Delta Naturalists Society

Eight birders met in Blaine on Wednesday morning after the Tuesday outing 2023-05A had been cancelled by snow – Lorna, Pat, Jacquie, Mike, Dottie, Lindly, Lee and Terry. The rain had stopped after washing away most of the snow.

At Blaine Marine Park there were Northern Pintails and Green-winged Teal. On the pier we had close views of Common Goldeneye, Bufflehead and Surf and White-winged Scoters. The Scoters were swallowing fairly large clams. They swallow them whole, crushing them in their gizzard, which is filled with sand. The crushed shell is then regurgitated.

A group of Pelagic Cormorants was roosting in the usual spot, and Double-crested Cormorants were roosting farther out on the the rocky breakwater where their large nests were also visible. There were some Common Loons in the distance, but oddly we did not see any Grebes. Our usual walk through the marina only produced a few more Common Goldeneye. At the boat lauch there were more Northern Pintail, Green-winged Teal and two pair of Gadwall, along with a Killdeer.

On the drive along Drayton Harbor to Semiahmoo Spit, we saw many more ducks including 3 Long-tailed Ducks. At our usual stop on at the beginning of the spit, we added Harlequins to more Common Goldeneye, Bufflehead, and Surf and White-winged Scoters. On the other side of the road we had a group of Killdeer, and saw Canvasbacks in the distance.

As it was approaching one o’clock, our next stop was the marina cafe for soup. We then resumed birding along the east side of the spit where we saw Common Goldeneye, Bufflehead, Common Loons and Pied-billed Grebes. On the floating wharf were Double-crested Cormorants, Black Turnstones, Sanderling and Black Oystercatchers. On the walkaround to the resort we did not see the hoped-for species – Kingfisher and Long-tailed Ducks.

It was a very pleasant morning in one of our favorite birding spots.
Terry Carr

Photos on Flickr.

Lee’s eBird checklist.