Hi Tweets,

A few hours around Lost Lagoon and Stanley Park.

Highlights: the Basic 1 YELLOW-BILLED LOON Gavia adamsii was again off Third
Beach on the W side of the park, found by Gail Spitler. Best vantage point
is the wooden observation platform near the Third Beach snack bar and
washrooms: scan from the yellow marker buoy south toward the waters off
Ferguson Point. The bird was drifting S about as far out as the buoy. Not
done there, an immature anatum PEREGRINE FALCON came out over the forest,
circled over a few times and slipped off N along the ridge-wave above the W
side of the park (blowing a hard westerly breeze at the time), then a young
'ringtail' GOLDEN EAGLE flew high E over Third Beach, clearly a couple of
northbound birds.

Several Common Loons G. immmer in immaculate Alternate plumage.

COMMON MURRE Uria aalge is *very* unusual in the Inner Harbor: a
Basic-plumaged bird was about 250 meters E of Brockton Point.

At Lost Lagoon, ran into the ever-amazing, ever-acute Evelyn Whiteside who
showed a photograph she'd taken close-up of a hybrid male Common Goldeneye
Bucephala clangula X Hooded Merganser Lophodytes cucullatus at the Lagoon--a
very odd-looking bird that would cause an instant double-take. A female
REDHEAD Aythya americana was in the big mixed scaup flock at the NW end of
the Lagoon, about 100 meters out from the channel entrance, while the drake
TUFTED DUCK A. fuligula was in the channel and duck-feeding area just E of
the Stone Bridge, and the immature HARRIS'S SPARROW Zonotrichia querula, now
in obvious pre-Alternate molt, was singin' up a storm at the small-bird
feeding area at the E end of the bridge. The 'pied' partial albino 'Sooty'
Fox Sparrow Passerella iliaca was joined by at least five more conventional
Sooties, more than usual, and likely migrants. The handful of White-crowned
Sparrows Z. leucophrys there were all of the resident 'pugetensis' type,
though it's about time for the migrant 'gambelii' White-crowns to show up in
numbers. Finally, a personal first-of-year for Lost Lagoon, a Violet-green
Swallow Tachycineta thalassina. A Basic adult Bonaparte's Gull showed up
there about six days ago.

Species List (LL- Lost Lagoon, SW- Seawall)

Common Loon SW
YELLOW-BILLED LOON SW
Red-necked Grebe SW
Western Grebe SW
Double-crested Cormorant SW
Brandt's Cormorant SW
Pelagic Cormorant SW
Great Blue Heron SW, LL
Canada Goose SW, LL
Mute Swan LL
Wood Duck LL
American Wigeon SW, LL
Amer. Wigeon X N. Pintail LL
Mallard SW, LL
Northern Shoveler LL
Canvasback LL
REDHEAD LL
Ring-necked Duck LL
TUFTED DUCK LL
Greater Scaup SW, LL
Lesser Scaup LL (~7,000)
Harlequin Duck SW
Bufflehead SW, LL
Common Goldeneye SW, LL
Barrow's Goldeneye SW
Hooded Merganser SW, LL
Red-breasted Merganser SW
Common Merganser LL
Ruddy Duck LL
Bald Eagle SW, LL
GOLDEN EAGLE SW
Peregrine Falcon SW
American Coot LL
Killdeer SW prob. migrants
Mew Gull SW
Ring-billed Gull LL
Glaucous-winged Gull SW, LL
COMMON MURRE SW
Pigeon Guillemot SW
Rock Dove SW, LL
Belted Kingfisher LL (carrying food--to nest?)
Downy Woodpecker LL
Northern Flicker LL migrant?
Northwestern Crow SW, LL
Common Raven LL
Violet-green Swallow LL
Black-capped Chickadee LL
Chestnut-backed Chickadee LL
Bewick's Wren LL
Winter Wren LL
Golden-crowned Kinglet LL
Ruby-crowned Kinglet LL
American Robin LL
European Starling SW, LL
Spotted Towhee LL
Fox Sparrow LL
Song Sparrow LL
HARRIS'S SPARROW LL
White-crowned Sparrow LL
Golden-crowned Sparrow LL
Dark-eyed Junco LL
Red-winged Blackbird LL
House Finch SW, LL
Pine Siskin SW
House Sparrow LL

Cheers

Michael Price A brave world, Sir,
Vancouver BC Canada full of religion, knavery and change;
mprice at mindlink.net we shall shortly see better days.
Aphra Behn (1640-1689)