Ladner - Wellington Point Park and Reifel Bird Sanctuary

On this blustery Sunday morning, I decided to pursue a report of Cliff Swallows nesting under a pier at Wellington Point Park in Ladner. I'd driven by this location many times on my way to Reifel Bird Sanctuary or Brunswick Point. It is located about 500 metres before the Westham Island Bridge, and is used primarily as a boat launch.

The wind was blowing off the River and there were no signs of Swallows or their nests that I could find. However, this Mute Swan cam swimming by quite close. I'd seen them before off the bridge. Since these birds are wild, unlike the ones at Stanley Park, they are countable.

Mute Swans are considered an invasive species and are a big problem back east for the native Trumpeter and Tundra Swans. Here they are quite scarce, and a nice tick on the year list.


Mute Swan - Wellington Point Park, Delta BC

The other bird I saw was this interesting looking Gull. After reviewing various guides at home, I concluded that it was likely a third year California Gull. This was based on the greenish-yellow legs, the solid black tips on the primaries, and the head shape. Any comments or corrections are welcome.


California Gull (imm) - Wellington Point Park, Delta BC

Next stop was Reifel Bird Sanctuary on Westham Island. I try to avoid it on the weekends due to the number of visitors they have, but I did not have anywhere else to go. It was reasonably quiet for a Sunday due to the weather.

First up was the hummingbird feeder, where there was a very cooperative male visiting frequently.

Rufous Hummingbird - Reifel Bird Sanctuary, Delta BC

Notice the red on the gorget (feathers around the throat). The colour only appears when light hits it at the right angle, as the next photo shows.


Rufous Hummingbird - Reifel Bird Sanctuary, Delta BC

I was hoping to see some spring Warblers here but it was very quiet. I settled for a couple of Duck photos. The first was this female Wood Duck, which is an under-rated beauty.


Wood Duck (F) - Reifel Bird Sanctuary, Delta BC

The male Bufflehead is very difficult to photograph due to its colouring and the contrast between light and dark. It's quite rare to get a photo that shows the eye. Also, the greenish water in some of the smaller ponds tend to confuse the camera.


Bufflehead - Reifel Bird Sanctuary, Delta BC

This ended my short outing on this Sunday. The Swan and Gull were two more additions for the year list.

April 17, 2016 - Queen Elizabeth Park

Last year in late April there was a massive Warbler Fallout at Queen Elizabeth Park in Vancouver. So far this year, there had only been a few reports from the park. There was a report on Saturday the 16th of a Hutton's Vireo being seen in the park. I knew where I'd seen them last year, so I thought there would be a good chance of seeing on in the same area.

I always park near the Pitch and Putt course on the south-west side of the park, for one thing it's still free to park there :-) . It's also where the main bunch of Warblers were last year. But it was very quiet this year. I ran into a birding couple and they told me that there were Merlins nesting over by the tennis courts, and the male was very conspicuous. So I took a look.

Sure enough, he was in the open high up on a tree.

Merlin - Queen Elizabeth Park, Vancouver

The Merlin is a member of the Falcon family, and is about 2/3 the size but only 1/3 the weight of the more familiar Peregrine Falcon. It feeds on small birds and larger flying insects.

The female could be heard on the nest nearby but was out of sight.

Here's one more look at this beautiful bird.

Merlin - Queen Elizabeth Park, Vancouver

Next I walked around the park and headed north to the area by the Duck pond. I saw the other birders again in the area, and together we spotted a Hutton's Vireo in the trees. It was in deep shade and my first photo was quite dark.

Hutton's Vireo - Queen Elizabeth Park, Vancouver BC

This bird is almost identical to the Ruby-crowned Kinglet, which is a totally different species. However, the behaviour is much different. While Kinglets are very active, flitting from branch to branch, Vireos are slow moving and methodical. The  Vireo's bill is thicker than that of the Kinglet.

The bird moved into a better lit area and I got a shot I was happy with.

Hutton's Vireo - Queen Elizabeth Park, Vancouver BC

The only other bird photo of note was this Gull near the duck pond.

Glaucous-winged Gull - Queen Elizabeth Park, Vancouver BC

April 13 2016 - Lonsdale Quay

Today I had to take time off for a dental appointment in North Vancouver. To ease the pain I try to leave work early and do some North Shore birding. I only had time for one stop today, so the logical place was Lonsdale Quay, only a few minutes from my destination.

My target birds here would be Pelagic Cormorant and Pigeon Guillemot. The quay is one of the easiest places in the Lower Mainland to see the Guillemots. There is a small breeding population that build nests under the quay.

On arrival, it did not look very promising. However, as I walked to the east side I saw this female Common Goldeneye duck.

Common Goldeneye (F) - Lonsdale Quay, North Vancouver BC

I then spotted a Cormorant in the water, but it was the more common Double-crested that I had seen on a few occasions this year.

Double-crested Cormorant - Lonsdale Quay, North Vancouver BC

I then walked to the Northeast corner of the pier and spotted a Pelagic Cormorant. These birds are quite common on Burrard Inlet and also on False Creek. They like to nest on bridges and both the Second Narrows and the Granville Street bridges have many places to build a nest.

This bird had just caught a small fish and was attempting to hide it under the water until it could get under the quay. Unfortunately, a Glaucous-winged Gull was watching and swooped in for the steal.


Pelagic Cormorant and Glaucous-winged Gull - Lonsdale Quay, North Vancouver BC



The bigger gull was successful, leaving the Cormorant angry and still hungry.




Pelagic Cormorant - Lonsdale Quay, North Vancouver BC

If you look back at the Double-crested in the earlier photo, the differences in the two species are obvious. The DC is a bigger bird with a prominent Yellow/Orange bill. The Pelagic is smaller with a darker and smaller bill. the pelagic also has the white spot on the rear quarters.

My time was running out and I was still hoping to see Pigeon Guillemots.These birds are members of the Alcid family and are related to Murres, Auklets, and Puffins. I searched for the origin of the name but could not find any reason they were called Pigeon Guillemots, perhaps a vague resemblance.

Like all alcids, these birds live in the ocean and only come ashore for breeding purposes. As I was leaving I heard some interesting calls. I was in luck. This photo captures a Guillemot (I assume a male) calling for its mate.


Pigeon Guillemot - Lonsdale Quay, North Vancouver BC

It's always a good move to show off your stuff in mating season.


The female must have liked what she saw and heard as she came out from under the quay.


I assumed that this was an already mated pair since they seemed to be familiar with each other.



However, since people were watching, decorum had to be preserved.


That ended my birding excursion, it was time to go get my teeth cleaned and be lectured about not brushing properly.