PHOTO: Marbled Godwits by Chris McVittie….
13 Delta Nats met at White Rock Pier – Jim, Lidia, Jacquie, Bob, Colin, Christine, Anne, Alan, Dottie, Chris, Connie, Dorothy, Terry – on a cool, clear morning. Close to the pier were Surf and White-winged Scoters, Bufflehead, Red-breasted Mergansers, Common Goldeneye, Scaup and Common Loons. Flocks of Dunlin and Canada Geese flew past. Black Oystercatchers and Black Turnstones perched on the breakwater. Beyond the breakwater we added Pelagic Cormorant, Horned Grebe, Western Grebe, Pacific Loon and a female Long-tailed Duck. We searched in vain for a male Long-tailed Duck and Black Scoter. We stopped at the last parking lot to check for Black Scoters – no luck there either.
Our next stop was Blackie Spit at Crescent Beach, where Lee joined us. The trees around the parking lot were full of Bald Eagles. A Northern Flicker and a Belted Kingfisher perched briefly. At the spit were American and Eurasian Wigeon, along with Mallards, Northern Pintail, Green-winged Teal and Yellowlegs.
After leaving the spit we spotted two Marbled Godwits with a Killdeer and Black-bellied Plover. Song Sparrows and Towhees were feasting on crabapples. In the Savenye area we added Anna’s Hummingbirds, Juncos, House Finches and Ruby-crowned Kinglets. There were 8 Herons perched close together on the old trestle. In the water with the ducks were Dunlin, Yellowlegs and a Marbled Godwit.
On the walk around to the pumphouse we added Robins, Pine Siskins, Red-winged Blackbirds, Chickadees, Scaup and a Northern Shoveler. Back out at the beach by the pier were more Eagles, Loons, Red-breasted Merganser and a Heron.
Report by Terry Carr
Photos are on Flickr
eBird checklists:
White Rock Pier
Blackie Spit
Next Tuesday & Wednesday (February 4 & 5) the outings will be to Blaine, USA (Drayton Harbor & Semiahmoo Spit).
Meet at 9 AM at Blaine Marine Park. Approximate address is 235 Marine Drive, Blaine, WA, USA.
Bring passport or Nexus. Cross the border at Peace Arch and take the immediate exit 276 for highway 548 into Blaine. At the traffic circle before the shops, turn right onto Marine Drive, cross the railway tracks and park on the street by the small lookout (across the street from Sundance Yacht Sales). We’ll look for birds there and at the pier at the end of Marine Drive. Then we will drive around the bay to Semiahmoo Resort. Before going to the resort we will park by the APA museum in Semiahmoo Park (at the beginning of the spit on the left).
To sign up for an outing, click on the DNS bird outing schedule sheet.
Delta Naturalists Society 