Date: 3/4/23 6:52 pm From: Kimball Garrett <cyanolyca818...> Subject: [LACoBirds] Tufted Puffin, Brown Booby at Redondo Canyon
Birders,
I was out on the RV Yellowfin out of San Pedro today with a couple of Cal. State Northridge classes, cruising the Palos Verdes Escarpment to Redondo Canyon. The escarpment was almost totally birdless (and no cetaceans all day), but there was a lot of feeding activity of gulls (mainly Western and Bonaparte's), Cassin's Auklets, Brandt's Cormorants, and Brown Pelicans in Redondo Canyon nw. of the nw. tip of Palos Verdes Peninsula. Joining the feeding frenzy was an adult Brown Booby (presumably a female - no pale areas noted on the head). Besides some 65-70 Cassin's Auklets, alcids included 4+ Rhinoceros Auklets and 3 Scripps's Murrelets. And at 33 46.716'N, -118 30.252'W was an adult Tufted Puffin; it appeared to be in non-breeding plumage, as whitish tufts on the head were not very noticeable, but it had a large bright orange bill visible at a great distance and was entirely blackish below, down through the belly and undertail coverts. It was seen at a distance on the water, where it dove a couple of times, and was fully capable of flight and in fact flew off (toward the peninsula) and was not refound. Little else of note besides some Red Phalaropes off Pt. Fermin and just a handful of Black-vented Shearwaters.
