PHOTO: Cinnamon Teal by Grant Edwards…..
Under cloudy but very acceptable spring weather, three Delta Nats met to do the big loop trail through Serpentine Fen. Present were Bruce, Susan G. and Grant.
A few Yellow-rumped Warblers greeted us in the trees along the river. The descending whinny call of a Sora grabbed our attention, but as expected we could not see it. Several male Common Yellowthroats were singing and flitting in the trailside bushes, and we did get several good looks. A couple of Marsh Wrens also popped up onto bulrushes and were seen gathering nesting material. Further along we scoped the south-east ponds and were delighted to find a male Cinnamon Teal! By the swallow boxes we noticed many females laying on top waiting for a male to swoop down and mate with them. It was obviously Mate the Forth today! (apologies to any Star Wars fans)
Along the southern trail we scoped hundreds of American Wigeon in the fields, with a few Mallards, Canada Geese, Northern Pintails and Northern Shovelers mixed in. In the Oak trees a large flock of Yellow-rumped Warblers of both Audubon and Myrtle subspecies were observed. A few Orange-crowned Warblers were feeding in the lower shrubs.
At the ponds in North-west corner, the usual suspects were seen including Northern Shovelers, American Coots, Green-winged Teal and many very noisy Red-winged Blackbirds. Another large flock of Yellow-rumped Warblers were in the row of Cedars. A few Brown-headed Cowbirds perched nearby. As we walked past the northern end of the ponds an interesting duck caught our attention. Another male Cinnamon Teal! This one was out of the water and preening so we could observe its fantastic feathers and its orange feet (!) which was a first for all of us to see.
Walking the northern trail along with Serpentine River, the highlights seen on the river were a male Common Merganser, a male Red-breasted Merganser and a Belted Kingfisher sporting a fish. The Kingfisher wacked the fish against the branch of its perch to ensure it was good and dead. We then scoped the ponds we could see along this trail and to our surprise a pair of Ruddy Ducks were spotted! The male was well into breeding plumage with a lovely blue bill! It seems late for them to be hanging around the lower mainland and we speculated if they might just stay for the summer.
We went up the observation tower with hopes of getting some views of the Great Blue Heron rookery. A few nests could be seen but many more were tucked in the trees out of sight. We enjoyed watching the Herons coming and going and hearing the constant chatter of the rookery. Then Susan announced she had spotted a Buddha Bird – what, never heard of such a thing! Turns out someone has placed a white porcelain Buddha statue in the grass by the river.
Our leisurely stroll (three plus hours!) of the Serpentine Fen came to an end, with a productive tally of 39 species. The bird of the day was the male Ruddy Duck and its fabulous blue bill. The Cinnamon Teals and Sora were close runners up.
Species list: Canada Goose, Cinnamon Teal, Northern Shoveler, Gadwall, American Wigeon, Mallard, Northern Pintail, Green-winged Teal, Greater Scaup, Common Merganser, Red-breasted Merganser, Ruddy Duck, Rock Pigeon, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Anna’s Hummingbird, Rufous Hummingbird, Sora, American Coot, Killdeer, Whimbrel, Ring-billed Gull, Double-crested Cormorant, Great-Blue Heron, Belted Kingfisher, American Crow, Tree Swallow, Barn Swallow, Marsh Wren, Bewick’s Wren, American Robin, White-crowned Sparrow, Savannah Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Spotted Towhee, Red-winged Blackbird, Brown-headed Cowbirds, Orange-crowned Warbler, Common Yellowthroat and Yellow-rumped Warbler.
Report by Grant Edwards
Photos are on flickr
The next Tuesday & Wednesday outings (May 7 & 8) will be to Joe Brown Park, 5381 125A St, Surrey. Meet at 8 am. There should be enough room to park below the traffic circle on 125A St.
The next Saturday outing (May 11) will be to Iona Beach Regional Park in Richmond (via Templeton St & Ferguson Rd).
Meet at 8 am by the washrooms.
To sign up for future outings go to the signup form and put an x by your name.
https://tinyurl.com/dncb-signup
Delta Naturalists Society 