BIRD OF THE WEEK NO. 28

Pigeon Guillemot

BIRDS ARE ABUNDANT in April and May on this northeastern tip of the Olympic Peninsula. Migrant warblers and other songbirds arrive while ducks and shorebirds have yet to fly east or north to breed. Within a couple months most are gone, heightening my appreciation for the birds that remain. That includes a few species of auks who make summer nests nearby: Common Murres, Rhinoceros Auks (named for the horn-like tip atop their beaks), and a shrinking colony of puffins. A favorite is the Pigeon Guillemot, which in summer looks to me like an elegant Japanese ceramic—black eyes and dark chocolate feathers with a calligraphic stroke of white on their wings and, on their webbed feet and inside their open mouths, a finishing touch of warm red. Males court females by marching around to show off those red feet. Once chosen, they mate for life.

IT’S EASY TO SPOT Pigeon Guillemots from the ferry across the bay or on beaches and rocks near the shore. They fish in small groups and, though they prefer shallower water, can dive as much as 150 feet in search of prey along the bottom. I’ve frequently photographed one colony from a pier where the local marine science center has an aquarium. When I remarked to the director upon the good fortune that these birds had made their home there, she said, “On the contrary, we are in their home.” Another colony of Pigeon Guillemots lives among the rocks along the small bay where a ferry lands on Whidbey Island. After a day of shooting in Skagit Valley, my friend Tim and I arrived there early to catch the ferry. Though tired, I wandered out to those rocks. And for nearly an hour, I sat and watched them take off to fish and then return to squabble for position on the rocks. At one point, a young bird landed in front of me, raised its wings, fluffed up its feathers. and showed off its red feet.