FARALLON ISLANDS, AUGUST 3, 2014 TRIP REPORT

Shearwater Journeys's pelagic trip to the Farallon Islands, August 3, 2014 to view TUFTED PUFFINS and many seabirds was a huge success that included: NORTHERN GANNET, BROWN BOOBY and LAYSAN ALBATROSS! 

Our target bird, the charismatic TUFTED PUFFIN, put on a good show, with the first individuals spotted before we even reached the islands. We have a 100% success rate for seeing puffins on this trip!

Our trip departs from Sausalito where we head out to the islands, ducking under a California icon, the GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE. 

Nearing the islands, the captain spotted a lot of juvenile rockfish, on the fish finder.

We saw rafts of PIGEON GUILLEMOTS, many carrying these rockfish to the island to feed their young. 

 

Heading straight to Sugerloaf, we immediately spotted the NORTHERN GANNET that has now been at the islands for 3 years! Our trips have been 100% successful in finding the gannet, although over recent months it has also roosted on Alcatraz Island. This is possibly the first gannet record for the West coast, and certainly the first for California. The gannet is the white blob in the photo, above. The head is not in view.

Not far from the gannet, we spotted a BROWN BOOBY! One or more, brown boobies have been hanging around the islands since last spring. Two days after our trip, a blue-footed booby showed up! We have seen brown booby on many of our past trips to the islands. 

The islands are part of the National Wildlife Refuge system. Landing on the islands is not permitted by the general public. These houses play host to a variety of biologists. 

BRANDT'S CORMORANTS above, and COMMON MURRES, below. 

After having lunch with the puffins, we headed to the edge of the Continental Shelf to look for other seabirds. This put us out in the shipping lanes with the big ones!

 

A half dozen BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSSES began following in our wake. 

A surprise was a gorgeous LAYSAN ALBATROSS which flew in and put on a good show!

Returning to the harbor, we passed under the bridge, again, and watched the shipping traffic, coming and going. 

And, had a chance to enjoy the beautiful SAN FRANCISCO SKYLINE.

Many thanks to all who joined us on this successful day at sea!

Special thanks to Golden Gate Audubon Society and my friend, Gerry McChesney. 

Leaders on this day were: PETER PYLE, NICK LEVENDOSKY & DEBI SHEARWATER.

Along with two friends, Peter, set a new Mammal Big Day for North America!

The COMPLETE SPECIES LIST for SHEARWATER JOURNEYS, AUGUST 3, 2014 FARALLON ISLANDS TRIP FOLLOWS: (ALL BIRDS OFFSHORE, SAN FRANCISCO COUNTY).

WESTERN GREBE- 100

LAYSAN ALBATROSS- 1

BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS- 12

NORTHERN FULMAR- 6

PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER- 30

SOOTY SHEARWATER- 400

*BROWN BOOBY- 1

**NORTHERN GANNET- 1

BROWN PELICAN- 10

BRANDT'S CORMORANT- 2020

DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT- 9

PELAGIC CORMORANT- 10

WANDERING TATTLER- 1

RED-NECKED PHALAROPE- 15

PARASITIC JAEGER- 6

HEERMANN'S GULL- 32

CALIFORNIA GULL- 10

WESTERN GULL- 550

ELEGANT TERN- 75

COMMON MURRE- 2020

PIGEON GUILLEMOT- 325

CASSIN'S AUKLET- 20

RHINOCEROS AUKLET- 12

TUFTED PUFFIN- 25

PEREGRINE FALCON- 2, at the islands, not nesting this year.

CALIFORNIA SEA LION- 400

STELLER'S SEA LION- 30

NORTHERN FUR SEAL- 400

NORTHERN ELEPHANT SEAL- 7

HARBOR SEAL- 85

HUMPBACK WHALE- 2

RISSO'S DOLPHIN- 2

HARBOR PORPOISE- 8

OCEAN SUNFISH- 18

SHEARWATER JOURNEYS'S 2015 

FARALLON ISLANDS TRIPS: $187/PERSON

AUGUST 2: TUFTED PUFFINS & BREEDING SEABIRDS

OCTOBER 11: THE HUNT FOR GREAT WHITE SHARKS

View Shearwater Journeys's complete schedule for 2014, here. 

The season has just begun. We have trips departing from Monterey, Half Moon Bay and Bodega Bay. 

PUFFINS FOREVER,

DEBI SHEARWATER

debi@shearwaterjourneys.com

TUFTED PUFFINS & THE GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE

FARALLON NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE

with 

SHEARWATER JOURNEYS

AUGUST 3, 2014 - SOLD OUT

Each year, Shearwater Journeys offers a trip to the Farallon Islands, the largest breeding seabird colony on the West Coast, south of Alaska. Our main target is the TUFTED PUFFIN, below. By departing from Sausalito, we travel under the GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE. In the morning, the bridge is often enshrouded in fog. On our return in the afternoon, we usually have gorgeous, sunny views of one of California's major icons. We also have excellent views of the lovely San Francisco skyline. 

Our trips have been a smashing success for more than a decade. Our rate of finding tufted puffins is 100%. Last year, our leaders, Peter Pyle and Sarah Allen did a Mammal Big Day for North America, breaking the record. This year, they plan to do it, again. 

This year's trip is SOLD OUT. You can be placed on the waiting list by emailing Debi: debi@shearwaterjourneys.com.

Or, you can plan for next year. 

AUGUST 9, 2015

OCTOBER 18, 2015

YES, we are bringing back the GREAT WHITE SHARK trip in October! 

Details for 2014 & 2015 Trips:

DATES: 

AUGUST 3, 2014; $177/person, WAIT LIST ONLY

AUGUST 8, 2015: $187/person.

OCTOBER 18, 2015: $187/person

DEPARTURE: 7:30 a.m. SHARP from the Clipper Yacht Harbor (map): 310 Harbor Drive, Sausalito

PARKING: $2/person, payable at the dock, cash to Debi. Do not park in front of the Fish Restaurant. You will be ticketed. Allow time to park and get to the dock. Check in with Debi at where the parking lot meets the dock. Price adjustments of $5-10/person might be needed at the dock, if fuel or other costs increase. There was no charge in 2013. 

VESSEL: OUTER LIMITS, a very stable and comfortable catamaran. (Google map here). 

CHECK IN: Please check in with Debi at the dock at 7:15 a.m. and pay the parking fee to her at that time. Allow 10 minutes to park and check in. 

Dress warmly, bring lunch and liquids. Take seasick prevention pill. This is a non-smoking trip. 

2013 TRIP REPORT

2012 TRIP REPORT

2011 TRIP REPORT

2010 TRIP REPORT

2009 TRIP REPORT

TUFTED PUFFINS & GREAT WHITE SHARKS FOREVER,

Debi Shearwater

All images by Debi Shearwater

IMAGES OF THE DAY by ANNIE SCHMIDT: OCTOBER 20, 2013

Howdy, Birders,

Please enjoy the truly beautiful images below by leader, Annie Schmidt from Shearwater Journeys' October 20, 2013 pelagic trip to the Farallon Islands National Wildlife Refuge. We had hoped to see a great white shark, but none were seen. The very next day, two attacks were seen at the islands. Now, days have again passed with no recent attacks. That's nature! 

 Golden Gate Bridge, above and below. 

 We had some views of Risso's Dolphins, below, showing their round, bulbous heads and scratched, gray bodies. 

 Risso's Dolphins have tall dorsal fins, below. They are sometimes mistaken for Killer Whales. 

 Risso's Dolphins eat squid, which has been plentiful this fall.

 Glaucous-winged Gull, above and below. Wintering gulls are arriving. 

 Pink-footed Shearwater, showing characteristic field marks: pink-based bill, white belly and white wing-linings. 

 Short-tailed Shearwater, below. This shearwater begins to show up along the central California coast in October. It can be a difficult to separate from Sooty Shearwaters, but a good view helps. 

 Pink-footed Shearwater, soaring in flight, below. 

 Small flocks of Buller's Shearwaters, below, were found just outside of the Golden Gate Bridge. It is unusual to find them so close to shore. However, the same phenomenon is happening in other places along the central coast.

 A young South Polar Skua gave us great views, sitting on the sea. 

 South Polar Skua begins to take flight, showing white wing patches, below. 

We ended the day with sunshine, sailing under the Golden Gate Bridge! 

See you out there!

Shearwaters Forever,

Debi Shearwater

TRIP REPORT: OCTOBER 20, 2013 FARALLON ISLANDS: SEABIRDS & GREAT WHITE SHARK?

Howdy, Birders,

This is a trip report for Shearwater Journeys' offshore trip departing from Sausalito to the Farallon National Wildlife Refuge, October 20, 2013. The main purpose of this trip was to attempt to see the great white sharks which are often found around the islands at this time of year. However, Nature being Nature, the great white shark failed to make an appearance. We did, however, enjoy a very pleasant day at sea with some nice highlights, including the continuing NORTHERN GANNET at Sugarloaf. BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS, NORTHERN FULMAR, BULLER'S SHEARWATERS (nearshore!), SHORT-TAILED SHEARWATER, SOUTH POLAR SKUA, RISSO'S DOLPHINS and HUMPBACK and BLUE WHALES were the highlights. Sailing under the GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE is always a highlight on this trip! We headed beyond the islands to the edge of the Continental Shelf where we encountered most of the seabirds on this day. Breeding season at the islands is long over, with few of the breeders around. Therefore, we did not expect to see any Tufted Puffins. And, we didn't. All images below, courtesy of Mark Rauzon, copyright. Please do not use without permission. Enjoy!

The GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE with the iconic SAN FRANCISCO SKYLINE. 

Leader, PETER PYLE, scanning for great white shark activity. We put in a solid 2.5 hours looking for sharks. There may have been some activity, as one flock of feeding birds quickly assembled, but it was not a kill. Rapidly forming bird flocks are the key give away for a great white kill. It just didn't happen.

This NORTHERN GANNET has been around the Farallon Islands for more than a year. It is the first record for the Pacific. Perhaps, it came through the Northwest Passage? It has not nested, contrary to reports elsewhere. What if it meets up with one of the many boobies that have shown up this year?

The great white shark researchers, above. Waiting. They never saw one, either, on this day. 

The divers and cage that they use to dive in to see the sharks. They never saw a great white on this day, either. Baiting of great white sharks is strictly forbidden. 

 

Farallon National Wildlife Refuge sign. Open for business! Landings, however, are strictly regulated on the islands. Primarily, researchers spend time at the islands. 

A RED-NECKED GREBE, flying at the islands, a rare bird out there. 

Recent northwest frontal systems have brought a good influx of NORTHERN FULMARS, above.

 SHORT-TAILED SHEARWATER, above, a declining species. The "old" name, SLENDER-BILLED SHEARWATER, was perhaps, more appropriate. 

 A young, SOUTH POLAR SKUA, sat on the water for a long time, providing excellent views. 

Returning to the harbor, heading under the Golden Gate Bridge, again — this time in sunshine. Folks getting photographs, above. 

 

Leader, ANNIE SCHMIDT, who just completed her Phd. Congratulations, Annie!

Happy Birders, above, with my friend, Marilyn. 

Many thanks of all of the birders who traveled from near and far to join this special trip. Despite missing the great white sharks, we had a beautiful day at sea. The leaders on this trip were: Peter Pyle, Jim Holmes, Annie Schmidt and Debi Shearwater. 

The complete species list for SAN FRANCISCO/MARIN COUNTIES follows.

OCTOBER 20, 2013 SHEARWATER JOURNEYS FARALLON NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE:

COMMON LOON- 2/2

RED-NECKED GREBE- 1/0, offshore at the island

WESTERN GREBE- +

BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS- 1/0

NORTHERN FULMAR- 100/10

PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER- 80/0

BULLER'S SHEARWATER- 60/0, many just outside of Golden Gate

SOOTY SHEARWATER- 25/0, declining species

SHORT-TAILED SHEARWATER- 1/0, declining species

** NORTHERN GANNET- 1/0

BROWN PELICAN- +

BRANDT'S CORMORANT- +

DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT- +

PELAGIC CORMORANT- 25/0

SURF SCOTER- 100/200

WHITE-WINGED SCOTER- 0/1

NORTHERN SHOVELER- 8/0, offshore

CACKLING GOOSE- 5/0, offshore

BLACK OYSTERCATCHER- 7/0

BLACK TURNSTONE- 2, inside the bay

RED PHALAROPE- 2/0

SOUTH POLAR SKUA- 1/0

POMARINE JAEGER- 3/1

PARASITIC JAEGER- 1/0

BONAPARTE'S GULL- 8/0

HEERMANN'S GULL- +

CALIFORNIA GULL- +

HERRING GULL- 2/0

WESTERN GULL- +

GLAUCOUS-WINGED GULL- 5/0

ELEGANT TERN- 50/0

FORSTER'S TERN- 1/0

COMMON MURRE- 400/50

CASSIN'S AUKLET- 22/0

RHINOCEROS AUKLET- 15/0

CALIFORNIA SEA LION- +

STELLER'S SEA LION- 20

NORTHERN FUR SEAL- 200

NORTHERN ELEPHANT SEAL- 8

HARBOR SEAL- +

BLUE WHALE- 1

HUMPBACK WHALE- 2

RISSO'S DOLPHIN- 12

HARBOR PORPOISE- 40

OCEAN SUNFISH- 1

BLUE SHARK- 1

SPACES ARE STILL AVAILABLE ON OUR LAST TRIPS OF THE FALL SEASON:

OCTOBER 25 MONTEREY BAY 

with 

Nick Levendosky, Clay Kempf, Jennifer Green, Debi Shearwater, Marissa Ortega-Welch, Holly Poole-Kavana

OCTOBER 27 HALF MOON BAY 

with 

Scott Terrill, Linda Terrill, John Garrett, Debi Shearwater

NOVEMBER 16 HALF MOON BAY 

with 

Todd McGrath, Scott Terrill, Linda Terrill, Tim Miller, Abe Borker, Debi Shearwater

Shearwaters Forever,

Debi Shearwater

TRIP REPORT: AUGUST 4, 2013 FARALLON ISLANDS

GANNET & PUFFINS, OH MY!

Howdy, Seabirders,

Shearwater Journeys' pelagic trip to the Farallon National Wildlife Refuge on August 4, 2013 was packed full of action throughout the day. Highlights included: the continuing NORTHERN GANNET (see August 5, 2012 report), loads of TUFTED PUFFINS and other breeding seabirds; a great variety of pinnipeds; HUMPBACK WHALES and HARBOR and DALL'S PORPOISES, as well as BOTTLENOSE DOLPHINS; and finally, that iconic symbol of California — the GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE. 

The morning fog enshrouded the GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE, above. It is quite a treat to actually sail under the bridge, providing a completely different viewpoint.

We headed straight away in search of the NORTHERN GANNET, pictured flying above.

 No worries, as we found it quite easily on the rock known as "Sugarloaf," above.

 It was really neat to see the gannet both sitting on the rock and flying around. It was not on a nest. And, according to refuge personnel, it never built any kind of nest.

 We saw the first of 35 TUFTED PUFFINS right at Sugarloaf. 

 Eventually, Tufted Puffins were found sitting and diving right around our vessel. 

Most of the Refuge is a designated Wilderness Area where the forces of Nature predominate and its natural character is preserved for future generations. 

 

The Refuge is 141 acres and hosts 13 species of breeding seabirds. Some call it the "Galapagos" of California. This is the largest breeding seabird colony, south of Alaska, over 200,000 birds. We saw all of the diurnal breeding seabirds, see list below. 

 

These rock islands lie along the cold California Current, a rich and productive ecosystem that generates a large amount of food through upwelling. Food production has been very good this year. Cassin's Auklets are double-brooding. Food is plentiful. 

In 1971 Point Reyes Bird Observatory (now Point Blue) and Wildlife Service joined forces to provide protection, monitoring, research and management of the Farallon National Wildlife Refuge. Management activities include removing non-native plants that cover nesting burrows and creating habitat for crevice-nesting seabirds from unused concrete foundations. Visitors are not permitted to land on the islands. 

 Six species of marine mammals breed or haul out on the Refuge: Northern fur seal, Guadalupe fur seal, Steller's sea lion, California sea lion (above), harbor seal and Northern elephant seal. We saw all but the Guadalupe fur seal which is rare.

Finally, we make our way back to the harbor, going under the GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE once more.

Bicyclists riding across the bridge, above. 

 And, the iconic City of San Francisco, above, was lit up by sunlight.

No finer co-leaders could possibly be found for this fabulous day. Between the leaders, below, the breadth and depth of their knowledge of the Farallon National Wildlife Refuge is unmatched. 

Gerry McChesney, above, is currently the manager of this wildlife refuge. We have been friends for many decades. Gerry has a very keen interest in seabirds. 

Peter Pyle, above right, spent some 20+ years working at the islands as biologist. He has been involved with seabirds, marine mammals and great white sharks and other wildlife since he began bird banding with his father at age 4. Peter, along with Floyd, left above, and Sarah Allen, below, were doing a MAMMAL BIG DAY on this day! They recorded 30 species of native mammals in one day, setting a record. 

 Sarah Allen, above, is a author of the University of California Press book, A Field Guide to the Marine Mammals of the Pacific Coast, highly recommended.

 Our smiling Captain, Jim Robertson, above, absolutely essential in turning a good trip into a great trip!

Plus, the Outer Limits is one spotlessly clean, stable catamaran. 

And, those America's Cup folks — if they only knew what lay beyond —

Many thanks to all who joined us from near and as far away as Italy, and to the Golden Gate Audubon Society, and to Eli for chumming.

The complete species list for August 4, 2013 Shearwater Journeys follows: ALL for San Francisco County:

PACIFIC LOON- 1

WESTERN GREBE- 2

BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS- 5

PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER - 12

SOOTY SHEARWATER- 1000

NORTHERN GANNET- 1

BROWN PELICAN- 30

BRANDT'S CORMORANT- 300

DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT- 125

PELAGIC CORMORANT- 50

BLACK OYSTERCATCHER- 4

MARBLED GODWIT- 2

RED-NECKED PHALAROPE- 50

RED PHALAROPE- 6

HEERMANN'S GULL- 125

CALIFORNIA GULL- 10

WESTERN GULL- 700

ELEGANT TERN- 1000

COMMON MURRE- 300

PIGEON GUILLEMOT- 200

CASSIN'S AUKLET- 25

RHINOCEROS AUKLET- 3

TUFTED PUFFIN- 35

CALIFORNIA SEA LION- 2000

STELLER'S SEA LION- 40

NORTHERN FUR SEAL- 300

NORTHERN ELEPHANT SEAL- 2

HARBOR SEAL- 50

HUMPBACK WHALE- 6

BOTTLENOSE DOLPHIN- 6

HARBOR PORPOISE- 10

DALL'S PORPOISE- 15

THRESHER SHARK- 1

NEW THIS YEAR: SEABIRDS & GREAT WHITE SHARKS OCTOBER 20 

A few spaces still remain on this trip to the Farallon Islands. We are going in search of Great White Sharks and late fall seabirds. (You should not expect to see tufted puffin). See here, for reservations, or to get on the waiting list when full. Spaces are available on many of our departures from Monterey, Half Moon Bay and Bodega Bay. The season has just begun! 

PUFFINS FOREVER,

DEBI SHEARWATER