Trip Information

Tour Dates: TBA

Leaders: TBA

Highlights:
• Tens of thousands of shorebirds, often at close quarters and often with several rare or unusual species,
• Excellent birding locations, allowing close scrutiny of shorebirds
• Several other interesting birds, including Barn Owls and Sandhill Cranes

Featured Birds:
• Sharp-tailed Sandpiper
• Red Knot
• Possibly a rare stint and Eurasian stray
• Western Sandpiper
• Long-billed Dowitcher
• Stilt Sandpiper

Tour Summary:
• Most birding from the vehicle, or close by
• Short, easy walking

•Temperate weather
• Good quality accommodation
• Maximum of 12 people
• One or two leaders
• 15-passenger vans
• Four breakfasts and three lunches included

Shorebird migration in coastal British Columbia in the fall can be spectacular. Tens of thousands of Western Sandpipers gather in the Fraser River delta and at Boundary Bay on their way from Alaskan breeding areas to wintering grounds further south. Several other “peep” species are migrating at the same time, and there is always the possibility of a Eurasian stray such as Red-necked or Little Stint. Pectoral Sandpipers are also passing through, and we make a concerted effort to find Sharp-tailed Sandpiper among the Pec flocks. Godwits, dowitchers and Stilt Sandpipers are in deeper water – and again there is a possibility of a rarity such as Bar-tailed Godwit. If we are extremely lucky, then maybe a mega-rarity such as Spoon-billed Sandpiper may show up! We concentrate on shorebirds during our short tour, but we don’t neglect other groups such as waterfowl, raptors and landbirds. This is a good tour for learning shorebird identification and for an exciting search for vagrants.

See detailed itineray below.

Click here to download a registration form.

Itinerary

Day 1 - Arrival in Vancouver
Our tour starts after supper.

Days 2 to 4 - Vancouver Area
We are based in our comfortable hotel in Vancouver for the duration of our stay. We spend most of our time in and around the Fraser Delta in the lower mainland of British Columbia, maybe venturing further should we hear of a stray within driving distance. During our stay, we concentrate on shorebirds, although we will not overlook gulls, waterfowl, and landbirds that are often desired species.

We visit Iona Island, located just north of Sea Island and the Vancouver International Airport, long recognized across North America as one of the best places to study shorebirds. The riverbank, Fraser River tidal flat, marsh, grassland and beach habitats attract a wide range of birds, including many rare and vagrant species. Iona Beach Regional Park is located on Iona Island, and is flanked by 1200 hectares of intertidal foreshore. Concentrations of shorebirds may contain such rarities as Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Red-necked and Long-toed Stints and the enigmatic and much sought-after Spoon-billed Sandpiper. We can anticipate seeing a wide variety of shorebirds here including Western, Pectoral, Stilt and Least Sandpipers, Long-billed Dowitchers, both Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, Dunlin, Wilson’s and possibly Red-necked Phalaropes, and Semipalmated Plover. We will closely examine the commoner species, to point out the characteristic identification features, how closely similar species can be separated, and what to look for to age individual birds.

We travel to Westham Island and the George C. Reifel Migratory Bird Sanctuary, a part of the Alaksen National Wildlife Area, in Delta. It is situated on the Fraser River Estuary, just west of the South Arm Marshes Wildlife Management Area <http://www3.telus.net/driftwood/grvan.htm#south#south> . The Sanctuary contains habitats important for migrating shorebirds, including tidal salt water mud flats, fresh water, brackish and salt marshes and upland fields. We will look for Barn Owls, year-round residents here, and Sandhill Crane, many species of ducks, and possibly Peregrine Falcon.

The Boundary Bay area is considered by many to offer the best shorebirding in Canada (at least 47 species, over 30 of them occurring regularly). Boundary Bay is one of the few places south of Alaska where both species of Golden Plover can be observed with some regularity. We’ll search the bay for these and other species including Red Knot, Dunlin, and Black-bellied Plover. The only Far Eastern Curlew ever observed on this continent south of Alaska was photographed at Boundary Bay—might we be as lucky? At Blackie Spit we hunt for Sanderling, Whimbrel and possibly Long-billed Curlew and Marbled Godwit.

There are several other excellent birding sites in the Richmond - Delta area such as Serpentine Wildlife Area, Roberts Bank and Brunswick Point, possibly Pitt Meadows, a narrow valley bordered by the Pitt River and the Coast Mountains. We will visit these localities should we learn from local birders of shorebird concentrations there.
Nights in Vancouver.

Day 5
Our tour ends after breakfast.

where we go

tours by date

our guides

Eagle-Eye Tours • Ph: 1-800-373-5678 or 1-250-342-8640 • Fax: 1-250-342-8644
© All Programs and Information contained in this site are copyright Eagle-Eye Tours 2005