The San Diego pelagic trip on Saturday, September 5, aboard “Legacy” out of Seaforth Landing and sponsored by Buena Vista Audubon Society was highlighted by boobies, storm-petrels, and albatrosses. A cooperative Red-footed Booby circled the boat multiple times at the inner edge of the 30-Mile Bank (25.4 mi SW of Point Loma), a young black-and-white booby roosting 8-1/2 miles SW of Point Loma showed the developing bill color of a Nazca, and a total of 8 Cocos Boobies were seen. A good total of 70 Least Storm-Petrels (scattered, but mostly at 30-Mile Bank), plus just a couple Townsend’s and moderate numbers of Leach’s (20+). As many as 20+ Black-footed Albatrosses were seen, mostly at the 30-Mile Bank. A mostly choppy water surface made viewing alcids on the water difficult, and only poor looks were had of one flying pair of Craveri’s Murrelets. Other species seen included Red Phalarope, Arctic Tern, Sabine’s Gull, and 3 offshore Black Turnstones.
Totals for the trip once we were over a mile offshore were as follows:
- Black Turnstone 3
- Red-necked Phalarope 240
- Red Phalarope 7
- Pomarine Jaeger 3
- jaeger sp. 2
- Craveri’s Murrelet 2
- Cassin’s Auklet 28
- Sabine’s Gull 3
- Heermann’s Gull 14
- Western Gull 350
- California Gull 1
- Common Tern 14
- Arctic Tern 2
- Common/Arctic Tern 5
- Elegant Tern 5 (low)
- Black-footed Albatross 20
- Leach’s Storm-Petrel 20
- Townsend’s Storm-Petrel 2
- Leach’s/Townsend’s Storm-Petrel 5
- Black Storm-Petrel 240
- Least Storm-Petrel 70
- Sooty Shearwater 3
- Pink-footed Shearwater 35
- Black-vented Shearwater 50
- Nazca Booby 1
- Masked/Nazca Booby 1
- Cocos Booby 8
- RED-FOOTED BOOBY 1
- Brandt’s Cormorant 7
- Brown Pelican 60
Also, hybrid American X Black Oystercatcher, Surfbirds, Hammerhead Shark, N. Fur Seal, N. Elephant Seal, Calif. Flying Fish, Mola-Mola
Paul Lehman, Bruce Rideout, Dan Jehl, Ted Keyel, Paul Mulholland, Nick Thorpe, Kasia & Jenna, San Diego
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