Saturday was a jewel of a day (finally!) for a bird outing and the group took full advantage by driving up to Miracle Beach Provincial Park for a walk around the Day Use area. The birds seemed very reluctant to present themselves for viewing, but we were persistent and thus came up with a decent number of species-seen. What a lovely, lovely day to be wandering the trails! A highlight was catching sight of a Dark-eyed Junco bringing grasses to add to a nest in a hollow at the base of a tree - none of us had realized they nested in such a locale. After 90 minutes or so, we found ourselves back at the trailhead and most of our group settled in at a picnic table to enjoy our packed lunches in the warmth of the day. Four of us decided to continue birding and headed to the Driftwood Marine Park, situated just across the Black Creek from Miracle Beach. Again, the birds tended to be quite secretive though, as at Miracle Beach, we could hear plenty of birdcalls. Near a marshy pond, we spent awhile watching activity at one dead tree, where Red-breasted Sapsuckers had taken up residence in one tree-hole while European Starlings had claimed a tree-hole a few feet below. The adults were busily flying in and out, probably tending to respective families. One stretch of trail was alive with the sound of Yellow Warblers and finally, we spotted one flitting around a tree - success!
Spotted today were : Surf Scoters in flight, Great Blue Herons, Common Mergansers (at the mouth of the Black Creek), Mallards, Gulls, a Tern in flight, a Killdeer(heard only), Pacific Loons, a Belted Kingfisher, Bald Eagles, American Robins, a Band-tailed Pigeon, swallows, Northern Flickers, Dark-eyed Juncos, Spotted Towhees, a flycatcher, a Chestnut-backed Chickadee, European Starlings, Red-breasted Sapsuckers, White-crowned Sparrows, Orange-crowned Warbler (heard only) and Yellow Warblers.
Spotted today were : Surf Scoters in flight, Great Blue Herons, Common Mergansers (at the mouth of the Black Creek), Mallards, Gulls, a Tern in flight, a Killdeer(heard only), Pacific Loons, a Belted Kingfisher, Bald Eagles, American Robins, a Band-tailed Pigeon, swallows, Northern Flickers, Dark-eyed Juncos, Spotted Towhees, a flycatcher, a Chestnut-backed Chickadee, European Starlings, Red-breasted Sapsuckers, White-crowned Sparrows, Orange-crowned Warbler (heard only) and Yellow Warblers.