Many think about life on the Oregon Coast as idyllic. Wind-blown Shore Pines, sunny seashores, rugged rocky outcroppings, deep blue waters, and inexperienced hills typically fill tourism magazines and Instagram pages to draw guests and brag about the place you’ve been. Shingled buildings line predominant streets, and on lovely days, the sidewalks and sandy seashores are stuffed with pedestrians having fun with a quieter life and recent air away from the hustle and bustle of close by metros like Portland and Vancouver. Herds of Roosevelt Elk wander the streets within the winter and are sometimes photographed within the grassy dunes overlooking the seashores.
One particular city – er, village, is Cannon Seaside. Situated immediately west of Portland by ninety miles or so, Cannon Seaside has attracted the eye of worldwide audiences for over a century. This neighborhood has an energetic artwork scene, world-renowned eating places and resorts, and considerable pure magnificence. It’s an thrilling place to name dwelling as we expertise an inflow of 1000’s through the summers and good low season weekends. Then, it’s hushed for the rest of the yr—the typical expertise in lots of seasonally-dependent vacationer locations.
The star of the present is undoubtedly Haystack Rock, an imposing monolith that stands at a towering 235 ft. This distinctive geological formation was formed by lava flows from the Blue Mountains and Columbia Basin over fifteen million years in the past and additional sculpted by wind and water erosion. It’s a haven for nature fans, who can discover the intertidal zone throughout low tides, discovering sea slugs, sea stars, and sticky sea anemones. Haystack Rock has impressed numerous artists and made its mark in fashionable tradition, that includes in movies like The Goonies and Kindergarten Cop.
There are different guests, although, that spend their summers on our shoreline that many individuals come to see – Tufted Puffins. Nevertheless, until you already know what you might be searching for, it’s simple to overlook them. I frequently reply queries on the varied Oregon Fb pages about whether or not they’re nonetheless round or have left already for the season. The puffin colony on Haystack Rock is touted as essentially the most simply viewable on the West Coast. When the tide is low sufficient, you may stand on the north facet of the Rock and watch as Widespread Murres fill the air and try to pick the few puffins which might be combined in. When that tide is within the morning, my birding buddy/husband and I lead birding journeys to Haystack Rock to see this spectacle. That is our third summer time providing these free strolling journeys, and we determined to begin them as so many individuals would fail to notice puffins on their go to, which is a disgrace.
Within the Eighties, the variety of people on this Tufted Puffin colony was slightly below 1,000, however not too long ago, we have now barely reached 100. A lot of this issues the world’s altering local weather and fishing strain off our coast. There simply isn’t the forage fish obtainable that the species must thrive and develop its numbers. Tufted Puffins are nice ambassadors and poster youngsters for the wants of our oceans, as birders and non-birders are enthusiastic about seeing them.
On every stroll, we begin at a close-by seaside entry and wander down with whoever reveals up in direction of the Rock. We stand just a few hundred ft again to see the highest of the Rock adequately; too shut, and the edges would obscure our view. The Tufted Puffins burrow into the several-foot-thick substrate layer that has accrued over time of deposits from nesting birds. The edges of Haystack Rock are sheer and don’t have that build-up, so the puffins are primarily discovered within the prime third, the place it begins to slope. We encourage our members to get an excellent have a look at the Widespread Murres that often fly simply above us on their means out to fish. Subsequent, we try the puffins which might be often intermixed into the flurry of birds. They’re about the identical dimension because the murres however have a stable black physique and orange invoice in comparison with the murres black-and-white ensemble. A lot of the yr, puffins and murres spend their outing within the ocean. They don’t have any use for land aside from to breed; this realization fascinates our members.
If fortunate, just a few puffins are simply noticed whereas sunning themselves outdoors their burrow. Early within the season, we regularly catch them partaking in courtship and pair bonding behaviors akin to allopreening and billing.
As soon as, a person was even engaged on kicking clawfuls of filth into the air because it cleaned out their burrow earlier than breeding. Because the morning goes on, the members get a lot better at differentiating between the species, however there are at all times new of us who take part to see what we’re taking a look at, and we begin over again. Often, a Bald Eagle from a close-by nest will come by way of searching for a Widespread Murre to snag, making a chaotic scene of murres fleeing to the protection of the ocean.
I attempt to get guests within the Pigeon Guillemots, Black Oystercatchers, and cormorants, however puffins are actually what they got here to see. Regardless, seeing everybody get pleasure from this particular chook for so long as we have now them makes my day.
In case you are ever in my neck of the woods between April and August, please e-mail me! I might be pleased that can assist you discover some puffins.
