The San Diego pelagic trip on Saturday, September 7, out of Mission Bay aboard “Legacy” and sponsored by Buena Vista Audubon Society was held under very nice sea conditions. Keeping the theme of much of 2024, overall bird numbers were lower than average, but several good birds were seen. Leading the pack for many aboard was the cooperative Red-billed Tropicbird at the border between the San Diego Trough and 30-Mile Bank, some 24-3/4 miles west of Point Loma. Seen well both at rest and in flight, it was an adult with a mid-length tail. Not far away, on the 30-Mile Bank, was an adult Long-tailed Jaeger, also cooperative. A total of 4 Black-footed Albatrosses included 1 on the 30-Mile Bank and 3 in the San Diego Trough. A good total of 20+ Townsend’s Storm-Petrels was had on the 30-Mile Bank and western San Diego Trough, but the single Least Storm-Petrel was seen only by a very few observers. Also seen were a single Brown (Cocos) Booby, Sabine’s Gull, several Red Phalaropes, a semi-pelagic American Coot, and a Yellow Warbler that landed on the boat.
Totals for the day once we got about a mile offshore were as follows:
- American Coot: 1
- Red-necked Phalarope: 100
- Red Phalarope: 6
- Pomarine Jaeger: 9
- Long-tailed Jaeger: 1
- jaeger sp.: 1
- Cassin’s Auklet: 1
- Sabine’s Gull: 1
- Heermann’s Gull: 10
- Western Gull: 225
- California Gull: 1
- Common Tern: 4
- Elegant Tern: 25
- Red-billed Tropicbird: 1
- Black-footed Albatross: 4
- Leach’s Storm-Petrel: 2 (Chapman’s)
- Townsend’s Storm-Petrel: 20
- Leach’s/Townsend’s Storm-Petrel: 10
- Black Storm-Petrel: 100
- Least Storm-Petrel: 1
- Sooty Shearwater: 7
- Pink-footed Shearwater: 125
- Black-vented Shearwater: 25
- Brown (Cocos) Booby: 1
- Brandt’s Cormorant: 4
- Brown Pelican: 150
- Yellow Warbler: 1
- Also: Surfbirds, Striped Marlin, Mola-Mola, California Flying-Fish, Elephant Seal
Paul Lehman, Dave Povey, Bruce Rideout, Dan Jehl, Dan King, Paul Mulholland, San Diego