Jetty Count for
the South Jetty of the Columbia River, Clatsop Co., OR
17 July 1998 0940hr to 1040hr

Tide:out going
Weather: partly cloudy
Wind SW 5; Temp 60F


Method: 60 minute station count at 100m west of "3 rocks" on
SJCR using 20x60 Bushnell spotting scope and 8x50 Bushnell
binoculars. Birds were sorted as to flyby, sitting on beach, sitting
on ocean or sitting on river.

Fly Ocean Beach River total
Common Loon COLO 2 2
Pacific Loon PALO 7 1 8
Sooty Shearwater SOSH 6 6
Brandt's Cormorant BRCO 40 10 50
Pelagic Cormorant PECO 2 2
DC Cormorant DCCO 5 4 9
Brown Pelican BRPE 7 4 11
Surf Scoter SUSC 260 260
White-wing Scoter WWSC 16 16
West Gull WEGU 20 30 25 75
GW Gull GWGU 2 1 3
WxGW Gull WExGW 6 6
Heermann's Gull HEEG 10 10
gull sp. 100 100
Caspian Tern CATE 17 293 310
Common Murre COMU 811 48 859
Pigeon Guillemot PIGU 3 2 5
Rhinocerus Auklet RHAU 4 4
Cassin's Auklet CAAU 2 2

Notes: There were 18 hatching year CASPIAN TERNS on the beach with adults.
The number of WESTERN GULLS around the jetty, particularly on the
ocean has made a sharp rise, perhaps associated with post-breeding
dispersal.


A running account of this and other seawatches is available at:
http://www.pacifier.com/~mpatters/bird/enso/jetty.html


--

Mike Patterson, Astoria, OR _Birds and other Wildlife of the
mpatters at orednet.org Columbia River Estuary_
http://www.pacifier.com/~mpatters/bird/book_ad.html