November Pierce County Big Day

Canvassback Aythya valisineria. This digiscope shot using my iPhone and Kowa Scope is the only photo on this post, as the fog and a hurried "Big Day" kept me moving and not stopping for photos.

Bruce Labar and I did our November Pierce County Big Day yesterday. Despite being hampered by dense fog for the first few hours, which kept us from finding seabirds on our vantage points on the Puget Sound, we had a great day.

As we have done recently on our monthly big days we headed first for Fox Island and sea watches from both the DeMolay Sandspit and the Fox Island Bridge. One minor variation this time was a quick stop at the Adam Tallman Park in Gig Harbor, which is just off the road on the way to Fox Island. The day prior both Wood Duck and Barred Owl were reported there, so we made a stop at the break of dawn and played recordings for Barred Owl, to no avail. Still we did find our only Wood Ducks of the day just as enough light to see allowed us a peek.

At Fox Island we managed a few species, but were hampered by the fog. No loons, only Horned Grebe and Pied-billed Grebes in that family, and no Harlequin or Long-tailed Ducks. Only Pigeion Gullemot for alcids, and we headed back across the bridge. No photos as the birds we did see were fog-obscured.

At Titlow Park we got the lingering unusual Redhead (a duck species, not a hair color) as well as a good smattering of other ducks. Still not much luck on the sound, as fog continued, but we did add Bonaparte's Gull, got all three species of cormorant, and headed for Chamber's Bay.

There we added a Western Meadowlark perched on the fence by the pond, where our only Lesser Scaup of the day as two females seemed to be competing for the company of a male Ringed-neck Duck.

Stops on Ruston Way added the lingering Harlequin Duck that has been seen there recently, along with Yellow-rumped Warblers.

From here we headed inland, where the fog cleared in time to get good looks at the 132 Trumpeter Swans, and estimated 2000 Cackling Geese, 3 Snow Geese, and 8 Greater White-fronted Geese in the fields at Van Ogle's Ford Road. At 134th Street all there hoped for vagrants, the Clay-colored Sparrow, the Rusty Blackbird, and the Rough-legged Hawk were found along with a Peregrine Falcon and a lingering Brown-headed Cowbird.
n stops at the 56th Street Ponds for Canvasbacl and Ruddy Duck we missed the expected Eurasian Collared Dove. On a quick stop and walk at Clark's Creek Park we added Gadwall, Varied Thrush and American Goldfinch.

We finished the day with stops at Alexander Way adding Least Sandpiper, the Gog-li-hi-ti Wetlands where several Wilson's Snipe were flushed in a walk in the field after previously adding Marsh Wren and a calling Virginia Rail, as well as the Thayer's subspecies of Iceland Gull in the flocks on the rooftops nearby.

Just as Bruce drove away my resident Anna's Hummingbird dive-bombed his car for our 90th species of the day.

Overall a great day of birding, sunny afternoon skies, no rain, little wind, and a nice time.

Good birding. Steem on!

Here is the eBird summay of the days' species.

Summary
Nov 19 Nov 20 Nov 21 Nov 22 Nov 23 Nov 24 Nov 25
Number of Species 90 -- -- -- -- -- --
Number of Individuals 5,577 -- -- -- -- -- --
Number of Checklists 13 -- -- -- -- -- --

Total Number of Birds
Species Name Nov 19 Nov 20 Nov 21 Nov 22 Nov 23 Nov 24 Nov 25
Snow Goose 4
(2) -- -- -- -- -- --
Greater White-fronted Goose 8
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Cackling Goose 2,700
(2) -- -- -- -- -- --
Canada Goose 12
(2) -- -- -- -- -- --
Trumpeter Swan 132
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Wood Duck 2
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Northern Shoveler 5
(2) -- -- -- -- -- --
Gadwall 2
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Eurasian Wigeon 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
American Wigeon 196
(7) -- -- -- -- -- --
Mallard 132
(6) -- -- -- -- -- --
Northern Pintail 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Green-winged Teal 12
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Canvasback 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Redhead 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Ring-necked Duck 2
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Greater Scaup 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Lesser Scaup 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Harlequin Duck 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Surf Scoter 22
(2) -- -- -- -- -- --
White-winged Scoter 14
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Bufflehead 42
(4) -- -- -- -- -- --
Common Goldeneye 107
(4) -- -- -- -- -- --
Barrow's Goldeneye 62
(2) -- -- -- -- -- --
Hooded Merganser 15
(3) -- -- -- -- -- --
Common Merganser 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Red-breasted Merganser 6
(3) -- -- -- -- -- --
Ruddy Duck 10
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Pied-billed Grebe 4
(3) -- -- -- -- -- --
Horned Grebe 15
(3) -- -- -- -- -- --
Red-necked Grebe 6
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Rock Pigeon 122
(5) -- -- -- -- -- --
Anna's Hummingbird 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Virginia Rail 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
American Coot 10
(2) -- -- -- -- -- --
Killdeer 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Least Sandpiper 3
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Wilson's Snipe 4
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Pigeon Guillemot 6
(2) -- -- -- -- -- --
Rhinoceros Auklet 45
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Bonaparte's Gull 80
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Mew Gull 117
(6) -- -- -- -- -- --
Ring-billed Gull 3
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
California Gull 73
(3) -- -- -- -- -- --
Iceland Gull 4
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Glaucous-winged Gull 32
(2) -- -- -- -- -- --
Western/Glaucous-winged Gull 111
(7) -- -- -- -- -- --
Brandt's Cormorant 25
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Pelagic Cormorant 4
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Double-crested Cormorant 54
(5) -- -- -- -- -- --
Great Blue Heron 8
(5) -- -- -- -- -- --
Cooper's Hawk 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Bald Eagle 2
(2) -- -- -- -- -- --
Red-tailed Hawk 3
(3) -- -- -- -- -- --
Rough-legged Hawk 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Belted Kingfisher 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Pileated Woodpecker 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Northern Flicker 2
(2) -- -- -- -- -- --
American Kestrel 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Peregrine Falcon 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Steller's Jay 3
(2) -- -- -- -- -- --
California Scrub-Jay 4
(4) -- -- -- -- -- --
American Crow 314
(10) -- -- -- -- -- --
Common Raven 2
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Black-capped Chickadee 13
(5) -- -- -- -- -- --
Red-breasted Nuthatch 2
(2) -- -- -- -- -- --
Marsh Wren 3
(2) -- -- -- -- -- --
Bewick's Wren 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 7
(2) -- -- -- -- -- --
Varied Thrush 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
American Robin 8
(4) -- -- -- -- -- --
European Starling 482
(6) -- -- -- -- -- --
House Finch 5
(2) -- -- -- -- -- --
American Goldfinch 4
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Clay-colored Sparrow 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Fox Sparrow 6
(2) -- -- -- -- -- --
Dark-eyed Junco 5
(3) -- -- -- -- -- --
White-crowned Sparrow 50
(5) -- -- -- -- -- --
Golden-crowned Sparrow 2
(2) -- -- -- -- -- --
Savannah Sparrow 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Song Sparrow 18
(6) -- -- -- -- -- --
Lincoln's Sparrow 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Spotted Towhee 5
(2) -- -- -- -- -- --
Western Meadowlark 2
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Red-winged Blackbird 303
(3) -- -- -- -- -- --
Brown-headed Cowbird 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Rusty Blackbird 1
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Brewer's Blackbird 40
(1) -- -- -- -- -- --
Yellow-rumped Warbler 21
(2) -- -- -- -- -- --
House Sparrow 36
(3) -- -- -- -- -- --