Nanaimo bird report, November 25, 2012

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, November 25, 2012:

The Sunday bird walk went to Rathtrevor Provincial Park in Parksville. The morning was mostly sunny with calm winds. The highlights included hearing two flocks of Red Crossbills fly overhead. Over one hundred Black-bellied Plovers, Black Turnstones and Dunlin were in the mud flats not far from shore. Two Marbled Murrelets flew in giving us good views through the scope.

Ten birders saw and heard the following forty-four species:

Canada Goose, American Wigeon, Mallard, Harlequin Duck, Surf Scoter, Black Scoter, Bufflehead, Common Goldeneye, Common Merganser, Red-breasted Merganser, Pacific Loon, Common Loon, Long-tailed Duck, Red-necked Grebes, Horned Grebe, Double-crested Cormorant, Great Blue Heron, Bald Eagle, Red-tailed Hawk, Sharp-shinned Hawk,  Black-bellied Plover, Black Turnstone, Dunlin, Thayer’s Gull,  Mew Gull, California Gull, Glaucous-winged Gull, Marbled Murrelets,, Northern Flicker, Downey Woodpecker, Northwestern Crow, Common Raven, Anna’s Hummingbird, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Brown Creeper, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Pacific Wren, Bewick’s Wren, Varied Thrush, Spotted Towhee, Song Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, Red Crossbill and Purple Finch. 

A pair of American Goldfinch and a Hermit Thrush were seen in a backyard along Honeysuckle Terrace in Nanaimo. Saturday November 24:

“Rare bird alert-Citrine Wagtail”

Citrine Wagtail: Ralph Hocken photo.

 

The Citrine Wagtail is still being seen in Courtenay. 

The Directions to the specific location: From Courtenay, cross the 17th St bridge (Courtenay River). Turn right onto Comox Road (Dyke Rd) until the Pumping Station on the right hand side of the road. There is a dirt road across the road from the Pumping Station with a For Sale sign along side of it. Walk up that dirt road towards the steel chain blocking vehicle access. The Wagtail has been observed to the left of the steel chain. Please stay on the dirt track rather than going on the fields. 

The Citrine Wagtail is a small songbird that breeds in north central Asia and winters in South and Southeast Asia. Until now there have been no confirmed sightings of the bird in Canada and only one other in North America, when it was spotted in Mississippi in 1992. 

A Peregrine Falcon was seen and photographed by the parking lot at St. Andrews United Church in downtown Nanaimo.  

Thursday November 22:

A Northern Shrike was spotted chasing a Pine Siskin in a backyard along Meridian Way in Parksville.  

Tuesday, November 20:

The Tuesday bird walk went to Columbia Beach. The morning was cloudy with misty rain and a strong wind off the Strait of Georgia The tide was very high. Four Long-tailed Ducks, ten Brant, Surf Scoters and White-winged Scoters flew past just above the water heading down the Strait. Black-bellied Plovers, Black Oystercatchers, Dunlin and Black Turnstones were on the tideline close to shore on the high tide.

Black Oystercatcher: Ralph Hocken Photo.

 

Eight birders saw and heard the following thirty-four species.

Brant, Mallard, Surf Scoter , White-winged Scoter, Long-tailed Duck,
Bufflehead , Common Goldeneye, Common Merganser , Pacific Loon,
Common Loon, Horned Grebe, Red-necked Grebe, Double-crested Cormorant, Pelagic Cormorant, Bald Eagle, Black-bellied Plover, Black Oystercatcher, Dunlin, Black Turnstone, Mew Gull, Ring-billed Gull, Thayer's Gull, Glaucous-winged Gull , Eurasian-collared Dove , Northern Flicker, Northwestern Crow, Chestnut-backed Chickadee , American Robin,
Spotted Towhee, Fox Sparrow, Song Sparrow, White-crowned Sparrow,
Golden-crowned Sparrow  and Dark-eyed Junco. 

“ RareBird Alert- Citrine Wagtail”

The Citrine Wagtail is still being seen in Courtenay.

Birders from Parksville, Vancouver, Calgary, California and the Sunshine Coast found the bird in the grass. It was feeding in the grass just past some trees. The Wagtail was bobbing its tail continually and moving in the tall grass giving only quick views. 

The Citrine Wagtail is a small songbird that breeds in north central Asia and winters in South and Southeast Asia. Until now there have been no confirmed sightings of the bird in Canada and only one other in North America, when it was spotted in Mississippi in 1992. 

Directions to specific location: From Courtenay, cross the 17th St bridge (Courtenay River). Turn right onto Comox Road (Dyke Rd) until the Pumping Station on the right hand side of the road. There is a dirt road across the road with a For Sale sign on the left. Walk up the dirt road towards the steel chain blocking vehicle access. The Wagtail has been observed to the left of the steel chain. Please stay on the dirt track rather than going on the fields.  

Five Surfbirds was seen at Neck Point Park in Nanaimo. 

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Arrowsmith Naturalists Meeting

Arrowsmith Naturalists meet Monday, November 26th at 7.30pm at Knox United Church on Pym Road in Parksville.  Guest speaker will be Bruce Cousins  speaking on  "Purple Martins on Vancouver Island"

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 bird walk on November 27 will be going to the Little Qualicum  River Estuary. We will meet at Parksville Community Park at the parking lot near the Lions Playground at 9:00 A.M. or at the Viewing Platform near  Garrett Road about 9:20 A.M. ************************************************************************************ The Sunday Bird Walk on December 02, 2012 will be going to Neck Point in Nanaimo.  We will meet at the bird store at 9:00 a.m. or at the parking lot at Neck Point Park, off Hammond Bay Road in Nanaimo at about 9:15 A.M. ************************************************************************************* Christmas Bird Count - Lantzville (Nanoose estuary) and Nanoose Bay area – Friday December 14, 2012 Contact Rhys Harrison at rhysharrison@shaw.ca or phone (250) 248-5305 *********************************************************************************** Christmas Bird Count—Parksville/Qualicum Beach, December 16, 2012. Contact Sandra Gray at saninerr@shaw.ca or phone 250-248-5565   Christmas Bird Count----Nanaimo, December 30, 2012 Contact Ryan Cathers at ryancathers@yahoo.com or phone 250-714-3947.   Christmas Bird Count—Duncan, January 1,2013. Contact Derrick Marven at marven@shaw.ca or phone 250-758-8504 ************************************************************************************* Subject: "SeaBC" Sea Bird Count Event I'd like to encourage fellow birders to participate in this year's "SeaBC Sea Bird  Count." You can participate in November, December or January. Hitch a coastal or offshore ride with a sailing or fishing buddy, or count while chartering or taking a cruise. This citizen science project, in its second year, is organized by a group of nine long-distance birding sailors from around the world, including Wendy Clarke, Diana Doyle, Brenda Free, Yvonne Katchor, Beth Leonard,  Katharine Lowrie, Devi Sharp, Jeanne Socrates, and Dorothy Wadlow. Last year's inaugural count spanned 100º of latitude, from Maine to Antarctica. The Caribbean 1500, Baja Ha-Ha, Salty Dog Rally, Atlantic Rally for Cruisers ( ARC), Seven Seas Cruising Association, Island Cruising Association, Ocean Cruising Club, and many other organizations have adopted the project and helped spread the word to their fleets. This year we are encouraging participants to take digital photos of any seabirds. All data goes to Cornell Lab of Ornithology's eBird database (www.ebird.org). An instruction/tally sheet and additional information are available on the community page at Facebook.com/Birding.Aboard (under SeaBC/Resources), or  by direct PDF download at: http://tinyurl.com/SeaBC-TallySheet. Please join the count in any way you can and contribute much-needed information about pelagic birds! Diana Doyle m/v Semi-Local St. Augustine, Florida www.birdingaboard.org   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 *********************************************************