Date: 11/12/24 2:18 pm From: Peter Pyle via groups.io <ppyle...> Subject: [Mendobirds] Pelagic Trip report, Fort Bragg, Monday Nov 11
Greetings Mendobirders,
About 30 birders and marine mammal enthusiasts went out of Noyo Harbor
on 11/11, on the Kraken, with Captain Richard Thornton of Anchor
Charters (https://anchorcharterboats.com/). We'd been fretting a bit all
week, whether the weather would allow us to go, but the long-range
forecasts proved surprisingly accurate 10 days out: S winds at 20 knots
overnight, rain ending at about 8 am, followed by rather light NW winds
and clearing skies the rest of the day. Although a bit bumpy at first,
due to opposing seas and swell, most of the day was just glorious.
We headed to our usual spot at the head of Noyo Canyon, about 8 miles
WNW of the harbor and 6 miles off the coast. As we arrived here the
leaders were asked if we'd see any storm-petrels today, to which the
self-proclaimed expert response was "doubtful at this time of year,
perhaps a Fork-tailed." Not two minutes later a dark storm-petrel with a
white rump crossed our bow, just 6-7 miles from shore. We debated the
"back-of-the-camera" identification and had fantasies of a Band-rumped
Storm-Petrel, since one was captured on the Farallones this fall. We
then approached a small slick and there was another one dancing about on
the water surface. Better looks and we were all satisfied that it and
the previous bird were Leach's Storm-Petrels, a fairly hard-to-get
species in California waters, unless on a repositioning cruise liner 80+
miles out. We concluded that the Leach's were here due to 1) our
actually being 80 miles out, latitudinally, compared to the Bay Area,
and 2) a warm water pool of 60+ degrees (F) that had been pushed close
to shore by the overnight front. Leach's winter in warm temperate and
tropical waters throughout the Pacific gyre, but not usually close to shore.
We then headed out the canyon, tossing popcorn off the stern and
accumulating a nice flock of gulls. By the end of the day we had tallied
33 species/age combinations of 7 species and 2 hybrid taxa, 34 age/sex
combinations and 8 species if we end up counting the newly split Vega
Gull, of which we had a well-photographed first-year prospect feeding
behind the boat at one of our stopping points. This was at the second of
three slicks, some 35 miles from shore and near the "mouth" of the Noyo
Canyon where it drops off into the abyss.
Each slick seemed to have it's own signature, We put the first one out
near the "elbow" of the canyon, about 15 miles from shore, where
shearwaters of five species were cavorting about with a scattered school
of Pacific White-sided Dolphins and a couple of whales. The shearwaters,
a few Black-footed Albatrosses, and a couple of Leach's came in briefly,
then all suddenly departed, leaving us with just the gulls. Huh? Among
the brief flurry, though, were two Flesh-footed Shearwaters, pirouetting
with their brethren Pink-footeds of similar size and flight style, and
the first of 15-20 Short-tailed Shearwaters seen on this trip. Bythe end
of the trip we had all on board picking out Short-taileds from the
Sooties, with confidence, or so they were convinced by the
self-proclaimed experts.
The third slick, back in the vicinity of the first slick on our way back
in, was a dud. The second slick, however, at our turnaround point 35
miles out, kept delivering new birds for an hour and 40 minutes.
Included here were many more tubenoses: squadrons of fulmars of variable
morphs, more albatrosses, Leach's, and Short-taileds, 5-6 Buller's
Shearwaters, and 5-10 of the tentatively non-promised Fork-tailed
Storm-Petrels. Our previous observation of jaegers showing up in the
afternoon held true again today. After seeing none all morning, suddenly
multiples of them began streaming in to check out the fray and chase the
gulls around, perhaps 25 in all by the time we left. The vast majority
were Pomarines although we have one well-photographed Long-tailed and
several other possible "non-Pomerines," that we'll have to sort through
our 1000+ digital images of these jaegers to ID (or not). We again
surmised that the jaegers chase the other seabirds around for their food
only after the latter have complete their breakfasts and brunches.
As in recent trips, Mola Mola "nurseries" were everywhere, and marine
mammals were also in fair supply, with the aforementioned Pacific
White-sided Dolphins, brief looks at Humpback, Minke, and possible Blue
Whales, two Fin Whales that came right at us a la Moby Dick before
veering away at the last minute, and a squadron of Northern Right Whale
Dolphins riding the bow in crystal clear water for 15 minutes. A couple
of fur seals popped up, which we'll also have to check our photos to ID,
as either Northern or Guadalupe, the latter becoming more common in our
waters. Finally, a highlight for many of us was a Thresher Shark coming
into our chum and fully viewable under water!
There's talk of a follow-up, half-day trip before the end of November.
The good thing about these, at this time of year, is that we can watch
the weather forecast and pick a calm day a week or so out. If interested
in this (cost $120) check in or sign up with
https://groups.io/g/Mendobirds/topics or email Tim Bray (<tbray...>).
