July 26 - Second Spring Although the disappearance of the Rufous Hummingbirds and return of shorebirds have signalled the begining of the fall migration, there are still signs of spring all around us. The Killdeer at Fairwinds driving range have 4 cute little fuzz-balls running around the golf balls. Remember the little lost Junco in the Skutz Falls area posted in last Journal? There also seems to be couple of new juvenile Towhees in my yard along with a few young Black-throated Gray and Townsend Warblers. For that matter, even the arrival of the fresh, bright juvenile shorebirds can be considered spring-like. I guess it's just a matter of how you want to look at it. July 26 - Double Jeopardy As if there aren't enough natural hazards like marauding crows and raptors, the Killdeer by the Fairwinds driving range have to dodge errant golf balls, workmen, equipment, and a steady parade of golfers. But, they've managed to survive for several years and should be familiar with the dangers. I love the little wire brush tails. July 27 - Backyard Bird As mentioned previously, I'm making a habit of keeping my camera handy when I'm having breakfast on the patio. Flashes of white in the trees caught my attention. I spotted Mrs. Black-throated Gray Warbler keeping her eye on her feisty fledglings. The fledglings still hadn't mastered their flying skills. I think this one was happy to find a branch to cling to. July 28 - Juvenile Shorebirds I'm always amazed to see the juveniles arrive as they have long been abandoned by their parents. It's just another example of the superior skills birds have. No, I'm not referring to the questionable parenting skills of the adults. I'm referring to the incredible survival and navigational skills of the juveniles. I had to sneak out to San Malo and Kaye Road to check on the shorebirds. There were a few at San Malo but the combination of low tide and afternoon sun made it difficult to view the peeps. The settling ponds at Kaye Road were mostly dry except for #3 which was perfect for shorebirds. I didn't see any movement when I arrived but as I slowly walked closer, a group of 8 peeps flushed and flew to the far side of the pond. They were all adult Least Sandpipers except for 1 bright, fresh juvenile. Dinner at the Stone Pipe For the uninitiated, "Dinner at the Stone Pipe Pub" is my euphemism for birding in Sooke. However, in this case, it was birding from Mesachie Lake to Port Renfrew and a circle tour through Sooke near diinner time which meant another delicious dinner at the Stone Pipe. The road from Mesachie Lake to Port Renfrew is 53 km and gravel for most of the way, but it's in remarkable condition and maintained regularly. Because most of the route is through logged areas, the vistas are great and the potential for birding is excellent. We stopped at one hill laced in fireweed and spotted 5 Band-tailed Pigeons, 8 Robins, 3 White-crowned Sparrows, 1 Song Sparrow, 5 MacGillivray Warblers, and 1 Anna's Hummingbird. I was surprised to see an Anna's so high in the mountains, but I guess it's not just the Rufous that crave the fireweed nectar. There were also a lot of other birds flying about that I didn't identify. At another stop closer to the west side, 1 found a Wilson's Warbler, Warbling Vireo, Swainson's Thrush, lots of Chestnut-backed Chickadees, and few few other unidentifiables. (That's what happens when I'm trying to take pictures instead of checking out all the birds. Besides missing out on seeing several species, I didn't get a decent picture of the Wilson's that I was concentrating on.) Thank goodness for my target species, the Sooty Grouse. I'm assuming everybody knows of the recent announcement by the AOU that because of DNA, voice, behavior, and plumage differences, the Dusky and Sooty subspecies of the Blue Grouse are now recognized as distinct species. Heading down the west side, a juvenile Sooty flew across the road and landed on a tree in the shaded forest. I quickly rolled down the window, set the camera to ISO 1600 and clicked a dozen shots before it flew back. Getting out of the car, I spotted Momma Sooty. Momma stood her ground, making sure junior was safely under cover. Apparently, the female Dusky and Sooty is quite similar, and I wouldn't know the difference. To tell you the truth, I wouldn't know if this is a Sooty, Dusky, or hybrid. There were birds flying everywhere. Most quickly ducked out of sight. I was lucky to get a distant photo of a juvenile MacGillivray's Warbler. The only birds at Botany Bay was a family of Harlequin Ducks feeding near the rocks. A Merlin perched on a snag by the Somenoes Boardwalk necessitated another quick stop. July 31 - Juvenile Semi's A book order from the Backyard Wild Bird Store in Nanaimo was a convenient excuse to check out Holden Creek. The mosquitoes were waiting but so was the repellent. Peeps swirling in the distance wasn't a good sign as it meant a raptor was looking for breakfast. I wasn't sure if it was successful, but it soon disappeared to the forest, and I found a flock of 23 peeps feeding close by. There were 7 Semipalmated and 16 Least. 6 of the Semipalmated were spiffy-looking fresh juveniles. The Semi is my favorite peep as it was the first peep I ever photographed close up. Mind you, I didn't know until Guy pointed it out to me. I used to think the Semi's were quite scarce, but according to "Birds of B.C." they are quite common on the coast during the fall migration. Besides the juvenile Semi's, there were a few juvie Least but no juvie Westerns out of about 100 shorebirds. 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