Okanagan Spring Birding Tour Day 1 - Kelowna and Lake Country

April 6, 2018

Introduction

For the last 6 years I've participated in a Spring birding tour in the Okanagan. The tour company is Kelowna based Avocet Tours and the tour guide is the owner Chris Charlesworth. The format of the tour for the last 3 years has been to meet in Kelowna and check out the birds in the Central Okanagan on the first day. As usual, the group met at the Apple Bowl and set up car pooling to reduce the vehicle count.  I rode with Monica, a very experienced birder from Vancouver.

Kelowna - Mission Creek Park

Our first stop was only a short hop over to this large park south of downtown Kelowna. It's amazing such a large wilderness area was preserved in this ever growing city. 

There has been a Western Screech-owl roosting in the same area for a few years and we were all able to get a glimpse of it through Chris' scope without disturbance. It was quite high up and I took one record photo that was extremely poor. I've substituted a photo I took last year on the tour on a day when the owl was roosting in a lower spot. 

Western Screech-Owl - Mission Creek Regional Park

2018 Bird # 103

Photo taken in April 2017

A much more visible and audible bird was a calling Varied Thrush high up on a tree top. I have to confess that this was the first time I'd heard the call and seen the bird at the same time. I'd heard the call many times before but assumed it was some unseen Flycatcher.

Varied Thrush - Mission Creek Regional Park, Kelowna BC - 2018 Bird #104

We returned to our cars and travelled east towards Lake Country. Of course, Chris had scheduled a brief stop at the local Tim Horton's first.

Beaver Lake Road heads south out of Lake Country and then gradually bends to the southeast. Once we got away from the highway we pulled and started scanning the grasslands for Meadowlarks, Bluebirds and whatever else might appear.

My first sighting was a common one, a Magpie. The picture below is not great, the lighting conditions throughout the day would make photography difficult.


Black-billed Magpie - Beaver Lake Rd, Lake Country BC - 2018 Bird #105

I had better luck with the next bird, a Pygmy Nuthatch high on a perch. This bird prefers the dry Okanagan climate and is fairly common there.

Pygmy Nuthatch - Beaver Lake Rd, Lake Country BC

 2018 Bird #106

There were both species of Bluebird along the road, but I only got photos of a Western. We'd see Mountain at our next stop.

Western Bluebird - Beaver Lake Rd, Lake Country BC - 2018 Bird # 107

Once again conditions prevented good photos, there'd be better opportunities later in the tour.

Robert Lake - Kelowna

Our next stop was Robert Lake, a small protected area in the middle of a growing housing development. After getting out of the car, I had an opportunity to photograph a female Mountain Bluebird. Once again, photo quality was lacking. I'd have better luck with bluebirds on subsequent days.

Mountain Bluebird (F) - Robert Lake, Kelowna BC - 2018 Bird #108

I got a good shot of a Yellow-headed Blackbird as it sat near a fence.

Yellow-headed Blackbird - Robert Lake, Kelowna BC - 2018 Bird #109

There was a good variety of Ducks on the lake, I was most interested in the ones I had not yet seen this year. I saw a Redhead far out on the lake, but just before we left it came closer for this shot.

Redhead - Robert Lake, Kelowna BC - 2018 Bird #109

Next was a Ruddy Duck quite far across the lake. I had to zoom full out with the Nikon for this shot.

Ruddy Duck - Robert Lake, Kelowna BC - 2018 Bird #110

Just as we were leaving a Muskrat swam by.


Muskrat - Robert Lake, Kelowna BC

Just after this shot it almost collided with an American Coot. I'm not sure if it was an accident or intentional. That would be a large bird for a Muskrat to take on.

Finally we saw some California Quail, a common sight in the Okanagan. They are a native North American species that have spread up the west coast.


California Quail - Robert Lake, Kelowna BC - 2018 Bird #111

Munson Pond Park - Kelowna

This was a new location for the tour and it proved to be the best one of the day.

Upon arrival we checked out the pond and Chris reported there was a female Canvasback across the pond. It was at least 100 metres away, so the photo is not as sharp as I'd like.


Canvasback (F) - Munson Pond Park, Kelowna BC - 2018 Bird #112

The next bird wasn't too exciting, but it was the first American Crow I'd seen on the trip. We have the smaller Northwestern Crow on the west coast, most of the rest of Canada and the US have the 

American Crow.


American Crow - Munson Pond Park, Kelowna BC - 2018 Bird #113

Next Chris spotted a Northern Shrike. Once again it was distant, but I got a close shot after the group had moved on. This is the "Butcher Bird". It captures and kills songbirds and often impales them on barbed wire fences for eating later. We'd see more of them on subsequent days.


Northern Shrike - Munson Pond Park, Kelowna BC - 2018 Bird #114

We got to an area where Chris mentioned there had been a Harris's Sparrow overwintering. This Sparrow is more common on the Prairies and northern grasslands. However, we do get the occasional stray in Vancouver area as well. The plumage indicates it is a first-winter bird.


Harris's Sparrow - Munson Pond Park, Kelowna BC - 2018 Bird #115

It was hard to get a fully clear shot, but this one shows the front of the bird.



As we returned to our vehicles, a flock of Swallows flew by. Monica spotted a Cliff Swallow but I didn't see it. Some of the common Violet-green Swallows lit on a telephone wire for a photo-op.

Violet-green Swallow - Munson Pond Park, Kelowna BC

2018 Bird #116

We returned to the Apple Bowl to collect our vehicles and were lucky to see a Merlin that had taken up residence in the area. It would be there the next morning as well.

This smallish Falcon is one of my favourites to see and it was a great to see. 

Merlin - Apple Bowl, Kelowna BC

2018 Bird # 117

Owling up Beaver Lake Road

One of the features of Chris's tours are the night excursions where we go look for Owls. We met later in the evening and drove back to Lake Country and part way up Beaver Lake road. Our first, and only target was to see a Saw-whet Owl.

We stopped after going up for 10 - 15 kilometers and Chris started his owl calls. It took a while, but suddenly an owl responded by coming straight at us and buzzing near Chris's head. He bravely kept calling and on the second pass, it came in and clipped his head as it flew by. Fortunately, it did not draw blood. Our night was over and we headed back to Kelowna for the night. 

Here's a photo of a Saw-whet sleeping during the day at Reifel Bird Sanctuary in Delta BC. It looks so harmless here.

Northern Saw-whet Owl - 2018 Bird #118

Photo taken in 2015 in Delta BC

Okanagan Spring Birding Tour Day 2 - Peachland to Oliver

April 7, 2018

We met at the Apple Bowl on Saturday morning, it was a dreary rainy looking day. We were supposed to head south for stops in Penticton, Summerland and Oliver. Chris informed us that we'd first go to his place in Peachland and check out the birds at his feeder and wait for the rain to let up.

But before we left, yesterday's Merlin put in another appearance at the Apple Bowl.


Merlin - Apple Bowl, Kelowna BC

Peachland

Chris lives quite high up above the lake in Peachland. His seed feeder was near his house and we huddled under the eaves to watch it. There was a Chestnut-backed Chickadee, which is rare for the Okanagan, but it eluded my camera. 

I did capture this Mountain Chickadee.

Mountain Chickadee - Peachland BC - 2018 Bird #119

Summerland and Penticton

We left Peachland heading south for Summerland. We visited a small area off the highway that has some access to Okanagan Lake. Chris has seen a Long-eared Owl here before, but it was not here in the rain today. A nice consolation was an immature Northern Shrike and one of my better photos of the day.

Northern Shrike - Trout Creek Point, Summerland BC

An exciting bird for the Okanagan was a Dunlin, a common shorebird on the coast. I was not able to get any kind of photo if it unfortunately. 

We did see this Red-necked Grebe in the lake.

Red-necked Grebe -  Trout Creek Point, Summerland BC

We made our way down to Penticton and had a long coffee break at Tim Horton's ( I quickly visited Starbucks for my coffee). We then went to the lakefront in Penticton. It was quiet except for a pair of Mergansers. The photo of the female turned out the best.

Common Merganser (F) - Okanagan Lake, Penticton BC

We continued south and forked off onto White Lake Road just after the turnoff to Kaleden.

White Lake Road, Kaleden

This road is normally a great place to see Okanagan birds. Near the start of it is the St. Andrews Golf Course (named for the more famous one in Scotland).

On this day it was more of a canoe racing course.

This Common Merganser felt right at home here.

Common Merganser - St. Andrews by the Lake Golf Course, Kaleden BC 

Another visitor to the course was a Greater Yellowlegs, my first of the year.

Greater Yellowlegs - St. Andrews by the Lake Golf Course, Kaleden BC

2018 Bird #120

The rain had abated and the birds started appearing as we crossed into the Oliver segment of White Lake Road.

Western Bluebird - White Lake Rd, Oliver BC

Monica called out Townsend's Solitaire, and it turned out there were three of them. I was not fast enough to get a photo, so I'm substituting one seen at Hardy Falls in Peachland last year.

Townsend's Solitaire - 2018 Bird #121 on White Lake Rd, Oliver BC

Photo taken at Hardy Falls Peachland in April 2017

As we were driving along, Chris reported on the Walkie-talkie that there was a Rough-legged Hawk alongside the road. I was able to get this shot from inside the car.

Rough-legged Hawk - Green Lake Rd, Oliver BC

A bird I expect to see at Hardy Falls in Peachland is the American Dipper. However, the park is closed this year due to flood damage that occurred in Summer 2017. 

They are also found at the Okanagan Dam in Okanagan Falls. After scanning for a while, a Dipper was spotted and I got some nice long-distance shots.

American Dipper - Okanagan Dam, Okanagan Falls BC - 2018 Bird #122

We stopped briefly at Vaseux Lake, one of my favourite hotspots in my early years of birding, but it was quiet. We did hear a Marsh Wren singing but I was unable to locate it or get a photo.

Just across from Vaseux Lake are the McIntyre Bluffs. We drove up there and Chris tried calling in a Canyon Wren. He did get a response but the bird stayed high up out of sight in the rocks.

Overhead there was a Golden Eagle soaring in the clouds, but I could not get a shot before it disappeared. Once again, I've substituted a photo. This one was taken at the same location on our tour in 2013.

Golden Eagle - McIntyre Bluffs, Oliver BC - 2018 Bird #123

Photo taken in April 2013.

By this time we were all exhausted. It was time to go check in at The Lakeside Resort  in Oliver for the night. Chris cancelled the owling expedition when he discovered there were Great Horned Owls nesting at the resort! We'd check them out the next morning.

Okanagan Spring Birding Tour Day 3 - Oliver and Okanagan Falls

April 8

The last day of the tour is always abbreviated as most of the group returns to Kelowna in the afternoon. Edith and I were staying in Okanagan Falls overnight before heading to Grand Forks to visit family the next morning.

Lakeside Resort, Oliver

Our first bird of the day required no travel. As mentioned in the previous post, there were a pair of Great Horned Owls nesting in a tree at our resort. We all gathered for a look at 8:00 AM. I took some photos of the owl on the nest but there was no clear shot to be had.

However, the partner was very photogenic, watching us all to ensure we didn't get too close to the nest.


Great Horned Owl - Oliver BC

Road 22, Oliver BC

We left the resort and made our way to Road 22, always a staple on the tour. The east-west roads are numbered from north to south out of Oliver and this is the farthest south. The Okanagan River flows through this area and there are preserved lands on either side. There's also a dike along the river that can be driven on or walked on.

The first birds of note were a group of 18 pelicans off to the West moving North. We'd seen them on other tours, this seems to be the time they migrate from the south. We have friends near Quesnel which is often their destination.


American White Pelicans - Oliver BC - 2018 Bird #125

Another common nesting species in this area is the Osprey. They like these platform nests with the garish decorations.


Osprey - Near Road 22,- Oliver BC - 2018 Bird #126



We also saw Savannah Sparrows in the fields but too far away for photos. I took the photo below six days later in Point Roberts, Washington.


Savannah Sparrow - Road 22, Oliver BC - 2018 Bird #127
(Photo taken April 14, 2018 at Point Roberts WA)

Chris had hoped to show us Long-billed Curlews as they are seen at this time of year in farmer's fields. Although we think of them as shorebirds, they nest in fields where the male creates a small scrape on the ground for the female to lay eggs in. They use the tall grasses to hide the location.

As we were finishing our walk on the dyke, Chris heard the call overhead and we were able to locate the curlews in a nearby field. This photo was take from about 100 meters distance, one of the clearer long distance shots of the trip.


Long-billed Curlew - Road 22, Oliver BC - 2018 Bird #128

McIntyre Bluffs, Oliver BC

This location is across the highway from Vaseux Lake and overlooks the lake from on high. We made a quick stop to try for a Canyon Wren and we may have heard one response. I didn't count it as enough to put it in my year list.

We did see a Mountain Bluebird up there and I finally got a couple of nice shots of this species.

Mountain Bluebird - McIntyre Bluffs, Oliver BC

We returned to the Highway and proceeded north towards Okanagan Falls. Just before the town we took a logging road east and then forked off on Venner Meadows Road. The target was Williamson's Sapsucker, but Chris could not call them in. This was the first time we'd missed this species on the tour.

We got a nice consolation prize when he called in a Northern Pygmy Owl.

Northern Pygmy Owl - Venner Meadows Rd, Okanagan Falls BC

2018 Bird #129

We then heard and saw a Pileated Woodpecker, but I was unable to locate it with the camera. It was 2018 Bird #130. 

The second to last bird on the tour was a Cooper's Hawk. It was spotted by one of our novices. How she saw it is a mystery. It took Chris quite a while to get the scope on it. The photo below was taken with my IPhone through the scope. The tail shape is the best indicator in this photo.

Cooper's Hawk -Venner Meadows Rd, Okanagan Falls BC

2018 Bird #130

Chris also got a response from a Gray Jay and it came in to have a look at us. However, the lighting was poor and I didn't get a shot. Here's one from the same approximate location taken on the tour in 2016 (in much better lighting conditions).

Gray Jay - Venner Meadows Rd, Okanagan Falls BC

2018 Bird #130

Photo taken at same location in April 2016

This was the end of the tour and we said our goodbyes as most of the participants were heading back to Kelowna. We were staying in Okanagan Falls overnight before travelling to Grand Forks.

I did get one more photo on the day, an American Kestrel hawking insects from a wire in OK Falls. This was taken from my IPhone from the car.

American Kestrel - Okanagan Falls BC

After the Okanagan Spring Birding Tour - Days 4 and 5

April 9, 2018

After an overnight stay in Okanagan Falls we headed south for Osoyoos and then east to Grand Forks. We made a very brief stop at a marsh at the intersection of Road 22 and Highway 97.

We'd seen Virginia Rail here in previous tours so I tried using a recorded call and listened for responses. In fact we did get an answer, but the bird never revealed itself. The photo below was taken at the same location on our 2013 tour. I'm counting the bird as we heard a clear response.

Virginia Rail - Road 22 March, Oliver BC - 2018 Bird # 133 - Photo from April 2013

We took the back road from Oliver through the Nk'mip band reserve, ending up at Mount Baldy Ski resort and then on to Grand Forks. The only bird seen on the way was this Robin at my sister's place in Grand Forks.

American Robin - Grand Forks BC

April 10, 2018

The next morning we were having breakfast in my sister's dining room when I saw bird movement through the window. I had my camera nearby and snapped a couple of shots of a pair of Cedar Waxwings. This was quite an early sighting for this species.

Cedar Waxwing - Grand Forks BC - 2018 Bird # 134

We left Grand Forks and headed west on Highway 3. We made a quick stop at Wagon Wheel road in Bridesville and I tried to call in Williamson's Sapsucker. We'd seen them here on the 2017 tour, but all was quiet today. My consolation was another Mountain Bluebird.

Mountain Bluebird - Bridesville BC

Our next stop was Nk'Mip winery in Osoyoos. In the parking lot were a number of House Sparrows.

House Sparrow - Osoyoos BC

We carried on to Princeton and I tried Wayne Lake and the Swan Lake Sanctuary. The former was frozen over as can be seen from this photo.

Canada Goose - Wayne Lake, Princeton BC

Swan Lake was very quiet as well, there were no birds to be seen there other than this Flicker.

Northern Flicker - Swan Lake Conservation Area, Princeton BC

Our final stop was Manning Park resort. We'd picked up Subway sandwiches in Princeton and stopped in the parking lot of the lodge to eat. The food in the car got the attention of some of the local Ravens.

The snowbank we were parked by looked dirty and I suspect it had some road salt as well. It may also have had some scattered bird seed. It attracted a number of Juncos and a few Common Redpolls.

Common Redpoll - Manning Park Lodge, Manning Park BC

One of the Juncos was of the Slate-colored race, a treat for us from the West Coast to see.

Dark-eyed Junco and Common Redpoll - Manning Park Lodge, Manning Park BC

The last photo for the day and the trip goes to a Raven. We had four on the hood of the car at one point, but this shot turned out the best.

Common Raven- Manning Park Lodge, Manning Park BC