Parksville/Qualicum Beach Tuesday bird walk, May 15,2012

Yellow Warbler: Ralph Hocken Photo. **************************************************************************************** A special goodbye to Marion and Peter Coxon, who after spending five months on the Island have returned to Australia. It has been been memorable having you spent time with us and a pleasure visiting and birding with you. ************************************************************************************** The Tuesday bird walk went to the Plummer Road side of the Englishman River in Parksville. The morning was mostly sunny with a brisk wind. We heard and then saw a first of the year Yellow Warbler just off the trail. There were several Orange-crowned Warblers singing from perches in the low bushes. We had great views of three Semipalmated Plovers feeding on the low tide mud flats with a Killdeer. The male Common Mergansers were in stunning breeding plumage as they raced up the river just in front of us. A Northern Rough-winged Swallow put in a brief appearance over the river. ******************************************************************************* Fifteen birders saw and heard the following forty-species: Canada Goose Brant Harlequin Duck Surf Scoter Common Merganser Red-breasted Merganser Pacific Loon Bald Eagle Semipalmated Plover Killdeer Spotted Sandpiper Mew Gull California Gull Glaucous-winged Gull Pigeon Guillemot Eurasian-collared Dove Rufous Hummingbird Belted Kingfisher Northern Flicker Warbling Vireo Northwestern Crow Common Raven Violet-green Swallow Northern Rough-winged Swallow Chestnut-backed Chickadee Red-breasted Nuthatch Bewick's Wren Ruby-crowned Kinglet American Robin European Starling Orange-crowned Warbler Yellow Warbler Wilson's Warbler Spotted Towhee Savannah Sparrow Song Sparrow White-crowned Sparrow Golden-crowned Sparrow Brown-headed Cowbird American Goldfinch ******************************************************************************* Good birding Neil Robins Parksville British Columbia