Common Scoter

Hi All,

On 11/13/16 a Common Scoter was reported from Siletz Bay, on the north Oregon coast.  This was only the second North American record, the first being just last year along the Northern California coast.  The species is quite far out of its normal range.  It winters along the western coast of Europe and North Africa, and breeds inland from Scandinavia to maybe half way across Russia.  One wonders how these two birds ended up here along the west coast of North America.  Either they took the trans-Atlantic journey across the Atlantic and then across North America, or, took a journey across Siberia, crossing the Bering Straight, down the coast of Alaska and BC to Oregon and California.

Unfortunately, I had to work the next day, and the next.  I was delighted when each of those days the bird was reported on Oregon Birders On Line.  And early today, Wednesday 11-16-16, it was still being seen, so my wife and I headed over to Lincoln City, and pulled over just beyond the Schooner Creek bridge pull-out where a few birders were lined up with scopes.  I figured it would be already waiting for me to view through someones scope, but alas, it had vanished.

My good friend Mitch Ratzlaff was there, assuring me he had seen it just a few minutes ago between the rocky island and the north bank of the bay.  He had then taken his dog for a short walk.  After 10-15 minutes I have to admit I started having some ill feelings in my gut.  Could it be that I missed it by a mere 10 minutes or so?  We walked southward to view more of the bay as well as in back of the rocky island, but did not see it.  

Mitch reminded me that the last time he saw it, it was headed toward the bridge, so that is where I went.  I told Chuck Philo where I was going and he tried to console me that there were Wood Ducks over there, but it did little to lift me up. As soon as I got to where I could look on the river side of the bridge, I saw it, almost right below me.  I motioned to Mitch that it was here.  Since it had dove, we moved to where we’d have good positions for taking pics, which we did.  Then he dove again, heading under the bridge so we crossed the road and got in another couple of photographic positions and started snapping pics as soon as he came up.  Here are some of the results.

Notice the small orange top of the bill and knob just above it?

The other birders there now had the guest of honor in full view and were able to see it at their leisure. Reports from the last few days told of it hanging around with a female Black Scoter.  I guess some chicks just dig those dudes with a British accent. But today he was by himself in the short time we saw him. (But the next day he was back with her)

This was indeed one of those days in a birders life when that feeling of ecstasy overflows, and heaven seems close to earth. 

After this, my wife and I headed over to the nature trail at Salishan, along the southern edge of the same bay.  We needed a walk.  The trail skirts a golf course, and as soon as I laid eyes on the first fairway, I could see a number of Red Phalaropes.  These are basically ocean going shorebirds which can float on the water.  And, it is only during a brief 2 months or so in June and July when they are in their breeding red color, the rest of the year they are grey.  The storms of late had blown these to shore and also some 75 miles inland to the Willamette Valley where I live.  I had seen some at a local sewage lagoon late last week, but it was great to see them again.  They let me approach them closely, and my best shot here was less than 10 feet away.  On this fairway I counted 18.  (If you are a golfer, you know that 18 birdies on a golf course is a great score, something even Tiger Woods has not reached yet.)  And the farther along we walked we saw more and more. Near the area where many saw the Yellow-throated Vireo earlier this fall, we flushed a raptor which I think was a Red-shouldered Hawk.  I just did not see him very well. Here are some shots of them:

After this, we decided to head south so as to return to the valley via Newport.  After reading of yesterday’s sea watch results by Phil Pickering, we just had to stop at Boiler Bay and see if anything was still flying past that wayside.   Well, Boiler Bay had simmered down.  I met John and Laura Sullivan there who briefed me on what they found, which was like a drop in the bucket compared to yesterday.  Shortly afterward I met Steve and Linda Jaggers.  I have read Steve’s reports on OBOL for many years, so it was great to finally put a face to the name.  There was also someone there from Texas who had seen a Leach’s Storm Petrel, so we were able to relocate a few of them.  Then 2  ladies arrived, one of which was Em S? who I knew to be the mother of the Hinkle twins, who needed the Leach’s for a life bird, so we were able to oblige her.  Not sure if the other lady ever saw one.  

Black Oystercatcher at Boiler Bay

The ocean was rough at Boiler Bay

Otherwise, in about an hours time I saw 1 Bonaparte’s Gull, 1 Northern Fulmar, and plenty of Red Phalaropes flying or resting on the water, as well as the expected loons, grebes, cormorants, and ducks.  We stopped at Subway in Newport and ate lunch.  We would have walked on the beach some, but it started raining, so headed home.