Parksville/Qualicum Beach Tuesday bird walk, December 01, 2015

The Tuesday bird walk went to Columbia Beach. The morning was cloudy with very strong cool winds from the south side of the Strait of Georgia. We saw Surf Scoters, White-winged Scoters, Black Scoters Long-tailed Ducks, Red-breasted Mergansers, Bufflehead and Common Goldeneye riding the wild surf on the water. Large numbers of Canada Geese, Mallard, American Widgeon and a Eurasian Widgeon were seen on the flooded French Creek. We watched as a big flock of House Finch rested and fed from a short berry bush close to the trail.


Eurasian Widgeon: Ralph Hocken Photo.
 

Thirteen birders saw and heard the following forty-nine species:

Canada Geese

Mallard

Harlequin Duck

American Widgeon

Eurasian Widgeon

Greater Scaup

Surf Scoter

White-winged Scoter

Black Scoter

Long-tailed Duck

Bufflehead

Common Goldeneye

Common Merganser

Red-breasted Merganser

Pacific Loon

Common Loon

Horned Grebe

Red-necked Grebe

Marbled Murrelet

Common Murre

Double-crested Cormorant

Brandt’s Cormorant

Pelagic Cormorant

Bald Eagle

Black Oystercatcher

Killdeer

Black Turnstone

Belted Kingfisher

Mew Gull

Thayer's Gull

California Gull

Glaucous-winged Gull

Northern Flicker

Steller’s Jay

Rock Dove

Northwestern Crow

Common Raven

American Robin

Chestnut-backed Chickadee

Golden-crowned Kinglet

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Anna’s Hummingbird

Spotted Towhee

Song Sparrow

Golden-crowned Sparrow

Dark-eyed Junco

House Finch

Pine Siskin

House Sparrow

                                                                House Finch: Ralph Hocken Photo.

The Tuesday bird walk on December 08, will be going to the Shelly Road side of Englishman River in Parksville. Meet at the Parksville Community Park at the parking lot near the Lions Kids playground at  9:00 a.m. or at the end of Shelly Road on the ocean side of Highway 19a  at about 9:05 a.m. 

Good birding

Neil Robins

Parksville

www.thebirdstore.blogspot.co