Sept. 30 - Oct. 3 - The past few days have been birding frenzy down Island with the Clay-coloured Sparrow, Northern Parula, and Black-throated Blue Warbler discovered by avid birders. Meanwhile, despite slogging through Holden Creek, hiking Piper's Lagoon, and stalking the Englishman estuary, birds were scarce for me. However, I did luck out with a sublime Palm Warbler and a pair of exotic Wilson's Snipes. Sept. 30 - A Super Saturday Presentations are not my favorite pastime, and I was reluctant to do them for quite awhile. But, for the purpose of increasing public awareness about birds, I'm now on the rubber chicken circuit. On Saturday I was the guest of the Comox Valley Elder College. The venue was at the Stan Hagen Lecture Theatre at the North Island College. It is a beautiful facility perfectly suited for slide presentations. Jim Koehler, John Challenger, and the Elder College committee were extremely well-organized. A near-capacity crowd of about 200 keenly interested elder-students were in attendance, and my presentation of about 200 birds was warmly received and appreciated. To top it off, besides a small gift and lunch for my wife and I, they even gave me gas money which was a FIRST for all the presentations I've done. It didn't end there. On the way home I decided to stop at Ship's Point where I have never seen any interesting birds. As there was someone taking pictures of his young child by the point, I decided to just go for a quick scouting trip without my camera. Big mistake. I was only 30 meters out when a small brown bird flew past me and landed about 10 feet away. Just from its behaviour I knew it was something different. A quick glance as I headed back for my camera revealed a faint, greenish supercilium and an incomplete eye ring. When I returned, it was gone. A 20 minute search ended in frustration. I was undecided on what to do when my wife mentioned that I had forgotten to deliver books to the Blue Heron Bookstore in Comox. That was my excuse to leave and come back later. On my return to Ship's Point, I walked the perimeter with no birds in sight. Coming back, I flushed 3 birds from the low bushes. Two Song Sparrows flew into the willow but the third bird dropped into the tall grass. I caught glimpses of it as it proceeded to skulk around, foraging for food. Finally, it flew to a rock and I saw my very first Palm Warbler. It was constantly on the move snacking on seeds from various plants. I'm glad it liked feeding high on the plants as it permitted me to take a few photos. For those who aren't familiar, Palm Warblers are uncommon on Vancouver Island, but a few are spotted every year on their migration to coastal California. Notice the blurry tail? That's because it's always bouncing like an American Pipit. Oct. 3 - Sneaking Up on the Snipe After a fruitless trip to the Englishman Estuary, I decided to try Kaye Road. Last year at this time I found the Eared Grebe on the pond at Rascal Lane. What would be there this year? I remembered a couple of weeks ago I had flushed a few Wilson's Snipes from the front edge of the pond. This time I carefully approached and gingerly peaked over the edge of the bank. I was in luck! There were two snipes relaxing in the sun. Moving as as slowly and quietly as possible, I managed to focus on the birds for a few distant shots. As I moved a little closer, one of the birds got nervous and moved a few feet further away. Eventually, one of the Snipes flew across the pond, but the other stayed for a few close-up pictures. I caught up with the other snipe across the pond where it was visiting a few of its feathered friends. Can you identify the bird that the Killdeer is harassing? Flashback! Pelagic Memories May 26 - June 7/06 - My pelagic trip off Tofino was the highlight of my brief birding career. Until then an albatross was merely a fictitious bird in S. T. Coleridge's "Rime of the Ancient Mariner." I will always be grateful for the opportunity provided by Ron and Hetty. (See Journals 167 & 168 for previous photos.) The Laysan Albatross was my favorite bird during the 13 day pelagic adventure. It didn't show up every day, but when it did, I thought it was just to visit me. Notice the size 20 feet! They are perfect pontoons for landing and great springboards for taking off. Close quarters! Airspace was a premium at times, but somehow collisions were always avoided. I got dizzy watching the Sooty Shearwaters as they continuously circled around to be first in line for the chow. They would land, grab a few bites, then take off and circle around back to the ship. Actually, the most abundant of the shearwaters was the Short-tailed which was very similar to the Sooty. The most obvious difference was the steep forehead The Pink-footed Shearwater was another of my favorites. It would always sneak up to the boat when I wasn't watching, but I did catch it a few times. The Sabines were always fun to watch as they suddenly appeared in flocks and darted in and out around the Black-footed Albatross. They would go into a feeding frenzy for awhile then disappear just as quickly. There were very few of the regular (ones we see around the island) gulls out on the ocean. At most there were about 20 that would hang around the boat. I think this is a Herring Gull. There was no disputing that the offshore waters was Black-footed territory. There were always at least 300 around the boat dominating the air and water space. Surfing Dude - Who needs a surf board? Size 20 feet work just fine. (Notice the leg band?) The Fork-tailed Storm Petrels looked like mosquitoes in comparison to the albatrosses, but they are actually a good size with 19 inch wingspans. 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