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 here by 8am the day of the walk. Our first bird walks of the year are going out on Sunday February 4th and Tuesday February 6th. Locations will be posted to our next Bird Report.

Sunday 10 November 2013

NANAIMO BIRD REPORT" EXPLORE NATURE-GO BIRDING" 

To report your sightings phone the Store at 250-390-3669 or e-mail us at thebackyard@shaw.ca.. 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, November 10, 2013: 
The Sunday bird walk went to Buttertubs Marsh in Nanaimo. The morning was Cloudy and cool and mostly calm winds.  We spotted a large mixed flock of  Bushtits, Golden-crowned Kinglets, Ruby-crowned Kinglets and Chestnut-backed Chickadees high up in the oak trees.  Six Gadwall and ten Hooded Mergansers were on the marsh.

Hooded Merganser: Ralph Hocken Photo
Twelve birders saw and heard the following forty-one species:
Trumpeter Swans,  Canada Geese,  Mallard,  Hooded Merganser,   American Widgeon,  Gadwall,  Bufflehead,  Wood Duck,   Ringed-necked Duck,  American Coot,  Pied-billed Grebe,  Bald Eagle,  Cooper’s  Hawk,  Red-tailed Hawk,  Merlin,  Great Blue Heron,  Glaucous-winged Gull,  Northern Flicker, Downy Woodpecker, Rock Pigeon,  American Robin, Anna’s Hummingbird,  Bushtits,  Golden-crowned Kinglet, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Brown Creeper, Chestnut-backed Chickadee,  Steller’s Jay, Northwestern Crow,  Common Raven,  Marsh Wren,  Bewick’s Wren, Spotted Towhee, Song Sparrow,Golden-crowned Sparrow, Red-winged Blackbird, Brewer’s Blackbird, Dark-eyed Junco, House Finch, American Goldfinch and House Sparrow. 

Saturday, November 09:
A pair of Ruddy Ducks, a Greater White-fronted Goose, and seventy Trumpeter Swans were seen at Quennel Lake in Cedar. 

Three American Black Ducks,  Canada Geese, Greater White-fronted Geese, four Cackling geese and a Red-tailed Hawk were seen near Doole Road  in Cedar. 

Four Northern Shrike and two Wilson’s Snipe were seen at the Nanaimo River Estuary in south Nanaimo. 

Thursday, November 07:  
A Mourning Dove was spotted at Piper’s Lagoon in Nanaimo. 

Tuesday, November 05: 
The Tuesday bird walk went to Deep Bay. The morning was cloudy with calm winds and the water was like a glass mirror. The surprise of the morning was the sighting of a Surfbird feeding in with a mixed flock of Dunlin, Black Turnstones and Black-bellied Plovers on the near shore. We spotted a flock of over two hundred Dunlin on the far shore away from the Marina. We saw large rafts of Harlequin Ducks, Surf Scoters, White-winged Scoters, Black Scoters, Long-tailed Ducks and Bufflehead throughout the morning. 
                                Black Scoter: Ralph Hocken Photo
Ten birders saw and heard the following fifty-two species:
Trumpeter Swan, Canada Geese, American Widgeon, Mallard, Harlequin Duck, Surf Scoter, White-winged Scoter, Black Scoter, Long-tailed Duck, Bufflehead, Common Merganser, Red-breasted Merganser, Pacific Loon, Common Loon, Red-necked Grebe, Horned Grebe, Western Grebe, Brandt’s Cormorant, Pelagic Cormorant, Double-crested Cormorant, Great Blue Heron, Bald Eagle, Merlin, Dunlin, Black Turnstone, Surfbird, Killdeer, Black-bellied Plover, Black Oystercatcher, Mew Gull, Bonaparte’s Gull, California Gull, Thayer's Gull, Glaucous-winged Gull, Marbled Murrelet, Rock Pigeon, Northwestern Crow, Common Raven, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Pacific Wren, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, American Robin, European Starling, Spotted Towhee, Song Sparrow, White-crowned Sparrow, Golden-crowned Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, Red-winged Blackbird, House Finch and Purple Finch .  

Sunday, November 03:
Forty-five juvenile Snow Geese landed in a field next to McCoy lake on the outskirts of Port Alberni.  

Thursday, November 14:
The Nanoose Naturalists meeting will be held at 7 pm at the Nanoose Library Hall.
Guest speaker will be John Neville and he will talk about the Raptors of
Canada.

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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 November 12 will be going to Rathtrevor Provincial park in Parksville. Meet at the Parksville Community Park at the parking lot near the Lions Club playground at 9:00 am or at the main parking lot at Rathtrevor Park about 9:10 am.

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The Sunday Bird Walk on November 17 will be going to the Shelly Road side of the Englishman River Estuary in Parksville. Meet at the birdstore at 9:00 am or at the end of Shelly Road on the ocean side of Highway 19a at about 9:25 am.

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British Columbia rare bird alert link---

 http://www.bcbirdalert.blogspot.ca/  

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WildResearch link---

http://www.wildresearch.ca/

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The 2013 data report for the banding project at Buttertubs West Marsh is available at the following link:

http://web.viu.ca/demerse/birds/VIU_Banding_Report_2013.pdf

The report highlights songbird and owl banding, swallow nest box monitoring, volunteer effort and training, and public demonstrations and education.

Let me know if you have any questions, or would like to find out more about our results.

Thanks again to everyone.

Enjoy!

Eric Demers

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Good birding

Neil Robins

 

THE BACKYARD WILDBIRD & NATURE STORE

6314 Metral Drive

Nanaimo B.C.

V9T-2L8

Phone: 250-390-3669 

Fax: 250-390-1633

Email:  thebackyard@shaw.ca

Blog:  www.thebirdstore.blogspot.com

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