Newfoundland, Day 1: 

Cape St. Mary's Ecological Reserve!

We spent a week exploring the Avalon Peninsula in SE Newfoundland. The Ecological Reserve at Cape St. Mary's was one of our target locations to visit. We chose to travel in early June as it is Sea Bird nesting season. Several bird species spend most of their lives on the ocean, only coming to land during nesting season. One of the Sea Bird species we saw was the Northern Gannet.

The first sign welcomed us to bird rock where we were warned of dangerous, high cliffs. There are no fences or other barriers and visitors walk at their own risk.

Scenic views on the way to Bird Rock!

At nesting time, Northern Gannets form huge cliffside colonies. There are approximately 7,500 nesting pairs of Northern Gannets at Cape St. Mary's this year. Each white dot on the rock surface is a bird!

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Northern_Gannet/overview

As we got closer, we had better views of the birds!

A Northern Gannet delivers additional material to reinforce the nest.

Northern Gannets on the Nest .

Many Black-legged Kittiwakes also nest in the area. They are crow-sized gulls with grey on top and black legs and feet. I'm more familiar with juvenile birds that fly through our area most winters. They have a striking black 'M' pattern on their wings. The name comes from their cry of "kittiwake" when in flight. This species also spends most of its life on the open ocean.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Black-legged_Kittiwake/overview

We only saw one Razorbill so I don't know if it had a mate. It is believed that the razorbill is currently the closest living relative of the now extinct Great Auk!

https://www.theanimalfacts.com/birds/razorbill/

Common Murres resting at the cliff's edge, very close to the trail.

Common Murre pairs are monogamous for several years. Pairs begin and maintain their bonds with a greeting ritual in which both birds spar with bills, bow, and preen one another.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Common_Murre/lifehistory

Common Murres don't build a nest. Adults sometimes arrange small pebbles around the egg. The stones are cemented by guano, which perhaps helps the egg to stay on the cliff.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Common_Murre/lifehistory

Always on the outlook for life of any kind, the Meander Ground Beetle caught my attention as it raced across the trail in front of us.

Day Emerald: a beautiful moth species native to Canada.

This Willow Ptarmigan was our 4th and final "life bird" of the day! It had been seen the day before, so we were watching carefully while walking the trails. It wasn't until we were driving away, that we spotted this one near the road. It stayed still for about a minute, likely because a Northern Harrier was hunting in the area and it didn't want to be the Harrier's next meal!