PHOTO: Red-winged Blackbird by Freddie Whiting……
11 Delta Nats met at Iona Beach Regional park in Richmond – Freddie, Connie, Bee, Lee, Anne, Colin, Brian, Louise, Lindly, Stephanie and Terry. At the parking lot we were met by our first Tree Swallows of the year. Here we were also entertained by noisy Red-winged Blackbirds displaying their bright red shoulder patches.
We headed to the beach where the tide was fairly high. Near the shore were Northern Pintail, Green-winged Teal, Glaucous-winged, Short-billed and Bonaparte’s Gulls – but no shorebirds. A large flock of Dunlin passed by in the distance.
There were pussy willows and nice reflections at the south pond but the few ducks were on the far side – Mallards, Ring-necked, Scaup and Gadwall. In the bushes between the two ponds were huge flocks of Robins, along with Flickers, House Finches, Black-capped Chickadees, Towhees and Golden-crowned Sparrows. Overgrown bushes now make it difficult to see into the north pond but there did not seem to be any waterfowl in it. A group of about 20 Great Blue Herons were standing close together on the far side. Bald Eagles were perched in the trees and one flew over.
Walking along the fence beside the treatment ponds we heard and finally saw several Marsh Wrens – along with Song Sparrows, Ruby-crowned Kinglets and more Red-winged Blackbirds. We also heard, and some saw, a Virginia Rail. In the pond were a pair of Pied-billed Grebes, a Coot and a Bufflehead. From the raised path beside the road we could look into one of the treatment ponds where there were a few American Wigeon. A pair of Killdeer flew over and we added White-crowned Sparrows.
Walking back toward the Fraser River we saw a Bewick’s Wren and a Ruby-crowned Kinglet displaying its ruby crown. There was a female Common Merganser in the river and a Pelagic Cormorant flew by. Back at the beach the tide was far out but there were a few Green-winged Teal close to shore.
Unusually, Tsawwassen had a rainy morning but there was no rain at Iona – so we had a very pleasant walk with lots on neat birds.
Report by Terry Carr
Photos are on flickr
Next Tuesday & Wednesday (March 10 & 11) the outings will be to Deas Island Regional Park, 6090 Deas Island Rd, Delta (off River Rd east of the Massey Tunnel).
Meet at 9 AM in the parking area near the rowing club.
To sign up for an outing, click on the DNS bird outing schedule sheet.
Delta Naturalists Society 