Fourteen DNCBers braved the clouds then rain along the Boundary Bay Regional Park trail at 104th Street. Not a great morning for our photogs, but check out the photo evidence on our Flickr site.
Some left Petra’s at 7:30 a.m., others joined the outing at the Delta Airpark entrance to the BBRP trail at various times after 8 a.m. It wasn’t raining and there were tonnes of Shorebirds feeding in the mud, albeit a bit far out for the photogs. We got decent views through the scopes of Black-bellied Plovers and Peeps including Semipalmated Plovers, Western and Least Sandpipers. Fortunately, our Guru Anne was with us to confirm the ID’s. High tide was 10 a.m., but they were still far away; it was a low high tide. Lots of Great Blue Herons, a Common Loon, some ducks including Surf Scoters were also seen in the distant water. California Gulls and lots of Swallows (mostly Barn, a few Tree) were flying around too. Anne’s eBird list shows 20 species seen.
We wandered along the trail toward the Mansion. Little birds were flitting in the bushes including White-crowned Sparrows, both House and American Goldfinches. Interestingly, on examining Terry’s and Chris’s photos, a Willow Flycatcher was there too. We were blanked on warblers, but the farm machinery and trucks, some loaded with potatoes, parading by us offered some excitement. Terry took a long-distance Group Photo once our time-challenged Germanics, Margaretha and Gabriele, arrived.
We usually get many more sightings on this outing such as American Pipits, Peregrine Falcons and warblers, but frankly, I think the inclement weather made us lackadaisical birders. Indeed, shortly after 10:30 am, it started to spit rain, so we decided to abort the outing and head back to the vehicles. Most of us went for a late breakfast at the nearby Skyhawk Restaurant in Boundary Bay Airport. My poached eggs on toast with three cups of coffee (no beer) were delicious. I was home by noon, gaining a few points with Sandra. It was a very enjoyable morning, despite the weather.
The 14 were: our Organizer Terry with Mike B & PB Lorna, Guru Anne M, South Surrey Colin & Stephanie, Richmond Brian, Ladner Pam, North Delta Johnny Mac, Tsawwassen’s Chris McV & Roger K2, our Germanics Margaretha & Gabriele, and me.
On Wednesday, Aug. 28, we will meet on the 7 a.m. ferry to Swartz Bay for our outing to Sidney Spit, returning on the 5 p.m. ferry. For more info on this outing, and other events, reports and photos, check out our website at www.dncb.wordpress.com. Also, this Saturday, Aug. 24, we will have our Delta Nats Display at the Wings Over Iona event, 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., at Iona Regional Park. And on Monday, Aug. 26, at Delta’s city hall, Anne Murray (and I) will be giving a presentation to Delta’s Mayor and Council on Delta’s Birds and Biodiversity Conservation Strategy: Next Steps. You’re welcome to attend all these events. As always, your comments are welcome. Cheers: Tom
Tom Bearss, President, Delta Naturalists Society
