by Brant_admin | Mar 27, 2024 | Brant Count
12:00 PM
Tide at the beginning of count: 7.1 feet
Tide at the close of count: 6 feet
Falling tide
Weather: sunny, mild, +10C, light breeze, glare on sea
Participants: 14
Total brant counted: 2092
At least 5000 gulls
Divers..scattered goldeney, bufflehead, horned and red-necked grebes, scotersDabblers, 90% American wigeon, 10% mallards, pintails in mix
All birds spooked by eagles & gull movement several times over 90 minutes observation
Zone 1: North area: from Qualicum Beach Viewing Stand north to the mouth of the Little
Qualicum River.
Total brant observed in zone: 92
Kincaid: 2 scoters, flying south 2 rafts of approx. 3000 scoters, scaups, bufflehead,
Mergansers sighted, 1 loon sp, 2 Great blue herons
Surfside west: 90 brant, 2 Great blue herons, 2 red-breasted mergansers, 2 hooded
mergansers
Surfside east: 0 brant
Zone 2: Central area: from French Creek Marina to south end of Seacrest
Total brant observed in zone: 1890
French Creek Marina east side: 10 brant, 3 pelagic cormorants, eagles, 1 harbour seal,
California sea lions, 2000 gull sps, common loon, western grebes, white winged scoters
in flight
French Creek Marina west side: gulls, 300+ American wigeons (spooked by eagle, flew
off to the north)
Columbia Beach, : 800-1000 brant, 400 American wigeons (likely includes the birds from
FC Marina west), 6 Pacific, common loons, 4 red-breasted mergansers, 18 double-
crested cormorants in flight, scaup, oyster catcher, 40 buffleheads, 1000 gulls
Admiral Tryon Pond: 1800 brant, 800+ gull sp., scoters buffleheads, wigeons, mallards
Butterball Beach: 80 brant, Great Blue Heron, Bonaparte gulls, surf scoters, yellowleg,
eagle, 1000
Zone 3: South area: Rathtrevor Beach, Brant point, West end of Mariner Way, Parksville Bay
Total brant observed in zone: 110
Rathtrevor: very low tide, 60 brant 3 great blue herons, gulls, many people on beach,
21 at waterline. No dogs.
Mariner way: gadwall, wigeons, 1 oystercatcher, 2 killdeer, gulls in estuary
Parksville beach: 50 brant landed at east end of beach, several mergansers, 1 eagle,
bufflehead, goldeneyes, few cormorants flew past.
by Brant_admin | Mar 20, 2024 | Brant Count
Photo: Jim Thorne
19 MARCH 2024
1:30-3:30 PDT
Tide at the beginning of count: 11.6 feet
Tide at the close of count: 10.6 feet
Falling tide
Weather: clear, mild, light breeze, slight chop on sea
Participants: 14
Total brant counted: 983
Zone 1: North area: from Qualicum Beach Viewing Stand north to the mouth of the Little Qualicum River.
Total brant in zone: 18
- 1:50 to 2:05 No brant observed at Qualicum Beach Viewing Stand. Multitude of gulls, 2 oystercatchers, turnstones.
- 2:10 to 2:20 Kincaid –no brant observed. Gulls, dunlin, sea lions, harlequin ducks
- 2:25 to 2:40 Surfside E—no brant observed. Gulls, sea lions, 1 cormorant, grebes, goldeneye, immature bald eagle
- 2:45-3:10 Surfside W—18 brant on a distant sandbar among gulls, sea lions, pintails
Zone 2: Central area: from French Creek Marina to south end of Seacrest
Total brant in zone: 522
- French Creek: 0 brant; 2 pigeon guillemots
- Admiral Tryon West: 8 brant flying north; ~300 scoters and greater scaups mixed
- Admiral Tryon East: ~350 brant; very large flock of gulls
- Johnstone Rd: ~150 brant; 6 Greater yellowlegs, very large flock of gulls
- Butterball: 0 brant; very large flock of gulls
- Seacrest: 14 brant flying south; very large flock of gulls
Zone 3: South area: Rathtrevor Beach, Brant point, West end of Mariner Way, Parksville Bay
Total brant in zone: 443
- Rathtrevor beach, Brant Point: 80 brant observed, scattered by eagle. 35 people on beach, several dogs on leash along path, 600 + gulls, 30 + goldeneyes, buffleheads, grebes.
- Mariner Way: 19 brant; 30+ goldeneyes, 1 common merganser, 10 surf scoters flying, ~20 wigeon, 3 white-winged scoters flying, few gulls, 1 seal
- Community park, Parksville Bay: 335 brant. 3 Canada geese, American wigeons, 1 Eurasian wigeon, 2 gadwall, 30+mallards, raft of scoter sp., 1 kingfisher
by Brant_admin | Mar 13, 2024 | Brant Count
Hours: 1:30-3:30 PDT
Tide at beginning of count: 5.3 feet
Tide at end of count: 7.8 feet
Rising tide.
Weather: mostly clear, light wind, light chop on sea
Participants: 13
Total brant counted: 668
Count covered the entire length of the PQBWMA, divided into three zones:
Zone 1: North Area; From Qualicum Beach Viewing Stand north to the mouth of the Little
Qualicum River
137 Brant counted
Herring spawn between SNP & Kincade Rd.
Seaside Nature Park: 108 brant, 3 rafts of scoters, 3-400 pacific loons diving and active
in spawn, twelve bald eagles.
Off Kincade: 21 brant, 2 rafts of sea lions.
Surfside East 8 Brant
Zone 2: Central Area: From French Creek Marina to south end of Seacrest
87 brant at Admiral Tryon Pond, 50 flying northward
8 people on beach, 3 dogs off leash at Butterball/Seacrest, spooked scoters
Scoters, 1 common loon, goldeneyes, bufflehead, harlequin ducks, 2 juvenile eagles
Zone 3: South Area: Rathtrevor Beach, Brant Point, west end of Mariner Way, Parksville Beach
4 walkers near tideline at Rathtrevor, no dogs.
404 brant observed
Rathtrevor: 200 brant, 200 dunlin, scoters, gulls, mixed raft of scaups and scoters.
Mariner way: 4 brant in flight
Parksville Bay: 200 brant, 2 rafts of approx. 400 scoters in the bay, 15 snow geese in the park, 2
oystercatchers, pintails
Photo: Angie Ooms
by Brant_admin | Mar 9, 2024 | Brant Count
Hours: 1:30-3:30 PM
Tide at beginning of count: 12.3 feet – Tide at end of count: 9.6 feet – Falling tide
Weather: sun/cloud, light wind., choppy seas
Participants: 13
Total brant counted: approx. 527
Count covered the entire length of the PQBWMA, divided into three zones:
Zone 1: North Area; From Qualicum Beach Viewing Stand north to the mouth of the Little Qualicum River
- No brant observed
- Gulls, sea lions on sandbar at the mouth of the river
- 8 common goldeneyes, 2 common mergansers, 8 pintails, bufflehead, mallards and American wigeons.
- 1 walker with small dog on leash
- 1 herring seiner
- 1 coast guard vessel
- 1 zodiac, southbound, very fast
Zone 2: Central Area: From French Creek Marina to south end of Seacrest
- 7 Brant counted
- 3 Fishboats
- Gull frenzy at herring ball at mouth of French Creek
- 30 Eagles
- At Seacrest, 1 dog scattered gulls & loons
- 200 Dunlin counted, 100 wigeon, mixed flock of mallards & wigeons
Zone 3: South Area: Rathtrevor Beach, Brant Point, west end of Mariner Way, Parksville Beach
- 520 Brant counted; 475 at Rathrevor, 45 seen flying southward at Mariner Way
- 5 people walking Rathtrevor Beach
- Dunlin, plovers on beach at Rathtrevor
- Gulls, mergansers, buffleheads observed at Mariner Way
- 2 fishing boats to the north
- Raft of approx.. 1500 scoters in Parksville Bay
- Gulls, 2 oyster catchers
- 17 Bald eagles on thermals
Submitted by Liz Bredberg
Photo: Liz Bredberg
