Cambie nest feeding time
A lucky morning – not long after arriving at the Cambie nest, mom (or dad – it’s generally not possible to determine the sex of a gull visually) arrived to deliver some food for the chicks. I’ll spare you the photos of the process, as it doesn’t sit well with our mammilian sensibilities.
Cambie nest
A close-up of the Cambie nest chicks and an unhatched egg. Similar to the Culinary nest, we’re probably not going to see this egg hatch.
Ferrari nest
No sign of chicks here yet. There will usually be some eggshell around the base of the nest if the eggs have hatched and I don’t see any here.
Restaurant nest
If you doubt the cryptic camouflage of gull chicks, let me assure you that it is very effective. Case in point, when I was photographing this adult gull I didn’t see the chicks here at all. Only when I got home and started processing the photos did I see them.
Restaurant nest egg
Passing back past the Restaurant nest, I noticed there is still an unhatched egg. As the adults are still tending to it, maybe there’s a possibility it will hatch.
Culinary nest chicks
This seems to be the most active nest I’m monitoring. These chicks have a large area in which to wander. In this photograph they were exploring the shade behind a stanchion of some sort.
Culinary nest
Determining the true size of a bird can be quite perplexing, as both their posture and plumage significantly alter how large or small they appear. I’m fairly confident claiming that the chick on the left is larger than its sibling. That third egg is still in the nest and I can only assume the parents have given up on incubating it.
Chimney nest
No sign of chicks at the Chimney nest yet.
Grassy nest
Get all the rest you can, my friend! Soon enough you’ll be spending all your time tending to a few precious chicks.
Design nest
A slightly better photograph of this nest. No sign of chicks here either. There was another adult gull on the rooftop of a nearby building – possibly this gull’s mate – keeping watch.
Coyote!
On my way to the Cambie nest I spotted an urban coyote (Canis latrans). Although not uncommon in Vancouver, coyotes tend to stick to industrial and undeveloped areas, disappearing as daylight breaks. This coyote surprised me as I spotted it in a highly urban area quite late in the morning (8:45am). It disappeared by the time I returned from the Cambie nest, probably finding shelter in the area to wait out the daylight.
