An actual adventure

Razorbill

 On Wednesday my friend Sue found out from a friend of a friend ( Jan and Mike ) that there were a lot of Dovkies and Razorbills in the Cape Cod Canal. Though a few Razorbills can be expected in the canal during the winter Dovkies are much rarer. 

   Sue and I decided to meet up and see if we could get lucky with some photos. Neither bird would be a lifer for us. We were actually standing three feet from breeding Razorbills last year on our trip to Machias Seal Island. However, at least for me, a photo of a Dovkie would be a life photo no matter how bad. 

   We pulled in at almost the exact same time near the marina on the island side. We saw quite a few birds including close Razorbills. There were some Dovkies but they were usually flying right past us. We aimed and shot, hoping our pictures would be in focus. 

 

Dovkie, a miniature flying football

   A bonus was that Sue found a  Black Legged Kittiwake swimming with two Bonaparte Gulls. Despite being too far for a good photo, that was worth the trip.

   Towards the end of our adventure a Dovkie did decide to swim a bit in front of us. It was on the other side of the canal. Although we wished it were a hundred yards closer, it was cooperative and we watched it for five minutes. There were plenty of sea ducks, loons, and gulls to keep us entertained in the brisk wind also.

  We left about 3:15. I only had a short ride back to Laurie's house in Norton while Sue had to drive back to Westerly, RI. All in all, I was thrilled to get out and see some good birds. Despite doing my normal Physical Therapy exercises that night, I still had to ice my back in the middle of the night to get back to sleep. A price I was hoping not to pay, but the adventure was still worth it.  

Heavily cropped photo of a Dovkie on the 
other side of the Cape Cod Canal. They aren't much
bigger than a tennis ball.