Westbay Wildlife

While I sort out some more photos of the recent Thetis Lake excursion here's a few more birds to add to the roll call of wildlife I've seen on the West Bay Walkway. Above is another shot of the Belted Kingfisher (Megaceryle alcyon). I see this bird almost every morning but he is generally perched high in a tree overlooking the water. And usually by the time I get all the gear out and ready he has spied his next meal and gone off to dive-bomb it. He has a very distinctive call that I now recognize, described in Peterson's Field Guide to Western Birds as "a loud high rattle." This means I see him much more often since his call alerts me to his location. To the left is a Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula), a diving duck that is wintering in these coastal waters along with the Hooded Mergansers and the Buffleheads.