Today marked a milestone on our count as we reached 125 counts, this in our seventh season. The party was wild as 5 participants piled into one car, no rain was going to dampen our day. We were joined by Eric and Dorothy later to make 7 hardy counters..
As I look back through the counts I noted that twice in two separate years in late February we had to cancel because of heavy snow, so all you people out there who think spring is here, think on.
This week we rebounded with our waterfowl and dropped further behind with our raptors. 560 Trumpeters were counted and 2 immature Tundra Swans were seen, well apart unlike last week when they were both in the same field. Immature Trumpeter Swans were identical to last week in numbers but adults went up be almost 100. It was strange in some places with many adults together with no young and others with lots, who knows why this takes place, maybe the adults don’t like the kids being around when they are thinking, I’m sure you know what that’s like.
Ruddy Ducks were once again seen on Somenos Lake and a few Northern Pintail were scattered in several places, Pintail numbers will grow over the next few weeks with major flocks appearing in many locations. Quist’s Farm had it usual flock of American Wigeon and a few swans this week which was nice. As is normal at this time of the year most swans were in the south end of town, luckily for the counter most were visible from the vehicle except it is still hard to differentiate adults from immature when the rain is beating down, so muggings has to get out now and again. One lovely raptor lady came up with a wonderful idea and so she held up a umbrella over my head while I was counting, I can see this becoming trend.
The photographers had a good day with many opportunities for some good shots, one came when we spotted a Northern Shrike up on Willmot Road; one lady carefully worked her way down a driveway stalking her prey firing off shot after shot as she got closer, little did she know that a neighbor was watching and came roaring down the road to see what was going on, our shutterbug leapt in the car and we were gone in a flash before we were reprimanded for going out of bounds.
As mentioned it was not the best of days and I was questioned about the weather several times, it appears that we have been spoiled and it is now time to pay the piper.
It was wonderful to see such big numbers once again at Dinsdale’s Farm and it was here that I spotted our second immature Tundra Swan, good pictures were taken of two immature of different species together. You will notice in the attached picture the very white plumage of the Tundra and the hint of a yellow teardrop appearing near the eye and the dark plumage of the accompanying Trumpeters. Also notice how thin the neck is at the body on the Tundra.
Barry got a wonderful shot of a dark phase Red-tailed Hawk during the week and on close inspection noticed the bird had broken the hook off of it’s bill, it closely resembles a parrot type bill, not sure how this would affect it ripping power on it’s prey, wonderful shot indeed.
As mentioned with raptor numbers down it was nice to get 4 accipiters, but only one was identified to species and that was a Coopers Hawk. Just a single Northern Harrier, a female,
at Dougan’s Flats, I think this bird lives there all winter as we seem to see it very often, there is abundant food out there in the meadows.
I have been trying to train the troops in Gull identification and slowly they have been getting the hang of it, they can now distinguish big ones from small ones. Today we pulled up right next to a Herring Gull along Koksilah Road west, a regular but uncommon gull in the valley, it took one look at the lens poking out the window and was gone in a flash, with just the tail end appearing on film.
Another good sighting today along Koksilah Road east when a Dixie sp. pulled up and captured Dorothy and carried her off before anyone could stop her. Poor Eric was left to find his own way home.
A great day of birding with some very special people when huddled together make a a bad day warm and comfy.
I think everyone went home happy on this dreary day, our job was done and some wonderful pictures were taken for your entertainment
Photo credits
Hookless Hawk, Barry Hetschko
Northern Shrike Zan Stenhouse
Immature Swans, Barry Hetschko
Rainy Day Birding Barry Hetschko
Enjoy
Derrick
Today we lost the Midas touch with the weather, as some of us got soaked while others curled up in the vehicles, what a rotter it was, oh well we had a good run of clear count days. All was not lost as we did extremely well for birds if not numbers. This week saw a major reduction in Trumpeter Swans as the number dropped by 250 birds, this is the first time on our yearly counts that we have seen a drop of this magnitude in the month of February, we have had drops before due to freezing and snowy conditions, but nothing like this. The Bald Eagle numbers also took a tumble with just 17 adults and only 2 immature. Now for the good stuff, we managed 3 Tundra Swans and 10 Mute Swans, the Canada Goose numbers were stable with numbers almost identical to last week. The raptors put on a good show in spite of the weather with a reduced number of Red-tailed Hawks, but a Coopers and Sharp-shinned Hawks, a Merlin and a Peregrine Falcon to round off our numbers. We once again came across the Common Redpolls who seem to be playing a game with some local birders as they move back and forth around the Somenos area, this week they were back beside the offices of the school board along Beverly Street. A few Ruddy Ducks were way out on Somenos Lake and many Ring-necked Ducks were seen along the Somenos Marsh strip.
I mentioned to our 9 participants at our meeting spot that I needed a nice picture of myself birding to send to a good friend in Ontario who I hadn’t seen for many years, so I had to be on my best behavior not knowing where and when the shutters might click, well with cat calls coming from the Raptor groupies to get my gear off, what I exclaimed in this weather, not likely, so I gave them the look of a disturbed birder. One nice raptorette did get some nice pictures that I could use and I thank her most profoundly.
Most of our Trumpeter Swans were found on the west side of town with Koksilah, Bench Roads being the hotspots. Dougan’s Flats was deserted except for a massive flock of American Wigeon and Dinsdales Farm was lacking any birds at all.
As I mentioned before there were three Tundra Swans this week and an adult up on Bench and those two pesky immature birds seen last week were on Willmot Road, I am now sure that they identified properly. The ten Mute Swans were all in the Cowichan Bay and were seen from the Dock Road, it appears that birds that had moved a bit south to Mill Bay have moved back north.
That was it a wet and windy day, with not much chance of a good photo of a bird, but we had done our duty and another count was under our belt.
I have asked that prayers be given for next weeks weather in the hopes that I don’t get the blame for the wet stuff.
Photo credits
Oh Canada, by Zan Stenhouse
Catkins and Redpolls by Zan Stenhouse
Common Redpoll by Kurlene Wenberg
Disturbed Birder by Christina Cutbill
It had to happen, the weather finally caught up with us, a dull dreary day with spattering’s of rain, but with all bad things there was a silver lining and oh did we have some silver today.
Our day started at the dog park where 7 counters set out and we had not gone a km when the lead car was looking at a wonderful Northern Shrike, this shrike was so intrigued with us as we sat watching it. I came closer so that Barry was able to get a few snaps of this lovely bird. As we admired the shrike a crackerly voice came over the walkie-talkie exclaiming that those lovely raptor ladies had some Common Redpolls back behind us, we of course had driven right past these birds because we were checking the fields for swans and geese and most times don’t bother to look up. We arrived back to find the ladies out of their vehicle with cameras shooting off pictures of these rare birds for Vancouver Island. I am afraid with bad light and many branches the photos were nothing to write home about, but were good enough for confirmation purposes. It is ironic that the first time a large group was ever found on Vancouver Island it was in this same location, how neat is that?
After all this excitement it was back to the counting of the waterfowl and it was not long before our numbers started to grow. This week saw another rise in our swan numbers but a major decrease in Canada Geese. Somenos Lake offered about 15 Ruddy Duck and some more geese, but not one swan was in sight. A couple of Pied-billed Grebes and a very small number of sundry duck species were seen. We headed off down the highway in high hopes of something bigger and better, well bigger came in the shape of our first Trumpeter Swans along Westholme Road and the ladies found a Sharp-shinned Merlin, this is another species that can change it’s shape and it’s pedigree while you look at it. Along Westholme is a small holding that has a few sheep and some piggies, the sheep were up and feeding while the pigs were all in a pile lying on top of each other with trotters and ears all over the place, they had all decided that with the incoming weather it was best to cuddle up and cure the bacon in one large lump, while marinating in a pile of mud, put it like this they looked happier than the sheep anyways, thus the old adage “happy as a pig in you know what.” Richard’s Trail came and went with lots of water but lacking in what we were looking for. Our tally sheets were looking decidedly thin as we arrived at A&W, but those rapets showed us a picture of a Northern Harrier that we had overlooked on Tom Windsor, so all was not lost. After a hearty meal of chicken legs, egg salad sandwiches and homemade cookies we were on our way again. Boy’s Road area added a few more swans and some much needed Bald Eagles. A small group of California Quail ran up a driveway and huddled together for a group photo. It was time to head off to the west and find some swans. Koksilah Road did not disappoint with a major group of swans to get us counting. It is good to see that this farmer is leaving the swans to feed in his fields. We worked our way around to Bench where again we were greeted to a major flock of over 280 swans, our list was now starting to look good. It was at Bench that we found, which for me was the bird of the day in the form of a very dark Red-tailed Hawk of the Harlan’s form, with totally dark body and a mottled tail, it was such a shame that the bird was so far away and on such a dark dismal day as I would have liked for one of our photographers to have got a good picture, oh well you can’t have everything. Dougan’s and St.Catherine’s had just a few more swans and it was not until we hit Koksilah Road east did we find another big group of 160 birds. We were now well over last weeks total and heading over the 700 mark for the day. The rain was now coming down good as we headed for our last few stops, a Cackling Goose sat out in the open at Dinsdales Farm and to finish off our day we reached the Dock Road for a quick look at some distant Mutes and Trumpeters.
We had a wonderful day for birds and our worst day for weather, but smiles were seen all around, so everyone was happy.
Photo credits
Common Redpolls, Zan Stenhouse
Northern Shrike, Barry Hetschko
Baldy fierce, Christina Cutbill
Young Eagle, Zan Stenhouse
It was a dull and nippy morning as 10 birders set off in the search for the swans and geese and once again it did not take long for our tally keeper to get her pencil working. We had both swans and geese along the highway just past the open air classroom at Somenos. Also along this stretch were Red-winged Blackbirds sitting up on territory singing away. At Somenos Lake several Bald Eagles flew around and about 10 Ruddy Ducks were over in the far corner of the lake. Many Double-crested Cormorants were out on the water with both immature and adults, the immature show a pale blaze down their fronts unlike the all black adults. Quists farm had good number of Bald Eagles unlike last week when there were just three.
We then went along Westholme Road where we picked up just under 40 swans.
Our totals for swans went down a little this week, but the ratio of immature to adults got better, which is a good sign as they build up strength for the trip north in March. I was also very surprised at the lack of diving ducks in Cowichan Bay who’s numbers have totally disappeared from just a couple of weeks ago.
Once again we did well for hawks and eagles with 2 Peregrine Falcons, 1 Merlin, 3 Coopers Hawks and a Sharp-shinned Hawk boosting our numbers.
Yesterday I noticed a posting on one of our BC birding sites that the Trumpeter Swan with neck band 01UK which has been in the valley for the past few years was photographed on Saltspring Island this week, guess she decided to vacation on one the islands this winter. This year makes it 10 years since she was born. This is the good information you learn about when you have a banded swan or goose.
When we reached our half way point at A&W one off the hawk team started kissing people in passing cars while holding a chicken leg in one hand and a coffee in the other, I think this must be some old custom shown by those who search out raptors. You know how those hawks are drawn to chicken.
After the break we headed to Boys and Sahilton Roads but other than a couple of Gadwall and a pair of Red-tailed Hawks it was a bit of a bust. At this time we left our Raptor team as they tried to count the Red-tails from two different roads and headed over to the west side and Koksilah Road. At first we found hardly anything and then along just before Bright Angel Park a nice group of swans were found, 70 birds in total boosted our numbers. Then onto Bench Road where again it appeared to be empty, then as we came to the top of the ridge in the road those big white forms started to appear and another 250 Swans were added.
It then went slow again until we hit Koksilah Road east where a large group of swans and geese appeared and our second Peregrine Falcon sat up for us to admire.
Down through the bay we went and Dinsdales farm, it was alive with birds, it is amazing how these birds come back to a spot when the hunters stay out of this sanctuary, to me it is sheer stupidity to allow hunting on this farm what was purchased by Nature Trust for conservation purposes. How can these people allow over 2000 ducks, swans and geese be displaced by a couple of hunters with a dog for a couple of weeks. These birds just go and impact other farms, when they should be safe in Dinsdales.
It was here that I took advantage of a lapse in concentration by the raptor counters, I had always wondered what had enticed both Barry and Bob to the back seat of their vehicle, so I made a run for it and leaped in the back, here I was met by hugs and giggles by one of these raptosius counters, I was lucky to escape with my life, I quickly lept out and sort refuge back in with Eric and Dorothy, never again will I
try that stunt.
Our day was coming to a close as we went down the Dock Road, 3 Mute Swans were counted and 8 more Trumpeter’s. Some adult eagles sat out on the piling’s wondering where all the duckies had gone, guess it will be Gull for supper again.
After the count Zan went back to check on the geese at the golf driving range and got 4 neck banded geese, 008F, 050F, 071F, 135F, well done Zan and all photographed as well.
Photo Credits
Baldy by Zan Stenhouse
ducking the ball by Zan Stenhouse
calling up the girls by Kurlene Wenberg
until next weeks thrilling encounter
Derrick of 9 lives.
Today I returned to the count in hopes of shaking off this bad back and what a fine day it was, the rain was gone and the temperature was very pleasant and the birds did not disappoint. 6 birders left the dog park in two cars and another 2 joined up at A&W at the break. It didn’t take long for the excitement to begin with plenty of geese to count along the Beverly Street stretch and at the golf driving range there he was James Bonds older brother with neck collar 008, it will be a great day if we ever find 007, that’s if it hasn’t already been shot. 050 was also in the same field.
This week saw a great increase in Trumpeter Swan numbers with just under 650 being counted, this is not unusual for the numbers to go up in the middle of January as more birds come down from the north end of the island. All it takes is a little snowfall and the fields get covered and food source becomes hard to find.
I was hoping for a bit of sympathy today and thought I would be sat in the vehicle watching the others do all the counting, well this did not happen instead I did the counting and the book work, which somehow seemed to get in a tangle each time I entered some numbers on the spreadsheet, all those pencils on string, most confusing, they had a mind of their own.
Eagle numbers went down, which again is the norm for mid January, with the food source diminishing fast, they all start to move on.
44 Trumpeters were on Somenos Lake and another 16 were at Westholme, so this got us off to a good start and it seemed from here on until the end we found swans at most locations. This week 3 immature swans gave me a little trouble with identification, you see Trumpeters stay very dull brown and gray well into February before they start to molt whereas Tundra molt from December into January and are very white by the middle of the month. Two birds were on the fields at Bench an another was up off of Koksilah Road, We got photo’s of one of the swans and it shows what appears to be a Trumpeter in advanced spring plumage, this is very strange. The bill clearly identifies the dark of the bill right up to the eye, which rules out Tundra. I guess I will put them down as immature Trumpeters unless next week we get a better look at these very pale birds.
As we entered Tom Windsor Drive a young Deer peered at us through a page wire fence and seemed entranced with us, Barry of course was quick off the mark and shot a few pictures off through the window, the other car lagged behind looking at a Cooper’s Hawk and before they arrived a large semi turned onto the road and frightened the deer off, who ever heard of a semi truck being on this short dead end country road.
After our break we headed down to the Boy’s/ Sahilton Road area and as luck would have it the Barred Owl which was seen and found by Kurlene last week was waiting to say hello to the arriving counters and of course photographers. This lovely bird just sat there posing for all. This is our first Barred Owl in all these years of Swan and Goose counts which is surprising to me especially with how many there are around the valley. A few more swans were added and our goose numbers started to rise. We had only gone halfway and we were over 500.
Over to the west side of town we headed and much to our surprise Koksilah Road west gave us over 100 swans and some very accommodating eagles. A couple of Ruby-crowned Kinglets put in an appearance beside the road, these tiny little mites had survived the cold and snow and were getting a living low down in the bushes. Bench had a few more swans and then Dougan’s Flats added a few more Geese.
Over on St.Catherine’s a nice mixed group were seen with over 70 swans and 400 Canada’s. Here a Anna’s Hummingbird was intrigued at what we were doing and sat watching us watching him, Barry always on the alert for a good client, blasted a few pictures to keep the hummer happy. It kept turning it’s head to show his better side.
Birds have finally started to use the fields on Koksilah Road east and our totals gained a few more of both swans and geese.
In Cowichan Bay village we managed 5 Mute Swans and then it was down to Dinsdales Farm where we were treated to a nice flock of birds. In among the Canada’s I got a look at 2 Cackling Geese, there could have been more but many of the geese were down sitting having a snooze. A Peregrine Falcon sat up in the old Maples keeping an eye on the surroundings below.
Around on the Dock Road we got our one and only Northern Harrier sitting way out in the field taking in the mild temperatures.
After a few more swans were added both on the Dock Road and along Tzouhalem our day was done and we headed back to the dog park and headed home.
I was pooped by the time I got home, I am not used to all this gallivanting and a cup of hot chocolate and a comfy sofa soon had me dreaming of rare birds.
North Side of Cowichan Bay
On a gloriously sunny afternoon, Daryl Johnson, Bob Nation, Christine Gilbertson and Carol Hartwig surveying for the Coastal Bird Survey on Cowichan Estuary North-Khenipsen Road. The group discovered there were 13 species and a total of 675 water birds:
2 Horned Grebe
1 Double-crested Cormorant,
8 Canada Goose
113 Trumpeter Swan,
25 American Wigeon
155 Mallard
8 Surf Scoter
133 Bufflehead,
5 Common Merganser,
36 Common Goldeneye,
176 unidentified Gull,
11 Bald Eagle
2 Common Raven
South Side of Cowichan Bay
On the same glorious sunny and cold afternoon, a record number of birders arrived at the Cowichan Estuary Nature Centre: Robin Lawson, Gail Mitchell, Peggy Smith, Christina Cutbill, John Scull, Linda Hill, Dorothy Marshall, Kathy Coster, and Kathy O’Donnell. We were accompanied by 4 members of Christina’s family. In addition to all the happy birders, there were plenty of birds.
5 mute swan
2 american wigeon
2 mallard
16 surf scoter
132 bufflehead
25 common goldeneye
5 hooded merganser
1 common merganser
1 horned grebe
9 double-crested cormorant
6 great blue heron
1 bald eagle
2 thayer’s gull
2 glaucous-winged gull
9 gull sp.
Eric and Dorothy’s notes from the Swan & Goose car where Barry was at the wheel: Wednesday 6th January began with the sad news that our leader has a bad back and would not be joining us. The temperature was only a little above zero when the seven of us set off in two cars. Have you ever tried looking for neck collars on white trumpeter swans against snow in a thick mist with the sun trying to shine in your eyes? It isn’t easy and I don’t recommend it!
The walk from our vehicles at Somenos Lake was slushy, and counting the swans and geese was difficult due to the low sun glaring through the think mist. We swung off the highway near the Exhibition Grounds but our friendly kestrel was not around. At Quist’s farm we saw killdeer and eagles but no swans or geese. The turnoff towards Crofton yielded no geese but there were eagles in the roadside trees. Heading back through Westholme things were looking bleak – not even the Norwegian Fjord ponies were around. Along Richard’s Trail by the Pastula farm mist was very thick but the water was mostly frozen so no swans or geese. On Tom Windsor Road the thick mist hid some fields where we often see geese. Crossing the TCH our totals were still low when we suddenly spotted a large flock of geese just before heading up the hill by the gold course.
The United Nations joined us at the lunch break. On Boys Road we met an immature trumpeter swan on the roadside. It was trying to get away from us but the chain-link fence was stopping it. Christina stopped her car and shepherded it back round the corner away from the traffic on Boys Road. We found just two more swans in the field at the end of Boys Road. Numbers were boosted slightly when on Koksilah Road west there were some 13 swans close to the road – 6 were immatures – a high proportion.
Finally at Bench Road we found a large flock of both swans and geese which boosted our numbers but still low for January. The sun was now shining making the later part of the day quite pleasant. Dugan’s Lake and flats were empty of swans and geese and on St Catherine’s Road we found a small flock of swans – some had been hiding behind a hedge but for some reason were disturbed and flew out so we added them to our totals. As we swung round the corner on to Wilmot Road we found a few more swans and a huge flock of geese.
Heading along Cowichan Bay Road there was a peregrine falcon in a tree by the Old Farm B & B which was well photographed before we stopped at Dinsdale Farm where there were a few swans. Down on Dock Road the tide was high and relatively few birds are to be seen – just a few swans way over by the white house where they are often fed. Our final stop was just before the bridge by the Butter Church where a small flock of swans were in the field.
Hopefully next week Derrick will be back and our numbers of swans and geese higher and perhaps we will finish a little sooner that 3.45 pm.
photo credits
Barred Owl by Kurlene Wenberg
Great Blue Heron at 12 o’clock by Zan Stenhouse
Trumpeter Swan Head by Zan Stenhouse
PS
The Barred Owl is the reason they were so late.
Derrick
Well we certainly had a wonderful Raptor and Swan chase, oops I mean, Swan and Goose count although Derrick your charm, wonderful wit and of course expertise were sorely missed.
Kurlene our fearless driver, well it seems that you decided to go off on your own and hit the jack pot with your Barred Owl. Some people just don’t like to SHARE.
Today “the Raptor†vehicle had Deb, who decided to get in on the fun again and was a great asset, Zan, “our photographer†and Carol who kept us on tract and didn’t miss a single tally and of course myself who got us back in one piece, albeit doing a little extra scoping on our own routes. Sorry Derrick, but we did actually stay closer to the lead vehicle regardless and managed to get a good count for ourselves.
Although the first vehicle had tried to lose us several times we managed to do a very competent job of tallying our birds, while analyzing where we could make time to get close to them again. Chuckle chuckle!
Neither the Shrike nor the Kestrel made an appearance today.
As per usual we stopped at our fav spot, AW and were joined by Bob and Helen, they opted to go in the First vehicle. Wonder why?
Some of us had to be forced to go in and purchase organic, grain fed …
Once again Dorothy kept up with what I think is a wonderful addition to the entire count, with her delicious cookies.
Kurlene had called us and explained where to find the Barred owl she had seen earlier. Although we did search high and low we were unable to find him. Alas ! We did find an immat swan who had strayed from the flock and was trying desperately to get through a chain linked fence. We were relieved when it made its way to an open field and hopefully it got it’s bearings and was able to catch up with it’s clan.
Eric and Bob did an amazing job of counting everything even swans which we had thought were missed. But no they were onto to them.
Along the way we did get birds of note, Eurasian Widgeon, Ring Billed Ducks, oodles and oodles of Red-winged Blackbirds, Killdeer spotted by Barry’s eagle eyes at Dock Rd.
52 Bald  adult eagles, and 26 Immatures seems to be a good ratio.
 8 Red-Tails
 2 Northern Harriers
 2 Coopers
 1 SharpSh
1 Peregrine (great photo op)
 1 Barred Owl ( we think it should be included)
Christina
Barred OwlTrumpeter SwanGreat Blue Heron at 12 o’clock
On Sunday on December 13 with the rain coming down, Bob Nation, Christine Gilbertson and Carol Hartwig surveying for the Coastal Bird Survey on Cowichan Estuary North-Khenipsen Road. The group found 10 species and 2480 water birds:
1 Double-crested Cormorant,
12 Trumpeter Swan,
1160 Bufflehead,
5 Mallard
2 Common Merganser,
1140 Common Goldeneye,
40 unidentified Gull,
14 Surf Scoter,
7 Bald Eagle.
On the same raining Sunday morning, Gail Mitchell, Linda Hill, John Scull, and Caroline Deary, counting from Hecate Park, saw
6 Mute Swan
179 Bufflehead
32 Common Goldeneye
6 Hooded Merganser
15 Double-crested Cormorant
2 Western Gull
1 Glaucous-wing Gull
4 Gull sp.
2 Northwest Crow
1 Bald Eagle
Was it the wind and rain or the barmy temperatures that drove our birds away this week, the swans were gone and the eagles followed suit, our numbers tumbled like the Canadian dollar and the price of oil.
With only 75 swans total this week and 59 Eagles our numbers were down over two thirds from last week and to add to insult even the American Kestrel had departed, but all was not lost I have to mention the weather again, how many more times are we going to be blessed on a Wednesday. How could we have fitted a sunny day into these past few days of wind and rain, we are truly gifted.
Our day started with a nice group of 8 counters setting out from the dog park and heading off along Beverly where many Canada Geese were playing at splashing each other in the school pools and then at the corner of Berverly and TCH we waved at the underwater dike builders. Our arrival at Somenos Lake was our first taste of the missing birds with just a few Canada Geese and a handful of Double-crested Cormorants they had the whole lake to themselves. We moved on to Quist’s Farm where the duckies were having fun and several species were seen. With all these duckies you would think the eagles would be present, but no just 3 immature and a Red-tailed Hawk. Along Westholme Road a major group gulls were seen with the majority being Mew and a few Thayer’s Gulls for good measure. Around to Richard’s Trail and we found our first Trumpeter Swans with 13 adults and 5 immature, little did we know that this was going to be our second highest flock of the day.
Most people know that I am very serious when out counting birds and this count is no exception, so when I made everyone stop and get out and shouted Western Screech Owl everyone was out and looking, this little bird has been seen in this same tree using a crevice as a roost for several days, photo attached. My wife wonders where all the bruises came from today.
Anyways, onward we went and a nice immature Coopers Hawk sat up above Richards Creek and along Herd Road a good group of Canada Geese and again along Hwy 18 another group of geese, even their numbers were down this week and we failed to find any banded birds.
One of our drivers decided to exit her vehicle and move around to the other side for a picture or ? when suddenly the vehicle took off by itself along with three other passengers, but it was with good fortune that the driver had just been fitted with a new knee and was very nimble and managed to slip into the drivers seat and bring this wayward beast to a standstill, white faces were seen all around, some from panic and one red one from embarrassment.
With all this excitement a rest stop was needed and so A & W came next and some real tasty treats were supplied to the counters. Refreshed and some nerves settled we headed off to Boys Road, here we had a best eagle count but only 26 were had, where had they all gone from a week ago?
Next stop was Sahilton Road where some nice Northern Shoveller’s showed well, photo attached, but that was it for this part of the east side.
At the corn fields on Koksilah Road west a Red-tailed Hawk sat in the trees and then a second bird came in and called and hovered over the tree where the first one sat,me thinks spring is in the air. Bench Road came next and 7 Trumpeters were counted, these lovely fields could accommodate whole monster flock and keep them in food for weeks.
Dougans Flats had a good number of Geese but the main fields were under water, except for one little patch that a Northern Harrier sat high and dry on, or maybe it could have been a dead duck or just a tuft of grass, but the distance we were looking it could have been anything. We quickly zoomed along the highway and over to St. Catherines Road where another 10 Trumpeter’s awaited our counting. We checked Jim’s Pond for any Snipe, but their little bank had shrunken enough that any Snipe would need it’s wellies. Koksilah Road east was a total bust with not even a duckie to be seen. Down through the Bay 2 Mute Swans we added to our pitiful total. But we did get three salvageable boats, which were the worst for wear from the previous days blow.
Dinsdales Farm came next and a very photogenic Bald Eagle sat in the sun for all those with cameras, photo attached. Most of the past week or two there has been hundreds of birds in the fields but today just 26 Trumpeters and 3 Canada Geese, We then hit the Dock Road with hopes of a last hurrah, but we had to settle with 14 Trumpeters.
Our day was over for counting and we headed back to the dog park.
On arrival I noticed this lady coming down from off the dike with trees and putting them in her truck, so I wandered up onto the dike for a look and there were many trees in pots down on the side of the dike, she was picking them over, so I said was she the person responsible for planting and she said no that she was saving them from getting waterlogged, I thought hello whats going on here. I said you do know these were here to enhance the fields below the dike and were not here for all and sundry to take, you know me always tactful. I said you best put them back as what she was doing is not right, with this she flew back to her truck threw one tree off and then roared out the car park with a truck half full of trees, what nerve. But when I
got home i thought about it, what fools stacked all these trees there in the first place, were these our local tax dollars sitting there for all to help themselves.
Photo credits.
Northern Shoveller, Barry Hetschko
Western Screech Owl, Barry Hetschko
Bald Eagle,Barry Hetschko
Peregrine FalconPale immature bald eagleTrumpeter swans
It takes a certain type of person to be involved with the Swan and Goose count, not everyone fits the bill, “laughing under my breath” We as a team have many different personalities which come together to form a formidable group who’s dedication to the job at hand is undeniable. We have those who drive and keep us safe, we have those who record in digital form some of the species and sights that we see. We have those who put pencil to paper to keep the data in good order and those that count, usually me when I’m around. Then their are the others who encourage with goodies and smile and look good. Yes this is what it takes to form a good team of counters.
This week 8 counters headed off on a very murky day with mist over the fields to the south making it hard to pick out any strangers that may be lurking in among the big white and brown birds. This week saw a nice jump in swan numbers which is one of our highest early December counts for several years, also our raptor numbers where up with several good sightings, 3 species of Falcons is always a good day and we hit double digits with 10 Red-tailed Hawks recorded.
Top spot for Eagles was Boys Road where the trees and the fields were laden with both adults and immature’s, they congregate in this area because of the close proximity to the Cowichan River and the wonderful Salmon that can be found dying and dead along the water. One of the birds that was flying around the field was very pale and I told of how it takes up to 7 years to get to adult plumage for a Bald Eagle. Some of these pale birds are sometimes mistaken for Osprey when sitting high up in a tree, but when down low the unmistakable build of the eagle is easy to distinguish “photo by Barry”.
The vast majority of Swans and Geese were on the old Dinsdale’s Farm fields, which makes for easy viewing and counting, I have to admit though that the geese are sometimes not so easy to count especially when their are well over a thousand as it was today.
We had 3 neck banded geese from up island this week, but we only got two of the numbers as one was hiding just out of sight as we parked on the side of the Highway near Beverly Street. The two numbers that we got will be forwarded to the people running the program.
At our rest stop at A&W many species of foods come out, their are those that can down two drumsticks and a chicken rap in just under 5 minutes and their are those who just have a cookie or a few nuts. Then there is this couple who have been with us since day one who I am told only and ever have egg salad sandwiches, I have noticed this year that their skin is starting to take on a mild yellow discoloration, a bit like a first year Goldfinch.
The group known as the hawk gang spotted a bird high up in a tree along Tzouhalem Road which they were sure was a large falcon, Barry our leading photographer took a photo which he showed to me, it was this dark blob with not many field marks to distinguish it from one of senior Derrick’s branch hawks, but with a little help from photo-shop it turned into a lovely Peregrine Falcon. It made up our 3 falcon day with a Merlin along Sahilton Road and the lovely little American Kestrel at the exhibition grounds.
With 208 adult Trumpeters and 55 immature we are looking at over a 25% immature to adult rate which at this early count in the season looks very good for a healthy breeding numbers, lets hope that this continues through the winter. Did I mention winter, yes we just had that and it is all good from now on in to spring, there are buds forming on the trees already and the hummers are going crazy around the feeders as they get ready for a early egg laying start. A Great Horned Owl was calling up a storm this morning at Dinsdale’s farm, so he’s ready to go.
By the end of our day it was already getting very dark and checking the swans across Cowichan Bay was not easy. Many ducks were out on the water and hundreds of Gulls filled the north side of the bay. I made a half-hearted look for a Short-eared Owl but in the dimming light it well could have been sitting down low just out of sight, maybe next week then.
Photo credits:
Trumpeter Swans by Barry Hetschko, in this photo if you look to the right of the swans you will see two different forms of Canada Geese with a dark belly and a light belly.
Peregrine Falcon by Barry Hetschko, this was a dark blob on the camera
pale Immature Bald Eagle by Barry Hetschko, lovely capture
Until we meet again
Derrick
Red-tailed hawk at Dog ParkTrumpeter swansCanada goose with neck collar 071F
There are several things that have become apparent from the first few weeks of our counts, the swans are late coming, the eagles are early returning and the counters can do very well without me, well maybe.
The swans left their breeding grounds on time and departed their northern rest spots, but between there and here they must have stopped for some fun somewhere. The eagles arrived at least a week early from fishing up north, not sure if this meant that their catches were not good, but i think they would only get slim pickings when they arrived in the valley. This is not good for our duck population who will feel the eagles full force. When the eagles bellies are empty they are not very friendly. As for me i got a bug that has kept me away from the count for a couple of weeks, but the people have done a wonderful job of collecting data and all i had to do was sit at home and wait for it to come in, now my brain hurts.
Another good thing has been the number of accipiters that have been seen, Cooper’s Hawks especially appear to be doing well, maybe all those Eurasian Collared-Doves which make a lovely meal got the nesting season going well. More good sightings have included the Wilson’s Snipe that have been seen sitting on the edge of Jim’s Pond most weeks and going on the number of reports that i have had they just don’t sit out there on Wednesdays, they are there nearly every day, all except today’s count.
Did i mention the weather, the count has now gone almost a whole season with good weather, hope i don’t put the mockers on it. What is it about a Wednesday that makes the sun shine? We will have to see what the rest of this seasons count has in store for us.
As has been mentioned before we do take notice of other species and Gulls are one of them, I have tried to educate the uneducated but i fear it will take many years to accomplish this task, now now don’t think I’m being big headed it took me about 10 years to master the art of Gull identification, so i reckon at least another 7-9 years for them, that’s if they even care to learn.
Now for today’s count, at first on receiving the reports i found myself lost for words, have i failed as a leader, did i not teach them all the do’s and dont’s of a Swan and Goose count. I have tried and tried to keep the vehicles together so that hopefully everyone in the group has a chance to see any good birds, i have tried to teach them about adults and immature raptors, did all my teachings fall upon deaf ears.
I can see that on my return i will need a sturdy tow rope or a very strong bungy cord to keep the vehicles together. I will also be forwarding websites about what is young and what is old, lumping us all together is not good.
This week saw great excitement with the return of the American Kestrel on the flag poles at the exhibition grounds north of town and a pair of flyover Snow Geese near Quist’s farm. Richards Trail produced the sighting of the day with 4 Western Bluebirds sitting along a fence line, it has been scores of years since this species has been seen in the Richards Valley.
Again the counters hit a high of 9 Red-tailed Hawks with most being in the north end of town.
I think the counters must have been getting worried about the number of swans again this week as they only found a few until the last stop of day produced over 100 birds.
Goose numbers as expected rose again and at the golf driving range on Beverly Street three geese were found with white neck collars, they were all photographed and data sent in to a recently posted website. These birds originate from the mid-island area. No neck banded swans have been seen so far but it is still early days yet.
A couple of Accipiter Sp. and two peregrines were found and for the fourth week running one Northern Harrier was seen.
I did not receive any reports of dickie birds, so we can only assume that there are none left in the valley at the moment.
With this extra week break for me i have been lubricating my whip and i am sure that it will be cracking next week when hopefully on my return the count will resume to it’s past glories.
Photo credit:
071F Banded Canada Goose, by Zan
Red-tailed Hawk & Swans – Barry Hetschko
Derrick
By Dorothy & Eric
As we gathered at the dog park on a cold frosty morning a red-tailed hawk posed on a tree above the dog compound while the photographers took many photos. Promptly at 10 we set of in two cars – I was at the wheel of the swan and goose car with Dorothy, Janice and Bob. Christina was driving the raptor car with Kurlene, Zan and Barry aboard; not that we restricted our observations to the designated birds. There was quite a flock of Canada geese on the driving range and we spotted three collared geese so got the scope out to read the numbers. Not to be outdone the photographers with the zoom lenses took photographs to confirm the numbers: 199F, 071F and 050F. These are numbers mentioned in the email from the Campbell River group so I will let them know that we have seen them. Somenos Lake yielded our first trumpeter swans.
As we passed the Exhibition Grounds we got a message over the walkie-talkies that sounded like ‘pull over to the left’. The raptor car had spotted the kestrel which was back on the same hunting grounds as last season.. We found a large flock of 90 geese on Westholme Road over the railroad tracks near the Crofton junction. There the raptor car reported that they had seen three snow geese flying south from Mount Sicker
On Richards Trail most of the flooded fields were frozen and there were just three swans on a clear patch. The sharp younger eyes in the raptor car spotted four western bluebirds on a fence along the Trail – Barry took a very distant photo – not his usual standard but clearly bluebirds.
Tom Windsor Drive yielded more geese and another red-tail. And there were more geese by the Hwy #18 park and ride. So at the A & W lunch stop we had quite a wait before the other car arrived – they claimed it took time to check out some of the hawks they had seen.
On Boys Road there were many bald eagles – some on the ground in a field and many in the trees. There were more on Sahilton Road but the flooded field was frozen and the usual flock of ducks was not there. There were no swans or geese on Koksilah Road East so our car got way ahead of the raptors who spent time looking, but not finding many hawks. It was not until we reached Dougan’s flats that we found more swans and geese and had to get the scope out to count them. St Catharine’s Road had 15 swans. Jim’s pond had the usual injured goose with its companion cackler. Search as we might we could not find the snipe on the shore of the pond which was partly frozen.
In Cowichan Bay there were two mute swans. And on Dinsdale’s Farm over 700 geese and five swans were grazing. Down Dock Road the tide was very high – a King Tide – and there were many gulls way over towards the north shore along with two trumpeters. This was a very different sight to last week when there were many gulls and eagles feasting on dead salmon with a lower tide exposing mud flats.
Kurlene told us that she had seen swans on the field by the river across from the Butter Church earlier in the week so she stopped and counted over 100 swans there!
Back at the dog park Bob’s poor car would not start so I have him a boost and I trust he made it home.
By Kurlene
With poor Derrick still down with the plague the pressure was on for another accurate raptor count. Pencils sharpened, extra erasers and Christina manning the wheel we were confident we had things under control. With two good sightings right at the dog park, a Red Tail and a Peregrin we were off to a great start! Low and behold as we were approaching the fairgrounds we spotted something on the flagpoles. There he was, our American Kestral perched in the sun!! First sighting of him this year! We quickly radioed ahead to the Swan car and pulled over but communications failed and the last sighting of the Swan car was Eric putting pedal to the metal, passing a semi and disappearing into the distance. Shortly thereafter a couple of cop cars with sirens blazing flew by so we weren’t sure what was up. We stayed and took pics of our old friend and then tried to catch up to the lead car.
The difference with being the Swan and Goose car is their targets are large and easily identified so unless they get bogged down with large amounts of targets in one place, they easily count and are on their way. We, on the other hand, are left with obscure blobs in distant trees that are not easily identified unless you have the knowledge of our fearless leader. So by the time we stop, take pictures to enlarge, have a discussion about what we may have seen we fall far behind. And then there are the caterpillar nests that have taken on perfect hawk profiles in the distant trees!! We saw Red Tails, Coopers and another Peregrin by the time we hit the eagles on Boys and Sahilton. Thankfully Bob counted eagles for us because there were no swans and we caught up for a short while.
By Barry
We had lovely views of a Northern Harrier that hovered above us on Hillbank and a raptor that flew in over the car that we barely had a glance at. Christina noted he had yellow feet and darkish…………we didn’t attempt a guess at that one and he went down as unidentified. Dock road was quiet, we had hoped for a Sharpie and a Merlin for a grand slam of raptors for the day but no luck. We ran into another pile of eagles and swans hidden away close to the dike and stopped to count which put us late to the dog park again, but it was a great bit of luck as the Swan count missed these hidden away guys and it was our highest swan count of the day!!! Being a laggard sometimes pays off!! Great day in lovely sunshine, let’s hope our fearless leader returns next week, this counting business is a lot of work!! Get well soon Derrick!!!
I had a bit of a rocky start to yesterdays count. But i quickly shut my mouth and hide in the back seat.
I felt like a gunner in the back of a B52 Bomber. Sitting in my turret. Cold and alone. Patiently waiting for something to shoot.
The engine noise, the clammer and commotion coming from inside the cockpit was at times unnerving.
To fast in areas where the Boogies often hide and to slow to keep up with the Squadron leader.
I asked myself. Where we going to make it home alive?
But with a picture of my lucky crossed rabbits feet in my pocket. We all made a safe return back to the rally point.
Cold and hungry we all clambered out to thank our lucky stars we had a returned safely.
Here are a 2 pics I collected: Red-tail & swans
Can’t wait till next week.
Here is a guest post from Ovidiu Popescu in Romania. He has helped create a new website, http://greentumble.com, aimed at increasing environmental awareness. It is good to know we have allies around the world and to be reminded occasionally of the fundamentals of environmental stewardship.
How You Can Help Wildlife
There are a lot of wonders in the world and among them are wildlife species. While most people think that there is an abundance of wildlife species on our planet, the truth is, their numbers are declining rapidly due to land use changes, pollution, climate change and uncontrolled hunting and trapping. If we don’t take action now, more species will become endangered and even extinct. Each one of us plays a crucial role in protecting wildlife and their habitats. Whether you choose to get involved with hands-on volunteering to monitor endangered species and help with habitat preservation or whether you want to share knowledge and raise awareness, there’s a little something for everyone. Here are a few suggestions on how you can make a difference every day.
1. Create a wildlife-friendly garden
No matter how small is your yard, you can still grow a few plants that can reduce the risk of native biodiversity loss, offer shelter and food for insects like butterflies and bees, as well as to other wildlife such as hummingbirds. In fact, even a window box with the right types of flowers can support some species. Don’t forget to identify invasive plants and remove them from your yard.
2. Clean boats and other outdoor gear
Clean your boat, trailer, tires, fishing gear and other equipment frequently to prevent moving invasive species, like insects or plants, from one area to another.
3. Do not litter
Garbage is often harmful to animals. Discarded gum, for instance, has been well known to kill birds. Food leftovers from garbage bins may be eaten by wild animals, but they do better on a natural diet of food that grows wild in the nature.
4. Be an educated consumer – Reduce, reuse, recycle
Avoid buying products like tortoise shell, corals, or ivory made from endangered animals, and don’t eat shark meat in restaurants.
Bring your own reusable bag to the food store and try buying goods with little if any packaging. You will realize quickly how much less garbage and waste you produce.
5. Volunteer
This is a great chance to give something back to the environment. We can be much stronger wildlife helpers when we work together. Join clean-up events, maintain trails, monitor birds, make storm drains, remove trash and invasive species of plants. Small actions like these are truly what makes the world a better place. Nature Cowichan also welcomes volunteers to help with membership management, fundraising, office support, publicity, public events, newsletters and many more.
Because i am sick with a bug and was unable to attend yesterdays festivities please find this weeks write up entitled.
” In their own words”
Dorothy:
Our day began with a big disappointment – an email from Derrick claiming to be too sick to lead our group and not wanting to spread the nasty plague to us. Determined to soldier on without him eight of us met as usual at the Dog Park. Imagine out joy when David Aldcroft drove up with Diana and we cried ‘Derrick has sent an expert to lead us in his absence!’ David had difficulty in convincing us that his arrival was purely coincidental and he did not have time to spare to come on the Swan & Goose Count with us. This was our second big disappointment and still just 10 am.
We set off in two cars on our usual route and the first part was another disappointment; however, by Pastula Farm, the day took an upward turn and we counted over 300 Canada geese and 37 trumpeters. On Tom Windsor Drive people in the lead car were thrilled to see a family of about a dozen quail.
Pulling into the Park & Ride on Hwy 18 we encountered a large flock of Canada geese close by. Our routine stop at A & W saw a wide variety of foods, including chicken legs, muffins and bagels while the frugal members survived with home-made egg salad sandwiches.
Boys and Sahilton yielded trees full of eagles, more than we could count and the two car loads began arguing if we were counting some of the Boys Road eagles again on Sahilton – we lacked our usual decisive leadership! While the argument waged on Eric was parked under a tree, unfortunately directly below an immature eagle. There was nothing immature about its droppings which hit the sunshine roof like the loudest hail storm you can imagine and flowed down the windscreen and doors in decorative stripes. Now we need a good old rain storm like we had on Tuesday or Eric will have to fork out money for a car wash.
Eric’s passengers persuaded him to turn down Corfield Road hoping to see a red-headed sapsucker again – there was just one adult eagle down there. Unfortunately the walkie-talkies failed at this point (or passengers in the other car were talking too loudly to hear) as they failed to follow us and hence took the lead. Luckily Christina and Janice had cell phones and we were able to reconnect and catch them up in Cowichan Station and take the lead up Bench Road.
Dougan’s Flats yielded large numbers of Canada geese, far in the distance, screened by bush, which we struggled to count as traffic thundered by on Hwy #1.
At Jim’s Pond, with great difficulty we spotted the snipe. Even with the scope trained on him it was hard to decipher what we saw. The usual resident goose with the broken wing was not seen. We saw hooded mergansers both here and on Cowichan Bay.
A flock of swans was at the far side of the Bay from Dock Road and after discussion and peering down the scope we finally agreed that there were 23 trumpeter swans not mute swans. Then 13 more swans flew overhead to add to our total. Many gulls, bald eagles and one seal were feasting on salmon carcasses near Dock Road. Christina had insisted that a tiny speck on top of a spindly bush across the march seen from Dock Road was a shrike, so reluctantly, when the other car confirmed this, we decided to believe her.
We dearly hope our leader will return to exert his authority next Wednesday – it was after 3 pm before we finished!
Kurlene:
Today was a great day aside from a few minor malfunctions…………thankfully Eric was kind enough to translate my data sheet into something legible. Now it wasn’t all my fault that the sheet was something of a mess, the pencil with an eraser leaped from my hand and rolled across the dash directly into Barry’s air vent. He thinks he may be able to dig it out at some point. So there were raptors to the left of us and raptors to the right of us and between identification, area we were in and numbers, there were a few smudges. So Eric saved you from further grumpiness I’m sure! Now on to the corrections, the COHA on Telegraph was actually on Koksilah East. When Barry did the U turn in the middle of the road to chase it I must have put it down in the wrong spot……we found him again sitting majestically on a fence post. He didn’t like the looks of us and flew into a large maple across the road and out of the maple came a ton of tweetie birds fleeing for their lives wondering where he came from! Anyway this adventure put us somewhat behind the Swan and Goose car, we were the Raptor car. Another slight error is a Peregrin Falcon spotted by Janice on Sahilton, he was a distant black blob that we thought was a COHA but when I lightened the picture it was our only peregrin! Also please add a COHA to the dock road, we spotted him on the way out. Dorothy was great in your place and did her very best to crack the whip and keep us on schedule. Admittedly the Raptor car was a laggard, cameras, slow identification skills and at the end of the day, we totally forgot about giving poor Eric and Dorothy the sheets and were very late back to the dog park. Our apologies, and our only excuse is the birds that grabbed our attention and we forgot we had the sheet still………And the eagles, I lost control of the eagle count on Dock RD. There were so many way across the bay and they kept flying so the Dock Rd eagle count is iffy. Probably way more!! So get well soon, we need you, really we do!!!
What can i say ?
photo credits
Red-tailed Hawk by Zan
Coopers Hawk by Christina
It is amazing how unreliable birds can be at times, we have had field trips, lectures, art and photo shows, we have even had beers named for the events and to cap it all off we have the faithful who turn up every Wednesday to count them. What do they do, they don’t show up for the party provided for them. This was the case this week when panic had set in among the counters, here we were three parts through our count and we hadn’t got a Swan of any species. Luckily at Dougans Flats a pair of Trumpeters were way out in the field among a large throng of Canada Geese. That was it with the Dock Road shut up for this solemn day we had a grand total of 2 Swans.
Eight counters turned up to start the day and another two stragglers met us at A&W.
Before we had gone through Lakes Road, Somenos and Quist’s Farm we had added over 500 Canada Geese and a few Raptors. This week saw good numbers of Red-tailed Hawks ” photo thanks to Zan”, a Peregrine Falcon and a very fast Coopers Hawk who zipped in after some Starlings and Blackbirds at the corner of TCH and Hwy 18.
At Quist’s farm i had no sooner got out of the vehicle to check the ducks when several motor bikes roared down the Hwy and a Northern Harrier flew up the railroad, one of us put all the ducks and geese into flight never to be seen again.
There were some very accommodating Bald Eagles at the foot of Boy’s Road which helped get our total of eagles up above last weeks numbers, we will surely be getting many more in the weeks to come.
You know your having a bad week when the number of Ruby-crowned Kinglets is three times that of the swans and the same with Red-tailed Hawks who tripled our swan count.
I know I sometimes mention some of the other people in our group along with their little foibles but sadly one of our group has a problem, well three actually I being one of them, we tend to home in on discarded returnable cans and bottles, but what took place this week sadly disturbed me, one of our party picked up one of those Vodka cooler things Palm Bay which was half full and started to drink it and it was not long before she was totally sloshed and pointing out all sorts of rarities. I do hope she gets help before she misidentifies to many birds.
In among the Geese at Dougans Flats was a Cackling Goose or two, but to far away to record more than one but we doubled our number with a single bird once again at Jim’s Pond, here we enjoyed good looks at a Wilson’s Snipe and a couple of Eurasian-Collared Doves. A Great Blue Heron sat on a fence watching us with fixed eyes, he could have been counting us.
This was our day, not the best, but the weather which once again treated us to a sunny Wednesday.
Eric and Kurlene did a wonderful job of driving and with a little incentive from me about a certain Sparrow species got us around the route in good time for me to have my afternoon nap. Big thanks to who was once my good friend and a good sport Christina for giving me some fun to write about.
Lastly we should give a thought to all those men and women who gave up so much so that we could enjoy what we do today, thankyou.
