The Backyard's Weekly Bird Walk locations are found in the Backyard Bird Report at the very end of the most recent report. Any cancellations will be posted by 8am the day of the walk.

Monday 16 May 2016

Nanaimo bird report, May 15, 2016

BIRD REPORT

“EXPLORE NATURE”---GO BIRDING:

To report your sightings phone the Store at 250-390-3669 or e-mail us at thebackyard@shaw.ca

Please remember, when reporting a sighting, to leave your name and phone number along with the date, the species and location of your sighting.

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Sunday, May 15, 2016:
The Sunday bird walk went to the Beaver Ponds in Nanoose Bay. The morning was cloudy with calm winds--a pleasant morning for birding.  We heard and then saw a MacGillivray’s Warbler close to the trail.  Swainson's Thrush serenaded us for most of the morning. We heard and saw a Pacific-slope Flycatcher, a Hammond’s Flycatcher and had a great look of a first of the season Willow Flycatcher near the trail.  A Western Tanager was singing from a tall conifer tree near the marsh.
Nine birders saw and heard the following thirty-seven species:
Pied-billed grebe
Turkey Vulture
Northern Flicker
Hairy Woodpecker
Rufous Hummingbird
Willow Flycatcher
Pacific-slope Flycatcher
Hammond’s Flycatcher
Olive-sided Flycatcher
Willow Flycatcher
Common Raven
Red-breasted Nuthatch
Chestnut-backed Chickadee
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Swainson's Thrush
American Robin
Varied Thrush
Orange-crowned Warbler
Black-throated Gray Warbler
Townsend’s Warbler
MacGillivray’s Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Warbling Vireo
Cassin’s Vireo
Western Tanager
Bushtit
Pacific Wren
Bewick’s Wren
Spotted Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Red-winged Blackbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
Purple Finch
American Goldfinch
Pine Siskin   

Friday, May 13:
A Swainson’s Thrush was seen at Nanoose Bay. 

A Western Tanager was seen in Lower Lantzville and one was also seen on Gabriola Island.  

Saturday, May 14: 
Blue-wing Teal, Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs along with Long-billed and Short-billed Dowitchers were seen at Quennell Lake in Cedar. 

Four Whimbrel were seen at Pipers Lagoon in Nanaimo 

A Yellow-headed Blackbird is visiting feeders along Gomerich Road in Nanaimo. 
 
                                                       Yellow-headed Blackbird: Colin Henson Photo.

Tuesday, May 10: 
The Tuesday bird walk went to the Plummer Road side of the Englishman River Estuary in Parksville. The morning was sunny and warm with calm winds. A Common Yellowthroat was singing from the top of a bush just across the river. A mixed flock of a Semipalmated Plover, a Pectoral Sandpiper,a Black-bellied Plover, a Dunlin and two Killdeer, several Western Sandpipers and a few Least Sandpipers greeted us along the mudflats and kept us entertained for a good part of the morning.  We heard a Pacific-slope Flycatcher, Orange-crowned Warblers, a Yellow Warbler and a Wilson's Warbler singing during the walk. Two immature Bald Eagles were seen chasing a Glaucous-winged Gull overhead before giving up the chase and flying away. 

Semi-palmated Plover: Ralph Hocken Photo.  

Twenty-one birders including visiting birders from England, Edmonton, Port Hardy and Gabriola Island saw and heard the following forty-four species:
Canada Geese
Mallard
Harlequin Duck
Double-crested Cormorant
Bald Eagle
Merlin
Turkey Vulture
Great Blue Heron
Semi-palmated Plover
Killdeer
Pectoral Sandpiper
Western Sandpiper
Least Sandpiper
Black Oystercatcher
Black-bellied Plover
Dunlin
Mew Gull
California Gull
Glaucous-winged Gull
Band-tailed Pigeon
Eurasian-collared Dove
Rufous Hummingbird
Belted Kingfisher
Northern Flicker
Northwestern Crow
Common Raven
Violet-green Swallow
Tree Swallow
Chestnut-backed Chickadee
American Robin
European Starling
Pacific-slope Flycatcher
Orange-crowned Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Wilson's Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Spotted Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Song Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
Red-wing Blackbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
Purple Finch
American Goldfinch 

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Everyone is welcome to join us for a 2-3 hour bird walk on the Sunday and Tuesday mornings. We leave from the Store at 9 a.m. on Sunday Mornings and go to a different location in and around Nanaimo and from the Parksville Beach Community Park at 9 a.m. on Tuesdays and go to different areas in and around the Oceanside area.
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The Tuesday bird walk on May 17, 2016 will be going to Lot Ten in north Qualicum Beach. Meet at the Parksville Community Park at the parking lot near the Lions Club Kids Playground at 9:00 a.m. or on the forest side of highway 19a on Kinkade Road in north Qualicum Beach at about 9:20 a.m.

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The Sunday bird walk on May 22, 2016 will be going to Buttertubs Marsh in Nanaimo. Meet at the Birdstore at 9:00 a.m. or at the Bowen Park entrance to Buttertubs Marsh at about 9:20 a.m. 

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Good birding
Neil Robins 

THE BACKYARD WILDBIRD & NATURE STORE
6314 Metral Drive
Nanaimo B.C.
V9T-2L8
Phone: 250-390-3669
Fax: 250-390-1633
Email: thebackyard@shaw.ca
Blog: www.thebirdstore.blogspot

 

 

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