Subject: Pt Grey --> Kitsilano, Oct 24 1998
Date: Oct 24 22:57:15 1998
From: Michael Price - mprice at mindlink.bc.ca


Hi Tweets,

Out to Point Grey, Cecil Green Park and Spanish Banks (PCS) with Jeff
Higgott and Katrina Mackie, visiting from England. Highlights included
several large mixed-species seabird flocks to the N and W of the Point, a
mess of passerines in the brambles along the N side of the gravel parking
lot just inside the entrance at the Cece, and southbound flyby rockpiper
flocks of at least two species.

After they left to finish up some stuff before emplaning home, I went to
Kitsilano Pool (KTS) where the usual mob of gulls congregate in a standing
day roost; normally they'd be on the beach but dog-owners have usurped the
park and have evicted all the wildlife. In the flock was the returned
WESTERN GULL Larus occidentalis back for about the fifth consec winter. Good
place to compare the various gull species wintering in the area and watch as
they move through their age 'n stage molt sequence.

Conditions: nearly dead calm to light SE breezes, overcast, hazy, and merely
a trace of precip in mid-aft; sea state calm to areas of light SE
wind-riffle, high tide.

PCS KTS

Common Loon 10 26 (flock)
Horned Grebe 8 12
Red-necked Grebe 14 4
EARED GREBE 1
Western Grebe ~500 5
Double-crested Cormorant 2 2
Brandt's Cormorant 8
Pelagic Cormorant 6 3
Great Blue Heron 1
American Wigeon ~500 ~250
Mallard 6 4
Northern Pintail 10 flight
Greater Scaup ~30 "
Surf Scoter ~400 3
White-winged Scoter 6
Black Scoter 2
Long-tailed Duck 1 (found by JH)
Bufflehead 30 1 flock
Barrow's Goldeneye 5 flight
Red-breasted Merganser 20
Bald Eagle 1 ad, m
Merlin 1
Black Turnstone ~15 flight
Surfbird ~30 flight
Dunlin ~30
Common Snipe 1 (on the *beach*, found by JH)
Bonaparte's Gull ~50 75% ad, 25% Basic 1
Mew Gull 10 12
Ring-billed Gull ~50 11
California Gull 2 3
WESTERN GULL 1
Glaucous-winged Gull & hybr. ~20 ~30
Rock Dove ~20
Band-tailed Pigeon 4
Downy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 2 1
Steller's Jay 1
Northwestern Crow ~20 ~40
Common Raven 1
Black-capped Chickadee 2
Bushtit ~5
Brown Creeper 1
Winter Wren 4 2
American Robin ~75 ~30
Varied Thrush 2
European Starling ~50 ~100
Cedar Waxwing 2
Spotted Towhee 5 3
Savannah Sparrow 1
Fox Sparrow 6 Sooty-type 2
Song Sparrow 7 4
White-crowned Sparrow 5
Golden-crowned Sparrow 9
Dark-eyed Junco ~50
House Finch 4
Pine Siskin 1
House Sparrow 4 7

Michael Price
Vancouver BC Canada
mprice at mindlink.net

"She's psychic....we've decided to find it charming."
--Frasier