My annual gull class visited the Coast from Cannon Beach to Gearhart. Stormy weather caused us to postpone the trip by a week. The weather was lovely the day of our trip, but nice weather, combined with the week’s delay, kept our gull total to a modest seven species.
California Gulls are among the most common species on the coast right now.
California Gull in flight, showing the extensive black in the primaries
Herring Gull
Herring Gull coming in for a landing
Short-billed Gulls frequent the Necanicum River Estuary in Gearhart. This bird was stamping their feet in the shallow water to stir up food items.
A stop at the Seaside Cove produced a large flock of Surfbirds.
Just a few Black Turnstones were mixed in with the Surfbirds.
The most unusual bird of the trip was this Long-tailed Duck at the Cannon Beach Settling Ponds. This is a young female, whose dark coloring blended in surprisingly well with the water’s surface.
We didn’t have much time to look for songbirds, but White-crowned Sparrows are always obliging.
Happy Autumn
Ethical Birder 