'birding and whale watching on Grand Hanan Island. 
     
    
   
   
    
     GRAND MANAN ISLAND AUGUST 1992 by Linda Thomas 
     
    

    
     In the predawn hours of Friday August 23, seven Natural History Society 
     
     members gathered with tons of gear and tons of enthusiasm for a weekend of 
     
     The counting began as the 
     
     sun rose, the first sighting a starling. Sleep wasn't even a consideration as 
     
     we headed off toward the first ferry crossing, all eyes were trained on fields 
     
     and wires calling out sightings as we drove. 
     
    

    
     with sustenance supplied by the ever 
     
     dependable Tim's, the first serious birding began at 
     
     the sewage lagoons in Saint John, N.B. This type of 
     
     lagoon is notorious as a "good" birding spot and 
     
     didn't let us down. A number of ducks and 
     
     sandpipers were spotted as well as an elusive hawk, 
     
     which provided the kind of stimulating banter, both 
     
     educational and teasing, that would only come from a 
     
     van load of birders. No conclusion was reached. 
     
    

    
     At the ferry landing in Blacks Harbour, we took the plunge and 
     
     rearranged the very tightly packed van to reach the coolers and the food. 
     
     Lunch was a delightful picnic, so enjoyable, that as we ate and added a few 
     
     more birds to the list we hardly noticed that, what had been a beautiful sunny 
     
     day was becoming lost in a thick bank of fog. The fog was to be with us for 
     
     some time. The ferry crossing proved to be not at all what we expected. The 
     
     new vessel combined with very calm seas was a pleasant experience for those of 
     
     us who were worried about motion sickness, on the otherhand, the same 
     
     conditions proved disappointing in our quest to fill the pelagic section of 
     
     our checklist. Birds had to pass within a few feet of the boat for us to be 
     
     able to see them, a loon, a few gulls and the dolphins did give us a look but 
     
     we all knew there was so much more out there just beyond that fog! 0n the 
     
     Island at last, we wasted little time in getting settled, four of us camped at 
     
     the Anchorage campground, one of the best birding spots we encountered all 
     
     weekend. The other three stayed in cottages in the Seal Cove area, with the 
     
     ocean, lots of eider, seals and beautiful sunsets just across the road. Near 
     
     Bruce's cottage a wild turkey was spotted on the side of the road, these-were 
     
     only introduced to the island in 1987, so we couldn't count it, still a first 
     
     for me. It also explained that sign in the grocery store, "road kill turkeys 
     
     99 cents/lb.” Trying to get as much birding in as possible, Castalia Marsh 
     
     was our evening destination. Shore birds were in abundance and a Peregrine 
     
     Falcon even perched on a far off fence. I can’t speak for the others but just 
     
     about this time, I was looking for something new, something I hadn't seen 
     
     before. There had been sightings of a Black-crowned Night Heron in the area, 
     
     as dusk was upon us we we had decided to go in search of the night heron. As 
     
     we were leaving the marsh, someone noticed something different in the trees 
     
     very near the road, the something different turned out not to be one, but six 
     
     Black-crowned Night Herons. Certainly a highlight of the day for me. A 
     
     Saw-whet Owl calling late in the evening signaled the end of our birding day. 
     
     Chef Dan created a feast, that warmed and filled us, a very satisfying day. 
     
    

    
     Saturday, was to be our whale watching day, but the elements were 
     
     against us. Rain, wind and heavy fog kept our tour boat at the wharf, but not 
     
     our spirits down. Two books, one, the Grand Hanan Bird Checklist, the other a 
     
     guide to footpaths and trails on Grand Hanan proved invaluable on this day. 
     
     Some highlights of the-day included an air show performed by at least four 
     
     Sharp-shinned Hawks, a family of Blue Jays and a Kestrel, who like us 
     
     preferred to watch from the side of the road. The display lasted for twenty 
     
     minutes and we were so close we didn't even need field glasses. Awesome is 
     
     such an overworked word these days I hate to use it, but it does seem 
     
     appropriate here. Another memorable part of the day was our visit to Dark 
     
    
   
   
    
     3