Hi Tweets,

A quick blast around the seawall and Lost Lagoon this aft.

Highlights:
--after Vancouver Park Board literally blasted off the 60-70 pair nesting
colony of Pelagic Cormorant Phalacrocorax pelagicus--and at least one
nesting pair of Pigeon Guillemot Cepphus columba--off the Prospect Point
cliff, it was inevitable after the Board's employees set their
environmentally-friendly sights elsewhere (the old nesting colony of Great
Blue Herons Ardea herodias in the Stanley Park Zoo became their next
casualty --incidentally, it seems the official explanation is that the
herons abandoned this year after the nearby pair nesting Bald Eagles
Haliaeetus leucocephalus set up housekeeping, notwithstanding that that
pair has being doing so at the same eyrie for at least six years prior
*without* the herons abandoning: gee, go figure the delayed reaction) that
nature would fill in the vacuum. So I'm proud to announce the successful
nesting (two nearly-fledged juvs) of a pair of European Starling Sturnus
vulgaris in the crevice once occupied by the guillemots and another about
halfway up the cliff, and at least one nest of Rock Doves Columba livia near
the top of the cliff. The cormorants weren't completely routed, however; one
pair is currently on eggs. A pair of guillemots were on the rocks below the
seawall whistling away and showing off those huge bright red feet and legs
and looking proprietary--they might try again to nest there.
--an interesting nest-record for Stanley Park--first I know of--is that of a
pair of Belted Kingfishers Ceryle alcyon near the top of a small sandstone
cliff. The tip-off was the distress of the parent birds caused by a
marauding raccoon Procyon lotor. The female may have been a subadult: her
chestnut belly-band was incomplete, with the chestnut restricted to the flanks.
--all the wintering seabirds got thmselves gone: not one grebe, loon or
scoter in the place visible from the seawall.
--on Lost Lagoon, all past their average departure dates from this location,
there was a late male-female pair of Common Goldeneye Bucephala clangula,
several pairs of Lesser Scaup Aythya affinis, one pair of Greater Scaup A.
marila, and a male Ring-necked Duck A. fuligula.
--the river otter Lutra canadensis which has been living at the Lagoon for
the last month or so was playing with its food (unknown) near the shore in
the western part of the Lagoon.

Yesterday, as part of a Baillie Birdathon Big Day, we found 2 late
Red-necked Grebes Podiceps grisegena off the--where else?-- Grebe Islets in
West Vancouver where there was also a (nesting?) pair of Black Oyster
Catchers Haematopus bachmani; an adult male definitively-plumaged Redhead
Athya americana was on the Outer Pond of Iona; a territorial singing male
Anna's Hummingbird was where we first found him several weeks ago at the
clearing on the S side of the gated road about 500 meters beyond the *main*
Cypress Bowl Works Yard at the bottom of the mountain; a pair of Western
Kingbirds Tyrannus verticalis were on the powerpoles at Colony Farms; and a
male Chipping Sparrow Spizella passerina was singing along the Bridle Path
trail in Stanley Park.

While using the Caulfield Drive route to get from Upper Levels Highway to
Marine Drive in West Van, we stopped to check out a bird and while stopped
heard a loud, ricochet-like metallic 'pwinggg' followed a few seconds later
by the same sound, and again a few seconds later. Not repeated, and the bird
not seen. None of knew what it was, but thinking about it later, I realised
it sounded like the sound a male hummingbird would make at the bottom of a
pendulum dive, and the closest candidate would be a male Calliope
Hummingbird Stellula calliope. I've seen and heard them displaying in
northern BC, but this sounded very loud and ringing rather than a soft,
quiet 'zingg'. Is there any other hummer which gives a similar sound as part
of the male's display? Or was this just a Calliope very close? Any help
appreciated.

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)