Welcome!

Welcome to Quoddy Link's Bird Blog! A place to report the many bird species sighted while aboard the Quoddy Link. Sightings are recorded by the skilled interpreters aboard the Quoddy link's whale watching catamaran that frequents the areas around Campobello Island, Deer Island and Grand Manan. For more information about our company, or to make a reservation on one of our trips please visit our main site at www.quoddylinkmarine.com. If you have any comments our questions, or would like to add your own sighting please respond by adding a comment in the comments section below each post or email nickjameshawkins@gmail.com. Thanks and enjoy!

Monday, July 28, 2014

July 12th - 28th

Bird activity in the West Isles of the Bay of Fundy has increased in the last couple weeks. Latest arrivals include numerous RAZORBILLS with their chicks as well as COMMON MURRE. We have still been seeing the odd ATLANTIC PUFFIN on some of our trips.  A few GREAT-BLUE HERONS have started to show up in the islands.

A few hundred BONAPARTE'S GULLS have arrived recently and are feeding in the tide currents around Eastport and the Western Passage. There have been many groups of LEAST and SEMIPLAMATED SANDPIPERS moving through the area.

Whitehorse Island has been very active with many of the young gulls fledging. This is a big attraction for the BALD EAGLES in the area and we have seen as many as a dozen of the birds hunting for young gulls on the island. Most of the BLACK LEGGED KITTIWAKES appear to have finished their nesting effort, but a few still seem to be hanging on. We have only recorded one hatched chick so far for the entire colony and as of today he/she was still in the nest.

Shearwaters are still absent from our area, in fact, the only tubenose I have seen so far is the odd LEACH"S STORM PETREL.

Sightings of interest by day are as follows...

July 12th - an adult PEREGRINE FALCON was seen flying towards the gull colonies off Northwestern Harbour, Deer Island.

July 17th - a LEACH'S STORM PETREL was seen in Passamaquoddy Bay

July 24th - 40+ RED-NECKED PHALAROPES were sighted off Bliss Island Lighthouse and the first and only known Kittiwake chick was seen at Whitehorse Island. Many groups of small peeps, mostly SEMIPALMATED and LEAST SANDPIPERS were seen moving through the area and resting on floating rafts of rockweed. A CASPIAN TERN was seen feeding in the waters off Green's Point. One of the only NORTHERN GANNETS seen so far this season was sighted off Campobello Island. A group of 5 COMMON TERNS were seen near Green's Point.

July 27th -  5 adult BALD EAGLES were feeding at the same time on a herring ball just off Head Harbour lighthouse on Campobello Island. The birds took turns swooping down to grab multiple fish in each talon and proceed to eat them on the wing. One bird even plunged into the water and swam around in the mass of fish before managing to take flight again.

Here are some photos from recent trips!

Atlantic Puffin

Atlantic Puffin

Atlantic Puffin

Immature Bald Eagle

Adult bald eagle perched at the Raven nest on Whitehorse Island

Bald Eagles on Campobello Island

Bald eagle feeding on herring

Bald eagle feeding on herring

Bald eagle feeding on herring

Bald eagle feeding on herring

Bald eagle feeding on herring

Bald eagle feeding on herring

Bald eagle feeding on herring

Black guillemot

Black guillemot

Black guillemot with rock gunnel

Black-legged Kittiwake

Black-legged kittiwake with chick on Whitehorse island

Black-legged kittiwakes

Black-legged kittiwakes

Black-legged kittiwakes

Caspian tern near Green's Point

Common murre


Fledgling great black backed gull

Great black-backed gull feedin gon Wolfish taken from a gray seal

Great-blue heron

Great cormorant

Gulls feeding on herring

Gulls feeding on herring

Gulls feeding on herring

Gulls on Whitehorse Island

Adult herring gull with fledgling. Flight lessons?

Juvenile bald eagle

Semipalmated sandpipers

Semipalmated sandpipers

Peregrine Falcon

Razorbill chick with father

Razorbill chick with father

Razorbills

Razorbills and Common murre

Whitehorse Island




1 comment:

  1. Beautiful pictures, amazing captures, especially of the feeding eagles.

    ReplyDelete