PHOTO: Belted Kingfisher with crab by Glen Bodie….
Wednesday dawned with a perfect September day, sunny and warm. A large group of 16 assembled at the Serpentine Fen entrance where King George goes over the river – Brian and Louise, Warren and Lynne, Colin and Stephanie, Jonathan and Lorraine, Liz (but Alan had to work), Jacquie, Johnny Mac, Margaretha, Richard with friend Gary and Glen with friend Catherine (see group picture).
Before we even got started, some were treated to a seal having a 7-pound salmon for breakfast. The resident Kingfisher put on a show, and the river banks were dotted with anglers and a Great Blue Heron or two. Throughout the length of our walk along the river we didn’t encounter a single duck of any sort on the water.
The bushes and trees were mostly quiet, but every now and then we’d come across some small flurry of activity. We saw Yellow-rumped Warblers (or Butter Butts as Liz would say), Black-capped Chickadees, American Robin, House Finch, Purple Finch, White-crowned Sparrow, Savannah Sparrow, Song Sparrow and Spotted Towhee. At the old wharf posts in the river’s curve we saw Greater Yellowlegs on the far shore rocks (we had to wait for them to call as they flew off to be sure they were Greater), a Great Blue Heron on one post, and a Belted Kingfisher on another post. The Heron preened and the Kingfisher put on a show, diving a few times and coming back with a little crab snack.
As we reached the point where we turn away from the river we saw some Eurasian Collared-Doves and a Cooper’s Hawk up in a tree. Going up in the tower we were amazed at how little water was in the ponds. And along with that small amount of water was not a single duck on the north side. The south side had a few ducks in the distance – Mallards, Northern Shovelers and something smaller, probably Green-winged Teal. We were interrupted by a large flock of Canada Geese noisily landing in the fields – estimates started at 3-400 and quickly escalated to 600+. Too many to search looking for a Cackling Goose or White-fronted Goose. Also in those grassy fields were ducks and, from a distance, they appeared to be mostly Northern Pintails. At the highway the electrical towers were filled with European Starlings.
The return leg along the highway and back across the Fen was mostly uneventful. We did see a Peregrine Falcon chasing a Goose across the sky before they disappeared below the height of the hedgerow. Just about nothing was in the bushes, and the Barn Owl was not in the Barn (actually, hasn’t been in that barn for a long time so far as we know). There used to be ponds full of ducks all along between the trail and King George but it was almost completely dried up, as has been the case for some years now. Other than a few bush dwelling species one wonders why we even go there any more. We ended the outing with 27 species plus an unidentified gull. But it was a nice day for a walk along the river and the company was excellent.
Report by Glen Bodie
Photos are on Flickr
Next Tuesday and Wednesday, September 24 & 25, the outings are to Centennial Beach in Tsawwassen. Meet at 8am at the concession parking lot.
To sign up for an outing, click on the DNS bird outing schedule sheet.
Delta Naturalists Society 