Date: 4/26/25 8:22 pm From: Tim Bray via groups.io <tbray...> Subject: [Mendobirds] Short-tailed Albatross and Scripps's Murrelet, MEN pelagic today
26 April 2025 - On the half-day Noyo Pelagics trip this morning we
encountered mind-boggling numbers of Black-footed Albatross, perhaps 500
in view at one time, and one LAYSAN ALBATROSS - but the highlight was a
juvenile SHORT-TAILED ALBATROSS that came in while we were chumming (at
9:45 AM) and gave us great views as it sat on the water. True to form we
did not see it fly in, lost in the immense numbers of Black-footed, but
Peter Pyle spotted it and everyone got to see it.
The other interesting rarity was a SCRIPPS'S MURRELET seen on the way
into the harbor - only about a mile out. Three of us saw the bird fly
off, and I got poor photos, but we saw enough to rule out the other
possibilities. Normally these are found much farther offshore. There was
also an Arctic Tern just outside the Bay.
Peter will have a writeup with more detail. We were all struck by not
only the large numbers of seabirds, but by how close in they were. The
farthest out we got was the "dogleg" of upper Noyo Canyon, about ten
miles, and most of the action was closer in, especially at the upper end
of the canyon where a "drag boat" had attracted a huge flock of birds.
An amazing day.
