This blog lists the birds I saw in 2014, with an entry for the first date it was seen. The accompanying photo is one of the best of that species taken during the year. If it is not the first sighting date, then the date and location of the photo is noted.
Additions to my life list are noted where applicable.
Snow Geese migrate from the north by the thousands in October/November. They stay in the Lower Mainland until sometime in January, and then head further south into Washington State. Come March, they head back and fuel up to the trip back up to Wrangel Island in the Bering Sea between Alaska and Siberia. It's possible Sarah Palin can see them nesting from her living room. The first photo was taken in April at Brunswick Point in Ladner. The second was taken in a field in North Delta in October.
#71 American Coot: Date - Mar 1. Location: Deer Lake Park, Burnaby BC.
I had been at Deer Lake Park in February hoping to see the reported Glaucous Gull. I had been confused about which part of the park to go to, and had cleared that up for this visit. While scanning the large number of gulls present, I saw some American Coots. It was unusual that it had taken this long to see them. Once again there are two photos. The first shows a large raft of Coots in Vaseux Lake in the Okanagan. This was taken from high up the the Bluff above the lake. The second photo was taken at Frank Lake near High River Alberta. It shows three fledglings in all their orange-red glory.
#72 Glaucous Gull: Date - Mar 1. Location: Deer Lake Park, Burnaby BC.
Finally, my first life list addition (#383) for the year. The Gaucous Gull is common in Alaska, but rare down here. The reported location was a playground and beach on the east side of Deer Lake. There were about a hundred gulls there, mostly Ring-billed and Glaucous-winged juveniles. I only had a vague idea what I was looking for and became anxious when I could not spot anything different. I was joined by a pair of birders who were just as clueless.Then I saw a larger Gull that was creamy white and I knew that was it. I saw another Glaucous Gull later in the year in Penticton on a guided tour. But this look was much better than that one.
#73 House Finch - Mar 2. Location: Backyard, North Delta BC.
After a rarity comes a very common bird. Since we have a breeding pair in our back yard, it's a wonder I took so long to spot one. This photo is from our yard in May.
#74 Canvasback: Date - Mar 9. Location: Iona Regional Park, Richmond BC.
I missed out on seeing this duck last year. They are seen in fall and winter here, but always in small numbers. This elegant female was seen on the date above. The second photo shows a male and female at Brydon Lagoon in Langley two weeks later on March 23.
#75 Marsh Wren: Date - Mar 9. Location: Iona Regional Park, Richmond BC.
A sure sign of spring is the song of the Marsh Wren. They are always tricky to photograph, hidden in the reeds and tall grasses. This photo was taken at Iona on March 30.
#76 Tree Swallow: Date - Mar 9. Location: Iona Regional Park, Richmond BC.
Another spring bird seen on the same day. Although I saw tree swallows many other times during the year, this photo from the first sighting ranked as the best.
#77 Black Turnstone: Date - Mar 9. Location: Lighthouse Marine Park, Point Roberts Wa.
Last year, this was a lifer for me. I now realize that I could have added them to that list years ago. This year I saw them on a few occasions at Point Roberts and once at Ocean Shores Washinton on a September birding trip.
#78 Sanderling: Date - Mar 9. Location: Lighthouse Marine Park, Point Roberts Wa.
Quite often you will see Black Turnstones and Sanderling together. This was the case on this day.
#79 Rufous Hummingbird: Date - Mar 9. Location: Backyard, North Delta BC.
These hummingbirds always show up at our feeder around this time of year. They displace the overwintering Anna's hummingbird for about four months. The first photo is a female on that first day. The second is a male at Reifel Bird Sanctuary later in March.
#80 Townsend's Solitaire: Date - Mar 13. Location: Queen Elizabeth Park, Vancouver BC.
This is a member of the thrush family that I photographed for the first time in 2013. I was lucky on this day as I was returning home from an appointment in Vancouver and made a quick stop at the park. I did not see another one all year.
#81 Lincoln's Sparrow: Date - Mar 13. Location: Boundary Bay 104 St Delta BC.
This is an uncommon relative of the Song and Fox Sparrow that is seen occasionally on the coast, especially during spring migration. I did see a few of them in Quesnel in August as well. This photo is from the first sighting.
#82 Pigeon Guillemot: Date - Mar 20. Location: Lonsdale Quay, North Vancouver BC.
I had a dentist appointment in North Vancouver on this day and took extra time off work to visit Lonsdale Quay. It is one of the best spots to see this species in Metro Vancouver. This photo is another favourite. The red colour is a reflection of a red metal pole on the other side of the Quay.
#83 Green Heron: Date - Mar 23. Location: Brydon Lagoon, Langley BC.
This wilderness area is in the middle of a sub-division in south Langley. There is an avid birder named Randy living there and he posts weekly reports of what he has seen recently. A Green Heron sighting is reason to get out there. They can also be seen in Vancouver at Hastings Park and McLeery Golf Course as well as Burnaby Lake Park. This photo was taken across the lagoon in poor light, but is is my only sighting at the time of this posting.
#84 Violet-green Swallow: Date - Mar 23. Location: Brydon Lagoon, Langley BC.
Brydon is also an excellent place to see this species in Spring. It is such a different looking swallow from the others we see in North America. This photo was taken at Iona Regional Park in May.
#85 Ruby-crowned Kinglet: Date - Mar 23. Location: Brydon Lagoon, Langley BC.
Randy spotted this hard to see species while we were touring the lagoon. This photo was taken at Queen Elizabeth Park in April.
#86 Gadwall: Date - Mar 23. Location: Colony Farm Regional Park, Coquitlam BC.
After Brydon, I headed over the Port Mann Bridge, paid my toll and stopped at Colony Farm. I was hoping to see the Lazuli Buntings that had been reported there, but had no luck. I did see my first pair of this dabbling duck for the year. This photo is a female and chicks taken at Surrey's Serpentine Fen in May.
#87 Horned Grebe: Date - Mar 27. Location: Blackie's Spit, Surrey BC.
This small Grebe is a common winter salt water resident. We usually only see the Basic (non-breeding) plumage as shown in the first photo. In spring they transform and head inland to breed. I was luck to see an Alternate (breeding) plumage bird at the end of the Iona south Jetty in late April.
#88 American Goldfinch: Date - Mar 29. Location: Surrey BC.
I saw this bird in a friend's backyard, but only had the IPhone to take a record shot. The two photos below show a breeding plumage male at our bird feeder in April. The second shot shows a non-breeding female in August. It was taken at Maplewood Conservation Area.
#89 Yellow-rumped Warbler: Date - Mar 30. Location: Iona Regional Park, Richmond BC.
The last bird of the month is our most common warbler.On the west coast we see mostly the Audubon's race (pictured below) while in the east they see the Myrtle race. I think the bird in the first photo, taken on this day, had just landed at Iona after migrating from the south. It was out in the open, probably indicating it was tired and hungry.
This second shot was taken at Manning Park in June. I like the (completely accidental) artistic effect.
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