Birds

Dipping on mega rarities is my Newfoundland kryptonite

Atlantic Canada, BEYOND, Birds, Canada, Travel

So last year and the year before, I narrowly missed the Steller’s Sea Eagle while visiting Newfoundland.

I thought I might give it a shot again this year but there have been no sightings yet this spring, so I decided to finally make a more concentrated effort to find a Willow Ptarmigan.

Chasing birds brings me to some super off the beaten path places, and this time I spent the night in Portugal Cove South.  It is at the bottom of the Irish Loop and pretty much the middle of nowhere and at this time of the year the one restaurant in town is closed until May, so I had to bring some food for the cottage.  Totally worth it just for the morning view of the ocean through the window while drinking coffee in my humble abode.  And the community is surrounded by the South Avalon–Burin oceanic barrens, so perfect terrain for Ptarmigan and Caribou.

I almost didn’t make it because I had one of the worst drives of my life.  For some unknown reason, the car rental agencies don’t think snow tires are necessary in Newfoundland.  They are wrong.  I woke up in the morning to get ready for a sales call and looked out the window to an unexpected dump of snow that was still in progress.  I got stuck trying to get out of the driveway in fact but, since I’m a Cape Bretoner, I know how to drive in bad weather and got myself loose and on my way quickly.  The roads weren’t plowed, and I had to drive 4 highway hours just in between sales calls that day!  It took a while with my hazard lights on, white-knuckled all the way but I was determined not to change my plans and the weather reports said weather would improve as I went East so powered through.

Finally made it to the south of the Avalon peninsula, and I went immediately to bed.  I couldn’t really open the cottage door due to the wind anyway…she was blowing a gale!

Now about that kryptonite.  So, two days after I booked the accommodations, one of the rarest birds ever showed up 6km away from where I was to be staying.  And it stayed for 8 days.  And left the day before I flew onto the island.  Yup.  So I got to stand on the very beach where just 48 hours earlier a Greater Sand-plover was feeding.  I now crown myself the queen of Newfoundland dips.   But it’s okay because I was after a Willow Ptarmigan anyway, and actually enjoy ticking off endemics best.

I got up early and drove the gravel road quietly where they were expected to be found.  No luck but I had an idea of where they might be for the reverse direction.  So got out my sandwich and drove even slower and finished up just before one flushed.  It was molting out of breeding plumage so looked a bit like a patchwork Pinto horse.  Very cool to see it standing and it flew up immediately and I managed to snap this shot. 

It landed in the grass and disappeared immediately not to be seen again. 

I had spotted two Caribou quite far in the distance on the drive in through my bins on the next road over so decided to drive around and up the other road where I expected them to be.  To my delight there was a family of seven, one with antlers.  I’m not sure if it was the mama or the papa as both sexes grow antlers but it was watching its family very closely and a little spooked, so I kept a good distance as I walked in a bit on foot off the road.  It’s always a balance with wildlife photography of your safety and the animal’s comfort level.  Caribou are quite tame, and I could have likely pushed the envelope more, but they did not want me to and I chose to respect that.  It’s their home and there are so few places wildlife can be wild so it’s important to me to be conscious of that. 

I made one more pass of the gravel road before I left to see if I might get another Ptarmigan sighting, but the universe had ended the show for the day.  So, I headed off to St. John’s, and did a sales call before heading out to dinner with some of the finest kind.

Sure, it would have been great to see a mega rarity, but I’m pretty pleased at how my little birding detour turned out.  Interestingly the first time I saw Caribou in Newfoundland was on the Summer Solstice this time it was on Earth Day so perhaps they are my spirit animal?

Just a Pigeon

Atlantic Canada, Birds, Canada

When the Steller’s Sea Eagle was sighted in Windsor, Nova Scotia in November of 2021 I was on the way to have my winter tires put on so opted not to go.  I figured I would just go the next morning.  And I did.  And the bird flew away not to be refound 10 minutes before I arrived that morning.

As far as rare birds in Nova Scotia go it’s top of list so a tough dip to manage.    

So, this May as I was on the way to the airport for work in Newfoundland and saw the report it had just shown up, I could not believe my luck for a second chance.  And I certainly don’t make a habit of chasing birds out of province, so this was an amazing opportunity.

I had one free day scheduled for wildlife viewing and photography and had planned to spend the night near St. Shotts to see if I could find the Caribou herd.  I’ve been wanting to photograph Caribou for a few years now and never seen to be in Newfoundland at the right time or be in the right place.  The report of the Steller’s came in as I was on the way to the airport, so I changed my day off plans to stay in Bonavista to see the bird as it was nearby in Trinity.

The next morning, I had to drive from St. John’s to Grand Falls for a sales call and I received word the bird was still present.  As I passed the highway exit to Trinity, my spidey senses told me I should take the detour now in case the bird doesn’t stick around, but I didn’t want to be late for my sales call so stuck to the plan to try later in the afternoon.

I had never been to Bonavista, but it’s been on my list of places to visit as I wanted to visit the Puffin colony.  The Puffins show up in May each year, so I was excited to also have the opportunity to see them.

Around 4 in the afternoon I finally arrived in Trinity and there were lots of birders there hoping to see the Steller’s.  It had been there and left not long before I arrived.  I decided to try again the next morning and headed to the Puffin colony excited to have the place all to myself.  And you guessed it, no Puffins.  They arrived a couple of days after I left of course.

It was nice to finally visit Bonavista and the next morning I had my coffee by the Cape Bonavista Lighthouse and got ready to go spend the day looking for the Steller’s Sea Eagle. Cape Bonavista was beautiful but I did wonder why European settlers would think it a good idea to setup camp on a windy peninsula on a rough ocean. But I digress…

When I arrived in Trinity that morning a good sized crowd was there again; some had even slept in their cars but no sighting of the Eagle yet.  It had been in the area for a few days before it was reported so was expected to show, but the sea ice was shrinking, and we were feeling discouraged.

Around 1pm I decided to take a drive to see if I could find a smaller Caribou herd that was said to be around.  And you guessed it, I didn’t find the Caribou herd. I did visit the Tickle Cove Sea Arch though and that was amazing.

When I returned a few hours later I was told that not long after I left the Steller’s made a brief appearance. I stayed a few hours, with no luck and had to head to St. John’s for the night to resume work.

And so, I left Newfoundland without seeing any Caribou, or Puffins, and no Steller’s Sea Eagle.

I wish it were a better story, but I did meet a lot of nice people on the quest, and got a great photo of a Rock Dove.  Yeah, it’s a Pigeon.  Oh well.

Just a pigeon they say...

Just a Blue Jay – life on the homestead

Backyard, BEYOND

Well I’ve used up two of my blog posts on volunteer work and not joy. That must change and my next post will be flowers and birds here on the homestead. Been here just over a year and me and mother nature have been hard at work.

Here is a little preview of what’s to come.

The birds and critters are raising their babies and the blooms are popping, the show is just starting.

Happy Spring,

Angela (and Macy & Milo)