[obol] Yaquina Head

[Cindy Ashy]

>From the observation platform behind the lighthouse today, I watched several
papa murres nudging their chicks closer and closer to the edge of the rocky
ledge and then finally forcing them to take the long plunge to the sea. It was
nerve-racking watching how precariously close these free-falling chicks came to
getting slammed against the rocky protuberances on the way down. The best place
to view this seemed to be the west end of the south rock colony. It's also easy
to find daddy/chick pairs if you scan the water around the base of the rocks.

It seemed like just about every kid that came back there today was absolutely
thrilled with the murres...the flies were out in full force bugging the heck
out of the adults but the kids were so enthralled by the birds they didn't even
seem to notice.

The gull chicks have have reached that "awkward" stage where their body
proportions seem to belie the fact that they're gulls. Their legs are about as
long as the adults but their bodies haven't caught up....they look like gull
chicks on stilts...in fact, when viewed as a silhouette against bright sunlight
they almost look more like shorebirds.

Cindy Ashy



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