Subject: [Tweeters] Vancouver, BC RBA for July 28, 2007
Date: Jul 29 13:40:16 2007
From: Wayne Weber - contopus at telus.net


This is Wayne Weber with the Vancouver Natural History Society's Rare
Bird Alert for Saturday, July 28th, sponsored in part by Wild Birds
Unlimited, with stores in Vancouver and North Vancouver. This update
was recorded at noon on July 29th.Apologies for the delay in updating
the RBA?- I was out of town unexpectedly for several days. The RBA telephone number is (604) 737-3074.



RARE BIRD ALERT for a male INDIGO BUNTING at Colony Farm Regional Park, present there for more than a month.


Sightings for Saturday, July 28th

The male INDIGO BUNTING, present since late June, was seen again along the Mundy Creek trail at Colony Farm Regional Park in Coquitlam, close to the park entrance off the Lougheed Highway.

At Mount Cheam, east of Chilliwack, accessed only by a 4-wheel drive road and a long hike, birds seen included 5 WHITE-TAILED PTARMIGAN, several GRAY-CROWNED ROSY-FINCHES, and a SOOTY GROUSE.

At the Tsawwassen ferry terminal in Delta, 9 summering BRANT and 4 BLACK OYSTERCATCHERS were seen at the lagoon on the north side. A HEERMANN?S GULL, 80 BLACK TURNSTONES, and 25 HARLEQUIN DUCKS were also seen nearby. The WILLET was easily seen near the base of the ferry jetty on the south side.

At Lighthouse Marine Park on Point Roberts, Washington, birds seen included a HEERMANN?S GULL, 4 BONAPARTE?S GULLS, 100 RHINOCEROS AUKLETS, and 60 COMMON MURRES.


Sightings for Friday, July 27th

A PARASITIC JAEGER was seen from a ferry just off the Tsawwassen ferry terminal in Delta. At the terminal itself, 2 WHIMBREL, 9 BRANT, and 4
BLACK OYSTERCATCHERS were reported.


Sightings for Thursday, July 26th

An ARCTIC TERN, very rare in the area, was seen off the foot of 104th Street on Boundary Bay in Delta.


Sightings for Wednesday, July 25th

A WESTERN KINGBIRD was reported from the Maplewood Conservation Area in North Vancouver.

At the foot of 96th Street on Boundary Bay in Delta, noteworthy shorebirds included a summering DUNLIN, 10 SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPERS, and a juvenile BAIRD?S SANDPIPER. Also seen nearby were a WESTERN MEADOWLARK and two AMERICAN KESTRELS, both very rare in summer.

At Colony Farm Park in Coquitlam, 3 male LAZULI BUNTINGS and 2 BULLOCK?S ORIOLES were seen.

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Sightings for Tuesday, July 24th

A PECTORAL SANDPIPER was reported from the Maplewood Conservation Area in North Vancouver, and another from Iona Island in Richmond.

At the Reifel Bird Sanctuary in Delta were 5 WILSON?S PHALAROPES and 570 LONG-BILLED DOWITCHERS.

Nine BRANT, 5 WHIMBREL, 2 BLACK TURNSTONES, and 4 RHINOCEROS AUKLETS were at the Tsawwassen ferry terminal in Delta, plus the WILLET near the base of the ferry jetty.

A RUDDY TURNSTONE and a BAIRD?S SANDPIPER were seen near the foot of 104th Street on Boundary Bay in Delta.

An AMERICAN KESTREL, rare in summer, was seen along Deltaport Way near 41B Street in Delta.

At least 25 BLACK SWIFTS were seen in North Burnaby near the Second Narrows Bridge.


Sightings for Monday, July 23rd

The INDIGO BUNTING was seen again at Colony Farm Park in Coquitlam, as was the NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD near the Forensic Institute there.

Two SOLITARY SANDPIPERS were seen at the Iona Island sewage ponds in Richmond.

At the Tsawwassen ferry terminal, 2 BRANT, 2 BLACK OYSTERCATCHERS, 2 BLACK TURNSTONES, and 20 HARLEQUIN DUCKS were seen, plus the WILLET near the base of the ferry jetty. At Boundary Bay, near the foot of 96th and 104th Streets, 7 BRANT, 13 WHIMBREL, 25 SANDERLINGS, and 7 summering DUNLIN were seen, along with hordes of other shorebirds including up to 10,000 WESTERN SANDPIPERS.

At the base of the Roberts Bank coal port jetty in Delta were at least 150 SEMIPALMATED PLOVERS and 2 SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPERS with hundreds of WESTERN SANDPIPERS.


Sightings for Sunday, July 22nd

The juvenile FRANKLIN?S GULL which had been seen for several days along the Iona Island south jetty in Richmond was found dead.

The NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD was seen again near the Forensic Institute buildings at Colony Farm Regional Park in Coquitlam.


Sightings for Saturday, July 21st

A loudly-singing NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD was found in Colony Farm Regional Park in Coquitlam, near the Forensic Institute buildings on the west side of the park. Also seen in the park were at least 10 LAZULI BUNTINGS (7 males and 3 females), the male INDIGO BUNTING, 20 BLACK SWIFTS, and 2 BULLOCK?S ORIOLES.

A male LAZULI BUNTING was found at Inter-River Park, between the Seymour River and Lynn Creek in North Vancouver, a former breeding locality for this species.

The immature FRANKLIN?S GULL was seen again along the Iona Island south jetty in Richmond.

Eighteen HARLEQUIN DUCKS were seen at the Tsawwassen ferry terminal, and 5 WILSON?S PHALAROPES at the Reifel Bird Sanctuary in Delta.

At Lighthouse Marine Park on Point Roberts, Washington were at least 200 RHINOCEROS AUKLETS and 50 COMMON MURRES.


Sightings for Friday, July 20th

The juvenile FRANKLIN?S GULL, seen yesterday on the beach at Iona Island, was reported today partway along the South Jetty.

A LONG-BILLED CURLEW was seen at the foot of 96th Street on Boundary Bay in Delta, and a near-breeding-plumaged RED KNOT nearby at the foot of 104th Street.


Sightings for Thursday, July 19th

A juvenile FRANKLIN?S GULL was seen by several observers on the beach at Iona Island, Richmond. Also at Iona, but mainly in the sewage ponds, were many shorebirds including a WILSON?S PHALAROPE, 30 SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPERS, and at least 3000 WESTERN SANDPIPERS.

A PECTORAL SANDPIPER and a SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER were among other shorebirds at the Beach Grove lagoon, at the east foot of 12th Avenue on the west side of Boundary Bay in Delta. Another PECTORAL SANDPIPER and 3 WILSON?S PHALAROPES were at the Reifel Bird Sanctuary in Delta.


Sightings for Wednesday, July 18th

At the Tsawwassen ferry jetty in Delta, the WILLET had returned to the jetty base, and other birds seen along the jetty included a WHIMBREL, 7 RHINOCEROS AUKLETS, 17 HARLEQUIN DUCKS, 4 BLACK TURNSTONES, and 3 BLACK OYSTERCATCHERS.

At the Reifel Bird Sanctuary in Delta, 6 BLACK SWIFTS and 3 BONAPARTE?S GULLS were seen.


Sightings for Tuesday, July 17th

The LESSER SAND-PLOVER was seen briefly about 7:15 AM at the foot of 104th Street on Boundary Bay in Delta. This is the most recent sighting known to us. Nearby, at the foot of 96th Street, a HUDSONIAN GODWIT was reported, along with hordes of peeps, including 30 SEMIPALMATED, 250 LEAST, and about 8000 WESTERN SANDPIPERS.

At the Reifel Bird Sanctuary, 2 BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERONS were seen.

A MERLIN was chasing swallows in North Langley near 208th Street and 102B Avenue.


Sightings for Monday, July 16th

The adult LESSER SAND-PLOVER (formerly called Mongolian Plover) was present from at least 7:00 to 9:30 AM on the Boundary Bay tideflats near the foot of 104th Street in Delta. This bird has now been seen for 5 days in a row, but for the last four, has been seen only at the morning high tide and not at the evening high tide. It appears to be either a female, or a male in somewhat faded breeding plumage, but still has a bright cinnamon band across the breast.

At The Reifel Bird Sanctuary, an out-of-season SNOW GOOSE and a TURKEY VULTURE were seen.



If you have any questions about birds or birding in the Vancouver area, please call Wayne at 604-597-7201, Viveka at 604-531-3401, or Larry at 604-465-1402. Thank you for calling the Vancouver Rare Bird Alert, and good birding.

For further information about birding in the Vancouver area, log onto the Vancouver Natural History Society's website at http://naturevancouver.ca



Wayne C. Weber
Delta, BC
contopus at telus.net