GRANDE May 2010 Pelagic Seabirding Adventure
540 views · Published 22 May 2010 · 4:03 · Indexed 4 October 2026
Channel: W. Terry Hunefeld · 2010 · Pets & Animals
(San Diego) We sailed on the Grande out of San Diego on May 16, 2010 to what seabirds and marine mammals we could see in the waters far offshore southern California as part of a Buena Vista Audubon sponsored pelagic seabirding adventure. Leaders and experts on board included Todd McGrath, Paul Lehman, Dave Pereksta, Dave Povey, Brennan Mulrooney, Wes Fritz, Matt Sadowski and Terry Hunefeld. We spent Saturday birding the 9-mile and 30-mile banks off San Diego and then moving south and west of San Clemente Island. We woke up Sunday west of San Nicolas Island in Ventura County waters (by birding rules) where we spent the day searching areas up to 2,000 fathoms deep. Monday we birded the 30-mile and 9-mile banks again before returning to San Diego. The trip was filled with many highlights including the following: 173 Cook's Petrels 172 of these were seen on Sunday in Ventura County waters! These were spread throughout the day with many approaching for satisfying views. 5 Laysan Albatrosses (all in Venco) and 12 Black-footed Albatrosses (8 in Venco). Several of these followed the boat for long periods of time. 1 distant Brown Booby off San Diego 2 Red-billed Tropicbirds 4 South Polar Skuas 1 Long-tailed Jaeger (Venco) 1000s of Black Storm-Petrels 100+ Leach's Storm-Petrels including 5 "Chapman's" (nearly all in Venco) 1 Arctic Tern (Venco) 6 species of warblers around and on the boat on Saturday morning off San Diego In addition to those highlights, we saw a number of more expected species like Sooty and Pink-footed Shearwaters, Northern Fulmars, Ashy Storm-Petrels, Pomarine Jaegers, Cassin's and Rhinoceros Auklets, Xantus's Murrelets (including a few with chicks), Red-necked and Red Phalaropes, Sabine's Gulls, Common Terns, and several species of loons, gulls, and terns.
