Male Surf Scoter (Melanitta perspicillata) - Lions Bay, BC
I went looking for a Rock Sandpiper in West Vancouver on Saturday. So far this year I have seen 256 year birds in the Vancouver checklist! More than I have ever done before. The previous record holder had 250. However, I am still 2 birds behind the leader Ilya and it will be extremely hard to catch up as time is running out and year birds are not easy to come by. I am also quite content with the number of birds I have seen to date and also quite exhausted ;-) plus we are extremely close and support each other in our big years. Anyways long story short I did not find a Rock Sandpiper, despite finding Surfbirds and large Black Turnstone flocks but I did find this nice male Surf Scoter posing nicely instead.
Male Surf Scoter (Melanitta perspicillata) - Lions Bay, BC
I went looking for a Rock Sandpiper in West Vancouver on Saturday. So far this year I have seen 256 year birds in the Vancouver checklist! More than I have ever done before. The previous record holder had 250. However, I am still 2 birds behind the leader Ilya and it will be extremely hard to catch up as time is running out and year birds are not easy to come by. I am also quite content with the number of birds I have seen to date and also quite exhausted ;-) plus we are extremely close and support each other in our big years. Anyways long story short I did not find a Rock Sandpiper, despite finding Surfbirds and large Black Turnstone flocks but I did find this nice male Surf Scoter posing nicely instead.