Reifel Bird Sanctuary

Birding, November 29, 2025: Bashful Bittern Bedazzles Birders

Where: Reifel Bird Sanctuary, Centennial Beach (Delta), Piper Spit, Burnaby Lake (Burnaby)
Weather: Cloudy, 7°C

It was a day where it felt colder than the temperature alleged, even without wind. I wore three layers, which turned out to be the smart thing to do.

Reifel Bird Sanctuary

Rusty the pipe, with a moody-looking sky behind.

Reifel’s gates were open, likely due to the very grey skies and cooler temperatures. We were rewarded early with an Anna’s Hummingbird (several, actually, fighting among themselves, as is their way). On the way in, we passed a multitude of ducks, then came across the first very busy feeder, where assorted sparrows, juncos, and others were grabbing seed and spraying it all over. This was the only active feeder that did not have a squirrel either sitting inside it or lusting after its contents from nearby.

We saw multiple squirrels, and these guys are definitely getting quite chonky as winter approaches.

A Golden-crowned Kinglet proved typically elusive, but we ended up getting some decent shots as it hopped madly about above us. Just as elusive, but much more sedate, a rare sighting of an American Bittern on the outer dyke. There was a large group of people gathered, facing toward the marshland. We surmised that they were not shooting a tree as there are no trees in the marshland. What they were shooting was a somewhat shy American Bittern that was standing surprisingly close to the trail. It very slowly moved out and we got some nice shots because, like their relative the Great Blue Heron, they do not exactly speed walk. It was surprisingly oblivious to the large number of people pointing their giant lenses at it. They look lumpy, weird and delightful.

Nic inquired and found out that the local Sandhill Cranes are now hanging out with a larger group that have at least temporarily settled into the far end of one of the fields adjacent to the sanctuary. There’s over a dozen total. It will be interesting to see what the local ones will do when (presumably) the others finally decide to take off.

We again so no geese here.

The drama was left to a couple of female wigeons, who make weird “rrr rrr” sounds that sounded like engines revving, quite unlike their usually pleasant pees. They chased each other, making a big ruckus, then both flapped afterwards, each convinced it was the victor, perhaps.

The coots were well-behaved, in comparison.

And we saw a whole gang of Buffleheads, moving in a group and often diving as a group, making shots a matter of timing.

We saw multiple Northern Harriers and I successfully tracked them, but they were far off, the light was so-so and most of my shots were a bit fuzzy and grainy. Fuzzny. Alas.

Still, it was all worth it for the Bittern.

Centennial Beach

Boundary Bay was rather colourless.

It showered a bit on the way to Centennial Beach, but was dry by the time we got there. It remained very cold, however, so we did a more abbreviated tour. We saw a House Finch and a few other sparrows, and shorebirds, but the tide was in, so most waterfowl were father out. We did get some good shots of a typically grump-looking eagle in a tree–and yes, it was actually perched along Raptor Trail.

There was also a bunny, but I was looking in a different direction and missed it before it hopped back into the brush. Oddly, they seem to hang out a lot on the Raptor Trail, which seems sub-optimal for rabbits.

Piper Spit, Burnaby Lake

Blue sky threatened for a few minutes at Burnaby Lake.

Piper Spit had only a handful of people out and no one was feeding anything. The only feeding taking place1technically there was other feeding going on was a seagull picking away at the carcass of an ex-salmon. As Nic says, the skin is the best part.

The Dowitchers were quite close to the pier, which made for some good shots, and there were geese here, occasionally honking, as is their way. The pigeons mostly stayed in one tree, all poofed up from the cold.

The cormorants were back, or still here, hanging out in what now appears to be their usual spot, east of the pier. I wish they would hang out a little closer, but it’s still nice to at least see them.

And here we saw our first scaups of the season. I couldn’t tell if they were lesser or greater, but they didn’t seem gigantic, so I’m calling them lesser for now.

The coots here were also well-behaved.

In all, a fine, if brisk day for birding.

The Shots

Shot with a Canon EOS R7 with 18-150 mm kit lens and 100-400 mm telephoto.

Gallery soon™.

A robust gray squirrel at Reifel.
A rarely-seen American Bittern, also at Reifel.

The Birds (and other critters)

Sparrows and sparrow-adjacent:

  • Anna’s Hummingbird
  • Black-capped Chickadee
  • Dark-eyed Junco
  • Fox Sparrow
  • Golden-crowned Kinglet
  • Golden-crowned Sparrow
  • House Finch
  • House Sparrow
  • Red-winged Blackbird
  • Song Sparrow
  • Spotted Towhee
  • White-crowned Sparrow

Waterfowl and shorebirds:

  • American Bittern
  • American Coot
  • American Wigeon
  • Bufflehead
  • Canada Goose
  • Double-crested Cormorant
  • Gadwall
  • Great Blue Heron
  • Greater Yellowlegs
  • Green-winged Teal
  • Hooded Merganser
  • Lesser Scaup
  • Long-billed Dowitcher
  • Mallard
  • Northern Pintail
  • Northern Shoveller
  • Ring-necked Duck
  • Sandhill Crane
  • Wood Duck

Common:

  • American Crow
  • Assorted gulls
  • Rock Pigeon

Raptors:

  • Bald Eagle
  • Northern Harrier

Non-birds:

  • Several more ex-salmon
  • A bunny
  • A number of, shall we say, big-boned squirrels

Birding, November 8, 2025: Mild marshes and chatty chickadees

Where: Reifel Bird Sanctuary (Delta) Piper Spit, Burnaby Lake (Burnaby)
Weather: Sun and high cloud, 8-13°C

Reifel Bird Sanctuary

View of the marshland, with Rusty (the pipe) barely visible.

Finally, the weather cooperated long enough to get in a day of birding, during the few hours of daylight we currently are afforded under SST (Stupid Standard Time). There was even sun, at times.

The main themes at Reifel mid-fall seem to be:

  • Chickadees everywhere, with most of them thinking every person is holding seed
  • The Canada geese have fully retreated, with many in a nearby field adjacent to the sanctuary (interestingly, a group of eight or so Sandhill Cranes were also in the same area–and we haven’t seen the “local” cranes for some time. Hmm, I say!)
  • The Wood Ducks have also seemingly vacated or hidden themselves
  • All the marsh grass is now sad and yellow

The feeders are now full of seed and suet, so most of them are seeing action, which can make for easy-ish shots. I say easy-ish because it is never exactly easy to capture a chickadee. We did not see any squirrels trying to dive onto the feeders, though that may come as the weather gets colder.

We saw the first Buffleheads of the season, which was neat, though they were not very close, which was less neat.

In all, it was a fine fall return to Reifel.

Piper Spit, Burnaby Lake

The lake, now with (more visible) water, and looking moody.

There was a family feeding birds at Piper Spit and Nic gave them the what-for! The father pretended that they hadn’t seen the multiple large signs saying NO FEEDING, including one that was literally feet away. But I guess you gotta say something when someone calls you out.

The lake level was quite low, with the west side of the pier now a large muddy patch, and the lily pads retreating enough to give the lake a more lake-like appearance. I shot artsy shots of the clouds and water.

There were also gulls on hand, probably attracted by the desiccated remains of salmon that had spawned, or tried to spawn, but ended up in the same place: dead.

Thinking back, I’m not sure that we saw any Canada geese here, either. Making up for them were plenty of Mallards, some Green-winged Teals and Wood Ducks. And, of course, coots.

With light starting to fade (see above, re: SST), we bade goodbye to the lake, but it was nice to finally get in some birding again.

The Shots

Shot with a Canon EOS R7 with 18-150 mm kit lens and 100-400 mm telephoto.

Gallery of shots:

The Birds (and other critters)

Sparrows and sparrow-adjacent:

  • Anna’s Hummingbird
  • Black-capped Chickadee
  • Dark-eyed Junco
  • Fox Sparrow
  • Golden-crowned Sparrow
  • House Sparrow
  • Red-winged Blackbird
  • Song Sparrow
  • Spotted Towhee

Waterfowl and shorebirds:

  • American Coot
  • American Wigeon
  • Belted Kingfisher
  • Bufflehead
  • Canada Goose
  • Gadwall
  • Great Blue Heron
  • Greater Yellowlegs
  • Green-winged Teal
  • Hooded Merganser
  • Long-billed Dowitcher
  • Mallard
  • Northern Pintail
  • Northern Shoveller
  • Ring-necked Duck
  • Sandhill Crane
  • Wood Duck

Common:

  • American Crow
  • Assorted gulls
  • Rock Pigeon

Raptors:

  • Bald Eagle
  • Northern Harrier

Non-birds:

  • A very few pollinators
  • Chonky gray squirrel

Birding, October 13, 2025: Wigeons, warblers and wind

Where: Reifel Bird Sanctuary, Centennial Beach (Delta), Piper Spit, Burnaby Lake (Burnaby)
Weather: Sunny, 9-14°C

Reifel Bird Sanctuary

Some of the marsh grass has taken on a very fall-like orange hue at Reifel.

We got our first chance to visit Reifel in a while, on a rare Monday opening (due to the Thanksgiving holiday). It was a HBD (Hardcore Birder Day), with a plethora of dangerously large telephoto lenses being carried about. I saw monopods!

The weather was cool and there was some wind, but the sky was perfectly clear, affording is good light.

In addition to seeing a gaggleplex of Snow Geese flying overhead1Yes, I have finally relented and am full capitalization for all birbs and birbs., we saw several newly-arrived migrants, like ring-necked ducks and coots (which had already appeared at Piper Spit). We even saw a rare(ish) Ruddy Duck, which is a lifer for me. The Sandhill Cranes didn’t show themselves, however. I wonder where they were?

Dowitchers and Greater Yellowlegs were also in abundance, in the main slough and pond, among other places. One group were inadvertently harassed by some hero drama as a Great Blue Heron chased another directly over the shorebirds. The shorebirds would fly–a little–then return to as they were, so the harassment was pretty low-key. One of the herons landed in the pond and the other flew off, thus preserving the unspoken “one heron per pond, no matter how huge the pond” rule.

We saw hummingbirds at the feeders, keeping alert for a very interested wasp (or hornet?), as they are quite large when you’re a hummingbird. Imagine getting stung by a flying dog. Or something.

Centennial Beach

Mt. Baker overlooking a windy Boundary Bay.

I suggested Centennial Beach next, and we parked near the pump house, basically working in reverse to our usual path. This afforded us early shorebirds and waterfowl and plenty of them. After spotting a Belted Kingfisher shortly after arriving, we saw something on the bay, where the tide was in. What we saw were wigeons. Wigeons everywhere. Wigeons flying, wigeons floating, wigeons that numbered in the hundreds or maybe even more. I am not good at counting massive numbers of birds. But there were oodles of them, along with some gulls, Canada Geese and other duck variants.

The beach was also buffeted by gusts of wind up to 25 km/hour. At one point, I had my cap pulled down so tight to keep it from blowing off that I could barely get the camera up to my eyes. I didn’t observe any birds trying to work against the wind–not even the seagulls, which are usually kind of into that.

This is where we saw a few Yellow-rumped Warblers, an unexpected treat. They were eating from one of the wind-whipped bushes in the sand.

Both here and at Reifel we saw Northern Harriers and while I was pretty successful in tracking them, I was not able to get any great shots. A boy2I’m a boy at heart, or something can dream, though!

By the time we left, I was glad I’d opted for my heavier hoodie. I also noted the light was already taking on a more golden hue. Come November 2 we switch back to Pacific Standard Time (grr) and we’ll have about 23 minutes of quality birding during the day.

Piper Spit, Burnaby Lake

A Canada Goose ponders against a very blue backdrop at Piper Spit.

We ended at Piper Spit, which was initially chock-full of people, due to the holiday. The dowitchers were fairly close in, allowing for some good shots, but we didn’t spot any new migrants here, such as scaups or Buffleheads. Maybe next time. Or at least soon™.

We made due with bathing blackbirds, battling coots and Wood Ducks just being stunning.

In all, a fruitful day as we head into the second season of Fall.

The Shots

Shot with a Canon EOS R7 with 18-150 mm kit lens and 100-400 mm telephoto.

A few shots:

Dark-eyed Junco pausing in the sun at Reifel.
Great Blue Heron flyby at Reifel. Despite appearance, it did have eyes!
A coot being very coot at Piper Spit.

The Birds (and other critters)

Sparrows and sparrow-adjacent:

  • Anna’s Hummingbird
  • Black-capped Chickadee
  • Dark-eyed Junco
  • Fox Sparrow
  • Golden-crowned Kinglet
  • Golden-crowned Sparrow
  • Purple Finch
  • Red-winged Blackbird
  • Song Sparrow
  • Spotted Towhee
  • White-crowned Sparrow
  • Yellow-rumped Warbler

Waterfowl and shorebirds:

  • American Coot
  • American Wigeon
  • Belted Kingfisher
  • Canada Goose
  • Gadwall
  • Great Blue Heron
  • Greater Yellowlegs
  • Green-winged Teal
  • Hooded Merganser
  • Long-billed Dowitcher
  • Mallard
  • Marsh Wren
  • Northern Pintail
  • Northern Shoveller
  • Ring-necked Duck
  • Ruddy Duck (lifer for me)
  • Snow Goose
  • Wood Duck

Common:

  • American Crow
  • Assorted gulls
  • Rock Pigeon

Raptors:

  • Bald Eagle
  • Northern Harrier

Non-birds:

  • A few pollinators
  • Copious caterpillars

Birding, August 23, 2025: Snow (geese) in August

Where: Reifel Bird Sanctuary, Centennial Beach (Delta)
Weather: Sunny, 20-28°C

Reifel Bird Sanctuary

It almost feels like you can see the curve of the Earth.

It was warm today and maybe that made a lot of birds shy about coming out, because sparrows and sparrow-adjacent birds were in relatively short supply. We did see some chickadees, a few blackbirds and a lone cowbird, though.

Mostly it was mallards (being jerks by hogging seed) and wood ducks, with the males still looking snazzy with their proto-mullets, along with the re-emergence of geese in most parts. The air was full of honks.

We even saw some swallows still hanging out in the main pond, though I wasn’t able to tell what kind they were, as they were in full flitting mode.

Others must have known this is the birding lull, because we were able to drive straight into the sanctuary and the number of people around was definitely down for a sunny, pleasant summer Saturday.

Still, it was fine. Can one have too many glamour shots of mallards?

Centennial Beach

Mt. Baker looms over Boundary Bay and the tidal flats.

We had some better luck at Centennial Beach, with multiple types of shorebirds prowling the streams left in the wake of the extremely low tide, including yellowlegs, killdeer, semipalmated sandpipers and a lifer–a long-billed curlew. At least I think it’s a lifer, I don’t remember seeing one before and it has an extremely distinctive (and gigantic) bill that curves down. A couple of them were strolling about farther out. We ventured onto the tidal flats for a bit, but were wary of spooking them.

There were also a ton of grasshoppers basically everywhere. I was tempted to title this post “Day of the Locusts.” I got some decent shots.

The other surprise was three snow geese in amongst a bunch of Canada geese. I did not have snow geese in August on my bingo card.

The raptor trail was raptor-deficient, however.

In all, the shorebirds made the trip worthwhile.

The Shots

Shot with a Canon EOS R7 with 18-150 mm kit lens and 100-400 mm telephoto.

A few shots:

Blackbird up close and personal at Reifel.
Snow goose in August.

The Birds (and other critters)

Sparrows and sparrow-adjacent:

  • Anna’s hummingbird
  • Black-capped chickadee
  • Brown-headed cowbird
  • Cliff swallow
  • European starlings
  • House sparrow
  • Red-winged blackbird

Waterfowl and shorebirds:

  • American coot (still not yet)
  • Canada goose
  • Killdeer
  • Great blue heron
  • Greater yellowlegs
  • Long-billed curlew (lifer)
  • Long-billed dowitcher
  • Mallard
  • Northern pintail
  • Northern shoveller
  • Semipalmated sandpiper (lifer, at least per Merlin)
  • Snow goose (new!)
  • Wood duck

Common:

  • American crow
  • Rock pigeon

Raptors:

  • Northern harrier

Non-birds:

  • Copious pollinators
  • A black squirrel
  • One turtle

Birding July 26, 2025: Everywhere you go, it’s gonna be goose

Where: Reifel Bird Sanctuary, Boundary Bay Dyke Trail (Delta), Blackie Spit, Crescent Beach (Surrey)
Weather: Sunny, 20°C

Reifel Bird Sanctuary

The marshland appears endless from the West Dyke Trail.

The day took a weird turn, camera-wise, as I managed to change the exposure on-the-fly without realizing it until I was looking at the photos later. Whoops. The change was subtle enough that I didn’t pick it up in the EVF. I’ve set it back and think I know how I did it, so hopefully this won’t happen again without me doing it on purpose.

But it was also a day when I shot a lifer–a Peregrine falcon!

Reifel started with a paucity of birds in the entrance pond, but there were signs of others we haven’t seen much, like chickadees. Sort of pond-adjacent was an abundance of barn swallows grooming in nearby trees, including what appeared to be a bunch of juveniles. Cute! The geese were everywhere, but didn’t seem overly interested in trying to eff each other (or anyone else up). Summer doldrums, maybe. We were reacquainted with C21, a goose that has a rather clunky-looking neck collar. No sign of C19 or C20, though. We also saw a towhee wearing a wire. We’re being tracked, the birds are being tracked, everyone is being tracked.

There were a few shorebirds in one of the west dyke ponds, but again very far away, boo. The blind that faces one of the ponds had a special “treat”, though–a growing wasp nest on the inside of one of the wooden flaps, which was left in the open position (for obvious reasons). The honeycomb had probably a few dozen pockets in it, with wasps canoodling around it, probably adding more using their secret wasp techniques. We took our photos and scrammed.

And upon seeing a raptor flying way up overhead, I took a bunch of shots that were mostly mediocre, but were good enough to identify the bird as a Peregrine falcon–a lifer! It seemed to just be passing by.

I experimented more with shooting scenery (and some bugs) using manual focus, which may have had repercussions revealed later (which I will also reveal later).

Boundary Bay Dyke Trail

I have never seen horses out here before. Now I have seen three.

For Boundary Bay, we started near the golf course (there’s always a golf course) and went to the little pump house near 80th Street, probably a few km or so. The trail was very dry and bright. There were basically no birds, except an errant robin and a bald eagle sitting atop a telephone pole. The eagle was “panting” but when Nic crossed to the other side of the trail, it immediately stopped and looked precisely in our direction. And kept looking. We got some very nice shots, then scrammed (at a leisurely pace. An eagle would probably not be able to carry us off. Probably).

The main highlight here were planes, if you’re into planes, the scenery, and bugs, specifically grasshoppers of various colours, and butterflies.

We decided to round out the day with a risky trip to Blackie Spit.

Blackie Spit/Crescent Beach

Distant kayakers make land off Blackie Spit.

This is risky only in the sense that a sunny Saturday afternoon is likely to find the parking lot full. And it was. But we went to the second, smaller parking lot further in, the one with the curiously square roundabout (a squareabout?) and lo, there was a single spot! We parked a short distance from a Cybertruck, which seemed to have parked in a handicapped spot without apparent reason[Cybertruck joke here].

The tide was way out and Blackie Spit itself is now restricted to a single straight trail that doesn’t really get close to the water, so it’s a bit of a bust now. The scenery is still nice.

We ventured onto the other trails, saw more shorebirds (still kind of far away), but again, not too many birds venturing out into the mid-afternoon sun, apart from some song sparrows, a crow and a seagull that Nic and I both managed to capture pooping in mid-flight. You take the wins where you can.

And that was the day! The weather was perfectly cromulent, the lack of birds not surprising, and the rare gems all the more precious because as birding goes, we are also in the summer doldrums.

Soon, though, there will be coots.

The Shots

Shot with a Canon EOS R7 with 18-150 mm kit lens and 100-400 mm telephoto.

The Birds (and other critters)

Sparrows and sparrow-adjacent:

  • American goldfinch
  • American robin
  • Anna’s hummingbird
  • Barn swallow
  • Black-capped chickadee
  • Brown-headed cowbird
  • European starling\House finch
  • House sparrow
  • Red-winged blackbird
  • Rufous hummingbird
  • Song sparrow
  • Spotted towhee
  • White-crowned sparrow

Waterfowl and shorebirds:

  • American coot (not yet!)
  • Belted kingfisher
  • Canada goose
  • Great blue heron
  • Greater yellowlegs
  • Hooded merganser
  • Mallard
  • Sandhill crane
  • Wood duck

Common:

  • American crow
  • Rock pigeon
  • A few gulls

Raptors:

  • Bald eagle
  • Northern harrier (most likely)
  • Peregrine falcon

Non-birds:

  • A black squirrel
  • Bugs and insects:
    • Dragonflies
    • Hover flies
    • Honey bees
    • Bumblebees
    • Killer bees (wasps)
    • And more

Birding, July 12, 2025: The Blackbird and the Lily Pad

Where: Reifel Bird Sanctuary (Delta), Richmond Nature House, Terra Nova Park (Richmond), Piper Spit, Burnaby Lake (Burnaby)
Weather: Sunny, 20-28°C

Reifel Bird Sanctuary

South pound at Reifel: Mostly empty, a little slimy.

We started bright ‘n early at Reifel, where the clouds quickly burned off and it was actually kind of warm. You know it’s warm at Reifel when the breeze feels pleasant.

There was some incipient goose drama, but for the most part, it was pretty quiet, with many of the ponds and waterways absent of waterfowl. Several ponds were also looking quite slimy, including the London Slough1Dictionary Fun Fact: It can be pronounced sloo or slow, but not sluff, where it means something that can be shed or cast off, which gave us slimy mallards and equally slimy turtles. Everyone seemed pretty chill with the green slime. And speaking of the slough, one of the logs there was, as Nic put it, a veritable United Nations of waterfowl, with mallards, wood ducks, wigeons and mergansers all sharing space, a turtle at the end keeping an eye on them.

The vast marshlands are looking pleasantly green and verdant now, with wildflowers providing ample opportunities for the billion types of pollinators buzzing about. The first of the main ponds on the Outer Dyke (approaching from the north) appeared to have a lot of birds over yonder in the eastern end, so we went to the secret third bird blind and indeed, the area was replete with dowitchers and lesser yellowlegs. They were a little too far away, alas.

We encountered a pair of Sandhill cranes and they were in a restful mood, probably due to the heat. One even folded down on its legs in a comfy patch of shaded grass.

There were goldfinches and yellowthroats, but they mostly remained elusive, as is their way. Herons were more present than in other recent trips, on the ground, in the water and in the air (but not pooping).

We saw more beetles going at it. I’m ready to declare them the horniest bugs of summer, though the dragonflies are putting in a good effort, too.

In all, a perfectly pleasant tour of the sanctuary, with a few birds we haven’t seen lately sneaking back in, like a few mergansers and pintails.

Richmond Nature House

My arm with a ladybug on it, photo courtesy of Nic.

Next was the Richmond Nature House. I did not take any photos here, but Nic shot a rufous hummingbird and a furtive chickadee that came out briefly to check one of the feeders that still had seed in it. Actually, I did take one photo–of a fire hydrant surrounded by flowers. And Nic took photos of me. Or at least my left arm, which had a ladybug on it.

Terra Nova Park

Vast marshlands at Terra Nova, looking north toward the coastal mountains.

We moved on to Terra Nova and for me, it was all planes planes planes! There were only a few birds here–again, probably staying in the shade to avoid the mid-afternoon heat. Terra Nova always offers nice scenery, though. And planes.

The tide was the lowest here I can recall seeing. A collection of herons were gathered south of the Iona Beach jetty, noodling about in an area that would normally be under water. And when I say noodling, I mean standing, because that’s what herons do.

Piper Spit, Burnaby Lake

A pair of poop monsters with urban towers in the distance.

We ended our birbing at Piper Spit and by now it was up to 28C, but the breeze meant it didn’t actually feel that hot. The spit is still a no-feeding area (though a few people were doing that and will end up in bird hell or something. Actually, the birds like the seed, so it would probably be some other kind of hell, like, uh, the no bird feeding hell, where you are waist deep in seed no matter where you go, constantly slogging through), so while there are birds, they don’t hang around the pier itself as closely as usual. We didn’t see anything unusual here and did not magically summon the crane this time. We did observe at length a blackbird on the lily pads giving itself a good bath, though. There were also pigeons acting like red soldier beetles, if you know what I mean. The ladies (or men? I am not a pigeonologist) seemed unimpressed.

As a special bonus, we did not have to wait for a train to pass when leaving.

In all, a good outing.

The Shots

Shot with a Canon EOS R7 with 18-150 mm kit lens and 100-400 mm telephoto.

The Birds (and other critters)

Sparrows and sparrow-adjacent:

  • American goldfinch
  • Anna’s hummingbird
  • Barn swallow
  • Black-capped chickadee
  • Brown-headed cowbird
  • Cedar waxwing
  • Common yellowthroat
  • European starling
  • House sparrow
  • Red-winged blackbird
  • Rufous hummingbird
  • Song sparrow
  • Spotted towhee
  • Tree swallow
  • Yellow warbler

Waterfowl and shorebirds:

  • American coot (not yet!)
  • American wigeon
  • Canada goose
  • Great blue heron
  • Hooded merganser (!)
  • Lesser yellowlegs
  • Long-billed dowitcher
  • Mallard
  • Northern pintail (!)
  • Sandhill crane
  • Wood duck

Common:

  • American crow
  • Rock pigeon
  • A few gulls

Raptors:

  • Bald eagle

Non-birds:

  • Western painted turtle
  • Bugs and insects:
    • Red soldier beetle
    • Great blue skimmer (dragonfly)
    • Eight-spotted skimmer (dragonfly)
    • Blue damselfly
    • Hover fly
    • Paper wasp
    • Sand wasp
    • A billion others I could not classify or have forgotten

Birding, June 14, 2025: No sunblock required

Where: Reifel Bird Sanctuary (Delta)
Weather: Cloudy, 15-17°C
The darker green reeds on the right are new and completely block off the pond, which continues behind them.

Today was a shorter outing because Nic needs his beauty nap before volleyball tryouts tonight. As such, we only went to Reifel, which was bird-deficient across vast stretches of the ponds and trails. Still, there were birbs to be seen.

The weather was cooler and cloudy, so the sunblock stayed in the bottle as we hit the trails.

Among the regulars, we also spotted a Northern shoveller, lending credence to them not really migrating away, just lying low and hiding…somewhere nearby? We also saw some wigeons, so at least two of them are back. The coots can’t be far behind.

The cranes were dining near one of the ponds we don’t usually see them hanging out at, along with several groups of adorable ducklings, providing at least one target-rich environment.

The geese were strangely reserved, with minimal honking. It always unnerves me when they’re quiet.

The male mallards and wood ducks are looking increasingly ratty, as they no longer have to keep up the good looks, with mating season over. The female ducks must now tolerate their beer bellies and mullet-free heads.

The biggest change since the last visit a few weeks ago, other than the relative absence of birds, was the marshland given over to being almost completely green now. It is very lush. Speaking of lush, this new type of reed/grass seems to be growing all over the place now, including spots where it is now obscuring some views. It’s kind of weird. I wonder if it’s invasive.

Despite the smaller number of birds, we did get some fine shots and there were turtles at the end. And it was nice to not have to slop greasy goop all over my exposed flesh, even if it does make me smell pretty.

The Shots

Shot with a Canon EOS R7 with 18-150 mm kit lens and 100-400 mm telephoto.

The Birds (and other critters)

Sparrows and sparrow-adjacent:

  • American robin
  • American wigeon
  • Anna’s hummingbird
  • Barn swallow
  • Black-capped chickadee
  • Brown-headed cowbird
  • House finch
  • House sparrow
  • Marsh wren (heard)
  • Rufous hummingbird
  • Savannah sparrow
  • Spotted towhee
  • Song sparrow
  • Tree swallow

Waterfowl and shorebirds:

  • Blue-winged teal
  • Canada goose
  • Gadwall
  • Great blue heron
  • Mallard
  • Northern shoveller
  • Sandhill crane
  • Wood duck

Common:

  • Rock pigeon

Raptors:

  • Bald eagle

Non-birds:

  • Black squirrel
  • Beetles
  • Turtles

Birding, May 18, 2025: It’s the horniest time of year

Where: Reifel Bird Sanctuary (Delta), Centennial Beach (Delta), Burnaby Lake (Burnaby) 
Weather: Partly sunny, 12-16°C

Reifel Bird Sanctuary

Looking east across one of the large ponds.

Today’s birding was X-rated, due to everything from dragonflies to swallows and sandhill cranes were getting it on. It was quite scandalous.

We started out at Reifel, where it seemed like most of the people there were Serious Birders and Their Very Gigantic Lenses. Even my 400 mm lens started feeling puny. On the other hand, I don’t have to stand 500 m away from a bird to get a shot.

We saw some baby ducks, which was fun, along with more goslings. Several male cowbirds were working it hard on the females, but the women were just not impressed.

In news both sad and horny, the Sandhill cranes have already abandoned their island nest, which has since been claimed by a goose as they expand their honking empire across the sanctuary. This likely means that any chicks they had did not survive. Undeterred, we witnessed them engage in a spontaneous (to us) mating ritual, so perhaps they are priming to try once again. Good luck, cranes!

Not to be left out, a pair of tree swallows did the nasty in a tree, which is the logical place for birds to make out. There was no fuss or muss here, just some very quick action, then each went about their business.

Shorebirds were finally spotted again in one of the big ponds–dowitchers, it looked like–but they were far off. Boo. And we only saw a single heron, which matches the number of turtles we saw as well.

In the cute department, apart from all the babbies, was a house sparrow fledgling, eating alongside a possible parent and looking delightfully scruffy.

Centennial Beach

Very low tide at Boundary Bay.

The tide was extremely low, so the odds of seeing shorebirds here were also extremely low, but we did see a single killdeer, more baby ducks and a crow amusing itself by dropping some manmade thingamabob from high up above the rocky beach.

We also saw a house sparrow nab a crunchy winged insect of some sort atop a concrete block near to us.

I actually can’t recall seeing much else. It was one of the least bird-filled visits to Centennial in recent memory.

Piper Spit, Burnaby Lake

By the time we got to Piper Spit, the sky had grown dark and ominous.

We ended at Piper spit and by this time, the sun was mostly covered by clouds, the wind had picked up and the No Bird Feeding Due to Bear in Area sign was up, which everyone obviously ignored.

It was too late to visit the Nature House by the time we arrived, due to Google Maps sending us on a very indirect route from Centennial Beach, but we did see about a billion more goslings, the Sandhill crane was present yet again (though standing in bad light) and more cowbirds were trying to get it on.

The lake level was way up after recent showers, so shorebirds were absent yet again. We had to make due with pigeons, a squirrel and the usual waterfowl.

Overall, it was a fine outing, and I got some snazzy shots, particularly at Reifel, where I had my R7 out for the first time..

The Shots

Shot with a Canon EOS R7 with 18-150 mm kit lens and 100-400 mm telephoto.

The Birds (and other critters)

Sparrows and sparrow-adjacent:

  • American robin
  • Anna’s hummingbird
  • Barn swallow
  • Black-capped chickadee
  • Brown-headed cowbird
  • Common yellowthroat
  • Marsh wren
  • Red-winged blackbird
  • Rough-winged swallow
  • Rufous hummingbird
  • Savannah sparrow
  • Spotted towhee
  • Song sparrow
  • Tree swallow

Waterfowl and shorebirds:

  • Canada goose
  • Gadwall
  • Great blue heron
  • Long-billed dowitchers
  • Mallard
  • Sandhill crane
  • Wood duck

Common:

  • American crow
  • Assorted gulls
  • Rock pigeon

Raptors:

  • Bald eagle

Non-birds:

  • Dragonflies
  • Assorted and chonky squirrels

Birding, April 26, 2025: Sit, sing, poop

Where: Reifel Bird Sanctuary (Delta), Boundary Bay (Delta), Burnaby Lake (Burnaby)
Weather: Sunny, windy 12-18°C

Reifel Bird Sanctuary

Rusty the pipe in the slowly-greening marshland.

Reifel was mild, breezy and packed full of people. I think I saw more people than birds.

The geese were quiet until they weren’t. Once one starts honking, the GHM1Goose Hive Mind takes over and they all honk.

We saw a few pintails, so they haven’t all left yet, but chances are decent these may be the last we see until they return next migration. Goodbye, pointy-tailed butts!

We saw a few Sandhill cranes, two of them on their little “making babbies” island, until one departed for the shore where it hung out with the aforementioned geese. Among other winter refugees, we also saw a few scaups, though their numbers have dwindled, too.

Making up for it were swallows and plenty of them, including some that may have been barn swallows but might have been something else, but were probably barn swallows.

There were definitely others that were barn swallows.

And even though one of the bird signs at the sanctuary identifies them as a local (or at least regularly visiting) species, we saw cinnamon teals for the first time: a male and female pair in a pond near the viewing tower. The male is a very bright orange, with piercing red eyes. They each have big bills reminiscent of shovellers, but smaller. The male especially was in very serious dabbling mode, constantly dunking his head.

We also saw an adorable pair of Least sandpipers at one of the inner ponds, the first time I think we’ve seen them at Reifel.

We heard and saw marsh wrens again, underscoring that the best time to see a marsh wren is when he’s horny. Come summer, they’ll be nearly-impossible to spot again.

In all, a pretty good outing, though again, the number of people milling about was noticeable. Also, I felt inadequate with all the people carrying lenses half as long as I am.

Boundary Bay

Looking southeast toward the bay, with bonus chairs.

The main quest here was to find a common yellowthroat, with a side of Savannah sparrow. Mission accomplished on both, though most of the time they were far off and the shots were not great.

We did get a pair of nice matching burns on our necks, though, as I brought sunblock, then thought it was a good idea to just leave it in the car. I am very smart.

While we slowly burned, we observed a few other birds, mostly swallows, what seemed like an endless supply of herons flying overhead, bald eagles circling about or sitting on far-off logs, and a robin or two, which would usually move just as I was lining up a shot. I took photos of the golf course, instead, as I was fairly confident it would not suddenly fly off on me.

There was also construction equipment out and aboot as they are expanding the width and possibly the height of the dyke in one section for reasons. As it was the weekend, the equipment was idle. I took pictures. Again, the equipment was close and very still.

Piper Spit

A few errant lily pads showing. In a few months, nearly the entire surface will be covered in them.

Sufficiently burned, we ended as we do most times at Piper Spit. No pintails or coots here, and the scaup population was quite low. There were plenty of geese, a few gulls and the usual gangs of wood ducks and mallards. We saw one green-winged teal. Maybe there were more?

There were a lot of people here, too, including a very bossy little kid shouting orders to his family like, “Get your camera!” One kid decided to kind of play with his giant hat instead of wear it and dropped it off the pier. His father helped him get it out. He’s lucky there weren’t more gulls around. They’d totally go for a hat.

As it happened, this is where I learned the limits of the battery in Nic’s old Sony camera. After 691 shots, I got the “Battery exhausted” message and had to resort to taking scenery shots with my 107-year-old iPhone. Admittedly, we were close to wrapping up, so I didn’t miss out on much, really.

Overall, a nice day, with maybe bigger crowds than would be ideal, but with unexpected delights along the way, like the cinnamon teals and sandpipers.

The Shots

Theoretically possible

The Birds (and other critters)

Sparrows and sparrow-adjacent:

  • American robin
  • Anna’s hummingbird
  • Barn swallow
  • Black-capped chickadee
  • Brown-headed cowbird
  • Cinnamon teal
  • Common yellowthroat
  • European starling
  • Golden-crowned sparrow
  • Marsh wren
  • Northern flicker
  • Red-winged blackbird
  • Savannah sparrow
  • Song sparrow
  • Tree swallow
  • ??? swallow
  • White-crowned sparrow

Waterfowl and shorebirds:

  • American wigeon
  • Bufflehead
  • Canada goose
  • Gadwall
  • Great blue heron
  • Green-winged teal
  • Hooded merganser
  • Lesser sandpiper
  • Mallard
  • Northern pintail
  • Northern shoveller
  • Sandhill crane
  • Scaup
  • Wood duck

Common:

  • American crow
  • Assorted gulls
  • Rock pigeon

Raptors:

  • Bald eagle

Non-birds:

  • A few black squirrels
  • Various bugs and bees
  • A persistent helicopter

Birding, April 5, 2025: Birbs Behind Branches

Where: Reifel Bird Sanctuary (Delta), Burnaby Lake (Burnaby)
Weather: Cloudy, some sun, 11-16°C

Reifel Bird Sanctuary

Endless marshland and a hazy blue sky.

The weather was downright pleasant today. Nic wore shorts! I did not. Maybe next time the weather is nice.

We got to Reifel early and given the weather, it was pretty busy. Among the many people was local bird photographer Liron Gertsman, who I recognized as he and his groupies/friends walked past up and went to the top of the viewing tower. I spotted him due to his adorable baby beard. He probably won several awards while at the top of the tower for photography, these things just seem to happen to him.

Meanwhile, on the ground, we saw a good mix of birds. The shoveller numbers seem to be thinning, but we encountered many a YARG (Yet Another Random Goose) as they were scattered all over the place.

The tree swallows are back, looking like shiny little penguins and setting up home in assorted bird boxes. Marsh wrens were singing their little hearts out and a few of them appeared long enough for us to get some decent shots. The even harder-to-shoot golden-crowned kinglets were also flitting about and amazingly, several stopped long enough to make up for the hundred or so blurry or not-quite-there shots. It’s always nice to be reviewing your photos and encounter a good shot only a few photos in.

We saw two Sandhill cranes, though they were apart–one adult and one rather vocal juvenile. I wonder why the family is split up.

The drama this time came courtesy of a cantankerous coot, who took umbrage to a duck, stretched up to full height (and looking very chicken-like) and doing a kind of karate kick with one of its impressively freaky feet to a nearby mallard. It ended after that, but yeah, don’t mess with coots, I guess.

The geese were relatively well-behaved, and all of the ducks gave us good pose.

Burnaby Lake

Increasing green adjacent to Still Creek.

We weren’t at Burnaby Lake for too long for reasons, but the main objective–to find recently-sighted mountain bluebirds–eluded us. Instead, we came across a large murder of geese (that’s what I’m calling them) on the athletic field, except, upon closer inspection with both eyes and ears, these were not Canada geese, but the smaller and honk-free Cackling geese. We’d never seen a large group of them before. They’re kind of adorable with their short necks and stubbier beaks. And they don’t honk, they kind of peep-honk (it doesn’t sound like cackling to me).

There were chickadees here, too, but they were one of the birbs I failed to get any really good shots of today, alas. It was a fine outing otherwise.

The Shots

Theoretically possible

The Birds (and other critters)

Sparrows and sparrow-adjacent:

  • American robin
  • Black-capped chickadee
  • Dark-eyed Junco
  • European starling
  • Golden-crowned kinglet
  • Golden-crowned sparrow
  • House sparrow
  • Marsh wren
  • Red-winged blackbird
  • Rufous hummingbird
  • Song sparrow
  • Spotted towhee
  • Tree swallow
  • White-crowned sparrow

Waterfowl and shorebirds:

  • American coot
  • American wigeon
  • Bufflehead
  • Cackling goose
  • Canada goose
  • Gadwall
  • Great blue heron
  • Green-winged teal
  • Hooded merganser
  • Mallard
  • Northern pintail
  • Northern shoveller
  • Ring-necked duck
  • Sandhill crane
  • Scaup
  • White-fronted goose
  • Wood duck

Common:

  • American crow
  • Assorted gulls
  • A rock pigeon

Raptors:

  • Bald eagle
  • Northern harrier (maybe?)

Non-birds:

  • Turtles on a log
  • One chonky black squirrel

Birding, March 1, 2025: A conglomeration of waterfowl

Where: Reifel Bird Sanctuary (Delta), Everett Crowley Park (Vancouver), Piper Spit, Burnaby Lake (Burnaby)
Weather: Sun and high cloud, 7-14°C

The Outing

Reifel Bird Sanctuary

Moodly-looking marshland.

I missed the snow at Reifel in the sense that I was not there when the snow was. I did not otherwise miss it. Today it was mostly sunny and quite mild, with temperatures well above normal and little to no wind.

We didn’t have to go far to find the Sandhill cranes, as three of them milled around us right at the entrance. A sad note here, as one of the nearly adult-size babbies disappeared a few weeks and has not been seen, despite park volunteers looking for it, or signs of it. The others were wandering about in that nonchalant way of theirs. We also had our best view of the night heron, which was still not great.

The great blue heron were mostly seen from a distance, and one of their usual spots in the slough near the entrance had been taken over by the largest gathering of turtles I’ve seen there, spread out among the logs and basking in the sun.

After shooting the cranes, we headed up the East Dyke trail and saw a large blob of people ahead, gathered in the area where owls have been spotted. They had spotted an owl, specifically an adorable little Northern saw-whet owl (less adorable if you’re a vole or field mouse). Even better, I got probably my best owl shots ever, which is admittedly not a high bar, since almost all of my previous shots ranged from bad to “I swear there’s an owl there.”

Chickadees were in short supply, which seemed odd, but we did see a few wood ducks, the geese had returned and honked regularly to remind you they had done so. Towhees were once again out in large numbers. No sign of any spring migrants yet.

And eagles. Everywhere we saw eagles, flying in circles in groups of about six to eight, all over the place. Maybe a social thing? It was a good way to test the strength of my arms, as to get shots I had to point the camera straight up at the sky. The shots I got were okay, but Nic fared a bit better.

I got my first-ever shots of a trio of hummingbirds at one feeder, all drinking instead of fighting. Some of the shots were pretty decent, woo.

Reifel was also quite busy, which was not surprising given how mild it was. Overall, it felt like we moved through more quickly than usual, but we both got good shots, so that was OK.

Everett Crowley Park

Avalon Pond, where a few ducks were hanging out.

This was a new place for us and a rare bit of birding in Vancouver proper. The park is nice enough and has nice, wide trails and a cute little pond called Avalon Pond, where we saw a few mallards. However, many of the trails are off-leash for dogs and this is obviously a very popular spot for dog walkers, which is not great for birding, as birds and dogs do not normally act like best buds together. We did see a junco and a few robins, and one song sparrow. BUT…one of the robins was leucistic up in the hizzy, with a lot of white all over parts of its body that are normally not white, giving it a distinctive and snazzy look. This pretty much made the trip worthwhile. That said, we probably won’t come back, due to the dogs.

There were signs noting that No nuisance barking was allowed. I wonder where the line is between acceptable and nuisance barking is?

Also, it doesn’t state who shouldn’t dig, so I assume the rule applies to both dogs and people. Several large holes indicated this rule was not always being observed.

Barking your shin is allowed, but not recommended.

Piper Spit

View from Piper Spit, looking east.

The sun had mostly disappeared between high clouds at Piper Spit, which made us sad, and our trip to the rowing pavilion yielded no birds other than pigeons, though we did get some scenery shots.

At the spit itself, the usual gang was there, including a gull that was very proud of the golf ball it had procured. There was duck drama, but the coots seemed relatively well-behaved. The geese were honking and being weird and one on the pier got nippy, and also started showing its tongue, which is something you should never see or ever want to see.

In good news, the dowitchers were back. In less good news, they were on the west side of the pier, which is bad from a lighting perspective. Nothing some post-processing magic can’t fix, I suppose.

There were also quite a few people here, many holding out their hands to feed the blackbirds and one person bravely risking all of her fingers by letting a goose eat from her hand. I would only do this while wearing industrial gloves. And a welding mask.

In all, a nice mix of old and new, with perfectly pleasant weather that beat the ice and snow of our last outing a few weeks back.

The Shots

Soon?™

The Birds (and other critters). Rare or rarely-seen birds highlighted in bold.

Sparrows and sparrow-adjacent:

  • American robin
  • Anna’s hummingbird
  • Black-capped chickadee
  • Dark-eyed Junco
  • Fox sparrow
  • Golden-crowned sparrow
  • Red-winged blackbird
  • Song sparrow
  • Spotted towhee

Waterfowl and shorebirds:

  • American coot
  • American wigeon
  • Black-crowned night heron
  • Canada goose
  • Common merganser
  • Great blue heron
  • Green-winged teal
  • Hooded merganser
  • Mallard
  • Northern pintail
  • Northern shoveller
  • Ring-necked duck
  • Sandhill crane
  • Scaup
  • Wood duck

Common:

  • American crow
  • Assorted gulls
  • Rock pigeon

Raptors:

  • Bald eagles and plenty of ’em
  • Northern saw-whet owl

Non-birds:

  • A few squirrels
  • Approximately one million turtles
  • Lots of dogs, but none that were nuisance barking