Hi all,
I've finally gotten around to completing the report for the inaugural Esperance
pelagic trip run at the end of November. Overall it was a successful trip
(despite a gale warning!), though we had no really unusual sightings. The
highlights were a number of Wandering Albatross, large numbers of White-faced
Storm-Petrel, several gouldi Great-winged Petrel, and a good number of
Short-tailed Shearwater
A text version of the report is included below. There is a full version with
photos online at
http://wabirdingblog.blogspot.com.au/2013/12/esperance-pelagic-trip-report-30.html
Cheers,
John
ESPERANCE PELAGIC TRIP REPORT - 30 NOVEMBER 2013
Participants: John Graff (Organiser), Deb Sullivan (Organiser), Plaxy Barratt,
James Bennett, Heather Beswick, Kylie Bishop, Bart Brieffies, Pam Burgess,
Martin Cake, Dave Crossley, Stewart Ford, Jen Ford, Mike Gibbs, Greg Howell,
John Lillywhite, Dan Mantle, Bill McRoberts, Wayne Merritt, Josan Moss, Margot
Oorebeek, Ken Read, Pam Smith, Athol Staaden, Derek Stokes, Vicki Stokes, Roy
Teale, Ray Turnbull.
Conditions: Despite a gale warning for the Esperance Coast region, forecast
conditions off Esperance itself were relatively moderate, with seas forecast
below 1.5m, increasing to 2-3m in the afternoon, and swell forecast at 1.5-2m,
increasing to 2-3m in the afternoon. Winds were forecast at 15-25knts. Actual
conditions were roughly as forecast, but towards the milder end of the forecast
range. A few light showers were encountered on the outbound journey, but for
the most part overhead conditions were fine and sunny.
REPORT
This was the first pelagic trip we've organised off Esperance,
so we were unsure exactly what to expect. Although we did not pick up
any particularly unusual sightings, overall it was a successful trip,
and likely to be well worth repeating. The highlights were a high counts
of Wandering (-type) Albatross and White-faced Storm-Petrel, several
Great-winged Petrel of the NZ race gouldi ('Grey-faced Petrel') with
extensive pale faces, and a good number of Short-tailed Shearwaters –
although common off Esperance, the species has only been recorded once
before on WA pelagic trips (a single bird off Albany) and was a lifer
for several on board. Overall, at least 11 tubenose species were
recorded.
We met bright and early just before 5am and boarded the Southern Conquest at
Taylor St jetty. Unfortunately it became clear that there had been some
miscommunication about the object of the trip, so some hasty negotiations were
required to get us to the shelf break. Fortunately we were able to work out a
solution that seemed to work for everyone without too much trouble, and started
motoring out. Pacific Gulls followed the boat out, and the first shearwaters
appeared not long afterwards, both Short-tailed Shearwater and Flesh-footed
Shearwater. Nothing new was seen for a period, before the first albatross was
seen off the port side – unfortunately it disappeared into the rising sun and
couldn’t be identified, though thoughts centred on Black-browed Albatross.
Shortly afterwards, the first Shy Albatross made an appearance and a Little
Shearwater was seen by a few people. The first Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross
then appeared, and a couple of Hutton’s Shearwaters were seen. Bridled Terns
also made regular appearances, and a group of three Fairy Terns was also seen.
Shy Albatross continued to be almost everpresent, along with Flesh-footed and
the occasional Short-tailed Shearwater. As we passed Termination Island and
approached the shelf, the first White-faced Storm-Petrel and Great-winged
Petrel were also seen.
We stopped at the shelf edge in around 400m of water, and deployed the chum.
Flesh-footed Shearwaters and Shy Albatross moved in immediately, along with
Great-winged Petrels. At least one of these had enough white in the face to
indicate the NZ race gouldi (‘Grey-faced Petrel’) which is relatively rarely
reported in WA waters. Soon after, the call went out for a Wandering-type
Albatross coming in from a long way off, but it made a reasonable pass – quite
a white individual, most likely a Snowy Albatross (exulans), but possibly a
male Gibson’s ([antipodensis] gibsoni) or Tristan (dabbenena). White-faced
Storm-Petrel numbers in the slick built up, and the first Wilson’s Storm-Petrel
made an appearance, along with the first few Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross
joining the Shy Albatross. Then a jaeger was called just off the stern – though
it didn’t remain in the area, we were able to identify it as an Arctic Jaeger.
Several Wandering-type Albatross made passes, likely involving at least two
taxa; Snowy, and Gibson’s and/or Tristan.
After a while, we had drifted into shallower water and so we repositioned at
our initial starting point and deployed the remaining chum. The same species
mix continued to be seen, including high numbers of White-faced Storm-Petrel
and regular passes from several Wandering-type Albatross. A Short-tailed
Shearwater made a few close passes before sitting behind the boat. The
Great-winged Petrels seen here included several more individuals of race
gouldi. The first new species was a young Black-browed Albatross that made a
mid-distance pass, then remained distantly off the stern but did not come in.
Shortly afterwards though, another individual did come in to the back of the
boat, and a third individual was seen soon afterwards. A dead shearwater
(probably a Short-tailed Shearwater) floated past, and was picked at by a group
of young Shy Albatross. However, nothing different was seen and eventually we
had to head for home.
Due to the long distance to the shelf, the return journey took 4hrs, and little
different was seen. A few more Hutton’s Shearwaters were seen, along with a
distant jaeger sp. As we moved closer to shore, some small dolphins were seen,
unfortunately not well enough to establish their identity with certainty –
however they weren’t Common Bottlenose Dolphins, the typical species on other
WA pelagics. A Brown Skua also flew purposefully past the stern. Just before
docking, we made a detour for some close views of the Black-faced Cormorants at
the end of the Tanker Jetty.
All in all, this was a fairly successful first trip from Esperance, and
hopefully will be repeated. Thanks as always to all the participants, and to
the skipper and crew for their friendly assistance throughout the day. A
further thanks to all on board, participants and crew, for the way the early
issues were sorted out.
Species List [Total Count (Maximum seen at one time)]
Wandering Albatross [sp.] 8+ (3) (most probably Snowy exulans, 2+ more likely
Gibson’s ([antipodensis] gibsoni)/Tristan (dabbenena)
Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross 15 (6)
Black-browed Albatross 4 (2)
Shy Albatross 60 (12)
Great-winged Petrel 35 (7)
Great-winged Petrel (race gouldi) 5 (1)
Flesh-footed Shearwater 400 (45)
Short-tailed Shearwater 40 (14)
Hutton's Shearwater 10 (3)
Little Shearwater 1 (1)
Wilson's Storm-Petrel 8 (3)
White-faced Storm-Petrel 170 (60)
Australasian Gannet 9 (1)
Brown Skua 1 (1)
Arctic Jaeger 1 (1)
Jaeger sp. 1 (1)
Crested Tern 6 (2)
Bridled Tern 18 (4)
Fairy Tern 3 (3)
Silver Gull 2 (1)
Pacific Gull 12 (4)
Dolphin sp 10+
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