The San Diego pelagic trip on Saturday, 14 August, aboard “Legacy” and sponsored by Buena Vista Audubon Society, out to the 30-Mile Bank and “The Corner” was very successful! Reasonably good sea conditions, excellent birds, and more bird activity for much of the day than has been the norm in recent times! A major highlight certainly was the 6 (possibly 7) COOK’S PETRELS scattered during the day, with good views and including birds as close to shore as the eastern San Diego Trough. Also good looks at various TOWNSEND’S STORM-PETRELS–as many as 8+ birds–a high count of approx. 30 Leach’s Storm-Petrels, 2 Ashy Storm-Petrels, a BLACK TERN and a young ARCTIC TERN with Common Terns, some 5 LONG-TAILED JAEGERS, 5 Sabine’s Gulls of varying ages, 2 rare-in-summer NORTHERN FULMARS, some 8 CRAVERI’S MURRELETS (mostly only in flight), a rare-in-August Scripps’s Murrelet, and 8 Brown Boobies. Unfortunately, a single LEAST STORM-PETREL was seen by just a very few observers. Several Surfbirds were on the Mission Bay jetties. Copious photos from the trip will be posted with the e-Bird reports in a few days, and elsewhere. Totals for the day beyond 2 miles offshore were:
Red-necked Phalarope 60
Pomarine Jaeger 1
Long-tailed Jaeger 5 (scattered)
Scripps’s Murrelet 1 (very rare this late in season)
Craveri’s Murrelet 8 (scattered, seen almost only in flight)
murrelet sp. 4
Cassin’s Auklet 3 (poor views)
Sabine’s Gull 5
Heermann’s Gull 12
Western Gull 160
Black Tern 1 (30-Mile Bank)
Common Tern 16
Arctic Tern 1 (30-Mile Bank)
Elegant Tern 500
Ashy Storm-Petrel 2
Leach’s Storm-Petrel 30 (including many dark-rumped “Chapman’s” types)
Townsend’s Storm-Petrel 8
Black Storm-Petrel 80
Least Storm-Petrel 1
COOK’S PETREL 6 (1 at the Corner that put on a good show, 2 on 30-Mile Bank, 3 in SD Trough to within about 18 miles of shore)
Northern Fulmar 2
Pink-footed Shearwater 170
Sooty Shearwater 25
Black-vented Shearwater 250
Brown Booby 8
Brown Pelican 17
Double-crested Cormorant 1
Also, brief views of Fin, Briede’s, Humpback, and probably Minke Whales.
The September pelagic sponsored by Buena Vista Audubon aboard Legacy is full, but the early October trip still has space and has the same good potential.
—Paul Lehman, Dave Povey, Bruce Rideout, Dan Jehl, Gary Nunn, and the many participants; San Diego
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