It's been a tough several weeks plus on the farm, so today's hike to the Thumb in spectacular weather with a Black Oystercatcher chick in view on Middle Rock was just what I needed. Actually, I swear I saw two chicks with two adults but missed the second chick in my photos. They kept disappearing behind the rock fortress where my co-monitor, Casey, had guessed the nest was.
As an added bonus, the South Rock pair appear to be renesting.
First, the Middle Rock story in photos, sort of in the order I took them:
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adult left, chick behind to the right
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chick, rock fortress where nest was suspected is left of chick
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chick, closer
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adult on foraging rock gathering food for chick(s)
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foraging rock with BLOY barely visible
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The nest rock is big rock in foreground. Foraging rock is the little roundish one to the right (north)
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2 adults, 1 chick (between the adults)
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same as above but farther away
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Middle Rock (nest rock) with Black (or Back) Rock behind
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adult on left, chick behind, 2nd adult far right, with a 2nd chick likely behind the "fortress" behind the visible chick
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adult and chick
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I'll save the South Rock photos for my Black Oystercatcher blog. For those who would just like to see the beautiful ocean scene from my Observation Post, here it is:
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Cascade Head in the distance
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The offshore island covered in guano
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My view from The Thumb of the nest and foraging rocks below. A good scope and/or good camera is essential. The view is too distant for binoculars.
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The trail back toward The Knoll from The Thumb (the most civilized part of the trail)
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The trail from The Knoll to the parking area
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Earlier this year, during the month of rain, the trails were a slippery, muddy mess. Today they were beautiful.
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