Black Scoter: Ralph Hocken Photo.
NANAIMO BIRD REPORT
" GO BIRDING--EXPLORE NATURE"
Please remember, when reporting a sighting to leave your name and phone
number along with the date, the species and location of your sighting.
To report your sightings phone the Store at 250-390-3669 or e-mail us at
thebackyard@shaw.ca
Sunday March 11: 2012:
The Sunday bird walk went to the Little Qualicum River Estuary in Qualicum
Beach. The morning had showers with a strong wind but there were a few
sunny periods. There had been a Herring Spawn earlier on this week and the
highlight of the morning was seeing thousands upon thousands of Gulls along
the shore and gravel bars. Violet-green Swallows, the first of the year,
flew over the Little Qualicum River Estuary giving us great views.
Fifteen birders saw and heard the following forty species of birds: Canada
Goose, Brant , Trumpeter Swan, Mallard, Northern Pintail, Greater Scaup,
Harlequin Duck, Green-winged Teal, Surf Scoter, White-winged Scoter, Black
Scoter, Long-tailed Duck, Bufflehead, Common Goldeneye, Common Merganser,
Red-breasted Merganser, Pacific Loon, Common Loon, Horned Grebe, Great Blue
Heron, Bald Eagle, Merlin, Wilson's Snipe, Black Oystercatcher, Killdeer,
Mew Gull, California Gull, Western Gull, Thayer's Gull, Glaucous-winged
Gull, Common Murre, Belted Kingfisher, Northern Flicker, Northwestern Crow,
Common Raven, Violet-green Swallow, American Robin, European Starling,
Spotted Towhee, Red-winged Blackbird.
Saturday March 10:
A report of The Nanaimo Museum's Urban Bird Tour:
I just wanted to report in on the birds that we saw during the museums'
urban bird tour. We walked from the museum downtown along the water front,
up the Millstone to the German cultural club near the E&N rail line.
highlights included seeing a Yellow-billed Loon making dive after dive and
both local Golden-eyes within minutes of each other giving us the
opportunity to compare the different field marks.
Twelve birders saw and heard the following twenty-two species:
belted kingfisher,
glaucous-winged gull,
california gull
yellow-billed loon
common golden-eye
barrow's golden-eye
double crested cormorant
golden crowned kinglet
chestnut backed chick-a-dee
bush tits
spotted towhee
mallard
american widgeon
rock dove
northwest crow
bald eagle
bewick's wren
common merganser
canada goose
bufflehead
house sparrow
american robin
cheers,
kevin storey
A Mourning Dove was seen at Stephenson Point in Nanaimo.
Friday, March 09:
Two Turkey Vultures were seen over Nanaimo Lakes Road and Highway 19 in
Nanaimo.
Two Barred Owls were heard calling at Colliery Dam Park in Nanaimo.
Thursday, March 08:
"Rare bird alert- Swamp Sparrow"
A Swamp Sparrow and two Yellow-rumped Warblers were seen on the bushes near
Morningstar Ponds at French Creek.
A Violet-green Swallow was seen above Buttertubs Marsh in Nanaimo.
Twenty-five Snowy Owls were seen at Boundary Bay on the lower Mainland.
Tuesday, March 07:
The Tuesday bird walk went to Rathtrevor Provincial Park in Parksville. The
morning was clear and sunny but cool, with a strong wind. At the start of
the walk, a Merlin flew over us, calling as it disappeared over the tall
trees. Other highlights included seeing large numbers of Dunlin feeding near
the tide line and moving in well choreographed clouds as they moved along
the shoreline. Over two hundred Brant were just offshore. Several large
rafts of Gulls were in a feeding frenzy further offshore.
Nineteen birders saw and heard the following thirty-three species:
Brant, American Wigeon, Mallard, Greater Scaup, Surf Scoter, White-winged
Scoter, Black Scoter, Long-tailed Duck, Bufflehead, Common Goldeneye,
Red-breasted Merganser, Common Loon, Red-necked Grebe, Double-crested
Cormorant, Bald Eagle, Merlin, Black-bellied Plover, Black Turnstone,
Dunlin, Mew Gull, California Gull, Herring Gull, Thayer's Gull,
Glaucous-winged Gull, Northern Flicker, Northwestern Crow, Common Raven,
Bewick's Wren, Pacific Wren, American Robin, Spotted Towhee, Song Sparrow
and Dark-eyed Junco.
A Turkey Vulture was spotted above Northwest Bay Road and Claudet Road in
Nanoose Bay.
**************************************************************************************
Nanoose Field Naturalists Meeting.
Thursday, March 08, 7 pm in the Library on Northwest Bay Road.
Guest Speaker-- Randy Hall will give a slide presentation and talk on
"Nature Photography - how to get the best out of you camera". Visitors and
new members welcome. nanoosenaturalists.org
************************************************************************************
Arrowsmith Naturalists Meeting,
Monday March 26, 7:30P.P.M. Springwood School, Parksville.
Presenters will be "The Guardians of the Mid-Island Estuaries (Tim Clermont,
Danielle Morrison, and John Cooper)
*************************************************************************************
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.
************************************************************************************
The Tuesday Birdwalk on March 13, 2012 will go to Columbia Beach. We will
meet at Parksville Bay at the Lion's Playground parking area in Parksville
at 9:00 a.m. or at the parking area off Admiral Tryon Blvd.at about 9:15a.m.
***************************************************
The Sunday Bird Walk on March 18 will be going to Neck Point Park in
Nanaimo. We will meet at the Birdstore at 9:00 A.M. or at the parking lot at
Neck Point Park off Hammond bay Road at about 9:20 a.m.
*********************************************************
Good birding
Neil Robins
THE BACKYARD Wildbird & Nature Store
6314 Metral Drive, Nanaimo, BC V9T 2L8
250-390-3669
thebackyard@shaw.ca
CHECK OUT OUR BLOG---> www.thebirdstore.blogspot.com
Nanaimo Museum Presents: Our Feathered Friends
Why are feathers important to understanding birds? Why do some remain close
to home year-round and others migrate for thousands of kilometres? Answers
to these questions are an integral part of Our Feathered Friends, a
travelling exhibition from Ottawa's Canadian Museum of Nature. The
exhibition 'takes flight' at the Nanaimo Museum, from February 3 to May 21,
2012 and is suitable for all ages.
The exhibition's display units and graphics provide an introduction to birds
and birdwatching. "Visitors' skill when identifying local birds will be
enhanced via the exceptional photography of Ralph Hocken and study specimens
loaned from VIU's Museum of Natural History, "said curator David
Hill-Turner. "Novice birders will find the exhibition and programs very
helpful in learning more about the hobby".
Public Programs offered as part of the exhibition will appeal to various
birding interests. They include: a photography contest, Urban Bird tours,
birding and nature photography presentations and ecology programs for
Elementary School students. (Visit our website for full details,
www.nanaimomuseum.ca or contact Aimee Greenaway at 250.753.1821)
Come along to the workshops and demonstrations, try your hand at the
oriental art of Origami and even learn to prepare a meal for your favourite
backyard bird. Using photos, specimens and video, learn what makes birds
special, how they soar and glide and how to identify them. More than 400
species of birds have been identified in BC, more than any other province in
Canada.
Whether you are an indoor or outdoor birdwatcher you will find something of
interest in this traveling exhibit, Our Feathered Friends at Nanaimo Museum.
This exhibition is sponsored by THE BACKYARD Wildbird and Nature Store.
No comments:
Post a Comment