Parksville/Qualicum Beach Tuesday bird walk, march 06, 2018

The Tuesday bird walk went to the Plummer Road side of the Englishman River Estuary in Parksville.  The morning was cloudy with a calm wind off the Strait of Georgia—the feel of spring is in the air!  A Northern Shrike watched us from a short tree.  Three Gadwall were seen along the river.  The Strait of Georgia was covered with millions of birds! The herring spawn was in full force with thousands and thousands of Mew Gulls, Iceland Gulls, California Gulls and Glaucous-winged Gulls on the gravel bars in the estuary and on the Strait.  A Bald Eagle flew over the gulls and they  lifted and covered the sky in flight. Many flocks of Brant Geese flew down the Strait during the walk.  Very large rafts of Surf Scoters, White-winged Scoters, Greater Scaup and Lesser Scaup stretched for a long distance from the estuary into the Strait.  An Eurasian Wigeon was spotted in with a small flock of  American Wigeon just off shore.  Five Orcas( Killer Whales) put on a great show us for a very long time. It was a whale of a bird walk!  A huge flock of Common Redpolls flew overhead at the end of the walk and landed in a tree giving us a great views.

Greater Scaup: Ralph Hocken Photo.

Thirty-two birders including visiting birders from Ottawa, Saskatoon and Inverness  saw and heard the following fifty-eight species:

 Canada Goose
Brant
Gadwall
Eurasian Wigeon

American Wigeon
Mallard
Harlequin Duck

Northern Pintail
Green-winged Teal
Surf Scoter
White-winged Scoter
Black Scoter

Long-tailed Duck
Greater Scaup

Lesser Scaup

Bufflehead
Common Goldeneye
Barrow's Goldeneye
Common Merganser
Red-breasted Merganser
Pacific Loon
Common Loon
Horned Grebe
Red-necked Grebe
Brandt’s Cormorant

Double-crested Cormorant
Pelagic Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
Northern Shrike

Black Oystercatcher
Dunlin
Mew Gull
Iceland-Thayer's Gull
California Gull
Herring Gull

Glaucous-winged Gull
Common Murre
Rufous Hummingbird

Anna's Hummingbird
Belted Kingfisher
Northern Flicker
Downy Woodpecker

                                                           Pileated Woodpecker

Northwestern Crow
Common Raven
Chestnut-backed Chickadee
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Brown Creeper

Pacific Wren

Bewick’s Wren

American Robin
European Starling
Spotted Towhee
Song Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
House Finch 

Common Redpoll

Surf Scoters: Ralph Hocken Photo:

Please Note

Check this site (www.thebirdstore.blogspot.com)early Tuesday and Sunday on stormy mornings to see if the walks have been cancelled!

The Tuesday Bird Walk on March 13, 2018 will be going to Rathtrevor Beach Provincial park in Parksville.. Meet at the Parksville Community Park (near the Lions Club playground parking lot) in Parksville at 9:00 am, or at the main parking lot at Rathtrevor Park about 9:10 am.

Good birding

Neil Robins 

THE BACKYARD WILDBIRD & NATURE STORE

314 Metral Drive

Nanaimo B.C.
V9T-2L8

Phone: 250-390-3669

Fax: 250-390-1633

Email: thebackyard@shaw.ca

Blog: www.thebirdstore.blogspot.com