An hour at Holden Creek this morning was made considerably better than my recent evening visits, by simple virtue of having the bright morning sun behind me. Therefore I could actually the shorebirds reasonably well.
There were around 60 or so least sandpipers, a single western sandpiper and 3 semi-palmated sandpipers on the marsh.
3 killdeer were out there too, with the resident pair also in the adjacent fields.
Spotted sandpiper was still present, though no yellowlegs were to be seen.
2 American goldfinch were singing away. I couldn't find anything interesting among the teal.
Friday, 30 April 2010
Thursday, 29 April 2010
Spring limps on...
Another glorious morning with the wind from the wrong direction... Spent a pre-work hour wandering around the Nanaimo River estuary in search of, well, anything really.
Not too much doing, the usual white-crowned & savannah sparrows, yellow-rumped & orange-crowned warblers, towhees, red crossbills and such were in evidence but not much else.
A single greater yellowlegs flew over.
An American goldfinch was singing near the oak.
Stopped off at Holden Creek on my way home.
The tide was rising, but there was enough mud on the creek to interest a few least sandpipers and a spotted sandpiper. More 'peeps' (as our American birding chums, and certain UK twitchers insist on calling them) were out on the marsh, but the low sun behind them rendered them specifically unidentifiable, though those that got up and flew around calling were all leasts.
A greater yellowlegs was in attendance.
A pair of male brown-headed cowbirds were trying to woo a female (fem pictured), and engaging in some impressive moves. These are the first I've seen here, and are presumably new in.
Two males and a female purple martin joined the mass of barn, tree & violet-green swallows, from time to time, while smaller numbers of norther rough-winged and cliff swallows were also present. Another singing goldfinch was showing well and 12 white-fronted geese were back in the fields.
A female northern harrier was hunting over the fields too.
Not too much doing, the usual white-crowned & savannah sparrows, yellow-rumped & orange-crowned warblers, towhees, red crossbills and such were in evidence but not much else.
A single greater yellowlegs flew over.
An American goldfinch was singing near the oak.
The tide was rising, but there was enough mud on the creek to interest a few least sandpipers and a spotted sandpiper. More 'peeps' (as our American birding chums, and certain UK twitchers insist on calling them) were out on the marsh, but the low sun behind them rendered them specifically unidentifiable, though those that got up and flew around calling were all leasts.
A greater yellowlegs was in attendance.
A pair of male brown-headed cowbirds were trying to woo a female (fem pictured), and engaging in some impressive moves. These are the first I've seen here, and are presumably new in.
Two males and a female purple martin joined the mass of barn, tree & violet-green swallows, from time to time, while smaller numbers of norther rough-winged and cliff swallows were also present. Another singing goldfinch was showing well and 12 white-fronted geese were back in the fields.
A female northern harrier was hunting over the fields too.
Tuesday, 27 April 2010
Cinnamon teal twosome save the day
Had a troll around the Nanaimo River estuary for an hour and a bit this morning from 6.30am.
Sadly I didn't find any major rarities, despite my undying optimism, but it was good to be out early. A mini-fall of yellow-rumped warblers had obviously taken place, with at least 30 birds along the long hedge. No other warblers among them sadly, other than a handful of orange-crowned.
A peregrine was sat out on a stranded tree-stump.
A pair of male purple martins were mucking around (pic) and the female northern harrier was hunting over the marsh. A singing American goldfinch was by the big oak.
After work, I bobbed along to Holden Creek. The water levels were extremely high.
A pair of cinnamon teal were a very pleasant surprise. The spotted sandpiper was still present, as was a single greater yellowlegs. It took me a while to locate any small waders, they were feeding in the small muddy puddles in the farm fields. Again, the majority that I could see were least sandpipers, plus a handful of westerns.
A lone cackling goose was among the Canadas.
The local killdeer have at least three hatched young.
Driving round to the estuary along Gordon Road, I had a pileated woodpecker fly over and a pair of wood duck were in the wet area.
The estuary was busy with people, but a few birds were still around... 3 belted kingfisher were flying around and all the common hirundines were seen. Otherwise it was pretty uneventful.
A peregrine was sat out on a stranded tree-stump.
A pair of male purple martins were mucking around (pic) and the female northern harrier was hunting over the marsh. A singing American goldfinch was by the big oak.
After work, I bobbed along to Holden Creek. The water levels were extremely high.
A pair of cinnamon teal were a very pleasant surprise. The spotted sandpiper was still present, as was a single greater yellowlegs. It took me a while to locate any small waders, they were feeding in the small muddy puddles in the farm fields. Again, the majority that I could see were least sandpipers, plus a handful of westerns.
A lone cackling goose was among the Canadas.
The local killdeer have at least three hatched young.
Driving round to the estuary along Gordon Road, I had a pileated woodpecker fly over and a pair of wood duck were in the wet area.
The estuary was busy with people, but a few birds were still around... 3 belted kingfisher were flying around and all the common hirundines were seen. Otherwise it was pretty uneventful.
Monday, 26 April 2010
Up a creek...
The tide was well up and the creeks were mud-less, so the majority of shorebirds were out on the flashes. I counted approximately:
120 least sandpiper
12 western sandpiper
1 dunlin
2 greater yellowlegs
1 spotted sandpiper (pic)
There were still around 30 green-winged teal present, but other than a single feeding American pipit and a fly through female northern harrier, there wasn't much else doing.
Sunday, 25 April 2010
Super calidrids are fab, but lighting is atrocious
A quick late afternoon visit to Holden Creek revealed yet more waders - one group on the channel was made up of 14 least sandpiper & 1 western sandpiper.
Two greater yellowlegs were nearby, and another feeding flock of c20 calidrids was out on the flashes - the low sun made them tricky to say the least, though a couple of dunlin were identifiable amongst them. Later they joined the others on the channel, and they all appeared to be westerns, apart from the two dunlin.
I think it's going to get rather interesting (and bloody frustrating!) over the coming weeks...
Two greater yellowlegs were nearby, and another feeding flock of c20 calidrids was out on the flashes - the low sun made them tricky to say the least, though a couple of dunlin were identifiable amongst them. Later they joined the others on the channel, and they all appeared to be westerns, apart from the two dunlin.
I think it's going to get rather interesting (and bloody frustrating!) over the coming weeks...
Saturday, 24 April 2010
Not so quiet on the Western front
I really need to spread my wings, so to speak, if I'm gonna catch up with any other stuff than that which frequents the estuary - at this rate, I could go all year without seeing a whole bunch of island birds...
Anyhoo, off to the Nanaimo River estuary I trailed this morning, and despite a good scour around, I was unable to discover anything too exciting.
Highlights included watching a merlin mobbing the adult female northern harrier, and seeing another 4 purple martins (2m 2f) joining the other common swallows. Incidentally, all common species of hirundine were present, tree, barn, violet-green, northern rough-winged and cliff.
A group of 6 least sandpiper flew low over, heading toward the Holden Creek area.
8 white-fronted geese were seen flying back and forth a couple of times.
The mighty cock pheasant was singing his delightful song from the fields.
A check-in at Holden Creek was next, and things looked a bit bleak. A lone greater yellowlegs was still on the channel as were a pair of copulating killdeer. Then I noticed a small calidrid on the muddy edges of the creek. It was a lone western sandpiper - my first at this site, and hopefully the vanguard of more to come.
Before I went to gather Jenny from the world of Elvis costuming, I popped into Buttertubs Marsh for a quick peek. There were lots of yellow-rumped warblers around, all those seen were 'Myrtle'. Got great views of a couple of common yellowthroats too.
A pair of wood duck were kicking around.
Early evening, we took a wander around Hemer Park. Wildfowl included ring-necked duck, hooded mergs, bufflehead and 3 wood duck on the pool. 'Pacific' wrens were singing all over the forest, as were varied thrushes. We came across yet more YR warblers were in a large feeding group. Oh, and we came across a fine looking green frog.
Anyhoo, off to the Nanaimo River estuary I trailed this morning, and despite a good scour around, I was unable to discover anything too exciting.
Highlights included watching a merlin mobbing the adult female northern harrier, and seeing another 4 purple martins (2m 2f) joining the other common swallows. Incidentally, all common species of hirundine were present, tree, barn, violet-green, northern rough-winged and cliff.
A group of 6 least sandpiper flew low over, heading toward the Holden Creek area.
8 white-fronted geese were seen flying back and forth a couple of times.
The mighty cock pheasant was singing his delightful song from the fields.
Before I went to gather Jenny from the world of Elvis costuming, I popped into Buttertubs Marsh for a quick peek. There were lots of yellow-rumped warblers around, all those seen were 'Myrtle'. Got great views of a couple of common yellowthroats too.
A pair of wood duck were kicking around.
Early evening, we took a wander around Hemer Park. Wildfowl included ring-necked duck, hooded mergs, bufflehead and 3 wood duck on the pool. 'Pacific' wrens were singing all over the forest, as were varied thrushes. We came across yet more YR warblers were in a large feeding group. Oh, and we came across a fine looking green frog.
Friday, 23 April 2010
Nanaimo Delta blues
Had a wander around the estuary before heading into work this morning.
First bird of note was a Lincoln's sparrow near the big oak, but little else implied much in the way of fresh migrants until I found a female mountain bluebird in the fields.
A few yellow-rumped and orange-crowned warblers were working the hedge but it's hard to know whether they were new in - they weren't acting like newly arrived migrants.
An osprey passed over and did a bit of hovering out over the water and a peregrine zipped through.
Post-work, I returned to find even less. In fact, the only birds of note were a couple more Lincoln's sparrow, a merlin and an impressive flock of 136 common merganser on the river. 2 northern harrier were doing the rounds. Oh, and a MEGA on my way out - a collared dove was on the wires along Raines Road... yippee-doo. That's almost as good as pheasant.
Went to Holden Creek, just in case... The 12 white-fronted geese had multiplied and become 14. A single greater yellowlegs was feeding on the flashes and 4 least sandpiper were on the creek. One of the harriers came over, but it was pretty quiet otherwise.
Yesterday evening, I'd popped over to Quennell Lake, but it was fairly birdless: 1 pair shoveler, pair of wood duck, pair pied-billed grebe, ring-necked ducks, pintails, all the common swallows etc.
Holden Creek was quietish - a 'new' spotted sandpiper was present, as were Rich Mooney and Mike Ashbee. First time I've seen any other birders at Holden Creek!
First bird of note was a Lincoln's sparrow near the big oak, but little else implied much in the way of fresh migrants until I found a female mountain bluebird in the fields.
A few yellow-rumped and orange-crowned warblers were working the hedge but it's hard to know whether they were new in - they weren't acting like newly arrived migrants.
An osprey passed over and did a bit of hovering out over the water and a peregrine zipped through.
Post-work, I returned to find even less. In fact, the only birds of note were a couple more Lincoln's sparrow, a merlin and an impressive flock of 136 common merganser on the river. 2 northern harrier were doing the rounds. Oh, and a MEGA on my way out - a collared dove was on the wires along Raines Road... yippee-doo. That's almost as good as pheasant.
Went to Holden Creek, just in case... The 12 white-fronted geese had multiplied and become 14. A single greater yellowlegs was feeding on the flashes and 4 least sandpiper were on the creek. One of the harriers came over, but it was pretty quiet otherwise.
Yesterday evening, I'd popped over to Quennell Lake, but it was fairly birdless: 1 pair shoveler, pair of wood duck, pair pied-billed grebe, ring-necked ducks, pintails, all the common swallows etc.
Holden Creek was quietish - a 'new' spotted sandpiper was present, as were Rich Mooney and Mike Ashbee. First time I've seen any other birders at Holden Creek!
Wednesday, 21 April 2010
Going for Gold
A female northern harrier was over the marsh and a group of 12 white-fronted geese flew in from the estuary mouth toward Holden Creek - presumably the same birds as have been there for a few days.
A lone western meadowlark was kicking around, and showed well.
A quick blast round to Holden Creek was pretty unremarkable. Another male goldfinch was here (pic), but not much else. 2 greater yellowlegs were feeding out on the marsh flashes and yep, those white-fronts were back grazing in the field.
Tuesday, 20 April 2010
More martins
Despite the unhelpful wind-direction, the overnight rain inspired me enough to pay a pre-work visit to the Nanaimo River estuary this morning.
4 California quail were along Raines Road.
There seemed to have been a bit of a fall of yellow-rumped warblers, with around 20 birds in the area. The majority were males and, surprisingly, all but 3 were 'Myrtles'. A handful of orange-crowned warblers were also flitting around.
Good numbers of tree and violet-green swallows were zipping about, and a pair of purple martin flew through. They landed briefly on a telegraph pole by the parking area (see pic).
The adult female northern harrier was hunting over the marsh.
Just 1 greater yellowlegs was on the river.
A single western meadowlark was feeding in the long grass by the big oak.
Other birds seen included belted kingfisher, red crossbill, pine siskin, golden-crowned & white-crowned sparrows and such...
I made a post-work visit to Holden Creek. Tell you what, it was hard to believe standing there in the chilly evening breeze, that it was 20c at the same time yesterday!
A female American kestrel was in one of the dead tress near the farm. Nearby, the 12 white-fronted geese were still present.
On the creek, 3 greater yellowlegs and a Wilson's snipe were the only representatives of the wader clan, with the exception of the resident killdeer.
4 California quail were along Raines Road.
There seemed to have been a bit of a fall of yellow-rumped warblers, with around 20 birds in the area. The majority were males and, surprisingly, all but 3 were 'Myrtles'. A handful of orange-crowned warblers were also flitting around.
The adult female northern harrier was hunting over the marsh.
Just 1 greater yellowlegs was on the river.
A single western meadowlark was feeding in the long grass by the big oak.
Other birds seen included belted kingfisher, red crossbill, pine siskin, golden-crowned & white-crowned sparrows and such...
I made a post-work visit to Holden Creek. Tell you what, it was hard to believe standing there in the chilly evening breeze, that it was 20c at the same time yesterday!
A female American kestrel was in one of the dead tress near the farm. Nearby, the 12 white-fronted geese were still present.
On the creek, 3 greater yellowlegs and a Wilson's snipe were the only representatives of the wader clan, with the exception of the resident killdeer.
Monday, 19 April 2010
At long last, leasts!
Quick dash round the patch this evening - pretty quiet at the Nanaimo River estuary. The highlight was seeing the adult female and immature northern harrier hunting together over the marsh.
No swallows at all, or yellowlegs.
Headed round to Holden Creek, trying to beat the rain. A pair of greater yellowlegs were on the sluiced channel, and a further 3 were on the main creek. 3 killdeer were kicking around, and the nesting red-tailed hawks provided some entertainment as they saw off an interloper, of the same species. The dozen white-fronted geese were still grazing in the fields alongside their Canadian cousins.
Then, a little cloud of around 20 waders appeared, and once they eventually settled on the creek edge I could see that they were least sandpipers. At last, a bit of wader movement - hopefully this is the start of a spell of interesting passage...
No swallows at all, or yellowlegs.
Headed round to Holden Creek, trying to beat the rain. A pair of greater yellowlegs were on the sluiced channel, and a further 3 were on the main creek. 3 killdeer were kicking around, and the nesting red-tailed hawks provided some entertainment as they saw off an interloper, of the same species. The dozen white-fronted geese were still grazing in the fields alongside their Canadian cousins.
Then, a little cloud of around 20 waders appeared, and once they eventually settled on the creek edge I could see that they were least sandpipers. At last, a bit of wader movement - hopefully this is the start of a spell of interesting passage...
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