Kelly et al.



I'm familiar with the navigation tower you are talking about. I don't
believe Brandt's Cormorants nest on this structure; I've never heard of them
nesting on a wooden structure, and in any case, there are few nesting
locations for this species in Washington.



Wooden structures are used for nesting mostly by Double-crested Cormorants,
which is also the only cormorant species in our areas that will nest in
trees. However, Pelagics will also nest sometimes on man-made wooden or
metal structures, and they are clearly doing so in this case.



All the best,



Wayne C. Weber

Delta, BC

contopus at telus.net







From: tweeters-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu
[mailto:tweeters-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu] On Behalf Of Kelly
McAllister
Sent: April-26-15 6:24 AM
To: 'tweeters'
Subject: [Tweeters] RE: Cormorants on navigation tower, Half Moon Bay,
Westport





Here's a link to a few photos:



https://www.flickr.com/photos/29002564 at N08/17276136935/



I believe that most of the nests are the coarse stick nests of
Double-crested Cormorants but the bottom platform of the left tower may be
dominated by the more algae-dominated nests of Pelagic Cormorants. I don't
know that the Brandt's Cormorants are nesting on the tower but they're
clearly present. It sure would be fun to take a kayak out for a closer look.



Kelly McAllister



From: bill shelmerdine [mailto:georn1 at hotmail.com]
Sent: Sunday, April 26, 2015 6:08 AM
To: tweeters; Kelly McAllister
Subject: Re: Cormorants on navigation tower, Half Moon Bay, Westport



Kelly et. al.
Good question. All three cormorants appear to nest and at least roost on
the tower. Last weekend when I was out there I estimated the following: 70
Double Crested, 30 Brandt's, and 20 Pelagics. This is surely an under
counting and a rough estimate due to views being obscured by the structural
members of the tower etc. Honestly I thought there would be more Brandt's
and less D.C.'s there. There is definitely a hierarchy there. The
Pelagic's occupy perimeter locations; the Brandt's dominate the lower
platform, and the D.C.'s tend to dominate the upper platforms, but their
larger size and preferred perches on the cross beams obscure the birds in
the centers of the platforms.
Good Birding...
Bill Shelmerdine