FORT BRAGG PELAGIC TRIPS: HAWAIIAN PETREL

Todd McGrath's image of the Fort Bragg HAWAIIAN PETREL, August 15, 2010. Copyrighted.

This individual was spotted in the wake of our boat by leader, Scott Terrill.

Many folks remarked how effective Wes Fritz's chum was in drawing in this bird to our boat.

Howdy, Seabirders,

Shearwater Journeys is offering four fabulous pelagic trips departing from Fort Bragg to search for the endangered Hawaiian Petrel, on August 19, 20, 21 and 22.

Much of our knowledge of the Hawaiian Petrel, Pterodroma sandwichensis, remains a mystery. Like all pterodromas, it is a truly pelagic seabird, ranging across the seas. Known to Hawaiians as, 'Ua'u, for their haunting, nocturnal calls, scientists are just now beginning to unravel the life history of this species. H.T. Harvey and Associates (David Ainley) teamed with Oikonos, among others, to begin studies. Four radio tagged petrels were tracked in the summer of 2006. It was found that they make a clockwise loop throughout a broad area of the north Pacific, bringing them within the northern California coast. Fort Bragg has consistently offered the best hopes for offshore birders to score this species on their life list. Indeed, Bob Ake, who was doing a Big Year in 2010, scored it for not only a year tick, but a life bird tick!

Details of this year's trips are as follows:

Meet at 6:30 am in Noyo Harbor at the boat, TELSTAR. Check in with the leaders prior to boarding. Parking is free. Dress warmly, bring rain pants and lunch.

Leaders on these trips include: Todd McGrath, Wes Fritz, Lisa Hug and Debi Shearwater.

Accommodations in Fort Bragg: I have arranged for special rates at the Surf Motel & Garden in Fort Bragg for the Shearwater Journeys' group. They will hold a block of rooms for the SJ group until July 15th. Even if you are already booked elsewhere, I urge you to check this motel out. The rates are the lowest I have seen in Fort Bragg. Rooms with single queen, double queens, and king beds are available. All rooms include a refrigerator and WiFi. The gardens are lovely, and may attract hummingbirds. Please contact the motel at: 800-339-5361. You will need to request the Shearwater Journeys' discount.

Although the HAWAIIAN PETREL was without a doubt the highlight of our trips in 2010, we also had many other extremely "good" seabirds. These included: LAYSAN ALBATROSS, WILSON'S (third Mendocino County record), FORK-TAILED, LEACH'S and ASHY STORM-PETRELS, XANTUS'S and MARBLED MURRELETS, SOUTH POLAR SKUA, all three species of jaegers: POMARINE, PARASITIC and LONG-TAILED (125 on one trip!), FRANKLIN'S GULL, ARCTIC TERNS and TUFTED PUFFIN (three on one trip). One thing to notice is that, like past years, not every trip finds Hawaiian Petrel. For this reason it is definitely a good idea to partake in more than one trip! For 2011, we have four trips on offer. Most folks who are coming a long distance will be doing all four trips. NOTE: only ONE of the two trips observed HAWAIIAN PETREL! It is not found on every trip. It is a hike to get to Fort Bragg. So, once you are there, take advantage of all that it has to offer. Indeed, there is much to offer in terms of birding, wine tasting, scenery and more.

These Fort Bragg departures could be combined with the Wednesday, August 17th departure from Bodega Bay. Spend the night of August 17th in Bodega Bay after the boat trip, and drive up the extremely scenic Highway 1 north to Fort Bragg. Excellent land birding can be found all along this route. More on this in a later blog.

Below is compilation of our 2011 Fort Bragg trips:

TRIP REPORT: AUGUST 13/AUGUST 15, 2010, SHEARWATER JOURNEYS' FORT BRAGG PELAGIC TRIPS:

PACIFIC LOON - 0/1

COMMON LOON - 2/1

LAYSAN ALBATROSS - 1/0

BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS - 55/74

HAWAIIAN PETREL - 0/1

NORTHERN FULMAR - 180/250

PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER - 72/100

BULLER'S SHEARWATER - 178/195

SOOTY SHEARWATER - 322/440

WILSON'S STORM-PETREL - 1/0 (this was the 3rd Mendocino County record)

FORK-TAILED STORM-PETREL - 9/0

LEACH'S STORM-PETREL - 0/1

ASHY STORM-PETREL - 0/4

BROWN PELICAN - 0/15

BRANDT'S CORMORANT- 28/15

DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT - 6/5

PELAGIC CORMORANT- 4/7

CANADA GOOSE - 6/0

BLACK OYSTERCATCHER - 2/2

BLACK TURNSTONE - 9/0

SURFBIRD - 1/0

RED-NECKED PHALAROPE - 32/75

RED PHALAROPE - 75/25

SOUTH POLAR SKUA - 0/1

POMARINE JAEGER - 3/3

PARASITIC JAEGER - 3/7

LONG-TAILED JAEGER - 74/125

HEERMANN'S GULL - 3/2

CALIFORNIA GULL - +/24

WESTERN GULL - +/175

SABINE'S GULL - 67/300

FRANKLIN'S GULL - 0/1

COMMON/ARCTIC TERN - 8/25

ARCTIC TERN - 18/13

COMMON MURRE - 82/280

PIGEON GUILLEMOT - 15/30

XANTUS'S MURRELET - 1/7

MARBLED MURRELET - 0/4

CASSIN'S AUKLET - 275/1350

RHINOCEROS AUKLET - 21/42

TUFTED PUFFIN - 1/3

GREAT EGRET - 0/1

OSPREY - 1/1

STELLER'S SEA LION - 1/1

CALIFORNIA SEA LION - +/+

NORTHERN FUR SEAL - 1/6

NORTHERN ELEPHANT SEAL - 0/1

HARBOR SEAL - 1/8

BLUE WHALE - 0/3

HUMPBACK WHALE - 0/5

HARBOR PORPOISE - 0/2

DALL'S PORPOISE - 0/1

OCEAN SUNFISH - 1/1

BLUE SHARK - 1/0

We thank all of the very happy participants of these two sensational pelagic trips. The leaders were: August 13- Todd McGrath, Jennifer Green, Matt Brady, Wes Fritz, Debi Shearwater; August 15- Todd McGrath, Scott Terrill, Linda Terrill, Matt Brady, Tristan McKee, Peter Pyle, Wes Fritz, Debi Shearwater.

We hope that you can join us on one or more of the 2011 Fort Bragg trips!

Happy Trails,

Debi Shearwater

Shearwater Journeys

BOBCAT WITH KITTEN: Heart-Stopping Times

Howdy, Birders,

Back to that incredible day, May 19th, with two bobcats, Lynx rufus, on Lone Tree Road, San Benito County, California — I hope the images below will tell some of the story better than I can in words. It was a heart-stopping hour, watching this adult female bobcat with a young, male kitten.

Bobcats are not uncommon in San Benito County, as I have encountered them several times, just this year. Because trophy hunting for this species is not permitted in the state of California, bobcats tend to be very tame, and even curious at times, walking straight toward the observer. This was my experience. Hunched low to the ground, I made some squeaking noises as I often do to attract birds. In this case, the young kitten walked in a straight line toward me. Although I was shooting my camera through a barbed wire fence, I was able to get some decent images. All images below, copyright, Debi Shearwater. Please ask permission for usage.

One of two bobcats, Lynx rufus, 19 May 2011.

Bobcats are small cats, 20 to 24 inches long, that range from southern Canada to Mexico.

The sharp-pointed ears are tipped with dark, inconspicuous tufts.

Although mostly nocturnal, I have seen many bobcats during the mid-day.

Bobcats are found in a variety of habitats, from chaparral to swamps. Above, we see the adult with her kitten on a well-worn trail

The curious kitten approaches me on the trail.

The tail is black above and white below. The white underside of the tail serves as a signal for kittens to follow when the bobcat holds the tail curved up, when hunting for food.

Bobcats den in hollow logs and thick brush. I once saw one in a hollow log.

Twelve subspecies of bobcat are recognized. In our area, the subspecies is L. rufus californicus (Mearns). The southernmost Mexican subspecies has been classified as endangered since 1976.

Incredibly curious kitten.

Keeping up with mother.

Litters usually contain two kittens, but only one male, in this case. The kitten is in the foreground, above, while the mother watches in the background.

Like any other kitten, this one was extremely playful.

The kitten in an oak tree.

From a distance, they blend in well with the surroundings.

The kitten chased its mother, running around the grasslands, and up in trees, making little sounds.

Mother and her son. Bobcats live about 10-12 years in the wild.

Hey, this is not a safari ride! The kitten pouncing on his mother's back. And, off they went. About 2 hours later, as I was driving down the from the top of the road, I saw both of them on the opposite side of the road. The kitten was still chasing his mother.

Happy trails,

Debi Shearwater

San Benito County Birding