Date: 5 May 2025 Time: 12:05-2:35
Tide at the beginning of count: 8.2 ft
Tide at the close of count: 11.7 ft
Rising tide
Weather: calm wind, calm seas, overcast
Participants: Sandy Gray, Dan Gray, Dave Erickson, Liz Thorne, Jim Thorne, Toni Wyckoff, Bonnie Mullin, Liz Bredberg
Total brant counted: 0
Zone 1: North area:
Qualicum Beach—Judges Row, Tourist Infor (Beach Creek), and the gazebo viewing stand.
East end of Surfside Drive, Offshore view
Little Qualicum Estuary, west end of Surfside Dr. and mouth of Little Qualicum River
Total brant counted in area: 0
Other birds observed: 1 Bonaparte’s gull, 2 red-necked grebes, 4 crows, 3 common loons, 8 common mergansers, 30 gull sp., 2 bald eagles, 2 pacific loons, 2 harlequin ducks, 1 whimbrel, 4 great blue herons
No dogs
Zone 2: Central area:
French Creek Marina—east side view offshore and towards Parksville, view the creek mouth from the west side
Columbia Beach, Admiral Tryon Blvd. east; view offshore, and French Creek River mouth
Admiral Tryon West, beach access to tidal pools
Foot of Butterball, off Pintail & Yambury Rd.
West end of Seacrest Place (Apenes), off Eaglecrest Dr. at Pintail Dr
Total brant counted in area: 0
Other birds observed: Bonaparte’s gulls, merlin, pacific & common loons, herons on nests, eagles on nests, kingfisher, black oystercatcher, purple martins, violet-green swallows, killdeer, mallard, American wigeon, raft of ~70 common mergansers, loose raft of surf scoters, loons
Zone 3: South area:
Rathtrevor Beach, Brant Point, Craig Bay,
West end of Mariner Way—view offshore and to river mouth,
Parksville Bay, Parksville Community Park—from the Labyrinth view offshore, sandbars, and west shore of PVBay
Total brant counted in area: 0
Other birds observed: white-crowned sparrow, 8 duck sp (very distant), 4 common loons, bald eagle, 3 gull species, 1 pacific loon, swallow species
Participants: Sandra Gray, Dan Gray, Dave Erickson, Liz Thorne, Jim Thorne, Linda Horsepool, Susan Knoerr, Toni Wyckoff, Bonnie Mullin, Jane Osborne, Liz Bredberg
Total brant counted: 125
Zone 1: North area:
Qualicum Beach—Tourist Info (Beach Creek), and the gazebo viewing stand.
Foot of Kincaid Rd. beach access
East end of Surfside Drive, Offshore view
West end of Surfside Dr. and mouth of Little Qualicum River
Total brant counted in area: 0
Other birds observed: 52 Pacific loons, 3 horned grebe, scoters, 82 common mergansers hunting, 2 black oystercatchers, 12 pelagic cormorant, 2 harlequin ducks, 3 great blue heron, 23 eagles, 300 gulls, 2 yellowlegs, 1 killdeer, red-winged and brewer’s blackbirds, 12 dunlin, Eurasian collard doves
Zone 2: Central area:
French Creek Marina—east side view offshore and towards Parksville, view the creek mouth from the west side
Columbia Beach, Admiral Tryon Blvd. east; view offshore, and French Creek River mouth
Admiral Tryon West, beach access to tidal pools
Foot of Johnstone Rd.
Foot of Butterball, off Pintail & Yambury Rd.
West end of Seacrest Place (Apenes), off Eaglecrest Dr. at Pintail Dr
Total brant counted in area: 0
Other birds observed: 37 common loons, 18 cormorant sp., 19 eagles, 2 red neck grebes, 16 common mergansers, 30 Bonapartes gulls, 50 gull sp., 1 Pacific loon, 2 oyster catcher, 1 pigeon guillermot, 100 scoter sp includes white-winged scoters, 2 common murrelets, 1 horned grebe, 200 gull sp, 4 crows
Zone 3: South area:
Rathtrevor Beach, Brant Point
West end of Mariner Way—view offshore and to river mouth, may need to walk to river
Parksville Bay, Parksville Community Park—from the Labyrinth view offshore, sandbars, and west shore of PVBay
Total brant counted: 125
Other birds observed: 8 bald eagles, crow, white-crowned sparrow, 2 common mergansers, 1 black-headed grosbeak, 2 black oystercatcher, 8 American wigeons, cormorant sp., 2 great-blue herons, killdeer, gulls including glaucous-winged gulls.
Date: 21 April 2025 Time: 1:00-2:45
Tide at the beginning of count: 5.09 feet
Tide at the close of count: 9 feet
rising tide
Weather: clear, calm, slight chop on sea
Participants: Susan Knoerr, Linda Horspool, Bonnie Mullin, Tom Whitfield, Toni Wyckoff, Catharine Watson, Liz & Jim Thorne, Sandy & Dan Gray, Dave Erickson, Meghan MacIsaac, Jane Osborne, Helen Davidson, Liz Bredberg
Total brant counted: 0
Zone 1: North area:
Tourist Info (Beach Creek), and the gazebo viewing stand.
Foot of Kincaid Rd. beach access
East end of Surfside Drive, Offshore view
Little Qualicum Estuary, west end of Surfside Dr. and mouth of Little Qualicum River
1 pedestrian with dog (photo)
Total brant counted in area: 0
Other birds observed: 4 buffleheads, Pacific loon, 5 oystercatchers, wigeons, mallards, 4 common mergansers, 9 red-breasted mergansers, gulls, short-billed gulls, 2 great blue herons (1 in flight), robins, goldfinch, white-crowned sparrow, 2 red crossbills (male & female), pelagic cormorant, 14 harlequin ducks, crows, brewers blackbirds, pine siskins, red-winged blackbirds, 13 black-bellied plovers, 16 buffleheads, widgeons, mallards, Bonapartes gulls, 1 greater yellowlegs, 2 killdeer (mating)
Zone 2: Central area:
French Creek Marina—east side view offshore and towards Parksville, view the creek mouth from the west side
Admiral Tryon Blvd. east; view offshore, and French Creek River mouth
Admiral Tryon West, beach access to tidal pools
Foot of Johnstone Rd.
Foot of Butterball, off Pintail & Yambury Rd.
West end of Seacrest Place (Apenes), off Eaglecrest Dr. at Pintail Dr
Date: 14 April 2025 Time: 10:30-12:00
Tide at the beginning of count: 8.3 feet
Tide at the close of count: 5.2 feet
falling tide
Weather: cloudy, mild temperatures, wind calm, sea mild chop
Participants: Sandy & Dan Gray, Dave Erickson, Meghan MacIsaac, Toni Wykhoff, Liz Bredberg
Total brant counted: 1291
Zone 1: North area:
Qualicum Beach—Tourist Infor (Beach Creek), and the gazebo viewing stand.
Foot of Kincaid Rd. beach access
East end of Surfside Drive, Offshore view
Little Qualicum Estuary, west end of Surfside Dr. and mouth of Little Qualicum River
Total brant counted in area: 150, including 50 spooked by bald eagle surfside E
Other birds observed: 92 buffleheads, 11 mallards, 5 horned grebes, 3 bald eagle, raven, 4d loons, 2 red-necked grebes, brant flying northward, song sparrow, dispersed flock of divers, 18 red-breasted mergansers, 10 brant flying northwards at Seacroft, 2 common mergansers,
Violet-green swallows, 500+ Gulls, 36 scoters
1 pedestrian with large dog off-leash at water’s edge! (photos)
Zone 2: Central area:
French Creek Marina—east side view offshore and towards Parksville, view the creek mouth from the west side
Columbia Beach
Admiral Tryon Blvd. east; view offshore, and French Creek River mouth
Admiral Tryon West, beach access to tidal pools
West end of Seacrest Place (Apenes), off Eaglecrest Dr. at Pintail Dr
Total brant counted in area: 126
Other birds observed: small flocks of scoters, common mergansers hunting as a group, wigeon at FC mount, 1 yellowlegs,
Seacrest: Brant seen way out, pacific loons, scoters, Bonapartes gulls scattered, few other gulls, RB mergansers hunting along shore.
ALL BRANT OBSERVED WERE IN FLIGHT.
Zone 3: South area:
Rathtrevor Beach,
West end of Mariner Way—view offshore and to river mouth, may need to walk to river
Parksville Bay, Parksville Community Park—from the Labyrinth view offshore, sandbars, and west shore of PVBay
Total brant counted: 1015
Other birds observed: 100 dunlin, small raft of scoters, 1 bald eagle, assorted gulls, a second large murmuration of dunlin, 6 shovelers, 20 pintail, medium raft of scoters, 2 red-breasted mergansers. ~100 wigeons, 2 common loons, many gulls, 1 crow
– no dogs but 1 human got too close, spooked Rathtrevor brant. Eagle spooked Mariner Way brant.
Weather: Initially wet and windy, choppy seas, drier as morning progressed, wind dropped, seas calmed to mild chop
Participants: Tom Whitfield, Helen Davidson, Susan Knoerr, Linda Horspool, Sandy Gray, Dan Gray, Meghan MacIsaac, Dave Erickson, Bonnie Mullin, Jim Thorne, Liz Bredberg
Total brant counted: 794
Zone 1: North area:
Qualicum Beach—Tourist Info (Beach Creek), and the gazebo viewing stand. Foot of Kincaid Rd. beach access
East end of Surfside Drive, Offshore view
Little Qualicum Estuary, west end of Surfside Dr. and mouth of Little Qualicum River
Total brant counted in area: 101 brant
Other birds observed: common mergansers, 80+ American wigeon mixed with mallard. 210 bufflehead. At Little Qualicum River mouth & estuary, extensive spread of mixed dabblers (wigeon, mallard, pintails). Small flocks spooked by eagles and gulls. Gull numbers down from previous week, about 500 seen in area, 7 black oystercatchers, eagles at their nests, hunting.
Zone 2: Central area:
French Creek Marina—east side view offshore and towards Parksville, view the creek mouth from the west side
Columbia Beach, Admiral Tryon Blvd. east; view offshore, and French Creek River mouth
Admiral Tryon West, beach access to tidal pools
Foot of Johnstone Rd.
Foot of Butterball, off Pintail & Yambury Rd.
West end of Seacrest Place (Apenes), off Eaglecrest Dr. at Pintail Dr
Total brant counted in area: 128
Other birds observed: 4 bald eagles (spooked ducks & gulls), mallards, 24 + wigeons, 4 common mergansers, 1 Bonaparte’s gull, 50 scoters, 4 Canada geese, 3 cormorant sp., 2 loons, 16 surf scoters, robin, 1 killdeer, siskins, very large mixed raft of divers, including surf scoters and brant, 8 black-bellied plovers (in breeding plumage), 5 turnstones
Zone 3: South area:
Rathtrevor Beach, Brant Point, Craig Bay, may need to walk to the right along the bay
West end of Mariner Way—view offshore and to river mouth, may need to walk to river
Parksville Bay, Parksville Community Park—from the Labyrinth view offshore, sandbars, and west shore of PVBay
Total brant counted: 565
Other birds observed: Canada Goose, American Wigeon, Mallard, Northern Pintail, Green Winged Teal, Horned Grebe in breeding plumage, Common Loon, Common Merganser, Red-breasted Merganser, Bufflehead, Common Goldeneye, Dunlin, Black-bellied Plovers, Surf scoters, White-winged scoters, Greater Scaup, Pelagic cormorant, Red-necked grebe, Common Murre, Pigeon Guillemot, Black Oystercatcher, Bald Eagle, White-crowned sparrow, bald eagle, raven, crow
Date: 31 March Time: 10:30-12:00
Tide at the beginning of count: 6.79 feet
Tide at the close of count: 3.35 feet
turning tide
Weather: Sunny, mild, calm sea
Participants: Helen Davidson, Bonnie Mullin, Liz Thorne, Jim Thorne, Toni Wyckoff, Linda Horspool, Sandy Gray, Dan Gray, Meghan MacIsaac, Dave Erickson, Jane Osborne, Catherine Watson, Liz Bredberg
Total brant counted: 1868
1. North Area
– Qualicum Beach, Tourist Info Bureau, and the gazebo viewing stand – foot of Kinkaid Rd., beach access – east end of Surfside Drive – Little Qualicum Estuary, west end of Surfside Dr. & mouth of Little Q River.
Total brant counted in area: 250+
Other birds observed: 11 Bufflehead, 2 wigeon, 4 common loon, horned grebe, 20 +harlequin ducks, vast raft of mixed divers including scaup, surf scoters, huge flock of gulls (~10,000), including 150 short-billed gulls, 8 bald eagles, brewers blackbirds, 5 oystercatchers, 2 common loons in breeding plumage, bonaparte’s gulls, 15 black-bellied plovers, 12 wigeons, 50 mallards, 20 goldeneyes.
3 women with dogs on leash (photos on file)
2. Central Area
– French Creek Marina, east side looking out towards Parksville, and view the creek mouth from the west side. – Columbia Beach, Admiral Tryon Blvd., east; view offshore, and French Creek River mouth. -Admiral Tryon West, beach access to tidal pools. – foot of Johnstone Rd. – foot of Butterball, off Pintail & Yambury Rd. – west end of Seacrest Place (Apenes), off Eaglecrest Dr. at Pintail Dr.
1 dog on leash, 2 dogs off leash (photo available), 1 swimmer in wetsuit
3. South Area
– Rathtrevor Beach – west end of Mariner Way, view to river mouth. – Parksville Bay, Parksville Community Park, from the Labyrinth, view off shore, sandbars, and back into the bay.
Total brant counted: 1541
Other birds observed: gulls, dabblers, 2 rafts of divers (scaup & scoters)
