Pelagic Birding

DATE: April 14-18, 2007

TRIP: Offshore Birding Trip

Report

Day 1

After leaving San Diego Harbor to just SE of Catalina Island

Mammals: California Sea Lion, Bottlenosed Dolphin

Day 2

Spent in Oxnard harbor waiting out the weather

Day 3

Oxnard harbor to the east tip of Anacapa then along the south side of the Channel Islands west to the midpoint of Santa Rosa Island then SW to the 1000+ fathom waters about 20 miles east of the San Juan Seamount.

Some participants also saw 2 alternate plumaged Tufted Puffins fly by south of Anacapa Is.

Mammals: California Sea Lion, Northern Elephant Seal, (offshore) Common Bottlenosed Dolphin, Long-beaked Common Dolphin, Risso’s Dolphin, Dall’s Porpoise

Day 4

Cortez Banks to the Mushrooom and Sixtymile Bank

Mammals: California Sea Lion, Northern Right Whale Dolphin (~200 off the Mushroom)

DATE: September 5-9, 2005

TRIP: Offshore Birding Trip

Daily Journal

Species List

Daily Journal

By Todd McGrath, Walter Wehtje and Don DesJardin

Day One: San Diego and points north.

After an orientation of the boat and an introduction of the leaders (Don DesJardin, Mary Gustafson, Todd McGrath and Walter Wehtje), we began our multi-day exploration of the waters off southern California. While still in San Diego Bay, ELEGANT TERNS a few ROYAL TERNS, and BROWN PELICANS were seen in good numbers. A stop at the bait barge yielded excellent looks at BRANDT’S CRMORANTS, SNOWY and GREAT EGRETS, as well as good numbers of HEERMAN’S and WESTERN GULLS. We also saw hundreds of CALIFORNIA SEA LIONS sprawled out on the barges, napping after taking advantage of the ample food source discarded sardines and anchovies provide.

As we continued out of the bay, bird numbers picked up, with large groups of migrating COMMON TERNS feeding over massive numbers of anchovies. The baitfish were close to shore and also attracted the attention of BROWN PELICANS and BRANDT’S CORMORANTS. After turning northwards we spotted three BLACK-VENTED SHEARWATERS sitting on the water. We made a short stop so everyone could get a good look at this near-shore species. Black-vented Shearwaters are just beginning to arrive in California in early Sept., so the eight recorded this first day were good finds. Our first of many RED-NECKED PHALAROPES were also seen flying by in small groups. Farther along the coast we saw more COMMON TERNS as well as our first PINK-FOOTED and SOOTY SHEARWATERS. Jaegers were well represented with a POMARINE and 2 PARASTIC JAEGERS, with a well-seen SOUTH POLAR SKUA added for good measure. Good numbers of BLACK and a single LEAST STORM-PETREL were spotted, but as is often the case, the LEAST STORM-PETREL was not seen well by all.

Marine Mammals were also well represented with sightings of NORTHERN ELEPHANT SEAL, BOTTLENOSE DOLPHIN, both SHORT-BEAKED and LONG-BEAKED COMMON DOLPHINS, as well as a pair of MINKE WHALES.

After a fine dinner, most of us headed off to bed early in anticipation of a busy second day. During the night the weather (which was beautiful our first day) began to worsen, with increasing wind and swell.

Day Two:

South of Santa Rosa Island, San Miguel Island, Cojo Anchorage

At dawn we were about halfway between Santa Rosa and San Nicolas Islands. Our plan was to work westward in order to explore several promising temperature breaks, including the area where North America’s first Hornby’s Storm-petrel had been observed in early August, and then head north to Pt Conception. This was our most challenging day weather-wise, as we needed to proceed into 15 mph wind and 4-6’ swells. The area we covered is often very productive, but after determining that the storm-petrel hadn’t stuck around, we turned north towards San Miguel Island at 0915. Despite the challenging viewing conditions we saw our first BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSSES, SABINE’S GULLS, and LONG-TAILED JAEGERS, along with 6 SOUTH POLAR SKUAS. Our first BULLER’S SHEARWATERS were also a welcome sight, as this species is irregular in Southern California in early September.

At 1200 we reached San Miguel Island, where we anchored at Crook Point and ate lunch in sheltered waters. After giving everyone the opportunity to regain their sea legs, we lifted anchor at 1330 and headed west to see what we could find beyond San Miguel Island. As before, the birds were present, but hard to keep in view. We had a much easier time with a pair of HUMPBACK WHALES. One of them kept slapping its wing-like pectoral fins and tail flukes at the surface, making them visible from almost a mile away. After seeing our fill, we continued north, arriving at Cojo Anchorage near Pt. Conception in time for dinner. After enjoying the beautiful sunset and spectacular starry skies we went down to our bunks, and several hours of relaxing sleep.

Day 3:

South to the San Juan Seamount

At 0400 the “Searcher” left Cojo Anchorage. With the strong NW winds and 6-8’ swells, we decided to keep our course at 195 o to keep everyone comfortable. The water temperature was 57 o F, and we didn’t expect much until the waters warmed near the San Juan Seamount, 85 miles to our south. Around 0715, we hit a very rough patch of water that demarcated a shift in the water temperatures. The water rose up to 62.5 o F within a few miles, and just before 8AM Todd McGrath spotted the first COOK’S PETREL of the trip. We were less than 20 miles southwest of San Miguel Island in an area where we did not expect this species. A few people were still below deck so, while many got an excellent look at this bird, some missed it. Todd was particularly pleased to have found it, as it was his 800 th ABA area bird. Paul Sykes was less pleased, as he’d just been reassured that we were unlikely to see Cook’s Petrels for several more hours, and had gone down to his cabin for a spell.

Luckily, at lunchtime a second bird circled the boat and provided almost everyone with great looks. We would see another 4 COOK’S PETRELS before dark, several of which put on a show for us. By mid-afternoon we reached the San Juan Seamount, and the birding became excellent. Our first of 5 adult RED-BILLED TROPICBIRDS were seen here. Usually Red-billed Tropicbirds are closer inshore, and this was the first time we’ve found them beyond the continental shelf. The most unexpected sighting occurred while everyone was watching a Cook’s Petrel fly southwards parallel with the boat. Todd McGrath got on a dark pterodroma flying northwards, and recognized it as a MURPHY’S PETREL. Murphy’s Petrel is regular in spring, but there are very few records from other seasons. As we left the San Juan Seamount, our only NORTHERN FULMAR of the trip followed our wake for some time. This species is irruptive and 2005 has been a down year, with very few reported. We also saw small numbers of CASSIN’S AUKLETS as well as more BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSSES. In this area our trolling effort gave result with two SKIPJACK tuna pulled aboard. We motored along until 2330, when the crew set the sea anchor (a large underwater parachute). The weather was still less than ideal, but most of us managed to sleep in spite of the rocking.

Day 4:

32° N, 120° 30’ W to Sixty-mile Bank

The birding day began at 0001. The boat’s lights brought in a variety of birds, and by 0030 hundreds of RED PHALAROPES had been by the boat, as well as a couple of COOK’S PETRELS. A few hardy individuals stayed out on deck until 0230. In that time they recorded hundreds, perhaps thousands of RED PHALAROPES, as well as dozens of RED-NECKED PAHALAROPES, 2 SABINE’S GULLS, 2 ARCTIC TERNS, and a total of 4 COOK’S PETRELS. One of these birds flew into the lights, circled the boat and landed on the water no more than 3 feet from Todd McGrath and two other night-owls. A circling WHIMBREL called repeatedly dropped into the lights, a strange sight more than 130 miles from shore.

At 0500, we began pouring out our chum slick in earnest, with high hopes. At 0620 an all-dark bird with a pale bill came into the boat. It was initially called a FLESH-FOOTED SHEARWATER by Mary Gustafson. Flesh-footed Shearwater is quite rare beyond the continental shelf and that far south, so Todd McGrath wanted to be sure to eliminate Parkinson’s Petrel (a bird reported several times for North America but not yet documented). The best separating feature is leg color, with Parkinson’s Petrel showing black legs as opposed to the pinkish legs that give Flesh-footed it’s name. In the low early morning light, leg color could not be discerned for certain, but Todd and Mary decided that other marks such as the overall brown coloration without a contrast with the head, size and shape of the bill, and overall structure and size supported Mary’s original ID as a Flesh-footed Shearwater. Walter Wehtje was troubled by what looked like the feet of the bird extending beyond the tail, reminiscent of a Black-footed Albatross, but decided that this was one of those birds one has to leave unidentified. As it got lighter, we had good looks at several RED-BILLED TROPICBIRDS, with 7 seen that day, bringing our total for the trip to an even dozen.

As we proceeded eastwards, we encountered the slowest birding of the trip. Normally this area is calm, allowing us to find birds on the surface some distance out. Unfortunately, an unseasonable pressure differential kept the winds at 15+ mph for most of the day, and we saw relatively few birds until we reached Sixty-mile Bank. Occasional LEACH’S STORM-PETRELS and a couple of COOK’S PETRELS in Los Angeles County waters, and two fly-by CRAVERI’S MURRELETS were the highlights until the Sixty-mile Bank. At the bank we anchored for dinner and put out a large tuna oil slick. Over the next hour and a half we were treated to excellent views of dozens of LEACH’S and BLACK STORM-PETRELS. Mixed in among them were a few LEAST STORM-PETRELS, and through the efforts of Todd and Mary, EVERYONE got good looks at this smallest of the World’s Storm-petrels. Another small storm-petrel mixed in with the Leach’s turned out to be a summer breeding Guadalupe LEACH’S STORM-PETREL. There has been some discussion over the years on the taxonomy of Leach’s subspecies, and at least some have proposed elevating the two Guadalupe Island breeders to full species status. Under normal circumstances, identification of Guadalupe birds would be difficult, but direct comparison with other Leach’s showed the smaller size and coloration differences well. After our final dinner, we stayed at Sixty-mile Bank until 2300. Captain Kevin Ward then pulled up the anchor and set course for San Diego. We arrived in harbor early next morning, and after docking and wishing each other well, set off to our respective destinations.

While the weather was less than cooperative for much of our journey, we saw an excellent variety of birds, most very well. We ate well, and enjoyed the company of a great group of birders. We hope to see all of you in the field or out on the ocean again.

Picture Gallery

DATE: April 13- 17, 2005

TRIP: Offshore Birding Trip

Daily Journal

Picture Gallery

Species List

Daily Journal

13 April: San Diego towards Los Angeles.

We departed Fisherman’s Landing at noon on Wednesday the 13th, and headed to the bait docks so many of our out-of-state and Canadian birders could fill up on local species such as Brandt’s Cormorants, Western gulls, Heermann’s Gulls, and the ubiquitous California Sea Lions. From here we headed out of San Diego Harbor, out past Point Loma, and once we were three miles offshore, given access to the upper deck and bridge area, from where our view of our surroundings improved dramatically. The ocean temperature was near 60° F (15° C.), During the day the weather was comfortable, with slight NW winds, temperatures in the low 60’s and a 3-4’ swell out of the NW. Nothing out of the ordinary, but enough to make at least one of your leaders queasy. Once out on the ocean, we headed NNW paralleling the coast at a distance of 10-20 miles for the remainder of the day. Apart from the bird species, we also had good looks at fin whales, a species we’ve seen in this area each of the three years that we’ve now done these trips.

14 April: Santa Barbara Channel, Anacapa Island, Santa Cruz Basin, Santa Rosa Passage, Cojo Anchorage.

At 0500 we were south of Santa Barbara, but with a bit of a swell out of the W, and the weather forecast predicting increasing winds throughout the day, we decided to spend the day more comfortably and headed SE towards Anacapa Island. We reached the island a little after breakfast, and circumnavigated this smallest of the Channel Islands while keeping an eye out for Pigeon Guillemots and Pelagic Cormorants. Both species were seen to everyone’s satisfaction, while a few handfuls of popcorn seemed to attract every Western gull on the island. We passed Arch rock on the east end of the island and then headed SW towards the Santa Cruz Basin, a deepwater region that lies to the south of Santa Cruz and Santa Rosa Islands. An additional benefit of this route was that it allowed us to bird comfortably throughout the day while in the lee of the northern Channel Islands. by 2 PM we were near the Santa Rosa Passage, and the number of Pigeon Guillemots and Pacific Loons increased, a sure sign that the water was getting shallower. We finally entered the western edge of the Santa Barbara Channel, and headed NW towards Cojo Anchorage, just east of Point Conception. By now the wind had worked up a considerable swell, but it amounted to a few hours of pitching before we entered the lee of the mainland and pulled into Cojo Anchorage. Here the wind was blowing over 20 mph (35 km/h), but with land within ½ mile we rode at anchor comfortably. As a bonus we picked up three Gray Whales, a Turkey Vulture, several Black Brant, and a Barn Swallow. An unusual touch was seeing trains pass by along the coast and hearing their whistles as the evening closed in. After another fine supper, everyone got a good night’s sleep, at least until 0400.

15 April Cojo Anchorage, Patton Escarpment, San Juan Seamount

Kevin Ward pulled the anchor at 0400, and headed as close to the wind as he dared once we left the lee of the mainland. We were trying for a SW course, but the swells were a bit too large, so we settled for a heading of 190°, which would take us towards San Juan Seamount by the afternoon. At first light we were NW of San Miguel Island, the water temperature was close to 50° F (10° C), and the wind was gusting above 30 mph, or near-gale conditions. Luckily, we had the swells on our stern quarter, and the “Searcher” rode them well. Large numbers of birds were present, including dozens of Bonaparte’s Gulls, several Common Murres, and small flocks of Cassin’s Auklets. Most passengers were still in their bunks at 0630 when the first Murphy’s Petrel crossed in front of the bridge at about 30’. Todd McGrath immediately got on the intercom, called out the sighting, but to no avail; the bird was long gone, and the intercom was out of commission due to a loose wire. The wire was tightened, the bird re-announced, and wonder of wonders, suddenly 20 people were out on deck waiting for the next sighting. It came rather quickly, once again passing in front of the boat, but at 0745 a third Murphy’s Petrel came up the wake and hung above the stern for close to a minute before veering off. It was called out by one of the leaders, seen well by everyone, and then strung into a Northern Fulmar by the leader who didn’t see sufficient white wing flash to feel comfortable with the identification. Never mind the smaller size, pale chin, dark bill, jerky flight style, bent wings and leaner jizz. Upon due reflection everyone agreed that the leader had suffered an acute attack of single field-characteristicitis, and the Murphy’s Petrel was added to everyone’s life list. By now the water temperature had risen to 56° F (13° C). We continued on this same heading for much of the day, seeing a nice variety of species, including Laysan and Black-footed Albatross, Leach’s Storm-petrel, and good numbers of Pomarine Jaegers that dove for popcorn in the wake. While the weather was impressive, with swells approaching 14’ in height, sailing downwind made for one of those memorable days at sea when one could enjoy the immensity and power of the ocean without suffering the usual side effects. As the day progressed and we got farther south the wind began to lessen, the swells decrease, and after passing over the San Juan Seamount, we headed Southeast over deeper water and reaching the Patton Escarpment by evening.

16 April: Patton Escarpment, Butterfly Bank, 60 Mile Bank

During the night we motored slowly SSE along the Patton Escarpment, and at 0500 were approximately 80 miles (130 km) south of San Nicolas Island. The water temperature was 60.6° F (15.9° C). At this point we turned the “Searcher” around, and began heading upwind, laying out a menhaden oil slick, and boiling cabbage on the galley stove. The idea with the cabbage was that it gives off dimethyl sulfide when heated, which is the same compound released by zooplankton when they feed on phytoplankton. Procellarids are sensitive to this smell, and will fly towards it. We moved upwind for 2 hours before retracing our steps. The slick and cabbage fumes did their magic, and we were rewarded with a Murphy’s Petrel, a Laysan Albatross, a Black-footed Albatross, and several Leach’s Storm-petrels. Not too bad a start to the bird list before 8 AM. The Murphy’s Petrel left us after a while, but the two albatrosses lingered. We began heading east, looking for warmer waters and Red-billed Tropicbirds, but there were few birds visible for much of the time, with only an occasional albatross coming up the stern to investigate us. As we traveled east the water temperature dropped by a dgree or two, and we began to see surprisingly large numbers of Red Phalaropes and Cassin’s Auklets. Leach’s Storm-petrels were also seen on a regular basis, but we were still looking for tropicbirds. Finally by mid –afternoon we spotted first one and then a second Red-billed Tropicbird, both were first spotted on the water, and then flew off as we approached them. Sighting a group of three sperm whales was also a treat. As the afternoon wore on we stopped at Sixtymile Bank, let out a large slick, and had a good gathering of Black Storm-petrels, a few fulmars, and a Black-footed Albatross that gave wonderful views as it devoured some chum near the “Searcher”. Once everyone had seen their fill of these birds, we decided to leave the USA, crossed into Mexican waters, and quickly tallied eight species, including excellent looks at several pairs of Xantus’ Murrelets. We continued to bird until dark, but finally had to give up as it became too dark to identify the birds we saw. We decided to call is a trip. Dinner beckoned, and after one last wrap-up, we all got a good night’s sleep before docking at the berth in San Diego at 7 Am the following morning.

Picture Gallery

Sightings List for Sept. 8-12, 2004 Offshore Birding Trip.

*Note: Although some whales can be difficult to identify
to exact species if observed

only briefly, what was seen on this whale–the falcate
dorsal fin and overall

color– did not point to fin or blue, but to a probable
sei.

Sightings List for April 21-25, 2004 Offshore Birding Trip.

September 4-7, 2003

This trip was our first to take place in late summer/early fall, and as such
was very much an exploratory effort. We decided to take three days and search
the area around the Cortez Bank, which lies 110 miles due west of San Diego,
California, and then continue out into deeper water to the south and west. While
the absolute number of birds wasn’t high, we did get two extraordinary
sightings (Bulwer’s Petrel and Red-tailed Tropicbird), as well as good looks
at some of the more expected late-summer species.

Sightings List for April 24-28, 2003 Offshore Birding Trip.
Compiled by Walter Wehtje and Don DesJardin aboard Searcher.