Sunday, November 29, 2015

2016 Schedule and Thank You!

I would like to thank everyone for their support in 2015, Oregon Pelagic Tours's first year of business.    Even with two cancellations (neither deepwater trip made it out), we took 186 people out onto the Pacific Ocean. 

If you went out with us last year, or would like to come out with us in 2016, our schedule is now available on our website.  For more information, please go to our Schedule & Prices page.

Saturday, February 6, 2016 -- 8 Hour Winter Seabirds 
$140  ($130 early registration price to first 10 paid reservations)
Departs 7:30am, from Newport Tradewinds  

Saturday, April 30, 2016 -- 12 Hour Spring Deepwater 
$175  ($160 early registration price to first 10 paid reservations)
Departs 6am, from Newport Tradewinds

Saturday, August  6, 2016 -- 8 Hour Fall Seabirds 
$140  ($130 early registration price to first 10 paid reservations)
Departs 7am, from Newport Tradewinds

Saturday, August 27, 2016 -- 12 Hour Fall Deepwater 
$175 ($160 early registration price to first 10 paid reservations)
Departs 6am, from Newport Tradewinds

Saturday, September  3, 2016 -- 8 Hour Fall Seabirds 
$140  ($130 early registration price to first 10 paid reservations)
Departs 7am, from Newport Tradewinds

Saturday, September 17, 2016 -- 10 Hour Special Northern Lane County Pelagic
$165 ($150 early registration price to first 10 paid reservations)
Departs 7am, from Newport Tradewinds

Sunday, September 18, 2016 -- 5 Hour Shorebird Festival Pelagic 
$85 (Sorry, no early registration discount on this trip)
Departs 7am, from Betty Kay Charters, Charleston

Saturday, October 1, 2016 -- 10 Hour Perpetua Bank
$165 ($150 early registration price to first 10 paid reservations)
Departs 7am, from Newport Tradewinds

Saturday, November 19, 2016 -- 7 Hour Early Winter Pelagic
$125 ($115 early registration price to first 10 paid reservations)
Departs 8am, from Newport Tradewinds





Sunday, November 22, 2015

November 21 Pelagic Summary

20 birders and 5 guides had very nice ocean conditions as we made it out 31 miles on this 7 hour pelagic. Our trip started with a good bird early, as we picked up a a single Long-tailed Duck hanging out in the bay with Bufflehead and numerous loons and grebes. We managed poor looks at Marbled Murrelets south of the jetty, then headed offshore. We stopped for a large flock of birds over bait fish nine miles offshore, and were rewarded with excellent looks at Short-tailed Shearwater.  Distinguishing between this species and Sooty Shearwater is an under-appreciated identification problem, and as a result, we left many individuals in the unidentified category.  The rest of the day, we worked hard for our birds, as shown by our single Black-footed Albatross, which came to investigate our chum slick. We did see another target species, Ancient Murrelet, but most of us had to settle for distant views.  Black-legged Kittiwakes put on a good show, as did Northern Fulmars, , and we had views of Rhinoceros and Cassin's Auklets, an intriguing murre thought by some to be a possible Thick-billed, and several gull species.  The wind waves settled down as we headed back in, and we arrived at the dock satisfied with our November pelagic.

Sunday, November 15, 2015

West Coast storm-petrel flight style identification

Most storm-petrels intersperse flapping flight with brief glides, low along the water. Darting direction and speed changes are frequent in many species. The flight style will change with wind speed and bird activities. Some storm-petrels have noticeably different flight styles depending upon whether they are engaging in commuting flight, meandering foraging flight, or actively feeding. It is not always possible to identify absolutely a storm-petrel by flight style alone. The goal should be to pick out any storm-petrel flying distinctively differently than the others around it. Then concentrate on the identification of this different bird.

Fork-tailed Storm-Petrel flight identification
Fork-tailed Storm-Petrels. Off Newport, Oregon. October 2, 2010. Greg Gillson.

Fork-tailed Storm-Petrel: Most commonly encountered storm-petrel from 10 to 50 miles offshore from northern California to Alaska. Less common in central and southern California. Medium size. Wings are fairly straight and slightly rounded at the tips. Tail long and forked. Commuting flight can be rather direct with shallow rowing strokes (Stallcup 1990). Foraging flight is erratic, with medium to shallow wing strokes interspersed with floppy, moth-like, deeper strokes. These birds unpredictably change flight speed and direction. The flight is interspersed with brief banked glides. Feeding, the bird hovers in place with deep high wing strokes. It also faces into the wind and hangs in place on outstretched wings set in place. As it feeds it constantly pushes off the water with its feet, dangling the legs down and foot-pattering along. It then leans forward while hovering to pick at food on the surface.

Leach’s Storm-Petrel: Common primarily from 50-200 miles offshore all along the West Coast. Rarely seen closer to shore during daylight. Large size. Wings are long and pointed, held forward at the wrists and bent back at the tips. Tail long and forked, most noticeable when spread during banked glides. The flight characteristics are essentially unvarying regardless of activity or winds. The flight is bounding, veering, and zigzagging on stiff, bent wings. “Ricocheting” (Stallcup 1990). Characteristic zigzag flight includes quick, deep, double-flaps followed by brief glides with wings held slightly above the horizontal. This flight bears more than a passing resemblance to the flight of Common Nighthawk. Flight also includes brief glides on bowed wings held slightly below the horizontal. Feeding, flies low to the water in typical flight. During short glides with wings held slight above the horizontal it quickly picks food off the water before veering away. Sometimes feeds by hanging briefly in wind just above water’s surface with a bit of foot-pattering, but rarely hovers in place to feed.

Black Storm-Petrel: Most common storm-petrel in California, ranging from northern California southward. May be seen occasionally from shore. Large size. Long, pointed wings. Long, deeply forked tail. Commuting flight fairly smooth and direct with deep, slow, graceful wing strokes, interspersed with glides. Reminds some of flight of Black Tern. Feeding, flaps slowly with wings rising well above horizontal, foot pattering. The fluttery wing beats while hovering to feed, with wings returning to nearly vertical, are the basis for descriptions describing the flapping as butterfly-like.

Ashy Storm-Petrel: Ranges offshore from northern Baja to northern California. Especially common in Monterey Bay in fall. Medium size. Slightly rounded wing tips. Long, shallowly notched tail, often held up slightly in flight. Stiff, rapid, shallow wing strokes, not rising above the horizontal, has been likened to the flight of a bat. Commuting flight level and direct, but can have an erratic and twisting flight when flushed.

Least and Black Storm-Petrel flight identification
Least and Black Storm-Petrels. Off San Diego, California. October 11, 2015. Greg Gillson.

Least Storm-Petrel: Primarily Baja and southern California, rarely northward to Monterey Bay in fall, especially during warm water years. Small size. Short neck. Short, broad wing. Short, wedge-shaped tail; appears almost tailless in flight, bat-like. Commuting flight rapid, low, and direct with deep, but rapid wing strokes. Feeding, hovers in place with wings held high in a deep ‘V’ (Enticott and Tipling 1997).

Wilson’s Storm-Petrel: Rare on West Coast, primarily in fall on Monterey Bay, in flocks of other storm-petrels. Medium size. Wings short and slightly rounded. Short square or rounded tail. Long legs extend behind tail in flight and often dangle down. Commuting flight low and direct with fluttering wing strokes, interspersed with steep upswoops (Stallcup 1990). Foraging, darts and skims and swoops over waves like a Barn Swallow. Feeding, hangs in air on open wings, foot-pattering on surface of water with long legs.

Flight characteristics Shallow wing strokes Medium wing strokes Deep wing strokes
Slow wing beats Black
Medium wing beats Fork-tailed Wilson's
(Fork-tailed)
Leach's
Rapid wing beats Ashy
Least

Bibliography

Enticott, J. and D. Tipling. 1997. Seabirds of the World: the complete reference. Stackpole Books.

Harrison, P. 1991. Seabirds: an identification guide. Houghton Mifflin Co.

Harrison, P. 1996. Seabirds of the World: a photographic guide. Princeton University Press.

Naveen, R. 1982. Storm-petrels of the World: an introductory guide to their field identification. Parts I-IV. Birding vols. XIII, No. 6 and XIV, No. 1-4.

Stallcup, R. 1990. Ocean Birds of the Nearshore Pacific. Point Reyes Bird Observatory.

Saturday, October 10, 2015

November 21 Early Winter Pelagic

We have decided to offer a rare November Pelagic.  This trip will will be offered on Saturday, November 21, and will leave from Newport at 8 am.  This 7 hour trip will search for Laysan Albatross, Short-tailed Shearwater, Ancient Murrelet and the very rare Mottled Petrel.  Weather disclaimer:  conditions in November mean this pelagic has a 50/50 chance of going out.  Payments will not be deposited until it is certain we will make it out. Cost: $125.

Wednesday, October 7, 2015

October 3, 2015 Trip Report -- Great Birds!

Early weather forecasts led us to believe we would have good conditions for the last scheduled trip of OREGON PELAGIC TOURS's first pelagic season. As the week went on, wind and wave height forecasts increased up until the day of our trip. We were able to go out, but swells were high, making conditions difficult.  Despite the less than optimal conditions, we found a number of MARBLED MURRELETS just south of the Yaquina jetties.  A nearby flock of feeding birds provided many SOOTY SHEARWATERS, and a pair of COMMON TERNS among other species.  We headed southwest toward the north end of the Perpetua Bank and Heceta Bank complex.  Along the way, we  saw numerous SOOTY and PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATERS, NORTHERN FULMARS, had our best views of beautiful BULLER'S SHEARWATERS, and had some amazing views of several SOUTH POLAR SKUAS, the latter doing what skuas do best -- terrorizing other birds like PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATERS.  4 FLESH-FOOTED SHEARWATERS (most seen poorly or by few) was a surprisingly high number. DALL'S PORPOISE joined us on several occasions to ride the bow wave.  Expected BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSSES appeared once we got over the continental slope, as did our most common storm-petrel, FORK-TAILED STORM-PETREL. We spent time with a dragger, headed offshore for a while, then returned to a fishing trawler.  In this area among the numerous FORK-TAILED STORM-PETRELS, some observers saw two probable ASHY STORM-PETRELS, but an interesting storm-petrel with a white rump was well described by several observers as a WILSON'S STORM-PETREL (report to be submitted to the Oregon Birds Records Committee).  A chum slick at a dragger brought most species close to the boat.  Despite the tough ocean conditions, we had a good day. We had an incredible 20 SOUTH POLAR SKUAS, and had most of the species we would expect in October. Despite a very wet trip back to Newport, our passengers and crew enjoyed this pelagic.

Saturday, August 29, 2015

August 30 -- yes!

Well, being a pelagic provider, you have to spend a lot of time looking at weather forecasts.  Our August 16 deepwater trip was forced to cancel due to high winds, and with a weather system coming in this weekend, it looked bad for tomorrow's 8 hour trip.  Fortunately, as the week went on, it became clear that the worse weather would come through by Saturday, and Sunday's forecast was not too bad. We are all breathing a sigh of relief.  I will give a quick trip report after we get back.

Wednesday, July 29, 2015

Date Change! 

Oregon Pelagic Tours apologizes for the inconvenience, but owing to circumstances beyond our control, the Fall Seabirds trip originally scheduled for Saturday, August 29, has now been changed to SUNDAY, AUGUST 30.  This trip has been confirmed and will definitely go, ocean conditions permitting.  

Thursday, July 9, 2015

West Coast shearwater flight style identification

You prepared for your pelagic trip for months. You memorized all the subtle plumage characteristics in your field guides. When your trip reached the point where shearwaters were swarming around the boat, you noticed something disconcerting. Even with your binoculars, the shearwaters were hard to tell apart. The boat was bouncing, the birds would disappear behind swells, they would cross over to the other side of the boat where you were looking right into the sun's glare. You just couldn't consistently make out the plumage details to make a positive identification.

Shearwaters

And yet, one of the guides, volunteering to do the messy chumming, would barely glance up from her duties--without binoculars--and confidently announce the ID of a little dot-of-a-bird over a quarter mile away! And not just once, but repeatedly!

She either has inhumanly keen eyesight, or (gasp!) is NOT using the Peterson system of patternistic plumage characters for bird identification!



Shearwaters fly by interspersing flapping and dynamic soaring with wings stuck stiffly out to the side. Size, structure, and species-specific flapping behavior combine with range and seasonality so that most species can be identified simply by the way they fly. As far away as you can see a shearwater flap its wings and observe its glide path, that's how far away you can identify it! You don't need to see anything else. Color and plumage patterns of the bird simply do not matter, except for a couple of "fly-a-like" pairs.

All you need is 10 seconds

In 10 seconds (or less) you can watch the flight of a shearwater and determine its flight style pattern. On the West Coast there are 3 abundant shearwater-like birds making up most of the birds you'll see: Sooty Shearwater, Pink-footed Shearwater, and Northern Fulmar. Learn the flight patterns of these 3, and then keep a lookout for any bird that flaps and glides with a different pattern.


Sooty Shearwater: Repetitive flapping and graceful gliding on narrow wings. In calm conditions normal flight is 3-7 quick shallow flaps and a sustained glide of about 4 seconds, low along the water. In higher winds there is less flapping and higher arcs, sweeping up gracefully in a banked glide, then gliding low in a wave trough before repeating with a few quick flaps low along the water and arcing up again. Sooty Shearwaters tend to glide in a straight line.

Pink-footed / Flesh-footed Shearwater: The common Pink-footed Shearwater (and quite rare Flesh-footed Shearwater) is a bigger bird than Sooty Shearwater. It flies higher off the water with deep, slow wing beats ("lumbering," Stallcup 1990) and longer relaxed glides. The wings are long and broad. In moderate winds it wheels up in a slow arc above the horizon for several seconds reminiscent of an albatross.

Northern Fulmar: Longer bouts of flapping and gliding than Sooty Shearwater on shorter arched wings with rapid and shallow wing strokes. Unlike most shearwaters (especially Sooty) fulmars often flap at the high point of their arcing glides. "If it flaps while up in the air it is a fulmar" is a good maxim. Another characteristic is that fulmars often wheel around and change direction while in their extended glides, unlike Sooty Shearwaters.

Buller's Shearwater: They sweep up steeply and then gracefully glide downward, hardly flapping at all. Long glides on wings held forward at the wrist and accentuated by the long tail give the flight a most graceful appeal. Alternatively, groups will sometimes participate in synchronized flying with deep, slow wing strokes, flapping and gliding in unison ("languid and graceful," eNature.com 2003). Fall migrant on West Coast.

Short-tailed Shearwater: Erratic flight. Often similar to Sooty Shearwater, but wing strokes more rapid and swift-like ("snappier," Stallcup 1990) usually with more flapping and less gliding and arcing. This bird often makes darting direction changes and may rock from side to side while flapping (alternately showing you its back and then belly)--both traits that separate it from Sooty Shearwater. If the flight of Sooty Shearwater is consistently repetitive and straight, the flight of Short-tailed Shearwater is more rapid, frantic, and erratic. Uncommon late fall/winter migrant on West Coast.

Black-vented / Manx Shearwater: Tiny shearwater flies in a rather straight line with rapid deep wing strokes ("fluttery," eNature 2003). The glide often appears as little more than a "missed" wing beat. Black-vented is common in fall right along the California coastline. Manx is very rare anywhere on the West Coast to Alaska, also usually quite near shore.



Quoted references: 

eNature.com accessed originally for unpublished manuscript of this topic in 2003.

Stallcup, Richard W. "Ocean Birds of the Nearshore Pacific," 1990.

Tuesday, June 9, 2015

Summer/Fall Trips

Well, here at Oregon Pelagic Tours, we are gearing up for our fall season, offering a variety of different trips. Start making plans today to join us for an exciting day on the ocean. Please refer to the Schedule & Prices page for more detailed lists of expected bird species.

Our first trip is our only deepwater trip of  the fall, the 12 hour trip out of Newport on Sunday, August 16. This trip is our best shot for Leach's Storm-Petrel and Scripps's (formerly Xantus's) Murrelet, as well as the species mentioned on the schedule page.  Normally priced at $175, I still have two spots available at the early registration price of $160. Marine mammals, including humpback whales, Pacific white-sided dolphin, Dall's porpoise and northern fur seal seal are likely.

Two weekends later, we will run our first 8 hour trip of the late summer/fall.  This trip will also depart from Newport on Saturday, August 29 Sunday, August 30.  This trip is excellent for those wishing to see a large variety of seabirds, but not wanting to spend a full twelve hours on the ocean.Trip cost is $140.

The following weekend, on Saturday, September 5, we are proud to be part of the Oregon Shorebird Festival in Charleston.  This festival, run by U.S. Fish and Wildlife and the Oregon Coast National Wildlife Refuge Complex, offers interesting talks and excellent land-based field trips, led by experienced and enthusiastic birders, and we highly recommend it. Our pelagic trip offers the chance for beginners and veterans alike to spend a shorter amount of time on the ocean, while still providing the opportunity to see many pelagic species.Trip cost is $85. 

Our last 8 hour trip of the season will offered on Saturday, September 19, out of Newport. This trip is at an ideal time for seeing many of the pelagic birds that visit our waters, and who knows what unexpected bird might show up?  Cost is $140, with a couple of early registration spots at $130 still open.

We end our pelagic year with a trip to an "Albatross Hotspot", so-called because 4 species of albatross have been seen at this location. The northern edge of Perpetua Bank creates upwelings that provide nutrients to forage fish and other animals that pelagic birds feed on. We will visit this spot on Saturday, October 3.  Because of the time required to get there, this is a 10 hour trip. Cost is $150 to the first 10 paid reservations, $165 after.

Sunday, May 10, 2015

Panama Canal Cruise

Hi, everyone. I returned last night from an exciting "bucket list" cruise aboard the MS Noordam -- from Fort Lauderdale to Vancouver, B.C. via the Panama Canal.  The Panama Canal is a marvel of engineering, and when you think that the engineering technology that was implemented in the early 1900's is still essentially what is in use today, you cannot help but feel amazed. The seabirding from the ship varied from quite slow in parts of the Caribbean Sea and off Central America to large numbers of Wedge-tailed Shearwaters and boobies off of Mexico, and very exciting in high winds and rough seas off of California. Sea turtles were very common just off Acapulco, lots of green sea turtles (some being used as a raft by Black Terns) and a few leatherbacks. Favorite birds?  Probably the four pterodroma petrels: one Black-capped Petrel in the Caribbean, good looks at Cook's Petrels off Mexico (with poor views off of California), great views of Murphy's Petrels off of both California and southern Oregon, and finally ( and I do mean finally), good views of three Hawaiian Petrels off California. The latter species has eluded me in ABA waters on several cruises, so I am very content to have had them last week. Lastly, one of my favorite birds seen from the boat was not a seabird at all: it was one of the three Fork-tailed Flycatchers seen on fences as we transited the Miraflores Locks in the Panama Canal. This cruise is one that I highly recommend to anyone who enjoys cruise ships.

Tuesday, March 17, 2015

Two Months Until Our Spring Deepwater Trip!

Well, I have had a chance to catch my breath after last month's exciting pelagic, and now I am looking forward to our next trip, on Sunday, May 17. We only offer two deepwater trips a year, one in spring and another in the late summer. The deepwater trips are always interesting, because we never know what might be out in the "blue water". Last year, although we dipped on Leach's Storm-Petrel (normally seen on this trip), we had our first ever Ashy Storm-Petrel as an even better consolation prize. Ocean conditions last year pushed large numbers of storm-petrels up from California, and we had Ashies on every trip from May on. Of course, things could be different this year, so we'll just have to see what's out there.  We have four early registration spots still available, and then normal prices will be in place after these are filled. Come join us for an exciting day on the ocean!

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

PFMC Forage Fish Initiative Passed!

Well, my friends, everyone who cares about seabirds, sport fishing and healthy oceans should celebrate today.  I received an email from Joe Liebzeit of the Audubon Society of Portland informing me that the efforts of many groups, businesses and individuals, including myself on behalf of The Bird Guide and Oregon Pelagic Tours, have paid off.  The Pacific Fisheries Management Council unanimously passed its initiative for protection for forage fish in our EEC (Exclusive Economic Zone).  The fish and squid species included in this initiative are critical components of a balanced ocean ecosystem, providing food for a variety of sport and commercial fishes, marine mammals, and the seabirds we all love to see. I was asked to prepare testimony and spent much of yesterday afternoon in the Vancouver Hilton hoping to testify before the council. Unfortunately, the Council adjourned before taking public comment. Due to prior commitments, I was unable to return this morning, but along with others hoping to comment, on Monday I did manage to meet the Vice-Chairman and informally share my views. IT is important to note that while this initiative does not provide unlimited protection for forage fish, it does prohibit new fisheries from targeting this fishery, and is historic in that these species had previously been ignored by the PFMC. Definitely a step in the right direction. I thank everyone involved in this process.

Thursday, February 26, 2015

Feb 21 2015 Official Trip List

February 21, 2015    Oregon Pelagic Tours 8 hour Winter Seabirds Pelagic Trip List             
7:25 am -- 3:20 pm      Aboard FV Misty, Skipper Rob Waddell, Deckhand Andrew

Yaquina Bay 7:25-7:40
Harlequin Duck 1
Surf Scoter 40
Bufflehead 2
Red-throated Loon 1
Pacific Loon 1
Common Loon 5
Horned Grebe 6
Red-necked Grebe 5
Western Grebe 2
Brandt's Cormorant 10
Double-crested Cormorant 5
Pelagic Cormorant 10
Brown Pelican 20
Common Murre 6
Pigeon Guillemot 5
Mew Gull 5
Western Gull 30
California Gull 10
Thayer's Gull 1
Glaucous-winged Gull 1
**California sea lion 5
**harbor seal 8

0-5 Miles Offshore 7:40-8:20
Surf Scoter 25
White-winged Scoter 4
Red-throated Loon 10
Common Loon 3
Brandt's Cormorant 5
Pelagic Cormorant 5
Common Murre 40
Pigeon Guillemot 12
Marbled Murrelet 8
Ancient Murrelet 2
Rhinoceros Auklet 2
Mew Gull 2
Western Gull 30
California Gull 50

5-30 Miles Offshore 8:20-11:10
Laysan Albatross 2
Black-footed Albatross 10
Northern Fulmar 4
Pink-footed Shearwater 1
Parasitic Jaeger 1
Common Murre 100
Ancient Murrelet 2 (seen by few)
Parakeet Auklet 2
Rhinoceros Auklet 2 (seen by some)
Black-legged Kittiwake 8
Western Gull 6
California Gull 4
Herring Gull 5
Thayer's Gull 1
**California sea lion 1

Chum Stop #1 (200 fm) 11:10-11:55
Layasan Albatross 2
Black-footed Albatross 7
Northern Fulmar 10
Pomarine Jaeger 1
Black-legged Kittiwake 4
Western Gull 4
California Gull 2
Thayer's Gull 1
Glaucous-winged Gull 3

North leg and Chum Spot #2 11:55-12:25
Laysan Albatross 4
Black-footed Albatross 7
Northern Fulmar 15
Pink-footed Shearwater 1
Black-legged Kittiwake 6
Mew Gull 1
Western Gull 2
California Gull 2
Herring Gull 2
Thayer's Gull 2 

Return to 5 miles offshore 12:55-2:40
Laysan Albatross 1
Northern Fulmar 6
Common Murre 20
Black-legged Kittiwake 2
Western Gull 4
California Gull 8
**mola mola (ocean sunfish) 1 (seen by few)

Return, 5-0 miles offshore 2:40-3:00
Common Murre 20
Marbled Murrelet 2
**Steller's sea lion 4

Yaquina Bay 3:00-3:15
Harlequin Duck 4
Greater Scaup 30
Surf Scoter 30
Bufflehead 10
Common Goldeneye 2
Barrow’s Goldeneye 1
Red-throated Loon 1
Common Loon 10
Horned Grebe 8
Red-necked Grebe 4
Brandt's Cormorant 20
Double-crested Cormorant 5
Pelagic Cormorant 10

February 21, 2015: First Oregon Pelagic Tours Trip Very Successful

Two weeks after conditions forced us to cancel a Winter Seabirds Trip on February 7th, we finally made it out of Newport on our first Oregon Pelagic Tours trip on February 21st.  27 passengers, 15 of them from the OSU Bird Nerds, joined the 3 guides on our favorite boat, Misty (out of Newport Tradewinds), with Skipper Rob.

The ocean was a little rougher than we had expected, as the swells, while low, were quite close together. Still, that did not stop us as we headed out. As we turned south out of the bay searching for Marbled Murrelets, some people were rewarded with views of 2 Ancient Murrelets, a target species. We saw a number of Marbled Murrelets, Common Murres and Pigeon Guillemots, before heading offshore.

Overall numbers were low, but we did see a total of 9 Laysan Albatross (one of the target birds for the trip), Black-footed Albatross, Northern Fulmar, only 2 Pink-footed Shearwaters (!), many Black-legged Kittiwakes, and very good views of a rare Parakeet Auklet near the boat. A second Parakeet Auklet was seen later. Our two chum stops brought in gulls, kittiwakes and both species of albatross, so passengers got to enjoy these birds at close range.

The trip back, although under the sunny skies we had enjoyed all day, was relatively uneventful, but we did add a couple more species as we returned to Yaquina Bay, including one Barrow's Goldeneye and 2 Common Goldeneye.

Our next trip is our 12 hour Spring Deepwater Trip on May 17th.