Saturday, August 27, 2011

TRIP REPORT: AUGUST 26, 2011: MONTEREY BAY

Abe Borker's image of a GREAT-WINGED PETREL, copyright.

Hello, Birders,
This is a trip report for Shearwater Journeys' pelagic trip departing from Fisherman's Wharf, Monterey, August 26, 2011. The singular highlight of a fine day of Monterey seabirding was a GREAT-WINGED PETREL (Pterodroma macroptera gouldi), spotted simultaneously by Abe Borker and Jeri Langham. This represents the fourth record for North America and the northern hemisphere of Great-winged Petrel. This is the second record for Santa Cruz County. Three of the four records are from Monterey Bay and one record, the first-ever, 1996, is from Bodega Bay. Three of the four records have been recorded on Shearwater Journeys' trips. All of these three individuals were observed by Debi Shearwater. It seems unlikely, to me, that this represents only one individual bird. Many seabird authorities split the Great-winged Petrel subspecies. All of the North American subspecies are of the gouldi subspecies which nests on many islands and stacks around North Island, New Zealand. The total population of this subspecies/species is estimated to at 200,000 to 300,000 breeding pairs. Chicks are said to be harvested by New Zealand Maoris, who call it "oi. This petrel nests in burrows. It is said that Little Penguins or one of the shearwater species may move into the burrows, after the petrel is finished nesting. Abe Borker spent time on their breeding islands and is very familiar with the species. Debi Shearwater has seen both subspecies, by the thousands, in her world ocean travels.

Other highlights of the day included BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS, BULLER'S SHEARWATERS, ASHY and FORK-TAILED STORM-PETRELS, SABINE'S GULLS, ARCTIC TERNS, a fly-by TUFTED PUFFIN, three KILLER WHALES pursuing a California Sea Lion and celebrating a "great" birthday with two ladies on board— Pirjo Karvonen and Jackie Bain. What a day! At one point, one of the killer whales surfaced with the sea lion in its' mouth, vigorously shaking it! Additional images can be found on the previous blog posts: Breaking News and August 26, 2011, Images of the Day.

After viewing the inshore marine life, including the PEREGRINE FALCON on the radio tower, we headed offshore toward the northwest of Monterey Bay. Compared with recent pelagic trips from other ports, i.e. Fort Bragg and Bodega Bay, it seemed to me that fewer tubenoses were around on Monterey Bay. This may have been a favorable factor, as it meant that each, individual seabird stood out all the more prominently. About half of the birders on board were making their first, ever pelagic trip! Several longtime, local birders were on board, just out of a nice day at sea. These included Lois Goldfrank, Rick Fournier, Earl LeBow and Bob Ramer. (Bob and Debi organized the some of the very first pelagic trips for the Santa Cruz Bird Club in 1976!) Consequently, leaders were working hard at calling out every single individual bird! No "target" species were on the drawing board. No rare seabirds were sought. Just a fine day at sea. And, so it was!

At 10:38 a.m., I was on the bow, and heard Abe calling quite loudly, "Look at this bird! Look at this bird!" Just at that moment, a large-bodied, dark petrel flew up from the stern. I locked on to it once it hit the 10 o'clock position, and yelled, "GREAT-WINGED PETREL!" while Clay was still stuttering, "It's that bird, that bird!" Frantically, I motioned to photographers on the stern to get to the bow, ducked in the cabin to get the skipper on the bird, recorded lat/long/time/SST, and continued trying to make sure that everyone on board was "on the bird." We managed to follow the petrel for six minutes before we could no longer keep up with it. So, we stopped the boat and Wes Fritz laid out a mega-slick, Jennifer Green tore up pieces of sardines and photographers had a hey-day shooting images of the species coming in on the slick. After a 45 minute "no-show" on the petrel's part, we got underway again. Whew! It was a very, very exciting hour. Time to relax.

Knowing that one lady was celebrating a special birthday, I lit a candle on a slice of carrot cake and we all sang, "Happy Birthday." Later, I discovered that another lady on board, from Finland, was also celebrating her birthday. Riding "downhill" on the way home, everyone was chatting and relaxing, when Abe yelled, "KILLER WHALES!" Just about as soon as the words were out of his mouth, the killer whales were nowhere in sight. In the end, they were not the easiest killer whales to see or track. It appeared that they were chasing a California Sea Lion (or, maybe two). The sea lion tried hiding under our vessel at one point. And, at one point one of the killer whales surfaced with the sea lion in its' mouth, shaking its' head! The sea lion swam off. Unfortunately, we did not have enough time to stick around for the final, inevitable kill. This appeared to be a group of three killer whales: one small calf, one female, and one, either young male, or female. What an ending to a completely fabulous day on Monterey Bay.

Many thanks to all of the birders who came from near and far (Finland) for this day at sea. We hope to see you, again, on the bounding main. The leaders were: Abe Borker, Jennifer Green, Clay Kempf, Wes Fritz, Dena Spatz and Debi Shearwater. Special thanks to Jeri Langham of Victor Emanuel Nature Tours.

The complete species list follows:
26 AUGUST 2011, MONTEREY BAY with SHEARWATER JOURNEYS covering both Monterey and Santa Cruz Counties:
Monterey/Santa Cruz/Total number:
BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS- 11/17/28
NORTHERN FULMAR- 17/12/29
**GREAT-WINGED PETREL- 0/1/1
PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER- 18/9/27
BULLER'S SHEARWATER- 2/2/4
SOOTY SHEARWATER- 240/35/275
FORK-TAILED STORM-PETREL- 0/2/2
ASHY STORM-PETREL- 16/1045/1061
BROWN PELICAN- 18/3/21
BRANDT'S CORMORANT- 200/3/203
PELAGIC CORMORANT- 2/0/2
BLACK OYSTERCATCHER- 2/0/2
BLACK TURNSTONE- 6/0/6
RED-NECKED PHALAROPE- 90/55/145
RED-NECKED/RED PHALAROPE- 100
RED PHALAROPE- 27/25/52
SOUTH POLAR SKUA- 1/0/1
POMARINE JAEGER- 5/3/8
PARASITIC JAEGER- 1/2/3
PARASITIC/LONG-TAILED JAEGER- 1
HEERMANN'S GULL- 200
CALIFORNIA GULL- 43
WESTERN GULL- 185
SABINE'S GULL- 12/14/26
ELEGANT TERN- 6/0/6
COMMON TERN- 9/1/10
ARCTIC TERN- 3/3/6
COMMON/ARCTIC TERN- 14
COMMON MURRE- 123/30/153
PIGEON GUILLEMOT- 21/0/21
CASSIN'S AUKLET- 13/0/13
RHINOCEROS AUKLET- 24/12/36
TUFTED PUFFIN- 0/1/1
PEREGRINE FALCON- 1/0/1, on the radio tower along Cannery Row.
SEA OTTER- 14
CALIFORNIA SEA LION- 300
HARBOR SEAL- 2
HUMPBACK WHALE- 1
KILLER WHALE- 3
RISSO'S DOLPHIN- 4
DALL'S PORPOISE- 2
OCEAN SUNFISH- 1, gigantic-sized
EGG YOLK JELLIES- many

Petrels forever,
Debi Shearwater

AKA: Annie Auklet, in the 20th Century Fox movie, "The Big Year" coming to a theater near you, 14 October 2011!
Shearwater Journeys

AUGUST 26, 2011: IMAGES OF THE DAY BY VARIOUS PHOTOGRAPHERS

Hello, Seabirders & Nature Photographers,

Thought you might enjoy images of the August 26, 2011 Shearwater Journeys' pelagic trip on Monterey Bay. All images are copyrighted by the individual photographers. Please do not use without permission.
Above, SABINE'S GULL by Greg Lavaty.
Above, RHINOCEROS AUKLET by Greg Lavaty.
Above, PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER by Greg Lavaty.
Above, ASHY STORM-PETRELS and FORK-TAILED STORM-PETREL by Greg Lavaty.
Above, ASHY STORM-PETREL by Greg Lavaty.
Above, POMARINE JAEGER by Greg Lavaty.
Above, Debi Shearwater prepares a birthday celebration.
Above, Tom and Jackie Bain.
Above, Jackie Bain celebrates a "Great" Birthday!
Above, two of three KILLER WHALES by Abe Borker.
Above, two of three KILLER WHALES by Abe Borker.
Above, two of three KILLER WHALES by Clay Kempf.
Above, the hit of a great day, GREAT-WINGED PETREL by Abe Borker.
Abe Borker and Jeri Langham celebrate a GRRREAT day of Monterey seabirding!

Enjoy,
Debi Shearwater
Shearwater Journeys


GREAT-WINGED PETREL: ADDITIONAL IMAGES FROM AUGUST 26, 2011

Howdy, Birders,

Additional images of the GREAT-WINGED PETREL (Pterodroma macroptera gouldi) observed on Shearwater Journeys' Monterey Bay pelagic trip, August 26, 2011 can be found below.
Images above and below, by Joel Karvonen of Finland. Copyright, Joel Karvonen. Please do not use without permission.
Below, images by Greg Lavaty of the Great-winged Petrel. All images copyright, Greg Lavaty. Please do not use without permission. Greg's photo gallery has 1155 galleries and 24115 images! To see additional images from this day at sea, click here.
Pterodromas forever,
Debi Shearwater
Shearwater Journeys

Friday, August 26, 2011

BREAKING NEWS: GREAT-WINGED PETREL: MONTEREY BAY, AUGUST 26, 2011

Howdy, Birders,

Monterey's seabirds put on quite a show today! Shearwater Journeys' leader, Abe Borker along with Jeri Langham were loudly urging birders to "look at this bird" as a GREAT-WINGED PETREL (Pterodroma macroptera gouldi), raced from stern to bow at 10:45 a.m. The petrel flew toward the bow of the vessel while frantic photographers and birders managed to get stunning views and images. We raced after the bounding petrel for nearly six full minutes. No longer able to keep up, we stopped the boat and Wes Fritz laid out a mega-slick for this "mega" seabird. Although the slick produced some fine views of SABINE'S GULLS, the pterodroma did not return. About half of the birders on board were making their first, ever west coast pelagic trip. Others were local birders out enjoying the day. Two ladies celebrated their 50th birthdays. None of us was seeking anything special, nor any target seabirds.
Above, Abe Borker. One happy camper. Below, his images of the GREAT-WINGED PETREL. Copyright, Abe Borker. Please do not use without permission.

Above, Abe Borker, left and Jeri Langham, right, give the thumbs up for a great, great day! Jeri is a veteran of many Shearwater Journeys' pelagic trips. He is a professional tour leader for Victor Emanuel Nature Tours. It takes a team to pull off such a great day— from Wes' special oil, to Jennifer tearing up sardines, to Clay's moments of lending a lighter touch and to all of the fabulous birders on board— many, many thanks to everyone.
Petrels forever,
Debi Shearwater
Shearwater Journeys

Saturday, August 20, 2011

AUGUST 19, 2011: IMAGES OF THE DAY BY TODD MCGRATH

Howdy, Birders,

Below are Todd McGrath's fabulous images of our recent pelagic trip from Fort Bragg. The stern of the boat was lined with photographers, shooting images of seabirds! In Todd's own words, "I've never seen Ashy Storm-Petrels as closely as today!" (Below) All images copyright, Todd McGrath. Please do not use without permission.
We continue to enjoy supremely close up views of FORK-TAILED STORM-PETRELS, throughout the day, below.
BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS, below.
Surprise of the day, a WILSON'S STORM-PETREL, hung around the boat for quite some time. That's Wes's magic goo, bringing them in.
PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER, below.
LONG-TAILED JAEGER, below.
Adult LONG-TAILED JAEGER, below. The jaeger show was amazing!
FORK-TAILED STORM-PETRELS were following the boat, all the way to the harbor!
Shearwaters forever,
Debi Shearwater

Friday, August 19, 2011

TRIP REPORT: AUGSUT 19, 2011: FORT BRAGG

Howdy, Birders,

This is a trip report for Shearwater Journeys' pelagic trip departing from Fort Bragg, August 19, 2011. Despite a crummy marine forecast, but quite doable day, we departed from Noyo Harber at 7 am, and returned about 4:45 pm. We went to the outer edge of Noyo Canyon and were not disappointed. The day was full of seabirds, from beginning to end! In fact, we had tallied ASHY STORM-PETREL by 7:45 am. Highlights included fantastic views of ASHY and FORK-TAILED STORM-PETRELS, one WILSON'S STORM-PETREL (rarely seen on Mendocino County), over 100 NORTHERN FULMARS, all three jaeger species, with a great show of LONG-TAILED JAEGERS, good numbers of both ARCTIC TERNS and SABINE'S GULLS, one TUFTED PUFFIN, and two distant PTERODROMA PETRELS, which, despite putting out an oil slick, would not come closer to the boat! Drats! Maybe, tomorrow— or the next day, or the next day. The marine forecast is for continuously improving seas. In the end, the day turned out pretty darn well, with the fog parting and seas declining. In the harbor, some county birders ticked PURPLE MARTIN and heard a RED CROSSBILL.

We thank the birders who came from near and far (Canada) for joining our trip. Many of the same folks will be returning over the next three trips. Spaces are available on all three remaining Fort Bragg trips. The leaders on today's trip were: Todd McGrath, Wes Fritz, Abe Borker and Debi Shearwater.

The complete species list for the August 19, 2011 Shearwater Journeys' pelagic trip from Fort Bragg follows:

COMMON LOON- 1
BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS- 35
NORTHERN FULMAR- 102
PTERODROMA SP.- 2
PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER- 32
BULLER'S SHEARWATER- 8
SOOTY SHEARWATER- 206
WILSON'S STORM-PETREL- 1
FORK-TAILED STORM-PETREL- 52
ASHY STORM-PETREL- 105
BROWN PELIAN- 12
BRANDT'S CORMORANT- 8
PELAGIC CORMORANT- 1
BLACK TURNSTONE- 2, offshore
BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER- 3, offshore
RED-NECKED PHALAROPE- 56
RED/RED-NECKED PHALAROPE- 50
RED PHALAROPE- 325
POMARINE JAEGER- 4
PARASTIC JAEGER- 4
LONG-TAILED JAEGER- 13
JAEGER SP.- 1
CALIFORNIA GULL- 12
WESTERN GULL- 35
SABINE'S GULL- 49
COMMON TERN- 6
COMMON/ARCTIC TERN- 20
ARCTIC TERN- 72
COMMON MURRE- 42
PIGEON GUILLEMOT- 8
CASSIN'S AUKLET- 16
RHINOCEROS AUKLET- 15
TUFTED PUFFIN- 1
RED CROSSBILL- 1, heard in the harbor
PURPLE MARTIN- 4, in the harbor
OSPREY- 2, in the harbor
CALIFORNIA SEA LION- 6
BLUE WHALE- 1
HUMPBACK WHALE- 2
NORTHERN RIGHT WHALE DOLPHIN- 6
PACIFIC WHITE-SIDED DOLPHIN- 22
DALL'S PORPOISE- 6

Images will follow at a later date.

Shearwaters forever,
Debi Shearwater

Thursday, August 18, 2011

AUGUST 17, 2011: IMAGES OF THE DAY BY ABE BORKER

Howdy, Birders,

I hope you will enjoy Abe Borker's images of the Shearwater Journeys' pelagic trip on August 17, 2011 from Bodega Bay, 30 miles offshore to the 1000 fathom line. All images copyright, Abe Borker. Please do not use without permission from the photographer. Enjoy!
Yep, that's how the day began— fog and swells, above.
First shearwater of the day— Sooty Shearwater, above.
Buller's Shearwater, above.
Black-footed Albatross makes a skid landing, above.
Looks like Abe caught another image of a color-banded Black-footed Albatross, above.
It was a fantastic show of Long-tailed Jaegers, above and below.
Arctic Terns, often harassed by the Long-tailed Jaegers.
Seas calm down. Fog pushes back. The first Fork-tailed Storm-Petrel shows up.
A raft of 100+ Fork-tailed Storm-Petrels, along with a few Ashy Storm-Petrels is spotted, sitting on the water. There is no reliable place, nor time, in the State of California to search for Fork-tailed Storm-Petrel. So, this is a real treat!
In amongst the flock, I spot a Wilson's Storm-Petrel, possibly the most common bird in the world. However, it is quite uncommon off the West Coast. The Wilson's is in the lower left of the above image— the one with the white rump.
Dorsal fins begin aiming toward our bow!
The recurved fin, dark on the leading edge, and light on the trailing edge, is a Pacific White-sided Dolphin. About 100+ surround our vessel, along with many Northern Right Whale Dolphins.
These dolphins are numerically, the most abundant cetacean in the Northern California Bight. We enjoyed quite a show, watching two species of dolphins on the bow of our boat.
The day ended up very well, a solid day's birding at sea.
Shearwaters forever,
Debi Shearwater