Subject: [Tweeters] Rock Sandpiper, Oystercatchers at Pt. Roberts, April 4
Date: Apr 5 06:32:39 2005
From: Wayne C. Weber - contopus at telus.net


This report was mailed for Wayne Weber by http://birdnotes.net

Date: April 4, 2005
Location: Point Roberts, Whatcom County, Washington

Low temperature: 52 degrees fahrenheit High temperature: 54 degrees
fahrenheit
Wind direction: S
Prevailing wind speed: 20-28 km/h
Percentage of sky covered by clouds: 20%
Precipitation: none

The following birds were observed by Wayne Weber at Point Roberts,
Whatcom County, WA between 4 PM and 7:30 PM PDST on April 4, 2005.

SSE winds of 25 to 30 km/hr (15 to 20 mph) raised whitecaps on the
ocean and made it hard to see birds on the water (e.g., no alcids
were seen). Away from the shoreline, winds were lighter, but still
enough to decrease landbird activity.

Highlights included a ROCK SANDPIPER-- quite rare in Whatcom
County-- on the beach with 35 BLACK TURNSTONES at Lighthouse
Marine Park. Also there were 2 BLACK OYSTERCATCHERS, which
have been regulars at Point Roberts only in the last 2-3 years.
A singing ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER near the cemetery
on APA Road was my first of the year.

No mammals or amphibians were recorded.


Birds seen (in taxonomic order):

Brant 6 [1]
Gadwall 6
American Wigeon 1
Mallard 6
Greater Scaup 15
Harlequin Duck 20
Surf Scoter 60
White-winged Scoter 8
Black Scoter 13 [2]
Long-tailed Duck 2 [3]
Bufflehead 15
Common Goldeneye 20
Red-breasted Merganser 3
Common Loon 10
Pied-billed Grebe 1 [4]
Horned Grebe 6
Double-crested Cormorant 15
Pelagic Cormorant 3
Great Blue Heron 3
Bald Eagle 7 [5]
Northern Harrier 1 [6]
Merlin 1 [7]
Killdeer 2
Black Oystercatcher 2 [8]
Black Turnstone 35 [9]
Rock Sandpiper 1 [10]
Mew Gull 25
Glaucous-winged Gull 50
Northern Flicker 1
Pileated Woodpecker 1 [11]
Hutton's Vireo 1 [12]
Northwestern Crow 20
Black-capped Chickadee 2
Chestnut-backed Chickadee 8
Bushtit 1
Bewick's Wren 1
Winter Wren 4
Marsh Wren 1 [13]
Golden-crowned Kinglet 3
American Robin 10
European Starling 50
Orange-crowned Warbler 1 [14]
Spotted Towhee 1
Fox Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 1
White-crowned Sparrow 1
Red-winged Blackbird 8
Brewer's Blackbird 6
Brown-headed Cowbird 2 [15]
Purple Finch 1
House Finch 8
Pine Siskin 20
House Sparrow 12

Footnotes:

[1] Brant-- flying past Lighthouse Marine Park
[2] Black Scoters-- at Lily Point
[3] Long-tailed Ducks-- off Lily Point
[4] Pied-billed Grebe-- in slough near marina
[5] Bald Eagle-- 6 imm. mostly at Lily Point, plus one ad. on nest
at Simundson Dr.
[6] N. Harrier-- male, flying over airstrip
[7] Merlin-- perched in tree on Benson Road
[8] Black Oystercatcher-- on beach, Lighthouse Marine Park
[9] Black Turnstones-- on beach, Lighthouse Marine Park
[10] Rock Sandpiper-- on beach with turnstones
[11] Pileated Woodpecker-- heard, Benson Road
[12] Hutton's Vireo-- heard singing, Tyee Dr. N of Benson
[13] Marsh Wren-- singing in wetland along "Marina slough trail"
[14] Orange-crowned Warbler-- singing, in trees near cemetery at E
end of APA Road
[15] Brown-headed Cowbird-- males, with Brewer's Blackbirds in tree
at Tyee Dr. and APA Road jct.-- new arrivals?

Total number of species seen: 53