March 1-6 Waterfront Park
Metro Vancouver District BC Canada.
I returned from sunny Mexico to snow. I know this sounds crazy but it was a relief. The scorching temperatures and 80% humidity of Southern Mexico was something else, the birding however was simply amazing. I hope to cobble together a few words and pix later.
Back home the number one priority was finding the Nashville Warbler (NAWA) that had been located at Waterfront Park adjacent to Lonsdale Quay in North Vancouver. I had only ever seen one NAWA in Metro Vancouver and that was at Brydon Lagoon so a second sighting would be a treat and a really good year bird. I am not too sure who originally found the bird but it always amazes me how such rarities are found, either by design or accident. I'll put it down to enterprise and good birding.
Back home the number one priority was finding the Nashville Warbler (NAWA) that had been located at Waterfront Park adjacent to Lonsdale Quay in North Vancouver. I had only ever seen one NAWA in Metro Vancouver and that was at Brydon Lagoon so a second sighting would be a treat and a really good year bird. I am not too sure who originally found the bird but it always amazes me how such rarities are found, either by design or accident. I'll put it down to enterprise and good birding.
The previous evening a cunning plan to find the NAWA was hatched with my neighbour and esteemed birding companion Carlo G. To help save the planet we would carpool. An added bonus was the chance to add a few more birds from nearby Lonsdale Quay to bolster my Metro Vancouver year list.
Arriving at the park Carlo heard the chip, chip of the Nashville and bingo, there it was sitting atop the flowers of a Mahonia or Berberry. The plant is native to eastern Asia, the Himalaya, North and Central America and flowers early in the year. The NAWA was beautifully perched and I took seven frames while it fed on the protein rich nectar of the yellow flowers. The Japanese garden offers plenty of flowing plants at his time of year as well shelter from the elements.
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| Nashville Warbler |
We spent all of ten minutes enjoying the bird before walking over to the quay. The target birds for the year list were Pigeon Guillemot and Pelagic Cormorant. Both were present.
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| Pelagic Cormorants |
A Few Days Later
On our first visit we had missed the Orange-crowned Warbler that had been keeping the Nashville company all winter. This time we waited less than a few minutes before the Orange-crowned Warbler appeared on the very same flowerhead.
Our second visit was combined with a visit to Maplewood Flats and Klootchman Park. We needed scopes to view a Surfbird and pair of Ancient Murrelets.
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| Klootchman Park |
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| Orange-crowned Warbler. |
So many birding opportunities lie ahead especially as the days warm and the soon to arrive migrants flood in through the valleys, shorelines and forests. I can't wait!
"It's never too late
to
start birding"
to
start birding"
John Gordon
Langley/Cloverdale
Langley/Cloverdale
BC Canada
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