Date: 5/2/26 8:06 pm From: Tom Benson via groups.io <thomasabenson...> Subject: [OrangeCountyBirding] Sea & Sage pelagic trip, May 2
Sea & Sage Audubon held its annual spring pelagic trip today, May 2, aboard the Ocean Institute's R/V Sea Explorer. From Dana Point, we visited the 279 Bank and Crespi Knoll and points in between, with cool weather, calm seas, and cloudy/overcast skies most of the day. We saw mostly expected species during the day, but were fortunate to have decent bird activity all morning until we left Crespi Knoll a little after 1 PM. Pelagic species encountered today included Common Murre, Scripps's Murrelet, Cassin's and Rhinoceros Auklets, Red-necked Phalarope, Pomarine Jaeger, Pink-footed and Sooty Shearwaters, Black and Ashy Storm-Petrels, and a late Northern Fulmar. The highlight for most on the today's trip were the migrant warbler that landed on the boat at Crespi Knoll, some of which perched on several participants. These included two Wilson's Warblers, a Townsend's Warbler, a Hermit Warbler, and and Orange-crowned Warbler (ssp. orestera per Jon Dunn). In addition, a Black-throated Gray Warbler and a Mourning Dove also flew past the boat well offshore, along with a few other unidentified passerines that may be identified later from photos. A large pod of Common Dolphin, some Bottlenose Dolphins, and a Fin Whale rounded out the day's experience with some marine mammals. An eBird trip report is available at the link below--photos from participants other than myself will be added once the list is shared in a few days.
https://ebird.org/tripreport/510310 Tom BensonRedlands, CA
