Parksville/Qualicum Beach Tuesday bird walk, October 23, 2012

          Common Golden-eye: Ralph Hocken Photo.


The Tuesday bird walk went to Columbia Beach. The morning started out cloudy with some sunshine but finished with a strong biting wind off the Strait of Georgia. We saw many small flocks of Common Murre, Bufflehead, Common Golden-eye, Northern Pintail, Surf Scoter, White-winged Scoter, Black Scoter and Long-tailed Ducks heading down the Strait of Georgia just over the water.

Flocks of American Widgeon, Mallards, Common Mergansers and Red-breasted Mergansers flew down the Strait in larger numbers.

Eighteen Black Oystercatchers were feeding along the shoreline.

We spotted Pacific Loons, Common Loons, Horned Grebes, Red-necked Grebes and Western Grebes on the water not far from shore.

Seven birders saw and heard the following forty-one species:

Canada Geese
American Widgeon
Mallard
Harlequin Duck

Bufflehead

Common Golden-eye

Northern Pintail
Surf Scoter
White-winged Scoter
Black Scoter
Long-tailed Duck
Common Merganser
Red-breasted Merganser
Pacific Loon
Common Loon
Horned Grebe
Red-necked Grebe
Western Grebe

Common Murre
Double-crested Cormorant
Bald Eagle
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Black-bellied Plover
Black Oystercatcher
Bonaparte's Gull
Mew Gull
California Gull
Thayer's Gull
Glaucous-winged Gull

Rock Pigeon
Eurasian Collared Dove
Northern Flicker
Northwestern Crow

Common Raven
European Starling
Spotted Towhee
Savannah Sparrow
Song Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
House Finch

The Tuesday bird walk on October 30 will be going to the Shelly Road side of the Englishman River Estuary in Parksville.

Good birding

Neil Robins

Parksville

British Columbia