Grouse Mountain - July 2

This is my first regular blog post since the end of May. All of my June posts cover time spent on vacation in Alberta and Washington State. They are detailed in my 2018 Vacation Blog available for viewing here:

2018 Birding Vacation Blog.

As July 2 was the Canada day holiday. I ventured out to Grouse Mountain in North Vancouver to see if I could find a Chestnut-sided Warbler that had been reported. It had been seen on the Powerline trail which cuts across the mountain at a fairly low level and is accessible from the main parking lot.

This eastern Warbler is a rarity on the West Coast and had made the Vancouver Rare Bird alert. I have visited this area in the past and  had some luck with hard to find local birds.

After parking and climbing up to the trail, the first creature I saw was not a bird but a butterfly.


Lorquin's Admiral Butterfly - Grouse Mountain Powerline Trail, North Vancouver

I really like this next shot of a common bird, the Spotted Towhee.


Spotted Towhee - Grouse Mountain Powerline Trail, North Vancouver BC

Further along the trail I spotted a flycatcher, the familiar Fitz-bew call of the Willow Flycatcher. I believe this one is a juvenile.


Willow Flycatcher (Imm) - Grouse Mountain Powerline Trail, North Vancouver BC

At the same time the Warbler popped into view:


Chestnut-sided Warbler - Grouse Mountain Powerline Trail, North Vancouver BC
2018 Bird #185

This warbler is commonly seen in the East, my first sighting of it was in 2012 at Point Pelee National Park in Ontario.

Chestnut-sided Warbler - Grouse Mountain Powerline Trail, North Vancouver BC

I got a nice shot of a Swallowtail Butterfly, but am unable to identify the exact species.


Swallowtail Butterfly (sp) - Grouse Mountain Powerline Trail, North Vancouver BC

I got this single shot of a West Coast Warbler.

MacGillivray's Warbler - Grouse Mountain Powerline Trail, North Vancouver BC

2018 Bird #186

The last bird of the afternoon was another Willow Flycatcher.

Willow Flycatcher - Grouse Mountain Powerline Trail, North Vancouver BC

It was a very productive afternoon, with the Chestnut-sided Warbler being the unquestioned highlight and the MacGillivray's Warbler a close second.