The Backyard's Weekly Bird Walk locations are found in the Backyard Bird Report at the very end of the most recent report. Any cancellations will be posted by 8am the day of the walk.

Sunday 24 October 2010

Nanaimo bird report, October 24, 2010


Bufflehead: Ralph Hocken Photo.

NANAIMO BIRD REPORT
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To report your sightings
phone the Store at 250-390-3669
e-mail us at thebackyard@shaw.ca

Also check the birdstore blog for the latest bird alerts and updates:
www.thebirdstore.blogspot.com

Post your sightings on this site:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/bcbirdingvanisland/messages

Birding in Central and South America:
www.wildbirdtours.ca

Identify backyard birds:
National Geographic Bird Identifier Site
http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/birding/backyard-bird-identifier/

Birds of British Columbia:
http://www.geog.ubc.ca/biodiversity/efauna/SpeciesChecklists.html

International Birdwatching Guides
http://www.guidedbirdwatching.com

Birdwatching contacts and information find a local birder to go birdwatching
with: http://www.birdingpal.org/

Please remember, when reporting a sighting, to leave your name and phone
number, along with the date, the species and location of your sighting.

Sunday October 24, 2010:
The Sunday Bird Walk went to the Plummer Road side of the Englishman River in
Parksville.
The morning was cloudy with heavy rain showers and a strong wind off the Strait
of Georgia. The highlights including seeing fourteen Buffhead and several Dunlin
and Green-winged Teal on the mudflats. A small flock of Sanderling flew over
heading down the island.
Fifteen hardy but wet birders saw and heard the following forty-six species of
birds:
Canada Goose, American Wigeon, Mallard, Buffhead, Greater Scaup, Northern
Pintail, Green-winged Teal, Surf Scoter, White-winged Scoter, Black Scoter,
Harlequin Duck, Hooded Merganser, Common Merganser, Red-necked Grebe, Horned
Grebe, Common Loon, Pacific Loon, Pigeon Guillemot, Pelagic Cormorant,
Double-crested Merganser, Great Blue Heron, Bald Eagle, Dunlin, Sanderling,
Killdeer, Ring-billed Gull, Thayer's Gull, Mew Gull, Bonaparte's Gull,
Glaucous-winged Gull, Anna's Hummingbird, Belted Kingfisher, Northwestern
Crow, Common Raven, Steller's Jay, Spotted Towhee, Varied Thrush, European
Starling, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Bewick's Wren, Fox Sparrow, Song Sparrow,
Golden-crowned Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, Brewer's Blackbird and House Finch.

Saturday, October 23:
Over ninety Greater White-fronted Geese, sixty Cackling Geese and three hundred
Green-winged Teal were seen at Holden Creek.

Two Northern Harriers, a Northern Shrike, a Wilson's Snipe and a flock of Cedar
Waxwings were heard and seen at the Nanaimo River Estuary in south Nanaimo.

Tuesday October 19:
The Tuesday bird walk went to Rathtrevor Provincial Park in Parksville. The
morning was sunny and warm with a light breeze off the water.
The big surprise of the morning was hearing and seeing a Common Nighthawk as we
walked through the campground. We saw several Pacific Loons on the Strait of
Georgia, but one of them was in full breeding plumage--it was a secular sight.
One lone Black Turnstone circled and landed near the shoreline. We watched a
Golden-crowned Kinglet and a Ruby-crowned Kinglet in the bushes next to us as
they moved about quickly, gleaning insects.
Thirteen birders saw and heard the following forty-one species of birds.
Canada Goose, American Wigeon, Mallard, Greater Scaup, Surf Scoter, White-winged
Scoter, Common Merganser, Red-breasted Merganser, Pacific Loon, Common Loon,
Horned Grebe, Red-necked Grebe, Double-crested Cormorant, Pelagic Cormorant,
Great Blue Heron, Bald Eagle, Merlin, Black Turnstone, Mew Gull, California
Gull, Thayer's Gull, Glaucous-winged Gull, Common Nighthawk, Northern Flicker,
Northwestern Crow, Common Raven, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Red-breasted
Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, Bewick's Wren, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Ruby-crowned
Kinglet, American Robin, Varied Thrush, European Starling, Cedar Waxwing,
Spotted Towhee, Song Sparrow, Golden-crowned Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, Purple
Finch and House Finch.

Monday October 18:
A Varied Thrush was spotted in the 2700 block of Neyland Road in Nanaimo.

For further information on these sightings or for help in identifying a bird
please
call The Backyard Wildbird and Nature Store
@ 250-390-3669
Toll Free @ 1-888-249-4145
e-mail: thebackyard@shaw.ca
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The Arrowsmith Naturalists meeting.
Speaker Elke Wind takes us into the world of amphibians with "Why did the Toad
Cross the Road?"
Monday, October 25th at 7.30 pm
at Springwood School.
Parksville.
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The Nanoose Naturalists meeting.
November 11th at 7 pm
at the Library on Northwest Bay Road.
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Everyone is welcome to join us for a 2-3 hour bird walk on the Sunday and
Tuesday mornings. We leave from the Store at 9 A.M. Sunday Mornings and go to a
different location in and around Nanaimo and from the Parksville Beach Community
Park at 9 A.M. on Tuesdays and go to different areas in and
around the Oceanside area.
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The Tuesday Bird Walk on October 26, 2010. will be going to Columbia Beach.
We will meet at the Parksville Beach Community Park, at the parking area in
front of the Lions Playground at 9 A.M. or at the parking area off Admiral
Tryon Blvd. (Turn onto Columbia Drive from Highway 19A, across from Windsor
Plywood. Turn right onto Admiral Tryon Blvd. & go about 100 yards-- turn left
to the parking area)
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The Sunday Bird Walk on October 31, 2010 will be going to Neck Point in Nanaimo
We will meet at The Backyard Bird Store at 9:00 A.M. or at the parking lot at
Neck Point off Hammond Bay Road.
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Good birding
Neil Robins

THE BACKYARD
Wildbird & Nature Store
6314 Metral Drive, Nanaimo, BC V9T 2L8
250.390.3669
250.390.1633 fax
thebackyard@shaw.ca
CHECK OUT OUR BLOG---> www.thebirdstore.blogspot.com

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