Las Aventuras: Machias Seal Island

My dream shot that I have pictured in my head for so many years becomes realized. The Northern Gannet.

At the beginning of this year, I set some goals for myself. I really wanted to study Razorbills and several sparrows in better detail. In the whole scheme of things, this year has had a slower track with some retread, but I'm methodical and had a strong desire to understand habitat, sounds, and observe a particular set of birds I had seen only once in my lifetime. There were some birds I wanted to revisit again even if they weren't lifebirds. And you'll see why.

Scheduled almost 5 months in advance, Kathie and I both set out for Machias Seal Island. While the Hardy Boat tour out to Eastern Egg Island was nice, it didn't provide the observations I had been hoping for with these birds. Plus the waters were rough and our pelagic out to the island was not great for Kathie. So we crossed our fingers and tried something different.

A happy Kathie sits next to a journalist

We headed to Machias Seal Island which is like the neutral zone between the Canada and US border. While the Canadian government maintains the lighthouse, the island is left unmarked by either side and benefits from both governments. It is here on this island that one can find over 6ooo pairs of Atlantic Puffins nesting.

It was the most perfect pelagic out. It was overcast at first in Cutler, but once we left the dock, the clouds began to open and the sun came out! It was a photographer's dream! To top it off, we experienced smooth sailing the entire way there.

If the waters are choppy, birders have to stay on board the vessel. Normally there are about 20 some passengers, but for some reason on our day out to sea, 15 of them cancelled. When I say it was the most perfect day, I am not exaggerating.

Common Murre

We arrived to the slippery dock of Machias Seal Island. All around us we watched Atlantic Puffins, Razorbills, Common Murres, Arctic Terns and a Northern Gannet fly around us!

While I'm a huge fan of sparrows, grouse, parrots, gulls and several other families of birds, I really really dig ocean birds which include the alcids.

Razorbill

Only a few decades ago, these islands were barren or mostly barren of any puffins along the north eastern part of Maine. During the summer of 2014, thousands of puffin chicks died when their normal food source disappeared due to warm waters. However, since then, with lots of conservation work, these birds are thriving and doing well.

All predators, including rodents and Great Black-backed Gulls, were exterminated from the islands. Because of this controlled effort, puffins, murres and Arctic terns have also come back in greater numbers.

I have a confession. While I love the Atlantic Puffins, I love the Razorbills and Northern Gannets a tad more. How do I know this? When I got home, I discovered that I had taken more pics of Razorbills than of the Puffins.

Because the sun was so cooperative for the photography, I was able to get fantastically detailed pics of a normally difficult ocean bird. It's all about the eye with this bird. Often the eye of the Razorbill blends in with the rest of the black. But thanks to excellent lighting, I was able to get the detail.

I watched these birds copulate, fly, and socialize. They didn't mind the Atlantic Puffins moving around their spaces. The two species seem to coexist well together. Common Murres stuck closer to the ocean and were always seen together.

Kathie and I had a good laugh as the birds would peek down into our hide and watch us watch them. We'd hear "tap tap tap" on top of our blind. I hate to use the word "cute", but it was.

We were given an hour inside the blind and it was great. Here I was with my friend out in the middle of the ocean observing these amazing birds. Life doesn't get much better than that!

Again, I can't stress to you all how much we lucked out. Often a pelagic can be cancelled due to rough ocean waters. Just the day before, the trip had been cancelled and the following day after us, the waters had become choppy and birders were denied access onto the island due to the dangers. Reservations book fast and must be done early in the year. Once you book, you cross your fingers and hope the weather plays nice for your trek. It's always a gamble.

Common Tern on nest

As is the case with Maine, weather can change quickly. On our way off the island, the sun was replaced with overcast skies. Rain had come back into the forecast. It's like Mother Nature waited for us to do our work.

Common Eiders

It was beautiful observing birds without a ton of people around us.

As we left our world of "Jurassic Park", I just sat back grateful for the experience. I also was excited for Kathie as she added the Razorbill species to her life list!