I took my Portland Audubon class to Tillamook Bay (Birding Oregon p. 125). We found strong winds, high tides, and rough seas, but the weather was warm and mostly sunny. This photo was taken on the bayside of Bayocean Spit. The water was high enough to cover the mudflats, so we didn’t find any shorebirds, but we did find good numbers of gulls loafing in the shallow water.
Here is a first-cycle California Gull with two adult Western Gulls and a probable third-cycle Western Gull.
The largest concentration of birds was at the Bay City Oyster Plant. This little jetty was covered with gulls, Brown Pelicans, and Black Turnstones.
Western Gull, two Heerman’s Gulls, and a California Gull
Brown Pelicans
juvenile Brown Pelican and Heerman’s Gull
We found at least four Black Oystercatchers at the Three Graces Tidal Area.
At Barview Jetty, the rough seas and howling winds kept the expected seabirds out of the channel. But the big waves did reveal lots of Ochre Sea Stars.
This lone Black Turnstone was the only shorebird we found braving the rough conditions.
Ethical Birder 