First BLOY survey of the year

 BLOY are Black Oystercatchers, the birds I've helped monitor on the Oregon coast since 2005. They are beginning to nest now and so Johnny and I made the first trek of the year up The Thumb above Road's End on May 4th. It is a very long, steep up and down trail. My legs are still sore. But it was a beautiful day and the BLOY rewarded us for our labors. 

So did the butterflies that flitted very close to us and succeeded in distracting me. Here is one that landed right in front of me: a beautiful Papilio zelicaon... better known as Anise Swallowtail.

Beyond the distracting flight of butterflies were the offshore rocks that Black Oystercatchers nest on. Binoculars and scope and camera bring them closer. See if you can find the little black birds with bright red bills...

This is Middle Rock. There are two BLOY on it but not visible at this distance.

The two BLOY are in this photo. After you see them closer in the next photo, see if you can pick them out here.

One is left top and the other right bottom

The South Rock is farther away and the BLOY nest on the ocean side, making figuring out if they're nesting or not difficult.

Here is the rock closer. There is a BLOY above the nest site. Check the next photo...

We saw one BLOY feeding on tidal rocks and pretty soon it returned to the nest rock. Very briefly, we saw both birds at once before the returning bird hopped down into the nest site... we presume...

Looking back at Middle Rock, we could not find the two BLOY we saw before... until we did... Look at the left side of the highest point...

They just look like black rocks until you see a bit of a red bill.

So the Middle Rock pair, we learned, is not yet nesting. Maybe by next week...

The hike out, like the hike in, is through spectacular old growth Sitka Spruce. Here is Johnny, who insisted on carrying the scope. He puts it in a guitar case and the hikers on top, I think, are disappointed when he pulls out a scope instead of a guitar. Or, maybe they're relieved, I don't know.

 

Hopefully, my legs will get accustomed again to this long, steep hike and won't get as sore next time as they are today. Want to join me? Bring your binoculars!