Global Big Day/John Stott Memorial Birding Day
May 11, 2021 16:30:01 GMT -8
Gord, Dave, and 4 more like this
Post by kestrel on May 11, 2021 16:30:01 GMT -8
Myself and the crew covered part of the eastern Fraser Valley, this past Saturday. The weather was surprisingly cold for this time of year; we even saw fresh snow on some of the mountains.
Our first stop was Ed's place in Ryder Lake, where we had good views of a long-staying Cassin's vireo. En route to the Hope airport, Larry and I had a fly-over Merlin. At the airstrip, we were surprised by a Vesper sparrow and a Yellow-headed blackbird. Other good birds we saw included a Mourning dove and three Western kingbirds.
Next up was the Hope sewage ponds. Here we had Cinnamon teal and Spotted sandpiper, among other species. The biggest highlight however, was this MacGillivray's warbler:
MacGillivray's warbler by Joel Schmidt, on Flickr
We then made our way down Silver Skagit Road, stopping for a little while at a pullout. The place was quite birdy, with a Nashville warbler being heard (our first and only one for the day).
Silver Lake had a cloud of Vaux's swifts, along with a couple of Bonaparte's gulls and the usual Barrow's goldeneyes and Sooty grouse (heard only).
The day's last stop was Cheam Lake. We were happy to see an Osprey and some teals, along with a Bullock's oriole and a pair of Black-headed grosbeaks.
Our FOY Blue-winged teal:
Blue-winged teal by Joel Schmidt, on Flickr
We ended up netting 74 species in total
.
Our first stop was Ed's place in Ryder Lake, where we had good views of a long-staying Cassin's vireo. En route to the Hope airport, Larry and I had a fly-over Merlin. At the airstrip, we were surprised by a Vesper sparrow and a Yellow-headed blackbird. Other good birds we saw included a Mourning dove and three Western kingbirds.
Next up was the Hope sewage ponds. Here we had Cinnamon teal and Spotted sandpiper, among other species. The biggest highlight however, was this MacGillivray's warbler:
MacGillivray's warbler by Joel Schmidt, on FlickrWe then made our way down Silver Skagit Road, stopping for a little while at a pullout. The place was quite birdy, with a Nashville warbler being heard (our first and only one for the day).
Silver Lake had a cloud of Vaux's swifts, along with a couple of Bonaparte's gulls and the usual Barrow's goldeneyes and Sooty grouse (heard only).
The day's last stop was Cheam Lake. We were happy to see an Osprey and some teals, along with a Bullock's oriole and a pair of Black-headed grosbeaks.
Our FOY Blue-winged teal:
Blue-winged teal by Joel Schmidt, on FlickrWe ended up netting 74 species in total
.
