In 2013, a Dovekie was observed by Luke Halpin and Megan McWillie in northern BC, at Sharp Bay at Campania Island, during sea-bird surveys. This constitues the first record for BC.
The authors say: "The Dovekie observed at Campania Island most likely originated from the relatively small population of Dovekies that inhabits primarily the Chukchi and Bering seas. When and under what conditions this individual travelled to northern British Columbia are not known, but it apparently flew there. This observation may be attributed to a weather event or oceanographic conditions, although we cannot rule out the possibility that this vagrant travelled over land from the Atlantic Ocean."
The Dovekie is a High Arctic breeding species that overwinters in the North Atlantic (Halpin and McWillie 2014).
Reference
Luke R Halpin and Megan MC Willie. 2014. First Record of Dovekie in British Columbia. Northwestern Naturalist 95: 56-60.
