Hi Tweets,

Over to Stanley Pk today. Jammed.

The Great Blue Heron (GBHE) heronry in the Stanley Pk Zoo had 13 active
nests out of 24, with a total of 19 juveniles, all in the branching phase,
and all looking close to ready to leave. All but two of the nests are in two
large 50-60 meter doug-firs directly above the whale pools. The remaining
nests--one active, with two juvs in it, the other defunct--are in a 10-15
meter vine maple further north above the pedestrian walkway. Interesting
that this heronry is in the busiest part of the park and they haven't
abandoned it (well, they actually did, partially--see below); this
population of GBHE must be the most human-tolerant in Cascadia.

The herons also used to have in addition to these many (15-25) more nests
nearby in several huge 60-80 meter red-cedars in Malkin Bowl, but our
exasperating and thoroughly incompetent Vancouver (BC) Park Board--never an
outfit to let a chance to degrade wildlife habitat go by unfulfilled if it
can help it--lopped off a number of branches on these cedars several years
ago, and not one nest remains in the cedars. If the Board followed its usual
form, it did this work either immediately before or during nest and
territory possession. The herons have never re-colonised those trees though
they're just 100 meters away from the zoo. The herons may be unusually
tolerant, but clearly Vancouver Park Board's tidy-up exceeded the limit of
that tolerance.

Likewise the Pelagic Cormorant (PECO) colony on the cliff at Prospect Point:
usually there's about 60 pairs there. Displaying males take possession of
ledges on the cliff beginning in late February and early March, the pairs
begin nesting by mid-March. This year and last, Park Board began blasting
and scaling on the cliff in early March. A few pairs managed to nest there
this year but not many. Interestingly, the PECO population has spread from
this initial colony to *many* nests beneath the Granville, Burrard, and
Second Narrows Bridges.

Where is the local Vancouver BC birding community on this? No rarities, so
it's no big deal. The Stanley Park Nature House? Too busy at the far more
important work of selling postcards, even if they weren't terrified to the
point of paralysis of incurring Vancouver Park Board's vengeful spite
(history demonstrates this is not an unjustified fear by any means). Ah
well, that's how we do things here in Vancouver BC.

* * *

Then off to a round of the Seawall to see if any early seabird migrants had
showed up. Not today, except for a juv California Gull at Lumbermens' Arch.

Conditions: time: 3.30--5.00 PM PDT; temp: 25-27 C, very humid; wind: calm
to W-SW 5-10 km/hr; cloud: broken high overcast as weak warm Low moves
in--if Back East, thunderstorm weather; barom: falling; precip: none; tide:
full flood--the incoming tide *really* blasting through the First Narrows,
and the PECO and Pigeon Guillemots really working the 8-10 knot surge; sea
state: calm to very light westerly rippled except in tide-rip and surge
areas in the Narrows: a confused 1-1.5 meter heavy chop in the former and
similar swell-height in the latter.

Double-crested Cormorant 1 ad
Pelagic Cormorant 24
Great Blue Heron 1 ad
Canada Goose 36
Mallard 7
Bonaparte's Gull 1 ad Pre Bsc
California Gull 1 juv
Glaucous-winged Gull c75 60% imm, no juvs
Pigeon Guillemot 5 all worn Alt
Harbor Seal 3

A quick spin around Lost Lagoon to check for oversummering scaup or
goldeneye, with none there. Heartening to see were three flightworthy Wood
Duck (WODU) juvs, likely from the breeding population in Beaver Lake, also
in Stanley Pk. I don't see breeding pairs of WODU with young on the Lagoon
anymore, a victory for the human-fed hordes of raccoons, who got most of the
Lost Lagoon adults and likely all of the young.

Canada Goose c120 ad & juvs
Mallard c200 " " "
Wood Duck 5 3m, 1a 2jv; 2f, 1a 1jv


Then back home to do the laundry I'd put off successfully all afternoon.

Cheers,

Michael Price
Vancouver BC Canada
mprice at mindlink.net