Subject: [Tweeters] Deception Pass
Date: Apr 15 19:04:21 2005
From: Ruth and/or Patrick Sullivan - godwit at worldnet.att.net


Deception PassHello Ali,

Since you mention the two white stripes on the side of head,matches a breeding plumage of the Rhinoceros Auklet perfectly! If the birds were Tufted Puffins the body would be solid black contrasting to the white face and very heavy yellow-orange bill with yellow "tufts" extending straight back beyond the head.

Cheers Ruth Sullivan
----- Original Message -----
From: Ali Chaney
To: tweeters at u.washington.edu
Sent: Friday, April 15, 2005 4:46 PM
Subject: [Tweeters] Deception Pass


Greetings Birders.
I'm a birdwatcher from Nevada. My friend and I just got back from a conference in Blaine, WA. On our way up to Blaine, from Seattle, we stopped off at Deception Pass. Thinking we might just be there for a minute we neglected to take along our field guide and instead left it in the car. While scanning the water we noticed a small black/dark ocean bird. We immediately recognized it as a new bird for us, but being from Nevada, many ocean birds are new to us. Anyway, we tried to get as many field marks as we could. Black, small, fairly prominent white eye line and a great big orange bill. The bill reminded me of a clown's bill. It just stuck out like a sore thumb and gave me the impression that it was slightly upturned. And, there were two birds. When we got back to the car and checked the field guide, I felt it looked like a parakeet auklet. However, I don't recall seeing much white on it. My friend remembered seeing two white lines on the side of its face, perhaps it might be a rhinoceros auklet.

We ran back out to the point to see if it was still around. We did not see the dark bird with the big orange/red bill and single eyeline. We did however, see many birds that we felt comfortable identifying as rhinoceros auklets. My friend thought she might have gotten her glasses on one of these when she recalled seeing the two white markings.

So, does a parakeet auklet seem like a good possibility in this area this time of year? It was Sunday, April 10th.
Also seen at Deception Pass:
Common Loon
Harlequin duck
Bald eagle
Red-necked grebe
Double-crested cormorant
Pelagic cormorant
Black oystercatcher
White crowned sparrow
Varied thrush (up the road)
Rhinoceros auklet
My friend and I enjoyed our time in Washington and hope to make it back soon.
Good birding,
Ali Chaney
Reno, NV
Achaney at heritage.nv.gov






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