3 May

 eBird data: https://ebird.org/checklist/S86934018

Weather:  7am 6C wind WSW 4, 12m 13C wind NNW 9

Tide:  10 am 3.9m

One of my standard responses to the question "Seen anything interesting?" has been, "Sorry, no roseate spoonbills..."  This is snarky, I'm afraid, as the chance of a roseate spoonbill in British Columbia is almost on par with, "Sorry, no ostriches."  I've had one deadly serious woman say, "Oooh, I don't think you'll find one of those HERE!"  

This is by way of saying that, nope, nothing staggeringly unusual this morning.  BUT much that was wonderful, and I'd list it as one of my best ever birding mornings.

I set out early--more early than I would have expected as I wakened at --oh my goodness!  4 am, and didn't get back to sleep.  At 5 I got up and saw that it was a truly fine morning, organised myself and was out the door around 6.  

And yes, it was a fine spring morning.


The view across the fields of the Gulf Islands and Coast Range was soft, but I think powerful.

I made my way through the blackberry hedges, chiming with birds, but most of whom seemed to be still in the berry vines.

There was a female hooded merganser on the Merganser Pond when I arrived, but she flew off before I could manage a photo.  I was pleased to see her, and hope to see more hoodies in the near future.  There are little fish in the pond--possibly sticklebacks according to the nice young naturalist working for the Nature Trust.  I imagine that hooded mergansers would enjoy a meal of sticklebacks and it looks like a good place to nest.

I decided that I should check out the owlet again, and was rewarded with the youngster sitting on his nest, looking sleepy.  At first it was still too dark in the woods to get a good photo, so I wandered about until the light was more useful and got this, fuzzy, sleepy, youngster.


Note, if you will, the already well developed talons. (Enlarge photo if possible.)  This little critter is going to be a formidable hunter one day, once he develops feathers and flying skills.  From what I can gather from my Birds of the World resource, this youngster is about a month old.   He/she will be fledged in a couple of weeks and then start to work on flight.  

I shall monitor, trying not to be too intrusive.  

The Straits were at about mid-tide, with a bit of a chop.  There were mallards, and a drowsy pair of common mergansers snoozing on a sandbar.  They seem to do that, often.

Moving along, neither eagle nest had adults evident (or youngsters).  

On the path back to the second parking lot, I think I lucked out on the bushtit nest.  First I paused well back from the nest, and was nearly run into by an idiot on a bicycle, who at least (kinda) said, "Oh sorry did I spoil your shot?"  To which I replied, "Yes, probably."  

...and after the cyclist left, moved on.  Only to find that the nest was really quite busy.  There were at least three adults moving in and out of the nest.  

This is Mom (or so I assume--the light eye colouring identifies her as female)--giving me a major dirty look.


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...And this is Dad (or at least a male bushtit--black eye) studying me from the nest.  Bushtits share nests--as many as a dozen adults may use a nest as shelter, and share in care for hatchlings.  

I must admit, I find them fascinating.

The return walk included yellow warblers and goldfinches. 

A fine day. 

Weather tomorrow looks ominous.  Hope for better weather on Thursday.


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