the opportunity for clear views of scoter bills in the past as they were always 
     
     bobbing in the waves off-shore in the normal wind conditions found at East Point. 
     
     This year we were greeted by gentle ripple conditions and the brilliance of the Surf 
     
     Scoter's bill. The second surprise came when a Ruby-crowned Kinglet flew in to shore 
     
     and landed on the ropes between the fence posts at the light house. It came closer 
     
     and closer to us, until it was flitting about our heads within a few feet. Then it 
     
     landed momentarily on the scope handle inches from my hand. What a view! 
     
    

    
     From East Point we wandered along Route 16 adding shorebirds, marsh ducks, and 
     
     kingfisher to our list at North Lake. The sound of a Catbird's song at Priest came 
     
     as a surprise and the bird was right beside the truck. An attempt to locate the 
     
     sharp-tailed Grouse at Cable Head East was unsuccessful but we spend some fascinating 
     
     time sorting out a thick billed bird searching for food in the crowberry. It was a 
     
     Lapland Longspur. We also located two Caspian Terns but were confused for a while by 
     
     the very dark mantle and white forehead of one of these birds. 
     
    

    
     The path from Cable Head led via Red Head, through St. Peter’s Bay to St. 
     
     Andrews, and then to Mount Stewart, Afton Road, Deroche Pond and Tracadie Harbour. A 
     
     stop at Long Pond yielded a Common Goldeneye and Ring-necked Ducks. 
     
    

    
     As the sun settled and obscured our vision we tried first for short-eared owls 
     
     then sought out feeders hoping for doves, blackbirds or finches. Our last species 
     
     for the day was a Mourning Dove flying across the Brackley Point Road. The day 
     
     concluded with 78 species, down from last year's ninety species. The total list is 
     
     provided below: 
     
    
   
   
    
     Common Loon Gray Partridge Blue Jay 
     
    

    
     Red-throated Loon Black-bellied Plover Common Raven 
     
     Pied-billed Grebe Common Snipe American Crow 
     
     Northern Gannet Greater Yellowlegs Black-capped Chickadee 
     
     Great Cormorant Lesser Yellowlegs Boreal Chickadee 
     
     Double-crested Cormorant White-rumped Sandpiper Red-breasted Nuthatch 
     
     Great Blue Heron Least Sandpiper Gray Catbird 
     
     ChnmhIGOOR: Dunhn Anwficerobm 
     
     Mallard Semipalmated Sandpiper Golden-crowned Kinglet 
     
     American Black Duck Sanderling Rubyerowned Kinglet 
     
     Green-winged Teal Iceland Gull European Starling 
     
     Blue-winged Teal Greater Black-back Gull Northern Parula Warbler 
     
     American Wigeon Herring Gull Yellow Warbler 
     
    

    
     Wood Duck Ring-billed Gull Yellow-rumped Warbler 
     
     Ring-necked Duck Bonaparte’s Gull Common Yellowthroat 
     
     Common Goldeneye Common Tern House Sparrow 
     
     Common Eider Caspian Tern Purple Finch 
     
     White—winged Scoter Rock Dove American Goldfinch 
     
     Surf Scoter Mourning Dove Savannah Sparrow 
     
     Black Scoter Great Horned Owl , Northern Junco 
     
     Red-breasted Merganser Barred Owl Chipping Sparrow 
     
     Sharp-shinned Hawk Northern Saw-whet Owl White-throated Sparrow 
     
     Red-Tailed Hawk Belted Kingfisher Swamp Sparrow 
     
    

    
     Bald Eagle Northern Flicker Song Sparrow 
     
    

    
     Northern Harrier Horned Lark Lapland Longspur 
     
     Peregrine Falcon Gray Jay 
     
    

    
     lfleflhi 
     
    
   
   
    
     Thanks to the generosity of our many sponsors, just over $900 was raised towards the Island Nature Trust’s 
     
     purchase of a 157 acres natural area on the Trout River in Coleman, P.E.I. The Trust is committed to paying just over 
     
     $6,000 per year for the next eight years to pay for this property. 
     
    
   
   
    
     -4-