"EXTREME" PELAGIC TRIPS FINDING EXTREMELY GOOD BIRDS
Over 200 happy birders took the opportunity to sign up for the Brookline Bird Club's famous "extreme" pelagic trips out to Hydrographer and Veatch's Canyons on the continental shelf sailing from Hyannis during the year 2007. These trips are called "the last frontier of New England Ornithology" by Rick Heil. Those on the August 25 trip were treated to a sighting of Little/Macaronesian Shearwater! This is the first photographically documented North American sight record.
The following is a list of birds seen on recent trips and seldom seen in our New England waters:
- Little/Macaronesian Shearwater 1 in 2007
- White-faced Storm-Petrel 3 in 2006, 1 in 2007
- Great Skua 2 in 2004
- South Polar Skua 1 in 2004
- Audubon's Shearwater 3 in 2004, 2 in 2005, 3+ in 2006, 20 in 2007
- Leach's Storm-Petrel a few each year
- Band-rumped Storm-Petrel 2 in 2004, 1 in 2007
- Bridled Tern 1 in 2006, 3 in 2007
The animals and fish observed over the years have also been exciting:
- SPERM, Long-finned Pilot, Fin, and Humpback Whale and Beaked Whale species
- Gray Grampus (Risso's), Atlantic White-sided, Saddleback (Common), and Bottlenose Dolphin
- Basking, Blue, Hammerhead, and Mako Shark
- Ocean Sunfish, Tuna (seen jumping), Flying Fish
- Atlantic Leatherback and the rare and endangered LOGGERHEAD Turtle.
Click here for complete reports of recent pelagic trips, including photos, and be sure to check back on the BBC home page for our 2008 Pelagic Program. Trips will be scheduled in June, July, August and November.
Thank you.
Ida Giriunas
Reading, MA
ida8@verizon.net
