I think Oregon postings are allowed on tweeters, aren't they?

Netta and I spent part of the weekend (15-16 Nov) on the central
Oregon coast, from Newport to Florence, and it was quite interesting
from the perspective of a Washingtonian.

Black Scoter. At least 200 scattered along the coast to the north of
Yaquina Head (15 Nov), with smaller numbers of Surf Scoters; more
than I had ever seen before in Oregon. I note that the coastal CBCs
record just a few of these species, but maybe none of them contain
good BLSC habitat.

Pacific and Red-throated Loons. Large numbers still moving south
along the coast, later than I thought they would be migrating. Small
numbers of scoters were also seen.

Brown Pelican. Abundant everywhere, hundreds and hundreds seen and
presumably thousands present. Roosting in big flocks on projecting
rocks all along the coast, large numbers flying NORTH at several
points where we stopped. Many, many brightly plumaged adults. Are
they planning to winter there before heading back to California for
spring breeding? I checked last year's CBCs for Oregon and found that
most coastal counts lacked the species, although there were a few.
How many are left on the Washington coast now?

Double-crested Cormorant. Three big flocks flew past us heading
south, way up in the air. The smallest had around 40 birds, the
largest over 100, the largest flying flock of this species I've ever
seen. I suppose they were migrating.

Heermann's Gull. None seen, quite surprising to me, as so many of
their associates, pelicans and California Gulls, were still around.

California Gull. Large flocks at most river mouths, totaling
thousands of birds; many of them in monospecific flocks, some with
Western (mostly), Glaucous-winged, and Herring Gulls mixed in. I
would assume these are still heading south, at least most of them.
Are most of the Californias gone from WA now?

All this probably just shows my lack of knowledge of the seasonality
of the Oregon avifauna.

Finally, Wrentit. What a great reward for visiting the Oregon coast!
They are really shy, and even when attracted by pishing, tend to stay
deep in cover. I considered myself lucky to get one photo with a
flash in deep shade, but this is a species I'll try for again.
-----
Dennis Paulson
1724 NE 98 St.
Seattle, WA 98115
206-528-1382
dennispaulson at comcast.net



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