The sky was pregnant with the promise of rain (and actual rain) when seven brave, weather-defiant birders arrived at Blackie Spit – Brian, Louise, Jonathan, Lorraine, Margaret, Terry, and Thea. And right when I was doubting my decision to drive 40 minutes only to spend three hours in the rain, I spotted a flotilla of Eurasian Wigeon (with a pair of American Wigeon thrown in) at the start of the parking lot right at the end of McBride Avenue. Being relatively new to seeing them, I considered it an auspicious start.
Perched on the fencing at the outset of the spit were Glaucous-winged Gulls and a Ring-billed Gull, and I saw a Short-billed Gull fly over with its distinctly unmarked (and short) yellow beak and dark wing tips. Then, with a respite in the rain, we struck out along the spit, seeing Common Loons, Horned Grebes, Buffleheads, a female Common Goldeneye, and three Lesser Scaup (judging by the slope of the forehead). A triad of Northern Shovelers flew overhead, their heavy beaks unmistakable in silhouette against the grey sky.
While we were birding, we were followed by a small flock of Rock Doves, as well as the usual rabble-rousing American Crows. Flocks of small shorebirds, which we determined to be Dunlin, flew overhead and settled on a sandbar in the distance. Two stately American Bald Eagles perched sentry on a large winter-bare tree nearby and flocks of Green-winged Teal lined the spit, dabbling in the shallows.
Scouring the shore, we spotted a lone Black-bellied Plover, which prompted Terry to rush off for the club scope. But then the damn thing ghosted us and we didn’t see it again. The final two birds we saw along the spit before striking inland were Greater Yellowlegs and a Great Blue Heron.
As we made our way along the bush and tree-lined pathways, we started seeing more passerines, including Black-capped Chickadees, European Starlings, and Red-winged Blackbirds. American Robins and Northern Flickers were particularly numerous, soggy-looking, and chirpy considering the weather, which, by now, was actually pelting us with rain.
Not far from the large tree in which the two Bald Eagles were perched, we came upon the corpse of a Double-crested Cormorant, at which point I turned to ask Terry if we could add it to the list. (I figured that even if your soul has departed, you still count. And so it made the list.)
Then we struck gold with a particular bush, which was alive with House Finches, White-crowned Sparrows, Golden-crowned Sparrows, Song Sparrows, and a Fox Sparrow flitting in and out of the branches and scuffling through the leaf-littered dirt. We also saw a lone Dark-eyed Junco, several Spotted Towhees, a Downy Woodpecker, and Anna’s Hummingbirds. And a Cooper’s Hawk flew over.
Along the marshy tributaries, there were abundant Green-winged Teal, pairs of Mallards, a cluster of Great Blue Herons, and a lone bird-watcher called Bryan who joined us. We then took a detour through the community gardens, hoping to add some interesting garden birds to the list, but were only rewarded with a single Steller’s Jay and a scraggly bushel of Brussel sprouts. I’ll take it. We also spotted a mystery raptor, which we think was a juvenile Red-tailed Hawk but didn’t get decent-enough photos of it to tell for sure.
We concluded our walk by checking out the Crescent Beach pier, which jutted out into deeper water. Colin and Stephanie joined us on the pier. Here, we were treated to a raft of Surf Scoters and White-winged Scoters, as well as a Common Loon that was so close, we got an exceptional view of its handsome, almost-summer plumage. On my walk back to the car, I saw a male Scaup with a rounded-enough head to make me think it was a Greater Scaup but I couldn’t be sure.
Terry took one last swing at the spit before we departed and saw three Marbled Godwits, which made me wince at my decision to not join him. Brian, Louise, Colin. Stephanie and Bryan did join him.
Terry, Colin, Stephanie and Bryan carried onto White Rock pier where they reported distant sightings of Scoters, Loons, and Long-tailed Ducks. There was also the first Northern Pintail of the day.
Thea Beckman
Photos on flickr
Delta Naturalists Society 
Leave a comment