2014 Birding Blog - Birds of September

On the West Coast, this is a great month for birding. Fall migration is in full gear and the weather is still decent. This year, I had a new tool at my disposal, a used bicycle that Edith bought for me last Christmas. It was really useful for Boundary Bay, where mobility is an asset. It took a while to figure out how to get all my gear, camera, lens, spotting scope and tripod, loaded onto the bike.

#199 Wandering Tattler: Date - September 1. Location: South Jetty, Iona Regional Park, Richmond BC.
This was a life bird for me last year when I saw it at the same location. This shorebird likes rocky areas along shorelines or man-made structures like the jetty. It wanders along casually probing for food in the rocks. Photographic conditions were excellent on this Sunday morning.

#200 Common Tern: Date - September 1. Location: South Jetty, Iona Regional Park, Richmond BC.
I met young birders Liron and Melissa on my way out and they helped me in spotting the Tattler. They had seen many Surfbirds and Common Terns out at the tip of the jetty about 30 minutes earlier. By the time I got there, neither were there. However, after a short wait, the Terns came back. This photo shows the varying plumages between juvenile and adult birds, and between breeding and basic plumage. This completed a Tern trifecta, as I had already seen the Caspian and Forster's for the year.

#201 American Pipit: Date - September 9. Location: Near 112 St, Boundary Bay, Delta BC.
Pipits are ground-dwelling open-country songbirds. They are typically seen in good numbers in fall migration on the Lower Mainland. They had been reported on Boundary Bay, so I made use of my bike to head east from 104 St towards 112 St. I only saw one bird, but got off a couple of good shots. I also saw this species later in the month in South-western Washington.

#202 Brown Creeper: Date - September 13. Location: Belmont Golf Course, Langley BC.
There is always a delay at the 14th hole at Belmont as the golfers must wait for the green on this downhill par 3 to clear before hitting tee shots. Pat Bradley spotted this bird climbing up a tree and I got a glimpse, but no photos. I knew that they were common in winter at Reifel Bird Sanctuary, and got some good shots there in late November.

Gray's Harbor - Two day Birding Excursion.

I took a three day vacation in mid-month. the first day was devoted to golf in the Bellingham area, where I stayed overnight. I then travelled down to Gray's Harbor, which is about 100 miles west of Olympia. I arrived in mid-afternoon at Ocean Shores and commenced birding immediately. I hoped to pick up some of the common birds that we don't get, and perhaps get lucky with some rarities. As luck would have it, there were three rarities at Reifel Bird Sanctuary the day before, and none here. However, I did see some good birds here including one lifer.

#203 Western Gull: Date - September 16. Location: North Jetty, Ocean Shores Wa .
This was a bird I expected to see. I got it last year in San Francisco as a lifer. This gull is has a much darker back than the other big gulls. This photo was taken at the sewage lagoon in Ocean Shores.

#204 Brown Pelican: Date - September 16. Location: North Jetty, Ocean Shores Wa .
Another bird I expected to see. It was tough to get a good photo as the sky was overcast both days. This photo later in the afternoon at Damon Point.

#205 Red-throated Loon: Date - September 16. Location: Damon Point Ocean Shores Wa .

This bird was a wonderful surprise. I first saw it with my scope, and then was lucky to get it closer to shore for some good photos. This was life list #390 for me. It's ironic that these birds can be seen from the White Rock Pier in winter, but I had never been there at the right time. This photo shows a bit of the red throat. The other good field marks are the thin bill and the bird being high up in the water.

#206 Common Murre: Date - September 16. Location: Damon Point, Ocean Shores Wa .
Another pleasant surprise. I had seen this bird before, but not in over ten years. First spotted with the scope, there were a few closer to shore as well. This bird is a member of the Alcid family. there are oceanic birds that only come to shore to nest.

#207 Red Crossbill: Date - September 17. Location: Ocean Shores State Park, Ocean Shores Wa.
I spent the last of my day at the State Park, where I heard some Jays and Wrens but did not see them. As I was leaving, a flock of small finch-like birds landed at the top of a large tree nearby. I suspected Crossbills as they always seem to travel in groups. My two poor photos confirmed this, you can see the crossed bill under magnification (trust me).

#208 Ash-throated Flycatcher: Date - September 19. Location: 104 St, Boundary Bay, Delta BC.
Although I missed a couple of rare birds while I was away, I did see this one when I returned home. It had been first seen on the 15th and was present for about three weeks. This bird is normally seen in the American Southwest and at this time of year should have been further south. There is a theory that sometimes their sense of magnetic polarity gets reversed, and they fly north instead of south. This also seems to be true for Tropical Kingbird occasionally (see November Blog). Most of the flycatchers we see here are about the size of a Chickadee, while this one is Robin or Towhee size. I only saw it briefly on the 19th, but got good photos two days later.
This was life list addition #391.

#208 American Golden-Plover: Date - September 24. Location: Near 96 St, Boundary Bay, Delta BC.
During fall shorebird migration there are hundreds of Black-bellied Plovers around Boundary Bay at any give time. They are all in their drab basic (non-breeding) plumage. Mixed in with them are the occasional American Golden-Plover and even rarer Pacific Golden-Plover. Some of the best birders in the area thrive on the challenge of picking out these birds brings out from the crowd. I was with one of these birders on the evening of the 24th and was able to see an American Golden- Plover with my scope. The photo below is another one I saw on October 9th by myself. It is the one standing in the left-middle of the grass island. The rest are Black-bellied Plovers.

#209 Greater White-fronted Goose: Date - September 27. Location: Near 96 St, Boundary Bay, Delta BC.
This goose is one that appears during migration and sometimes stays here through the winter. There was a good size flock of them off the Boundary Bay dike in a farmer's field, but they were only in scope range. A few flew overhead and presented a better photographic opportunity.

Well, that's it for September. The next post will cover the birds for the rest of the year.