Post by JeffOver on Apr 22, 2006 21:02:49 GMT -8
Hi all!
Dave, his dad, Jack, and I went out birding to Iona today as well as Richmond Nature Park. Our aim was 60 species; we saw 65 ;D--Dave, note 65 instead of 64--I forgot to write down Northern Pintail. You might want to let Jack know.
We started off the day with the regulars--American Robin, Stellar's Jay, Crows, Starlings, Red-winged Blackbirds, a House Finch, and some Mallards. Our first stop was Chilliwack Central by the flooded field. Here we picked up White-crowned Sparrow, as well as Common Yellowthroat.
We also managed to flush up a Wilson's snipe out of the ditch on the south side of the bridge. Unfortunately, there were no cinnamon teal this morning. 
(Though I found a pair the same morning you told us about them, Jason. Thanks!) However, we saw several Lesser Yellowlegs. One of them was hopping around like a rabbit--it turned out that it only had one leg! We also managed to see a flock of Dunlin :Dflying around--not too common in Chilliwack, correct? Furthermore, we picked up Song Sparrow, American Goldfinch, Green-winged Teal, Northern Rough-winged Swallow, Tree Swallow, American Widgeon, and Rock Dove. 19 species to start off the day! ;D
As we headed west, we picked out Canada Geese, Glaucos-winged Gull, Brewer's Blackbird, and a pair of Common Mergansers in the Vedder Canal. We then managed to find a Bald Eagle, a much-loved House Sparrow, a Peregrine Falcon, Great Blue Heron, and Killdeer. On the way to 72nd street, we added Ring-necked ducks, Lesser Scaup, Northern Shoveler and Gadwall in a large pond by a bunch of greenhouses. Surprisingly, we didn't get Red-tailed hawk until 72nd street. Here the bushes were alive. We found Yellow-rumped warbler, both Audubon's and Myrtle's
, tons of Savannah Sparrows as well as Golden-crowned Sparrows and Ruby-crowned Kinglets. I was about to show the others the Downy woodpecker I had found when their excited calls distracted me. Jack and I picked up a lifer here--about 30 Black-bellied Plovers in breeding plumage! 
;D Also among them were a few Dunlin in breeding plumage! As we moved on, we found a Spotted Towhee, two Northern Harriers taking each other on, and Black-capped Chickadees. A brief search of the dike turned up only a few Savannahs. We also picked up Violet-green swallows and Barn swallows on 72nd. On the way to Iona we stopped close to the UPS building--Dave was hoping for a Lapland Longspur and I for a Mountain Bluebird. Unfortunately, neither of these birds decided to entertain us. However, we did pick up Rufous Hummingbird and Common Ravens. Just before the Iona sewage treatment plant, we picked up a Eurasian Widgeon , Double-crested Cormorants, Marsh wren, and Greater Yellowlegs. As we entered the pond area, I thought I saw a large swallow; however, Dave patiently explained that it was an American kestrel 
. At the ponds, we were hoping for some sandpipers. That was a dud, unfortunately. 
It must still be a little early for them--also considering that everything is a couple weeks late this year. We did manage to find the Cinnamon Teal and Northern Pintail here though, as well as American Pipits which Dave was able to get a good look at through his scope. We then headed out to the park where we found Bufflehead and American Coot. A brief excursion to the beach produced Thayer's gull and another Eurasian Widgeon amongst a host of other ducks. After that, we took the path through the brush on the other side of the parking lot and found Yellow-headed Blackbird . Dave also saw a Pied-billed Grebe here. From Iona we headed to Richmond Nature Park, an untested location for all of us. Considering it may be a little early, we got quite a number of species from here, including yellow-rumped warblers, black-capped chickadees, ruby-crowned kinglets, (interesting song!), and a winter wren that we heard (so we didn't write it down). New species in this park consisted of several Yellow Warblers as well as Bushtits. A goldfinch with its rich warbling song led us on a wild goose chase 
. However, we managed to find a Bewick's Wren here as well as a Golden-crowned Kinglet. A rather suspicious-looking robin-sized brownish bird kept flitting ahead of us into the bushes beside the path. Unfortunately, we could not confirm the hunch that it was a Swainson's Thrush. I also managed to find a Brown Creeper here. Finally, to round the day off with a highlight, we saw a beautiful Orange-Crowned Warbler, with (would you believe it?) a very prominent orange crown 
, something you rarely see in the field according to Sibley's. Anyway, considering we had very few shorebirds, 65 is a pretty good number!
Dave, his dad, Jack, and I went out birding to Iona today as well as Richmond Nature Park. Our aim was 60 species; we saw 65 ;D--Dave, note 65 instead of 64--I forgot to write down Northern Pintail. You might want to let Jack know.
We started off the day with the regulars--American Robin, Stellar's Jay, Crows, Starlings, Red-winged Blackbirds, a House Finch, and some Mallards. Our first stop was Chilliwack Central by the flooded field. Here we picked up White-crowned Sparrow, as well as Common Yellowthroat.
We also managed to flush up a Wilson's snipe out of the ditch on the south side of the bridge. Unfortunately, there were no cinnamon teal this morning. 
(Though I found a pair the same morning you told us about them, Jason. Thanks!) However, we saw several Lesser Yellowlegs. One of them was hopping around like a rabbit--it turned out that it only had one leg! We also managed to see a flock of Dunlin :Dflying around--not too common in Chilliwack, correct? Furthermore, we picked up Song Sparrow, American Goldfinch, Green-winged Teal, Northern Rough-winged Swallow, Tree Swallow, American Widgeon, and Rock Dove. 19 species to start off the day! ;DAs we headed west, we picked out Canada Geese, Glaucos-winged Gull, Brewer's Blackbird, and a pair of Common Mergansers in the Vedder Canal. We then managed to find a Bald Eagle, a much-loved House Sparrow, a Peregrine Falcon, Great Blue Heron, and Killdeer. On the way to 72nd street, we added Ring-necked ducks, Lesser Scaup, Northern Shoveler and Gadwall in a large pond by a bunch of greenhouses. Surprisingly, we didn't get Red-tailed hawk until 72nd street. Here the bushes were alive. We found Yellow-rumped warbler, both Audubon's and Myrtle's
, tons of Savannah Sparrows as well as Golden-crowned Sparrows and Ruby-crowned Kinglets. I was about to show the others the Downy woodpecker I had found when their excited calls distracted me. Jack and I picked up a lifer here--about 30 Black-bellied Plovers in breeding plumage! 
;D Also among them were a few Dunlin in breeding plumage! As we moved on, we found a Spotted Towhee, two Northern Harriers taking each other on, and Black-capped Chickadees. A brief search of the dike turned up only a few Savannahs. We also picked up Violet-green swallows and Barn swallows on 72nd. On the way to Iona we stopped close to the UPS building--Dave was hoping for a Lapland Longspur and I for a Mountain Bluebird. Unfortunately, neither of these birds decided to entertain us. However, we did pick up Rufous Hummingbird and Common Ravens. Just before the Iona sewage treatment plant, we picked up a Eurasian Widgeon , Double-crested Cormorants, Marsh wren, and Greater Yellowlegs. As we entered the pond area, I thought I saw a large swallow; however, Dave patiently explained that it was an American kestrel 
. At the ponds, we were hoping for some sandpipers. That was a dud, unfortunately. 
It must still be a little early for them--also considering that everything is a couple weeks late this year. We did manage to find the Cinnamon Teal and Northern Pintail here though, as well as American Pipits which Dave was able to get a good look at through his scope. We then headed out to the park where we found Bufflehead and American Coot. A brief excursion to the beach produced Thayer's gull and another Eurasian Widgeon amongst a host of other ducks. After that, we took the path through the brush on the other side of the parking lot and found Yellow-headed Blackbird . Dave also saw a Pied-billed Grebe here. From Iona we headed to Richmond Nature Park, an untested location for all of us. Considering it may be a little early, we got quite a number of species from here, including yellow-rumped warblers, black-capped chickadees, ruby-crowned kinglets, (interesting song!), and a winter wren that we heard (so we didn't write it down). New species in this park consisted of several Yellow Warblers as well as Bushtits. A goldfinch with its rich warbling song led us on a wild goose chase 
. However, we managed to find a Bewick's Wren here as well as a Golden-crowned Kinglet. A rather suspicious-looking robin-sized brownish bird kept flitting ahead of us into the bushes beside the path. Unfortunately, we could not confirm the hunch that it was a Swainson's Thrush. I also managed to find a Brown Creeper here. Finally, to round the day off with a highlight, we saw a beautiful Orange-Crowned Warbler, with (would you believe it?) a very prominent orange crown 
, something you rarely see in the field according to Sibley's. Anyway, considering we had very few shorebirds, 65 is a pretty good number! 
