South side of Cowichan Bay. Robin Lawson, Claude Lahaise, Kathy Coster, Richard Campbell, Gail and Steve Mitchell & Carol Milo were observers and saw: Mute Swan, 6; Bufflehead, 120; Common Goldeneye, 4; Hooded Merganser, 7; Horned Grebe, 4; Double-crested Cormorant, 11; Great Blue Heron, 2; Bald Eagle, 1; Mew Gull, 1; Iceland Gull (Thayer’s), 3;…
I was not able to attend today’s wet and woolly count due a very poorly back, so it was left up to my good buddies to bare the brunt of today’s good weather. The results were awesome with numbers mirroring last weeks totals and all this under terrible afternoon…
Cowichan Bay South: Seven determined birders –Eric Marshall, Carol Milo, Gail Mitchell, John Scull, Linda Hill, Wilma Harvie, and Christine Cutbill — peered into thick fog to try to identify waterbirds. Only those near shore could be seen. 4 glaucous-wing gulls obligingly landed in Hecate Park so they could be positively identified. The birds we…
Today was a real pain in the butt, literally, the rain that was forecast never happened, there were great birds all over and we hit a 5 year high for Trumpeter Swans. Back to this pain in the butt, I was suffering today with a terrible lower back pain…
Our first count of the new year was a little foggy but full of good birds and plenty of them with high numbers of Trumpeter Swans and good numbers of birds of prey. 8 people in two cars left the dog park with a new addition today as we…
Cowichan Bay Swans It was the week before Christmas and it was quiet, it was no wonder as all was white The sun was clear which made the birds disappear Our numbers were down which left me with a frown Dorothy and Eric had disappeared but Bob and Helen suddenly appeared…
Red-tailed hawk Today was one of those wonderful birding days that we dream of, the sun shone brightly all day, the birds put on a great show and so did the beasts. Counting on a day like this was a joy, with the birds all being mostly easy to see….
It was one of those days when you leave home and you think am i dressed properly, well for sure some of us weren’t as the wind and cold went right down to the bones. It was nice when the seven of us were riding around in the two vehicles with…
Cowichan Bay On the south side: Linda Hill reports that a new birder named Doug showed up valiantly in the pouring rain to hold a large umbrella over our heads as we quickly counted these birds: 28 gull species; 3 common goldeneye; 3 horned grebes; 90 Buffleheads; 6 Double crested Cormorants; 2 Hooded Mergansers; 1…
We were only 5 today as one of our party had a Owlie after spending to much time on the mainland. The weather was warm and we managed to dodge most of the wet stuff and at the end of the day the sun shone and we were all smiles. Our swan count went up…
It was a dry day although a little chilly, 5 people turned up for the count and because one of them was coming down with some nasty bug we decided to put all the clean ones in one vehicle and me with bugsy. I had already suffered the sickness, hopefully I was now immune to…
Red-tailed Hawk Here we go again, it is hard to believe that today was the start of our ninth year doing this count and the fifth year of counting Hawks and Eagles. The weather was tremendous with sunny skies all the way. 7 participants came out and so two cars left the dog park nearly…
A bright and beautiful morning in Cowichan Bay, just after sunrise. On the south side of the Bay Carol Milo, Gail Mitchell, Laurie Vasey, and John Scull where joined at the Cowichan Estuary Nature Centre by two visitors inspired by the Wildwings Festival: Bruce Coates and Karen Jarvis. There were very few waterbirds in the…
On the south side of the Bay, Laurie Vasey, Linda Hill, Kathy Coster, John Scull, and Carol Milo were joined by two new volunteers, Daniel Collins and Carol Hannon, for an hour of bird counting and socializing on a beautiful morning in Cowichan Bay. The sea was like glass, reflecting the mountains and the mist….
It was a beautiful early morning with the sea a mirror reflecting the clouds and mountains. Linda Hill and John Scull completed the final count of the season. The winter ducks and swans are gone, but the purple martins and common mergansers have arrived in numbers. We saw: Canada Goose 13; Common Merganser 26; Double-crested…