A day of seconds…
Temp in the 40s, overcast and slight drizzle in the morning, partly sunny in the afternoon. Wind E switching to NE 15-25 mph
We forgot to mention our flat tire from yesterday. Luckily, we saw it in the morning before we headed out for the day, so Lisa (our lodge manager) was able to put the spare on and let us go birding.
Well, today as we were nearing the Thrush Feeder, the spare went flat (don’t know what we ran over…). So Lisa came up and switched back to the tire that went flat yesterday. Surprisingly, she couldn’t find the leak in that one, so she inflated it and it sat overnight and seemed fine! Well, after spending the rest of the day on it, we arrived back at the house and it was deflating again!
So this time she is taking it to the “tire guy.” We hope he is the cure.
Back to birding…
It was a dreary start to the day, and although it brightened considerably by afternoon, the wind was strong and cold.
All but one of the feeders have Gray-crowned Rosy-Finches at them, but no Asian birds yet.
At the Palisades Overlook, Barb spotted a loon which turned out to be a Red-throated. Only the second one we have seen out here. There were also three Pacific Loons.
When we got to the east side of Clam Lagoon, we found a Gadwall in one of the East Side Ponds. This also was only our second record out here.
Gadwall, East Side Ponds, May 19, 2018
At the Seawall, barb found a pair of Surf Scoters.
We finally found the Tufted Duck on Lake Shirley.
As I was scanning the gulls on Clam Lagoon, a black-legged Kittiwake joined them, then flew off. We saw several others as the day went on. They are much more numerous in the fall, when we can see hundreds.
Once we came back to the Seawall, I scanned for new birds and found a Laysan Albatross flying by (and not so far out as to be non-enjoyable!).
When we ran into the other birders, they told us there was a Tundra Swan on Andrew Lake, so we headed down there and saw it. But it was WAY out…
Back down at Sweeper Cove, there were several Glaucous Gulls still hanging out.
Glaucous Gull, Sweeper Cove, May 19, 2018
Glaucous Gull, Sweeper Cove, May 19, 2018
And John Puschok told us a “Vega” Herring Gull was there and we found that as well.
“Vega” Herring Gull, Sweeper Cove, May 19, 2018
That brought our trip list up to 54.
PS: More birders were due in on today’s flight, but it arrived so early, that by the time we got there to greet them, everyone was gone! So I expect we will hook up tomorrow.
PPS: The repair parts for the Puk Uk arrived on the plane, repairs were done, and the trip to Attu left this evening. Good luck guys (and girls)!