Subject: POINT ROBERTS BIRDING, MARCH 26, 2000
Date: Apr 2 18:04:04 2000
From: WAYNE WEBER - WAYNE_WEBER at bc.sympatico.ca


Dear Birders,

The following is a list of bird species and numbers seen at Point
Roberts, Whatcom Co., on March 26, 2000, between about 9:30 A.M. and
2:00 P.M. The weather was sunny and mild, and winds were light.
Areas visited included Lily Point and vicinity, Pauls Road, Lighthouse
Marine Park, and the Point Roberts Marina and vicinity.

The list of species observed was as follows:

Red-throated Loon 2
Common Loon 6
Horned Grebe 8
Red-necked Grebe 1
Double-crested Cormorant 8
Pelagic Cormorant 3
Great Blue Heron 1
Brant 80
Canada Goose 2
Mallard 6
Greater Scaup 40
Harlequin Duck 21
Oldsquaw 15
Black Scoter 10
Surf Scoter 200
White-winged Scoter 2
Common Goldeneye 8
Bufflehead 5
Hooded Merganser 5 (1m, 4f)
Red-breasted Merganser 6
Bald Eagle 1
Northern Harrier 1
Red-tailed Hawk 3
Killdeer 2
Black Turnstone 15
Sanderling 10
Mew Gull 30
Glaucous-winged Gull 50
Common Murre 2
Rhinoceros Auklet 1
Rock Dove 2
Northern Flicker 2
Violet-green Swallow 3
Northwestern Crow 60
Common Raven 1
Black-capped Chickadee 4
Chestnut-backed Chickadee 5
Bushtit 2
Red-breasted Nuthatch 3
Bewick's Wren 2
Winter Wren 4
Golden-crowned Kinglet 3
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 1
American Robin 60
European Starling 100
Hutton's Vireo 2
Yellow-rumped Warbler 3
Spotted Towhee 6
Savannah Sparrow 1
Fox Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 10
Golden-crowned Sparrow 6
Red-winged Blackbird 6
Brewer's Blackbird 15
Purple Finch 2
House Finch 10
Red Crossbill 2
Pine Siskin 10
House Sparrow 5

TOTAL: 59 species

Numbers of birds seen on the ocean were low. Both at Lily Point
(SE corner of Point Roberts) and Lighthouse Marine Park (SW corner),
birds were widely scattered, although there was a good variety of
species. The only sizable numbers were along South Beach, where most
of the 200 SURF SCOTERS and 80 BRANT were feeding. A mixed flock of 15
BLACK TURNSTONES and 10 SANDERLINGS were feeding on the pebbly beach
just east of the marina entrance, but I could not find the ROCK
SANDPIPER recently reported on the Point.

At Lighthouse Marine Park, about 10 BRANT and 30 MEW GULLS were
feeding in scattered fashion along an offshore tide-rip. So were the 2
COMMON MURRES (both in winter plumage) and single RHINOCEROS AUKLET,
which was well seen. This was my earliest-ever "Rhino" in the
Vancouver area; usually they do not begin to show up at Point Roberts
until late April, and their numbers there are always small (usually
less than 6).

The SAVANNAH SPARROW, my first of the spring migration, was
singing vigorously in a field next to the marina. Many of the forest
birds (e.g. WINTER WREN, HUTTON'S VIREO, PURPLE FINCH, and PINE
SISKIN) were also in full song. There were no large numbers of
obvious migrants, but the presence of at least 3 singing
YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS and 3 VIOLET-GREEN SWALLOWS in the Lily Point
area was evidence of spring migration. I could not find any RUFOUS
HUMMINGBIRDS (see my earlier note to TWEETERS) or ORANGE-CROWNED
WARBLERS, but they should be there soon.

Finally, in the mammals & herptiles department, I saw 4 HARBOR
SEALS (2 off Lily Point and 2 off Lighthouse Marine Park), and a
chorus of at least 10 PACIFIC TREE FROGS could be heard in the woods
near APA Road and Pauls Road.

That's all for now, and good birding!

Wayne C. Weber
Kamloops and Delta, B.C.
wayne_weber at bc.sympatico.ca