VANCOUVER ISLAND TARGET SPECIES
WHERE TO FIND THEM NOW

Last updated November 12,  2007

NOTE:  This page is under reconstruction.  Some of the links may not work.

The following is a reasonably up to date summary of where to find the most sought-after species on Vancouver Island and vicinity.

Scroll down to view or use your browser to search for a particular species.  Normal seasonality is given in parentheses.  Clicking on a species name will take you to an image gallery.

Click HERE to view the birdfinding index.
 

• Thousands of Brant gather in March through early May in the Parksville/Qualicum area.  Many can be seen during spring migration off Long Beach.  Can turn up just about anywhere in the spring.
• A few have been summering in the Strait of Georgia this year.

                                                                              Brant  © Mike Yip

                                
                                     Yellow-billed Loon © Ralph Hocken

• Most years, there are several birds wintering off southern Vancouver Island.

• Occurs in small numbers along the outer coast of Vancouver Island.  Almost never detected from shore.  Aggregations of 50 - 300 birds may occasionally be found around large fishing vessels off southern Vancouver Island and in Queen Charlotte Sound.

    Black-footed Albatross  © Mike Yip

                                                          Flesh-footed Shearwater  © Mike Yip

• Occur in small numbers along the outer coast of Vancouver Island.  Almost never detected from shore.

• Often abundant along the outer coast.  Frequently observed from shore in the Ucluelet-Tofino area.  Whale watching or fishing charters off the west coast or in northern Johnstone Strait/Queen Charlotte Strait turn up this species in the summer and fall.  In good years, they can be seen many days along the ferry route between Port Angeles WA and Victoria.  Occasionally seen from Clover Point and East Sooke Park.

                                                  Sooty Shearwater  © Tim Zurowski

 Short-tailed Shearwater  © Mike Yip

• Occurs in variable number in offshore waters.  Apparently most abundant in late fall/early winter.  In some years can easily be found in Juan de Fuca Strait in November.

• Occurs in moderate numbers along the outer coast of Vancouver Island.  A small number breed on remote islands.
• Sometimes common off southern Vancouver Island.
• In late August through October can occasionally be observed from ferries in Georgia Strait and Juan de Fuca Strait.
• Whale watching trips in Johnstone Strait during July and August encounter this species from time to time.

                                                  Fork-tailed Storm-Petrel  © Mike Yip

• Fairly common breeder on islets off the west and north coasts of Vancouver Island.  However this species is very difficult to find.  Most of the colonies have restricted access, either due to rugged terrain, or protected status.
• Best opportunities are from ships off the west coast.  In fall, Leach's Storm-Petrels occasionally turn up in Juan de Fuca Strait.

   Brown Pelicans  © Tim Zurowski

• Difficult to predict occurrence, but small numbers appear annually in western Juan de Fuca Strait and along the west coast of Vancouver Island north to about Tofino.  A careful search of the coastline my reward the patient birder.  Try Jordan River, Port Renfrew and Barkley Sound.

• Occurs in moderate to large numbers on the south and west coasts of Vancouver Island.  A small number breed.
• From late September through early May this species is widespread.  The Victoria waterfront and Barkley Sound are good areas to check.
• From mid-May to mid-September, the west coast of Vancouver Island from Port Renfrew to Tofino is your best bet for finding this species.

                                  Brandt's Cormorant  © Mike Yip

                                                     Pelagic Cormorant  © Ralph Hocken

• Can be found almost anywhere along the oceanfront.

Black Oystercatcher (all year)

• Conspicuous along the coasts of Vancouver Island.  Of the relatively accessible areas, oystercatcher are  most easily found near Victoria.  Try Clover Point, McNeill Bay, Bowker Creek and Ogden Point.  Can be missed, but usually encountered.

Wandering Tattler (late April to mid-May, late July through September)

• Fairly common migrant along the outer coast, with a few turning up on the inside.  Good spots include South Beach near Long Beach and the rocky shores between Ogden Point and Holland Point (Victoria). 

Black Turnstone (all year, rare mid-May through June)

• From July through early May, Black Turnstones can be found most days on rocky shores and gravelly beaches.  Large numbers often gather in the Comox to Parksville section of coast.

Surfbird (all year, often hard to find)

• During peak spring migration in late April/early May and late July through mid-August, Surfbirds can be found just about anywhere on exposed shores.  Otherwise they are of irregular occurrence.  Rocky headlands near Long Beach are quite reliable.  In the Victoria area, try Clover Point, Cattle Point and McNeill Bay.

Rock Sandpiper (October through early May)

• Formerly of regular occurrence at Clover Point and McNeill Bay, Rock Sandpipers seem to have more or less disappeared from the Victoria area.  Green Point and the rocks at the south end of Wickanninish Bay often host a few during the winter.  Cattle Point (Oak Bay) has hosted one or two over the past few winters.

Red Phalarope (October through early January)

• Most years you need a scope to find a Red Phalarope.  Clover Point and Ogden Point are the best land vantage points.  The ferry route between Port Angeles WA and Victoria is quite reliable for this species in November and early December.

Red-necked Phalarope (July through early October)

• Try Ten Mile Point, Cattle Point, Clover Point and Ogden Point.  Easily found off the west coast of Vancouver Island and in Johnstone Strait.  Ferry crossings can often yield this phalarope.

Parasitic Jaeger (May (rare), September to mid-October)

• Port Hardy, Oyster Bay, Deep Bay, Neck Point, Active Pass, Cattle Point and Clover Point tend to be the best shoreline viewpoints.  Frequently viewed in season during ferry crossings.  This species is often found in association with Common Tern flocks.

Heermann's Gull (late June to late October)

• Widespread along exposed shores.  Ten Mile Point and Clover Point are excellent bets, as are Barkley Sound and the Long Beach area.

Thayer's Gull (late September to mid March)

• Clover Point is by far the best accessible location to view this species during the winter.  Most estuaries along the east coast of Vancouver Island host a few of these birds.  During the herring spawn phenomenon in March, thousands of Thayer's Gulls join the melee in the Parksville/Qualicum area.

Western Gull (all year, rare mid-march through October)

• During the winter, Clover Point often hosts one or two Western Gulls (plus numerous hybrids) throughout the winter.  They hang out with the Glaucous-winged Gulls on the lawn.  More common on the outer coast of the island where than can be readily found much of the year in the Tofino/Ucluelet area.

Common Murre (all year, easiest to find mid August through December)

• Often seen from along the various ferry routes between Vancouver Island and the mainland.  Island View Beach, Clover Point and East Sooke Park are good terrestrial vantage points in August and September.

Pigeon Guillemot (all year)

• Widespread along the coasts.  Occasionally locally absent for months.

Marbled Murrelet (all year)

• Marbled Murrelets can be surprisingly difficult to find off southern Vancouver Island.  Fairly easy to find off Jordan River, and from Nanaimo north.  Adults feed on sockeye fry on Vernon and Woss Lakes in the Nimpkish Valley.  Thousands of Marbled Murrelets breed in mature and old growth forest on Vancouver Island.  From May through late July, you may be able to witness early morning flights to and from nest sites.  Try watching and listening from the industrial logging road just south of the Salmon River Inn near Sayward.  Best time is at about sunrise.    

Ancient Murrelet (late October through mid-January)

• Best viewing locations: ferry route between Port Angeles WA and Victoria, Ten Mile Point, Clover Point, ferry route between Tsawwassen and Duke Point.

Cassin's Auklet (mid-July through mid-December)

• Rarely seen in inshore waters.  Some years can be seen close in at Clover Point.  Occasionally seen along the ferry route between Port Angeles WA and Victoria.

Rhinoceros Auklet (all year, rare mid-December to mid-March)

• From May through October, Rhinoceros Auklets are abundant and widespread along much of the coast.  Juan de Fuca Strait off Victoria is quite reliable much of the year.

Tufted Puffin (late May through mid-August)

• Tough to find from land.  Enterprise Channel between the Victoria Golf Course and Trial Island occasionally hosts a pair in late May.  Otherwise, scope any large feeding flock of gulls and Rhinoceros Auklets - you might get lucky.  A ferry trip between Victoria and Port Angeles in June or July is also a possibility.  Whale watching trips from Victoria Harbour occasionally turn up this species.

Anna's Hummingbird (all year)

• Vancouver Island populations have exploded in recent years.  Quite easy to find:  Rithet's Bog, Mt. Tolmie, west side of Mt. Douglas, Cadboro Bay residential area.  Males sing from conspicuous perches.

Red-breasted Sapsucker (all year)

• A common denizen of humid Vancouver Island forests.  Hard to miss during the spring and summer outside the dry belt on the east coast of Vancouver Island.  In winter, sapsuckers move into the suburban areas in the southeast.  Currie Creek, northwest of Duncan is a convenient location to find this species, March through July.

Hutton's Vireo (all year - difficult to locate much of the year)

• Try Royal Roads University or the 60-70 year old fir forests in the Cowichan Valley.
• Fairly common in second growth forests in the Nimpkish Valley.
      

Sky Lark (all year, easiest to find from March through June, when they are singing)

• In winter they are widespread in the Saanich Peninsula agricultural areas, and are often detected in the Martindale/Island View Flats.

Varied Thrush (all year, at higher elevations and further west in summer)

• Abundant in humid forests through much of Vancouver Island.  In some winters, many individuals move into the Duncan and Victoria areas.

The following species are very widespread and can be easily found most days in suitable habitat:
Mew Gull (all year, most common August through March)
Glaucous-winged Gull (all year - can't miss)
Rufous Hummingbird (late March through late August - most adults have departed, but juveniles are abundant)
Violet-green Swallow - widespread now
Northwestern Crow (all year - can't miss)
Chestnut-backed Chickadee (all year)
Bushtit (all year)
Spotted Towhee (all year)
Golden-crowned Sparrow (late September to early May)
"Sooty" Fox Sparrow (all year - local in summer)