Brandt’s Cormorants with chicks, photo by Ruth Shelly
Yaquina Head in July never disappoints! We enjoyed watching colonies of nesting seabirds including Common Murres, Brandt’s and Pelagic Cormorants, and Pigeon Guillemots. A great time was had by all who attended!
Turkey Vulture and Common Murres, photo by Ruth Shelly
Birders at Yaquina Head, photo by Ruth Shelly
Photo by Caren Willoughby
It was nesting time at Yaquina Head Lighthouse and 22 birders had a chance to observe this once-a-year behavior. For many it was a once in a lifetime chance to view a Black Oystercatcher chick. Western Gulls were nesting and an Eagle was watching close by.
Sightings of the day:
Photo by Caren Willoughby
American Crow
Peregrine Falcon
Barn Swallow
Violet-green Swallow
White-crowned Sparrow
Bald Eagle
Brown Pelican
Pigeon Guillemot
Common Murre
Black Oystercatcher
Western Gull
Turkey Vulture
Brandt’s Cormorant
Pelagic Cormorant
Photos complements of Ernie Rose
At the headquarters parking lot, our large, enthusiastic group of 28 got great and prolonged views of the Peregrine Falcon chicks and parent! Other special sightings included a Black Oystercatcher sitting on its egg, nesting Pelagic and Brandt's Cormorants, and thousands of chattering Common Murre.
Sightings of the day:
Violet-green Swallow ~ Barn Swallow
American Goldfinch ~ Peregrine Falcon
White-crowned Sparrow ~ American Crow
Pelagic Cormorant ~ Brandt’s Cormorant
Pigeon Guillemot ~ Black Oystercatcher
Common Murre ~ Harlequin Duck
Western Gull ~ Caspian Tern
A very early downpour of rain had some folks questioning their thoughts of attending this bird walk. But the Yaquina Head Visitors Center parking lot saw 19 diehard birders gathered for the morning's birding adventure. Yes, it was raining at first but after awhile blue sky appeared and kept the birders dry for the rest of the walk.
Sightings of the Day
Peregrine Falcon
American Goldfinch
White-crowned Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Barn Swallow
Violet-green Swallow
Tree Swallow
Common Murre
Black Oystercatcher
Brandt's Cormorant
Pelagic Cormorant
Brown Pelican
Western Gull
Glaucous-winged Gull
California Gull
Bald Eagle
Turkey Vulture
American Crow
Wilson's Warbler
Spotted Towhee
The weather was a question mark for our Saturday morning bird walk at Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area. As it turned out we had another beautiful bird walk with very little wind and 14 fellow birders. We were not disappointed by the action of resident Peregrine Falcons as they fed two young birds. Our walk to the rocks below showed us that the eagles and the gulls have taken toll on the Common Murre population. Very few birds were nesting on the rocks surrounding the lighthouse and we saw at least three eagles close by.
Sightings of the Day
Peregrine Falcon
White-crowned Sparrow
American Goldfinch
Barn Swallow
Violet-green Swallow
American Crow
House Finch
Song Sparrow
Spotted Towhee
Rufus Hummingbird
Common Murre
Pigeon Guillemot
Brandt's Cormorant
Pelagic Cormorant
Bald Eagle
Turkey Vulture
Osprey
Brown Pelican
Great Blue Heron
Western Gull
The Peregrine Falcons were quite active when the eighteen birders arrived at the visitor center parking lot. One was chasing a Turkey Vulture and two others were playing war games as they easily maneuvered with death-defying, high-speed dives. Down below, birders had their cameras aimed in the sky to record what was happening above. Back on the walk, after his recent knee replacement surgery, field guide Mark Elliott gathered everyone together and proceeded to walk in the direction of the lighthouse. On the way, we witnessed a mother Barn Swallow feeding its chicks in the nest. Whewww, the wind was howling as we tried to steady our cameras and spotting scopes, yet it was a beautiful sunny morning. The murres, cormorants and gulls were either gathering new nesting material or tending to their young as the vultures were scoping them out from above. The falcons were the only raptors we saw this morning. Once again, we had a very enjoyable and rewarding experience.
Sightings of the Day
Peregrine Falcon
Turkey Vulture
Barn Swallow
White-crowned Sparrow
Song Sparrow
American Crow
Pelagic Cormorant
Common Murre
Pigeon Guillemot
Western Gull
Harlequin Duck
American Goldfinch
House Finch
House Sparrow
Brandt's Cormorant
Black Oystercatcher
The morning started with gray skies and very little wind as 24 birders gathered at the Lighthouse Headquarters. We watched a female Peregrine Falcon watch us. Perhaps letting us know this is her home. The paved trail along the coastline always provides us with new sightings. The baby gulls and cormorants were a joy to watch. Sadly missing was the young of the Common Murre.
Sightings of the Day
Peregrine Falcon
Turkey Vulture
Barn Swallow
White-crowned Sparrow
Rufus Hummingbird
Song Sparrow
House Finch
Pigeon Guillemot
Common Murre
Pelagic Cormorant
Brant's Cormorant
Western Gull
Wandering Tattler
Surf Scoter
Black Oystercatcher
Whimbrel
Rhinoceros Auklet
Brown Pelican
Spotted Towhee
American Crow
Bald Eagle
Due to the inversion effect which is caused by very high temperatures in the valley, we kinda guessed that our Yaquina Head bird walk was going to be fogbound. And sure enough it was for the 23 birders who gathered at the Interpretive Center of the Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area just north of Newport. A White-crowned Sparrow greeted everyone even though the early fog kept all from any hope of seeing the resident Peregrine Falcon family. So, trip leader Mark Elliott and fellow field guide Dick Demarest led the group on a walk to the lighthouse. Nested Pelagic Cormorant chicks were viewed crying for food from their parent, Pigeon Guillemots were paddling the water, gulls and Turkey Vultures were patiently waiting for their next meal, and an immature Bald Eagle sat motionlessly perched in a nearby tree hoping the damn gull would quit diving at it. Eggs were found nearby which were already opened by marauders, and the viewing scopes pinpointed locations of Cormorant and Western Gull fledglings. Having returned back to the Interpretive Center parking lot, all got to finally see a Peregrine fly and land on the cliff edge directly in front of them. A lucky few birders were able to photo the falcon as it flew from one spot to another. Although all could see the falcon, the fog was still too dense to get a great photograph of the bird. Nonetheless, all birders left pleased with what they had experienced. Ahh, another enjoyable experience!
Sightings of the Day
White-crowned Sparrow
Song Sparrow
American Goldfinch
Barn Swallow
Violet-green Swallow
Chestnut-backed Chickadee
American Crow
Common Raven
Turkey Vulture
Bald Eagle
Osprey
Peregrine Falcon
Western Gull
Brandt’s Cormorant
Pelagic Cormorant
Pigeon Guillemot
Common Murre
Brown Pelican
Black Oystercatcher
(Sorry but there were no photographers to share photos - 18 birders were present)
Sightings of the Day
Brandt's Cormorant
Pelagic Cormorant
Turkey Vulture
Bald Eagle
Peregrine Flacon and 2 chicks
Black Oystercatcher
Western Gull
Common Murre
Pigeon Guillemot
Rufous Hummingbird
American Crow
Violet-green Swallow
Barn Swallow
Spotted Towhee
White-crowned Sparrow
House Sparrow
American Goldfinch
For working people to get up and out of bed at 6:30 on a weekend morning is absolutely ludicrous. But we had an agenda. This is the morning of the ASLC bird walk at Yaquina Head. Stopping for gas on the way, we arrived at the Visitor Center seeing that others were already out of their cars and were peering through their binoculars and spotting scopes at a young Peregrine Falcon sitting on a stony ledge scanning its territory for anything that moves.
When all 11 birders arrived by 9am, Mark Elliott, or field guide, gathered everyone in a circle having each of us introduce ourselves to all others. After watching the motionless falcon a bit longer, we turned and headed toward the lighthouse. An American Goldfinch sat atop an evergreen brightly singing on this gray, foggy morning.
"Eagle" someone yelled as we saw it fly out of a nearby tree. It drew everyone's attention as it circled very nearby a few times with a squawking Western Gull harassing it in flight. It was a perfect photo op for the photographers in the group, as it kept flying close by before landing in that same nearby tree. Unfortunately, numerous branches and limbs obscured the full profile of the raptor thereafter.
Common Murres still dominated the presence of birds on the bird island just off the coast of the lighthouse. Gulls and Turkey Vultures were also seen in the mix. Gulls carefully scrutinized the periphery of the Murres searching for eggs and/or young birds. Three vultures were doing the same. Below all that activity, Gull nestlings were seen through the spotting scope. The feathers of these young ones were so spotted they nearly blended in with the rocks.
On the way back to the Visitor Center parking lot, Black Oystercatchers were spotted, as well as Caspian Terns, Brown Pelicans, Western Grebes, Surf Scoters, and more. In the parking lot some of the birders saw a falcon fly behind the maintenance building.
That falcon came from behind the building with a bird in its talons and landed in a bush in front of us all. All of a sudden two other falcons came out of nowhere and tried taking the prey from the one falcon. Three falcons were swirling and flying right in front of us . . . I mean to say, right in front of us, maybe 60 feet away!! Those of us who had cameras couldn't take enough shots to record the event. Have you ever heard the sound of a machine gun? That was the sound to the right of us and to the left, as the photographers shot continuous photos of the predators. We just couldn't get enough to satisfy ourselves; after all, how often does one witness such an intimate display of falcons fighting for the same food?!! What an exciting and eventful ending to our bird walk!
Sightings of the Day
Peregrine Falcon
Violet-green Swallow
Barn Swallow
Turkey Vulture
House Sparrow
American Crow
White-crowned Sparrow
American Goldfinch
Pigeon Guillemot
Western Grebe
Surf Scoter
Common Murre
Spotted Towhee
Brown-headed Cowbird
Chestnut-backed Chickadee
Brandt’s Cormorant
Pelagic Cormorant
Black Oystercatcher
Bald Eagle
Brown Pelican
Rhinoceros Auklet
Song Sparrow
Caspian Tern
Western Gull
