  There are more keen birders at the southern tip of the island than there are over the whole rest of the island–but that could change!

My Big Year, however, is about more than just the birds, and in a few short hours, I’ll be heading north to see communities that I really should have visited earlier in my life.  I’m very excited about this!  It will be something of a whirlwind, ending up next weekend at the Tofino Shorebird Festival.  I’m not sure how frequently I will have internet access, so I’m going to catch you up on the past few days now, and will report in as I can.  Going forward, I may post really brief synopses about where I am and highlights of what I’ve seen, to be fleshed out with stories and photos when I get the chance.

Anyway, back to this week. You’d think that after the curlew, this week couldn’t really get any better.  But it did!

Tuesday morning was an early start. The Friday Maber Flats group plus a couple of others decided a mid-week trek to the grouse grounds was in order.  We met near Goldstream at 5:30 am and headed up the Malahat.  The sunrise views were stunning and before long we had a female Sooty Grouse on the power line for a great look.  A male was hooting nearby.  Continuing along Goldstream Heights and Goldstream Ridge, we saw or heard at least six grouse.

It was surprisingly windy and cold (although the red sky in the morning might have been a clue), so there were undoubtedly more in the area.  The biggest surprise, though, was finding two Pine Grosbeaks. This is a species that we rarely see after the Arbutus trees lose their berries, but last week, they were popping up on hilltops all over the south island.

The first MacGillivray’s Warblers of the season for most of us were singing away, along with White-crowned Sparrows, Orange-crowned Warblers and the other migrants that have returned in droves. A trip along the powerlines yielded a Red-breasted Sapsucker, and in the adjacent forest, a Hammond’s and a Pacific-slope Flycatcher announced their return.  Birds were courting and nest-building all around us.

The good thing about starting the day stoooopid early is that people who have other commitments can still get a good day’s birding in before most others have even made their way out of bed!  We headed back towards town with a quick stop at Turner’s Bog, conveniently located near the Amy Rd. Tim Hortons.

Turner’s Bog is possibly the last remnant of sphagnum bog near Victoria (although I’ve heard rumours that there may be a small patch in Rithet’s Bog.)  It is a little wetland north of Langford Lake, now smack dab in the middle of an industrial/residential area.  It is almost impenetrable, but thirty years ago I made my way in to find sphagnum and sundews.  I hope they are still surviving given all the changes.  From the road, you can look down on it and get a good sense of the birdlife.  Goldfinches, warblers, sparrows and a young family of Killdeer were among the birds we saw there.

As our group dispersed, a couple of us headed to Panama Flats for a check of the ever-changing shorebird community.  We had only been there a few minutes when I got a text that a Hermit Warbler had been spotted by Marie O’Shaugnessy and Mike Ashbee on nearby Observatory Hill.  We were off!  Unfortunately, the bird was nowhere in sight when we arrived, but the hill quickly filled up with birders keen to see this rarity.  We are beyond the northern limit for this species, but range expansions could soon change that.  Over the past few years, most of the Hermit Warblers have turned out to be of questionable purity, as Hermit/Townsend’s hybrids are quite common.  Despite many person-hours of effort, the bird was not refound by the time we left the mountain.  Later in the day, though, Keith Taylor relocated the bird and has described it as a hybrid with a yellow wash on its belly.

We did get to enjoy a specatular morning on the hill, and a few other species were much more cooperative than the warbler.

I had a lot of things to do before my trip, so I was looking forward to accomplishing a few items on my list.  I didn’t get far when a report came in that a Redhead had been at Swan Lake in the morning.  I knew that it was probably too late, but this is a duck that is not a “given” for my list, so off I went again.

As suspected, no Redhead when I arrived, but it was a nice walk anyway.  I came across an interesting sign at the lake.  Notice the walking time for circumnavigating.

Even though the light was fading, I managed to get an Anna’s Hummingbird to sit still long enough for a photo.

This species is already on its second round of nesting this year, probably already fledging young from those broods.  RPBO researchers have seen Anna’s Hummingbirds on eggs in one nest while still tending young in another.

There was time for one last stop at Maber Flats, where I ran into Leo and Daniel Donnecke and Jeremy Gatten.  They had just seen a Sora.  I needed a Sora!  It was pretty much right at Leo’s feet a few minutes earlier, and within a few seconds it flew up in front of us.  I had been looking (unsuccessfully) for Sora in this exact spot for a few weeks. Who would have expected, though, that I would see one before I would hear one?

Wednesday was too beautiful to stay home, despite the increasing list of things to do and the diminishing time to do them.  I started with a trip to Christmas Hill, not for anything in particular.  At the summit, a Savannah Sparrow stopped by.

I meandered westward with stops at Hastings Flats and Raper’s Pond (aka Charlton Pond) at the corner of Burnside and Charlton.  There were a few shorebirds at Hastings (and a drive by and hello from Kim Taylor), but the sighting at the pond was unexpected. This small wetland has turned up some very good birds over the years, despite increased pressure from residential development.  Solitary Sandpipers and Blue-winged Teal are often seen here before anywhere else.  On Wednesday, though, there wasn’t much bird action.  Two backhoes were stripping the understory (much of it invasive plants) from the bank above the pond.

They were leaving the trees in place, so it was unclear what the final plan was for the property.  I posted a query about it to the BCVIBIRDS Yahoo group, and it appears it may be about restoring the Garry Oak meadow–an admirable goal–but I can only imagine how many birds’ nests were destroyed in the process.

Continuing west, I visited a secret pond from my past. When I lived in Langford, I explored the area on a regular basis and had found a small kettle lake adjacent to Spencer High School.  Apparently, I was not the first to discover it as it had a gazetted name: Spencer Pond.  Still, very few people knew about it.  In addition to the expected frogs and insects, it also had a population of freshwater mussels.  I don’t know if they have survived the thirty years since I’d been there.  There were certainly many changes.  There are real trails there now, although the ones that I used to use have become overgrown.  The pond is surprising larger  than it used to be, but is still home to some of the weirdest algal sheets I’ve seen around here.

Development of the Leigh Road interchange resulted in flooding of some of the property, and there is a section of drowned broom near the highway.
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It was here that I found my first Mallard ducklings of the year, amongs discarded beverage containers and miscellaneous garbage. I circumavigated the lake, which isn’t something I would recommend.  The only way to do so is to walk right along the highway for a stretch. I did see some human-made structures I’d like to mention, though.

The concrete barriers that we see on the sides and centrelines of the highways are made up of Jersey Blocks.  They come in a variety of shapes and sizes, but generally provide barriers to small wildlife as well as to vehicles.  There is one style, however, that is designed for drainage, but can also provide an escape for something that has made its way onto the road.  I think this style should be inserted every five to ten segments to give small animals a chance.

 Behind this “good” block, however, is something that makes me shudder every time I travel this stretch.  There is a tall fence running several hundred metres above the blocks north of Spencer Rd.  The signs warn people not to cross here (duh!), but I can only imagine what will happen if a family of deer are trying to get across.

As I continued around the pond, I discovered that it is not secret any longer.  From Leigh Rd., it is very visible and accessible.

 

A stop at Lynn’s Little Elf Garden Centre produced a few birds including this Orange-crowned Warbler.

Then their was the call.  Karen Ferguson was looking at a Gray-crowned Rosy-Finch on Mt. Tuam on Salt Spring Island.  There wasn’t enough time to make a run for it on Wednesday.  I’d get there with only an hour or two of light and access to Mt. Tuam is restricted and difficult. This was going to have to be a calculated decision for the next day.  Hmmm…..

Later, a trip to the Ed Nixon Trail on Langford Lake finally gave me a chance to photograph (distantly) the Golden Eagles famous for being a Tim Hortons parking lot bird.  Although I wasn’t in the parking lot at that particular moment, I could have seen them if I  was!

Thursday, I was going to get things done, for sure! Okay, maybe.  I was still contemplating a Salt Spring trip while birding with Rick Schortinghuis at Island View Beach early Thursday morning when another call came in.  Christopher Stephens was at the Englishman River Estuary in Parksville and he and Guy Monty were looking at an American Avocet!  This was a “remote chance” bird for my list.  Rosy-Finch, Avocet, Rosy-Finch, Avocet, income taxes, van plumbing, Avocet, Rosy-Finch—AVOCET!

Parksville is a couple of hours away.  I made a pre-8 am call to Dave Baird in Nanaimo (yeah, birders call each other at otherwise socially unacceptable times), as I was pretty sure it was a bird he’d like to see, too.  My ulterior motive was to make sure that someone would be on the bird when I got there, or to notify me if it flew off.  En route, I got a call from Warren Lee who was looking at Caspian Terns and a Semi-palmated Plover at Esquimalt Lagoon.  Those birds would have to wait!

I couldn’t find the guys when I arrived, but with a couple of quick phone calls, we were all scanning the estuary.  The estuary where the bird had been seen an hour prior.  Ergh!  It had flown, I was told, but not away.  It had to be somewhere in the estuary.  It had to be.  Thankfully, it was, and about ten minutes later, I spotted it with a small group of gulls.  It flew in closer, providing some lovely photo ops.

While we were at the estuary, I swear I heard a curlew.  It was a flight call, and at that very moment, an eagle was also flying over in the same direction.  I think that the bird just kept on going.  I’m not counting it for the region, but watch for a curlew to show up in Comox/Courtenay real soon!

I stuck around the area most of the day, picking up a few species for my Nanaimo region list.  By the time I got back to town and Esquimalt Lagoon, the terns and plover were long-gone.

Half of that situation was remedied early Friday morning.  Three Semipalmated Plovers were with hundreds of shorebirds at Maber Flats.  Most were Least Sandpipers, along with a few Westerns, Dunlin, Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs and Killdeer.  The duck numbers are falling as dramatically as the water level.

As we were scoping a flock of peeps, a Merlin made a quick and almost unnoticed pass.  Not so a few seconds later when a Peregrine Falcon came on the scene.  The flock took to the air, reeling around for a couple of minutes before settling down again. You can practice your counting and ID skills with this photo.

 

Then, just as we were as far away as possible from the cars, the sky opened up.  That made going home a lot easier!

Already cold and wet, I decided to go straight into van maintenance. While I was working on the plumbing, squeezed under the van with just barely enough room,  my phone rang.  I had brought it with me for safety, but getting it out and answering it was a puzzle in itself.  Just in time, I pressed the right icons and had Mike McGrenere on the line.  He’d found the FOY (first of year) Solitary Sandpiper just about five minutes from my place.  I scooted out from under the van, hopped in my car, looking probably as messy and dirty as I ever have in public, and was on my way.  Mike and the sandpiper were still there when I arrived.  This brought me to 192 for the year!  Also there was Shayne Kaye, one of the DJs at The Q, and a birder to boot!  Shayne and I have corresponded in the past, but this was the first time we met.  I’m so glad I could create such a stunning first impression!  I’m hoping that Shayne will join us as a “celebrity birder” for one of our Birdathon days next month.

Okay, van plumbing done, income taxes almost done, van still not packed, but I’m almost on schedule.  I think.  Next blogs from the road!  If you see any rarities in the south, please hang onto them until I get back!

 

 

 

 

I planned on taking things a little slower on Monday, but Mike McGrenere foiled those plans.  He was on Mt. Doug again, apparently having blistering looks at Townsend’s Solitaire and Pine Grosbeak.  This bird-chasing is getting addictive.  I already had both those species for both my year and Capital lists, so why did I feel that I had to go back up the hill?  I got there a few minutes after the gate was scheduled to open and when I got to the top, Mary Robichaud was already there looking for the birds.  We didn’t find them in a reasonable amount of time, so I left to go to Panama Flats.  I still wanted to get the Western Sandpipers for my list.  Mary stayed and was joined by Elaine Preston.  They were visited by a Townsend’s Solitaire shortly after I left.

At Panama Flats, I spotted three birders on the central dike.  I recognized Kim Beardsmore, but not the other two.  They were Ted and Louise Joiner, whose names I certainly knew, but who I had not had the pleasure of meeting before.  While we were checking out the peeps, I heard an unfamiliar call.  Having learned my lesson with the Clay-coloured Sparrow last week, I wasn’t going to let this one get away.  It was a large shorebird, and as it flew over us, I could see the long downturned bill.  Long-Billed Curlew!  As it reached the end of the dike, it gave the more characteristic ker—leeew call, confirming the ID.  It circled around a couple of times before settling on the far side of the west pond

Calls were made, texts were sent, the bird was eBirded, and a note was sent to the BCVIBIRDS Yahoo group.  It wasn’t long before the dike was hosting many people from the birding community.  The bird was harassed by crows and flew a couple of times, but thankfully settled down again, providing excellent views for many birders.  So many people have been helping me out with reports of birds, I was so happy that I was able to find one to share! It stayed around  for about four hours before it picked up and headed north.  It hasn’t been seen since.

On Mt. Doug, people were getting awesome looks at the Pine Grosbeak and Townsend’s Solitaire again.  Oh, well, I was out.  Might as well go back up to see what I could see.  Cathy Reader was there, but only had a few minutes to look around.  Sadly, we were not able to locate the birds.  After she left, I headed for the “teacup”–the seating area at the top of the hill.  About halfway up, I heard pishing.  In my first year of birding, Hank van der Pol demonstrated how pishing can attract birders ans well as birds, and it was certainly working on me that evening.  I could see the photographer, but didn’t recognize him.  I approached and introduced myself to Tim Zurowski, another person I knew by name and reputation, but hadn’t had the privilege of meeting in person.  He had been up on the hill for some time photographing a VERY cooperative grosbeak.  In all of his years of bird photography, this was the first time he was able to get good shots of a Pine Grosbeak.  He graciously let me have a good spot to view and photograph the bird.

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I had some fleeting glimpses of a solitaire, so I called Christian Kelly as I knew he was still looking for them.  He was on the other side of the summit with Warren Lee, so they came around to where I was. Of course, by the time they got to me, the bird was gone.   There were plenty of Yellow-rumped Warblers and Christian got the grosbeak as a consolation prize, but no solitaire.  Agnes Lynn was also looking, with similar results.  Some people see solitaires just about everywhere they look. For others, it’s an epic quest.  I am so relieved to have that one checked off!

 

 

 

Having finally ticked the solitaire, there weren’t any “must have” species in the area to pursue.  Well, there was one — a Long-billed Curlew in Tofino.  That’s a good six-hour drive away for me.  I am going to be there for the Shorebird Festival in a couple of weeks, but it would be unlikely the bird would stay that long.  We sometimes get them in Victoria, but they are rare.  I had decided to gamble and not chase this particular individual, something I knew I might come to regret.

Instead, I decided to spend Sunday adding to my Nanaimo district list and checking out the Chemainus River Estuary.  My first stop would be Buttertubs Marsh in Nanaimo. This is an impressive wetland that has an easy loop trail. The birds were pretty much as you might expect–blackbirds, ducks, Common Yellowthroats, Marsh Wrens and other common species.  That was fine, as I was not really thinking I would find any new birds here.

 

One of the things that is done very well at Buttertubs is the signage.  Every junction has a map that lets you know exactly where you are relative to every entrance.

The folks at Saanich Parks could learn something here.  I have been turned around and “lost” on Mt. Doug more times than I would care to admit. It doesn’t help to know that I’m looking for the Mercer Trail if there’s nothing around to tell me where the Mercer Trail is.

One of the most interesting finds during my walk was a “gang” of male Brown-headed Cowbirds displaying to each other.  Males will display more vigorously to other males than they do to females. With about nine males in one tree, there was a whole lot of puffery going on!

Birds aren’t the only animals to use Buttertubs Marsh. Unfortunately, American Bullfrogs also call the marsh home.

This invasive species was introduced to Vancouver Island through the restaurant supply industry–growing frogs for frog legs.  Now much of the freshwater on the island is hosting these voracious amphibians, much to the detriment of native species of insects, fish, amphibians and even birds.  An adult bullfrog can capture and consume ducklings and shorebirds.

Next stop was a brand new location for me.  Back in February, Karen Ferguson, Ian Cruickshank and I looked across the strait from Salt Spring Island wondering about how to gain access to this incredible estuary.  A little bit of web research revealed that much of the property was owned by Ducks Unlimited and was sometimes used by hunters.  I knew someone who would know how to get in!  John Costello told me about the Swallowfield Rd. entrance. I’d started down that road once but turned around because of the no trespassing signs.  Turns out that some of them are out of date.  Property adjacent to the road is indeed private, but the best kept secret apparently only applies to birders. When I arrived there on Sunday, there were several dogwalkers, fishers, picnickers, and moms with their babies in strollers all using the roadway to the estuary.

The first part of this level easy walk is through a riparian area with warblers, wrens and sparrows. The road comes to a T junction with the left arm heading through well-disturbed areas filled with blackberry and other plants. Lots of sparrow habitat!

I had White-crowned, Golden-crowned and Lincoln’s Sparrows in the same binocular view.

The road is lined with both coniferous and deciduous trees and remains high above the estuary all the way to the river.
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I left the roadway and headed down a riverside trail towards the shoreline. Boots weren’t essential on Sunday, but I suspect would have been very useful earlier in the year.

I wasn’t prepared for wading  on Sunday, but a short crossing would take you to the mudflats on the other side.  You can also reach them by heading right at the T junction.  The tide was well out when I was there, but I am looking forward to seeing this place with the tide in!  There is much exploring to do but I think this has potential to be a year-round destination for birding.  It is used for retriever training and trials though, so at some times (like next weekend) it could be very busy with dogs and trainers.  I ran into a few women with about 10 dogs they were training when I was there.

I received two phone calls while I was out.  Elaine Preston had found the Tundra Swan back at Esquimalt Lagoon. While this wouldn’t be a new species for my list, it would be an addition to my Capital county list on eBird.  But more urgently, Ed Pellizzon had seen and heard a Dusky Flycatcher on the trail to the Kinsol Trestle.  I was only about 40 minutes away, so off I flew!  I didn’t fine Ed’s bird, but I did find a Hammond’s Flycatcher along the trail, a new species for my year.

As the sun faded, I rushed south to Esquimalt Lagoon and found the swan right where Elaine had left it.

There was still time for one last stop on my way home. Both Lesser Yellowlegs and Western Sandpipers had been seen at Panama Flats.  I managed to get there in time to positively identify the yellowlegs, but the sun was too low to separate the peeps.

All in all, a fantastic Sunday!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How are the weeks passing so quickly?  Could it be that birding every day actually makes clocks speed up?

Friday mornings, a small group of us have been surveying Maber Flats, building a baseline for what we hoped would become a conservation area. There will be changes, and I suspect whatever they are, we’ll be monitoring them.  This is not a closed group–if you are in the area on Friday mornings, you’d be welcome to bird with us! Although the flats are rapidly draining, the shorebirds have not arrived–except for the Greater Yellowlegs. We had more than 30 of them last week.  We saw our first Killdeer chicks as well, looking like they might be a few days old.

After our survey, Kim Beardmore and I headed out to check a Great Horned Owl nest on private property in the Viaduct Flats area.  While I can’t give out the location here, I wanted to show you the nest.  It’s kind of special!

Notice that it’s as much a crib as a nest!  For the most part, owls do not build their own nests. They reuse hawk, raven or crow nests, or find a suitable natural platform.  “Suitable” is somewhat loosely defined, and often these reused nests will fail.  Several years ago, when the nest fell apart in this homeowner’s yard, he decided to build one for the owls.  Yes, even humans can build owl nests!  It’s been several years since the failure, and this is the first time the owls have nested again in this site, but if they successfully fledge young, they may very well come back again next year.  If you’d like to try your hand at building an owl nest, here are some links:

Canadian Wildlife Federation

Keeping up with the Birds  blog

If you are not too handy, even a laundry basket secured tightly to a couple of branches and filled with sticks to resemble a hawk nest might do. Of course, you will need the right habitat and more than a little patience! And you might want to reconsider inviting owls to your yard if you have outdoor cats.

 

Kim and I then went to Esquimalt Lagoon in the hopes of relocating the Sabine’s Gull.  It was headed in that direction, and a lot of gulls loaf there.  Well, a lot of Mew Gulls were loafing there, but no Sabine’s.

I headed to Duncan next, with plans to check out a new-to-me birding spot, the Chemainus River Estuary.  I was just getting to town when the phone started doing its crazy bird alert noises.  Then the phone rang.  It was Ted Ardley with news. The Newells were on Mt. Doug. with not one, but two Townsend’s Solitaires in sight.  And I was more than an hour away.  The cursed solitaires!  Should I go back?  Should I continue with my plans?  Argh!  In front of me sat an even bigger hill. Maybe there would be a solitaire at the top of Mt. Prevost.  Could I even make it up the logging roads in my Honda?  I was going for it!  The Chemainus estuary would have to wait.

My Christmas Bird Count buddies will tell you in no uncertain terms that this is not a hill to be taken lightly in winter.  If you are lucky enough to make it up, the trip down would put a roller coaster to shame.  But it was sunny and dry, so up I went.  Rumor has it that it can be hiked in 90 minutes.  I’m thinking that is a great underestimation, especially at a birder’s pace.  Especially at this birder’s pace.  Might be good for ptarmigan training, though!

There were some spectacular views.

 

For the first part of the trip, the signage was even pretty good.  I followed the signs to the cairn, but somehow never actually got there.  I tried several roads (there are some new ones near the top), but none led to the parking lot that I expected.  According to this map, I was close, but didn’t quite make it.

What I did find at the top was both good and bad.  No solitaire (of course), but I did come across a Ruffed Grouse along the road edge.  I also found several locations like this:

The bag is mine. I picked up 125 shell casings and estimate at least another two to three times that at this one location.  More at many others.  I’ve gone target shooting, so I can understand the concept, but why is it that remote areas that the shooters claim to enjoy are left in this kind of deplorable condition?  How much lead is being pumped into the environment this way?  There are 125 fewer casings on Mt. Prevost now.

With the siren song of Townsend’s Solitaire ringing in my ears, I decided to make a run for it.  By the way, the road was fine, even for my Honda Fit, so if you are interested in seeing the summit, the conditions are good right now. Watch out for logging trucks!

I called Daniel Donnecke and picked him up en route.  We took the easy way to the top where Marie O’Shaugnessy and Warren Lee were already looking for what had become three Townsend’s Solitaires. Just as the light started to fade, Daniel saw two!  They didn’t sit still though and in a flash–before any of the rest of us could locate them–they were gone.  Poof!

I was determined to add a few new species to my list on Saturday, starting out with Purple Martins which were now arriving back in good numbers.  Heading out to Patricia Bay, they were an easy tick but too far away for photographs.  Osprey are using the nesting platform at the Institute of Ocean Sciences,  easily seen from the main parking lot at Pat Bay.

Next on my list was Observatory Hill for another solitaire attempt, but when I saw the gate was closed (both Saturday and Sunday, apparently), I opted instead for a flat trip to Panama Flats.  As I arrived, there was an alert on my phone.  Randy Dzenkiw had found a Baird’s Sandpiper there less than an hour ago!  Mary Robichaud was already scoping the area and before we laid eyes on the bird, we saw two more birders, Barb and Mike McGrenere arrive.  They hadn’t heard about the Baird’s, but Mike immediately gravitated directly towards it.

 
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Larger than the usual peeps, but smaller than a dowitcher, the Baird’s Sandpiper has long wings that extend beyond the tail.  Shorebirds are hard!  If you want to get some tips, check out Cameron Cox’s articles.  I was very pleased to get this species ticked for the year. It wasn’t a “given”.

It was my lucky day, as a Cinnamon Teal pair swam by.  I missed the first ones while I was away in Oregon, so I was especially happy to see this species!  That made it three new species by 9:15 am!

The search for a Lesser Yellowlegs had been less successful, though, and remained an unchecked species.

A Tundra Swan had been photographed by Cathy O’Connor at Esquimalt Lagoon.  While not new for my year, I had not seen one in the Capital Regional District, so I headed there for a peek.  I was only able to find one dark-billed swan at a time, and at too great a distance to be satisfied that I was seeing the Tundra.

Next stop, Witty’s Lagoon for more potential shorebirds and maybe a Hammond’s Flycatcher.  I got totally sidetracked at the Sitting Lady Falls, however.

At the base of the falls was a female Hooded Merganser, waiting for stunned fish coming over the falls.  I probably spent about 10 minutes mesmerized by her antics.  She was quite successful, bringing up a fish for every two or three dives.

Eventually, I moved out to the mudflats where Greater Yellowlegs were everywhere.  I couldn’t find a Lesser, but in the distance I could see a smaller shorebird sleeping near a Greater Yellowlegs.  I made the trek around to its location.  It was a dowitcher!  A tick, for sure, but which one?  If shorebirds are generally hard, dowitchers are especially tough.  I knew that one of them had a steeper forehead than the other, but I couldn’t remember which one.  This bird had a very steep forehead.  Eventually, I entered Long-billed in my BirdLog app, but it came up as rare for this time of year. I switched to Short-billed and had lots of photos to check when I got home.

When I got home and checked the field marks (curved supercilium, slightly downturned bill, steep forehead, red feathers coming in), I agreed with my app that this was a Short-billed Dowitcher.

I had plans to meet up with the McGreneres and Leo and Daniel Donnecke to try for — you guessed it– the solitaire again.  I am so gullible (see what I did there?)  Despite the fact that you can drive to the top of Mt. Doug after noon, they convinced me that we probably wouldn’t have to go all the way to the top if we went in from the Blenkinsop side.  When will I learn?!

There were abundant butterflies and native flowers throughout the area.  I managed to capture this  Sara’s Orange-tip, but the white crab spider that came out from under the flower to do the same wasn’t so lucky!

 

On the way up we had good looks at Downy Woodpeckers and Nuthatches building nests, a female Varied Thrush, and many Orange-crowned Warblers  We ran into Warren Lee and Randy Dzenkiw, also looking for a solitaire.  As we all made our way to the top(!), we spread out to improve our chances of spotting the bird.  Nada.

Eventually, the group started breaking up, but I was determined to stay for at  least a couple of hours to wait for one of these elusive birds. I settled in, perched on a high ledge below the “teacup” at the top, looking west and south, eyes peeled for movement.  Not ten minutes later, I got a text.  “Solitaire!” it read.  Fortunately, before I could text back, the phone rang.  It was Randy, and he had a solitaire in sight on the southeast side below the communications tower.

I scrambled up, picked up my gear and was high-tailing it down the trail when I crossed paths with Mike Ashbee and friends. “This way”, I said, and they turned around to follow. Rick Schortinghuis was also on his way up to see butterflies, but he took  a break to check out the bird.  Mike and Barb McGrenere were standing by with the bird. When we got to the spot, the bird was out of sight –again.  But it popped up within a couple of minutes.  It didn’t give us great looks, but looks they were, and finally this species was on my list.

What a relief, and another five species day!

 

 

 

 

With three commitments on Thursday, I wasn’t expecting to get much birding in, but I had to follow up on Wednesday’s possible Clay-coloured Sparrow.  I got up early and headed back to Maber Flats, thankfully not too far from home.  It was a magnificent misty morning at the marsh, a scene that might not be possible for too much longer.As mentioned in a previous post, the water is being drained from half of the property and before long, the land might be tilled.  And that would be the “good” option.  Several months ago, there was an announcement that the property was under purchase negotiations by the Nature Conservancy (the other half to be used for stormwater storage by the municipality).  Sadly, those negotiations have not resulted in a sale.  It looks like a portion of the land could still end up with NCC, but there would be other adjacent owner, which would undoubtedly put pressure on the municipality to “maintain” a tidier property.

Common Yellowthroats were singing, but not being particulary cooperative as far as photography was concerned. This is such a beautiful little bird. I even remember the first time I saw one of these!

With no sign of the sparrow or even any new shorebirds, I had to head home for a teleconference for the Canadian Migration Monitoring Network.  We meet via phone every six weeks or so.

Following that, I was giving a presentation at the Westshore Seniors meeting.  I had hoped that I might have enough time to make a quick stop at Observatory Hill to look for a solitaire, but it was not to be. Thursday’s slideshow was a selection of photos we gathered for the Victoria Natural History Society’s Nature Guide to the Victoria Region.

This is a great publication that touches on most natural history categories from fungi to mammals.  Proceeds go to the Victoria Natural History Society and the Royal BC Museum.

I had remembered to turn my phone ringer off, which turned out to be a good thing, as while I was speaking I received two phone calls and four texts.  After my presentation, I was invited to stay for tea.  After seeing my phone notifications, I had to decline and take off.  A Sabine’s Gull had been found by Keith Taylor and it was still being seen at Clover Point!

Traffic was not my friend, and what would have taken thirty minutes most of the time, took 45 minutes on Thursday. When I arrived, Mary Robichaud and Christian Kelly were monitoring the gull. so it was a quick “tick”.  I had expected to see this species on one of the pelagic trips I’d be taking, but I am delighted to get it in Victoria now.  With the bird resting on the rocks, I’m sure I got a better look that I would from a rocking boat. There are a few previous records of this species being seen while a ship was at sea, but it’s decidedly rare for us to get to see one like this.  I watched it for the better part of an hour. The Sabine’s was a good one to get on my list, for sure!

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These birds are marine masters and are rarely seen on land.  Other birders had already come and gone, but several showed up while I was there.  That included Aziza Cooper and Ken Walker  who arrived in time to have a good look, but Warren Lee,  Jeff Gaskin, Liam Singh and Mike Ashbee arrived moments after the bird took off.  It was still in the scopes, but the view would result in what I call a “cheesy” tick. When Cathy Reader called to say she was on her way with Emma and Rebecca, our best suggestion for a good look was around the breakwater.

Indeed, that is exactly where the bird went, and eagle-eyed Emma relocated it right near the Dallas Road waterfront. Most, if not all of the people who had been at Clover Point got a second chance at a stunning look at this bird.  I would have like to have joined them, but by this time, though, I had to run with the rush hour traffic home to pick up things I needed for an evening RPBO board meeting —  and then turn around and go about 80% of the way back to where I was standing..

I am grateful for everyone who is calling me with interesting birds.  This is definitely “our” big year, not just mine!

 

 

 

 

Wednesday was a day of ever-changing plans.  I started out early, heading to the top of Observatory Hill to try again for the solitaire before heading to the Duncan area for the day.   On top of the hill, I had good looks at Pine Siskins feeding and Violet-green Swallows attempting to turn the main telescope housing into a giant bird house, but no solitaire.

These days, I try to stick pretty close to my phone for several reasons: I keep bird lists on it using BirdLog, I get hourly reports if anyone reports a bird I “need” anywhere on the island, and I get audible alerts if my birding friends send me an email or anyone posts to the BCVIBIRDS Yahoo group.  Needless to say, I was at a loss when I discovered that I had left my phone at home.  Definitely time to turn around!

When I got back to the house, I found out that my housemate, Mike, was going to be available to work with me to replace my van brake rotors a little later in the day, so I decided to stick a little closer to home.  I headed up Mt. Newton to John Dean Park.  No one had reported a solitaire there, but then again no one had reported that they’d looked and hadn’t found one.  In the winter, the summit is a long walk, but this time of year, you can drive almost to the top.  The hike up from there is still quite steep, but on a roadway and relatively short.

The summit of Mt. Newton holds the giant “soccer ball” that can be seen from many locations in Victoria area. This is a Doppler radar device used to generate the maps that you see on the news and online.  Environment Canada filters out the “noise” that we like to call “birds”,  but US weather radar leaves it in.

 

Other human artifacts you will find near the summit include the Coast Guard radar and the first survey marker for the North Saanich area.

 

Wildflowers, including the beautiful Calypso Orchid, grow throughout the area.

I found an extensive patch of miniscule white flowers.  I don’t know if these are wild or weed, but I’m hoping one of my botanist friends can enlighten me!

A Yellow-rumped Warbler was gathering nest material. During the BC Bird Atlas, I searched for signs of breeding Yellow-rumps without success, but now I know where they were hiding!
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John Dean Park has its share of visitors–hikers, dog walkers, and runners in particular.  The fellows in the photo below crossed my path a couple of times.  They asked what I was doing, so I told them about the birding quest, and that I hadn’t found the bird I was looking for. When I said  I hadn’t taken many pictures, they asked if I could take one of them and put it in my blog, so here it is, the half-naked running men of Mt. Newton!

 

With that done, it was time to head home for some van maintenance! From the time I purchased my first car (a 1964 Austin Cambridge), I did a few of the necessary repairs.  Manuals and friends were invaluable, but a lot of the work was pretty straightforward. Not so with newer computerized vehicles, but my van is older and replacing the front brake rotors isn’t a particularly onerous task. My friend, Mike, and I had the job done in just a couple of hours.

Wednesday evening I had planned to meet up with Michael Simmons, Christian Kelly and Warren Drinnan to stake out a barn with a known Barn Owl family inside.  First though, I thought I’d go to Maber Flats to look for shorebirds and a Sora.

As I arrived, an ambulance and fire truck went down Wallace Drive with sirens blazing.  When they were gone, I heard a “buzz-buzz” sound quite a way from where I was standing. It was faint and sounded quite mechanical, so I figured it must be an alarm related to the emergency vehicles.  As I looked for the birds, the sound continued until just before dark, it changed to a single longer buzz.  That got my attention!  What could possibly make that sound?  A Clay-coloured Sparrow, that’s what!  I had only ever heard one once before, but now it seemed so obvious!  I headed in the direction of the buzz, only to have it stop, never to return.

Here is where lack of proper preparation can come into play. Because I don’t know the calls of the rarities, it’s possible for me to fail to recognize a bird calling or even singing.  As confident as I am that I heard a Clay-coloured Sparrow, it won’t be added to my list unless it is relocated.  I know that my description is not sufficient to meet the standard of the local records committee, so it’s there but not counted–yet.

THe Barn Owls were considerably more attentive, and the four of us saw one of the adults return with dinner  to the nest!

The sparrow was a screwup on my part, but I think I learned some valuable lessons in the process.