Thursday, September 29, 2016

SEPTEMBER 2016 PELAGIC BONANZA

THE PEAK of PELAGIC BIRDING
Hundreds of birders from Australia, to India to France, aged 9 to 92 joined Shearwater Journeys during the month of September on pelagic birding trips departing from Monterey Bay and Half Moon Bay. Fourteen pelagic trips were on offer and thirteen of those operated. The sold out September 4 Half Moon Bay trip was canceled by the captain due to gale force winds. We tallied 11 species of procellariiformes (albatross, petrel, shearwater and storm-petrel); Red and Red-necked Phalaropes; Pomarine, Parasitic,  and Long-tailed Jaegers; South Polar Skua; Sabine's Gulls; Arctic, Common, Elegant, and Forster's Terns; and 8 species of alcids! Marine mammals included: sea otter; 5 species of pinnipeds; and a whopping 15 species of cetaceans! Ever thought of doing every trip we offer during the month of September? (It has been done!) Contact Debi Shearwater for a "deal" for 2017!
Nothing says, "Monterey Bay" like a breaching HUMPBACK WHALE & SOOTY SHEARWATER!
Ed Harper, copyright, captured this momentous image.
Both species were recording on all of our September trips.
BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSSES showed up on every one of our September trips. 
The dreamy and beautiful BULLER'S SHEARWATER did not put in much of an appearance until recent weeks. Fishermen call these birds, "tuna birds" because they are closely associated with ALBACORE, a type of tuna. In recent years, albacore have changed their migration pattern, skipping California and heading north to areas of Oregon and Washington. Indeed, these shearwaters, along with FLESH-FOOTED SHEARWATERS, ARCTIC & COMMON TERNS, most of the jaegers and SOUTH POLAR SKUA were hanging with the albacore some 70 miles off Washington. That situation began changing in the past 10 days. These seabirds are now dispersing southward to our area.
NORTHERN FUR SEAL is a bonus pinniped which we often find in clear water offshore.
They can be told by their very long, blond whiskers and long ears. 
NORTHERN/PACIFIC FULMARS were observed in on only a few trips.
These were likely individuals that summered in our area because late fall and winter is the "fulmar season."
A PARASITIC JAEGER chasing a lone ASHY STORM-PETREL was captured by Mark Rauzon, copyright. I cannot recall ever noting this behavior on past trips. 
Perhaps, this is one reason why Ashy Storm-Petrels are usually found in flocks! 
PARASITIC JAEGERS were observed on most trips. 
This is the species of jaeger most frequently seen from shore.
Many highly overcast days send passerines to the ship. We tallied quite a list of warblers and sparrows, including this TOWNSEND'S WARBLER sitting amongst the anchovies we used outside of the national marine sanctuary boundary. 
On the other hand, some mornings were crystal clear and we enjoyed sunshine throughout the day.
MONTEREY HARBOR, above.
PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATERS, another southern hemisphere breeder, was found on every single trip.
The cherished SABINE'S GULL were absent on some trips, but abundant on others— one trip recorded hundreds of these beauties. 
SOOTY SHEARWATERS were found on all trips, whereas BLACK-VENTED SHEARWATER numbers fluctuated. They arrived at Monterey Bay in late August, headed north to at least Half Moon Bay, and then seemed to make a U-turn with most heading south of Monterey Bay. 
A single HAWAIIAN PETREL was spotted and seen by only a few very keen birders on the September 18 Shearwater Journeys' Half Moon Bay pelagic trip at the Pioneer Canyon. 
Only 70 hours later and 22 miles away, observers at the Farallon Islands recorded the first-ever HAWAIIAN PETREL for that location. It is thought that this species moves off our coastline using high pressure systems. Such a system was in place on September 16th!
Image by Scott Terrill, copyright. 

September was an incredible month for seabirds and marine mammals! I've barely touched on the mammals, though. That's another blog post.
We have four trips scheduled for October which is also an excellent time. 
Many of the southern hemisphere breeders will depart while winter species will begin showing up.
New arrivals could include: more fulmars; Short-tailed and Flesh-footed Shearwaters; and Ancient Murrelets. A number of mega-rare seabirds have turned up in past years, including Short-tailed and Layman Albatrosses; Streaked, Manx, Great,  and Wedge-tailed Shearwaters; and Great-winged Petrel.

UPCOMING PELAGIC TRIPS 

with 
SHEARWATER JOURNEYS
SAT. OCT 1 MONTEREY BAY with Nick Levendosky, Alex Rinkert Christian Schwarz, Jim Holmes & Debi Shearwater
SUN. OCT 2 HALF MOON BAY with Steve Tucker, Jim Holmes, Steve Hampton, Debi Shearwater
SUN. OCT 8 MONTEREY BAY with Alex Rinkert, Tim Miller, Clay Kempf, Debi Shearwater
SUN. OCT 16 MONTEREY BAY with Nick Levendosky, Alex Rinkert, Debi Shearwater
Spaces available on all trips
Email Debi: debi@shearwaterjourneys.com
All of our trips are reported in eBird using pelagic protocol
Many thanks to the September leaders:
NICK LEVENDOSKY, ALEX RINKERT, MARY GUSTAFSON, STEVE HAMPTON, RUSS BRADLEY, CHRISTIAN SCHWARZ, RICK FOURNIER, SCOTT TERRILL, LINDA TERRILL, DAVID WHIMPFHEIMER, ROB FOWLER, TODD MCGRATH, GERRY MCCHESNEY, HANNAH NEVINS, DAVE PEREKSTA, STEVE TUCKER, JIM HOLMES, ABE BORKER, TIM MILLER, CLAY KEMPF, DENA SPATZ

LIVING THE SALT LIFE,
Debi Shearwater
debi@shearwaterjourneys.com





Tuesday, September 6, 2016

MONTEREY BAY PELAGIC TRIP: SEPTEMBER 3, 2016


IT'S A SMORGASBORD OUT THERE!
PELAGIC RED CRABS, SQUID, ANCHOVIES & KRILL
MONTEREY SEABIRDS & MARINE MAMMALS GALORE!
with
This CALIFORNIA SEA LION escaped the jaws of a GREAT WHITE SHARK.
He is likely to recover from these wounds, but the shark lost out on its meal.
PELAGIC RED CRABS were evident in the harbor. 
This WESTERN GULL is enjoying a meal.
Just off Cannery Row, we encountered some RISSO'S DOLPHINS feeding on SQUID, above.
Our Captain, Tinker, caught some squid for us. Here's one, above. 
Just out side of the harbor (!) at least ten HUMPBACK WHALES were gorging on anchovies.
Hundreds of BLACK-VENTED SHEARWATERS along with 30-40 CALIFORNIA SEA LIONS
were also part of this feeding frenzy.
There is a Black-vented Shearwater in the above image, just above the "s" in the word, shearwater.
Off of Moss Landing, we observed KILLER WHALES in two groups: one group of two adult males, and another group of 4 females and young. 
The killer whales seemed to be looking for something to eat!
Offshore, we encountered a single LAYSAN ALBATROSS.
This appears to be the same individual which has showed up on two of our Half Moon Bay trips.
Laysan Albatross is always a treat and never expected.
Out in the deeper waters of the canyon edges, we ran into loads and loads of KRILL.
Three FIN WHALES were feeding on the krill.
Many BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSSES followed the boat.
 This NORTHERN/PACIFIC FULMAR looks as though it summered in the area.
 PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATERS follow the boat in good numbers.
It seems that Pink-footed Shearwaters feed on a different prey item than Sooty Shearwaters. 
Hence, Sootys are found closer to shore, feeding on the anchovies. 
It was an altogether terrific day at sea!

Many thanks to all of the birders who traveled from near and far to join us on this day. The leaders were: NICK LEVENDOSKY, MARY GUSTAFSON, and DEBI SHEARWATER. 

THE COMPLETE SPECIES LIST FOR SHEARWATER JOURNEYS' SEPTEMBER 3, 2016 MONTEREY BAY PELAGIC TRIP FOLLOWS. 
MONTEREY/SANTA CRUZ COUNTIES:

LAYSAN ALBATROSS- 0/1
BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS- 17/28
NORTHERN/PACIFIC FULMAR- 1/0
PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER- 250/120
BULLER'S SHEARWATER- 0/2
SOOTY SHEARWATER- 3500/100
BLACK-VENTED SHEARWATER- 285/7
BROWN PELICAN- 110/0
BRANDT'S CORMORANT- 270/1
DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT- 2/0
PELAGIC CORMORANT- 14/0
BLACK TURNSTONE- 3/0
SURFBIRD- 1/0
RED-NECKED PHALAROPE- 16/20
POMARINE JAEGER- 1/2
PARASITIC JAEGER- 1/1
HERRMANN'S GULL- 90/2
CALIFORNIA GULL- 185/70
WESTERN GULL- 300/45
SABINE'S GULL- 1/0
ELEGANT TERN- 90/2
COMMON TERN- 0/4
ARCTIC TERN- 0/1
COMMON MURRE- 1020/190
CASSIN'S AUKLET- 0/1
RHINOCEROS AUKLET- 1/2
PEREGRINE FALCON- 1, on the radio tower along Cannery Row, eating its prey
SEA OTTER- 4
CALIFORNIA SEA LION- 150
NORTHERN FUR SEAL- 1
FIN WHALE- 3
HUMPBACK WHALE- 25
KILLER WHALE- 6
RISSO'S DOLPHIN- 18
OCEAN SUNFISH- 2

UPCOMING TRIPS DEPARTING FROM MONTEREY BAY:
SEPTEMBER 7, 8, 9, 11, 14, 15, 23, 24, 25
OCTOBER 1, 8, 16
The SEP 10 ALBACORE TRIP IS SOLD OUT
UPCOMING TRIPS DEPARTING FROM HALF MOON BAY:
SEPTEMBER 16 & 18
OCTOBER 2 & 9
LIVING THE SALT LIFE,
Debi Shearwater
debi@shearwaterjourneys.com
Bird images by David Barton, copyright. 
Other images by Debi Shearwater, copyright.

Friday, September 2, 2016

HALF MOON BAY PELAGIC TRIP: AUGUST 19, 2016

ACTION ALL DAY LONG!
This is a trip report for Shearwater Journeys' pelagic trip departing from Half Moon Bay, August 19, 2016, offshore to the Continental Shelf and Pioneer Canyon. Eight species of tubenoses were recorded: BLACK-FOOTED and LAYSAN ALBATROSS, NORTHERN/PACIFIC FULMAR, PINK-FOOTED and SOOTY SHEARWATERS, and WILSON'S, FORK-TAILED and ASHY STORM-PETRELS. Other highlights included; SABINE'S GULL, ARCTIC TERN, CASSIN'S and RHINOCEROS AUKLETS and one beautiful TUFTED PUFFIN. The single NORTHERN GANNET that has been flying back and forth from the Farallones Islands was standing on the cliff near the satellite domes. A single MARBLED MURRELET was spotted while we were watching the gannet.

Marine mammals included; HUMPBACK, FIN and BLUE WHALES. A pod of 8 to 10 KILLER WHALES put on quite a show! Great sea conditions and loads of fun!
BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS, very common at this time of year.
LAYSAN ALBATROSS, never "common"in our area.
Always a special treat. 
This may be the same individual we saw on an earlier August HMB trip.
ASHY STORM-PETREL, scattered individuals often seen during fall.
Sometimes large rafts are encountered.
A near-endemic California species thought to be in decline.
The white-romped, WILSON'S STORM-PETREL, a very uncommon storm-petrel in our region.
Formerly, it was a review species by the California Rare Bird Records Committee.
KILLER WHALES, always a surprise in our region!
There is no predictable time, nor place in our region to find these amazing marine mammals.
The pod of 8 to 10 individuals, including a small calf, put on quite a show.
It looks like a jellyfish. Turtles and whales think it is a jellyfish.
It is a MYLAR BALLOONwith the exterior design worn off.
All balloons are very dangerous and life-threatening to marine life. 
Albatrosses are naturally curious birds. 
Black-footed Albatross investigating a mylar balloon. 
Image by the late Rich Stallcup.
PLEASE DO NOT LET BALLOONS GO!
One of our many talented leaders, CHRISTIAN SCHWARZ, retrieves the balloon to prevent damage to wildlife.
Christian is well known for his expertise in MUSHROOMS.
He recently co-authored the book above, MUSHROOMS of the REDWOOD COAST
CHRISTIAN SCHWARZ, when he is not on a pelagic trip!
Christian is available for hire for guided birding or mushrooming, in our area. 

Many thanks to all the wonderful and fun folks who joined our Half Moon Bay pelagic trip!

The Shearwater team of leaders included: CHRISTIAN SCHWARZ, TODD MCGRATH, STEVE TUCKER & DEBI SHEARWATER.

THE COMPLETE SPECIES LIST FOR SHEARWATER JOURNEYS' AUGUST 19, 2016 HALF MOON BAY PELAGIC TRIP FOLLOWS:
SAN MATEO/SAN FRANCISCO COUNTIES:

PACIFIC LOON- 10/0
WESTERN GREBE- 3/0
*LAYSAN ALBATROSS- 0/1
BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS- 3/14
NORTHERN/PACIFIC FULMAR- 0/1
PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER- 98/44
SOOTY SHEARWATER- 1670/6
WILSON'S STORM-PETREL- 1/0
FORK-TAILED STORM-PETREL- 4/3
ASHY STORM-PETREL- 23/8
BROWN PELICAN- 116/0
BRANDT'S CORMORANT- 11/0
PELAGIC CORMORANT- 4/0
**NORTHERN GANNET- 1/0
SURF SCOTER- 7/0
SURFBIRD- 1/0
SANDERLING- 35/0
RED-NECKED PHALAROPE- 21/0
RED PHALAROPE- 2/4
PARASITIC JAEGER- 1/0
HERRMANN'S GULL- 290/0
CALIFORNIA GULL- 6/1
WESTERN GULL- 361/19
SABINE'S GULL- 1/6
ELEGANT TERN- 74/0
ARCTIC TERN- 1/0
COMMON MURRE- 368/10
PIGEON GUILLEMOT- in the harbor
MARBLED MURRELET- 1/0
CASSIN'S AUKLET- 9/90
RHINOCEROS AUKLET- 2/5
TUFTED PUFFIN- 1/0
HUMPBACK WHALE- 6
BLUE WHALE- 2
FIN WHALE- 1
KILLER WHALE- 8 -10
PACIFIC WHITE-SIDED DOLPHIN- 80
HARBOR PORPOISE- 10
OCEAN SUNFISH- 1

UPCOMING TRIPS DEPARTING FROM HALF MOON BAY
SEPTEMBER 4 (SOLD OUT), 16, 18
OCTOBER 2, 9

IT IS NOW THE VERY PEAK OF FALL SEABIRD MIGRATION!
HOPE TO SEE YOU OUT THERE!
LIVING THE SALT LIFE,
Debi Shearwater
debi@shearwaterjourneys.com
Images by Christian Schwarz





Thursday, September 1, 2016

PELAGIC BIRDING FOR ALL AGES: 9 to 92

AGE DOESN'T MATTER WHEN OCEAN BIRDING
WOMEN LEADING THE WAY
Shearwater Journeys' August 19, 2016 Half Moon Bay pelagic trip hosted two female birders, one aged 9 and one aged 92. This is the biggest age spread we've seen to date on any of our pelagic trips in one day.
Nine year old Elle studies her field guide and Shearwater Journeys' checklist of birds and marine mammals while hundreds of ELEGANT TERNS can be viewed from the window.
 Ninety-two year old Jacqueline searches for BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSSES.
Jacqueline and her 70 year old daughter, Annie were traveling along the coast all the way from Alaska.
On top of that, they were car-camping! 
Sleeping on a four inch piece of foam in the back of their SUV.
Jacqueline is one tough lady.
This is Elle on the bow with her Auntie, Meghan.
They are videotaping KILLER WHALES with a cell phone!
Elle's mom described this as "one of the best days of summer!"
Auntie Meghan is one tough and talented birder, herself.
As expedition staff on many of the Heritage Expeditions voyages that I make, she is, hand's down. one of the best in the world!
Meghan is a World Girl Birder, too.
Meghan travels to the ends of the earth and will soon be 
 embarking on a new journey. Read about it, here

What inspiring girls and women we had on board this day!
Living the Salt Life,
Debi Shearwater
debi@shearwaterjourneys.com

To see the entire species list for this pelagic trip, click here




IMAGES OF THE DAY by BETH HAMEL: AUGUST 26, 2016 MONTEREY BAY

From frolicking SEA OTTERS just outside the harbor—
to BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSSES just off Point Pinos within the first hour of the day 
watching BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSSES folding their wings upon landing behind the vessel
to the blow of a mighty BLUE WHALE, the largest animal that has ever lived on Earth
 to tiny CASSIN'S AUKLETS which feed on krill just like the blue whale
to the very curious looking OCEAN SUNFISH, Mola Mola
and PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATERS shearing the ocean surface with their wings
 and nearly 50 HUMPBACK WHALES
flocks of SABINE'S GULLS lifting off the sea
and the juvenile LONG-TAILED JAEGERS which chase them
 juvenile LONG-TAILED JAEGER right over our heads
male POMARINE JAEGERS that chase all of them

cruising in attack mode
 feeding on the abundant squid
 to the just-arrived from southern California, BLACK-VENTED SHEARWATERS
it was simply an amazing day of nonstop marine action with all players present— Monterey seabirds, marine mammals and interesting fish! What's next?

COMMENTS FROM ONE PARTICIPANT:
Just wanted to say thank you for a fantastic pelagic trip this past Friday! What an amazing journey, with whales, dolphins and porpoises as an added bonus. The sight of a blue whale in the wild is something I will always treasure. You and the crew are a class act, constantly working hard to get on the birds and answer questions. I had read your praises in the writings of Big Year bloggers like Dorian Anderson and Olaf Danielson, and they were spot on in their compliments. In the days leading up to the trip, I had hoped for a couple of Black-footed Albatross. Like others, I was floored when they surrounded the boat!
Yes, you are the best in the business, and I will happily recommend Shearwater Journeys to fellow birders. Keep up the great work, and thanks again.
C. B. — Redondo Beach, California

THANK YOU, ONE AND ALL! 
To read the full trip report for August 26, 2016, click here. 
I HOPE YOU ENJOY THESE IMAGES BY BETH HAMEL
All images, copyright, Beth Hamel

Check the SHEARWATER JOURNEYS' SCHEDULE for lots of upcoming trips during September!
Living the Salt Life,
Debi Shearwater
debi@shearwaterjourneys.com