Harris’s Sparrow this afternoon at Jordan River on Vancouver Island. Over 1000 miles northwest of where it should be! 🇨🇦🪶

White-crowned Sparrow experienced a record year at Rocky Point, with 537 ringed (2000-2024 mean of 160). This individual, who’d clearly been feasting on berries, was one of our oldest recaptures, having been ringed in 2019. 🇨🇦🪶🧪🌎

It was Rocky Point’s second-best autumn for White-throated Sparrow, with 16 ringed (2000-2024 mean of 7.2) 🇨🇦🪶🧪🌎

Male Varied Thrush in a southern Vancouver Island forest today. I’ve ringed 10 first-years over the last two weeks here, but this was my first adult! 🪶

First- and second-year Northern Saw-whet Owls last weekend in Metchosin. 1CYs are characterised by a single generation of new (juvenile) flight feathers. 2CYs exhibit a block of old (juvenile) flight feathers which are sandwiched between new outer primaries and inner secondaries. 🇨🇦🧪🌎 #birdringing

Adult male Barred Owl ringed in a southern Vancouver Island forest this evening 🇨🇦🦉

This Northern Saw-whet Owl, trapped last night in Metchosin, was ringed <1 km away on 14 Oct 2023. Now in its third year, the clincher for ageing is the presence of three generations of flight feathers which include a juvenile generation (in this case, just the innermost primary). 🇨🇦🧪🌎 #birdringing

Nice night spent ringing Northern Saw-whet Owls on southern Vancouver Island 🦉🇨🇦

It’s always good to see the impacts of avian non-natives documented. A recent paper on Common Myna in Israel (mdpi.com/2079-7737/14/7/828) cited our Seychelles research (sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2351989423002196). #ornithology

Every Varied Thrush I see is a delight! A male and a female, ringed in Metchosin this evening, allowed a side-by-side comparison. 🇨🇦🪶

Steller’s Jay ringed in Metchosin just now. The blue lateral crown-stripes are easy to miss in the field! #birdringing

Male Red-breasted Nuthatch ringed in Metchosin today #birdingBC

A day of habitat restoration in the subalpine zone, via chopper. By expanding lines of sight for Vancouver Island Marmots, predation pressure on this Critically Endangered ground squirrel should be reduced. 🇨🇦🌎🐿️

A stunning male Varied Thrush in Metchosin this evening 🇨🇦 #birdringing

Adult male Golden-crowned Kinglet recaptured at Rocky Point this month; ringed there in August 2024. Males are told by orange feathers in the crown. #birdringing

California Quail at Rocky Point last month. Their plume is comprised of six overlapping feathers. #birdingBC

Barred Owl ringed at Rocky Point Bird Observatory tonight 🦉

Blog post on my last week as 2025’s bander-in-charge at Rocky Point Bird Observatory, now we’ve completed autumn migration monitoring: rpboblog.blogspot.com/2025/10/week... 🇨🇦🪶🧪🌎

Third time lucky with this Rock Wren at McMicking Point in Victoria today! #birdingBC

Siberian Thrush ageing confusion resolved! Papay’s 2022 bird (accepted as an adult) was a first-winter male. Morals of the story: adult males should always have striking head patterns and juvenile wing feathers can be very blue! Thanks to @stervander.com for revisiting the specimen. #birdingScotland

Marsh Wrens are not common in the nets at Rocky Point. It was nice to catch a couple last weekend, including a recapture from last year. #birdringing

A juvenile female Sharp-shinned Hawk rounded off the final day of autumn migration monitoring at Pedder Bay today #birdringing

Perfection in duck form. Adult drake Harlequins in Victoria this week. #birdingBC

American Pipit at Rocky Point today ~ the first ringing record for the observatory, with <1 ringed in British Columbia per year. #birdringing

An unexpected Virginia Rail in the mist nets was a delightful start to this morning at Rocky Point! #birdringing

A new nudibranch for me in this week’s peek beneath the surface: White-lined Dirona 🌊🇨🇦 #MarineLife

I have wanted to see a Varied Thrush for a very, very long time, so I was ecstatic to catch this first year male at Pedder Bay this morning! Our first to be ringed this season. #birdringing

Saturday also wasn’t bad for birds in the Juan de Fuca Straight, including a bunch of Red-necked Phalaropes. A lone bull Orca was a delight too! #birdingBC #mammals

Decent showing of pinnipeds at Race Rocks yesterday. Vocal Steller and California Sea Lions are always entertaining. A Northern Fur Seal constituted a rarity for these waters. #MarineLife #mammals

Incredible to watch a pod of Orcas encircling a Harbour Seal that was hauled out atop a raft of kelp. Even more incredible to see a Humpback Whale repeatedly defending the seal. Fascinating altruistic behaviour! Yesterday in the Salish Sea, guiding for RPBO & @eaglewingtours.bsky.social. #MarineLife

Wet morning at Rocky Point so could only open the nets for a few hours between deluges. Nice Steller’s Jay! #birdringing

Good birding at Rocky Point yesterday. A Harlequin Duck was terrorising crabs, while numbers of Heermann’s Gull and Brandt’s Cormorant are on the rise. #birdingBC

Adult Golden-crowned Sparrow at Rocky Point yesterday #birdringing

It amazes me how resilient birds are. This Olympic Gull (Glaucous-winged x Western) at Esquimalt Lagoon this week is persisting, despite a severely deformed bill! #seabirds 🧪🇨🇦🌎

A Black-throated Grey Warbler always puts a smile on my face. Here’s a first year male from today at Rocky Point, where an average of five are ringed per autumn. #birdringing

Short-tailed Shearwater was a major rarity in the Salish Sea until this decade. It was cool to find a few dozen flanking the Canada/US border last night! #seabirds

I always enjoy catching a raptor, so this juvenile female Cooper’s Hawk in the passerine nets at Rocky Point today was very welcome! #birdringing

A pleasant evening at Esquimalt Lagoon included a vagrant Franklin’s Gull and my first Western Grebe. #birdingBC

Steller’s Jay at Rocky Point this morning! #birdringing

This Northern Saw-whet Owl was the first bird of the day to be ringed at Pedder Bay. Always a treat! 🦉

Subtle subspecies! Hatch year Gambel’s and Puget Sound White-crowned Sparrows can be a challenge to distinguish. Key features include bill colour (orangey vs. yellowish) and underwing covert colour (grey vs. grey washed yellow). Photos from yesterday at Rocky Point. #birdringing

Juvenile male Sharp-shinned Hawk at Rocky Point this morning #birdringing

Two Sora treated me to incredible views at Rocky Point this morning! Phone pic via binoculars. #birdingBC

Cassin’s and Hutton’s Vireos are scarcely ringed at Rocky Point Bird Observatory. I enjoyed my first of the former today, following a handful of the latter lately. #birdingBC

It was a good morning for rare sparrows at Rocky Point! First, the station’s tenth ringing record of Clay-coloured, followed by the first Brewer’s (Timberline) Sparrow to ever be ringed here! #birdingBC

First year male Townsend’s Warbler ringed at Pedder Bay yesterday. He provided a great comparison, following successive females. Key sexing features in image descriptions. #birdingBC

Anna’s Hummingbird ringed at Pedder Bay today. Adult males have uniquely shaped outer tail feathers, which produce a loud squeak during courtship dives. They dive at a speed of 385 body lengths per second; the greatest recorded velocity achieved by any vertebrate, relative to body length. 🇨🇦🪶🧪🌎

First year female Barred Owl ringed at Rocky Point today! This one I caught with a hand net mid-morning. The serrated edge to the outer primary functions to break up turbulent air, enabling stealthy hunting. 🇨🇦🦉🧪🌎

Puget Sound White-crowned Sparrows remain our most numerous bird ringed at Rocky Point this autumn. Here’s an adult and a first year from today. #birdingBC

Oregon (Dark-eyed) Junco sex comparison at RPBO Pedder Bay this week: 1CY male (left) and 1CY female (right). #birdringing