ANCIENT GREECE

Hi, Birders,

In stifling hot Athens, my friend, Don Doolittle and I have been
touring the sites of ancient Greece— the Parthenon, Agoura, and other
places. Birds have been very few, but we each managed a lifer—
Sardinian Warbler for Don and Levant Sparrowhawk for me. We also saw
Blue Rock Thrush and a really neat snake. The sites were amazing. We
are off to Venice, Italy today. Debra

NON-STOP SEABIRDS & MARINE MAMMALS— MONTEREY BAY TODAY!

Hello, Seabirders,

Shearwater Journey's pelagic trip on Monterey Bay today was nothing
short of sensational! It was an action-packed, non-stop, mind-blowing
day of thousands upon thousands of feeding shearwaters, sea lions,
dolphins and humpback whales! The day began with a bang, when we
located both the summering LONG-TAILED and HARLEQUIN DUCKS in the
harbor. The usual suspects were along Cannery Row, including COMMON
MURRES and PIGEON GUILLEMOTS. Once we hit the bell buoy off Pt.
Pinos, the first shearwater of the day flew in— a BULLER'S
SHEARWATER! We knew that we were in for something great, and sure
enough, none of us was disappointed! Only two miles off Point Joe, we
encountered the first of thousands of feeding SOOTY, PINK-FOOTED and
BULLER'S SHEARWATERS along with PACIFIC WHITE-SIDED DOLPHINS and
HUMPBACK WHALES. Heading south to Cypress Point, we encountered one
mass of feeding marine life after another. Sometimes, we found flocks
of shearwaters resting on the sea, obviously satiated! When the
flocks of Buller's Shearwaters launched themselves in the air, it was
a like a dreamy ballet. Soon, a FLESH-FOOTED SHEARWATER was spotted
at the stern, coming into the chumming. BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSSES made
occasional passes, but the larger numbers of this species were found
toward the end of the day. White-sided dolphins were joined by
NORTHERN RIGHT WHALE DOLPINS, bowriding with their pale chocolate
calves and breaching and tail-slapping. Each new mass of wildlife
produced more Humpback Whales, sometimes breaching. On the fish-
finder, we could see large shoals of anchovies. The shearwaters were
diving and looking in the water for the fish. Finally, I saw a Sooty
Shearwater flying with a large anchovy, with a Pink-footed
Shearwater, calling, in hot pursuit! The Pink-foot won out, and stole
the fish! "Wheep, wheep," calling Pink-foots were very busy. The
dolphin show that had begun at 9:30 am continued until just after 1
pm. On the north side of the outer bay, we began to encounter
scattered ASHY STORM-PETRELS, along with many more RHINOCEROS and a
few CASSIN'S AUKLETS. Then, a flock of nearly 100 Ashys lifted off
the water, and leader Brian Sullivan spotted a single FORK-TAILED
STORM-PETREL amongst them. Returning to the harbor, leader Jennifer
Green brought the boat to a screeching halt for a single XANTUS'
MURRELET which promptly flew to the other side of the earth, as they
usually do! Two NORTHERN FUR SEALS and a single NORTHERN ELEPHANT
SEAL (rare at sea) added to the day, along with two good sized OCEAN
SUNFISH. Meanwhile, overhead, SABINE'S GULLS, and all sorts of
JAEGERS gave the aerial show! It was an exhausting, but thrilling day
to witness this spectacular array of miles and miles of wildlife.
There was never one dull minute!

By any standards, this was a great day. But, it is pretty early in
the fall season to have such a great variety of seabirds, in
particular. The sea surface temperatures ranged from 58-59-61F, with
some good temperature gradients. This is early for these numbers of
Buller's Shearwaters. In most years, as soon as we see high numbers
of Buller's, we usually encounter the Flesh-footed Shearwaters. But,
Fleshy-foots are more easily seen in October. Sea conditions were not
very good for finding the storm-petrels. In recent years, we have not
found storm-petrel flocks in August. With calmer seas, more storm-
petrels might be found. So, it was a day with some major bonuses.

We thank all of the participants on this day! Many photographers were
just delighted with the show! The August 22 leaders were: John
Sterling, Clay Kempf, Brian Sullivan, Jennifer Green, & Debra
Shearwater.

Our next Monterey trip with space available is August 29th. Please
call Linda at 408-353-8036 for a reservation. Leaders for the August
29th trip are Linda Terrill, Clay Kempf, and Jennifer Green.

The complete species list follows:

AUGUST 22, 2008 MONTEREY BAY

EARED GREBE- 1
WESTERN GREBE- 1
BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS- 31
NORTHERN FULMAR- 2
PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER- 975
FLESH-FOOTED SHEARWATER- 1
BULLER'S SHEARWATER- 225
SOOTY SHEARWATER- 18,000
FORK-TAILED STORM-PETREL- 1
ASHY STORM-PETREL- 225
BROWN PELICAN- 150
BRANDT'S CORMORANT- 550
PELAGIC CORMORANT- 6
HARLEQUIN DUCK- 1
LONG-TAILED DUCK- 1
BLACK TURNSTONE- 7
RED-NECKED PHALAROPE- 250
SOUTH POLAR SKUA- 1
POMARINE JAEGER- 7
POMARINE/PARASITIC- 2
PARASITIC JAEGER-1
LONG-TAILED JAEGER- 4
JAEGER SP.- 2
HEERMANN'S GULL- 50
CALIFORNIA GULL- 30
WESTERN GULL- 200
SABINE'S GULL- 48
ELEGANT TERN- 45
COMMON MURRE- 28
PIGEON GUILLEMOT- 12
XANTUS' MURRELET- 1
CASSIN'S AUKLET- 16
RHINOCEROS AUKLET- 48
SEA OTTER- 6
CALIFORNIA SEA LION- 40
NORTHERN FUR SEAL- 2
NORTHERN ELEPHANT SEAL- 1
HARBOR SEAL- 12
HUMPBACK WHALE- 16
NORTHERN RIGHT WHALE DOLPHIN- 450
RISSO'S DOLPHIN- 7
PACIFIC WHITE-SIDED DOLPHIN- 2200
DALL'S PORPOISE- 4
OCEAN SUNFISH-2

Shearwaters forever,
Debra

Debra Shearwater
Shearwater Journeys, Inc.
PO Box 190
Hollister, CA 95024
www.shearwaterjourneys.com
debi@shearwaterjourneys.com

AUGUST 15, 2008 MONTEREY BAY PELAGIC TRIP WITH SHEARWATER JOURNEYS

Hello, Seabirders,

This is a late report of a great Shearwater Journey's pelagic trip from Monterey Bay on August 15th, written by Linda Terrill. Sounds like a fantastic day!

For a day that began with extremely limited visibility due to heavy marine fog (which never completely left us all day) Friday turned out to be one great day!  The seas were from calm to slightly choppy, giving us great looks at birds and marine mammals alike. There were hundreds of Moon jellies and dozens of Egg-yolk jellies as we headed out in the morning.  The first Black-footed Albatross was sighted at 9:15 a.m., coming right into the wake chumming, and we weren't without one, and sometimes up to a dozen at a time, the rest of the day.  It was a few hours before the cry of "Laysan Albatross" came from the bow.  We all watched as it zoomed straight for us, sailed into the wake chumming, and sat down for all to ogle and photograph.  The many big lenses on board were adjusted appropriately as a Xantus murrelet sat for all to study and photograph, flying a little way for great underwing views, then sitting again for more portraits.  Toping off a great day, a Manx Shearwater zoomed by the boat as we approached shore.  Squeezing in one last bonus, a Long-tailed Duck and a Harlequin Duck were sitting at the end of the pier as we docked!  In between, we picked raft after raft of Sooty Shearwaters out of the fog, with Pink-footed Shearwaters peaking around the Humpback Whales – and did the whales ever give us a show!  One very large Humpback surprised us with a full breech 100 yards from the boat – wouldn't have wanted it any closer!  A bit later, Captain Tinker turned the boat off when we saw we might have "friendlies", and the behemoths proceeded to scare the daylights out of some of us, surfacing right under our faces at the side of the boat, bellowing loudly as they sprayed their lovely "whale breath" for all to enjoy.  Bow-riders during the day included Short-beaked Common Dolphins, Northern Right Whale Dolphins, and Pacific White-sided Dolphins, each of these also putting on leaping shows.  Several Harbor Porpoises gave more of a show than usual, and the hundreds of Risso's Dolphins gave great looks on the way into shore.  Thanks to everyone on board for the great camaraderie enjoying our wonderful marine life!

 

The complete species list for AUGUST 15, 2008 MONTEREY BAY FOLLOWS:

 

*Laysan Albatross (1)

Black-footed Albatross (43)

Northern Fulmar (6)

Pink-footed Shearwater (45)

Sooty Shearwater (10,000)

*Manx Shearwater (1)

Ashy Storm-petrel (1)

Brown Pelican (150)

Brandt's Cormorant (400)

Pelagic Cormorant (5)

Harlequin Duck (1)

Long-tailed Duck (1)

Least Sandpiper (1)

Red-necked Phalarope (165)

Pomarine Jaeger (2)

Parasitic Jaeger (2)

Parasitic/Long-tailed Jaeger (1)

Long-tailed Jaeger (1)

Heermann's Gull (check)

California Gull (check)

Western Gull (check)

Sabine's Gull (3)

Elegant Tern (75)

Comon Murre (725)

Pigeon Guillemot (11)

Xantus's Murrelet (1)

Cassin's Auklet (12)

Rhinoceros Aucklet (90)

 

 

Sea Otter (check)

CA Sea Lion (check)

Steller's Sea Lion (1)

Harbor Se al (check)

Humpback Whale (14)

Short-beaked Common Dolphin (5)

Northern Right Whale Dolphin (20)

Risso's Dolphin (191)

Pacific White-sided Dolphin (550)

Harbor Porpoise (15)

Ocean Sunfish (1)

Moon Jellies ( ++ )

Egg Yolk Jellies (check)

We thank all of the participants on this trip. The leaders were: Linda Terrill, Clay Kempf, and Jennifer Green.

Spaces are still available on our next trip, Friday, August 22. For a reservation, please contact Debra Shearwater (below). Spaces are available on all trips on our schedule, except for the September 7 trip from Monterey. Please see our web site for more information about trips and past trip reports. Please note: Debra will be out of the office from August 23 until September 6. Please contact Linda Terrill by email, if you have any questions during this period.

Shearwaters forever,

Debi

Debra Shearwater

Shearwater Journeys, Inc.

PO Box 190

Hollister, CA 95024

831.637.8527

debi@shearwaterjourneys.com

www.shearwaterjourneys.com

*Antarctica, South Georgia, & The Falkland Islands, January 5-24, 2010* 

Shearwater Journeys' Exclusive Charter

BODEGA CANYON & CORDELL BANK: AUGUST 12 WITH SHEARWATER JOURNEYS

Hello, Seabirders,

Shearwater Journey's August 12, 2008 pelagic trip to Bodega Canyon
and Cordell Bank was highlighted with amazing views of XANTUS'
MURRELET spotted by leader Gerry McChesney on the water in some
pretty choppy seas! It was a rough day at sea with winds from the
northwest and a fairly consistent sea surface temperature of 52F.
Nevertheless, we did manage to find some scattered ASHY STORM-PETRELS
and a few FORK-TAILED STORM-PETRELS, and had a grand slam on all of
the jaegers: POMARINE, PARASITIC, LONG-TAILED, and a single SOUTH
POLAR SKUA. It was a tough day of seabirding. August trips can be
like that, or, they can be flat calm. Roll the dice!

We thank all of the participants who ventured out on this trip. The
leaders were: Lisa Hug, Alan Hopkins, Matt Brady, Gerry McChesney,
Steve Howell, and Debra Shearwater.

Our next trips from Bodega Bay are OCTOBER 9 & 17. To make a
reservation, please send a check to Debra Shearwater, PO Box 190,
Hollister, CA 95024. You will receive a return confirmation letter
with details of the trip.

The complete species list for AUGUST 12, 2008 BODEGA CANYON & CORDELL
BANK FOLLOWS:

PACIFIC LOON- 1
WESTERN GREBE- 1
BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS- 38
NORTHERN FULMAR- 28
PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER- 60
SOOTY SHEARWATER- 25
FORK-TAILED STORM-PETREL- 4
ASHY STORM-PETREL- 80
BROWN PELICAN- 25
BRANDT'S CORMORANT- +
PELAGIC CORMORANT- 2
RED-NECKED PHALAROPE- 12
SOUTH POLAR SKUA- 1
POMARINE JAEGER- 10
PARASITIC JAEGER- 2
PARASITIC/LONG-TAILED JAEGER- 1
LONG-TAILED JAEGER- 18
HEERMANN'S GULL- 25
CALIFORNIA GULL- 50
WESTERN GULL- 50
SABINE'S GULL- 5
COMMON MURRE- 38
PIGEON GUILLEMOT- 20
XANTUS' MURRELET- 2
CASSIN'S AUKLET- 18
RHINOCEROS AUKLET- 6
CALIFORNIA SEA LION- 3
PACIFIC WHITE-SIDED DOLPHIN- 16
HARBOR PORPOISE- 2

Spaces are still available on our upcoming trips from Monterey on
August 15, 22, and 29. Please call Linda Terrill at 408/353-8036 for
a reservation.

Shearwaters forever,

Debra Shearwater
PO Box 190
Hollister, CA 95024
debi@shearwaterjourneys.com

FORT BRAGG PELAGIC TRIP REPORT: AUGUST 10, 2008

Hello, Seabirders,

This is a report of Shearwater Journey's pelagic trip from FORT BRAGG on AUGUST 10, 2008. A different day— a different ocean! Sea conditions changed substantially between August 8th, the Lucky Eight Day of Hawaiian Petrels, to the morning of August 10th. Leaving the harbor, conditions were pretty good, and we really could not detect much change from the Lucky Eight Day. However, the marine forecast already stated that northwest winds were blowing 18 knots at the Point Arena Buoy. This made heading south out of the question. So, we headed north for most of the day, returning along the coastline, hunting for small alcids (which we did not find). Another difference between the two days, was the sea surface temperature. Throughout the day, it remained about 52F, with very little change. We did not experience those finger-like streams of warm water of the Lucky Eight Day. 

Off we went to the north and NOYO CANYON. Only 4 miles out of the harbor, a LAYSAN ALBATROSS flew up the wake. Oddly enough, this four mile zone is often very productive! I'm not sure that I had even seen one shearwater for the day when this albatross flew in. In fact, overall, there are very few shearwaters off Fort Bragg. This presents quite an advantage in that we do not have to sift through thousands and thousands of shearwaters to find something unusual. The unusual birds stand out quite well. Other highlights of the day included the first of the fall season, BULLER'S SHEARWATER over the middle of Noyo Canyon; all three jaegers- POMARINE, PARASITIC, and LONG-TAILED JAEGERS; one SOUTH POLAR SKUA, and a very surprising juvenile GRAY WHALE in 30-50 feet of water along the kelp line off Usal River. The much hoped for Hawaiian Petrels, seen on the August 8th trip, were not observed. Keep in mind that all of our previous records for Hawaiian Petrels have been found near Noyo Canyon. Although we experienced some swells, our skipper handled the boat expertly, taking us on a great route which made the ride comfortable, and more importantly, made seabirding possible at all times. Thumbs up all the way around for our great boat crew and leaders!

After the LAYSAN ALBATROSS showed up, we were naturally, hoping to find a Short-tailed Albatross. It was not to be. However, a research vessel with Steve Howell on board did find a Laysan Albatross near Cordell Bank within the past couple of days. Perhaps, we shall be lucky tomorrow!! 

Our very next pelagic trip is TUESDAY, AUGUST 12TH, departing from Port O' Bodega at 7 am. Please be there at 6:30 am, if you would like to join this trip. As I will be on the road today, driving from Fort Bragg to Bodega Bay, it is not possible to contact me. If you would like to join us, you can try emailing me. Otherwise, it is very likely that there will be spaces available, if you just show up at the boat. We will be on the New Sea Angler, a large vessel. 

UPCOMING TRIPS INCLUDE:

MONTEREY:

AUG 15 with Linda Terrill, Clay Kempf, & Jennifer Green leading.

AUG 22 with John Sterling, Clay Kempf, Brian Sullivan, Jennifer Green, & Debra Shearwater leading.

AUG 29 with Linda Terrill, Clay Kempf, & Jennifer Green leading.

SEP 7 with Scott Terrill, Linda Terrill, Clay Kempf, Don Doolittle, Jennifer Green & Debra Shearwater leading. SOLD OUT. (sorry)

SEP 12 with Clay Kempf, Brian Sullivan, & Debra Shearwater leading. 

SEP 13 ALBACORE with Scott Terrill, Linda Terrill, John Sterling, Brian Sullivan & Debra Shearwater leading. 

SEP 14 with Scott Terrill, Linda Terrill, John Sterling, Clay Kempf, Don Doolittle & Debra Shearwater leading.

SEP 15  to Ascension Canyon with Clay Kempf, Don Doolittle & Debra Shearwater leading. 

SEP 22 with David Vander Pluym, David Wimpfheimer, Don Doolittle & Debra Shearwater leading.

SEP 25 with Jim Danzenbaker, Steve Howell & Debra Shearwater leading.

SEP 27 with Scott Terrill, Linda Terrill, Steve Howell, Jim Danzenbaker & Debra Shearwater leading.

SEP 28 with Jennifer Green, Denise Wight, Steve Howell & Debra Shearwater leading.

OCT 3 with Clay Kempf, Jennifer Green & Debra Shearwater leading.

OCT 4 with Clay Kempf & Debra Shearwater leading.

OCT 5 with Scott Terrill, Linda Terrill & Debra Shearwater leading.

OCT 11 leaders TBA.

OCT 18 with Clay Kempf, Scott Terrill, Linda Terrill & Debra Shearwater leading.

NOV 29 with Clay Kempf, Scott Terrill, Linda Terrill, Jennifer Green & Debra Shearwater leading.

DEPARTING FROM SANTA CRUZ; (lower yacht harbor, F dock)

SEP 26 with David Suddjian, Steve Gerow, Jennifer Green, Steve Howell, Alan Hopkins, & Debra Shearwater leading.

OCT 12 with Clay Kempf, Jennifer Green, Scott Terrill, Linda Terrill, John Sterling, Don Doolittle & Debra Shearwater leading.

BODEGA BAY TO CORDELL BANK & BODEGA CANYON:

AUG 12 with Lisa Hug, Alan Hopkins, Gerry McChesney, Steve Howell, John Sterling & Debra Shearwater leading.

OCT 9 with Steve Howell, Lisa Hug, John Sterling, Jim Danzenbaker & Debra Shearwater leading.

OCT 17 with John Sterling, Lisa Hug, Jennifer Green & Debra Shearwater leading.

We thank all of the birders who traveled from near and far to join us on our August 10 pelagic trip from Fort Bragg. The leaders for this trip were: Scott Terrill, Linda Terrill, Clay Kempf, Matt Brady, Lisa Hug, Don Doolittle, Al De Martini, and Debra Shearwater. The complete species list follows.

AUGUST 10, 2008 FORT BRAGG PELAGIC TRIP WITH SHEARWATER JOURNEYS:

PACIFIC LOON- 1

COMMON LOON- 2

WESTERN GREBE- 70

CLARK'S GREBE- 1

LAYSAN ALBATROSS- 1

BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS- 40

NORTHERN FULMAR- 6

PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER- 75

BULLER'S SHEARWATER- 1 first of fall

SOOTY SHEARWATER- 32

BROWN PELICAN- 220

BRANDT'S CORMORANT- 700

DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT- 3

PELAGIC CORMORANT- 6

SURF SCOTER- 42

BLACK OYSTERCATCHER- 1

WANDERING TATTLER- 2

WHIMBREL- 2

RUDDY TURNSTONE- 1

BLACK TURNSTONE- 18

SPOTTED SANDPIPER- 1

RED-NECKED PHALAROPE- 17

SOUTH POLAR SKUA- 1

POMARINE JAEGER- 2

PARASITIC JAEGER- 1

LONG-TAILED JAEGER- 3

Jaeger sp.- 1

HEERMANN'S GULL- 45

CALIFORNIA GULL- 110

WESTERN GULL- 80

WESTERN/GLAUCOUS-WINGED GULL- 1

ELEGANT TERN- 3

COMMON/ARCTIC TERN- 2

CASPIAN TERN- 2

COMMON MURRE- 90

PIGEON GUILLEMOT- 52

CASSIN'S AUKLET- 20

RHINOCEROS AUKLET- 15 

OSPREY- 13

CALIFORNIA SEA LION- 12

STELLER'S SEA LION- 1

HARBOR SEAL- 5

**GRAY WHALE- 1 juvenile about 22 feet long.

RISSO'S DOLPHIN- 8

HARBOR PORPOISE- 6

DALL'S PORPOISE- 3

Additionally, I would like to thank Michael Force, Sophie Webb and Steve Howell for publishing the article, "Identification At Sea of Hawaiian and Galapagos Petrels" in Western Birds, Volume 38, No. 3, 2007. This article along with its photographic images were very helpful on the August 8 pelagic trip. I had a copy of the article on board, as we were studying the Hawaiian Petrels that we saw that day. We hope to have photographic images from the August 8th trip on the Shearwater Journey's web site soon. 

Fwd: HAWAIIAN PETRELS IN NW CALIFORNIA & OREGON

Begin forwarded message:

From: DEBRA SHEARWATER <debiluv@earthlink.net>

Date: August 9, 2008 5:46:29 PM PDT

To: Debi Shearwater <debi@shearwaterjourneys.com>

Subject: HAWAIIAN PETRELS IN NW CALIFORNIA & OREGON

Hello, Seabirders,

Three sightings of HAWAIIAN PETRELS on Shearwater Journey's August 8, 2008 pelagic trip from Fort Bragg thrilled seabirders with repeated passes as close as 50 feet to the boat! Other highlights of this day included two XANTUS' MURRELETS, sitting on the water providing excellent views of this small alcid that rarely reaches northern California; a BLUE WHALE just outside of the harbor, over 90 BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSSES; great views of CASSIN'S AUKLETS; a grand slam on all three species of jaegers, POMARINE, PARASITIC, and LONG-TAILED JAEGERS; over 550 COMMON MURRES, many with chicks, 55 RHINOCEROS AUKLETS, and other assorted wildlife.

THE STORY:

Well, its been in the news— 8-8-08 was supposed to be a very lucky day! Indeed it was for the folks who journeyed on the Shearwater trip that day from Fort Bragg. Billed as a "Search for Mega-rarities," we departed Noyo Harbor at 7:10 am with many a seabird veteran, and a few folks who were making their very first pelagic trip, ever. I announced in the morning that the recent, strange southernly storms may have created what I dub, The Great Southerly Push"— a movement of warm water from southern California, in finger-like streams to central (Monterey and environs) and sometimes, northern California (Fort Bragg), and even into Oregon. The marine forecast was for great sea conditions, and practically no wind from the north, any north! This presented a rare opportunity for us to travel south with no fears of being "creamed" on our return trip to the harbor by the prevailing northwest winds! Yippee! However, the very lack of wind, meant, in my opinion, that we had little chance of encountering any Pterodromas. And, so I announced that folks should not plan on any Hawaiian Petrels on this day!  Maybe, better luck on our Sunday trip. But, perhaps, we could find some murrelets. I gave instructions for the proper calling of murrelets, meaning, "murrelets on the water," or "murrelets flying."

As we headed out of the harbor to a well known past fishing haunt, Casper Heights, Al De Martini bellowed out, "BLUE WHALE!" Turning the boat around, we followed this giant leviathan for several minutes. It seemed to be traveling and not feeding. Trouble is, it was traveling in the wrong direction for us. So, we resumed our track to the Caspers. The Caspers are three high knolls or pinnacles which attract fish. Leader Clay Kempf, dubbed them the "Casper Heights." It was immediately apparent when were within shouting distance of the "heights" as the shearwater numbers increased dramatically. The sea surface temperature was a very chilly 51.3F. I held out little hope for murrelets in such cold water. I was to be proved wrong, and it would not be the last time I would be proved wrong on this day! The holler came from the stern of the boat, " XANTUS MURRELET ON THE WATER!" Sure enough, at N39.07.25/W124.03.76 in 51.6F water, a sweet little Xantus was on the water for all to see. 

Conditions were so great, that I decided to take a hunch and head to a "Life" canyon for me—Navarro Canyon off of Point Arena. This area of ocean has practically never been explored by any seabirders. On one past trip from Fort Bragg, I headed south, but I do not think that I reached this canyon. On the famous trip from Bodega Bay to Fort Bragg, overnighting in Fort Bragg, and returning to Bodega Bay (a once-only trip), we found the first North American record of an ADULT WHITE-CAPPED ALBATROSS! But, we did not make it to Navarro Canyon on that trip because the weather was so bad that we could not get more than 8 miles offshore. So, this would be the first birding trip, ever to reach Navarro Canyon!!

Looking at the chart in the wheelhouse with our skipper, we descended down a steep canyon wall some 22 miles offshore. This pleasant day gave way to one seabird after another, with jaegers flying in to check out the masses of BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSSES following our boat. When we reached the Point Arena weather buoy, a large structure, a BROWN-HEADED COWBIRD flew off the buoy and to our boat! I began to ponder where the heck to lay out a menhaden oil slick, and I kept thinking, "a little further, a little more down the canyon slopes." On deck, leader Lisa Hug and I were casually discussing this. I told Lisa of my plan to head downhill to deeper water. She asked if that would be good for anything-- any good seabirds, and I replied, well, it might if we wanted to see a pterodroma! Just about at that very moment, a tubenose flew within 50 feet of us, and whoaaa! It was the first HAWAIIAN PETREL OF THE DAY!! Running up to the bow, we locked our bins onto the bird, and followed it for 5 minutes before we could no longer see it. Immediately, I stopped the boat, and dumped out the oil. The petrel never returned. We were at: N39.06.05/W123.08.71, with a sea surface temperature of 54F. This petrel was in view from 11:06 until 11:11 am, by my watch. We estimate that we were 22 miles north off Point Arena lighthouse. Not only had we hit some great underwater topography, but also a good sea surface temperature break. In all the pandemonium, it is a miracle that no one stepped on the cowbird who was constantly underfoot, picking up crumbs of popcorn and such!

After all of that drama, and a great many "high fives" and broad smiles all around, we continued on our way. Ted and Chris Koundakjian logged a life bird that they have been searching for on many boat trips for the past several years. Ted estimated that this was his 161st pelagic trip with Shearwater Journeys! It didn't matter what we saw after this mega-rarity!! Well, ever the persistent one, I did tell stories of a few rare pelagic trips where we recorded TWO mega-rarities in one day. At 12:47 pm, the call went out again—HAWAIIAN PETREL!! This one seemed to fly thru the wake, and up the side of the boat. We were at N39.11.69/W124.11.36, some 5 miles from the previous sighting. Sea surface temperature was now a whopping 55.9F. This individual also flew within 50 feet of the boat. I dumped oil immediately, but it did not return. Whew! 

The third sighting of HAWAIIAN PETREL came at 2:04 pm, some 12 miles from the second sighting at N39.18.77/W124.04.53, about 12 miles off Mendocino. Sea surface temperature was 55.8F and the depth was 2066 feet. This time, the petrel flew off rather quickly, making photography impossible. However, some of the passengers on board were able to obtain images of petrel #1 and petrel #2. We hope that these images might help us to learn whether we are dealing with one individual petrel, or two, or three. It seems extremely unlikely that we could be so lucky as to run into the same individual petrel three times in one day, over the course of our long travels. 

Coming home, we encountered another XANTUS' MURRELET, on the water, sitting next to a CASSIN'S AUKLET. This was a great comparison. The Xantus was at N39.20.37/W123.58.95. Sea surface temperature was down to 53.6F. We were impressed with the numbers of Cassin's Auklets on this trip. It is no coincidence that Cassin's Auklets and a Blue Whale were both recorded on this day, as both are krill feeders. 

Exploring Navarro Canyon was a great idea. Heading south was a great idea (although, bear in mind that all of the previous records of Hawaiian Petrels from Fort Bragg have been on trips that headed north). The Great Southerly Push seems to have materialized, in that we had 'fingers" or "streams" of warm water currents. Whether these currents and the the fact that we were over a steep, deep canyon attracted the Hawaiian Petrels, remains to be determined. Certainly, Fort Bragg pelagic trips offer one of the best opportunities to find Hawaiian Petrels anywhere on the California coast. I've also seen Hawaiian Petrels as many times on Bodega Bay trips that visit Bodega Canyon. Navarro Canyon needs much more exploration, and I fully intend to do this!

We doodled along the kelp beds on our return to the harbor, hoping for one of the small, rare alcids, but found none. We had nice views of many HARBOR PORPOISES and PIGEON GUILLEMOTS. Nevertheless, all on board were thrilled with this wonderful day of seabirding on a "mega-rarity search" trip, that actually found a mega!! 

My friend, Sophie Webb, who is working on the ORCAWALE (see previous blog report at www.shearwaterjourneys.com) research cruise, reported a HAWAIIAN PETREL on August 7 and another sighting of HAWAIIAN PETREL on August 8, both off of OREGON. We are unsure if records of Hawaiian Petrel exist for Oregon. Sophie also reported seeing BLUE and  SEI WHALES. 

We thank all of the seabirders who joined us on the August 8, 2008 pelagic trip from Fort Bragg. Shearwater Journey's leaders for this day were: Lisa Hug, Clay Kempf, Al De Martini, and Debra Shearwater.

It is possible to join us on the August 10 Fort Bragg pelagic trip, if you live relatively close to town. We meet at 6:30 am in Noyo Harbor for a 7 am departure on the Trek II. We also have spaces available on the August 12 Bodega Bay pelagic trip. We meet at 6:30 am in Port O' Bodega for a 7 am departure on the New Sea Angler. You might try emailing me, if you are interested in either of these trips.

The complete species list for our fantastic trip is below:

AUGUST 8, 2008 FORT BRAGG PELAGIC TRIP MEGA-RARITIES:

BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS- 94

NORTHERN FULMAR- 25

**HAWAIIAN PETREL- 1 to 3

PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER-68

SOOTY SHEARWATER- 350

BROWN PELICAN- 48

BRANDT'S CORMORANT- 100+

PELAGIC CORMORANT- 6

SURF SCOTER- 1

BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER- 16

BLACK OYSTERCATCHER- 1

WANDERING TATTLER- 1

WHIMBREL- 2

MARBLED GODWIT- 1

BLACK TURNSTONE- 1

SANDERLING- 1

RED-NECKED PHALAROPE- 85

POMARINE JAEGER- 2

POMARINE/PARASITIC JAEGER- 1

PARASITIC JAEGER- 3

LONG-TAILED JAEGER- 7

Jaeger sp.- 2

HEERMANN'S GULL- 40

WESTERN GULL- 150

WESTERN/GLAUCOUS-WINGED GULL- 1

SABINE'S GULL- 2

ELEGANT TERN- 3

CASPIAN TERN- 1

COMMON MURRE- 550

PIGEON GUILLEMOT- 35

XANTUS' MURRELET- 2

XANTUS/CRAVERI'S MURRELET-3, get-away birds

CASSIN'S AUKLET- 150

RHINOCEROS AUKLET- 55

BROWN-HEADED COWBIRD-1, HY

CALIFORNIA SEA LION- 12

STELLER'S SEA LION- 1

NORTHERN FUR SEAL- 3

NORTHERN ELEPHANT SEAL- 1

HARBOR SEAL- 2

BLUE WHALE- 1

RISSO'S DOLPHIN- 12

HARBOR PORPOISE- 28

DALL'S PORPOISE- 32

SALMON SHARK- 1

OSPREY- 15

Today, was a lovely day on shore in the Fort Bragg and Mendocino area. The weather is perfect! Tomorrow morning when we meet for the next pelagic trip, I'm sure we shall discover where folks went birding today and what was found. This is a great area for birding! I only managed a couple short hours of birding with my friends, Les & Cindy Lieurance. It seems like it was a great day for migrating Orange-crowned Warblers. The highlight of the day for me, though, was a family of five RIVER OTTERS that Les spotted at 10 mile bridge, just north of Fort Bragg. It was delightful to see them swimming across the river, and eating, and going up the river bank.

See you tomorrow morning for more adventures at sea,

Debra

Shearwater Journeys, Inc.

PO Box 190

Hollister, CA 95024

831/637-8527

www.shearwaterjourneys.com

debi@shearwaterjourneys.com

HAWAIIAN PETRELS IN NW CALIFORNIA & OREGON

Hello, Seabirders,

Three sightings of HAWAIIAN PETRELS on Shearwater Journey's August 8, 2008 pelagic trip from Fort Bragg thrilled seabirders with repeated passes as close as 50 feet to the boat! Other highlights of this day included two XANTUS' MURRELETS, sitting on the water providing excellent views of this small alcid that rarely reaches northern California; a BLUE WHALE just outside of the harbor, over 90 BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSSES; great views of CASSIN'S AUKLETS; a grand slam on all three species of jaegers, POMARINE, PARASITIC, and LONG-TAILED JAEGERS; over 550 COMMON MURRES, many with chicks, 55 RHINOCEROS AUKLETS, and other assorted wildlife.

THE STORY:

Well, its been in the news— 8-8-08 was supposed to be a very lucky day! Indeed it was for the folks who journeyed on the Shearwater trip that day from Fort Bragg. Billed as a "Search for Mega-rarities," we departed Noyo Harbor at 7:10 am with many a seabird veteran, and a few folks who were making their very first pelagic trip, ever. I announced in the morning that the recent, strange southernly storms may have created what I dub, The Great Southerly Push"— a movement of warm water from southern California, in finger-like streams to central (Monterey and environs) and sometimes, northern California (Fort Bragg), and even into Oregon. The marine forecast was for great sea conditions, and practically no wind from the north, any north! This presented a rare opportunity for us to travel south with no fears of being "creamed" on our return trip to the harbor by the prevailing northwest winds! Yippee! However, the very lack of wind, meant, in my opinion, that we had little chance of encountering any Pterodromas. And, so I announced that folks should not plan on any Hawaiian Petrels on this day!  Maybe, better luck on our Sunday trip. But, perhaps, we could find some murrelets. I gave instructions for the proper calling of murrelets, meaning, "murrelets on the water," or "murrelets flying."

As we headed out of the harbor to a well known past fishing haunt, Casper Heights, Al De Martini bellowed out, "BLUE WHALE!" Turning the boat around, we followed this giant leviathan for several minutes. It seemed to be traveling and not feeding. Trouble is, it was traveling in the wrong direction for us. So, we resumed our track to the Caspers. The Caspers are three high knolls or pinnacles which attract fish. Leader Clay Kempf, dubbed them the "Casper Heights." It was immediately apparent when were within shouting distance of the "heights" as the shearwater numbers increased dramatically. The sea surface temperature was a very chilly 51.3F. I held out little hope for murrelets in such cold water. I was to be proved wrong, and it would not be the last time I would be proved wrong on this day! The holler came from the stern of the boat, " XANTUS MURRELET ON THE WATER!" Sure enough, at N39.07.25/W124.03.76 in 51.6F water, a sweet little Xantus was on the water for all to see. 

Conditions were so great, that I decided to take a hunch and head to a "Life" canyon for me—Navarro Canyon off of Point Arena. This area of ocean has practically never been explored by any seabirders. On one past trip from Fort Bragg, I headed south, but I do not think that I reached this canyon. On the famous trip from Bodega Bay to Fort Bragg, overnighting in Fort Bragg, and returning to Bodega Bay (a once-only trip), we found the first North American record of an ADULT WHITE-CAPPED ALBATROSS! But, we did not make it to Navarro Canyon on that trip because the weather was so bad that we could not get more than 8 miles offshore. So, this would be the first birding trip, ever to reach Navarro Canyon!!

Looking at the chart in the wheelhouse with our skipper, we descended down a steep canyon wall some 22 miles offshore. This pleasant day gave way to one seabird after another, with jaegers flying in to check out the masses of BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSSES following our boat. When we reached the Point Arena weather buoy, a large structure, a BROWN-HEADED COWBIRD flew off the buoy and to our boat! I began to ponder where the heck to lay out a menhaden oil slick, and I kept thinking, "a little further, a little more down the canyon slopes." On deck, leader Lisa Hug and I were casually discussing this. I told Lisa of my plan to head downhill to deeper water. She asked if that would be good for anything-- any good seabirds, and I replied, well, it might if we wanted to see a pterodroma! Just about at that very moment, a tubenose flew within 50 feet of us, and whoaaa! It was the first HAWAIIAN PETREL OF THE DAY!! Running up to the bow, we locked our bins onto the bird, and followed it for 5 minutes before we could no longer see it. Immediately, I stopped the boat, and dumped out the oil. The petrel never returned. We were at: N39.06.05/W123.08.71, with a sea surface temperature of 54F. This petrel was in view from 11:06 until 11:11 am, by my watch. We estimate that we were 22 miles north off Point Arena lighthouse. Not only had we hit some great underwater topography, but also a good sea surface temperature break. In all the pandemonium, it is a miracle that no one stepped on the cowbird who was constantly underfoot, picking up crumbs of popcorn and such!

After all of that drama, and a great many "high fives" and broad smiles all around, we continued on our way. Ted and Chris Koundakjian logged a life bird that they have been searching for on many boat trips for the past several years. Ted estimated that this was his 161st pelagic trip with Shearwater Journeys! It didn't matter what we saw after this mega-rarity!! Well, ever the persistent one, I did tell stories of a few rare pelagic trips where we recorded TWO mega-rarities in one day. At 12:47 pm, the call went out again—HAWAIIAN PETREL!! This one seemed to fly thru the wake, and up the side of the boat. We were at N39.11.69/W124.11.36, some 5 miles from the previous sighting. Sea surface temperature was now a whopping 55.9F. This individual also flew within 50 feet of the boat. I dumped oil immediately, but it did not return. Whew! 

The third sighting of HAWAIIAN PETREL came at 2:04 pm, some 12 miles from the second sighting at N39.18.77/W124.04.53, about 12 miles off Mendocino. Sea surface temperature was 55.8F and the depth was 2066 feet. This time, the petrel flew off rather quickly, making photography impossible. However, some of the passengers on board were able to obtain images of petrel #1 and petrel #2. We hope that these images might help us to learn whether we are dealing with one individual petrel, or two, or three. It seems extremely unlikely that we could be so lucky as to run into the same individual petrel three times in one day, over the course of our long travels. 

Coming home, we encountered another XANTUS' MURRELET, on the water, sitting next to a CASSIN'S AUKLET. This was a great comparison. The Xantus was at N39.20.37/W123.58.95. Sea surface temperature was down to 53.6F. We were impressed with the numbers of Cassin's Auklets on this trip. It is no coincidence that Cassin's Auklets and a Blue Whale were both recorded on this day, as both are krill feeders. 

Exploring Navarro Canyon was a great idea. Heading south was a great idea (although, bear in mind that all of the previous records of Hawaiian Petrels from Fort Bragg have been on trips that headed north). The Great Southerly Push seems to have materialized, in that we had 'fingers" or "streams" of warm water currents. Whether these currents and the the fact that we were over a steep, deep canyon attracted the Hawaiian Petrels, remains to be determined. Certainly, Fort Bragg pelagic trips offer one of the best opportunities to find Hawaiian Petrels anywhere on the California coast. I've also seen Hawaiian Petrels as many times on Bodega Bay trips that visit Bodega Canyon. Navarro Canyon needs much more exploration, and I fully intend to do this!

We doodled along the kelp beds on our return to the harbor, hoping for one of the small, rare alcids, but found none. We had nice views of many HARBOR PORPOISES and PIGEON GUILLEMOTS. Nevertheless, all on board were thrilled with this wonderful day of seabirding on a "mega-rarity search" trip, that actually found a mega!! 

My friend, Sophie Webb, who is working on the ORCAWALE (see previous blog report at www.shearwaterjourneys.com) research cruise, reported a HAWAIIAN PETREL on August 7 and another sighting of HAWAIIAN PETREL on August 8, both off of OREGON. We are unsure if records of Hawaiian Petrel exist for Oregon. Sophie also reported seeing BLUE and  SEI WHALES. 

We thank all of the seabirders who joined us on the August 8, 2008 pelagic trip from Fort Bragg. Shearwater Journey's leaders for this day were: Lisa Hug, Clay Kempf, Al De Martini, and Debra Shearwater.

It is possible to join us on the August 10 Fort Bragg pelagic trip, if you live relatively close to town. We meet at 6:30 am in Noyo Harbor for a 7 am departure on the Trek II. We also have spaces available on the August 12 Bodega Bay pelagic trip. We meet at 6:30 am in Port O' Bodega for a 7 am departure on the New Sea Angler. You might try emailing me, if you are interested in either of these trips.

The complete species list for our fantastic trip is below:

AUGUST 8, 2008 FORT BRAGG PELAGIC TRIP MEGA-RARITIES:

BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS- 94

NORTHERN FULMAR- 25

**HAWAIIAN PETREL- 1 to 3

PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER-68

SOOTY SHEARWATER- 350

BROWN PELICAN- 48

BRANDT'S CORMORANT- 100+

PELAGIC CORMORANT- 6

SURF SCOTER- 1

BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER- 16

BLACK OYSTERCATCHER- 1

WANDERING TATTLER- 1

WHIMBREL- 2

MARBLED GODWIT- 1

BLACK TURNSTONE- 1

SANDERLING- 1

RED-NECKED PHALAROPE- 85

POMARINE JAEGER- 2

POMARINE/PARASITIC JAEGER- 1

PARASITIC JAEGER- 3

LONG-TAILED JAEGER- 7

Jaeger sp.- 2

HEERMANN'S GULL- 40

WESTERN GULL- 150

WESTERN/GLAUCOUS-WINGED GULL- 1

SABINE'S GULL- 2

ELEGANT TERN- 3

CASPIAN TERN- 1

COMMON MURRE- 550

PIGEON GUILLEMOT- 35

XANTUS' MURRELET- 2

XANTUS/CRAVERI'S MURRELET-3, get-away birds

CASSIN'S AUKLET- 150

RHINOCEROS AUKLET- 55

BROWN-HEADED COWBIRD-1, HY

CALIFORNIA SEA LION- 12

STELLER'S SEA LION- 1

NORTHERN FUR SEAL- 3

NORTHERN ELEPHANT SEAL- 1

HARBOR SEAL- 2

BLUE WHALE- 1

RISSO'S DOLPHIN- 12

HARBOR PORPOISE- 28

DALL'S PORPOISE- 32

SALMON SHARK- 1

OSPREY- 15

Today, was a lovely day on shore in the Fort Bragg and Mendocino area. The weather is perfect! Tomorrow morning when we meet for the next pelagic trip, I'm sure we shall discover where folks went birding today and what was found. This is a great area for birding! I only managed a couple short hours of birding with my friends, Les & Cindy Lieurance. It seems like it was a great day for migrating Orange-crowned Warblers. The highlight of the day for me, though, was a family of five RIVER OTTERS that Les spotted at 10 mile bridge, just north of Fort Bragg. It was delightful to see them swimming across the river, and eating, and going up the river bank.

See you tomorrow morning for more adventures at sea,

Debra

Shearwater Journeys, Inc.

PO Box 190

Hollister, CA 95024

831/637-8527

www.shearwaterjourneys.com

debi@shearwaterjourneys.com

Sad Condor News

Folks,

Here's the sad news about the condors and the Big Sur fires:

Two condors, a six year old and a three year old, are now presumed dead and haven't been seen since the fire.  We had picked up radio signals for one of these birds after the fire but now believe these were not actually from the radio transmitter on the bird and likely from some interference on the same channel.  We are at least fortunate that all biologists and captive condors were safely evacuated before the fire burned the sanctuary.  It is also extraordinary that the wild chicks and their parents have done so well.  For more details, go to http://ent.groundspring.org/EmailNow/pub.php?module=URLTracker&cmd=track&j=225620481&u=2363656

I want to thank all of you who have made a donation to the Condor Emergency Fund already.  Together, we will rebuild the Condor Sanctuary so that we can restore the California Condor to the wild and enable this wonderful species to be removed from the endangered species list.

Please help us tell the story by sharing this email with others or post to web and blog sites and encourage them to sign up for our email alerts and if they want to help they can make a donation also.  Signing up for the email alert is free as you know and can be done at http://ent.groundspring.org/EmailNow/pub.php?module=URLTracker&cmd=track&j=225620481&u=2363657#vwsalert  It is a great way to get involved and hear directly from our biologists who are in turn directly working in the field.  In the months ahead we will continue to tell the story as we rebuild the Condor Sanctuary.

Debra

Debra Shearwater

Shearwater Journeys, Inc.

PO Box 190

Hollister, CA 95024

831.637.8527

debi@shearwaterjourneys.com

www.shearwaterjourneys.com

*Antarctica, South Georgia, & The Falkland Islands, January 5-24, 2010* 

Shearwater Journeys' Exclusive Charter

ORCAWALE LOG

Hello, Seabirders,

Here is a link to the offshore report of the ORCAWALE logbook from the research vessel, McArthur II. This four month long cruise is researching the abundance of marine mammals. ORCAWALE is ORegon, CAlifornia and WAshington Line-transect and Ecosysem Survey. A seabird report by Sophie Webb and Michael Force is included along with some nice photographs. Their seabird sightings match the Shearwater Journeys' August 1 sightings remarkably well! 

Here's the link:

http://swfsc.noaa.gov/textblock.aspx?Division=PRD&ParentMenuId=562&id=13024#

Shearwaters forever,

Debra

Debra Shearwater

Shearwater Journeys, Inc.

PO Box 190

Hollister, CA 95024

831.637.8527

debi@shearwaterjourneys.com

www.shearwaterjourneys.com

*Antarctica, South Georgia, & The Falkland Islands, January 5-24, 2010* 

Shearwater Journeys' Exclusive Charter

AUGUST 1, 2008 BODEGA BAY PELAGIC TRIP REPORT

Hello, Seabirders,

Fall seabird migration marches forward! On our August 1 pelagic trip from Bodega Bay to Bodega Canyon and Cordell Bank, we recorded the first SOUTH POLAR SKUA of the fall season, along with FLOCKS of JAEGERS— all three species— LONG-TAILED, PARASITIC, and POMARINE! It was a grand slam on the jaeger family. The jaegers put on a good show, circling and circling around the boat as we sat on a menhaden oil chum slick for one and a half hours. Photographers were delighted. Additionally, STORM-PETRELS were a major highlight of this trip, with large numbers of FORK-TAILED STORM-PETRELS, ASHY STORM-PETRELS and one WILSON'S STORM-PETREL! 

We departed the harbor at very low tide, with the mudflats very exposed. Several hundred SURFBIRDS and many other shorebirds and WHITE PELICANS were on the flats. Just outside of the harbor, PIGEON GUILLEMOTS and many father/chick pairs of COMMON MURRES were found. For the most part, we did not see very many seabirds until we approached the canyon. There, we encountered BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSSES, NORTHERN FULMARS, SOOTY and PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATERS, and the flocks of jaegers. The chum slick worked very well, continuing to attract seabirds for the entire time, while we sat there photographing them or eating lunch. Plagued by light fog, off and on throughout the day, it miraculously lifted as soon as the chum slick went out. On the far side of the Cordell Bank, we encountered the flocks of storm-petrels. Back in the fog, the storm-petrels were more difficult to approach, but many of the Fork-tails flew straight at the boat! Owing to the tough weather conditions, we did not find much in the way of cetaceans. A few DALL'S PORPOISES showed up, but would not bow ride, and one distant HUMPBACK WHALE was seen by its blow. The seas were confused and mixed, but everyone on board did very well, with no seasick casualties. The sea surface temperature was a chilly 52F. We were surprised to find a RED-NECKED GREBE on our return to the harbor.

We thank all of the participants who came for this trip. The leaders were: Lisa Hug, Jennifer Green, Steve Howell, Alan Hopkins, Matt Brady, Ryan Terrill, Don Doolittle, and Debra Shearwater.

Our next trips with spaces available are as follows:

AUG 8 FORT BRAGG with Lisa Hug, Clay Kempf, Al de Martini, & Debra Shearwater leading.

AUG 10 FORT BRAGG with Lisa Hug, Clay Kempf, Scott Terrill, Linda Terrill, Don Doolittle, Al de Martini, & Debra Shearwater leading.

AUG 12 BODEGA BAY with Gerry McChesney, Lisa Hug, John Sterling, Alan Hopkins, Steve Howell, & Debra Shearwater leading.

RESERVATIONS FOR THE ABOVE TRIPS must be made with Debra Shearwater by 10 pm on August 6th. For last minute information, email Debra Shearwater: debi@shearwaterjourneys.com.

Spaces are still available on the following MONTEREY PELAGIC TRIPS:

AUG 15 with Linda Terrill, Clay Kempf, & Jennifer Green leading.

AUG 22 with Clay Kempf, John Sterling, Brian Sullivan, Jennifer Green & Debra Shearwater leading.

AUG 29 with Linda Terrill, Clay Kempf, & Jennifer Green leading.

SEP 7 with Scott Terrill, Linda Terrill, Clay Kempf, Jennifer Green, & Debra Shearwater leading. ONLY 2 SPACES OPEN. 

All other trips on the schedule are open. Please note the following change: September 19 Bodega Bay has been canceled. 

THE COMPLETE SPECIES LIST FOR AUGUST 1, 2008 BODEGA CANYON & CORDELL BANK FOLLOWS:

RED-THROATED LOON-1

COMMON LOON-2

RED-NECKED GREBE-1

WESTERN GREBE-15

BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS-23

NORTHERN FULMAR-22

PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER-40

SOOTY SHEARWATER-65

WILSON'S STORM-PETREL-1

FORK-TAILED STORM-PETREL-250 to 280

ASHY STORM-PETREL-150

BROWN PELICAN-+

BRANDT'S CORMORANT-+

PELAGIC CORMORANT-2

SURF SCOTER-8

BLACK OYSTERCATCHER-2

BLACK TURNSTONE-5

SURFBIRD-100's in the harbor

RED KNOT-1 in the harbor

RED-NECKED PHALAROPE-37

SOUTH POLAR SKUA-1

POMARINE JAEGER-6

PARASITIC JAEGER-5

LONG-TAILED JAEGER-26

JAEGER sp.-3

HEERMANN'S GULL-10

CALIFORNIA GULL-20

WESTERN GULL-100

WESTERN/GLAUCOUS-WINGED GULL-1

SABINE'S GULL-12

ELEGANT TERN-2, many in the harbor

CASPIAN TER- in the harbor

COMMON MURRE-70

PIGEON GUILLEMOT-14

CASSIN'S AUKLET-5

RHINOCEROS AUKLET-2

CALIFORNIA SEA LION-+

HARBOR SEAL-+

HUMPBACK WHALE-1

DALL'S PORPOISE-5

Shearwaters forever,

Debra

Debra Shearwater

Shearwater Journeys, Inc.

PO Box 190

Hollister, CA 95024

831.637.8527

debi@shearwaterjourneys.com

www.shearwaterjourneys.com

*Antarctica, South Georgia, & The Falkland Islands, January 5-24, 2010* 

Shearwater Journeys' Exclusive Charter