Loons and Tunes

Only found time to stop off at Clover Point for a quick look late afternoon today. The water was pretty calm, and although the low hazy sun was making very distant birds little more than silhouettes, things were reasonably easy to see and identify.
Various auks were scattered around; pigeon guillemots, rhinoceros auklets and common murres in varying numbers.

A single marbled murrelet was seen and a common loon was fishing reasonably close inshore (pictured).
Few gulls were around, the majority now being mew gulls. A few California and glaucous-winged were loafing around, and just 3 Heermann's gulls were in the area. Following the mini-influx of Thayer's earlier in the week, there were none seen today.
Shorebirds wise, it was pretty dull - just 9 black turnstone and 2 surfbirds.
A single savannah sparrow was rummaging around, as were a couple of resident song sparrows. 
5 harlequin ducks were paddling around and in Ross Bay, 8 surf scoter were present, as usual.

REMember The Good Bits

On a less avian note - news came through today that REM have split up. While many readers of this blog won't give a toss about that, I have been rather fond of the band for many years. It may be the case that their more recent work was a pale imitation of their earlier recordings, but nonetheless I shall honour them by sharing this, the most birdy of their songs (well it mentions swans and hummingbirds... what else do you want?). Incidentally, my blog title of a couple of days ago 'Fall On Me' was a timely reference to another REM song. Prescient or what?! Now, maybe I should choose a Nickelback song for my next post, and just keep my fingers crossed...