A dozen people showed up for a bird walk at Trout Lake to unexpectedly beautiful winter weather. We had an atmospheric river earlier in the week and another one the day after the walk, but that morning there was blue skies among the clouds. The attendees had a nice mix of expertise, from first-time birders to folks that had been birding for decades, and even some with lots of experience but who were new to Vancouver.

We started at the south beach for a good look at the gulls and waterfowl – at least until a Bald Eagle flew over and spooked them! Fortunately the flocks returned, and we got some good looks after all. In addition to the usual Coots, Wood Ducks, Mallards and Wigeons, we also saw both Common and Hooded Mergansers and a Ring-Necked Duck. A rare adult Cooper’s Hawk also showed up.

We only found three gull species of the four we were hoping for (Glaucous-Winged Gull, Short-Billed Gull, and Ring-Billed Gull but not California Gull) but we were able to point out some important field marks and introduce folks to the subtle world of gull identification.

Moving clockwise around the lake, we admired a Fox Sparrow, Song Sparrows, American Goldfinches, Purple Finches and an Anna’s Hummingbird in the London Plane and Pacific Crabapple trees. Further north, we encountered two Brown Creepers hanging out on a tree who were unexpectedly chill with so many people admiring them from up close.

By the end of the loop we had 35 species – unusually high for the time of year and group size, thanks to good finds by experienced participants. A wonderful walk on a lovely winter day.

Our eBird checklist is here https://ebird.org/checklist/S288450978