Anne Belton Photography
In July 2023 a group of 7 from Calgary met in St John's for a birding trip. We had a local guide for the first 4 days on the Avalon Peninsula. We then rented cars and explored the Bonavista Peninsula on our own. In total we saw 82 species of birds and many whales.
Day 1 The 1st morning we explored a few local parks in the fog and drizzle.
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher
Blackpoll Warbler
Fox Sparrow
White-winged Crossbill
Robin
Wilson's Warbler
Marsh Sparrow
Northern Waterthrush
Wild Columbine
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Northern Pintail chicks
Tree Swallows changing nursery duty
White-winged Crossbill
In the afternoon of the 1st day we went to Witless Bay and took O'Brien's bird and whale watching tour of the Witless Bay Ecological Reserve. A wonderful cruise around an island that has thousands of nesting Puffins, Murres, Kittiwake and Razorbills. As well lots of Shearwater flying by.
Sooty Shearwater
Great Shearwater
Great Shearwater
Sooty Shearwater
Atlantic Puffins
Atlantic Puffins
Thick-billed Murre
Black-legged Kittiwake
Atlantic Puffins on their breeding grounds
Common Murre, Puffin at entrance to the burrow
Black-legged Kittiwake have 2 chicks
Common Murre on nesting ground
Heading out to sea for some food
Sooty Shearwater
Thick-billed murres - a tender moment!
As we went around the island we found 5 Humpbacks. Two were Moms with babies, 1 of the young ones decided to have a closer look at us and came right up to the boat.
Great Shearwater
Osprey
Common Tern
Atlantic Puffin with some sort of eel
Day 2 we drove from St John's down to Cape St Mary's. Several stops along the way in Nature Reserves and along the coast.
​
​
Great Shearwater
Northern Gannet
Another carniverous plant - bulbs are very sticky, any insect touching them cannot get loose.
Savannah Sparrow
Wilson's Warbler
Canada Jay
Young Canada Jay
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Hairy Woodpecker
Pitcher Plants - a carniverous plant - insects fly/crawl into the cup at the base and are digested by the plant
Bakeapple
Dragon's Mouth Orchid
The rock at Cape St. Mary's - 30,000 Northern Gannets nesting here
Northern Gannets mate for life. every year they come back to the exact same nest and raise 1 chick together. In the winter they are out at sea on their own, it is amazing that they can find each other and the exact spot each year.
Common Murres also nest on the rocks at Cape St Mary's. They do not build a nest, they lay 1 egg on the edge and then sit facing the cliff for the duration. Males and females take turns incubating. We were told it would be very difficult to see any chicks as they keep them tightly between their bellies and the rock face. After scanning hundreds I did manage to see a few chicks!
The Murre in the middle has her egg tucked up under her belly. The others may have eggs or chicks well hidden.
Black-legged kittiwake also nest on the rocks. They build a rudimentary nest and have 2 chicks.
Great Cormorant
Rugosa Rose
Spotted Sandpiper
Flowers on the beach
Day 3 We drove to the southernmost points of land on the island, visiting St Mary's Bay, St Vincent's Beach, St Shott's and Cape Pine. The terrain is sub-arctic tundra, very few trees!
Parasitic Jaegars
Arctic Tern
Greater Yellowlegs
Arctic Tern
Gannets diving for Caplan - they spot something from high above the water and dive straight in - amazing sight. How they don't crash into each other is a wonder.
1st one is likely 2 years old, 2nd - 3 years old - adults at 4 years are white except for wing tips
The Gannets in the water are not happy with the diver - a bit too close!
Northern Harrier - through the van window
Arctic Tern
American Pipit
At the end of the day an Osprey bringing supper to his family of 3 young ones!
Day 4 - continuing north along the eastern coast to Cape Race.
Double-crested Cormorant
Pine Grosbeak
Herring Gull
Black Guillemot
Savannah Sparrow
Great Shearwater
Short-tailed Swallowtail
Short-tailed Swallowtail
Common Tern
Northern Pintail - male molting
Short-tailed Swallowtail
Yellow-collared Scape Moth
Pink-footed Goose - a vagrant from Greenland
American Wigeon
Day 5 - we visited a few ponds in St. John's then drove west then north to Elliston on tthe Bonavista Peninsula. Stopped at Bellevue Beach on the way.
Greater Scaup
At Bellevue Beach a Black-headed Gull had been reported - luckily one of our group had a scope or we would never have found it!
Purple Finch
The ponds in St John's are full of these hybrid Black Ducks/Mallards.
Greater Yellowlegs
A tender moment
A not so tender moment
Hugged by a Puffin!
Day 6 Elliston and area
Herring Gull and chicks
American Pipit
Double-crested Cormorant - note the chick being fed by 1 adult while hiding under another
Black Guillemot
Day 7 We went to Trinity Bay to take a whale watching tour. We were not interested in finding whales but had heard that there was a Stellar's Sea Eagle in the area. A bird that should be along the eastern coast of Russia. Luckily there were enough birders to fill one of the Zodiacs so we concentrated on birds rather than looking for whales.
Bald Eagles - we must have seen 40 within the first half hour, all ages.
Bald Eagle - year 1
Stellar's Sea Eagle - a magnificent bird, larger than a Bald Eagle with a massive beak!
In the afternoon we drove back to St. John's and visited a couple of ponds in the city.
Rock Doves
Day 8 - ponds around St John's, Cape Spear and Signal Hill
American Pipit
Greater Yellowlegs
Common Loon
American Goldfinch
Tree Swallow
Northern Gannet
Signal Hill from Cape Spears
Humpback
Heading out of St John's harbour
St John's from Signal Hill
Savannah Sparrow
Species - 82
Lifers - 3
