Subject: RBA Vancouver, BC June 13/01
Date: Jun 13 22:59:19 2001
From: Larry Cowan - lawrencecowan at home.com


This is the Vancouver Bird Alert for Wednesday, June 13th - Evening Update

Featured birds are: YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT, LEAST FLYCATCHER, MARBLED GODWIT,
WHIMBREL and LAZULI BUNTING

Species mentioned:

Green Heron [Cheam Lake RP]
Mute Swan [Grant Narrows]
Brant [Tsawwassen Jetty]
Turkey Vulture [Burnaby, Mission]
Osprey [Grant Narrows, Surrey]
Peregrine Falcon [Cheam Lake RP]
Black Oystercatcher [Tsawwassen Jetty]
Whimbrel [Blackie Spit, Tsawwassen Jetty]
Marbled Godwit [Blackie Spit]
Long-billed Dowitcher [Tsawwassen Jetty]
Caspian Tern [Tsawwassen Jetty, Port Moody]
Band-tailed Pigeon [Grant Narrows]
Barn Owl [Colony Farm RP]
Vaux's Swift [Grant Narrows]
Black Swift [Grant Narrows, New Westminster]
Red-breasted Sapsucker [Grant Narrows]
Olive-sided Flycatcher [Colony Farm RP]
LEAST FLYCATCHER [Grant Narrows, Cheam Lake RP]
Eastern Kingbird [Grant Narrows, Iona, Cheam Lake RP]
Gray Catbird [Cheam Lake RP]
YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT [Colony Farm RP, Pitt Meadows]
Lazuli Bunting [Colony Farm RP]
Bullock's Oriole [Blackie Spit, Grant Narrows RP, Colony Farm RP, Cheam
Lake RP]
Red Crossbill [Sardis]

Sightings for Wednesday, June 13

Two YELLOW-BREASTED CHATS were seen and heard during mid-morning at Colony
Farms, Coquitlam. To search for these birds follow the trail from
Shaughnessy St until it divides into two. Turn Right and proceed until you
are mid-way between a sharp right-angled bend and a prominent tall snag.
This should place you approximately 250-300 metres before the large
cottonwood trees. The birds are frequenting shrubbery on both sides of the
trail and calling noisily. A male LAZULI BUNTING was seen in flight along
the same trail.

A MARBLED GODWIT and 3 WHIMBREL were at the entrance to Farm Slough at
Blackie's Spit. Nearby, in the 'heard only' category, were a BULLOCK'S
ORIOLE and a PURPLE MARTIN.

An evening walk along the Nature Dyke at Grant Narrows RP, Pitt Meadows, was
quite productive with the following birds reported: 6 BULLOCK'S ORIOLES, 20
BLACK SWIFTS, 10 BAND-TAILED PIGEONS, 2 RED-BREASTED SAPSUCKERS, 3 OSPREYS,
2 MUTE SWANS and 6 EASTERN KINGBIRDS. The LEAST FLYCATCHER was also seen and
heard along the Nature Dyke Trail.

An EASTERN KINGBIRD was observed along the west fence at Iona; the bird
later flew to hunt from vegetation in the SW Pond.

Tuesday, June 12

A singing male LAZULI BUNTING was observed on the Port Coquitlam side of
Colony Farms, in a field just east of the pumphouse.

A TURKEY VULTURE was seen in the vicinity of Hwy 1 and Boundary Rd and an
OSPREY was in the Green Timbers area of North Surrey.

Monday, June 11

15 BLACK SWIFTS were seen from the 22nd St SkyTrain Station in New
Westminster

Sunday, June 10

A YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT was found at 10AM about 300 metres off the east side
of Rennie Rd, just north of Pine Mountain at Pitt Meadows. This location is
about 3.5 km south of Grant Narrows Regional Park. The bird flew up into a
tree during heavy rain but quickly disappeared into the undergrowth still
calling intermittently. However, despite further checks throughout the day
the bird was not re-located.

A second YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT was reported from Colony Farms, Coquitlam at
2:30PM.

Along the Nature Dyke at Pitt Meadows, the LEAST FLYCATCHER, a BULLOCK'S
ORIOLE and 2 EASTERN KINGBIRDS were seen again. Up to 10 TURKEY VULTURES
were reported from the Matsqui Trail area, just east of the Mission Bridge.

Saturday, June 9

A calling LEAST FLYCATCHER was discovered during a VNHS field trip to Grant
Narrows RP, Pitt Meadows. To find this bird take the nature trail and look
for a large log crossing the path about 200 metres from the trail entrance.
Also in the area were up to 100 BLACK SWIFTS, up to 200 VAUX's SWIFTS and 2
EASTERN KINGBIRDS.

A LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER was at the Compensation Lagoon along the Tsawwassen
causeway.

A female LAZULI BUNTING collecting nest material was observed during a field
trip to Colony Farms, Coquitlam. The male can usually be found singing from
the power lines west of the boarded-up buildings on Colony Farm Rd. Also
present at the Farms were a male BULLOCK'S ORIOLE, 2 OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHERS
and 3 juvenile BARN OWLS.

Out-of-town, 2 male RED CROSSBILLS were at a feeder along Extrom Rd,
Sardis - in the Ryder Lake area.

Friday June 8

8 WHIMBREL, 2 BLACK OYSTERCATCHERS, a BRANT and 12 CASPIAN TERNS were all
reported from the Compensation Lagoon along the Tsawwassen Ferry Causeway.

Out-of-town, at the Cheam Wetlands east of Chilliwack, were a calling LEAST
FLYCATCHER, a GRAY CATBIRD, an adult GREEN HERON, 5 BULLOCK'S ORIOLES, 4
EASTERN KINGBIRDS and a PEREGRINE FALCON.

2 CASPIAN TERNS were seen from Alderside Rd, Port Moody.

END TRANSCRIPT

Please remember to also report your sightings to the Vancouver Bird Alert at
(604)737-3074. Thank you and good birding!

Visit the Vancouver Natural History Society's website at:
www.naturalhistory.bc.ca

Larry Cowan
Port Coquitlam, BC
lawrencecowan at home.com