NANAIMO BIRD REPORT

A Tribute for Dr. John Brighton
Nature Kiosk Unveiling
April 29, 2010
10 a.m.
Englishman River Estuary,
Parksville
Wildlife Viewing Tower
Shelley Road side.
With the support of the community, The Nature Trust of BC has created a
nature kiosk in memory of Dr. John Brighton. This kiosk is designed to
share John?s love of nature by providing information about one of his
favorite places on earth, a treasured property of The Nature Trust of BC
on the Englishman River Estuary.
For more information call The Backyard Wildbird & Nature Store at
250-390-3669
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To report your sightings
phone the Store at 250-390-3669
e-mail us at thebackyard at shaw.ca
call the Bird Report at 250-390-3029
Also check the birdstore blog for the latest bird alerts and updates:
www.thebirdstore.blogspot.com

Post your sightings on this site:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/bcbirdingvanisland/messages

Birds of British Columbia:
http://www.geog.ubc.ca/biodiversity/efauna/SpeciesChecklists.html

International Birdwatching Guides
http://www.guidedbirdwatching.com

Birdwatching contacts and information find a local birder to go birdwatching
with:
http://www.birdingpal.org/

Please remember, when reporting a sighting, to leave your name and phone
number, along with the date, name and location of your sighting.

Sunday April 25, 2010:
The Sunday Bird Walk went to Bowen Park in Nanaimo.
The morning was partly cloudy and the wind was calm. A Barred Owl perched
on a tree branch at about eye level and gave us great views. We saw both
species of Hummingbirds--the Anna's and the Rufous-- through out the
morning. Red-breasted Nuthatch were heard and seen as we walked through the
forest. We heard several Orange-crowned Warblers singing. Three Turkey
Vultures circled high overhead.
Fourteen birders saw and heard the following forty-two species:
Mallard, Turkey Vulture, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, Merlin,
Glaucous-winged Gull, Violet-green Swallow, Chestnut-backed Chickadee,
Anna's Hummingbird, Rufous Hummingbird, Hairy Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker,
Northern Flicker, Northwestern Crow, Brown-headed Cowbird, Common Raven,
Bewick's Wren, Winter Wren, Marsh Wren, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Golden-crowned
Kinglet, Brown Creeper, Bushtit, Red-breasted Nuthatch, California Quail,
American Robin, Varied Thrush, European Starling, Pacific-slope Flycatcher,
Cassin's Vireo, Orange-crowned Warbler, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Townsend's
Warbler, Spotted Towhee, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Bushtit, Song Sparrow,
Dark-eyed Junco, Red Crossbill, House Finch, Pine Siskin and House Sparrow.

Saturday April 24:
Two Townsend's Solitaires were seen eating holly berries for the last three
days, in a yard along the 5200 block of Gainsburg Road in Deep Bay.

Friday April 23:
The Common Teal is still on the mudflats along with two Western Sandpipers
along the Englishman River Estuary, Plummer Road side in Parksville.

Two California Quail, a Savannah Sparrow, a Varied Thrush, twelve American
Goldfinch, Brewers Blackbirds, European Starlings, four Band-tailed Pigeons,
a Pileated Woodpecker and a Northern Flicker are visiting feeders in a
backyard along Meridian Way in Parksville.


Wednesday April 21:
Two Barred Owls were seen in the forest behind the area where a lot was
being logged near the corner of Turner Road and Martindale Road close to the
Englishman River in Parksville. There were two Yellow-rumped Warblers, a
Ruby-crowned Kinglet, several American Robins and a Spotted Towhee on the
brush piles on the lot and a Varied Thrush was heard calling from the
underbrush.

An Evening Grosbeak, White-crowned and Golden-crowned Sparrows were seen in
a yard in the 5200 block of Gainsburg Road in Deep Bay.

Tuesday April 20:
An Osprey was spotted over Highway 19.

One hundred and forty Brant Geese, eighty Surf Scoters, one Lesser Scaup,
American Widgeons, one Eurasian Widgeon, several Mallard ducks, Green-winged
Teal, four Black Oystercatchers, three immature Bald Eagles, one adult Bald
Eagle, and one Savannah Sparrow were seen on the Englishman River Estuary,
Plummer Road side.

A Mourning Dove, a Hermit Thrush , a Myrtle Yellow-rumped Warbler and a
Common Yellowthroat were seen at French Creek.

Four Eurasian Collared-Doves and twenty Band-tailed Pigeons were visiting
feeders along Dunsmuir Crescent in Ladysmith.

The Tuesday bird walk went to the Top Bridge Trail in Parksville. The
morning was overcast, the winds were calm and dispute a couple of light
showers it was a pleasant morning of birding.
We saw and heard our first Chipping Sparrow of the season feeding down on
the ground with two American Robins. There was a mixed flock of
Yellow-rumped Warblers, Black-throated Gray Warblers and Townsend's Warblers
singing and feeding on the insects high up in some tall Big Leaf Maple
Trees. We saw and heard Orange-crowned Warblers and Rufous Hummingbirds
throughout the morning. A Turkey Vulture was perched at the top of a tall
snag.
Eleven birders saw and head the following thirty-nine species of birds:
Canada Goose, Great Blue Heron, Turkey Vulture, Bald Eagle, Merlin,
Glaucous-winged Gull, Band-tailed Pigeon, Rufous Hummingbird, Downy
Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, Pileated Woodpecker, Steller's Jay,
Northwestern Crow, Common Raven, Violet-green Swallow, Chestnut-backed
Chickadee, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Bewick's Wren, Winter Wren, Golden-crowned
Kinglet, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, American Robin, Varied Thrush, European
Starling, Orange-crowned Warbler, Yellow-rumped Warbler,
Black-throated Gray Warbler, Townsend's Warbler, Spotted Towhee, Chipping
Sparrow, Savannah Sparrow, Song Sparrow, White-crowned Sparrow,
Golden-crowned Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, Purple Finch, Red Crossbill, Pine
Siskin and American Goldfinch.

Monday April 19:
A Wilson's Snipe, a Ring-necked Pheasant and a Great Horned Owl were seen
along the Cottonwoods Golf Course in south Nanaimo.

Saturday April 17:
A Downy Woodpecker was seen excavating a cavity along Lancashire Avenue in
Nanaimo.


For further information on these sightings or for help in identifying a bird
please
call The Backyard Wildbird and Nature Store
at 250-390-3669
Toll Free at 1-888-249-4145
e-mail: thebackyard at shaw.ca
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Arrowsmith Naturalists
Guest speaker: Karen Barry of Bird Studies Canada will present information
about several of the current surveys in which volunteers can participate.
Monday April 26, 2010 at 7:30 pm.
Springwood School
Parksville
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The Nanoose Naturalists
Thursday May 13, 2010 at 7:00 pm
Nanoose Library,
Nanoose Bay
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Everyone is welcome to join us for a 2-3 hour bird walk on the Sunday and
Tuesday mornings. We leave from the Store at 9 A.M. Sunday Mornings and go
to a different location in and around Nanaimo and from the Parksville
Beach.Community Park at 9 A.M. on Tuesdays and go to different areas in and
around the Oceanside area.
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The Tuesday Bird Walk on April 20, 2010 will be going to the Lot Ten in
Qualicum Beach.
We meet the Parksville Beach Community Park at the parking area near the
Lions playground at 9 A.M. or at the end of Kinkaide Road (the forest side
of highway 19a) about 9:20 A.M.
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The Sunday Bird Walk on April 25, 2010 will be going to the Plummer Road
side of the Englishman River Estuary in Parksville.
We meet at The Backyard Bird Store at 9:00 A.M. or at the corner of Plummer
Road and Shorewood Drive at about 9:30 A.M.
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Good birding
Neil Robins

THE BACKYARD
Wildbird & Nature Store
6314 Metral Drive, Nanaimo, BC V9T 2L8
250.390.3669
250.390.1633 fax
thebackyard at shaw.ca
CHECK OUT OUR BLOG---> www.thebirdstore.blogspot.com