The See Life Paulagics ran its annual December trip out of Lewes this past
Saturday. Seas were a little rough, but the worst of it was at our back i the
morning so the ride was pretty decent. Highlights included Dovekie, Kittiwake,
Razorbill, and a spectacular Gannet show.
We saw nearly 3,000 Gannets with no associated fishing boats. There were
enormous schools of fish. At one place, we stopped to scan the flocks as birds
plunged into the water all around the boat. The mates broke out a few rods and
we caught a few Bluefish and Striped Bass, and some tuna were also seen though
species couldn't be determined (probably Bluefin at this time of year). One
Bluefish spit up multiple Sardines, making it obvious to all just what was
being served at the Bluefish Buffet.
Here are our final totals, broken down by state. (Thanks again to Mark Hoffman
for keeping the count. He's the only person I know who is nuts enough to even
count the Herring Gulls.)
SPECIES TOTAL DE MD
Brant 15 15 -
Surf Scoter 20 20 -
Black Scoter 12 12 -
White-winged Scoter 8 8 -
Red-throated Loon 17 17 -
Common Loon 24 20 4
Northern Gannet 2,823 2,815 8
Laughing Gull 6 6 -
Bonaparte's Gull 2,195 2,100 95
Ring-billed Gull 4 4 -
Herring Gull 187 185 2
Greater Black-backed Gull 141 139 2
Black-legged Kittiwake 3 1 2
Forster's Tern 1 1 -
Dovekie 3 3 -
Razorbill 28 21 7
large Alcid spp 6 - -
unidentified cetacean spp 1 1 -
Be sure to check our web site next week for the final details of our 2007
schedule. We are planning a 12 hour offshore trip on Sat, Feb 25 and an 8 hour
inshore trip on Sun, Feb 26.
Hope to see you aboard.
-PAG
Paul A. Guris
See Life Paulagics
P.O. Box 161
Green Lane, PA 18054
www.paulagics.com
215-234-6805
|