Pelagic Magic 2 - part 2

Sabine's Gulls are one of my favorite pelagic species. They are the ballet dancers of the ocean as they dance through the air and even on the ocean. They always seemed to be more interested in performing than trying to survive.

With their long wings they seem to flutter through the air. As usual it took a few days before they ventured within two hundred feet of the boat, and they always kept their distance.

Despite reports to the contrary, they seemed to be a very social bird. I often saw them in fairly large groups resting and playing together.

The Sabine's nests on the Arctic coast and then migrates south to the offshore waters as far as Chile. They are seldom seen in closer to land, but they do cross the Island at Deep Bay where I have been lucky to see them on several occasions.

Finally, a Leach's Storm-Petrel. They were scarce compared to the Fork-taileds.

I didn't see one until we were north of the Island when the weather was quite stormy. I think they are more of a nocturnal species.

I saw about ten Tufted Puffins on the trip. None were close to the boat. The first was this little juvenile.

One of the downsides of the boat was that it never stopped running. Alcids in particular kept their distance from the big machine.

Another feature north of the Island was Herring Gulls. 90% of the gulls had pale yellow irises and orangey-yellow eye-rings just like the photo. Being very gull-ible I can believe anything. Please correct me if I'm wrong. Hold it! I just noticed one more thing. That's a yellow gape isn't it? Now it has to be a Herring ... I don't sound very convincing do I?

I expected to see st least one jaeger in five days off Ucluelet, but that was not to be. It wasn't until we were north of Cape Scott that I found some Pomarines and one Parasitic.

It was easy to recognize the jaeger just from its behaviour. It would fly above the flocks of gulls and then casually drop in to snatch the snack.

When I saw small white birds flying just above the waves I knew they had to be phalaropes. An examination of the photos revealed that they were Red Phalaropes. They had thicker bills than the other possibility. My first ever encounter with Red Phalaropes was December 31/06 at Whiffin Spit after a series of bad storms.

On one particular day I saw about 50, but the norm was less than ten.

Red Phalaropes spend their winters far offshore of North and South America. They are seldom found inland.

At sea the phalarope feeds on plankton, invertebrates, crustaceans, and and other small aquatic creatures.

Red-necked Phalaropes are similar to the Red Phalaropes but are smaller and have thinner, needlelike bills. They also have bold orange stripes on their backs. Can you pick out the Red-necked Phalaropes in this photo.

Note also that the underwing of the Red-necked has more prominent black markings than the Red Phalarope.

One afternoon a shorebird lapped the boat. I was lucky to get a pretty good shot. Since I had been seeing phalaropes all day, I thought it had to be a juvenile phalarope. Good thing I sent it to Guy for verification. He informed me that it was a juvenile Sanderling.

The Laysan Albatross is uncommon in the north Pacific. I was lucky to see one.

Sunrises and sunsets were often exceptional offshore. The iconic shape of Calvert Island was a prominent feature where we fished 40 miles northwest of Cape Scott.

Night-time passerine migration is a truly fascinating spectacle commonly seen by boats offshore during inclement weather. At 4:30 am on Sept. 7, the first mate alerted me to the birds around the boat. When I got outside I was astounded by thousands of birds swirling like giant snowflakes in a blizzard around the boats lights. The fog, rain, and wind had forced the migrating birds down and they were attracted to the ships's lights.

At daybreak I checked the ship for birds. A famished Golden-crowned Kinglet landed on one of the ship's cables.

A hungry American Pipit was foraging on the ropes.

A tired Savannah Sparrow sought refuge and warmth close to one of the ship's lights.

Sammy Savannah was a survivor. He took care of the houseflies on the boat and dined on fish scraps.

A Yellow Warbler stayed on the boat for a day but, sadly, did not survive.

Shorebird time! A Western Sandpiper foraged for snacks on the boat for a couple hours before moving on.

A shy Northern Waterthrush scooted along the deck looking for food. It was the first waterthrush that I had ever seen, but I wished it was under more natural circumstances. In all I found about 12 songbird species on the boat. Most eventually flew off. A few were too famished to leave and eventually expired. Besides the hostile weather conditions, the little passerines also had to survive the gauntlet of voracious gulls and other carnivorous birds.

Farewell pelagic birds! Although there were no mega-surprises on the trip, it was exciting and satisfying to experience the pelagic birds again. Once again, I am indebted to the owners of the Osprey 1 for making the trip possible. I am also indebted to the crew for their camaraderie and making my stay on the boat as pleasant and comfortable as it was.

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Bird Poster

My poster is on display at: Victoria - Swan Lake Nature House

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PUBLICATIONS

VOLUME I & II BOOKS AVAILABLE AT

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SAANICH - WILD BIRDS UNLIMITED

VICTORIA - BOLEN BOOKS, MUNRO'S, CROWN PUBLICATIONS, IVY'S

CAMPBELL RIVER - SAVE-ON FOODS, COHO BOOKS, CAMPBELL RIVER MUSEUM

DUNCAN - VOLUME 1 BOOKSTORE

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TOFINO - BOTANICAL GARDENS

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