2014 Birding Blog - Birds of April - Part 1

I'll dispense with the statement about the photos being the best of the year in this post. If you haven't read it yet, check out any post prior to this one.

For the second year in a row, Edith and I signed up for the Okanagan Bird and Owl tour offered by Avocet Tours in Kelowna. This company is owned and operated by Chris Charlesworth, who as well as being an excellent birder and guide, is a really nice guy.

Last year's tour was in late April which was good for some species and too late for others. This year the tour started on April 4 and ran until the 6th. On last year's tour I added ten birds to my life list. That would be hard to match this year but there were some additions, which will be detailed as they happened.

The tour dominated the month of April, so both posts for the month cover parts of the tour.

#90 Evening Grosbeak: Date - Apr 3. Location: Britton Rest Area, Coquihalla Summit, BC.
A bathroom break produced the first species for the month. I saw a group of birds high up in the trees and took a few photos. I could not see clearly what they were until I got home and uploaded to my computer. The photo below is also poor quality. It was taken at the Red Roost Gift Shop near Kaleden in June in pouring rain.

#91 Greater Yellowlegs: Date - Apr 3. Location: Robert Lake, Kelowna BC.
Since the tour group met in Kelowna the next morning, this is where we stayed. After an early dinner, I made my way up north to this Kelowna hotspot. Although I saw this species quite a few times later in the year, this photo of a breeding plumage bird taken on this day was the best.

#92 Say's Phoebe: Date - Apr 3. Location: Kelowna BC.
This is one of the birds I expected to see on the tour, but this one was sitting on a fence as I drove back to where we were staying.

#93 California Quail: Date - Apr 3. Location: Kelowna BC.
I also saw this common Okanagan bird while stopped. I did not get a good photo at that time. This one is somewhat better, taken at the Red Roost Gift near Kaleden in June.Not bad, three year birds before the tour starts the next morning.

#94 American Dipper: Date - Apr 4. Location: Hardy Falls Provincial Park, Peachland BC.
This is a very cool bird. It is found around fast flowing streams and creeks where it hunts water-borne insects. This location is special because there is a nest at the top of the creek at the waterfall. You can see the nest on the left in this shot.

#95 Turkey Vulture: Date - Apr 4. Location: Hardy Falls Provincial Park, Peachland BC.
These birds are becoming more common each year in BC. This photo was taken in Okanagan Falls on a solo birding visit to the area.

#96 Mew Gull: Date - Apr 4. Location: Okanagan Lake, Penticton BC.
The next stop on our tour was in Penticton for a quick coffee break.After that, we made a quick trip to the public beach on the lake as Chris thought there might be some gulls there. He was right, although most of them were at scope distance. However, this Mew Gull was cooperative. The identifying marks for this gull are the short yellow legs, and the small thin bill without much if any black marking.

#97 Herring Gull: Date - Apr 4. Location: Okanagan Lake, Penticton BC.
This bird was identified by Chris and it was trust the guide time. The Herring Gull is the leftmost one in the photo below. Also in the mix are California Gull, a rare Glaucous Gull and a possible Thayer's Gull. Unfortunately, this is the best photo I could get at this range.

#98 California Gull: Date - Apr 4. Location: Okanagan Lake, Penticton BC.
Same location as the previous Gull. Below is a much better photo taken at the tip of the Iona Jetty on the first day in September. The California is the gull in the foreground. ID marks are the yellow legs and the red/black marking on the bill. The Gull behind to the right is a Ring-billed.

#99 Merlin: Date - Apr 4. Location: OK Falls Provincial Campground, Okanagan Falls BC.
After checking in at our motel the group headed for the nearby provincial campground. While we were eating our lunch, Chris spotted a pair of Merlin flying overhead. This falcon is smaller than the Peregrine with mostly dark markings. The photo below was my only other sighting, taken at Boundary Bay in Delta in August.I was lucky to get such a clear shot as it was on this perch for only a few seconds.

#100 Barrow's Goldeneye: Date - Apr 4. Location: Okanagan River, Okanagan Falls BC.
I usually see this duck on the coast in the winter, but had no luck since New Year. I was happy to see them here. This shows the male on the left with the crescent moon cheek patch, and the female on the right.

#101 Mountain Chickadee: Date - Apr 4. Location: OK Falls Provincial Campground, Okanagan Falls BC.
This chickadee is common at medium elevations in the Okanagan. It reminds me a bit of someone wearing Grouch Marx glasses.

#102 Pygmy Nuthatch: Date - Apr 4. Location: OK Falls Provincial Campground, Okanagan Falls BC.
I had not seen this bird since the early 90's. I missed it on last year's tour, although the guide spotted them at one location. This was the start of a nuthatch run.

#103 Red-breasted Nuthatch: Date - Apr 4. Location: Green Lake Rd., Okanagan Falls BC.
Formerly a common yard bird, this was the only red-Breasted I photographed all year.

#104 White-breasted Nuthatch: Date - Apr 4. Location: Green Lake Rd., Okanagan Falls BC.
Completing the Nuthatch trifecta, I was very lucky to get a good series of close-ups on this bird. This bird is common across North America, except for the West Coast.

#105 Cassin's Finch: Date - Apr 4. Location: Green Lake Rd., Okanagan Falls BC.
Similar to the common House and less common Purple Finches we see on the coast.  The male can be told by the slight crest on the head and rosy wash on the breast. The female has much finer streaks on the breast than the other two species. This photo taken at the Red Roost Gift Shop near Kaleden shows these marks quite well.

#106 Mountain Bluebird: Date - Apr 4. Location: Green Lake Rd., Okanagan Falls BC.
There are some birds that are nice to see and if I get a shot for the record that's okay. But this one demands a good photograph. On the first day of the tour, it was overcast and dull. We saw some Mountain bluebirds, but they were up in trees and my shots were gray. The second day, we had slightly better weather and I managed one clear shot.

#107 Redhead: Date - Apr 4. Location: Mahoney Lake, Okanagan Falls BC.
A common duck in the Okanagan. This shot was taken in May on Birdie Lake at Predator Ridge Golf Course in Vernon.

#108 Brewer's Blackbird: Date - Apr 4. Location: Green Lake Rd., Okanagan Falls BC.
Common in the Okanagan, this species seems to be making its way into the Lower Mainland. The photos below of a male and female were both taken in April at Iona Regional Park in Richmond.

#109 Western Bluebird: Date - Apr 4. Location: Green Lake Rd., Okanagan Falls BC.
This bird is even tougher than its Mountain cousin to get a good shot of. This is the best one of three on this day.

#110 Western Meadowlark: Date - Apr 4. Location: White Lake Rd., Okanagan Falls BC.
By contrast, Meadowlarks are easier to photograph. In spring, they announce their presence with an unmistakeable song, and they tend to remain on the same perch for long periods.This photo was taken on the following day on the Vaseux Lake Bluff.

#111 Northern Saw-whet Owl: Date - Apr 4. Location: Road 22, Oliver BC.
After the day's birding is done, the group goes for dinner and then sets out again after darkness has fallen to search for owls. Last year we had little success, and it was pretty well the same story this year. Chris did manage to call a Saw-whet Owl and get it to answer him, but it would not show itself. At the time of writing this post, I have not seen another one. On a side note, I've decided to count birds that I only heard on this year's list. The bird must be clearly identified by the sound. The photo below is from December 2012 at Reifel Bird Sanctuary.

In December I did see a Northern Saw-whet Owl at Reifel Bird Sanctuary. The photo is not great, so I've left the 2012 photo in place. However, for the record, here is the 2014 photo.

#112 Great Horned Owl: Date - Apr 4. Location: Black Sage Road, Oliver BC.
We did manage to see this owl briefly sitting on a telephone wire, although Edith missed it. No photo was possible as it flew away when we stopped. At the time of this post I did not have a photo for this year, so I've included this one of two chicks seen in 2005 in Calgary.

As with the previous Owl, I did see a Great Horned Owl at Reifel in December. The photo is very poor as it was sleeping up in a tree.

This ends Part 1 of April 2014. Part 2 resumes with day 2 of the tour, including more birds that were seen but not photographed. Well maybe only a couple.