2:15-3:28 Tide at the beginning of count: 8 feet Tide at the close of count: 10.8 feet Rising tide Weather: sunny, light wind, choppy sea Participants: Sandra Gray, Dan Gray, Bonnie Mullin, Helen Davidson, Liz Bredberg, Gene Gapsis, Meghan MaIsaac
Total brant counted: 4
Zone 1: North area: from Qualicum Beach Viewing Stand north to the mouth of the Little Qualicum River. Brant observed in area: 0
Viewing stand: 1 pedestrian, 2 off-leash dogs, 1 great blue heron, gulls
Qualicum beach: 5 great blue herons, 2 oystercatchers, gulls, 1 pedestrian, one off-
leash dog
1:00 – 3:15 pm Tide at the beginning of count: 6.9 feet Tide at the close of count: 4.1 feet Falling tide Weather: 10-12 C, light breeze, sunny Participants: Sandra Gray, Dan Gray, Claire Summers, Bonnie Mullin, Dave Erickson, Helen Davidson, Tom Whitfield, Liz Bredberg Total brant counted: 4
Zone 1: North area: from Qualicum Beach Viewing Stand north to the mouth of the Little Qualicum River. Total brant counted: 0
Beach Creek: few gulls Qualicum Beach Viewing stand: +/- 25 horned grebes, gulls, mallards, 4 great blue herons Kincade: Buffleheads, 1 Great Blue Heron, small flock (~20) dunlin Surfside E: Buffleheads, gulls, 2 horned grebes, 1 killdeer, seals, 1 sea lion, 8 surf scoters flying eastward, 1 boat in the Qualicum River estuary
Zone 2: Central area: from French Creek Marina to south end of Seacrest Total brant counted: 0
French Creek Marina East: 40 Bonaparte’s gulls, 1 pigeon guillermot, bald eagle French Creek Marina West: Great Blue Heron, 3 house finch Columbia Beach: 6 bufflehead, 1 pedestrian, 1 dog Admiral Tryon E: crows, 2 pedestrians, 1 dog Johnstone Rd.: 1 common loon, 2 bald eagles, crows, 3 oystercatchers Butterball: 2 pedestrians with 1 off-leash dog, 16 red-breasted mergansers, 1 great blue heron, 1 common loon, mixed flock of gulls including Bonapartes’, glaucous winged gulls, short bills,
Zone 3: South area: Rathtrevor Beach, Brant point, West end of Mariner Way, Parksville Bay Total brant counted: 4 Parksville Beach: lots of sand showing, 1 loose dog on beach scattered 20 gulls, no divers or dabblers seen, 3 orcas close in—just off the sandbar at Arbutus Point, headed toward river mouth Mariner Way: 1 group of about 20 pacific loons, a few common loons, no other divers or dabblers seen Rathtrevor: low tide with very few people on the extensive sandflats. About 220 gulls along the waterline, 2 great blue heron, no brant seen. 21 white-fronted geese overhead headed toward the Englishman River Estuary. Five more orcas seen, possible part of group seen earlier, along the West shore of Ballenas Island N. Madrona Point: Four brant on the back of the sandbar close to Brant Point, 3 common loons, 2 pigeon guillermot, scattered gulls, 2 black oystercatchers, very few birds observed.
Weather: clear, light breeze, calm sea, then rippled
Participants: Sandra Gray, Dan Gray, Claire Summers, Bonnie Mullins, Dave Erickson, Tom Whitfield, Liz Thorne, Jim Thorne, Dennis Horwood, Jane Osborne, Gene Gapsis, Meghan MacIsaac, Liz Bredberg
Total brant counted: 23
Zone 1: North area: from Qualicum Beach Viewing Stand north to the mouth of the Little Qualicum River.
Total brant counted in area: 3 flying near Surfside Dr. #
Seaside Nature Park: bufflehead, horned grebes in breeding plumage, red-breasted mergansers hunting, common loons, few gulls
Surfside Dr. E. 3 brant flying, 25+ bufflehead, 18 red-breasted mergansers, 19 horned grebes, 23+ pacific loons, 6 common loons, gonaparte’s gulls, scattered gulls—gull numbers down considerably
Zone 2: Central area: from French Creek Marina to south end of Seacrest
Total brant counted in area: 0
French Creek Marina, west side: Bonaparte’s gulls, loons, 5 murrelets, horned grebes, red necked mergansers, common mergansers
French Creek Marina, east side: common mergansers, mallards, 2 killdeer
Columbia Beach: Great Blue Heron, 4 murrelets, gulls, loons, mallards, Bonaparte’s gulls
Admiral Tryon West: bald eagle, crows, yellowlegs. 1 pedestrian
Time 1:20-2:30 Tide at the beginning of count: 10.4 feet Tide at the close of count: 9.3 feet falling tide Weather: Clear, light wind, choppy sea Participants: Sandra Gray, Dan Gray, Gene Gapsis, Meghan MacIsaac, Claire Summers , Bonnie Mullin, Dave Erickson, Catherine Watson, Liz Thorne, Jim Thorne, Liz Bredberg
Total brant counted: 630
Zone 1: North area: from Qualicum Beach Viewing Stand north to the mouth of the Little Qualicum River.
QB viewing stand: 0 Brant, gulls, 15 American wigeons
Time: 10:15-11:35 Tide at the beginning of count: 9 feet Tide at the close of count: 9.7 feet Turning tide Weather: 9C, brisk breeze, clear, good visibility Participants: (12) Sandra Gray, Dan Gray, Claire Summers, Bonnie Mullin, Dave Erickson, Helen Davidson, Liz Thorne, Jim Thorne, Toni Wykoff, Gene Gapsis, Jane Osborne,Liz Bredberg Total brant counted: 1687
Zone 1: North area: from Qualicum Beach Viewing Stand north to the mouth of the Little Qualicum River. Brant counted: 80
No rafts of ducks observed.
Beach creek: gulls, 2 buffleheads
Viewing Stand: Few gulls, mallards, 1 eagle flying
Kincade: 1 juvenile bald eagle, few gulls, small flock dunlin, few scoters flying
Surfside E: Few gulls, group of mergansers on water
Surfside W: few gulls, few wigeons, dunlin, few scoters in flight
Zone 2: Central area: from French Creek Marina to south end of Seacrest Brant counted: 60
FC Marina S: 30 Bonapartes gulls, 3 c. mergansers
FC Estuary: Gulls, wigeons, mallards
Columbia Beach: 10 eagles, 6 RB mergansers, 40 bufflehead,
Zone 3: South area: Rathtrevor Beach, Brant point, West end of Mariner Way, Parksville Bay
Onshore N breeze 8-10k, lots of sand showing at Rathtrevor with brant on the back of the
gravel bars. Very few people on the beaches, one dog off leash at Parksville Bay. Very few
diving ducks; gulls, most have likely gone north to breeding grounds. Brant counted: 1547
Rathtrevor/Craig Bay/Brant Point: 500 brant feeding at waterline with scattered gulls,
450 brant close to Brant Pt.
Mariner Way: 270 brant at mouth of Englishman River
Parksville Community Park: about 270 brant in the bay feeding with gulls mid-bay. 57
brant in front of Surfside RV Resort, 25 Bufflehead, scoters flying up and down Salish
Sea.
