VANCOUVER RARE BIRD ALERT sponsored by the Vancouver Natural History
Society.

Area: VANCOUVER, BC, CANADA (abbrev-VCR)
Period: MON APR 17/95 to SUN APRIL 23/95, updated weekly
Call: 604-737-9910 (hot line updated daily, or as necessary)
To report: Same
Compiler: Michael Price
Transcriber: Same
Contact: michael_price at mindlink.bc.ca
(604) 731-4715 For sick or injured birds please call:
Wildlife Rescue at 526-7275
Monika's Wildlife Shelter at 882-0908
Owl Rehabilitation Center at 946-3171


SPECIES MENTIONED:

Sora
Virginia Rail
American Bittern
BAR-TAILED GODWIT
Black-bellied Plover
Yellow-headed Blackbird
RED-NAPED SAPSUCKER (arr.)
*WHITE-TAILED KITE*
Golden Eagle
Townsend's Solitaire
Turkey Vulture
Green Heron
VESPER SPARROW
Mute Swan
Sandhill Crane
Trumpeter Swan
Mountain Bluebird
Northern Goshawk
American Kestrel
Northern Shrike
Osprey
Brant
Red-throated Loon
Pacific Loon
GRAY-CROWNED ROSY FINCH
Long-billed Curlew
Peregrine Falcon
Say's Phoebe (arr.)
Mallard X Amer. Wigeon
Gr. White-fronted Goose
Canada (Cackling) Goose
Bonaparte's Gull (arr.)
MacGillivray's Warbler (arr.)
Harris' Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Short-billed Dowitcher
Marbled Godwit
Whimbrel


VCR--Vancouver
RMD--Richmond
BBY--Burnaby
SRY--Surrey
WR---White Rock


SUN APR 23
There was no relocation of the WHITE-TAILED KITE today (Note: the
*WHITE-TAILED KITE* was present at various locations in Pitt Meadows from
Tue. 4.18 to Sat 4.22); however, 2 SORAS, 1 VIRGINIA RAIL, and an AMERICAN
BITTERN were seen along the Pitt L. Nature Trail, and a possible migrant
flock of 4 TURKEY VULTURES was over the Grant Narrows boat launch area at
the N end of Rennie Rd.

There's a report of a BAR-TAILED GODWIT in pre-alternate molt associating
with BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER off Blackie Spit in Crescent Beach; this has yet
to be confirmed. Another AMERICAN BITTERN was at Serpentine Fen in Surrey.
At least 2 male YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS have returned to the Outer Pond at
Iona Is. Regional Pk. in NW RMD.



SAT APR 22
A female RED-NAPED SAPSUCKER, the first of the spring migration, was
located today in Deas Is. Regional Pk. in S Delta; in the W part of the
park. Drive to the westernmost parking lot, then go to the water's edge
then W towards the freeway; look for a sawed-off stump about 5 meters past
a small trail to the S then look for fresh sapsucker wells on the
cottonwoods on the opposite side of the trail.

At Pitt Meadows, 1 subadult GOLDEN EAGLE, 1 TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE, 2 TURKEY
VULTURES, 2 GREEN HERONS, 3 AMERICAN BITTERNS, the VESPER SPARROW, and the
feral MUTE SWAN were at Grant Narrows, and at least 5 SANDHILL CRANES and
up to 5 late TRUMPETER SWANS were along Neaves Rd.

The female MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRD and a TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE were at Jericho
Pk. in VCR. An adult NORTHERN GOSHAWK was seen heading westward just ahead
of a posse of crows in VCR's City Hall area.

At Colony Farms, there was a migrational influx of 4 AMERICAN KESTRELS. A
late adult NORTHERN SHRIKE was at the Iona Settling Ponds in NW RMD, and a
male YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRD was at the Outer Pond just to the W. A staging
flock of 20 WHIMBREL was at Gilbert Beach, just to the W of the S end of
Gilbert Rd. in RMD.
FRI APR 21
The VESPER SPARROW, first seen Sunday Apr 16, was relocated feeding along
the gravel edge along the Pitt L. Dike about halfway between the beginning
of the dike at the Grant Narrows boat launch area, which is at the N end of
Rennie Rd. in Pitt Meadows, and the observation tower some two hundred
meters to the E opposite the piling with the OSPREY NEST atop it. Both the
nesting pair of OSPREYS and a third bird were in the vicinity, and another
OSPREY was over Jericho Pk. on W 4th Ave in VCR.

Also at Jericho, a female MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRD was at Jericho Pk. for the
second consecutive day, but there was no relocation of the single
GRAY-CROWNED ROSY FINCH seen Thursday Apr 20.

Between being chased off the Boundary Bay foreshore by dogs or by
low-flying helicopters, the migrating BRANT aren't getting much peace
there; about 150 BRANT were chased off over to the White Rock side today,
but about 2500 were relatively undisturbed in the waters between the
Tsawwassen and Roberts Bank Jetties in Ladner.

Back in Pitt Meadows, there were 3 TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRES, a single TURKEY
VULTURE, a single basic-plumaged RED-THROATED LOON, and a *very*
out-of-place PACIFIC LOON at Grant Narrows, as well as a possible migrant
flock of 3 AMERICAN BITTERNS, an unusual sight; usually the bird known as
Ol' Thunderpump is heard in marshes but rarely seen even as a single bird.

Another TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE was near the Edmund's Skytrain Station in
BBY. THU APR 20
At least 1 GRAY-CROWNED ROSY FINCH was on the concrete wharf at Jericho
Pk. in VCR, and a female MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRD was in the Western Rough to the
SE of the tennis courts there.
WED APR 19
In Pitt Meadows was 2 TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRES at Grant Narrows, a LONG-BILLED
CURLEW, a PEREGRINE FALCON, at least 2 pairs of SANDHILL CRANES, and a
SHORT-EARED OWL was at COlony Farms in Port Coquitlam.



TUE APR 18
RARE BIRD ALERT: Pitt Meadows was cooking again today with an adult *WHITE-
TAILED KITE*, likely the same bird as that seen briefly E of Chilliwack on
Sunday April 02; the bird was seen on Rennie Rd. about 1.5 km S of the
Grant Narrows boat-launch at the S end of Pitt L., and was seen to fly S
until it disappeared. At Grant Narrows itself was a SAY'S PHOEBE, the first
reported this spring, and a TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE.

A flock of 4 GRAY-CROWNED ROSY FINCHES made a lunch-hour pitstop along the
seaward edge of the concrete wharf at Jericho Pk. on W 4th Ave. in VCR but
left in the mid-afternoon to continue their northward migration. Another 2
TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRES were reported from Queen Elizabeth Pk. in VCR. A male
YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRD at the Outer Pond in Iona Is. Regional Pk. in NW
RMD was the first reported from this location, which is their only known
nesting colony on the Coast.

A single female MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRD was at Colony Farms in the NE field, and
at Lost Lagoon, a MALLARD X AMERICAN WIGEON HYBRID has been frequenting the
NE corner of the Lagoon for the last few days. A single GR. WHITE-FRONTED
GOOSE was at Beach Grove in Tsawwassen before being run off by an unleashed
dog, and small numbers of 'CACKLING' CANADA GEESE were heard migrating over
the Greater VCR area at night; this is consistent with their migration this
year--fairly large numbers of the small-race Canada Geese are currently
migrating through central Washington & Oregon States at this time.

Inadvertently left off the update of Friday April 14 was the first spring
sighting of BONAPARTE'S GULL which was of a single bird at the Iona
Settling Ponds.



MON APR 17 EASTER MONDAY
The first MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLER report of the spring is a single male bird
in the small quarry on the N side of Little Mountain in VCR's Queen
Elizabeth Pk. A TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE, was on the lawn bowling field on the
SE side of Queen E. Pk., the first reported from this species' traditional
migrational location.

On the entrance road to the Reifel Refuge, there was the male
YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRD, the HARRIS' SPARROW which is molting quickly into
alternate plumage, and what is perhaps a different WHITE-THROATED SPARROW
than the one which frequented this spot for so long this winter.

Up to 15 SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHERS, the MARBLED GODWIT, and the WHIMBREL
were at Blackie Spit in Crescent Beach; the third Amigo, the LONG-BILLED
CURLEW, has not been seen for at least two weeks now and can be presumed to
have migrated to its summer playgrounds. Finally, for this date, several
flocks of SANDHILL CRANES totalling about 150 birds were at the 1500 meter
level on Mt. Washington on Vancouver Is. just W of Parksville.
If you have a report or a query about bird identification or
Vancouver birding please call:


Michael Price at (604)731-4715
Mark and Eleni Wynja at (604)438-6529
(Other contact names omitted on request)


Thanks for calling the Vancouver Bird Alert and Good Birding!