HAWAIIAN PETREL: MONTEREY BAY AUGUST 25, 2017

MONTEREY SEABIRDS ROCK!

Monterey seabirds dazzled birders from around the world during a spectacular Shearwater Journeys'pelagic trip on August 25, 2017. The highlight was a HAWAIIAN PETREL (Pterodroma sandwichensis) which sauntered, back and forth in our wake about 1:30 p.m.

The HAWAIIAN PETREL, or 'ua'u,' is a Federally Endangered Species which nests on Hawai'i Island within Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park on lower alpine and subalpine slopes of Mauna Loa.  The largest known colony is located at Maui Island at Haleakala National Park with 450 - 650 breeding pairs. Pairs mate for life.

 'Ua'u chicks were harvested as a delicacy for Hawaiian royalty. Today, the species faces many threats including: pigs, goats, mongoose, feral cats, rats, and dogs. Young 'Ua'u become attracted to lights and "grounded" around the lights. Once grounded, they cannot fly. They also suffer collisions with buildings, antenna towers, electric and telephone lines.

Hawaiian Petrels are about 16 inches long, head to tail. Head, wings and tail are black. Back is slightly darker. Forehead and underparts are white. Feet are webbed, black at the toes and pinkish toward the heel. Calls can be heard at night. Sounds like: oo- A- oo, and makes yapping sounds like a small dog. Formerly called, Dark-rumped Petrel.

Numerous conservation efforts to save this species and other seabirds in the Hawaiian islands have been mounted by Island Conservation and the American Bird Conservancy and the Center for Biological Diversity. 

You are invited to join us on our upcoming pelagic trips! 

Who knows? You might even see a Hawaiian Petrel!

SHEARWATER JOURNEYS' UPCOMING MONTEREY BAY TRIPS & LEADERS

SEP 1 with Mary Gustafson, Nick Levendosky, Clay Kempf, Debi Shearwater

SEP 7 with Alex Rinkert, Jim Holmes, Mary Gustafson, Nick Levendosky, Debi Shearwater

SEP 8 with Jim Holmes, Mary Gustafson, Brad Keitt, Debi Shearwater

SEP 9 ALBACORE OFFSHORE with Alex Rinkert, Scott & Linda Terrill, Mary Gustafson, Nick Levendosky, Todd McGrath, Debi Shearwater: SOLD OUT

SEP 10 with Mary Gustafson, Todd McGrath, Debi Shearwater

SEP 14 with Debi Shearwater

SEP 22 with Hannah Nevins, Christian Schwarz. Clay Kempf, Debi Shearwater

SEP 24 with Nick Levendosky, Jim Holmes, Debi Shearwater

SEP 30 with Alex Rinkert, Scott & Linda Terrill, Nick Levendosky, Clay Kempf

OCT 8 with Scott & Linda Terrill, Nick Levendosky, Alex Rinkert, Clay Kempf

SHEARWATER JOURNEYS' UPCOMING HALF MOON BAY TRIPS & LEADERS

SEP 2 with Mary Gustafson, Debi Shearwater

SEP 3 with Peter Pyle, Mary Gustafson, Steve Tucker, Debi Shearwater

SEP 15 with Christian Schwarz, Dave Pereksta, Debi Shearwater

SEP 16 with Steve Hampton, Debi Shearwater

OCT 7 with Alex Rinkert, Steve Hampton, Nick Levendosky

Spaces are available on all of the above trips, except for the Albacore trip. A limited number of spaces are available on the September 7 & 8 trips. Book now!

RESERVATIONS: Email: debi@shearwaterjourneys.com

Many thanks to Alex Rinkert, ace leader with Shearwater Journeys for spotting, identifying and calling out the Hawaiian Petrel!

Many thanks to Beth Hamel for the Hawaiian Petrel images, copyrighted. Please do not use images without permission. 

To see more of Beth's images, click here. 

Living the Salt Life & SeaBirding for Science

Debi Shearwater

BREAKING NEWS: HAWAIIAN PETREL on SHEARWATER JOURNEYS'S HALF MOON BAY TRIP

The highlight of Shearwater Journeys's August 2, 2014 pelagic trip departing from Half Moon Bay was a HAWAIIAN PETREL (Pterodroma sandwichensis) which was spotted by leader Scott Terrill as it flew up the wake to an awesome-sauce slick more than a mile long made by Debi Shearwater. This gorgeous petrel flew up the side of the boat and off the bow, giving every person on board excellent views! It was a life bird for many on board, including some who were doing their first-ever pelagic trip!

Amazingly, I spotted a HAWAIIAN PETREL on this same day on a Monterey Bay pelagic trip! See that trip report, here, and more images by David Pavlik, here. David, pictured below, was on both trips, 2013 and 2014! What a lucky guy!

Does David look happy, or what? Actually, on this year's trip he ticked another Life Bird, CRAVERI'S MURRELET! 

Many additional seabirds sparked a lot of excitement, including SCRIPPS'S and CRAVERI'S MURRELETS; BLACK and ASHY STORM-PETRELS and SABINE'S GULLS. Having missed the MARBLED MURRELETS in the morning, leader Linda Terrill (eagle-eye!) spotted two on the return to the harbor. It was a fabulous day! And, my new chumming technique really paid off in spades, er, I mean petrels! Although I am loathe to make seabird predictions, I did mention to a few of the leaders recently that the stationary offshore high pressure system was ideal for Hawaiian Petrel, a seabird dependent on mega-scale wind patterns. 

HAWAIIAN PETREL images in this post by Scott Terrill. The Hawaiian Petrel is listed as ENDANGERED by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Although this species is rare in California, we now know from radio tracking that it is part of our "normal" offshore avifauna. 

THE NEW FACES OF SEABIRDING, above.

Fifteen of the sixteen birders under the age of 35 celebrating the Hawaiian Petrel! 

We thank all of the folks from near and far who joined us on this day, including at least one person who hitchhiked to meet up with this trip!

The leaders on this trip were:

SCOTT TERRILL, LINDA TERRILL, ABE BORKER & DEBI SHEARWATER

THE COMPLETE SPECIES LIST FOR 2 AUGUST 2014 FOLLOWS:

All birds were in SAN MATEO COUNTY, CALIFORNIA:

RED-THROATED LOON- 2

PACIFIC LOON- 1

BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS- 53

NORTHERN FULMAR- 9

**HAWAIIAN PETREL- 1

PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER- 310

SOOTY SHEARWATER- 1935

BLACK-VENTED SHEARWATER- 3

ASHY STORM-PETREL- 1

BLACK STORM-PETREL- 1

BROWN PELICA- 335

BRANDT'S CORMORANT- 50

DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT- 60

PELAGIC CORMORANT- 2

WANDERING TATTLER- 2

BLACK TURNSTONE- 12

SURFBIRD- 4

RED-NECKED PHALAROPE- 17

PARASITIC JAEGER- 2

CALIFORNIA GULL- 12

WESTERN GULL- 100

GLAUCOUS-WINGED GULL- 1

SABINE'S GULL- 2

ELEGANT TERN- 290

COMMON MURRE- 280

PIGEON GUILLEMOT- 12

SCRIPPS'S MURRELT- 2

CRAVERI'S MURRELET- 6

MARBLED MURRELET- 2

CASSIN'S AUKLET- 5

RHINOCEROS AUKLET- 4

CALIFORNIA SEA LION- 30

HARBOR SEAL- 2

HUMPBACK WHALE- 6

HARBOR PORPOISE- 12

OCEAN SUNFISH- 10

BY-THE-WIND-SAILOR- ++

EGG YOLK JELLY- 2

MOON JELLY- 4

UPCOMING HALF MOON BAY TRIPS & LEADERS:

AUG. 16: SCOTT TERRILL, LINDA TERRILL, TODD MCGRATH, JIM HOLMES, DEBI SHEARWATER (one space available, email Debi now)

AUG. 17: STEVE ROTTENBORN, STEVE TUCKER, JIM DANZENBAKER, DEBI SHEARWATER- SOLD OUT, WAIT LIST AVAILABLE

AUG. 23: SCOTT TERRILL, LINDA TERRILL, STEVE TUCKER, WILL BROOKS, DEBI SHEARWATER

SEP. 7: STEVE TUCKER, STEVE HAMPTON, WILL BROOKS, DEBI SHEARWATER

SEP. 8: DEBI SHEARWATER & TBA

SEP. 15: STEVE HAMPTON, NICK LEVENDOSKY, DEBI SHEARWATER

SEP. 21: STEVE ROTTENBORN, STEVE HAMPTON, MARISSA ORTEGA-WELSH,  WILL BROOKS, DEBI SHEARWATER

SEP. 24: JON DUNN, JIM HOLMES, PETER PYLE, STEVE HAMPTON, JIM DANZENBAKER, JENNIFER GREEN, DEBI SHEARWATER

OCT. 5: STEVE TUCKER, STEVE HAMPTON, COURTENAY RAY, DENA SPATZ, DEBI SHEARWATER

OCT. 12: SCOTT TERRILL, LINDA TERRILL, STEVE HAMPTON, STEVE TUCKER, DEBI SHEARWATER

UPCOMING BODEGA BAY TRIPS:

SEP. 1: STEVE HOWELL, LISA HUG, DEBI SHEARWATER

SEP. 19: STEVE HOWELL, PETER PYLE, STEVE TUCKER, LISA HUG, JENNIFER GREEN, DEBI SHEARWATER

HOPE TO SEE YOU OUT THERE!

SHEARWATERS FOREVER,

DEBI SHEARWATER

debi@shearwaterjourneys.com

AUGUST 2, 2013: IMAGES OF THE DAY BY BRIAN SULLIVAN

Howdy, Seabirders,

Below, please find more images of the HAWAIIAN PETREL, Pterodroma sandwichensis, by Brian Sullivan, as seen on the Shearwater Journeys' August 2, 2013 pelagic trip. All images, copyright, Brian Sullivan. Please do not use without permission. Brian is an eBird Project Leader. He was a Shearwater Journeys' co-leader on this trip.

It was a splendid day at sea!

Shearwaters & Petrels Forever, 

Debi Shearwater

BREAKING NEWS: HAWAIIAN PETREL- MONTEREY BAY, AUGUST 2, 2013

Howdy, Seabirders,

Shearwater Journeys' pelagic trip departing from Monterey today, August 2, 2013 was simply spectacular! The highlight of the day was a HAWAIIAN PETREL, Pterodroma sandwichensis. These images are courtesy of David Pavlik, copyright. Please do not use without permission.

I spotted this petrel without binoculars, about 0945 while in conversation with Brian Sullivan and Will Russell. I said, "What is this bird?" while lifting my bins to look at it. Brian immediately yelled, "HAWAIIAN PETREL" while reaching for his camera. It as a life bird for Brian and many other folks on board, including Sandy Komito of "The Big Year" fame. 

 The Hawaiian Petrel ranges in the central Pacific and breeds on the Hawaiian Islands. 

This mysterious petrel is seriously threatened. A new study by federal and university scientists has provided the first direct evidence of feral cats in Hawaii killing the endangered Hawaiian Petrel. 

These images are provided courtesy of David Pavlik who is doing a Conservation Photographic Big Year, raising funds for the American Bird Conservancy. Please consider a donation in support of their conservation efforts. 

Shearwaters & Petrels Forever,

Debi

A full report of this trip, including county details will follow. 

FORT BRAGG PELAGIC TRIPS: HAWAIIAN PETREL

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

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

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

Howdy, Seabirders,

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

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

Details of this year's trips are as follows:

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

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

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

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

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

Below is compilation of our 2011 Fort Bragg trips:

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

PACIFIC LOON - 0/1

COMMON LOON - 2/1

LAYSAN ALBATROSS - 1/0

BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS - 55/74

HAWAIIAN PETREL - 0/1

NORTHERN FULMAR - 180/250

PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATER - 72/100

BULLER'S SHEARWATER - 178/195

SOOTY SHEARWATER - 322/440

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

FORK-TAILED STORM-PETREL - 9/0

LEACH'S STORM-PETREL - 0/1

ASHY STORM-PETREL - 0/4

BROWN PELICAN - 0/15

BRANDT'S CORMORANT- 28/15

DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT - 6/5

PELAGIC CORMORANT- 4/7

CANADA GOOSE - 6/0

BLACK OYSTERCATCHER - 2/2

BLACK TURNSTONE - 9/0

SURFBIRD - 1/0

RED-NECKED PHALAROPE - 32/75

RED PHALAROPE - 75/25

SOUTH POLAR SKUA - 0/1

POMARINE JAEGER - 3/3

PARASITIC JAEGER - 3/7

LONG-TAILED JAEGER - 74/125

HEERMANN'S GULL - 3/2

CALIFORNIA GULL - +/24

WESTERN GULL - +/175

SABINE'S GULL - 67/300

FRANKLIN'S GULL - 0/1

COMMON/ARCTIC TERN - 8/25

ARCTIC TERN - 18/13

COMMON MURRE - 82/280

PIGEON GUILLEMOT - 15/30

XANTUS'S MURRELET - 1/7

MARBLED MURRELET - 0/4

CASSIN'S AUKLET - 275/1350

RHINOCEROS AUKLET - 21/42

TUFTED PUFFIN - 1/3

GREAT EGRET - 0/1

OSPREY - 1/1

STELLER'S SEA LION - 1/1

CALIFORNIA SEA LION - +/+

NORTHERN FUR SEAL - 1/6

NORTHERN ELEPHANT SEAL - 0/1

HARBOR SEAL - 1/8

BLUE WHALE - 0/3

HUMPBACK WHALE - 0/5

HARBOR PORPOISE - 0/2

DALL'S PORPOISE - 0/1

OCEAN SUNFISH - 1/1

BLUE SHARK - 1/0

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

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

Happy Trails,

Debi Shearwater

Shearwater Journeys