British Columbia, 7th to 20th September 2006
This holiday was prompted by my wife having to attend a conference in Victoria for her work. Her flight was paid for so it seemed silly to waste the opportunity to take a holiday there. The timing was unfortunate as we were in the throws of buying a house and could barely afford either the time or the money to holiday abroad for the second time in a year. Consequently I had little time to prepare for the holiday and had not had the opportunity to research the best sites to visit etc. Nevertheless it was a very enjoyable trip and, being only my second visit to North America, it yielded a few new birds for me.
This trip report has two main sections:
- A species list gives details of all species of bird and other wildlife seen during the trip, together with photos of varying quality;
- Site details - brief details of all sites visited, in chronological order. This includes maps to show roughly where the locations are (not detailed) and a few scenery photos.
In most cases you can click on a photo to see a larger and sometimes less heavily-cropped version. All photos are copyright Dave Appleton. Please refer to the Photo Pages main page for details of obtaining permission to use any of my photos.
Click here to go straight to the site details page, or scroll down for the beginning of the species list.
Species List
Where the English and North American versions of the species name differ, the English name is given with the North American version in brackets. The following abbreviations are used throughout:
This section is split into several pages (each page has a link to the next one at the end):
- Wildfowl
- Grouse, Quail, Divers (Loons), Grebes, Cormorants & Herons
- Raptors, Cranes & Coots
- Waders (Shorebirds)
- Skuas (Jaegers), Gulls & Terns
- Auks, Doves, Owls, Swifts, Kingfishers & Woodpeckers
- Flycatchers, Larks, Swallows, Pipits, Waxwing, Dipper, Wrens & Catbird
- Bluebirds, Solitaires, Thrushes, Kinglets, Chickadees, Nuthatches & Creepers
- Corvids, Starlings, House Sparrow, Vireos & Finches
- New World Warblers, Sparrows & Blackbirds
- Mammals, Reptiles, Amphibians & Insects
VI = Vancouver Island
Van = Vancouver area (i.e. coastal region between Vancouver and Boundary Bay)
Int = Interior, i.e. anywhere inland of Vancouver
Click on the photos to see a larger (and sometimes less heavily cropped) version.
WILDFOWL
Mute Swan Cygnus olor
VI – Feral birds present at 3 sites: 20 Esquimalt Lagoon 9th, 18 Cowichan Bay 10th, 1 Campbell River 12th
Tundra Swan Cygnus columbianus
VI – 1 with feral Mute Swans Cowichan Bay 10th. Presumably either an over-summering individual or an early migrant?
(Greater) White-fronted Goose Anser albifrons
Int – 127 Creston Valley Wildlife Management Area 18th.
| White-fronted Geese (and American Wigeon), Creston Valley, 18th September 2006 |
(Greater) Canada Goose Branta canadensis
Van – Most, if not all, presumably involving resident (feral?) birds rather than proper wild birds. Counts included 250 Boundary Bay 8th. These included a couple of aberrant or hybrid birds (see photos below).
VI - Common with most, if not all, presumably involving resident (feral?) birds rather than proper wild birds. Counts included 120 Cowichan Bay 10th, 150 Rathrevor Park 11th, 137 McIntyre Reservoir 13th.
Int – Presumed feral birds at Golden and Wilmer Bird Sanctuary.
Wood Duck Aix sponsa
Van – 5 Reifel 8th.
Int – 9 Wilmer Bird Sanctuary 17th, 15+ Creston Valley 18th.
| Wood Ducks, Reifel Migratory Bird Sanctuary, 8th September 2006 | |
American Wigeon Anas americana
Van – Counts included 100+ Boundary Bay 9th.
VI – 67 Cowichan Bay 10th, 50+ Campbell River 12th, 25 Courtenay 12th.
Int – At numerous locations but 700+ Wilmer Bird Sanctuary 17th was most impressive.
| American Wigeon, Boundary Bay, 8th September 2006 | American Wigeons, Emerald Lake, 17th September 2006 |
Gadwall Anas strepera
Van – Best count 20 Reifel 8th. Also seen at Iona Beach and Boundary Bay .
Int – 2 Creston Valley 18th.
| Gadwall, Iona Beach, 7th September 2006 |
Green-winged Teal Anas carolinensis
Van – Best count 400+ Boundary Bay 8th.
VI – Smaller numbers at many sites.
Int – 3 Golden 16th, 6 Bobolink Meadows 19th.
| Green-winged Teal, Reifel Migratory Bird Sanctuary, 8th September 2006 | Green-winged Teal, Swan Lake (Victoria), 13th September 2006 |
Mallard Anas platyrhynchos
Van, VI, Int – common everywhere though not usually in particularly large numbers.
(Northern) Pintail Anas acuta
Van – Staggering numbers at Boundary Bay where a conservative estimate of 2000+ on 8th. Also 10 Reifel 8th.
VI – Single figure counts at Esquimalt Lagoon, Cordova Spit, McIntyre Reservoir, Swan Lake; 15+ Cowichan Bay 10th, 28 Englishman River Estuary 11th.
Pintails, Reifel Migratory Bird Sanctuary, 8th September 2006
|
|
| Pintail, Boundary Bay, 8th September 2006 | A very small part of an enormous flock of Pintails, Boundary Bay, 8th September 2006 |
Cinnamon Teal Anas cyanoptera
Van – 8 Reifel 8th.
| Cinnamon Teals, Reifel Migratory Bird Sanctuary, 8th September 2006 | |
(Northern) Shoveler Anas clypeata
Van – 4 Iona Beach 7th, 130 Reifel 8th, 50 Boundary Bay 20th.
VI – 2 Somenos Marsh 10th, 1 Campbell River 12th.
Int – 1 near Revelstoke 15th, 3 Golden 16th.
| Shoveler, Reifel Migratory Bird Sanctuary, 8th September 2006 | Shoveler, near Revelstoke, 15th September 2006 |
Redhead Aythya americana
Int – 3 Wasa Lake 18th.
Canvasback Aythya valisineria
Van – 1 Reifel 8th.
Int – 1 Kamloops 14th.
| Canvasback, Reifel Migratory Bird Sanctuary, 8th September 2006 |
Ring-necked Duck Aythya collaris
Int – 5 locations including 80 Wilmer Bird Sanctuary 17th, 70 Wasa Lake 18th.
| Ring-necked Ducks, Wasa Lake, 18th September 2006. Must try harder! | |
(Greater) Scaup Aythya marila
Int – 1 Kamloops 14th.
Lesser Scaup Aythya affinis
Int – 6 males Emerald Lake 17th, 3 Cranbrook 18th.
| 4 Lesser Scaups and 1 Ring-necked Duck, Emerald Lake, 17th September 2006 |
Harlequin Histrionicus histrionicus
VI – 6 Clover Point 9th (2 there 13th), 110 Campbell River 12th.
| Harlequins, Clover Point (Victoria), 9th September 2006 | |
Surf Scoter Melanitta perspicillata
Van – 8 Tsawwassen 9th.
VI – 3 Cordova Spit 10th, 4 Englishman River Estuary 11th, 1 Oyster Bay Shoreline Park 12th, 250 Campbell River 12th.
Bufflehead Bucephala albeola
Int – 8 Kamloops 12th.
(Common) Goldeneye Bucephala clangula
Int – 1 Golden 16th. None were identified in the field, but when I went through the photos on returning home I discovered this one which shows a longer bill than Barrow's Goldeneye should have. I wasn't quite so convinced about the headshape (which I find can often mislead on a single frame) and as I hadn't noticed it in life I wondered if the photo was also misleading with the bill shape. Hence I initially posted it as a Barrow's Goldeneye without comment to see if others would pick up on it. They did (thanks Guy), so I'm now changing it. The Goldeneyes at this site were not easily viewable as there was a row of trees between me and them - I can only assume that this one swum past the gap while my camera was in hand but not when I was just looking. At least that's my excuse...!
| Common Goldeneye, Golden, 16th September 2006. |
Barrow’s Goldeneye Bucephala islandica
Int – 2 Marble Canyon Provincial Park 14th, 4 Kamloops 14th, 3 Golden 16th, 1 Emerald Lake 17th.
| Barrow's Goldeneyes, Golden, 16th September 2006. |
Hooded Merganser Lophodytes cucullatus
VI – 1 Cordova Spit 10th, 2 Campbell River 12th.
| Hooded Merganser, Cordova Spit, 10th September 2006 |
Goosander (Common Merganser) Mergus merganser
VI – 77 Campbell River 12th. Single figure counts at 5 other sites.
Int – 3 Emerald Lake 17th, 1 Creston Valley 18th.
| Goosanders (Common Mergansers), Campbell River, 12th September 2006 |
Ruddy Duck Oxyura jamaicensis
Int – 10 Wilmer Bird Sanctuary 17th.
CLICK HERE TO GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE: Grouse, Quail, Divers (Loons), Grebes, Cormorants and Herons
Click here to go to the sites page
Or go to another part of the species list:
- Wildfowl
- Grouse, Quail, Divers (Loons), Grebes, Cormorants & Herons
- Raptors, Cranes & Coots
- Waders (Shorebirds)
- Skuas (Jaegers), Gulls & Terns
- Auks, Doves, Owls, Swifts, Kingfishers & Woodpeckers
- Flycatchers, Larks, Swallows, Pipits, Waxwing, Dipper, Wrens & Catbird
- Bluebirds, Solitaires, Thrushes, Kinglets, Chickadees, Nuthatches & Creepers
- Corvids, Starlings, House Sparrow, Vireos & Finches
- New World Warblers, Sparrows & Blackbirds
- Mammals, Reptiles, Amphibians & Insects
