Ethan Moon

@ethanmoon.bsky.social

106 Followers 41 Following

linktr.ee/ethanashleymoon Vancouverite 🇨🇦 (Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh Nations), bird nerd 🦆, forager of secondhand book stores 📚. If you have questions about my app, feel free to contact me.

Male, immature male and female White-winged Crossbills searching for salt on a mound.
An Anna's Hummingbird, perched on a dead Himalayan Blackberry branch, stretches its wings and tail feathers.
A Taiga Flycatcher perches on a branch.
A Northern Flicker perched on a branch. Superficially resembles the Yellow-shafted subspecies, but has red mixed into the moustachial stripe (Red-shafted trait), instead of being all black. "Hybrids" between subspecies are called intergrades.
Hundreds of Larus gulls in flight and on the ground, foraging for food scraps on trash mountain. Landfills have become well-trodden stopover locations for Larus species of the west coast, used by both resident Olympic Gulls and migratory Glaucous-winged Gulls and Cook Inlet hybrids from as far north as southern Alaska, perhaps further. These generalists also spend time foraging in nearby farm fields and Boundary Bay.
An Olympic Gull (Western x Glaucous-winged hybrid) about to take flight with a clump of moss in its bill. Grass pulling is an intraspecific behaviour indicating aggressive intent to nearby trespassers, "This is what I will do to you." I have seen gulls pull grass, moss, garbage, leaf litter and dock lines--whatever loose objects or materials are within grabbing distance.
An adult Olympic Gull (Western x Glaucous-winged hybrid) stands on some park grass, bejewelled with black and blue bands on the left leg, and blue and metal bands on the right. Report coloured gull bands in the Pacific Northwest region to the Salish Sea Gull Project: https://salishseagullproject.shinyapps.io/submit-observation-form/
A first cycle Thayer's Gull standing on a rock.
Tundra Swan standing near shore.
A 1st cycle Bonaparte's Gull in flight. The inner rectrices (tail feathers) have been replaced in the preformative moult, leaving behind an incomplete tailband.
A Snow Bunting stands low to the rocky ground--round and majestical.
A juvenile Little Blue Heron perched on a branch. Juveniles are all white (like this one), but will eventually moult into a mostly grey plumage. This is the sixth record for British Columbia.
A Golden-crowned Sparrow perches on some barbed wire. The species portion of its scientific name Zonotrichia atricapilla means black-headed or -capped, referring to the lateral stripes on breeding adults. This is similar to the Black-capped Chickadee's scientific name Poecile atricapillus, and more apt for the latter.
A drab looking Mountain Bluebird perched on a post, lowered tail revealing a bluish rump.
A male Harlequin Duck standing on a tidal rock.
A Black Turnstone side profile. Can you guess how they got their name?
A hatch year (HY) White-crowned Sparrow perched on the tip of some pine needles. This individual is in its formative plumage, which replaced many of the poor quality juvenile feathers it grew in the nest. Once this bird moults into its 1st alternate (breeding) plumage, it will become almost impossible to distinguish from an adult. I have noticed some of my local White-crowns (pugetensis subspecies) retain some brown feathers in the hind crown, allowing me to age them as second years (SY).
An adult California Gull in flight. Dusky head markings are part of the basic (nonbreeding) plumage.
A Myrtle Warbler ("myrtle" subspecies of Yellow-rumped Warbler) on a tree branch, holding a stink bug in its bill.
A Long-billed Dowitcher looking towards the camera, with its undulating reflection cast on the water below.
A young Olympic Gull (Western Gull x Glaucous-winged Gull hybrid) stands on the edge of an urban water feature, with water frothing from a fountain behind. This bird is starting to replace body feathers in the 1st prealternate (prebreeding) moult. The Lower Mainland is right above the intersection of the breeding ranges of Glaucous-winged Gull to the north and Western Gull to the south. The resulting hybrid swarm produces a vast array of phenotypes--birds with a unique set of characteristics--as multiple generations of mixed gulls interbreed.
This 1st cycle Ring-billed Gull confused me. It resembles a Short-billed in build, but the plumage aspect is Ring-billed. The dark grey chevron pattern on the scapulars is also interesting. This is a good reminder to myself to look out for individual variation that deviates from expectations.
A juvenile Sabine's Gull in flight, with tri-coloured wing pattern on full display. In Greater Vancouver, Sabine's Gulls are usually seen flying out at sea or high above as they migrate between their Arctic breeding grounds and wintering locations in South America. All age groups have a distinct tri-coloured winged. Definitely one of the easier gulls to identify.
A Savannah Sparrow perched on a leafy Blackberry branch, cast in a warm light.
Female(?) Western Tanager on a lichen-blanketed branch, holding a wasp.
A Northern Waterthrush perched on a thorny branch, bobbing its tail high above its head. What a strange warbler. (Yes, it's a warbler, don't get me started.)
California Gull in flight, displaying its flight feather moult. Mix of grey and brown upperparts are largely 1st alternate (breeding plumage). The inner 4 primaries (p1-4) are 2nd cycle, with p5 and p6 growing; p7 is shed or not visible. Primary coverts are also being replaced in similar sequence. Secondary moult has also commenced, with s1 growing, well after start of primary moult. (Vancouver BC, August 2 2025)
Harlequin duck mid jump from tidal rock into water below.
Olympic Gull (Western Gull x Glaucous-winged Gull hybrid) in flight with lingering natal down behind eye.
Greater Yellowlegs with the water projecting a rippled reflection below.
Tree Swallow staring down a vertical rusty pipe.
Second year White-crowned Sparrow on the ground with bill wide open, revealing the cutest little tongue. Some retained brown juvenile feathers on the hind crown (not visible here), point to this being in its second calendar year. Also note dull brown tail feathers, dirty ventral area and moult limit between the greater coverts.
Adult long calling as partner arrives to feed young.
An Ash-throated Flycatcher perched on a branch. A lifer for me. A large flycatcher relative to the Willows and Westerns I'm used to seeing. I love the rufous tinge to portions of the rectrices and outer primaries.
Juvenile Great Blue Heron showing me what fish see before their demise.
Olympic Gull in its 2nd calendar year. Notice the greyish median coverts and scapulars, which were replaced in the autumn and winter months.
Two juvenile Great Blue Herons in a size-too-small nest.
Swainson's Thrush perched on a branch.
Early 2nd cycle Olympic Gull (Western x Glaucous-winged Gull) preening. Largely in 1st cycle plumage, but inner primaries have started being replaced in the 2nd prebasic moult (not visible here). The greyish scapular feathers are 1st alternate feathers.
This Mallard is undergoing its prealternate moult, replacing body feathers but not flight feathers like primaries and secondaries. This cryptic "eclipse" plumage helps many ducks undergo a rapid prebasic moult of all feathers, including flight feathers, in relative safety at stopover moulting grounds.
Willow Flycatcher perched on a branch.
Orange-crowned Warbler grasping a caterpillar(?).
One of the only "pure" Glaucous-winged Gulls I have encountered lately, with paler primaries than typical hybrids.