A Pelagic Trip with LA Birders
Pelagic birding off the Southern California coast is one of those experiences that requires a certain tolerance for uncertainty. You can spend hours watching a flat, empty ocean and then suddenly find yourself surrounded by birds you'd never encounter on land. That's exactly how May 21, 2022 played out aboard the Spitfire out of Marina del Rey, on an eight-hour LA Birders pelagic that covered Redondo Canyon, the Palos Verdes escarpment off Point Vicente, and the 270 Bank on the far side of the shipping lane.
Seas seemed cooperative, with a gentle swell and long stretches of glassy, windless water. Skies stayed overcast through the morning and cleared on the way back in. Somehow, there was a lot of seasickness on board, and it was quite a queasy trip. Bird distribution was typical of offshore Southern California, uneven and sometimes frustratingly quiet, with pockets of activity scattered between stretches of open ocean that held very little. When the activity came, though, it came well, and the final species total reflected a genuinely diverse day on the water.
The Highlight: Horned Puffin at the 270 Bank
There's a standout moment on most good pelagic trips, and this one was in the form of a Horned Puffin floating calmly on the surface as if it had every right to be there. Which, technically, it did, but a Horned Puffin this far south is well outside its normal range and the kind of bird that brings cameras and excitement up really fast across the whole boat. It stayed with us long enough for excellent views before we motored on. That bird alone would have made the trip worthwhile.
The Tubenoses
The shearwaters and fulmars are always a focus on a Southern California pelagic, and the mix on this trip was solid. Black-vented Shearwater was the most numerous, a species that breeds on islands off Baja California and is the most reliably encountered shearwater in these waters. There were Sooty Shearwaters moving through on their long transpacific migration. We also spotted a lone Manx Shearwater, the rarest of the group, a species more associated with the Atlantic that turns up in small numbers in California waters each year. Northern Fulmars rounded out the tubenose list, gliding stiff-winged alongside the boat with that characteristic locked-elbow flight style.
Alcids
The alcid showing was excellent for a May trip. Cassin's Auklets - small and dark and easy to flush from the surface as the boat approached. Scripps's Murrelets were a highlight, a species that breeds on the Channel Islands and is one of the more sought-after alcids on a Southern California pelagic. Common Murres and the Horned Puffin made it crazy good day.
Phalaropes and Jaegers
Red-necked Phalaropes were scattered across the day, spinning on the surface in that characteristic tight-circle feeding behavior that makes them so entertaining to watch. A single Red Phalarope was a nice find, its brick-red breeding plumage at its peak in late May. A couple of Pomarine Jaegers put in appearances, big and purposeful, the kind of bird that immediately changes the energy on the boat when it shows up.
The Coastal and Nearshore Birds
The trip covered some nearshore habitat along the Palos Verdes escarpment, and that section produced a few good birds. Black Oystercatchers on rocky outcrops were a nice addition, along with a single Black Turnstone. The cormorant numbers were impressive, with over 1,100 Brandt's Cormorants recorded across the day alongside 53 Double-crested. Brown Pelicans were everywhere, with 640 birds tallied. Pacific Loons were well represented, still in or moving toward breeding plumage in late May.
The tern showing was good, with Elegant, Royal, Caspian, Forsters, and Least Terns all showing up in one day!
The Unexpected Landbirds
One of the quiet pleasures of a pelagic trip is the occasional landbird that turns up well offshore, possibly exhausted and disoriented mid-migration. This trip delivered a Wilson's Warbler - presumably a migrant that had drifted too far out over the water. These small surprises are part of what makes pelagic birding consistently interesting even when the ocean itself is quiet.
The Full List: 43 Species
The Horned Puffin will be the bird most people on that boat remember first. But the Manx Shearwater and the Red Phalarope in full breeding plumage and a Wilson’s Warbler at sea all deserve mention alongside it. Days like this are a good reminder of just how much is happening offshore while most people are watching the coast.
