TRIP REPORT: SEP 27, 2009: MONTEREY BAY

Whoaaa, Cowboys & Cowgirls,

Monterey seabirds and marine mammals put on quite the show on the Shearwater Journeys' September 27th pelagic trip run in conjunction with the Monterey Bay Birding Festival. The day began auspiciously with Alvaro Jaramillo spotting a high-flying female WOOD DUCK, while we were still at the dock. This was quickly followed by the PEREGRINE FALCON who was eating breakfast on the radio tower along Cannery Row. Next up, were two BOTTLENOSE DOLPHINS, spotted by leader, Jennifer Green. On top of that, the sun was out and the seas were glassy-calm! We had not seen much sun for the past 3 days, being enshrouded in fog. I guess this should have been our clue that we were in for a great day. Yup, next up, BLACK-VENTED SHEARWATERS. These coastal shearwaters have not made much of an appearance in Monterey Bay for several years. It was nice to see our southern friends, again. Hold on! Abe Borker yells, "What's this bird?" I fix my bins on a fast-flying black and white MANX SHEARWATER! Abe is the newest leader to join the Shearwater Journeys' crew. His enthusiasm is very contagious! Approaching several fishing vessels, we found good numbers of BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSSES. A few stops for COMMON MURRES and RHINOCEROS AUKLETS were made. Some scattered ASHY STORM-PETRELS were passing by. Then, Terry Hunefeld of Southern California Seabirding, asks me, "Do you have orcas here?" Do we ever! Thanks to Terry for spotting the ORCAS (KILLER WHALES) which led us to observe one of the most amazing events I have ever witnessed.

From the get-go, the orcas were tail-lobbing and splashing quite a bit, thrashing all around. A single XANTUS' MURRELET flew off in between the orcas. Finally, as they approached our vessel, we were able to see that they appeared to be trying to kill an OCEAN SUNFISH, (Mola mola)! I've seen an adult male orca kill a Blue Shark, but never a Sunfish. The spyhopping, breaching and tail lobbing continued. Once, they went after a COMMON MURRE! (I've seen them kill a Rhinoceros Auklet). We were enjoying this show in beautiful, sunny weather, with calm seas! Then suddenly, some HUMPBACK WHALES appeared at our 10 o'clock. The orcas were at the 2 o'clock. Unbelievably, the three humpback whales made their way, keeping their ranks extremely close to each other, toward the orcas! It was hard to believe what we were seeing. I have seen orcas killing and chasing large baleen whales. But, this was the other way around! The humpbacks were chasing and bearing down on the killer whales! It was as if the humpbacks were acting like passerines that mob an owl. They seemed quite intent on their pursuit of the killer whales and came incredibly close to them. At least one of the humpbacks was making a racket with its blowing. We watched all of this with great interest. Many cameras were firing away! Our captain had radioed the other vessels. Alas, as they approached, the entire scene was engulfed in fog. We departed, leaving four vessels chasing the whale, or each other, in the fog. Thank you, Terry! Yes, indeedy, we do have orcas!

Heading out along the canyon edges, we searched for rafts of storm-petrels. Finding several small flocks, we finally found a raft of about 4,000 ASHY STORM-PETRELS. Two WILSON'S STORM-PETRELS were among these. One of the Wilson's was lured to our oil slick for a close view. One BLACK STORM-PETREL was also spotted. It is quite possible that the variety of storm-petrels will increase over the next few weeks.

We visited both Monterey and Santa Cruz Counties. Jennifer Green kept detailed notes for both counties, as well as GPSing our spots. Many thanks to Jennifer. We thank the Monterey Bay Birding Festival folks who joined us, as well as the many folks who journeyed from far away. Shearwater Journeys' leaders on this trip were: Alvaro Jaramillo, Denise Wight, Abe Borker, Jennifer Green, and Debi Shearwater. Many thanks to Terry Hunefeld for his gracious help.

The complete species list follows for SEPTEMBER 27, 2009
Monterey/Santa Cruz

RED-THROATED LOON-1/0
PACIFIC LOON- 2/0
EARED GREBE- 1/0
WESTERN GREBE- 3/0
BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS- 28/32
NORTHERN FULMAR- 1/1
PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER- 85/60
BULLER'S SHEARWATER- 3/4
SOOTY SHEARWATER- 190/32
MANX SHEARWATER- 1/0
BLACK-VENTED SHEARWATER- 10/0
WILSON'S STORM-PETREL- 1/1
ASHY STORM-PETREL- 4000 on the county lines
BROWN PELICAN- +
BRANDT'S CORMORANT- +
PELAGIC CORMORANT- 12/0
SURF SCOTER- 6/0
WOOD DUCK- 1/0
BLACK TURNSTONE- 12/0
SURFBIRD- 1/0
RED-NECKED PHALAROPE- 133/9
RED PHALAROPE- 9/0
SOUTH POLAR SKUA- 1/0
POMARINE JAEGER- 4/0
PARASITIC JAEGER- 1/0
HEERMANN'S GULL- +
CALIFORNIA GULL- +
WESTERN GULL- +
SABINE'S GULL- 7/0
ELEGANT TERN- 62/0
COMMON TERN- 2/0
FORSTER'S TERN- 14/0
COMMON MURRE- 330/82
XANTUS' MURRELET-1/0
XANTUS/CRAVERI'S- 2/0
CASSIN'S AUKLET- 0/24
RHINOCEROS AUKLET- 140/235
TUFTED PUFFIN- 0/1
GREAT EGRET- 3/0
PEREGRINE FALCON-1/0
SEA OTTER- +
CALIFORNIA SEA LION- +
HARBOR SEAL- +
HUMPBACK WHALE- 5
KILLER WHALE- 5 or 6, no adult males observed
BOTTLENOSE DOLPHIN- 2
DALL'S PORPOISE- 4
OCEAN SUNFISH- 4
BLUE SHARK- 2

I invite you to visit the following web sites:
Abe Borker's stunning images
Denise Wight's web site
Alvaro Jaramillo on the Field Guides web site
Southern California Birding
Monterey Bay Birding Festival

Happy trails to you until we meet again,
Debi Shearwater
Shearwater Journeys, Inc.

TRIP REPORT: SEP 12, 2009: MONTEREY: OFFSHORE ALBACORE GROUNDS

Howdy, Seabirders,

Monterey seabirds delighted and thrilled us on Shearwater Journeys' offshore pelagic trip on September 12th. Highlights included one HAWAIIAN PETREL and 24 COOK'S PETRELS, a single LEACH'S STORM-PETREL, and a STEJNEGER'S BEAKED WHALE which circled our vessel, repeatedly popping up within inches of the boat! We were treated to great views of three FIN WHALES, while the LONG-TAILED JAEGER show continued along with good numbers of POMARINE JAEGERS. As of this date, every one of our trips has had a grand slam on all of the jaeger species, including SOUTH POLAR SKUA. SABINE'S GULLS were found in good numbers. The Hawaiian Petrel was the first pterodroma of the day! We tried to chase it, but could not. So, I stopped the boat to have Wes lay out a slick. At 9:30 am, I spotted the first Cook's Petrels of the day over the slick. In contrast to other trips, nearly every single Cook's Petrel made a close pass at the boat, allowing photographers to get some excellent images! The weather was perfect, as were the seas. We could not have asked for more. A PEREGRINE FALCON was on the radio tower along Cannery Row at the day's end.

Scott Terrill's image of one of the Cook's Petrels on the Albacore trip. Copyright, Scott Terrill, 2009.

Many thanks to the participants who hailed from 14 states, Canada, Germany, England and The Netherlands. Leading this offshore trip were: Scott Terrill, Linda Terrill, Abe Borker, Wes Fritz, and Debi Shearwater.

The complete species list follows. All records are for Monterey County.

12 SEPTEMBER 2009 MONTEREY BAY OFFSHORE TO THE ALBACORE GROUNDS

BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS- 19
NORTHERN FULMAR- 48
HAWAIIAN PETREL- 1
COOK'S PETREL- 24
PTERODROMA SP. (large)- 1
PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER- 72
BULLER'S SHEARWATER- 5
SOOTY SHEARWATER- 385
LEACH'S STORM-PETREL- 1
ASHY STORM-PETREL- 110
BROWN PELICAN- 6
BRANDT'S CORMORANT- 250
SURF SCOTER- 2
RED-NECKED PHALAROPE- 300
RED PHALAROPE- 17
SOUTH POLAR SKUA- 5
POMARINE JAEGER- 27
POMARINE/PARASITIC- 2
PARASITIC JAEGER- 12
PARASITIC/LONG-TAILED JAEGER- 2
LONG-TAILED JAEGER- 93
HEERMANN'S GULL- 90
CALIFORNIA GULL- 125
WESTERN GULL- 200
SABINE'S GULL- 69
ELEGANT TERN- 18
ARCTIC TERN- 4
FORSTER'S TERN- 2
COMMON MURRE- 18
CASSIN'S AUKLET- 42
RHINOCEROS AUKLET- 59
PEREGRINE FALCON- 1, along Cannery Row
SEA OTTER- 8
CALIFORNIA SEA LION- 15
NORTHERN FUR SEAL- 4
HARBOR SEAL- 1
FIN WHALE- 3
HUMPBACK WHALE- 5
STEJNEGER'S BEAKED WHALE- 1
NORTHERN RIGHT WHALE DOLPHIN- 8
DALL'S PORPOISE- 25
BLUE SHARK- 1

Our last offshore trip from Monterey to the albacore grounds is October 10th. Spaces are still available.

Pterodromas forever,
Debi

TRIP REPORT: SEP 20, 2009: BODEGA BAY

Howdy, Seabirders,

This is a trip report for Shearwater Journeys' pelagic trip departing from Bodega Bay on September 20, 2009. A huge sea surface temperature break, ranging from the low 50s to 61 F beyond the 1500 fathom curve, was found. We reached 61F offshore at 1300 fathoms, our target spot, where we put out a large chum slick. The LONG-TAILED JAEGER show continued, but the much hoped for Pterodromas did not show up. We returned to our mini-slick at the north end of Cordell Bank, but the much hoped for Short-tailed (Steller's) Albatross did not show up. For a significant portion of the day, fog hampered our visibility. Like a veil, the fog lifted as we neared the 100 fathom line. It was here that we found five BLUE WHALES lunge feeding at the surface on krill. It was a spectacular, sublime ending to the day, watching the blues feeding in the brilliant sunshine. Little butterball CASSIN'S AUKLETS were so stuffed with krill that they could not lift off the water to fly away!


Image by Mark Rauzon, copyright, 2009.


Many thanks to all of our passengers who traveled to join our trip. The leaders on board were: Peter Pyle, Lisa Hug, Scott Terrill, Linda Terrill, Oscar Johnson, Wes Fritz, Todd McGrath, and Debi Shearwater. Thanks to Wes Friz for his magical chumming and to Oscar Johnson for tallying the county lists for Marin and Sonoma Counties.



The complete species list follows.

20 SEPTEMBER 2009 BODEGA BAY SHEARWATER JOURNEYS' PELAGIC TRIP:
Sonama/Marin/Total

RED-THROATED LOON- 2/0/2
PACIFIC LOON- 2/0/2
COMMON LOON- 5/0/5
WESTERN GREBE- 10/0/10
BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS- 15/11/26
NORTHERN FULMAR- 9/6/15
PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER- 16/18/34
BULLER'S SHEARWATER- 0/3/3
SOOTY SHEARWATER- 17/17/34
WILSON'S STORM-PETREL- 0/1/1
FORK-TAILED STORM-PETREL- 0/1/1
ASHY STORM-PETREL- 2/17/19
BROWN PELICAN- 6/0/6
BRANDT'S CORMORANT- 35/0/35
DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT- 3/0/3
PELAGIC CORMORANT- 15/0/15
SURF SCOTER- 2/0/2
BLACK TURNSTONE- 0/1 (offshore)/1
RED KNOT- 5/0/5
RED-NECKED PHALAROPE- 50/3/53
RED PHALAROPE- 250/6/256
SOUTH POLAR SKUA- 0/5/5
POMARINE JAEGER- 2/7/9
PARASITIC JAEGER- 0/2/2
LONG-TAILED JAEGER- 0/31/31
JAEGER SP. -0/2/2
CALIFORNIA GULL- 25/55/80
WESTERN GULL- 125/20/145
SABINE'S GULL- 0/11/11
COMMON TERN- 1/0/1
ARCTIC TERN- 0/6/6
COMMON MURRE- 300/4/304
PIGEON GUILLEMOT- 8/0/8
CASSIN'S AUKLET- 800/0/800
RHINOCEROS AUKLET- 11/18/29
CALIFORNIA SEA LION- +
STELLER'S SEA LION- 1
FUR SEAL SP.- 1
HARBOR SEAL- +
MINKE WHALE- 1
BLUE WHALE- 5
HUMPBACK WHALE- 1
DALL'S PORPOISE- 2
OCEAN SUNFISH- 2
BLUE SHARK- 2
SALMON SHARK- 12

Shearwaters forever,
Debi

TRIP REPORT: 18 SEPTEMBER 2009 BODEGA BAY

Howdy, Seabirders,

Shearwater Journeys' pelagic trip departing from Bodega Bay could be best described as, "Just another day in paradise." Highlights included: BLUE WHALES, a single TUFTED PUFFIN, over 50 BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSSES, high counts of RED and RED-NECKED PHALAROPES, CASSIN'S AUKLETS, and a SALMON SHARK. The incredible, non-stop JAEGER show continued, with 85 LONG-TAILED JAEGERS, 29 POMARINE JAEGERS, and 4 PARASITIC JAEGERS tallied. This is the first trip of the fall season that we have missed South Polar Skua. Best part of the day was the weather, in total contrast to the marine forecast. A PEREGRINE FALCON flew over the dock at the end of the day.

The "New Sea Angler," the vessel that we regularly use was fully repaired. We departed the harbor about 7 am, and returned at 6:30 pm. The extensive mudflats were covered with shorebirds, White Pelicans, and other species. We made it well beyond the 1000 fathom line, to at least 1300 fathoms. Birdlife was much more abundant than the September 16th trip. This just goes to show you how readily the marine life changes in response to migration and food supplies. It is all the more reason why birders should book as many trips as possible during their visit. Just as migration on land changes daily, so it does at sea.

Many thanks to our wonderful participants. Leaders for this trip were: Lisa Hug, Oscar Johnson, Abe Borker, Wes Fritz, Todd McGrath, and Debi Shearwater.

We spent a some time in both Sonoma and Marin Counties. The complete species list follows;

18 SEPTEMBER 2009 BODEGA BAY

TOTAL/ SONOMA/MARIN

RED-THROATED LOON- 1/1/0

PACIFIC LOON- 5/5/0

WESTERN GREBE- 13/13/0

BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS- 54/40/14

NORTHERN FULMAR- 11/4/7

PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER- 79/21/58

BULLER'S SHEARWATER- 2/2/0

SOOTY SHEARWATER- 59/47/12

WILSON'S STORM-PETREL- 1/1/0

FORK-TAILED STORM-PETREL- 7/7/0

ASHY STORM-PETREL- 22/18/4

BRANDT'S CORMORANT- 125/125/0

PELAGIC CORMORANT- 4/4/0

SURF SCOTER- 5/5/0

RED-NECKED PHALAROPE- 350/350/0

RED PHALAROPE- 800/800/0

POMARINE JAEGER- 29/15/14

PARASITIC JAEGER- 4/2/2

LONG-TAILED JAEGER- 85/49/36

JAEGER SP.- 2/2/0

HEERMANN'S GULL- 25/2/23

CALIFORNIA GULL- 50/30/20

WESTERN GULL- 60/45/15

SABINE'S GULL- 18/16/2

COMMON TERN- 1/1/0

ARCTIC TERN- 17/17/0

COMMON MURRE- 1250/1245/5

PIGEON GUILLEMOT- 8/8/0

CASSIN'S AUKLET- 700/690/10

RHINOCEROS AUKLET- 30/15/15

TUFTED PUFFIN- 1/1/0

CALIFORNIA SEA LION- +

NORTHERN FUR SEAL- 1

HARBOR SEAL- +

BLUE WHALE- 3

HUMPBACK WHALE- 10

OCEAN SUNFISH- 1

SALMON SHARK- 1

PEREGRINE FALCON- 1, in the harbor

SEP 16, 2009: TRIP REPORT- A STELLER DAY!

Howdy, Seabirders,

This is a trip report for the September 16, 2009 Shearwater Journeys' pelagic trip departing from Bodega Bay.

The day began at 6:15 am with the skipper of our vessel up to his elbows in grease, down in the engine room. Not a good sign! Emerging from the engine room, we agreed to meet again at 9:30 am to assess the situation, while the skipper drove off to Santa Rosa to try to get an alternator for the boat. Some birders went off in search of early morning birds, while others, including myself went to breakfast. Reconvening at 9:30 am, I announced that the skipper was not able to get the parts and his boat would not be operable. Instead, he and I had made arrangements to take another vessel out, the ProFishn't. I also reminded folks that during past trips with these sorts of problems, we had encountered meg-rare seabirds. I doubt that anyone put much faith in this at that moment, though. Trouble was, the replacement boat could only take 29 passengers, maximum. Immediately, two of the Shearwater Journeys' leaders were knocked off the trip. Those passengers who had signed up first for the trip were given the option to join us. (Remarkably, some declined! One gracious couple from Pennsylvania, who were also signed up for Friday's and Sunday's trips, offered their spots to two young ladies who could only go out on Wednesday). So, lesson learned: sign up early! The later sign ups had to "walk the plank" as one of them put it, and forego the trip.

At 9:45 am, we were off and running out of the foggy harbor. The fog very soon gave way to completely clear conditions! We could see for miles, but there was precious little to see. Not very many seabirds or marine mammals were around. It was hot, warmer than I can remember in about ten years. We did not even wear coats or jackets. Soon, we were over Bodega Canyon and approaching the 1000 fathom line. I laid out one slick here. A few LONG-TAILED JAEGERS and ASHY STORM-PETRELS came in, along with one FORK-TAILED STORM-PETREL. BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSSES were all around. We continued along the 1000 fathom line, heading for the Cordell Bank. Nearing the Bank, hundreds of RED PHALAROPES were flushing off the water. My co-leader, Steve Howell, wanted me to put out another slick. After nagging me a second time, I did so. And, that's when the SHORT-TAILED ALBATROSS flew in! It sat around for a long time with the other albatrosses. The lucky young ladies who garnered their slots from the Pennsylvania folks could not believe the magic of it all! Probably half the folks on board had cameras and were shooting lots of images of this albatross gem. Images will be posted as soon as possible. Photos © Tom Blackman. It was about 3:30 pm and time to head for the harbor. The return ride turned out to be quite tough with spray and water running through the gunnels for nearly two hours solid! Nevertheless, we were all happy campers on board, especially when we looked in our wake to find the SHORT-TAILED ALBATROSS still following us at 4:30 pm.

I would like to thank my co-leader, Steve Howell, for joining me on this trip at some inconvenience for him, since he had a flight to catch immediately after the trip. I also thank all of the participants who hailed from ten different states in the USA. And, I thank everyone for remaining patient with our morning situation.

The complete species list for SEPTEMBER 16, 2009 follows:

RED-THROATED LOON- 2

PACIFIC LOON- in the harbor

COMMON LOON- in the harbor

WESTERN GREBE- 4

BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS- 47

*SHORT-TAILED ALBATROSS- 1, immature (14-16 months old, approx.)

NORTHERN FULMAR- 8

PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER- 48

SOOTY SHEARWATER- 36

FORK-TAILED STORM-PETREL- 1

ASHY STORM-PETREL- 15

BROWN PELICAN- in the harbor

BRANDT'S CORMORANT- +

DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT- in the harbor

PELAGIC CORMORANT- in the harbor

SURF SCOTER-2

RED-NECKED PHALAROPE- 150

RED PHALAROPE- 2000

SOUTH POLAR SKUA- 4

POMARINE JAEGER- 22

PARASITIC JAEGER- 1

LONG-TAILED JAEGER- 21

JAEGER sp. - 4

HEERMANN'S GULL- 40

CALIFORNIA GULL- 45

WESTERN GULL- 150

SABINE'S GULL- 8

COMMON/ARCTIC TERN- 1

COMMON MURRE- 300

PIGEON GUILLEMOT- 6

CASSIN'S AUKLET- 200

RHINOCEROS AUKLET- 40

CALIFORNIA SEA LION- +

STELLER'S SEA LION- 1

HARBOR SEAL- +

LARGE WHALE SP.- 2

HUMPBACK WHALE- 4

PACIFIC WHITE-SIDED DOLPHIN- 10

DALL'S PORPOISE- 6

BLUE SHARK- 1

SALMON SHARK- 1

Remember: When life gives you lemons, make lemonade!

Albatrosses forever,

Debi

SHORT-TAILED ALBATROSS

Howdy, Seabirders,

The single most stunning seabird of today's Shearwater Journeys' pelagic trip from Bodega Bay was a SHORT-TAILED ALBATROSS found by Steve N. G. Howell near the Cordell Bank. This immature (12-16 months old) albatross flew into the wake of our vessel, sat on the water with the Black-footed Albatrosses, and posed for the many photographers on board. It then followed us for nearly an hour. In addition to being one of the rarest albatrosses of the world, it is also one of the rarest of all birds in the world—period!

Many thanks to our wonderful participants, some of whom traveled a long distance to join us. And, many thanks to our leader, Steve Howell, who is a professional tour leader for the bird tour company, Wings, Inc., www.wingsbirds.com

A full report of this most unusual day will follow.

Albatrosses forever,

Debi

DOUBLE PUFFINS: SEPTEMBER 13TH

Howdy, Seabirders,

I had a great birthday pelagic trip, yesterday. We saw all of the usual fall suspects, including a grand slam on all three jaegers: POMARINE, PARASITIC & LONG-TAILED, and SOUTH POLAR SKUA. Highlights included one TUFTED PUFFIN, and one HORNED PUFFIN. Stay tuned for a full trip report.

Shearwaters forever,

Debi

SEP 9, 2009 REPORT: SABINE'S GULLS & DOLPHINS

Howdy, Seabirders,

Seabirding does not get any finer than yesterday's trip on Monterey Bay. Glassy-smooth seas throughout the day, a constant flow of seabirds, and hundreds of dolphins and sunshine in the afternoon— we had it all. The show of SABINE'S GULLS, ASHY STORM-PETRELS, and two different TUFTED PUFFINS were the highlights of a pleasant day. As Pete Dunne once described his days on Monterey Bay with me, it was "quite civilized seabirding."

Things have changed in Monterey Bay over the past four weeks. Where warm water was once well inside the bay, it has now been replaced by very cold water ranging from 53-55F. The warm water is now almost 50 miles off Monterey. It is very warm— 60-65F. This presents a great temperature break, although it is not within reach of standard 7 am to 3 pm trip. (We will shoot for it this Saturday on our 12 hour Albacore trip). The cold water has attracted hundreds of CASSIN'S AUKLETS, as well as hundreds of RED and RED-NECKED PHALAROPES. The upwelling has produced krill, which has also attracted BLUE WHALES. Both Cassin's Auklets and Blue Whales feed on krill. Sightings of these three species have been very slim the past three years. This is a great sign. Krill is the keystone species in our nutrient-rich canyons. Flocks of 15- 30 SABINE'S GULLS were sitting on the water, making a beautiful display as they took to flight. Fewer BULLER'S SHEARWATERS are around. I suspect that most of them are out at the temperature break along the warm water edge. I hope to find out on Saturday's trip. Even the Davidson Seamount has a sea surface temperature break right now. Ten degrees is a significant temperature break! 

 We headed north to the canyons off Davenport, where we found the storm-petrels milling around, as though they were feeding which they sometimes do on overcast days. A TUFTED PUFFIN was found, both on our way out and our return to the harbor. Close views allowed us to determine that they are definitely two different birds. Feeding HUMPBACK WHALES surrounded by feeding PINK-FOOTED and SOOTY SHEARWATERS gave a good show in the morning. NORTHERN RIGHT WHALE DOLPHINS and PACIFIC WHITE-SIDED DOLPHINS in scattered subgroups, leaping and breezing across the water, and bow riding for several hours spent the afternoon with us. HARBOR PORPOISE have been hanging around the coast of Pacific Grove, while DALL'S PORPOISE were offshore. Fewer jaegers were found, but we did manage a clean sweep of all three species, including SOUTH POLAR SKUA. All in all, it was simply a delightful day. 

Many thanks to our participants who came from seven states, Canada, and the UK. Leaders on this trip were: Don Doolittle and John Sterling who are leading on our charter Antarctica voyage in January 2010; Ted Chandik who has been leading with Shearwater Journeys for over three decades; and Abe Borker who has been leading with Shearwater Journeys for three weeks! And, of course, I was there. The complete species list follows.

Spaces are still available on the following Monterey trips: 

SEPTEMBER 11, 12, 24, 25, 26, 27

OCTOBER 3, 4, 10, 11, 25

NOVEMBER 28

Reservations: Please contact me by email: debi@shearwaterjourneys.com

SPECIES LIST FOR SEPTEMBER 9, 2009 MONTEREY BAY 

PACIFIC LOON- 1

BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS- 12

NORTHERN FULMAR- 18

PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER- 150

BULLER'S SHEARWATER- 7

SOOTY SHEARWATER- 200

WILSON'S STORM-PETREL- 1

ASHY STORM-PETREL- 600 (in Santa Cruz County)

BROWN PELICAN- 20

BRANDT'S CORMORANT- 280

PELAGIC CORMORANT- 3

BLACK TURNSTONE- 5 + 1 offshore

RED-NECKED PHALAROPE- 500

RED PHALAROPE- 28

SOUTH POLAR SKUA- 1

POMARINE JAEGER- 15

POMARINE/PARASITIC- 2

PARASITIC JAEGER- 2

PARASITIC/LONG-TAILED- 1

LONG-TAILED JAEGER- 1

HEERMANN'S GULL- +

CALIFORNIA GULL- +

WESTERN GULL- +

SABINE'S GULL- 195

ELEGANT TERN- 100, mostly over the kelp beds off Point Pinos

COMMON TERN- 4

COMMON/ARCTIC TER- 2

ARCTIC TERN- 5

COMMON MURRE- 30

PIGEON GUILLEMOT- 8

CASSIN'S AUKLET- 800

RHINOCEROS AUKLET- 111

TUFTED PUFFIN- 2

PEREGRINE FALCON- 1, on the radio tower along Cannery Row

SEA OTTER- 12

CALIFORNIA SEA LION- +

STELLER'S SEA LION- 1

NORTHERN ELEPHANT SEAL- 2

HARBOR SEAL- +

HUMPBACK WHALE- 4

NORTHERN RIGHT WHALE DOLPHIN- 300+

PACIFIC WHITE-SIDED DOLPHIN- 400+

HARBOR PORPOISE- 3

DALL'S PORPOISE- 3

OCEAN SUNFISH- 1

BLUE SHARK- 2

Shearwaters forever,

Debi

Debra Shearwater

Shearwater Journeys, Inc.

PO Box 190

Hollister, CA 95024

831.637.8527

debi@shearwaterjourneys.com

www.shearwaterjourneys.com

www.shearwaterjourneys.blogspot.com

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

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