tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31187609185642136842024-03-13T00:40:49.249-07:00Green Birding (and Nature) in Central CaliforniaUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger99125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-11680970419184271592015-04-03T10:45:00.000-07:002015-04-03T19:21:15.582-07:00<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-size: large;">Green eBirding in My Neighborhood</span></b></div>
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I had a lighter than normal workload today, so I thought I might take a walk with my dog around the local golf course, first thing in the morning. I also wanted to check the course for migrants and any other species that might be around (hopefully something not on my eBird list for my local patch). It was a bright and clear morning, so how could I resist? Also, due to a back injury, I have not been able to cycle since August of last year, so I do a lot of walking! (I have become a plodder!) Moving slowly, though, has allowed me to see things I might have otherwise missed!</div>
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Cora and I started out at about 7:30. We worked our way around bushes in the coastal scrub, on trails, through eucalyptus groves, around adjacent neighborhoods and through some fences, in our circumnavigation of the course. It is not a regular route! But that's good, since it makes for more birds. The Sea Pines Golf Course is an eBird "hotspot", but it gets little attention compared to better known hotspots in the area like Pecho Willows and Sweet Springs Preserve. I am guilty of this inattention more than any of the local birders, since it is right in my neighborhood! Being unable to cycle has caused me to really concentrate on birding in my neighborhood (which is a good thing)!</div>
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Spring migration has been going on for awhile here; the swallows and Hooded Orioles on our walk were evidence of that. There were surprises, however. About 1/2 way around the course, we were skirting the edge of a eucalyptus grove and walking on a path next to the golf course fence. I looked through the fence at two birds feeding on a green, like robins. But when I put my binoculars on them, it was two female Varied Thrushes. They have wintered in the neighborhood (and in good numbers coastally) this last winter (very unusual), but I didn't expect to see them out on the course acting like robins!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA8e01BZf4EJ-_ByU6ZD8djs0yVf2WR_z4TrmISEbO6S0xRxK5jBdfZFQRA3OGPiifYDRRuqmoxssuTNIfvecNQJi4JRZ7P3IDnMCyJwr1BUiUj9Vgp2rgMkPdxNYfkBXKqTUxR7VnmAg/s1600/IMG_0723-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA8e01BZf4EJ-_ByU6ZD8djs0yVf2WR_z4TrmISEbO6S0xRxK5jBdfZFQRA3OGPiifYDRRuqmoxssuTNIfvecNQJi4JRZ7P3IDnMCyJwr1BUiUj9Vgp2rgMkPdxNYfkBXKqTUxR7VnmAg/s1600/IMG_0723-2.jpg" height="320" width="256" /></a> Another surprise (I won't say "highlight") was a pair of Great-tailed Grackles. These were new for my local patch! But, they are nest parasites and not welcome to stay (not that I have anything to do about it). Other interesting sights were: about 250 coots (really a high number) on the golf course (the golfers now have to walk more carefully!); two very streaked and recently fledged White-crowned Sparrows that were begging for food from an unseen parent; courting Brown-headed Cowbirds (stretching their necks and pointing their bills up, as they strutted on a wire); and Cliff Swallows that were just starting their cup-shaped mud nests under eaves.</div>
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The picture above is Cora and me, as we were finishing our days walk/bird trip. She's the one in green (she's camera shy!). I didn't bring my regular camera because it was too heavy to carry. This was taken on my smart phone by a guest at the golf course motel. I'll try to get shots of some of the birds we saw, and add them later. You can see my full day's list of birds on eBird. We walked 2 1/4 miles, to and from our home, and saw 46 total species. Two were new species for my local patch: the grackle and the House Wren.<span style="font-size: large; font-weight: bold;"></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-58860375585030242092015-03-28T21:46:00.002-07:002015-03-29T07:03:38.447-07:00Carbon Offsets and Green Travel Birding<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0Wc8cOQKGz7Pj9SM-_7eQ2SVWN1K1L2yDQ_HmdvPxcTC5BkwnwopwgWF8brpYnPk7Cnw2JDobliD76TYRi_XV4QdGC0ZmnkiXWMxbFiBaJo7XovxUVlxNERr7GVOUQDxo2jPQ4UjCs2I/s1600/IMG_4389.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0Wc8cOQKGz7Pj9SM-_7eQ2SVWN1K1L2yDQ_HmdvPxcTC5BkwnwopwgWF8brpYnPk7Cnw2JDobliD76TYRi_XV4QdGC0ZmnkiXWMxbFiBaJo7XovxUVlxNERr7GVOUQDxo2jPQ4UjCs2I/s320/IMG_4389.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
(I hesitated to include this article on the blog, but I think it is relevant, so here goes.)<br />
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I had earned travel miles on my credit card and a great friend had offered to let my family and I stay at his vacation home (left) situated adjacent to a Trent Jones Golf Course in a gated resort (Estrella del Mar) just south of Mazatlan. How could I say "no," when the whole family was able, and enthusiastic, to go? How could I refuse when Military Macaw, Tufted Jay and other "life birds" were only a short drive away? But, how could I justify it environmentally? Maybe I should have just cashed in my credit card miles and politely declined?<br />
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I had heard of "carbon offsets" that companies promoted to cancel out the negative effects of travel by plane (the worst), automobile, train, or bus. I had heard that they made sense, or that they were a scam (for example companies had taken money and pledged to plant trees which was never done), or that they were well-intentioned but ineffectual. I understood the basic concept that one purchased a carbon offset which would theoretically take as much greenhouse gas out of the atmosphere as was produced by the form and distance of travel employed on a trip (or in daily life), but I needed more proof.<br />
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I did an internet search for the purchase of carbon offsets. I found websites which discussed carbon offsets and rated companies that sold offsets - based on complicated criteria that are explained on such websites: like <a href="http://gogreentravelgreen.com/green-travel-101/best-carbon-offset-companies/">http://gogreentravelgreen.com/green-travel-101/best-carbon-offset-companies/</a>. These websites ranked Native Energy (a U.S. based company - my preference) as one of the top rated companies selling carbon offsets.<br />
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I checked out Native Energy's website, http://www.nativeenergy.com/carbon-offsets-for-businesses.htmland, and was impressed by the projects they funded, the success of those projects and the percentage of offset money that went directly to the funding of the projects. For example, when I took this trip, purchases of offsets helped finance the building of the Wewoka Biogas Project (Oklahoma). This project supported Commercial Brick Corporation's use of methane gas from an adjacent landfill, to replace the natural gas used by the company to fire the clay bricks and structural tiles they manufacture and sell. The burning of the methane had the added benefit of converting the methane to carbon dioxide - a less harmful greenhouse gas than methane. The offsets I would buy, paid for the installation of vertical gas wells into the landfill, blowers to push the gas to brick kilns, and the retrofitting of the kilns to burn methane. This project was slated to be completed very soon.<br />
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On the website, I entered my plane flight from the U.S. to Mexico and back, as well the approx. miles driven in Mexico. They calculated the atmospheric carbon produced by each of us on the plane flight (.829 tons! ). We would fly from L.A. to Mazatlan on June 12 and return on June 18. It all looked good. I decided to do the trip! (We drove 660 miles in Mexico and the atmospheric carbon carbon produced by driving 660 miles in Mexico was .323 tons. The cost of the total carbon offset was $60.)<br />
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It was a relaxation trip for the family, but how could I not bird as much as comfortably possible while there? I started with the drive from Mazatlan, where we saw the spectacular Black-throated Magpie Jay. At the resort, I found Mangrove Swallow, Cinnamon Hummingbird and Rufous-bellied Chachalaca. A walk to the nearby river mouth had Yellow-crowned Night Herons eating crabs in the sand, American Oystercatchers, and nesting Least Terns. I took a harrowing drive over and up into the nearby mountains, which offered up real treats like Flammulated Flycatcher, Sinaloa Wren, Tufted Jay, Red-headed Tanager, Brown-backed Solitaire, Golden-crowned Emerald, Blue Bunting, Golden Vireo and my "target bird" - Military Macaw! A family trip down to the wonderful birding site of San Blas offered a whole group of new birds, including Boat-billed Heron (pictured) along the river, Plain-capped Starthroat, Masked Tityra, and others. This may not have been true green birding, but the purchased carbon offset did lessen the impact!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-75461095171634169762015-03-28T16:36:00.000-07:002015-03-30T21:19:50.127-07:00<div style="text-align: center;">
GREEN BIRDING AND EBIRD</div>
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The Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the National Audubon Society jointly launched eBird (ebird.org) in 2002. Since then, it has slowly taken off with many serious birders. With the advent of smart phone birding apps, it has become even more popular. I recently started contributing bird checklists to eBird and I'm really enjoying it. <br />
This bird-sighting website can be very consistent with green birding. For example, it encourages local birding by designating bird "hotspots" (a spot approved by eBird, based on the number of bird species seen there, proximity to other such hotspots, etc.). Each hotspot includes adjoining lands/neighborhoods as well. I have a half dozen such hotspots within walking distance of my home. I am especially lucky because my house is within one! (I counted the Pine Siskin below, at my house, on an eBird checklist.) Most people should have (or can establish) one or more hotspots within walking distance of their home. (See the website above for details on how to do that.)<br />
The eBird program further encourages green birding by allowing participants to designate local "patches." I have designated the hotspots in my small town as my local patch. I then compete with other patches for total number of species for all time, the current year, and the current month. At the time of this writing (March 28, 2015) I have 116 species for my local patch, for the month of March. (Some participants have designated really large areas (e.g. Orange County) as a local patch!) But you can still see how you rank with other local patches by deleting such huge "patches".</div>
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The eBird website basically works like this: You bird for whatever distance and time you want on each occasion (in a designated hotspot or your own personal location which is not a designated hotspot). You then submit your bird sightings, which are reviewed by an eBird expert for accuracy before being posted on the website. Others can access your sightings of birds made at the hotspots. You can share your sightings from your personal locations (not eBird hotspots) with people you so designate.</div>
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I find that it's especially easy to use a bird app, on my smart phone, when preparing an eBird checklist. I open my app (BirdLog North America), which then lists the local hotspots and my personal spots. I pick the one I want to bird at, and a checklist of birds for that location comes up automatically. I list the numbers of each bird species I find, <u>as I bird</u>. When I am done birding, I go through the list once to make sure it is accurate and complete. I then add some other quick information, and I submit the list to the website. I can later review my data on the website and make any additions or corrections, if necessary. (Some long-time birders are not using the app, but I can guarantee that it saves much time when compared to the traditional method of taking notes on paper and later sitting down at your computer to enter the information!)</div>
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While eBirding is fun, it also serves a very important purpose. The data submitted makes for a sort of national bird data base. The numbers so acquired over time, can then be used to map the occurrence and the dates of bird species (which might be helpful, for example, to show the effects of global warming). The data can be used to track of the number of each species, to see how a species is doing, and so on. It is much like the annual Christmas bird count, in that the bird data can be used to show many things. Unlike the Christmas counts, though, eBird data covers the entire year. Therefore, it is potentially a much more complete and valuable set of bird data than the traditional Christmas counts!</div>
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So have some fun green birding, and contribute to science!</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-42692422179684672202011-07-25T11:17:00.000-07:002011-07-25T11:17:57.523-07:00New Walking Year BirdsThe rate of new birds for the year that I can see within walking distance of my home has really slowed down. There are some species I know I can see this summer that are a minimum 10 mile walk from home - "maybe next weekend!" I have had a few surprises on my morning walks with Nike, my trusty canine companion and the only one in the house who will go out every morning with me while I bird. My usual route is through the neighborhood (a variety of middle class homes) and out along the sandy edge of the bay and then by or through the local patch of trees - Pecho Willows. Occasionally, I lengthen the walk to include a local grove of eucalyptus trees or to include the nearby golf course or the local elementary school grounds.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgYBg4nABJ0DVj6bBOW351fAn2gzm8mg0bZ9EO3FfyqnyiJ5H-ca1By6qWeaEBjDHW6tc0BTsS3UwNV4AtSFVRk643y7J_oJFwSHD5XfWsOgka3i1xeXI1K_JSLIaIpYFyg2KxTv70d-c/s1600/IMG_4354.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgYBg4nABJ0DVj6bBOW351fAn2gzm8mg0bZ9EO3FfyqnyiJ5H-ca1By6qWeaEBjDHW6tc0BTsS3UwNV4AtSFVRk643y7J_oJFwSHD5XfWsOgka3i1xeXI1K_JSLIaIpYFyg2KxTv70d-c/s320/IMG_4354.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>On June 10, 2011, I heard a buzz and a short sharp call from a small passerine as it flew by me, near Pecho Willows. I assumed it was a late Lazuli Bunting, which is a very striking but common migrant (and breeder about 4 miles from home). I looked with my binocs and it was a bunting, but it was entirely dark blue - without the white and rusty underparts of a Lazuli. The Indigo Bunting is a breeder and regular migrant in the eastern part of North America, so when one strays into my neighborhood I get a little excited. I took the far away photo of this bird to document its presence (click to enlarge the blue blob top center). It shot through the neighborhood and I did not get a decent photo. Another birder came by about a half hour later and could not re-find the bird.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcAUtUDhE26j-9wiQx3fQxpn-1I8QAjUTZW2Du7VrIqY58cykKkYfnimOWY5X3yJerzBe9J1d0IA3UmPFK3KKz0kQ1fSIMP02lvLoPZDEBPEEFtDzDEhz-8M-PzjU51rrMO_aejNHzBc8/s1600/IMG_4934.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcAUtUDhE26j-9wiQx3fQxpn-1I8QAjUTZW2Du7VrIqY58cykKkYfnimOWY5X3yJerzBe9J1d0IA3UmPFK3KKz0kQ1fSIMP02lvLoPZDEBPEEFtDzDEhz-8M-PzjU51rrMO_aejNHzBc8/s320/IMG_4934.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>On July 2, I had just gotten out of the front door with my dog, when I heard an unfamiliar bird song. It was a warbler that was not a regular singer in this part of California, so I grabbed my camera, my iPod with speakers, my binocs and my dog and ran after it. As it flew from the elderberry tree in my front yard to a hedge in my neighbor's yard, I saw a flash of orange on either side of the tail - a likely American Redstart (an "eastern" warbler). This bird was another guy in a hurry. I chased it down to the end of my block and played my iPod recording of its song. It responded and gave me some good but brief looks. Jay, who lives at the end of the street, also saw the bird before it headed west toward the ocean. Again, I could only get distant photos as the bird would not stay in one place long enough to get close to it.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVTGCjAmzkRo8VGHLe3nsyoKF3yxEnuYMvDSKYFNnPtJo2JxWvFwGqC7uHeiec7_j_YjBt-GuYq2eMRSs42xMcPG61_69YDMhn9G0MA-ON5cKT6Lr2E2I3d6WgCDEbCn6TSxOxrRZmAZA/s1600/IMG_4988.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="204" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVTGCjAmzkRo8VGHLe3nsyoKF3yxEnuYMvDSKYFNnPtJo2JxWvFwGqC7uHeiec7_j_YjBt-GuYq2eMRSs42xMcPG61_69YDMhn9G0MA-ON5cKT6Lr2E2I3d6WgCDEbCn6TSxOxrRZmAZA/s320/IMG_4988.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>My last new walking green year bird was Elegant Tern. This species had returned to the bay for its summer through fall annual stay and I finally found one on July 8. I heard several of these terns calling "kareek" and the younger ones calling a quieter less raucous call as they zig-zagged over the bay, diving at times for small sivery fish. This particular individual posed long enough for a decent picture. This species nests and breeds south of Central California, but wanders up here after breeding. All, or almost all, leave here before the cold of winter.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-83159555847057847552011-06-04T15:57:00.000-07:002011-06-04T16:06:53.693-07:00Bird Nest Soup<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>I sometimes struggle to get decent photos of birds and other wildlife for this blog. With all of the nesting birds in my area lately, I have been trying to find some of their nests so I could take photos of birds in and around the nests (as long as I don't disturb them).<br />
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I have looked for weeks for the nest of a pair of Allen's Hummingbirds at the end of my street, without success. I have found nests of Nuttall's and Downy Woodpeckers (way too high and hidden to photograph) and a bushtit (in the middle of a thick bush). I found a nest of an American Goldfinch in the open, but before I was able to photograph it, the birds were gone. I found a starling nest in the hollow left by a broken branch, but it was too high and starlings aren't the most glamorous species to photograph here since they are a introduced species that displaces native cavity nesters.<br />
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I found a Bewick's Wren's nest hole (top photo) about 15 feet up in a willow at the end of my block on May 28. I stood below the tree for about 30 minutes trying to get some photos of the wrens as they came and went from the nest hole. I watched as they fed and flew back toward the nest hole. They went so fast into the hole that I could only get a photo of the birds' rear ends as they entered (middle photo). I decided to wait and see if I could get a picture of one of the birds as it left the hole. Finally, one paused long enough for me to get the bottom photo, just before it flew away from the hole. (You can click on the blog photos for a larger format.)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqTCs7QD8bYa328FtIQo6A2Od9O88ZXLFmap-KMKh5nzb9ttMqkknVKjVsyuPBPczYfm9IZM-IFS_rU93l3qPvOtXggk6wua6HecJc0VwTf2lnHHroORIu1IM16Xgf5wUnJ2X4LiBgFaU/s1600/IMG_3716.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqTCs7QD8bYa328FtIQo6A2Od9O88ZXLFmap-KMKh5nzb9ttMqkknVKjVsyuPBPczYfm9IZM-IFS_rU93l3qPvOtXggk6wua6HecJc0VwTf2lnHHroORIu1IM16Xgf5wUnJ2X4LiBgFaU/s320/IMG_3716.JPG" width="320" /></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-82980711595324803462011-06-04T14:25:00.000-07:002011-06-04T21:08:51.480-07:00Walking Big Day<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi52z4fRBPCYef892LA0EAwPtSCUybGj61uKuKT4N434VFuCaxppQeKQsH3rcTpZZrkarwOaJdYidzE0gT6cuGHomPFGwYOGfaV5qFI7J-m9XHDvPXgG03q2rsX1e8XyDDkwDdaOo9WWKM/s1600/IMG_3469.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi52z4fRBPCYef892LA0EAwPtSCUybGj61uKuKT4N434VFuCaxppQeKQsH3rcTpZZrkarwOaJdYidzE0gT6cuGHomPFGwYOGfaV5qFI7J-m9XHDvPXgG03q2rsX1e8XyDDkwDdaOo9WWKM/s320/IMG_3469.JPG" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a>Mike Stiles and I had talked for weeks of doing a walking Big Sit in the spring of 2011, but due to delays caused by family plans and bad weather, we decided that we better do it on May 7 (or not at all). I walked my dog next to the back bay before heading over to his house that day. The 2 1/2 mile walk is mostly along the edge of the bay. Although I had to get to Mike's house by 7:30 AM, I still was listening for birds and occasionally looking for them on the walk over. For example, I flushed some Red-winged Blackbirds from a bayside wetland and in amongst them I heard a "chack" call, which stood out from the Red-wingeds. I put my binos. on it and saw a large dark brown blackbird with much yellow from the chest and throat - it was a female Yellow-headed Blackbird - a new BIGBY year bird for 2011! I also found a noisy flock of Cedar Waxwings, giving their high pitched continuous call from high in a grove of eucalyptus trees. Hopefully, Mike and I could re-find these birds on the walk back along the edge of the bay, later in the day. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">I met Mike at his house, and we took the short path from near his house out to the overlook at the Elfin Forest (so called because of the stunted oaks and other low vegetation that grow in the mostly sand soil and in the face of the prevailing northwest wind off the nearby ocean.) The tide was out (photo above) and not many birds could be seen out on the bay. (Many of the shorebirds and herons follow the water's edge as the tide ebbs and flows.) We did hear Marsh Wren and picked up the birds of the coastal scrub such as Spotted Towhee, California Quail and Wrentit.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsDE5e6juqBa3dulr-9kVwFyG07FvL3GZj4-b28BJaPoKGslBAJhtSHDF6kpA8-sI_L5-Vncsb5f8UpM5QH91QoDYl9i21PEIXDtRIGXhgkrphmHK9aWzWrAatMSpaaHnv5c3agL4jbX4/s1600/IMG_1797.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="245" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsDE5e6juqBa3dulr-9kVwFyG07FvL3GZj4-b28BJaPoKGslBAJhtSHDF6kpA8-sI_L5-Vncsb5f8UpM5QH91QoDYl9i21PEIXDtRIGXhgkrphmHK9aWzWrAatMSpaaHnv5c3agL4jbX4/s320/IMG_1797.jpg" width="320" /></a>From the Elfin Forest we took the path over to South Bay Boulevard, the road that roughly follows the bay edge to the north of Los Osos. We headed straight over to Turri Road to check the salt water ponds that form in the pickleweed flatlands (for shorebirds) and then along Los Osos creek riparian habitat on our right and pastureland on our left. Greater Yellowlegs was one of the few shorebirds still around in the ponds. The riparian had nice additions for our day like the bright blue, rust and white Lazuli Bunting and the larger and even more blue Blue Grosbeak. In a flock of swallows we found a couple of Vaux's Swifts, standing out with their stiffer wingbeats and longer winged look. Interestingly, a couple of Cooper's Hawks were flying in with the swallows, but we saw no swallows being taken by the raptors.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAZEm65Chxz2SUYVN-y7OSQttLq9HZ8HF0Wm0FgUOTPOWdbW69KLAPTfoakyrVrOYxGIwQ2_fpemqbE_HyHsOfJH6WGu3EQYBQPjOmQmtG_9RauU5zIXTenT83oBGrIZ3L6qD-woV__dg/s1600/IMG_3458.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAZEm65Chxz2SUYVN-y7OSQttLq9HZ8HF0Wm0FgUOTPOWdbW69KLAPTfoakyrVrOYxGIwQ2_fpemqbE_HyHsOfJH6WGu3EQYBQPjOmQmtG_9RauU5zIXTenT83oBGrIZ3L6qD-woV__dg/s320/IMG_3458.JPG" width="320" /></a>Further up the road we found grassland birds such as American Kestrel, Western Meadowlark, Western Bluebird and the Grasshopper Sparrow pictured above. A Lark Sparrow (left) gave its complicated song with buzzy notes and more musical chips and warbles. I played a recording of rail calls as we passed wetlands along the road, but nothing answered from marshes that had many rails not much more than a month before. We went back to the Elfin Forest hoping that the returning tide had pushed up some shorebirds and water fowl. A loose flock of Canada Geese were out in the low vegetation along the edge of the mudflats.</div><div class="" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrT_U-0yby_npwNUP3_qjR9Xcqx8jsyp1FOA0gdl61ISeWPvB84CBf0Qyq40-aXzPCinr9zVRDaSVASTJ0-PDSus7X_erO37wx3DPEk-BDCgBlBVIVlenqgYlZiQ4bFsUt7f3JuLsrCeI/s1600/IMG_3476.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrT_U-0yby_npwNUP3_qjR9Xcqx8jsyp1FOA0gdl61ISeWPvB84CBf0Qyq40-aXzPCinr9zVRDaSVASTJ0-PDSus7X_erO37wx3DPEk-BDCgBlBVIVlenqgYlZiQ4bFsUt7f3JuLsrCeI/s320/IMG_3476.JPG" width="320" /></a>When we got back to the overlook at the Elfin Forest, where we ate a slightly late lunch we had packed. The tide was at a good level, but the shorebirds were on the opposite side of the inlet of the bay we were looking down on from our bluff top perch! We could identify a few of the larger shorebirds, like Long-billed Curlew, from a distance. It was frustrating because there were likely many species of shorebirds out in the bay, but most were too far away to identify by sight or even sound. It was warm enough for butterflies to be around, including this unidentified Blue.</div><div class="" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">After the Elfin Forest we made our way along the edge of the bay toward Baywood Park. We took advantage all day long of being on foot - we took paths along the bay edge that you could not take except on foot, which allowed more birding opportunities within a short distance. We found this flock of Band-tailed Pigeons (below), a species which usually tends to hang out in oak forest. In Los Osos, they summer out of their usual habitat, probably because of the number of people who put out bird seed.</div><div class="" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center;"></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhyQYW8TaHhI-hREgDsmzfYOxPNwNA_zIxADObyFkjF_Exj0mrlF_nk8RS0hHYAMxbEyZFqKXP3FAQ_48QqQYskYHDMcvl_KcUB_uxRZvBiWzJwBCLYs17-V_ILR649dRocicQaJeJ2Fg/s1600/IMG_3479.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="251" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhyQYW8TaHhI-hREgDsmzfYOxPNwNA_zIxADObyFkjF_Exj0mrlF_nk8RS0hHYAMxbEyZFqKXP3FAQ_48QqQYskYHDMcvl_KcUB_uxRZvBiWzJwBCLYs17-V_ILR649dRocicQaJeJ2Fg/s320/IMG_3479.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Other than the Yellow-headed Blackbird, the biggest surprise of the day was a Black Skimmer (year bird) feeding out over the bay. This is an unusual species this far north in California (except maybe in San Francisco Bay). They are always a treat to find in Morro Bay, especially when they are feeding by dragging their over sized lower mandible along the surface of the water. We did re-find the waxwings, which are not rare here but are unpredictable. The Yellow-headed Blackbird was gone when we got to the spot he had been earlier in the morning before I met up with Mike. The wind was also coming up at that point.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBeQlFRXEJWbzxGPmmU2vEtpoeejGQJIVLFmVNZi-3w_UQf9Tpk7dDRNMkP1sFxB4cKLLDFTi0t4whErzAufxz7H3BSsl8Ojv1TCxxlk5Pc874q4B8Fw0HWF8vaHYCxe9JQapDvZ_7xzg/s1600/IMG_3482.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBeQlFRXEJWbzxGPmmU2vEtpoeejGQJIVLFmVNZi-3w_UQf9Tpk7dDRNMkP1sFxB4cKLLDFTi0t4whErzAufxz7H3BSsl8Ojv1TCxxlk5Pc874q4B8Fw0HWF8vaHYCxe9JQapDvZ_7xzg/s320/IMG_3482.jpg" width="251" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
We finished at the end of my block at around 3 PM because the wind had gotten very strong and the birding was difficult. We finished with 82 species. This total is very low for a walking big day - mainly because of being too late in the spring, and due to the wind getting too strong in the afternoon.<br />
Next time we will do the walking big day on an earlier date and hopefully have better luck with the weather.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center;"></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-57315248126071675032011-05-15T19:55:00.000-07:002011-06-04T21:59:44.841-07:00Bicycle Big Day<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span">I had originally planned to do my bicycle big day on the previous weekend, but was rained out. So, on Friday April 30, I rode my bike (with my camping gear - about 45 extra pounds with camera and scope) to Cerro Alto Campground (about 15 miles from my house in Los Osos). I camped here alone in an isolated camp site in a canyon at about 1,000 feet in elevation. Sycamores, willows and oaks line the bottom of the canyon, on either side of the East Fork of Morro Creek and chaparral grows above this riparian corridor. For dinner, I ate the burrito I had picked up at a Mexican restaurant on the way to Cerro Alto. At night, m</span></span></span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span">y head was cold as I had forgotten my wool cap and I did not use a tent (so I could hear owls better). </span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKQ4w5vN1n5oGdygVGlpbzNfpe7477VF5PcpBfx5V1q1XAy_W9DSNC72pqsJ9AXNB2psE8qe9On8IGTenFKudErq-jJkBnU4tH8LPDwFVov7nI80xYmwpCJtUxT-aVdF8Tl7zZTXg8nxo/s1600/IMG_3403.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKQ4w5vN1n5oGdygVGlpbzNfpe7477VF5PcpBfx5V1q1XAy_W9DSNC72pqsJ9AXNB2psE8qe9On8IGTenFKudErq-jJkBnU4tH8LPDwFVov7nI80xYmwpCJtUxT-aVdF8Tl7zZTXg8nxo/s320/IMG_3403.JPG" width="320" /></span></a><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Screech Owls started their low whistled trill in the early morning hours all around my campsite and a surprise Saw-whet Owl's higher pitched single repeated whistled call note could be heard coming from across the creek. At dawn, Poorwills answered my whistled call and called on their own a few minutes later. I ate my whole-wheat cinnamon roll and gatorade breakfast, packed my bike and started hiking up the canyon, looking and listening in the early morning light. The expected birds such as Mountain Quail, Olive-sided and Ash-throated Flycatcher, MacGillivray’s Warbler and Western Wood-Pewee called or sang as I walked along the entrance road. I did not find a good migrant flock until I was up on the trail, about a half mile past the campground. Here, I heard and saw many birds such as Cassin’s Vireo, Black-throated Gray Warbler, Western Tanager, and Townsend’s Warbler. After I worked this flock for awhile, I turned around and walked back to my campsite, satisfied with my finds and heard some late risers such as Band-tailed Pigeon and Purple Finch. </span></span></span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKQ4w5vN1n5oGdygVGlpbzNfpe7477VF5PcpBfx5V1q1XAy_W9DSNC72pqsJ9AXNB2psE8qe9On8IGTenFKudErq-jJkBnU4tH8LPDwFVov7nI80xYmwpCJtUxT-aVdF8Tl7zZTXg8nxo/s1600/IMG_3403.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></a></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span">I pedaled my bike slowly down the campground road and stashed my camping equipment in </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span">some bushes near the campground, before I rode up to the summit of Highway 41 and down into Atascadero. I heard and saw birds along the way including Purple Martins (going to nest holes in sycamores in three locations!), Wild Turkeys gobbling, and White-throated Swift chattering above me. Atascadero Lake was my first stop in that city. I found the raucous sounding Great-tailed Grackle there. At the wastewater treatment plant I found the expected but always striking Wood Ducks, and teetering Spotted Sandpipers, as well as a pair of unexpected Lawrence’s Goldfinches. As conspicuous as they look, Yellow-billed Magpies still took some time to find and I realized I was way behind schedule! I hurried over to some other ponds in Atascadero and struck out on expected Phainopepla, Green Heron, Marsh Wren and ducks except for Ruddy. I did get a Sora response to my rail recordings.</span></span></span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0px;"></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIu_kXMUOMNqrmx9Xvb1gSvK8-6vtNOdcsuubeB6raVajTdUI-v0tUpo3h74iXinvvWQdBMkIfDBUhJi6tdBVio32dEcxHiAPQixjbrV7DeCc5YWPhgcBQe1zEqdJDmUQ5FCyGP3EybyU/s1600/IMG_3421.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIu_kXMUOMNqrmx9Xvb1gSvK8-6vtNOdcsuubeB6raVajTdUI-v0tUpo3h74iXinvvWQdBMkIfDBUhJi6tdBVio32dEcxHiAPQixjbrV7DeCc5YWPhgcBQe1zEqdJDmUQ5FCyGP3EybyU/s320/IMG_3421.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I went back by Atascadero Lake on my way back to Highway 41 and heard the "sweet, sweet, I'm so sweet" of the Yellow Warbler that I missed the first time. I rode back to pick up my gear at Cerro Alto and heard a Rufous-crowned Sparrow from the chaparral, along the way. I was tempted to bird again at Cerro Alto, but I was still way behind on my schedule and wanted to get down 41 to Morro Bay before the onshore wind started up. Unfortunately, I did not beat the wind and it slowed my descent toward the coast. I did get some extra birds on the way down such as the Western Kingbird pictured above. </span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIu_kXMUOMNqrmx9Xvb1gSvK8-6vtNOdcsuubeB6raVajTdUI-v0tUpo3h74iXinvvWQdBMkIfDBUhJi6tdBVio32dEcxHiAPQixjbrV7DeCc5YWPhgcBQe1zEqdJDmUQ5FCyGP3EybyU/s1600/IMG_3421.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></a></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span">When I got to Highway One on the coast, I headed north a short distance to North Point. I scoped off this point and had rocky shorebirds, scoters and loons, but I had very few gulls and no pelagics. </span></span></span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span">I next cycled over to Morro Rock, birding along the harbor mouth on the way. After a wait, I saw one of the resident Peregrines. I then scoped from the base of the Rock - above the breakwater - finding Pigeon Guillemot and Rhinocerous Auklet between lines of breakers. A kite (the kind with a string attached) festival nearby made for a lot of noise and people, perhaps causing my miss of Canyon and Rock Wrens at the Rock. </span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I birded back along the bay edge in Morro Bay and found much less that was new for the day than I had expected. I did find several breeding plumaged Eared Grebes. At some bottlebrush, near the state park campground, I found both of the usual Selasphorus hummingbirds. The biggest surprise of the day was a Hammond’s Flycatcher near a ranger residence there. This is a rare bird on the coast in California and I carefully looked at its proportions, bill size and color, tail pump and other marks.</span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0px;"></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After a brief stop at Chorro Creek, I continued my birding along the edge of the bay - toward Los Osos. Due to my being behind, I skipped the ride to Cuesta College and Ranch El Chorro (a big mistake that cost me 5 or 6 species). I was shocked that the bay had no ducks other than Mallards! (A week or two prior I could have found at least 6 other duck species.) I did find White Pelicans. </span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg83RNSnnsv4YQEFLpQZLlOshRDkIN-g0E_HWneFXtQBaXRhwhRvIWWNr7xRpLdK7Fud0_xizgWZTgBdlB-DHhKVqpVo1pziJWyY7dfCt7xK9JO4sIwhSGFXDBe9qHHC3xexVMADDIP4bo/s1600/IMG_3425.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg83RNSnnsv4YQEFLpQZLlOshRDkIN-g0E_HWneFXtQBaXRhwhRvIWWNr7xRpLdK7Fud0_xizgWZTgBdlB-DHhKVqpVo1pziJWyY7dfCt7xK9JO4sIwhSGFXDBe9qHHC3xexVMADDIP4bo/s320/IMG_3425.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0px;"></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I rode up Turri Road away from the bay, along some brackish ponds, followed by riparian habitat and pastureland. No Savannah Sparrows were singing from the pickleweed around the ponds, so I played a recording. Nothing responded in the early afternoon, but I saw that a Savannah had come up right next to me in some bushes! I left my iPod on and reached for my camera. Just as the track ended, a loud rock and roll song came on. The bird hurdled off to the pickleweed before I could get a photo! (I really do have to separate the bird songs from the rock and roll on my iPod!) Further up the road, I found a bright blue, white and orange Lazuli Bunting, Grasshopper Sparrow and Cassin’s Kingbird (photo above). The kingbirds flew out form some eucalyptus trees that they breed in and were really upset with my recording. I didn’t play it more than once, but they were still calling and posturing on the barb-wire fence as I left. </span></span></span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9E6_s7IYPhOnxCTOuOcQ544eGSsuVO_A-SSHtcCsODFLLwBnYtsVYurYO4jlIkcg5VLcBFdEQcJ-QfG6hkSiNzkm7d_rz72k63_L827UpQcjo1NonX63dAU4wJEEh1dIvRM_bwVfrbng/s1600/IMG_1805.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9E6_s7IYPhOnxCTOuOcQ544eGSsuVO_A-SSHtcCsODFLLwBnYtsVYurYO4jlIkcg5VLcBFdEQcJ-QfG6hkSiNzkm7d_rz72k63_L827UpQcjo1NonX63dAU4wJEEh1dIvRM_bwVfrbng/s320/IMG_1805.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Next, I worked the edge of the bay in Los Osos on the incoming tide. I also stopped at the Elfin Forest for the birds of the coastal scrub, like California Thrasher and Wrentit (above). From the Audubon Overlook, I checked the edge of the incoming tide and found several shorebirds new for the day such as Semipalmated Plover (100+!) and black-bellied Dunlins. I added Caspian and Forster’s Terns, as well as a single Black Skimmer unsuccessfully trying to blend in with the perched flock of terns.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"></span></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Following the bay edge, I continued onto the Baywood Pier, Sweet Springs, and Pecho Willows. At Pecho Willows (one block from home), I found a Nashville Warbler and a stake-out Yellow-breasted Chat. I also saw the Anna's Hummingbird and a male Western Tanager checking each other out (photo below). I then went home to unload the camping gear off my bike and look at my list for what I could still get. I then realized the mistake of not riding to Cuesta, but didn’t have the energy to backtrack and ride south on Highway 1. I didn’t think I could find much new at Montana de Oro, so I quit birding with about 3 hours of daylight left! My total stood at 146 species. I had recorded 156 species on the same route before and knew I could not top it on this day, and I was beat! </span></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0px;"></span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDW_8R59OEL1fO4V3nZCN9Y5GnTN_PyhHuLB64ArlGBndHBY7xerKnMiu8O0nKTqQIqXwBXFEogfF_Qbo1-qjPnE0TQ_efuCL7vJXHv-71oeZhC1QVWnzz1qgWCrfgCgdUlhoNunwSwbM/s1600/IMG_3452.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDW_8R59OEL1fO4V3nZCN9Y5GnTN_PyhHuLB64ArlGBndHBY7xerKnMiu8O0nKTqQIqXwBXFEogfF_Qbo1-qjPnE0TQ_efuCL7vJXHv-71oeZhC1QVWnzz1qgWCrfgCgdUlhoNunwSwbM/s320/IMG_3452.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Next year I will try to count a couple of weeks earlier and will not skip Cuesta and Montana de Oro. I’ll also do more riding before the count day, so I am in better shape. The extra weight on the bike took its toll on me. I had found some good birds, but the absence of many ducks and dipping on common raptors such as Cooper’s, Sharp-shinned, harrier and kestrel hurt my big day total. It was still a good day of birding! My total miles biked on this big day was about fifty.</span></span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span"><br />
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</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-72430312274302921182011-04-29T00:19:00.000-07:002011-05-16T18:12:16.882-07:00What's New in the Neighborhood?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh983Ij2jvqpoPX8E2cCXSGDjcOKW-Y-oWEpqV1x8ngaoEL4AtjZxvnxF2Gz9G-FemN5EHIuarZ0BCj9EWbJcIpl3MsnwnR9U9ho0P5TAoCWx_yBq0BZCjUCAzLA_wJOoG6QquzKeUv124/s1600/IMG_3372.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh983Ij2jvqpoPX8E2cCXSGDjcOKW-Y-oWEpqV1x8ngaoEL4AtjZxvnxF2Gz9G-FemN5EHIuarZ0BCj9EWbJcIpl3MsnwnR9U9ho0P5TAoCWx_yBq0BZCjUCAzLA_wJOoG6QquzKeUv124/s320/IMG_3372.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Not only do I enjoy the arrival of migrants and <span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">summer breeders</span> in the spring, but I also enjoy breeding behavior of common permanent resident bird species. The California Towhee (left) was involved in an apparent courtship display as it lengthened its neck, cocked its tail and fluttered its wings as another towehee was nearby. The other bird was doing similar behavior and since I cannot tell the male from the female I don't know for sure if this was a male/female pair or not. I assume it was, but I suppose it could have been two males squaring off? This happened at Pecho Willows on April 25. On the next day I observed a California Towhee running along the ground with its tail up and fluttering its wings. It was working it, but i did not see another towhee nearby.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6PHTWcB0xgy4-D-9WNONkRJN-FklrRAAcVTdKccryiJAF24IpWtKuXN90zpCTSXmi2wL1T383xhpplBS1jET0wt6FZD1kouomMB60TBzmpg2e2EHWa0Z5UFdmbzXHFBRpqBzukvDy-s4/s1600/IMG_3369.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6PHTWcB0xgy4-D-9WNONkRJN-FklrRAAcVTdKccryiJAF24IpWtKuXN90zpCTSXmi2wL1T383xhpplBS1jET0wt6FZD1kouomMB60TBzmpg2e2EHWa0Z5UFdmbzXHFBRpqBzukvDy-s4/s320/IMG_3369.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
This Yellow-breasted Chat (left) was in the "migrant just passing through" category as they don't nest in my neighborhood. Usually I find this species by hearing its loud and varied repetoire of calls, but this bird was silent. It popped into view on April 25 when I chattered for orioles. (You can click on the picture for a closer view.) I only see this species about once a year in my home territory, so it was a treat and definitely a new green year bird! It is usually a secretive bird so I was unable to get a better shot.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzSsMYRUs_ymMKsFWkVYOb1xS-DcOWqYkF1MCvtHrFtRxn9B2CGGVe2LT06zJpBDdE0MUw8AtUknQ8qFF7knr9wZJn-svfbGtHXRIuNM_YlDF57r9QU1EfnNjGX-Ir58oRdM8gMGaGhmc/s1600/IMG_3393.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="209" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzSsMYRUs_ymMKsFWkVYOb1xS-DcOWqYkF1MCvtHrFtRxn9B2CGGVe2LT06zJpBDdE0MUw8AtUknQ8qFF7knr9wZJn-svfbGtHXRIuNM_YlDF57r9QU1EfnNjGX-Ir58oRdM8gMGaGhmc/s320/IMG_3393.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>On April 30, the wind shifted from the usual on-shore direction to a warmer off-shore direction. This often brings more migrants to the coast and this morning was no exception as I had my first Western Tanager singing in the trees at the end of my street and Lazuli Buntings were flying by with their buzz call note. My third green year bird was an Olive-side Flycatcher, new for my neighborhood, that posed long enough in a couple of trees near the edge of the bay for me to get this far off shot (left) before it took off. <br />
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</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-85562924959595089602011-04-26T23:32:00.000-07:002011-04-28T10:35:19.639-07:00Sand Spit Re-visited<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbGJGiUJWpWUFr-GZDYL0tqE_1I0Cz3unktCknjPVzmWnasJnDcZB4ULksgRTbaj9iHMudz9CjbOIi7Gexb_vfeUwU6-7kgOvqn0YmfQji6GRZxhPhYCKNe9cJvdH7JenV93oB38ktido/s1600/pipit.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="203" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbGJGiUJWpWUFr-GZDYL0tqE_1I0Cz3unktCknjPVzmWnasJnDcZB4ULksgRTbaj9iHMudz9CjbOIi7Gexb_vfeUwU6-7kgOvqn0YmfQji6GRZxhPhYCKNe9cJvdH7JenV93oB38ktido/s320/pipit.bmp" width="320" /></a>On April 9, Ross Schaefer and I walked out to the sand spit in hopes that there might be some different shorebirds or sea birds. It is a long long walk on a sandy trail: out to the sandy beach and north to the breakwater. From my house in Los Osos it was a ten to twelve mile walk that felt much worse due to the sand! The way out was fun - we stopped frequently to look, at and photograph, flowers and butterflies. The usual birds of the coastal scrub - towhees, thrashers, gnatcatchers and sparrows called and sang in the sunlight.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzVOIvhyN66PNCMo1jpC8Uyqq3U7_hHWZ9fDObcnLEUxIcinPiq6nXK1Xa3fXyBvYYazqAsNW-QGFS9YhI5SCg67oHRhAoEqjJHMPr5DE_I1jps0VMhNIMpwHJbfnk0HLQ61R0QNqDu-o/s1600/IMG_3206.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzVOIvhyN66PNCMo1jpC8Uyqq3U7_hHWZ9fDObcnLEUxIcinPiq6nXK1Xa3fXyBvYYazqAsNW-QGFS9YhI5SCg67oHRhAoEqjJHMPr5DE_I1jps0VMhNIMpwHJbfnk0HLQ61R0QNqDu-o/s320/IMG_3206.JPG" width="320" /></a>Once we got out to the beach it was quiet, bird-wise. We did see a couple of American Pipits (photo above), and Snowy Plovers were numerous. We walked several kilometers before we saw flocks of shorebirds other than plovers. We did stop occasionally to scope the ocean and Ross picked out a Pigeon Guillemot as it flew by, showing its white wing patches contrasting with its otherwise all black plumage (new green year bird). An occasional Common Murre flew by as well. The only rare birds we found were two Common (not so common) Ravens spotted by Ross, feeding on a sea lion carcass on the beach (new bigby species).<br />
This species is very rare in the coastal portion of San Luis Obispo County for some unknown reason. It is common south and north of the central coast in California.<br />
</div><div style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv-AKyST1LA-Eh4AjLqecWOyUlFN82H55SWOec1n9qeECt6NsPCKZC8Fes95friZjPF9f8YqGjKSP_Fm04PeQ6EzDuARXEgnCjUSeveos5Ss_YIjYMgusD3W4SHJvnC9QakGB6Y0DRLRo/s1600/IMG_3181.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv-AKyST1LA-Eh4AjLqecWOyUlFN82H55SWOec1n9qeECt6NsPCKZC8Fes95friZjPF9f8YqGjKSP_Fm04PeQ6EzDuARXEgnCjUSeveos5Ss_YIjYMgusD3W4SHJvnC9QakGB6Y0DRLRo/s320/IMG_3181.JPG" width="234" /></a>The birding was otherwise very slow and so Ross and I were looking at other creatures, like the rove beetle (Thinopinus pictus)<br />
(above) - a wingless beetle that lives on beaches from Alaska to Baja. It was feeding on beach hoppers (sandhoppers or sand fleas), a terrestrial amphipod crustacean that feeds on detritus that washes up onto the beach. (Click on the photo for a larger image). The ravens, the rove beetle, and many wild flowers (beach primrose left) were the highlights of the walk, which was much more tiring on the way back! A green big year on foot seems like more work than one on bicycle, at times. Also, I can only range so far from home on foot and the addition of new species is much harder! I cannot complain about two new year birds, with the ravens being an unexpected surprise!</div><div style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-10712329537836930942011-04-02T15:03:00.000-07:002011-04-02T16:01:59.767-07:00Another Montana de Oro Sate Park WalkOn March 31, it was a holiday (Cesar Chavez Day) and unseasonably warm, so it seemed like the perfect day to skip work and walk from home into the nearby state park. I first took an extended 50 minute walk around Cuesta Inlet (Morro Bay) and my neighborhood, with my dog. I tallied 61 species, including two BIGBY addition: a fly over male Great-tailed Grackle and a family of Wild Turkeys across the back bay at the Morro Bay Golf Course (through my scope). I then dropped off Nike at home, packed my lunch and my scope on my back and headed to Montana de Oro State Park, via Sea Pines Golf Course. I wanted to try and find over 100 species and see what recent spring migrants could be added to my year's list. The nearby golf course sometimes has various geese and ducks, but the extra walk there this day only yielded coots and mallards.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqGw-7er2jtMWrdrPFLCzR109z9vzQx_kS31x4CTjQ5UVQfqrE6sFMGMlRcprK-jI00iR4Xw0oduR-xIJeyDXQXxhf675XmlUOA_wRp1p2sR1gft9Dx5j6uPdJ1DwCN4Y15zJYPVJxGZo/s1600/IMG_3042.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqGw-7er2jtMWrdrPFLCzR109z9vzQx_kS31x4CTjQ5UVQfqrE6sFMGMlRcprK-jI00iR4Xw0oduR-xIJeyDXQXxhf675XmlUOA_wRp1p2sR1gft9Dx5j6uPdJ1DwCN4Y15zJYPVJxGZo/s320/IMG_3042.JPG" width="320" /></a> From the golf course came a hot one mile uphill walk to the top of the state park entrance road and the descent through coastal scrub habitat and exotic eucalyptus forest toward lower Hazard Canyon. The definite highlight of the day's walk occurred just before reaching Hazard Canyon, when a bobcat ambled across the pave road in front of me. It walked casually uphill of the road, to a horse trail that parallels the main road and I went after it (after I pulled out my camera). I followed the cat at a comfortable distance on the trail and it stopped at a gopher hole to look for a meal. (Gophers seem to be one of the cat's staple meals here.) I took this shot as it dug for gophers, without luck. It then went up the trail and disappeared off the trail, and I headed back toward Hazard Canyon. I also heard numerous Pacific-slope Flycatchers in the trees and Wilson's Warblers along the creek (new green year birds) at this location.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo6JiPTAnfi8oyCdNPpwut3_d6ySdYS6qe02UZJDjwWclKamlDfltoYuv8WQRgZwmCOn4C2kMYsuftNgpLwazDFLdrtNYG1WRZx_26v-0lutp44dsJdq3ytfmDuN1ndClXWnQl2FNZyrU/s1600/IMG_3073.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo6JiPTAnfi8oyCdNPpwut3_d6ySdYS6qe02UZJDjwWclKamlDfltoYuv8WQRgZwmCOn4C2kMYsuftNgpLwazDFLdrtNYG1WRZx_26v-0lutp44dsJdq3ytfmDuN1ndClXWnQl2FNZyrU/s320/IMG_3073.jpg" width="213" /></a> I followed the horse trail which curved away from the main road and down to the creek at the wooded canyon bottom. After crossing the creek, I went up a side canyon and found several slow flying Margined White Butterflies (pictured below), which seemed to be attracted to the Milk Maids pictured here (mustard family). This early White butterfly most likely feeds on the Milk Maids given the frequent visits by the bugs to this plant, and the fact that no other mustard family member seemed to be in the vicinity.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRnr35GpXhivsHa33hyphenhyphenCSuKSKqXVqKkDWX7f0sV9IkZLnqs7Baq2t-Iro-PTPeihqmi-X1Nd9GNjEmru29tOvMWuSxQBCWnrWeS8bbC7mxLgJ8ASEVJiPQa-mxlD57E0Ud012h8OHFhDw/s1600/IMG_3071.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRnr35GpXhivsHa33hyphenhyphenCSuKSKqXVqKkDWX7f0sV9IkZLnqs7Baq2t-Iro-PTPeihqmi-X1Nd9GNjEmru29tOvMWuSxQBCWnrWeS8bbC7mxLgJ8ASEVJiPQa-mxlD57E0Ud012h8OHFhDw/s320/IMG_3071.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
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I then returned to the main road and walked along the road to the ranch house at Spooner's cove. I was hoping to find Pigeon Guillemots that I figured had returned because one had been reported from Morro Bay Harbor Mouth. As I took the scope off my back, to scan the ocean beyond Spooner's Cove, I realized that the eye piece was gone - it had fallen off somewhere on the 4 1/2 mile walk here (expletives deleted)! I decided to eat my packed lunch here, before checking the campground for birds and then retracing my steps home to look for the eyepiece. I did locate several new BIGBY species here, including Cliff and Rough-winged Swallows.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtE6d1THGjdmOtIksmcJds-GuiX62Lc6ElEo8vMQLv4UlWFhTxEghq-CAU1_vnrU0H9VIMM0r_9IoDca_Qf4IRZNZ5t2VJ6D0w6T8nl92y_UltVf2JJYlJuzevYRpGtEsuObSuxfHeOUw/s1600/IMG_3114.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtE6d1THGjdmOtIksmcJds-GuiX62Lc6ElEo8vMQLv4UlWFhTxEghq-CAU1_vnrU0H9VIMM0r_9IoDca_Qf4IRZNZ5t2VJ6D0w6T8nl92y_UltVf2JJYlJuzevYRpGtEsuObSuxfHeOUw/s320/IMG_3114.JPG" width="320" /></a>I took one side trip on the way home, out to the rocky coast where I saw the usual rocky shore birds such as this Black Oystercatcher and I took photos of the rock formations here (e.g., the photo below). I never did find any Surfbirds, Ruddy Turnstones or Wandering Tattlers that I needed for my year's walking list. I did notice that flocks of up to 15 Whimbrels and 30 or more Semipalmated Plovers had formed, signaling the spring migration for these two species. Spotted Sandpipers also seemed more numerous than they had a few weeks earlier.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY6rLjgunFR9AunBxa4im54zvCW8hjfSofaWken9C3wBr83PzSizsy5r9L9ZI-ZiRfoosKp9JgTH32pe9tu56ImLPX76r8ilmnNntQtnIzKF-zKOka8akNGQUJUYf1WtIfmlOCThM1v6E/s1600/IMG_3107.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY6rLjgunFR9AunBxa4im54zvCW8hjfSofaWken9C3wBr83PzSizsy5r9L9ZI-ZiRfoosKp9JgTH32pe9tu56ImLPX76r8ilmnNntQtnIzKF-zKOka8akNGQUJUYf1WtIfmlOCThM1v6E/s320/IMG_3107.jpg" width="213" /></a><br />
The walk back home was frustrating as I never did find the missing eye piece. My final tally for the day was 104 species and about 12 miles of walking. My legs were tired from the long hilly walk. (The soreness in my calves lasted for a couple of days after this walk!) I also passed 150 species for my walking big year, with a my running total for the year up to 154 species.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-28325689265292111412011-03-19T16:42:00.000-07:002011-04-05T23:37:28.517-07:00Birthdays, Bad Weather and Busy at WorkWhy can't it always be beautiful weather when I am off work and don't have family or other obligations. And work is really an inconvenience. I know in this economy I should be glad to have a job, but after over 25 years of working I'm ready to retire! Well, back to reality and birding on my off time. I have also recently gone on two trips to L.A. and Santa Barbara for birthday celebrations for relatives and friends. Most of my birding has been my morning walks in my neighborhood. At least I live in a beautiful place with many birds! The Spotted Towhee below is a common bird here, but I was just now able to get a decent photo of one.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ00etwoP77Yce5k-3tv6xv7CYL1YKgBXaXaetjKVrgpF-J9_CPnEDHS6zfxsecNO5OZqsrjeHungGNeYDa-LXDLAxBws9Z0ldQkmZ4k4BKmo1fumIKBHlIEZZBXTGgsv5snleDapXR9o/s1600/IMG_2700.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ00etwoP77Yce5k-3tv6xv7CYL1YKgBXaXaetjKVrgpF-J9_CPnEDHS6zfxsecNO5OZqsrjeHungGNeYDa-LXDLAxBws9Z0ldQkmZ4k4BKmo1fumIKBHlIEZZBXTGgsv5snleDapXR9o/s400/IMG_2700.JPG" width="400" /></a>The weather here has recently varied between warm spring like weather and cold stormy weather that has dusted the nearby hills with snow twice recently (see the photo in the column to the right). Spring migrants have been arriving such as many of the swallow species. A young male Bullock's Oriole was in the neighborhood last week, but it is unclear if this was a wintering bird, an early migrant, or? A pair of Allen's Hummingbirds are likely nesting at the end of the street and I will post a photo if I can find their nest. The waterfowl and shorebirds are still around, but they are starting to go down in number and the White Pelicans are all or mostly gone. I can still find between 40 and 50 species on a 30 minute walk in the morning, so I can't complain.<br />
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I saw a banded Brant on the edge of the bay March 19, with a greenish (apparently faded blue) band on its left leg which read "2TV". I checked with John Roser, who has monitored Brants in the past, and he found out that this bird was banded in the summer of 1995 near Liverpool Bay on the Beaufort Sea, Northwest Territories. So, it is over 15 years old. As it was starting to rain, I took the banding code as an omen and went home to watch "March Madness" (college basketball playoffs) on the television! College basketball helps to keep my mind off birding when it is raining. The rain also provided an opportunity to update this blog.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjswTyFdw05tCbJfEfILTo-uXWg47kuwY3PjGruAlHrxHmuTb0uiqY9Pb5B3vmH2AaKSmGP1bpa4ecwnmPyqz1ttDesKtZJXLXowJujnmNiDCLfyC2ldDMv5osqyRSULAFXwR2N3nQMbUE/s1600/IMG_2919.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjswTyFdw05tCbJfEfILTo-uXWg47kuwY3PjGruAlHrxHmuTb0uiqY9Pb5B3vmH2AaKSmGP1bpa4ecwnmPyqz1ttDesKtZJXLXowJujnmNiDCLfyC2ldDMv5osqyRSULAFXwR2N3nQMbUE/s320/IMG_2919.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
Despite the rainy weather, birds continue to migrate through this area. The Western Kingbird (left) came through my neighborhood on March 20 and stayed a couple of day before moving on. They nest a few miles inland from where I live on the coast.<br />
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On March 25, orioles pushed through the area. Three bright adult male Bullock's Orioles stopped at the end of my street before moving on. One of our local breeding Hooded Orioles (adult male) returned to his nesting palm tree down the street from my house on the same date. I could suddenly hear and see a large influx of Selasaphorus hummingbirds in the neighborhood starting on the 22nd, but I didn't see a male well enough to ID it till the 27th and it was clearly a Rufous with a solid rusty back. Allen's Hummers had been around for over a month, so I had figured that this recent push was Rufous Hummers.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvWpohcPveAA8JmVdn2GavAydYxSlsA71mV4iIvEeTSNdC3eC86Dx-6h4CasVOBmrCbLUQIGV4ZROJLuI1ZQH3Tp5BwRsf9OZB9Gmu5b8PNKPT9FP4UwPwGIYYVASCIaFXAplPElVdcdk/s1600/IMG_3167.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvWpohcPveAA8JmVdn2GavAydYxSlsA71mV4iIvEeTSNdC3eC86Dx-6h4CasVOBmrCbLUQIGV4ZROJLuI1ZQH3Tp5BwRsf9OZB9Gmu5b8PNKPT9FP4UwPwGIYYVASCIaFXAplPElVdcdk/s320/IMG_3167.JPG" width="320" /></a>On April 5, the weather had been mostly warm for a few days, and the migration continued, albeit slowly. While walking along the bay, in the morning, a grosbeak called out from a nearby oak. Sounding like a Black-headed, it finally showed itself flying from the tree - an adult male Black-headed (#255). Near a friend's house, a tanager was singing repeatedly near the top of a tall cypress tree. I finally located it when it flew across the street to another tall cypress and landed in the open. I took the photos here of the molting male Summer Tanager - an early rare migrant to this area (#256).<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXjokat92BQu59idOcHsdXKG3teb7aoRbVMpysnZc6YyZnabXSAJdtdOrodq5345iawoxCgLr2jzzVNKjVrlpG4fYdAh_6Qb_yfQB5TH5CsE3v2-UqzuZZRmW88A80UUgOf0_9-_4xW3o/s1600/IMG_3164.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="237" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXjokat92BQu59idOcHsdXKG3teb7aoRbVMpysnZc6YyZnabXSAJdtdOrodq5345iawoxCgLr2jzzVNKjVrlpG4fYdAh_6Qb_yfQB5TH5CsE3v2-UqzuZZRmW88A80UUgOf0_9-_4xW3o/s320/IMG_3164.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-18702815331968088972011-03-19T14:35:00.000-07:002011-03-21T12:04:41.755-07:00Walking Montana De Oro State Park<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhylGoEaP8FafV0pjoixUfo8fzv2PeOujMuvPdfb3ysz8JUPpnrf2H8spfMkN2rIgIpPJ53lEXx9a0fP-pK_Cdy8Ap7ZLlwhtyiqynQZbv9Wx4DjoVua7NNPeor8huzAUc9n5G8AlL949M/s1600/IMG_6303.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhylGoEaP8FafV0pjoixUfo8fzv2PeOujMuvPdfb3ysz8JUPpnrf2H8spfMkN2rIgIpPJ53lEXx9a0fP-pK_Cdy8Ap7ZLlwhtyiqynQZbv9Wx4DjoVua7NNPeor8huzAUc9n5G8AlL949M/s320/IMG_6303.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>On February 26, it was my birthday and I could not think of anything more fun to do than to take a long walk from home into the local state park to see what I could find on a beautiful day. I started off walking up the park entrance road (Pecho Valley Road) and turned into the park on Army Road, so named because the army shelled this part of the park during WW2. (It was later used as an entrance for off road vehicles!) With these past abuses of such incredible property a thing of the past, I now was able to walk through a mostly recovered habitat on a soft sand trail. I played my iPod (with external speakers), trying for Bell's Sage Sparrow (left), but had no responses. The usual scrub species such as Bushtits, Wrentits, White-crowned Sparrows and California Thrashers were conspicuous. Just as I was getting to the parking lot for the Sand Spit Road, I heard a Sage Sparrow singing from the slope above; another tick for my walking year list.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqWJqzXS2Ehqfneb4atrWF8pNsFLgtrfvD2vTerByu9gPFxNnO5LLjyqjZrOGMFVSQRp8XrKYe37TPkKsX-CwbaxFjEfexvp1iLsaJp8Btfe0hYqDgTsQgbPkvYRplLdPooKNwE0Mz2dk/s1600/IMG_2519.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqWJqzXS2Ehqfneb4atrWF8pNsFLgtrfvD2vTerByu9gPFxNnO5LLjyqjZrOGMFVSQRp8XrKYe37TPkKsX-CwbaxFjEfexvp1iLsaJp8Btfe0hYqDgTsQgbPkvYRplLdPooKNwE0Mz2dk/s400/IMG_2519.jpg" width="266" /></a>From here I hiked up the paved road and back to the paved entrance road. As I walked farther south into the park I came into the large grove of eucalyptus trees (photo left), which are beautiful but belong in Australia! The birding is slow amongst such stands of trees here. I descended the road as it parallels the creek and I heard the double chip of a Pacific Wren (formerly Winter Wren). I couldn't get this bird to come into view despite some active "pishing", but counted it as another new species for my walking year (see my list of species to the right and below this post). At lower Hazard Canyon, I took the trail down along the creek and out to the rocky shore. I hoped to find some of the rocky shore birds that I had not seen for my year yet because of the length of the walk from home (about 3 miles one way).<br />
The habitat along the creek here can be birdy when the sun is shining down into this canyon, but on this day it was slow! As I came out to the shore, I saw the uplifted layers of marine sediment that form the rocky shore here. They provide the habitat for birds such as American Oystercatcher, turnstones, Surfbirds, Whimbrel, Spotted Sandpiper and our three species of cormorants.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDj3j5ifFmX_Am6a60_F2xhusn8fdbMXGlclLhgFMoBeITk0ejSFCcgIPTiFJCqkIG6ewljTRFx_BGSZP9OzV4YZ1wz9J7e4U6UPiKUPOjC69ntIS6YBLRo3RT1CQmBncFc1sgL6oX3XA/s1600/IMG_2606.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDj3j5ifFmX_Am6a60_F2xhusn8fdbMXGlclLhgFMoBeITk0ejSFCcgIPTiFJCqkIG6ewljTRFx_BGSZP9OzV4YZ1wz9J7e4U6UPiKUPOjC69ntIS6YBLRo3RT1CQmBncFc1sgL6oX3XA/s400/IMG_2606.jpg" width="266" /></a><br />
It was a beautiful blustery day, but where were the rocky shorebirds? Except for some Pelagic Cormorants, I didn't see many birds as I scrambled over the sometimes slippery rocks (left). I took many pictures of the rock foundations (below and on my facebook page), but had to go about a mile south before I finally found a Whimbrel, some Black Turnstones and a pair of Black Oystercatchers (all three new for the year). As for the Surfbirds I expected here, I got skunked. I almost didn't see Spotted Sandpiper, but did flush one as I returned toward Hazard Canyon. I always get a kick out of its odd looking stiff shallow wing beats whenever I see this species fly. I found an adult Glaucous-winged Gull (below) as I walked north and several Harbor Seals (below) which slid off the rocks and into the water when I walked up to take their pictures. I also saw a Gray Whale spouting offshore, but no pelagic species when I trained my scope onto the ocean on several occasions.<br />
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When I got to the end of the rocky shore I kept going north on the sandy beach, toward the trail back to Army Road and the way home. The total walk was about 10 miles.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOEi1UHZ5kcuLGWvGeBMvVl6CvNj8jPq9vrhg0wYMkzVBpalty-nkez2CRY4A8Owe56b1Rkji8KUrUaNjFQpEIvht18qy76IuAwLWSll17ZTdTc9oX_SMt5-R4Jbc8q9SXxZU-GfUejJk/s1600/IMG_2633.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOEi1UHZ5kcuLGWvGeBMvVl6CvNj8jPq9vrhg0wYMkzVBpalty-nkez2CRY4A8Owe56b1Rkji8KUrUaNjFQpEIvht18qy76IuAwLWSll17ZTdTc9oX_SMt5-R4Jbc8q9SXxZU-GfUejJk/s1600/IMG_2633.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOEi1UHZ5kcuLGWvGeBMvVl6CvNj8jPq9vrhg0wYMkzVBpalty-nkez2CRY4A8Owe56b1Rkji8KUrUaNjFQpEIvht18qy76IuAwLWSll17ZTdTc9oX_SMt5-R4Jbc8q9SXxZU-GfUejJk/s320/IMG_2633.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy1xNIY9XG9RygyRWwYcmuRUNZ2yvRmiI9GVEfCR6iZP8IVLjU1ZRCq39aTtvqCsIOCQzKMMDdxeU8nnfnJZ1Il9C-aa1wCNxKu7HeyXeK4a2sNL0JLh1ohRI7ftholuN8YXoEv8wTgxY/s1600/IMG_2621.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy1xNIY9XG9RygyRWwYcmuRUNZ2yvRmiI9GVEfCR6iZP8IVLjU1ZRCq39aTtvqCsIOCQzKMMDdxeU8nnfnJZ1Il9C-aa1wCNxKu7HeyXeK4a2sNL0JLh1ohRI7ftholuN8YXoEv8wTgxY/s320/IMG_2621.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGB-zmis5iFLIeS2y2V9vlcKh02waT12p3W-u4je7ulqIf6Q_d-i327MiDbr5FEIQSxqUEcG6kmvtaET-VJx__1f9NH1X5vic84jYpCrVR676n3S9slfP4mp2L97-EjPkdm83VUFfIzYE/s1600/IMG_2584.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGB-zmis5iFLIeS2y2V9vlcKh02waT12p3W-u4je7ulqIf6Q_d-i327MiDbr5FEIQSxqUEcG6kmvtaET-VJx__1f9NH1X5vic84jYpCrVR676n3S9slfP4mp2L97-EjPkdm83VUFfIzYE/s400/IMG_2584.jpg" width="266" /></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-91809664894367564972011-03-19T11:04:00.001-07:002011-03-19T11:08:56.805-07:00Walking the Morro Bay Sand Spit<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp93oQjPSv8FqChlaOIYSFtO1qZFxzTfs8Y7_iAP5cNyK2ho0yyhbCIamc2Gs4kQxNlaOpBI1Oz0SbsIps-Miz0kd3nkkO3prAiRz_qPmJeBzBiLUSJz3XVqpd4HednBXR0w7Z7PVGrMk/s1600/IMG_6242.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp93oQjPSv8FqChlaOIYSFtO1qZFxzTfs8Y7_iAP5cNyK2ho0yyhbCIamc2Gs4kQxNlaOpBI1Oz0SbsIps-Miz0kd3nkkO3prAiRz_qPmJeBzBiLUSJz3XVqpd4HednBXR0w7Z7PVGrMk/s400/IMG_6242.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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I sometimes run the paved neighborhood road, and then the sandy trail out to the dunes and over to the Morro Bay Sand Spit, but I seldom walk the same route. On a beautiful Saturday morning, February 5, my wife joined me for a walk along this route. I strapped my scope and tripod onto my back, and took my binocs and camera for the 6 - 8 mile walk from my house. I wanted to enjoy a walk with my spouse, and also find some of the sandy beach birds I had not yet seen on my 2011 walking green year, such as Snowy Plover and scoters. From my house it's less than a mile to the sandy trails that wind through the coastal scrub of Montana de Oro State Park. A mixture of lupine, coyote bush, manzanita and other vegetation supports California Thrashers and Quail, White-crowned Sparrows, Wrentits, Bushtits and other permanent residents as well as winter visiting Golden-crowned Sparrows, Blue-gray Gnatcatchers (photo above) and Ruby-crowned Kinglets. I listened and looked for Sage Sparrows that used to live in this habitat, but discovered none.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0gNtFantn-e8wqfOxfxy5ciCrvNRGyWiz9fFopuBIYRd1klkIdUuOxuUJ1Vlkskg-ZOSnWY7tNS543WZ7UwmFRH2fsG3tMNOU5jiDR9eXFA02MW-J0SXoNE5RiUNNqLhl2PZFAiTYaLU/s1600/IMG_2506.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0gNtFantn-e8wqfOxfxy5ciCrvNRGyWiz9fFopuBIYRd1klkIdUuOxuUJ1Vlkskg-ZOSnWY7tNS543WZ7UwmFRH2fsG3tMNOU5jiDR9eXFA02MW-J0SXoNE5RiUNNqLhl2PZFAiTYaLU/s320/IMG_2506.JPG" style="cursor: move;" width="213" /></a>After about 30 minute's walk we came to the dunes that separate the coastal scrub flats from the beach. This line of dunes extends the length of the Morro Bay Sandspit that separates the Ocean from the Morro Bay estuary (photo below). Morro Rock was visible just past the tip of the spit - about four miles away. South of the spit, the dunes run along the beach before gradually diasappearing into the bluff tops that overlook the rocky and sandy shore in most of the park. The way over these dunes is take-your-breath-away and fill-your-shoes-with-sand steep in many places, but we took the now required path that is a less steep route across the dunes and over to the usually cold and windy beach. The vegetation changes and becomes much more sparse on the beach; low growing ice plant, verbena, sea rocket and other plants prevail in patches above the high tide line. Some were (already? still?) blooming and it was surprisingly warm!</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Once we got to the beach shore we did not see many birds. It seemed deserted by the birds. In the winter this usually means dogs, ranger vehicles or a Peregrine Falcon. We saw none of these as we walked north. Line after line of large breakers flattened out as they neared our footprints in the packed sand. After a mile or so we began to see flocks of Sanderlings feeding along the shore with gulls, and much larger groups of many shorebird species standing in the dry sand. This included a handful of Snowy Plovers (new year bird) hunkered down into depressions in the sand and running off, like little furry white tennis balls, if we approached too close. One had colored bands on it's legs (photo below) which indicated that it had been banded at Salinas Sate Beach where it had nested the summer before - over 100 miles to the north of where we were. The large flocks included Dunlin, Western and Least Sandpipers, Sanderlings and the plovers (photo below).</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnb8P2k8Y9bWTVymqPcucBr38nJypOO2MaQMTDcVyUdtf7Hwejp8CZ1sjNRgVu5G5-kCiO3pIL2WtgV2SMP2ABYbA_8qkOMza70Y_VOdfVD4KZHjBzeLBpUYhpIli5zJkN6uW1CXyNGac/s1600/IMG_2149.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnb8P2k8Y9bWTVymqPcucBr38nJypOO2MaQMTDcVyUdtf7Hwejp8CZ1sjNRgVu5G5-kCiO3pIL2WtgV2SMP2ABYbA_8qkOMza70Y_VOdfVD4KZHjBzeLBpUYhpIli5zJkN6uW1CXyNGac/s320/IMG_2149.JPG" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a>As we walked farther north we started to see large rafts of scoters on the ocean, in and beyond the waves. Scping fromn the low dunes on the beach, I could identify the common Surf Scoter but wasn't sure about any other scoters. Then a jet ski came from the north and flushed the scoters. The White-winged Scoters were now obvious as they flashed there white wing patch, and I counted 14 as they flew by in the flocks of several hundred scoters. Both of the scoters were new for my walking green year. The White-winged can be difficult to find here, so I was happy with this addition.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
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</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">On the way back we stopped at a couple of native Chumash (pre-European indiginous people) shell middens (garbage dumps) (photo below) which have discarded shells from long ago meals, cooking stones, bird bones, stone flakes and other pieces. If you are lucky you can find a spear point or other stone utensil. We didn't see any such points this visit. I stopped to take photos on the walk back, but no additional birds species showed up.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
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After checking Pecho Willows at the end of my street for a second time, I stopped at several spots along the edge of the bay. The tide was coming in, with a scheduled high tide of 4.47 at 11:53 AM. (closer to 12:30 by the time the high tide got to the bay below the Elfin Forest). There was still a muddy edge along the bay for shorebirds and herons. I walked through the first of two local Audubon preserves, Sweet Springs, where I added some common ducks, shorebirds and a few passerines. I played my recordings of the two common rails (Virginia and Sora) as well as the possibly extirpated Black Rail. Virginia Rail answered with the "dirty old man laugh." <br />
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I took advantage of being on foot and cut across the new addition to Sweet Springs and on the paved road along the bay toward Baywood. Just before the Baywood Pier, I stopped to check the gulls where fresh water seeps into the bay. In with the usual Ring-billed, Western and California Gulls, there was a surprise adult Glaucous-winged Gull (they are less common back in the bay then on the beach and adults are much less common than immatures in this part of California). Since the tide was well up by now, I decided to head straight for the Elfin Forest. I tried to pick a route that went by as many stands of pine trees as possible, but the heavy December rains had likely helped to push out unusual land birds including the many Red-breasted Nuthatches that had been here in the fall.<br />
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Unfortunately, by the time I got to the Elfin Forest overlook of the bay the tide was too high for shorebirds. I did spot Royal Terns out in the bay, which were intermediate in size between the Caspian and Forster's Terns that were present (closer in size to the Caspians, but with a thinner and less reddish bill and a different crest, as well as missing the large black under the primaries on the Caspians). I heard a Marsh Wren's scratchy call along the edge of the estuary. I tried for every imaginable rail here with my recordings, but only Virginia answered. I quickly walked over to the more easterly (inland) overlook, but was still to late for the shorebird masses. I, therefore, hiked through the pygmy coastal oaks to the east end of the preserve and down to South Bay Boulevard. <br />
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I birded the eastern end of the bay to see the shorebirds that should have been pushed up near the road by the high tide, but very little was present. I saw the reason for this, as a Peregrine Falcon grinned down at me from his pole-top perch. He gave a characteristic second grin and then flew out to the bay. I kept walking north along the edge of the bay to get away from the falcon no-fly zone. After a couple of hundred yards of walking, I approached large flocks of ducks in the ponds and waterways formed by the high tide, and shorebirds on the few dry patches of pickleweed. Two male rusty headed Eurasian Wigeons stood out in the crowds of American Wigeons, Northern Shovelers (new), Green-winged Teal (new for the year) and other ducks (2 Gadwall were new for my year). The flocks of shorebirds consisted mainly of godwits and willets.<br />
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I saw the resident flock of Canada Geese out in the bay and one white guy - by size I thought it was likely a Snow Goose. Then all hell broke loose - all the birds flushed, even the geese. I could not imagine that the Peregrine would flush the geese. I looked up in time to see a third year bald eagle (pictured here) fly by. This was a green year bird for me, as was the goose (which I could positively ID by the black grin patch as it flew by).<br />
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After I worked the flocks in the bay with my scope, I walked back south along the bay and then east up Turri Road to check the wetlands, overgrown pasture, and willow riparian habitat which extends east from the bay. I figured that a quick check might yield Western Bluebird, Western Meadowlark, Horned Lark, Sora, Virginia Rail, White-tailed Kite and Prairie Falcon. The bluebirds (new BIGBY bird) were numerous on the barb wire fence lines, Virginia Rails were many in the proper tule-lined wetlands (along with a couple of year-bird Soras) and the meadowlarks were surprisingly few (new for my BIGBY). The lark, kite and falcon were absent. I did enjoy watching a Cooper's Hawk chasing its smaller cousin, a Sharp-shinned Hawk, for quite a distance before it lost interest (or stamina). A single Tree Swallow (new for my year) called as it flew overhead, finally landing on a wire ands showing off its deep green back and clean white underparts.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBKLfHSKnwmsAOee5dMDEG4mNZrLE5Q3n-le4n8OXOq2uJPwe3LHS2KMoUtItjhfSdXGTLyJlU8O7a0NrW_CsmAjaV10Pw7IVnUEhGRuzRuB4RCxPCVGtq7Z1qaNJOM-FVaFOKr9YkPMI/s1600/IMG_2399.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBKLfHSKnwmsAOee5dMDEG4mNZrLE5Q3n-le4n8OXOq2uJPwe3LHS2KMoUtItjhfSdXGTLyJlU8O7a0NrW_CsmAjaV10Pw7IVnUEhGRuzRuB4RCxPCVGtq7Z1qaNJOM-FVaFOKr9YkPMI/s320/IMG_2399.jpg" width="224" /></a></div>I hurried back to the Elfin Forest preserve to see if I could find new shorebirds for my green year and the tide was at a perfect level. I could not, however, find the wintering Pectoral Sandpiper or the resident Red Knots in amongst the hundreds of shorebirds. Before too long I had to head home, as I still had about 2 1/2 miles to walk home before it got too dark to bird. I walked back along the edge of the bay and added Common and Red-throated Loons to my year list. This California Towhee was spreading out its tail feathers near my house. I and got back home at around 4:30 with 109 species including 15 new ones for my walking green year from this 10 mile walk.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-85437208915006604412011-02-15T22:10:00.000-08:002011-02-18T12:09:55.633-08:00Leading a Green Field Trip at the 2011 Morro Winter Bay FestivalAlthough my green big year was over, I wanted to continue to do green birding in 2011, and encourage others to do more green birding (it's nice to have company once in a while). For both reasons, I approached the Morro Bay Winter Bird Festival organizers about leading a bicycling-birding trip. After some initial concerns over logistics and liability, they agreed. I had no idea if participants would sign up for such a trip and I had not led such a trip locally (I did lead one for the Kern Valley Festival the prior spring with low attendance). I figured that I would design a trip that had minimal miles and hills, but still had a high number of species. I thought that a 1/2 day trip would be enough for a first time trip like this.<br />
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Based on the amount of cycling and birding I had done locally, I had a fair idea where I wanted to go from the Morro Bay Community Center (festival headquarters, below). My birding buddy, Ross Schaefer, and I got on our bikes and checked out the planned 8 mile route one week prior to the Saturday, January 8 trip. We had a good time birding for a half day on our bikes, even if the birding was a little slow due to less than optimum tide levels. We found nothing unusual, but had a fair variety of species - almost 70 species. The only problems I could see were the really cold and windy conditions at Morro Rock and the time limit, which might severely limit the number of stops on the trip (I would have to limit the stops and not take my scope out every time). I found out that the trip filled up early, so at least there was interest.<br />
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On January 8, I got up early so I could pedal the 30 minute ride from home to meet the participants at the community center before the 7:30 starting time. Although I was early, many of the 8 participants who signed up were not. By the time we got going it was about 8:00 AM. Lesson # 1 - cycling trips take longer to get going than vehicle trips - plan accordingly. It turned out to be a friendly and enthusiastic group of beginning to intermediate birders who were on this trip. All of the group were decent cyclists with only one participant who lagged a bit due to having a bike he was unfamiliar with. When we started with a bright yellow Townsend's Warbler at the community center parking lot, the whole group seemed excited by the bird and I relaxed a bit since it was clear this group would be happy with the usual local birds and I didn't need to be preoccupied with finding rarities or particular target birds. That was fine by me!<br />
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We practically coasted from the center down to Morro Rock where we were greeted by a variety of grebes, loons, gulls and scoters in the harbor mouth. One of the resident adult Peregrine Falcons glared down at us from its perch up on a spire on this massive basaltic plug (the remains of a no longer active volcano). A Canyon Wren gave its descending song from the rock and White-throated Swifts gave their grating "chittery" calls from above the rock, but we could not visually find either. Pelagic Cormorants (some showing their winter white flanks on their otherwise all black body) sat on a large rock next to Morro Rock, where they breed in sheltered spots on its almost vertical face. Larger Brant's Cormorants flew by occasionally. Since I had frozen my rear off at the Rock the weekend before, I was relieved that it was warm for this festival trip to the rock.<br />
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From the rock we pedaled over to the nearby sandy Morro Creek mouth, where we found a variety of gulls , including Mew Gulls, which were distinguished by their smaller size and unmarked small yellow bill. An adult male Northern Harrier tipped back and forth as it flew by low to the ground, giving everyone good looks at its silvery gray color and white rump. It was starting out to be a productive trip, but a little slow to get the group moving. Lessen # 2 - it takes a long time to get a group of people going at stops on a bicycle birding trip - stops have to be limited and attempts should be made to see some of the birds without getting off the bikes. ( I did not use a long cable I brought along to lock all of the bikes together, but would still bring it in case it was needed on future trips - since some of the birders did not bring a lock.)<br />
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From the vicinity of the Rock, we cycled around the edge of the bay, south toward the natural history museum, with a nice stop at the Bayshore Drive overlook of the bay and Grassy Island. Here we saw a good variety of birds such as Spotted Sandpiper teetering along the shell strewn shore below us, Snowy Egret strolling the bay's edge, many shorebird species farther out on a tidally exposed sandy island and our second Osprey of the day perched on a mast. The tide was better today (not too high or too low, just right) and many of the species were concentrated in a few areas. When leading this cycling bird trip, I had to think about keeping the group together as well as where to stop and finding as many birds as possible, but stay on our time schedule. It kept me preoccupied enough during the trip that I totally forgot to photograph the group despite the fact that my camera bag was strapped to my waist! Lesson # 3 - don't forget to take pictures.<br />
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We stopped to scope the bay from the point where the natural history museum is perched. There are vantage points at this spot whence (I always wanted to use that word) birders can scope the bay to the north and the south. We added a few more ducks, grebes and shorebirds from this point, but after the late start and the flat tire we were running short on time. Lesson # 5 - birding with a group by bicycle is like birding in Mexico: itineraries are made to be broken "so go with the flow". At this point, we decided to split up, with one group going back to the community center and one group doing some more birding. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMLIO1zK2jjJW3ESOixOcc8JxoEuA0s0lJwLPVUtfjE3FrjmxYGq-3_XPJhOjBGZ4mJ0uq2wD3apWnRD8s0MVztGFdRN0rdQgK_4ByXjUi9-pgXr6Cv6APS1ma4QloBzjFEL92m9knmBk/s1600/IMG_2226.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMLIO1zK2jjJW3ESOixOcc8JxoEuA0s0lJwLPVUtfjE3FrjmxYGq-3_XPJhOjBGZ4mJ0uq2wD3apWnRD8s0MVztGFdRN0rdQgK_4ByXjUi9-pgXr6Cv6APS1ma4QloBzjFEL92m9knmBk/s320/IMG_2226.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>The remaining birders went on tho the Morro Bay State Park Campground where we saw a camouflaged Brown Creeper living up to its name on the trunk of a tall Monterey Pine, among a flock of "butterbutts" (Yellow-rumped Warblers) and other birds such as Downy Woodpecker. I was down to one birder at this point, so we checked some sparrow flocks on the way to the last stop, a small marsh on the way back to the center. We sat and played a rail recordings. Several Virginia Rails answered and one of them came to the edge of the reeds, where we saw it briefly - skulking through the vegetation. Other marsh birds such as Marsh Wren, Song Sparrow (above), Red-winged Blackbird and Lincoln's Sparrow seemed to be excited by the Virginia Rail calls as well.<br />
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We then returned to the center. The trip was a little rough around the edges since it was a first time trip. With a few changes next time, including a longer time and earlier start, it should be a smooth and even more enjoyable trip (as long as I have such friendly participants). We ended up with well over 80 species, including some fun sightings - not bad for a field trip by bicycle!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-38459741267704748862011-02-15T21:32:00.000-08:002011-04-05T23:52:07.188-07:00Snowy Egrets Feeding with Ducks, Grebes and Cormorants in Morro Bay<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMzGaISv1bKK8pRoe7HZKod6RfBPinVY3q327mSFqiHAIeZXbjZ7JRQ24314N1NQht_fxizFizwk8mD628_SntQkvkp8IbUY-m4vxxu5cB-vScojka_YujgTcQZsYpM-xe6yzMF9T9PgU/s1600-h/IMG_5810.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5445603621771312434" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMzGaISv1bKK8pRoe7HZKod6RfBPinVY3q327mSFqiHAIeZXbjZ7JRQ24314N1NQht_fxizFizwk8mD628_SntQkvkp8IbUY-m4vxxu5cB-vScojka_YujgTcQZsYpM-xe6yzMF9T9PgU/s200/IMG_5810.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 124px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 200px;" /></a> <br />
More than just ticking species off, I like to see bird behavior that is new to me on my daily birding. For example, I have observed Snowy Egrets feeding with two species of ducks as well as cormorants and grebes in Morro Bay. On 3/1/10, I watched a Snowy Egret feeding with an adult male Red-breasted Merganser (pictured). The merganser fed by swimming below or mostly below the surface of the shallow water and the egret followed it, apparently looking for animals stirred up by the duck. In turn, when the egret stirred up sediment by moving it's foot around, the merganser came over and appeared to be watching for anything brought up by the egret. Both were clearly following the other and feeding off the efforts of the other species (mutualism). I watched this for about ten to fifteen minutes in Cuesta Inlet before walking on. <br />
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Cattle Egrets feeding on insects stirred up by cattle is well known, but this was the first I had seen or heard of a Snowy feeding cooperatively with ducks. I did find an article on Little Blue Herons commensaly feeding with White Ibis (The AUK 95: 667-681, October, 1978). Eric Johnson, a friend and former Cal Poly ornithology professor, referred me to an article published in a late '60's ornithological journal (The Auk, Condor, or Wilson's Bulletin) on dozens of egrets and herons feeding with Red-breasted Mergansers in Florida.<br />
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On 2/21/10, and again on 3/3/10, I observed a Snowy Egret (the same one?) standing next to a group of Blue-winged Teal (pictured below) at Cuesta Inlet. It was clearly watching for anything it could eat as the teal moved their bills through the sediment both below and slightly above the water level. It was a low tide both times. The teal appeared to ignore the egret both times I observed the egret feeding next to the teal. It appeared to be a very one way relationship (commensalism) as the egret ate things stirred up by the teal, but it contributed nothing and the teal appeared to be oblivious to the egret's presence as they were concentrating on their feeding in the muck. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0AHooLC2VKR9dQssXZpiCSOHHss7uKfZ-yq7xHMD8lfBhJhqKsKWKlnyFdHn6xaghvl8RWMvBpUWCdx0TYN4ABusC24QulJtiDeOGu2wTAzlcMt-McEUT0NuvI0y9U0eLMODMImqOOKs/s1600-h/IMG_5585.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5445610104273717458" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0AHooLC2VKR9dQssXZpiCSOHHss7uKfZ-yq7xHMD8lfBhJhqKsKWKlnyFdHn6xaghvl8RWMvBpUWCdx0TYN4ABusC24QulJtiDeOGu2wTAzlcMt-McEUT0NuvI0y9U0eLMODMImqOOKs/s200/IMG_5585.jpg" style="float: left; height: 132px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 10px; margin-top: 0px; width: 200px;" /></a><br />
On May 23, 2010, I observed a Snowy Egret feeding with two Double-crested Cormorants. I was at the Audubon Overlook in Los Osos at low tide and numerous birds were feeding in or around the channels of water that snaked through the exposed mudflats at low tide. The Snowy Egret appeared to be following the cormorants as the cormorants swam in the channels. The Snowy would follow on the dry land next to the channel (walking and flying to keep up with the cormorants) and occasionally go into the water after something near the cormorants. There were Great Egrets nearby that were not behaving in this manner. I watched this for about twenty minutes and then I left. It appeared that the egret benefitted from the cormorants, but I did not see the cormorants follow the egret at all.<br />
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On February 11, 2011, I watched a Western Grebe follow a Snowy Egret around as it stirred up sediment with its feet. The grebe would watch and occasionally go under water in the direction of the egret, when it was actively moving a foot under water. The grebe was totally submerged or partially so when it was under water in the vicinity of the grebe. This was at Cuesta Inlet in Morro Bay and at a higher than average tide. It went on for about ten minutes and then the Western Grebe stopped following the egret.<br />
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On March 14, 2011, I again observed a Double-crested Cormorant and a Snowy Egret interacting. I was on my morning walk along Cuesta Inlet (Morro Bay) when I saw an adult Snowy Egret and an adult Double-crested Cormorant following each other around at low tide in a tidal channel at about 7:45 AM. The cormorant would swim under water and the Egret would follow. The egret would stir up sediment with its foot and the cormorant would come over and feed. They both fed several times during this behavior. This lasted about ten minutes and then they went their separate ways.<br />
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On March 26, 2011, at about 9:30 AM, an adult Snowy Egret was feeding with two female Red-breasted Mergansers in the water near the edge of the main channel from Cuesta-by-the-Sea into the bay. The mergansers and the egret seemed to be following each other around, all three feeding. After about five minutes the egret flew over to another egret and left the ducks. After a minute or two of crest raising and flapping of wings by the egrets, the same egret went back to one of the mergansers and they resumed feeding together. The merganser and the egret started going up a shallower side channel. It was shallow enough that when the merganser swam under water you could always tell where she was by turbulence on the surface above her. As the merganser worked further up the channel, the second egret joined them - one egret would feed on either side of the merganser, sometimes snagging fish within inches of the side of the duck. It looked like the egrets were harassing the duck, but several times when he got away from the egrets the merganser would return to them. The egrets were walking around in the water, but I saw none of the foot shaking feeding technique often used by Snowies.<br />
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They all seemed to be doing well at catching fish and two more Snowy Egrets flew in. Now the merganser was really surrounded as she worked further back in the shallow channel. The egrets mostly stayed within two feet of the merganser. The duck seemed to be doing most of the work of stirring up fish from the bottom and then the egrets and the duck would feed. This went on for about ten minutes, with one of the egrets leaving and the remaining three following the merganser about 50 yards back to the main channel, where the merganser went into deeper water and the joint feeding ended. All of this observed behavior occurred in a twenty minute period. Great Blue Herons and Great Egrets were in the vicinity, but they were not feeding with the mergansers or any other birds.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUi6nrn4NWJfzCKE1Q4nmspDvaBxnjwgtExOpEMlhRNKJirU-lVYxLf0r4wiOailCfuM6lasJrFcK0xtriQudqcQkEfRS-pP1_PWwNjsq61dqHbJLJhkPMJGv5JxHiprB_DziPlsmV5V0/s1600/IMG_3144.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="174" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUi6nrn4NWJfzCKE1Q4nmspDvaBxnjwgtExOpEMlhRNKJirU-lVYxLf0r4wiOailCfuM6lasJrFcK0xtriQudqcQkEfRS-pP1_PWwNjsq61dqHbJLJhkPMJGv5JxHiprB_DziPlsmV5V0/s320/IMG_3144.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>On April 5, 2011, Snowy and Great Egrets were out in number near and in Cuesta Inlet of Morro Bay. Tide was low and egrets and Double-crested Cormorants were feeding in the channels. Starting at about 7:30 AM I watched three Snowies feeding as they followed three cormorants as they dove and fed while swimming under water in the channel. This went on for about ten minutes, during which time one cormorant flew off and two egrets continued their pursuit (pictured). About two hundred yards away, five different Snowies followed a single cormorant as it fed in another channel. Five nearby Great Egrets did not join the pursuit, although one flew over the cormorants and another Great Egret landed nearby. So, at least eight Snowies in Morro Bay engage in this type of behavior and Great Blue herons and Great Egrets are in the vicinity during such joint feeding, but they do not appear to join. I watched for about ten minutes before I had to go.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-62311225792352959052011-02-03T13:25:00.000-08:002011-02-22T15:21:54.999-08:002010 GREEN BIG YEAR SUMMARYI was representing clients in Superior Court when my phone vibrated in my slacks' pocket. I dashed off to the vacant jury room when I saw it was Maggie (local birder) calling. I wondered what bird had been found, where I would have to ride my bike to see it, and how I would get out of work soon enough to see the bird if it was a good one. Such thoughts crossed my mind whenever I got a bird call in 2010. In fact, the hardest part of my green big year was not the 3634 miles I cycled, or the 348 miles I hiked, or the kayaking, or the running with my binoculars. The hardest part was juggling my work and family commitments with my quest for bird species.<br />
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I originally got interested in green birding in 2007, when I saw an item on BIRDCHAT (internet bird listserv) about doing a BIGBY. This stands for "Big Green Big Year" and was coined by Richard Gregson from Quebec. He has promoted green birding on the internet, and encouraged BIGBYs all over the globe. This type of green birding was a response to the many "big years" and "big days" done by birders who traveled all over the world to see how many birds they could see in a year or a day. To some birders, driving and flying all over after big year or big day bird species seemed inconsistent with the pro-environmental ideals espoused by most birders. <br />
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I first tried a BIGBY in 2008 and found 262 species in San Luis Obispo County, biking and walking from my home in Los Osos and my work in San Luis Obsipo. In that same year, Andy Kleinhesselink and Josiah Clark, of San Francisco, found 295 species in Northern California, including a cycle to Mono Lake and back! This appeared to be the record for North America and was something to shoot for (with a camera, not a gun!).<br />
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It took me a year to think about it, and get up the gumption to make a serious attempt to break 300 species. I spent the last 6 months of 2009 planning my year (some species were findable only at particular locations and for limited times) and setting up a blog to chronicle my efforts. I had never biked more than a two day trip and I had never had my own website or blog, so I was challenging my 58 year old mind and body. It turned out that setting up a Google blog was not hard, but I suspected that my planned nine day spring bicycle trip out to eastern Kern County to boost my total species count would not be so easy.<br />
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I started my 2010 green big year on January first, when I pedaled from my house in Los Osos to Cayucos and back (25 miles), tallying 122 species despite some bad luck that shortened my trip (see my blog). My green birding trips for the year varied greatly in time and distance. I rode my bike over 100 miles in a day on two occasions in 2010. Both days involved some significant hill climbs and both days netted me new birds for my green year. My longest pedal was a ten day (one rest day), almost 600 mile trip from Los Osos inland to the Mojave Desert, top of the Greenhorn Mountains (south end of the Sierras) and along the South Fork of the Kern River. This trip added my only out-of-county green birds, including Northern Goshawk, Brown-crested Flycatcher, a pair of Pileated Woodpeckers, and other birds of the desert and Sierras. It also included some hair-raising rides on Kern County highways with no bike lanes (it would have been worse but for the very considerate professional truck drivers). This trip contributed 16 species to my green year total. In contrast, my shortest trips were my walks to the edge of the bay and the patch of trees at the end of my street, Pecho Willows. This daily ritual, with my dog, not only provided many locally rare birds, but gave me a real feel for the changing seasons as bird species came and went, the weather changed, and the tides varied<br />
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I really liked the actual green birding, but not my big green year concern over possibly missing a rare bird that had been found by another birder. Chasing a bird on my bike was not only harder physically, but it took up to 3 times longer than driving. Green birding made it more difficult to fit chasing into my schedule and decreased my chances of seeing a recently found bird. For example, I missed the county's third Red-necked Stint (on the Morro Bay Estuary mudflats) by 5 minutes. As I feverishly arrived on my bike, local birders were walking away from the location (never a good sign) talking about how the bird looked just before it flew off into the distance. I never did re-find the Eastern Phoebe found in riparian habitat along Los Osos Creek, despite 5 tries on my bike (numerous people had seen it before and after my visits!). I missed a fall Northern Parula seen in Oceano, despite two attempts, including one where it was initially found by a birder standing right next to me! I searched long and hard, but the bird was part of a flock that totally dispersed in a downpour. <br />
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Nevertheless, I did successfully chase some good birds, like the 24 mile (one way) pedal to see California's second (!) Ivory Gull - a beautiful and aptly named gull from the Arctic circle that was completely unexpected in sunny Pismo Beach. Instead of ice flows and Polar Bears, it was contending with beachcombers wearing shorts and sandals. I cycled another 45 miles (one way) to see a different white northern visitor - a first winter Glaucous Gull at the Elephant Seal haul-out near Piedras Blancas.<br />
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While chasing was harder, <b>finding</b> birds did not seem to be hampered by my green forms of transportation. It helped that my neighborhood, including Pecho Willows, had 20 warbler species, Tundra Swan, Semipalmated Sandpiper, American Golden Plover, White-winged Dove, Black Swift, Clay-colored Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow, Indigo Bunting, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Orchard Oriole, and other unusual species in 2010. My favorite green birding find was the county's first Bar-tailed Godwit that I flushed while on a run along the shore of the Morro Bay Sand Spit. Other birds I discovered on my green birding in 2010 included Tundra Swan, Stilt Sandpiper, Red-naped Sapsucker, Tropical Kingbird (below), Magnolia Warbler, Bay-breasted Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler and Swamp Sparrow. <br />
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I did have some low points in my green year. During my first ride out to the Carrizo Plain on February 15, I practically collapsed along the road from exhaustion, having ridden too fast into a head wind, with a bike that was packed too heavy, on a route that was unnecessarily long and difficult, and without the proper conditioning. I barely limped into the California Valley Motel before dark at the end of this 70+ mile ride. Another bad experience occurred on March 26 while searching for Greater Roadrunner on San Luis Mountain with my mountain bike. My front tire caught up on something and I did my impression of a briefly airborne roadrunner as I flew over my handlebars on the descent of the mountain. Unfortunately, my landing was more like a sack of potatoes and I broke several ribs. Fortunately, it did not prevent me from cycling for more than one week (I just had to sleep sitting up for a few weeks).<br />
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Overall, the green big year was a very enjoyable experience and I have no regrets. I liked the challenge - finding as many species as I could in one year without using any gas. I developed a larger appreciation of the landscape and the birds of Central California because I experienced this area in a very different way than driving from spot to spot. Memorable rides included pedaling along Kelso Valley Road into the Mojave Desert from Lake Isabella, hearing and seeing a large variety of resident and migrant birds (like the plain Gray Flycatcher, the elegantly marked Mountain Quail and the contrastingly colored black and yellow Scott's Oriole) in the willow cottonwood riparian corridors, on the rocky slopes, and in the scrub and Joshua tree desert (respectively). Cycling on Soda Lake Road on the Carrizo Plain with the fields of early yellow, blue and white wildflowers in the late winter along with flocks of bright blue Mountain Bluebirds and the yellow meadowlarks, glowing in the morning sun, was unforgettable. The ride along the road on both sides of Alta Sierra summit in the warm and bright high-elevation sun of the Greenhorn Mountains, with dark blue skies, large patches of snow on the ground between towering firs and pines, the beautiful songs of Green-tailed Towhees and Townsend's Solitaires, and the loud cries of the Pileated Woodpecker, was breath-taking (or was that the altitude?).<br />
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The non-bird wildlife sometimes stole the show from the birds on my green year. Examples included the lone Prong-horn Antelope standing near me in a sparse brown weedy field in eastern Kern County, the striking blue gray Ring-necked Snake with the bright orange collar and underparts found along the bluffs trail at Montana de Oro (elsewhere on the trail was a group of 6-8 Pacific Rattlesnakes), the prehistoric looking Horned Lizard I couldn't quite catch at Cerro Alto, a playful fox and a cautious bobcat at the Montana de Oro Campground, the endangered Red-legged Frogs and Western Pond Turtles close up at the Harmony Headlands trial, and (most of all) the impossibly big Blue Whale I saw while scoping for pelagics off Montana de Oro (photo below).<br />
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The scenery was incredible at times, and on a bike I really saw beauty I would have missed from a car. The photo below of a seasonal wetland in Kelso Valley (near the South Fork of the Kern River) was only one of the hundreds of scenes that I came across in my travels that made me stop and be amazed.<br />
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My 2010 green big year total of 318 species was more than I had expected when the year began. While I could have likely gotten 8 - 10 more species for the year, I am satisfied with the total as well as with the process of reaching it. Someday soon, I suspect that someone will ride across the country and find twice this many species in a green big year. Fifteen year old Malkolm Boothroyd (with his parents) rode over 10,000 miles from mid 2007 to mid 2008 (Alaska to Florida to Texas), tallying 548 species, but some might argue that it was not a totally a green year since he used buses and ferries to get home from Texas and it was not in one calendar year. Either way, I am humbled by his efforts and he is in his own amazing category so far for green birding!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg55xn8hLI7UO6NS6HKxV3Q6y9LDOf8wqoV4t60ViTwHFPWbSbQK8ZcKnWq8K_iZoAsLabf1zqhDbT4-DnruA7-ETwIpBdMuyuors1eb5z0dbHwWzCFMHi7OrO81wdBYFCwf4GFKjNhcPc/s1600/kelsovalleywetland.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg55xn8hLI7UO6NS6HKxV3Q6y9LDOf8wqoV4t60ViTwHFPWbSbQK8ZcKnWq8K_iZoAsLabf1zqhDbT4-DnruA7-ETwIpBdMuyuors1eb5z0dbHwWzCFMHi7OrO81wdBYFCwf4GFKjNhcPc/s320/kelsovalleywetland.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
While I may not ever do a serious green big year again, I will continue to as much green birding as I can. I encourage others to do it as well; it is good for the environment and an enjoyably different birding experience. I will also continue to post blogs on my green birding. I plan on seeing how many species I can see while walking from my home in 2011 (see my ongoing tally in the right margin of my blog). I will try to do a green big day at least once a month, either walking or on my bike. Enjoy green birding in 2011!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-89029441869239530922011-01-18T18:35:00.000-08:002011-02-28T07:52:27.431-08:00Bicycle Birding Equipment Checklist<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ3disWTMFM6W25Bl3SjLZSzA2CEUYDR_qK2ieyJs0trzLIvQcA8JL-tGtYz5RfDyLAuUOa_Nb_w8rysqXDThke6QUFo01RB3rLn-MpikWJ9iFbHxoNunvje-C0qYKshFTeHWfLceJQHs/s1600/IMG_1872.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ3disWTMFM6W25Bl3SjLZSzA2CEUYDR_qK2ieyJs0trzLIvQcA8JL-tGtYz5RfDyLAuUOa_Nb_w8rysqXDThke6QUFo01RB3rLn-MpikWJ9iFbHxoNunvje-C0qYKshFTeHWfLceJQHs/s320/IMG_1872.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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___ Comfortable well maintained bicycle, touring bike is good for <br />
multi-day trips with panniers. <br />
___ water - 1-3 bottles, depending on trip <br />
___ well fitted helmet <br />
___ tools - tire tools, compact Allen wrench/screwdriver set, spokes?, <br />
cable(s)? <br />
___ 2 tire tubes, liner? <br />
___ patch kit <br />
___ emergency tire boot <br />
___ small high pressure pump with pressure gauge <br />
___ sun glasses or clip ons <br />
___ electrolite drink and powder to make more on longer trips <br />
___ 2-3 times the amount of food you normally eat <br />
___ Wider tires (and wheels?) for use on dirt (I don't take them with <br />
me but change before ride) <br />
___ pannier(s) <br />
___ handlebar bag <br />
___ binoculars <br />
___ checklist, field notebook, field guide?, pen <br />
___ first aid kit including vaseline intensive care for chaping <br />
___ sunblock and chapstick with sunblock <br />
___ bike shorts <br />
___ bike socks and shoes <br />
___ bike jersey <br />
___ bright bike jacket <br />
___ leg warmers (have these or tights for cold rides) <br />
___ Greenish long sleeved shirt (goes over bike clothes for birding) <br />
___ thermal shirt or wicking sweater? (better to bring extra layers than to be cold) <br />
___ handkerchief(s) <br />
___ wipes (for poison oak/ivy, grease, dirt, road rash) <br />
___ money, credit card, driver's license <br />
___ cell phone <br />
___ U Lock <br />
___ key(s) <br />
___ iPod and speakers? (spare batteries) <br />
___ camera? (extra battery and memory card?)<br />
___ scope? <br />
___ tripod? <br />
___ shoes for hiking? <br />
___ hat for hiking? <br />
___ pack to hold pannier for hiking? <br />
___ light weight breathable rain jacket? <br />
___ insect repellant? <br />
___ handlebar light? leg light? <br />
___ leg light or tail light?<br />
___ toilet paper <br />
___ map(s)?<br />
MULTI-DAY TRIPS: <br />
___ camping equipment? <br />
___ light tent <br />
___ sleeping pad and bag <br />
___ toiletries <br />
___ cook gear? <br />
___ spare clothes <br />
___ light food for camping meals <br />
___ mail food to destinations without any available food? <br />
___ reservations for camping or motels <br />
___ hand washing powder for clothes <br />
___ plastic bag for clothes that don't dry <br />
___ zip-lock baggies<br />
___ charger for camera battery and iPodUnknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-4347697219012498222011-01-09T17:42:00.000-08:002011-02-22T15:25:53.485-08:00Bicycle Birding Basics<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHhohqrH40kavMobt9G8KRTUNKH8MIhTnP-7aPQJlnBQDfK1QxBaQG14bX6FJVPuBJYqxEltuM6opQnqoHjWY_xFu7Y5AgxymlxWPN1gWPJaifWKf6_OZjYpQwTQlzsfIH42pH053WIV0/s1600/IMG_0328.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463841133498825986" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHhohqrH40kavMobt9G8KRTUNKH8MIhTnP-7aPQJlnBQDfK1QxBaQG14bX6FJVPuBJYqxEltuM6opQnqoHjWY_xFu7Y5AgxymlxWPN1gWPJaifWKf6_OZjYpQwTQlzsfIH42pH053WIV0/s200/IMG_0328.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 200px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 186px;" /></a> <br />
In the last three years I have done a fair amount of bicycle-birding and have learned the following lessons (many the hard way): <br />
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1) Watch for cars, watch for cars, watch for cars (especially the ones with little cyclists painted on the side). Drivers do the most stupid, dangerous, inconsiderate, and asinine things. Watch for it and be prepared to react - it may save your life! Modify your behavior, especially if you are a male with elevated testosterone when you cycle. Its kind of like dealing with cops - try not to curse drivers or have an attitude (especially when they are completely wrong) because they have all the power. Avoid dangerous roads (e.g. Highway 41 from Cerro Alto to Morro Bay where there is no shoulder, falling rocks, and poor visibility due to curves), especially when the traffic is heavy. Pull well off the road when looking at birds - it is easy to focus on the birds and forget the cars whizzing by. <br />
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2) Wear a helmet!!! (Even for short trips.) I know several cyclist who have cracked helmets in cycling accidents, and so avoided cracking their heads. <br />
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3) Observe the rules of the road, especially stay on the right side, come close to stopping at stop signs, don't run lights, and signal your turns. Not only might this save you a ticket, but it gives drivers one less reason to hit you. When necessary in town, ride in a way where you are visible even if it means you are not all the way to the right. Do not weave around cars, be predictable and visible. When outside of town, stay as far right as possible in or out of bike lanes as some cars ride on the edge of bike lanes or off to the right more than is necessary. Pull into pullouts on narrow highways or whenever else it would allow fast cars behind to pass. <br />
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4) Don't wear cameras, binoculars, etc. around your neck when riding - it gets in the way and is uncomfortable on long rides. It may seem nerdy, but a handlebar bag that locks onto the handlebar is the best place to keep such items and cell phone where they are safe and handy. Especially avoid wearing binoculars in areas where rednecks or others are hostile to birders or nature lovers. It identifies you as a target! <br />
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5) Keep the weight of your load as light as possible (it makes a big difference on hills) and try to balance it so not too much weight is in the back or to one side. I f you use only one pannier, hang it on the ride side as wind will tend to push you to the right and not into traffic. If you don't need a scope on a particular trip, leave it at home. <br />
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6) Bring plenty of food and fluids for the road, and use them. Don't underestimate how much you should eat and drink on a long ride - take 2-3 times what you would normally eat in the same time period and drink more fluid then you think is necessary (don't wait till you are thirsty). Bike shops and Internet sites sell specialty endurance drinks and food. "Bonking" is no fun! Also make sure your water bottles are full before you leave a town with a long subsequent stretch that may have no water. <br />
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7) Progress slowly when increasing mileage or hills. It's like running or lifting or any other exercise - ease into it. Especially if you are an old fart like me! Even take it easy on a brand new bike; don't take a really long trip on a new bike till you are used to it. <br />
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8) Make sure your bike fits your body. Buy a bike that is the right height and length for your body. Have an expert at a bike shop help you select a bike and set the seat height, cleat placement on your clip-in shoes, and handlebar height. <br />
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9) Keep your bike well lubricated and adjusted (brakes and derailleurs). Have at least an annual tuneup by a local bike store. Learn to do basic maintenance such as adjusting cables, adjusting the derailleur, changing a flat, patching a tube, changing a spoke, etc., so you can do it yourself on a ride. On long rides especially, make sure you carry all the needed parts and tools for basic repairs. Flats are a drag. I have been using Bontrager tires with Kevlar belting with success. You can also try tire liners or tire sealant which you inject into the tire. <br />
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10) When purchasing a bike or panniers, or other cycling equipment and clothing, consult experts at bike stores and online. Many employees at bike stores know little about bike touring, so find one who does. ( see thetouringstore.com ) <br />
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11) Wear appropriate clothing for cycling so that you are comfortable cycling and birding. Cycling shoes, shorts, jerseys, leg warmers, tights, gloves, jackets. etc. protect your body, make you more aerodynamic, wick away sweat, keep you from getting too hot or cold, make you more visible, and generally feel comfortable when cycling. Wear full gloves for cold weather (not cutoff finger tips). I wear a bicycle jacket with zip-up pockets and a color called "screaming yellow" which makes me highly visible for drivers. I take along a dull green shirt to put over it or change into (depending on the weather) so I am not birding in screaming yellow. An extra sweater or thermals are useful when birding along the coast, especially with a cool onshore breeze. In redneck areas, bike jerseys with an American flag may reduce abuse from drivers (not kidding). I have an equipment list for bike birding in another post. <br />
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12) Carefully check out bike routes <em>before</em> a trip for the shortest, safest route. "Google Maps" and other sources make it easy to check distance and terrain. Google maps are not always accurate about bike routes so check with local cyclists or bike shops when biking an unfamiliar route. Also, check weather reports carefully before rides, especially multi-day ones, and don't forget to check on wind direction and velocity as this can greatly effect cycling. Wind and rain suck big time. <br />
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13) When not cycling, it helps to lift weights for leg and overall body strength, cross train by running and rowing, stretch (also after rides), and keep your weight down (long rides help with this!). <br />
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14) Pace yourself on long rides. Take breaks, stop and smell the roses or look at or listen for birds, or take photos. Enjoy the rides! <br />
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15) Lock your bike to a pole or tree when it is out of your sight. Use a U lock that cannot be cut. Lock the pannier and helmet as well as a wheel and frame with the lock. Lock both wheels if you are going to be gone for a while. If hiking, bring a light backpack that fits a pannier so you don't have to leave it and the stuff in it. Have a handlebar bag that locks to the handle bar and don't forget to take valuables out of it when you leave. <br />
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16) Check your bike and other equipment right before each day's trip and after significant breaks. Make sure that the wheels are on tightly, that the tires are fully inflated, the brake pads don't rub the rims, derailleurs are adjusted, and rack bolts are tight. Make sure that your tool bag, panniers and pockets on your clothes are all zipped up and securely closed to prevent leaving tools, money, keys, etc. along the side of the road. A few quick tweaks before a trip can make a trip much more pleasant.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-86801941401976623672011-01-06T22:46:00.000-08:002011-03-01T14:26:27.278-08:00More Local Surprises to Finish the Year<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibob5Ryh7usuVzIi20slzXt-Dj0g1xq4fRiXEdBqpirnbtjvw_nHmXtFfrsWX4g6o6zfPw8gkDuK_BZp_bti-G6roAzE-yW2K8N_xxc1_sHyRmyrB1KNBqd-POCxaF0_Nq2KNyzFcDLWg/s1600/IMG_0697.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5543015880424198514" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibob5Ryh7usuVzIi20slzXt-Dj0g1xq4fRiXEdBqpirnbtjvw_nHmXtFfrsWX4g6o6zfPw8gkDuK_BZp_bti-G6roAzE-yW2K8N_xxc1_sHyRmyrB1KNBqd-POCxaF0_Nq2KNyzFcDLWg/s200/IMG_0697.JPG" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 134px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a> <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj50nTBA6ZE5eDduwANUe0027vqBA00ZEPxjbB_py-q2y3mq_PGI-V9gZStQW2hOyODWTcE9w_vXfA5ySF8kl-LTMkNmh7NFDvszgeX8MVY70BUWrV3MT-z_6lEukqBL9OCvUoTzrkzm2c/s1600/IMG_0695.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5543015858909573186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj50nTBA6ZE5eDduwANUe0027vqBA00ZEPxjbB_py-q2y3mq_PGI-V9gZStQW2hOyODWTcE9w_vXfA5ySF8kl-LTMkNmh7NFDvszgeX8MVY70BUWrV3MT-z_6lEukqBL9OCvUoTzrkzm2c/s200/IMG_0695.JPG" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 134px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a> <br />
Nike and I love our early morning walk (before work or a weekend cycle) from our house and along the edge of the back bay and through Pecho Willows. Although there are often interesting birds (a typical 40 minute walk yields 40-65 species of birds), it is a really beautiful place to be (photos left and the masthead). The light is always different depending on the time of day, the amount of fog or clouds and the angle of the sun. The path through Pecho Willows (below) often has bird surprises, errant golf balls from the adjacent golf course that I collect for my golfer son, and occasional deer or coyotes (which I have to restrain Nike from chasing). My neighborhood has some color as shown in the picture of our commercial fisherman neighbor's house, below.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQY5q3ECzbgqPS3kmHuoVsoh191XjAFS3sja4iIi4ayQW_9kq2BVheT1fUtnxg2MA9qm5cyLiY5J_MhF83PgBzba7hGvFBWIbEWULhohiF8d6j1rvxDKggxsGd63aGIpe52GxZST58p4c/s1600/IMG_1167.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5543015442568587890" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQY5q3ECzbgqPS3kmHuoVsoh191XjAFS3sja4iIi4ayQW_9kq2BVheT1fUtnxg2MA9qm5cyLiY5J_MhF83PgBzba7hGvFBWIbEWULhohiF8d6j1rvxDKggxsGd63aGIpe52GxZST58p4c/s200/IMG_1167.JPG" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 200px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 134px;" /></a> <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVA1IUhPQ8XP3e8h4Zdc3fGq6whJNSPG4JOtk8R3H9cdEXRGKwgnaGwbcWmt1YaUNQzGkBIEn8ZjwFAH4wf_wITY-osKVVP888AYOovEjpDL69t4bgf6Dq_1_fgIF-CAcLWunzZelolkw/s1600/IMG_1160.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5543015436285179794" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVA1IUhPQ8XP3e8h4Zdc3fGq6whJNSPG4JOtk8R3H9cdEXRGKwgnaGwbcWmt1YaUNQzGkBIEn8ZjwFAH4wf_wITY-osKVVP888AYOovEjpDL69t4bgf6Dq_1_fgIF-CAcLWunzZelolkw/s200/IMG_1160.JPG" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 134px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a> <br />
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When I want to get out on my bike, but don't have a lot of time, I can pedal to the campground next to Islay Creek in Montana de Oro State Park, or the Audubon Overlook on the edge of Morro Bay, or Sweet Springs Nature Preserve with its fresh water pond and platform on the edge of the bay, or the coastal scrub habitat and hill top lookout of the bay at the Elfin Forest, or the pastureland and ag. fields of Turri Road or the old oak forest at Los Osos Oaks - all within four miles of where I live!<br />
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I did find a couple of new BIGBY species in my neighborhood toward the end of the year. The Tundra Swan shown below was first seen flying by in the company of an unsavory Mute Swan and after calling Kaaren Perry about this local rarity, she photographed it on the bay, as shown here on November 23.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRAdkxzhZ5T7wjzTp9nV1_rAc-0D3r4JesWSfg22lp_gkaWE_CX-Xnaw4YcsFZpO4Nj-ROHr0k-YZul-S705OaJqfndPjurk-eSXb9-IKIvLu-qCEaYXRmG9-k9-CkdXXX1KXom0M-n0s/s1600/swanmorrobaygreenyear.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="144" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRAdkxzhZ5T7wjzTp9nV1_rAc-0D3r4JesWSfg22lp_gkaWE_CX-Xnaw4YcsFZpO4Nj-ROHr0k-YZul-S705OaJqfndPjurk-eSXb9-IKIvLu-qCEaYXRmG9-k9-CkdXXX1KXom0M-n0s/s200/swanmorrobaygreenyear.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>I also found a Swamp Sparrow on the day after I got back from my 160 mile trip to the Carrizo Plain - right at the end of my street! (BIGBY # 317)<br />
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My last BIGBY bird of the year, on December 31, occurred at Laguna Lake in San Luis Obispo. I rode my bike the 12 miles there, got on my rubber boots and walked through the flooded vegetation along the shore (photo), playing the bittern recording on my iPod. An American Bittern answered and was seen briefly as it flushed. This was my 318th BIGBY bird and my last species for the year. I thought of the birds I had missed for the year and was satisfied, as they were few. The surprise species for the year were many!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-28001830878006916072011-01-06T22:13:00.000-08:002011-03-01T14:22:54.252-08:00Last Multi-day Trip in 2010As the year wound down, I decided which additional trips I could make to find new species for my year's green list. The weather was not being cooperative as it was the wettest November and December I could remember. There were still several species I needed from the Carrizo Plain area - one day's bike ride east of where I live on the coast. This area includes the Carrizo Pain National Monument and habitat that is unique for this area - a large alkaline lake, sage and saltbush scrub land, and arid grassland and hills. So, I had to find a three day weekend without rain and not on a holiday with family commitments. This gave me two days for the ride to the California Valley Motel and back, and one day to bird the Plain. <br />
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After a couple of rained out weekends and Thanksgiving, I finally had a window of opportunity between Friday, December 10 and Sunday December 12. I hadn't been riding as much lately because many of the species I had needed lately had been close to home, and due to the weather and holidays. The first day of my ride to the Carrizo was going to be a tough one. This was my third trip out there for my BIGBY.<br />
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Matt and Trisha covered for me in court and I hit the road at about 8:00 AM on Friday - loaded with clothes for the possibly sub-30 degree weather of the Carrizo Plain, as well as three days of food, my camera equipment and my iPod and speakers. It was a little foggy as I left my house and went west toward San Luis Obispo on the fairly flat coastal plain - through farmland and grazing land. I was glad to be on my bike, on the way out to the eastern part of the county rather than in my car on the way to work like the people in the cars whizzing past me. I offered them my condolences, but none acknowledged my presence - they were just envious (or more likely oblivious). <br />
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I took it easy on the first 12 miles of the trip, knowing that one of the two hardest hills was approaching - Cuesta Grade, a climb of over 1,000 feet in elevation. Unlike my ride in the spring, the hills were quiet and the sky was gray as I ascended the grade. About half way up, I saw a sad sight - a freshly killed Western Screech Owl. Fortunately, the bike lane was wide on this stretch of the highway so I wasn't overly worried about joining the owl on the side of the road. I took the climb slowly without a break except to see the owl, and made the summit before the descent to the exit for Santa Margarita. <br />
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Santa Margarita, a small unincorporated town, was the last place to get food and water before the roller coaster ride out to the Carrizo Plain. I made sure my three bottles were full with water and Gatorade and picked up a fresh sandwich and chips for lunch on the way east. On the first stretch east of Santa Margarita I saw the weird hillside depicted below (you can click on any of the post's photos to enlarge). I wasn't sure what to make of it - a piece of conceptual art or a piece of shirt? or? <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbQsWOBPA89668QyQBpWNIbx-I25yQOBJVh1J350CJujwewiSRk9n2-tX8X0oXJhiqfRAbZVKb-c40csHagtJVywGA3xgsWnwyWYK4vfEEQ_3h9MzItQa4zofI3x_T_l4R4pTu5hcUc78/s1600/IMG_1456.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="131" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbQsWOBPA89668QyQBpWNIbx-I25yQOBJVh1J350CJujwewiSRk9n2-tX8X0oXJhiqfRAbZVKb-c40csHagtJVywGA3xgsWnwyWYK4vfEEQ_3h9MzItQa4zofI3x_T_l4R4pTu5hcUc78/s200/IMG_1456.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />
At about this time, the overcast was breaking up and it was starting to warm up a bit. I was now on the up and down Highway 58 which rolls its way about 50 miles out to the Plain. The pasture land here hosts flocks of Yellow-billed Magpies, Western Bluebirds, and various sparrows and finches. Scanning the sky while riding can yield an occasional Golden or Bald Eagle soaring overhead (or a ride off the pavement if I'm not careful). I was able to find an immature Bald Eagle. The ride out to the plain varies between the pastureland, oak forest, chapparal covered hills and farms of grapes and even jojoba. As I cycled, I heard the occasional plaintive whistle of a Phainopepla (always from oaks with clumps of mistletoe in their branches). Scrub Jays cried, ravens croaked and Oak Titmice performed their varied repertoire of calls and songs. There was little or no bike lane for most of this stretch, but fortunately traffic was very light and the drivers that did pass were considerate.<br />
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I stopped at one spot next to what remained of a long dead Blue Oak (photos here), ate my sandwich from the Santa Margarita Mercantile, rested, took some photos, and did some birding. Except for a brief stop at San Juan Creek (photo below) I did not stop again before the Plain as the species I needed would not be seen before I dropped down from the mountains down to the flats. <br />
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Once I got to the Plain I began to look for one of my target species - Rough-legged hawk - on the utility poles and fenceposts were raptors roost in good numbers in this expanse of cultivated fields, pasture, and native scrub. I did see several handsome Ferruginous Hawks (photo below), kestrels, a Merlin, several Red-tailed Hawks, but no Rough-leggeds. I also listened as flocks of Horned Larks swirled around in the plowed fields.<br />
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At one of the only ranches houses along Highway 58 with a pond (just before the right turn to California Valley), I stopped to look for any unusual waterfowl and found a Cassin's Kingbird on a wire - a very unusual species for the Plain. A little farther up the road a mixed blackbird flock, with close to a hundred Tricolored Blackbirds, fed on the ground and noisely perched on the nearby wires and fence strands. <br />
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I got to the motel at about 3:30. The 66 mile ride to California Valey was tiring, but nothing like my first ride there in February (when I thought I was going to die by the side of the road)! I cramped up a little bit as I sat on my motel room bed, eating a chicken sandwich that the motel owner had given me (thanks!) and a freeze dried microwaved dinner (yum!). <br />
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The next morning dawned clear and surprisingly not cold (over 40 degrees Fahrenheit). After oatmeal and hot chocolate, I took off at about 7 AM (I had unpacked and packed the bike the night before). I headed south on Soda Lake road, which goes toward the national monument and reaches nearly to the edge of Soda Lake. Raptors were numerous on the poles lining the paved road and traffic was nearly nonexistent. I spotted a Prairie Falcon on a fence post, kestrels, more Ferruginous Hawks (5 in sight at one time!) and Red-tails. I could find no Rough-legged hawks, but did get great looks the other raptors. I took detours off the main road to groves of trees, but found no Long-eared Owls (which I still needed for the year). I did see Mountain Bluebirds and Horned Larks (nothing sounded like a longspur) in the mostly grazed fields. <br />
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When I passed the farm and pasture land, and got to some native brush I found Sage Sparrows sitting atop scraggly salt bush, along with flocks of smart looking Lark Sparrows and White-crowned Sparrows. I still had a ways to go to get to a spot for LeConte's Thrasher, another target bird for the trip. To get to a LeConte's location, I had to go east on one of the roads that passes to the other side of Soda Lake. Many are impassable after rains and it had recently rained. Fortunately, I was able to walk around low muddy areas and made my way past thousands of Horned Larks, pipits and sparrows to the Elkhorn Road - a higher dirt road that travels north/south on the eastern side of the lake (photo). I ate lunch here and again listened for longspurs without any success.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_2y4d00_w03qLUUjH1KLB7vXwgzCiFzMUrO24fPz2i-cJ2dJxeClVgCqFLd0qIndwD0GTE1T0DTGGOxSkC8hhT9thtB4ZhoGX0iJplNIVvR3_MPDHhr3WLz3x-39iazCfBeTOV7nnoEg/s1600/IMG_1536.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="131" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_2y4d00_w03qLUUjH1KLB7vXwgzCiFzMUrO24fPz2i-cJ2dJxeClVgCqFLd0qIndwD0GTE1T0DTGGOxSkC8hhT9thtB4ZhoGX0iJplNIVvR3_MPDHhr3WLz3x-39iazCfBeTOV7nnoEg/s200/IMG_1536.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>At the junction pictured I saw a dark morph Ferruginous Hawk (bad photo of this high soaring bird).<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkG-K1nw43XR1RGsp5aWM4neGk9-3Isv387q2PUT0L1XumxqyQ1W5OX3nTda7w6x986UsG9v7zDK1CAEfDdGWkDvp_r4-sxH5-rEiKa1QG1_maMeVQ_vfGkKB2glpuVSEIFYTWYp9jhhw/s1600/IMG_1531.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="134" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkG-K1nw43XR1RGsp5aWM4neGk9-3Isv387q2PUT0L1XumxqyQ1W5OX3nTda7w6x986UsG9v7zDK1CAEfDdGWkDvp_r4-sxH5-rEiKa1QG1_maMeVQ_vfGkKB2glpuVSEIFYTWYp9jhhw/s200/IMG_1531.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>Just south of the junction in the photo I came to a bunch of scrubby growth coming down from the Temblor Range. Here I found several LeConte's Thrashers (BIGBY # 315). I tried to get some photos as the thrashers ran around the brushy habitat bordering grazed grassland. At times they scurried around my feet with their tails up, like little roadrunners, but I could not get an open shot except for a quick far away shot blown up here. I finally thought I had to leave, to allow more time to look for longspurs and Long-eared Owl.<br />
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I road back north on Elkhorn Road and the graded dirt with areas of washboard bumps was really shaking me around at times. I would be glad to get off the dirt, but it was still several miles to Highway 58. Along the way I saw more small flocks of Mountain Bluebirds, glowing bright powder blue against the drab background of the arid grassland and hills. Large flocks of Horned Larks called as they flew over me, and on both sides of me in the fields. I finally got to the paved highway and went uphill to the small riparian habitat along San Diego Creek next to the road. Birding here was made more interesting by the angry big bull that pawed the ground and lowered its head as soon as I hopped the fence. I was able to avoid the bull as I bushwacked through the thick willows and brush under some large cottonwoods.<br />
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The habitat here was hopping with birds in the spring, but was really slow on this visit. I had seen Long-eared Owls here in the past, but the only raptor I was able to flush this time was a Cooper's Hawk. After covering the habitat along this seasonal creek, I decided to cycle back toward California Valley via the dirt surfaced (but dry) Seven Mile Road, checking the poles for raptors. I saw more of the same raptors I had seen before. When I got back to the paved Soda Lake Road, I checked it again for raptors, but saw no Rough-leggeds. I got back to the motel after about 45 miles of easy riding, most of it on dirt and washed some of my cycling clothes. After another freeze dried backpacking food dinner I packed for my trip back to the coast and hit the sack early. <br />
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I got up early the next morning which was unnecessary because the fog was so thick outside that I could not see across the street! I waited for almost 2 hours and finally left at about 8:30 since it was not getting better. The fog did decreased a bit as I pedaled away from California Valley and I spotted a couple of Vesper Sparrows showing their white outer tail feathers as they flew away from the roadside barb wire fence they had been perched upon. I stopped at a roadside group of pines along the cyclone fence for the Carrisa Plains School. I decided to check this line of trees since there are not many trees on the Plain and this group of thick trees would be a potentially good place for owls to roost. I saw many owl pellets on the ground and flushed a Barn Owl followed by a Long-eared Owl. The size and color of the bird made the Long-eared ID obvious, but I did not try to re-find it after flushing it since the light was bad for a photo and I did not want to harass BIGBY # 316. <br />
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I has hoped to check the poles and fields along Bitterwater Road (which runs north of the Plain), but the fog was worse when I got there. I then decided to pedal toward home, happy with my two new green year birds! I saw nothing different on the rest of the trip home and was lucky enough to have a tailwind on the last leg home along Los Osos Valley Road (a rarity in the afternoon in the land of onshore wind).Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-1371950310173823382011-01-06T19:30:00.000-08:002011-03-01T14:16:07.622-08:00Fowl Day for a Christmas CountI know that a stormy day is typically a "foul" day. But when you are on a Christmas bird count, and it rains three inches, it is a great day for waterfowl (and not much else). I started early with my faithful canine companion, Nike, on our local count day (Saturday, December 18), and it rained on us for most of our walk. (photo) We did see some good fowl (not an oxymoron) - 2 Cackling Geese (photo) on the golf course. They had undoubtedly not been popular on the course due to the little surprises they scattered around the greens and the fairways, but I was certainly glad to see them even if the golfers were not. The geese stood out among a large flock of coots, and none of them seem concerned about the rain.<br />
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I waited for awhile at home after our walk and drank hot chocolate, but gave up waiting when the rain would not stop. "To hell with it - I have some bird counting to do," I announced to no one in particular since Nike wasn't listening and my family was out of town. I was suppose to count birds in my neighborhood and adjoining parts of Los Osos and Baywood Park and, by God, I was going to do it.<br />
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Being a mixture of quiet single family residences on the edge of the Morro Bay Estuary and having several groves of trees, a golf course, three ponds, and lookouts of the bay, my home town produced many unusual birds in the fall of 2010. Several noteworthy birds had been seen in the area in the week prior to the count, such as Swamp Sparrow, Black-headed Grosbeak and Wilson's Warbler. (These species are not common wintering birds in this area). These were also birds that might be dificult to see in the rain.<br />
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The first thing I did aftert my break was check the grove of trees at the end of my street where the above three rarities had been seen, but very few birds were out in the pouring rain - they had more sense than that! <br />
I decided to take a four mile walk around the neighborhoods, and to the various bird lookouts and preserves in Los Osos and Baywood Park. Even if the dicky birds were not out, maybe I'd see a different shorebird, or duck, or something that didn't mind the rain. I wore my rain pants, a breathable rain jacket, wool socks and waterproof boots. I carried my scope and tripod on a backpack carrier and took a couple of dry handkerchiefs to dry my lenses. <br />
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I checked all the local spots that were good for wintering birds, but had nothing of note. I couldn't even find a Eurasian Wigeon or any unusual shorebird or waterfowl. After a while, things got very wet and my handkerchiefs were no longer dry! (I should have brought a bath towel!) Wet eyeglasses, binoculars and scope do not make birding any easier. There could have been rare birds on the bay at that point and I wouldn't have even seen them. "Time to go home!" I again announced to no one in particular (I probably should be more careful about walking around in the rain, talking to myself!) Not only did I not see any other counters out birding, but I saw very few people out of their homes at all on such a blowing wet day.<br />
When I got home, the rain water had soaked into my clothing, from around my collar, and my feet were cold. (Christmas bird counts should have an alternate day when the usual day is rained out.) <br />
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I ended up with barely 60 species, when the same walk on a dry day would have yielded closer to 100 species! The entire Morro Bay Christmas Bird Count was only about 175 species - the lowest total for our count in over 25 years! It wasn't disappointed because I found no new green year birds, but because I knew that there were birds around that would have been unique for the count. I missed them on count day due to the "fowl" weather. Really crappy days like this one made me appreciate the usual nice weather in this area (that I often take for granted). (How's that for a great rationalization for having spent several miserable hours outside, vainly looking for birds in the driving cold rain?!)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-49645711704079237662010-11-23T22:58:00.000-08:002011-03-01T14:10:19.457-08:00Farther Afield Fall BirdsDo I ride up or down the coast, or even inland, to maximize my chances for new species? Or do I bird close to home, where I have seen most of my year birds? (Or do I stay home and do the chores my wife has been after me to do? Who am I kidding?) <br />
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I am very fortunate in that I live within 5 miles of an incredible range of productive birding locations: from rocky shore, to sea bird lookouts, large tidal estuary, coastal vagrant traps, no less than 5 creeks that feed into the sea or Morro Bay, pastureland, oak forest, coastal scrub, remote sandy beaches, pine forest, and urban spots. Why should I ride 60 or more miles when I can often find better birds close to home? One reason is that I might find vagrant species in other parts of the county that I will likely not see close to home. A better reason is to go after resident species that are known to exist in other parts of the county which won't have left before I get there. Best yet, is when someone else finds a very rare vagrant somewhere else, and I find out with enough time to pedal there and back on the day it has been seen.<br />
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Since no new rarities were being seen, and I had birded my local patches over and over again, I decided to pedal 30 miles north up the coast to San Simeon State Beach. I went straight there so I could get there before the onshore winds (from the northwest) kicked up. I then could bird on the 30 mile return trip with the wind at my cycling back! I first checked the beach and the lagoon at the mouth of San Simeon Creek (photo above). It is sometimes good for shorebirds and waterfowl. The only thing unusual that I could find was a very tame flock of White-fronted Geese (photo above, taken from the highway 1 bridge) next to the lagoon - nice but not new for my year. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyKrILJpxD1t-5PUGbpqib43lxeZteYFJ7GdsWYtbeSvvoi86ANArhBWAnjvUMfUMkiBy-qmQepQElTQ2y1Oa3liv4dwMx9FsxM_Z7D7sQQzsWHuEWqKmK32dEYYxt0ehMntzD8oEdkpA/s1600/IMG_0919.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544312444950235138" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyKrILJpxD1t-5PUGbpqib43lxeZteYFJ7GdsWYtbeSvvoi86ANArhBWAnjvUMfUMkiBy-qmQepQElTQ2y1Oa3liv4dwMx9FsxM_Z7D7sQQzsWHuEWqKmK32dEYYxt0ehMntzD8oEdkpA/s200/IMG_0919.JPG" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 134px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a><br />
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I then put on my waterproof Teva sandals and walked up the middle of the stream to look for flocks and any vagrants in the San Simeon Creek riparian habitat (left). Unfortunately, on this particular day, it was quiet with only a couple of small flocks and nothing out of the ordinary.<br />
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I then rode back down the coast with stops at Pico Creek (below), Moonstone Beach and Santa Rosa Creek. There were a couple of large chickadee, bushtit, warbler flocks at wooded path along Santa Rosa Creek and the usual large gull flock at the mouth of the creek at Moonstone Beach, but nothing noteworthy. It was good to get out on my bike and bird some spots I hadn't birded lately, but I had added nothing to my big year.<br />
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Oceano has traditionally been the best spot for fall vagrants in San Luis Obispo County, so on October 16, I rode down the coast 25 miles to bird that spot and other locations nearby. The Oceano area had produced only a few vagrants so far for this last fall, so I went down there with less expectations than I would usually have for the area in October. <br />
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I met Maggie Smith there and we walked around the lagoon, looking for a flock. After finding a small flock on the north end of the campground we then heard a much larger flock in the pines on the west side of the campground. Dozens of Yellow-rumped Warblers, Townsend's Warblers, Chestnut-backed Chickadees, Red-breasted Nuthatches, kinglets and other birds moved through the trees. We followed the flock, looking for the odd bird, which Maggie found. "Palm Warbler," she called out as I ran over with my binocs and camera bouncing. "Its just above eye level in the small tree below the pine in front of us." I found the bird and tried to keep up with the dull-colored Palm (a new BIGBY bird), trying to take a decent photo. (I did manage the straight-on shot shown below.) We continued to chase the flock as it broke up and seemed to disappear - about the same time that other birders arrived. We saw a female Summer Tanager which Maggie had found on an earlier date, and continued our walk around the lagoon without finding anything else unusual. <br />
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Maggie took off and I continued on to the open county park lagoon to the south where I searched through gulls and ducks. I then went further south to the willow riparian habitat along Arroyo Grande creek where I looked through the willows and a stand of pines. I found one flock along the horse trail which paralleled the creek and found my first Pacific Wren (formerly Winter Wren) for my green year. I headed back home against a slight wind, stopping a couple of times for brief bird checks.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5A9WdyCxSTyovbAGxSnZVKYIUCV-aQQR3ecXfI8U_nqu9MYU7q_Rh-iuFdz3NtjmnKyEzY6jDyeHiGGRNTlmW3_72qtlffG6btK4KcHQWV-6uIf_o1gJ83rdlx-X9CLmgGVVhZzYfJsU/s1600/IMG_1097.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5543010228767240978" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5A9WdyCxSTyovbAGxSnZVKYIUCV-aQQR3ecXfI8U_nqu9MYU7q_Rh-iuFdz3NtjmnKyEzY6jDyeHiGGRNTlmW3_72qtlffG6btK4KcHQWV-6uIf_o1gJ83rdlx-X9CLmgGVVhZzYfJsU/s200/IMG_1097.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 132px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a><br />
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In the evening of November 5, I heard about an adult Ivory Gull that had been found two days prior at Pismo Beach. It took two days for this distinctive bird to be identified! I was on my way to Pismo, on the following morning, to look for this amazing bird. After a quick 1 hour 40 minute ride, I ran out to the beach, pulling my bike through the sand. There was a large flock of birders (below) in the sand, but they were not looking at a bird (not a good sign)!!<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjolHoSdjceqqPYKyYDanrsSDH1snOkZHFShyolJetlm-pgrSLC-TFC5F3qlP3whQeuYtcV_gPYTvBjrOp06GvNswYFW8XgAiNqUduyTonHyXbmGYUoc4JUPC8mahuD4G6uKTjZjqDZ42w/s1600/IMG_1207.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5543010252035107890" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjolHoSdjceqqPYKyYDanrsSDH1snOkZHFShyolJetlm-pgrSLC-TFC5F3qlP3whQeuYtcV_gPYTvBjrOp06GvNswYFW8XgAiNqUduyTonHyXbmGYUoc4JUPC8mahuD4G6uKTjZjqDZ42w/s200/IMG_1207.JPG" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 134px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a><br />
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"The bird was just here," several birders said as I approached. "It just flew down the beach to the Pismo Creek Mouth." I went down the beach with another birder and the small pure white gull was in with other larger local gulls. I had great looks and then it flew down the beach to where I had first started on the sand. I saw it feeding on a seal carcass at this spot. I took a far away shot and Dave Lawrence got a great close up (below)! This was an incredibly rare and beautiful gull for BIGBY # 310! I stood on Pismo Beach in my bicycle shorts, among totally oblivious tourists, looking at a bird from the Arctic Circle - a bird that had only been seen in California once before! <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguTioj5KdXSdrZV2v3Ih6gUtiTJxH9FMAS2ZvcKpr_JgTiYYIdjebQ7gH81H6eZ6-PYjJWjkSyqXmZeEOMyVntlLYkk6cNBkWZy8QB5rC0j3YYwVcBy-YRgZltUeidUK7eXF8DQ2vi7Mg/s1600/IMG_1237.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5543010254128299202" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguTioj5KdXSdrZV2v3Ih6gUtiTJxH9FMAS2ZvcKpr_JgTiYYIdjebQ7gH81H6eZ6-PYjJWjkSyqXmZeEOMyVntlLYkk6cNBkWZy8QB5rC0j3YYwVcBy-YRgZltUeidUK7eXF8DQ2vi7Mg/s200/IMG_1237.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 134px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJgswDkPKd0dlgqbQSfWA7GMvSAsvcmZc739PuGJNiFLLSwFuVDWkRDJJ4lDBw1rpphPD5zjSg7FnuHMG1CyDuZAOPRbrdKftJPvast4_a_Jl25OlYsO9ENHuhVKffTa8jOr5uOWTexIg/s1600/lawrenceivorygull.jpeg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5544484260535885090" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJgswDkPKd0dlgqbQSfWA7GMvSAsvcmZc739PuGJNiFLLSwFuVDWkRDJJ4lDBw1rpphPD5zjSg7FnuHMG1CyDuZAOPRbrdKftJPvast4_a_Jl25OlYsO9ENHuhVKffTa8jOr5uOWTexIg/s200/lawrenceivorygull.jpeg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 160px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a><br />
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I went on to nearby Oceano after I heard that a Harris' Sparrow and other rarities had been found there. Unfortunately, the rain started soon after and I not only missed the sparrow, but also failed to see a Northern Parula seen by a birder standing right next to me. I still didn't really mind the rain on most of the ride home from Pismo - how could I complain after seeing an Ivory Gull!<br />
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On November 14 I again headed north up the coast, all the way to Arroyo Laguna (75 mile round trip), and found nothing remarkable. I did manage to see an immature Moorhen at San Simeon and a good variety of birds on my way home, but nothing new for my BIGBY. I stopped at Pico Creek (below) on the way north and south to scan the wetland for bittern or other reed loving birds, without any luck. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyqB9E4NfGTmd6UiBPRWta_6YFLtCtT7BWb0_AMmBmw4X67reI82beiE8_w0hmKw6OaX8kXfda9s5RzLWhP7o21L3sN5jGmE7K6x6Z6VRkUSMnMKsy1w_SZ78trQAKHQ273QexyUhU_MQ/s1600/IMG_1255.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5543010263084270434" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyqB9E4NfGTmd6UiBPRWta_6YFLtCtT7BWb0_AMmBmw4X67reI82beiE8_w0hmKw6OaX8kXfda9s5RzLWhP7o21L3sN5jGmE7K6x6Z6VRkUSMnMKsy1w_SZ78trQAKHQ273QexyUhU_MQ/s200/IMG_1255.JPG" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 134px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-4803126479612737332010-10-24T13:44:00.000-07:002011-03-01T14:13:16.356-08:00Group Green<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6TZY3-U2Ua02mrbkNJETZvMmXyIwHzjfB-gUc0nWq2Uxye5VDmrx1JHosR4PMIH8vpX6m24IPcXEaqqgRfp2keXToi1kpxdKu_BfGkKK0eBjTLlp3Do4QwEd9BlnYH3c4p_nP6xA_4_w/s1600/IMG_1042.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5531731769973398514" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6TZY3-U2Ua02mrbkNJETZvMmXyIwHzjfB-gUc0nWq2Uxye5VDmrx1JHosR4PMIH8vpX6m24IPcXEaqqgRfp2keXToi1kpxdKu_BfGkKK0eBjTLlp3Do4QwEd9BlnYH3c4p_nP6xA_4_w/s320/IMG_1042.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 214px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
What's more green than getting out and birding without using any gas? The answer is to organize a <em>group</em> of people to get out and bird without using any gas. Started by John Himmelman and the New Haven, Connecticut Bird Club 15 years ago, the official "Big Sit" occurs annually on the second Sunday of October. Birders in North America (and a few worldwide) spend the day at their local big sit location - birding from a 17' diameter circle, listing all of the bird species they see and hear while staying in the circle. (Some have joked that it should be called the "Big Stand" since most birders spend the time standing at a scope and very little, if any, sitting.) Years ago, I asked John Himmelman why it was a 17" circle and he replied that the distance was arbitrarily picked so that people would scratch their heads over "Why 17 feet?" Bird Watcher's Digest now compiles the big sit's, and has past years results, rules, etc. This is at: <a href="http://www.birdwatchersdigest.com/bwdsite/connect/bigsit/index.php?sc=migration">http://www.birdwatchersdigest.com/bwdsite/connect/bigsit/index.php?sc=migration</a> .<br />
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Our local big sit has been going on for 13 years at the Elfin Forest in Los Osos, California. We count in shifts from a wooden platform on a sandy hill in the Elfin Forest, overlooking the Morro Bay Estuary below us, the sandspit that separates the bay and the ocean to our west, the basaltic vocanic plug "Morro Rock" to our distant northwest, the fields and scrubland to our east and the edge of the town of Los Osos to our south. It would be a beautiful place just to sit and pass the day - even without any birds. It fortuantely has a wide variety of birds like ducks (e.g. the Blue-winged Teal pictured), terns, gulls, and shorebirds following the tide below us, raptors soaring by at eye level or over the ridges to our east, thrashers and Wrentits calling from the scrub around us, and urban birds sitting on the wires at the edge of Los Osos.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUhVQjNuqZZgM2L9IAtUdvQDufcgV0r3j908ysiC5Kq1Lg_zwNKQO9j7lEK19rtQ1Lh6ywNPsg0ajjG0diNYtyWjC6ok1WOQpJwFLnXAB4D7Go93AmPpXDsujJhaNMlvnP1lixyavamEg/s1600/IMG_5802.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5531724706105650242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUhVQjNuqZZgM2L9IAtUdvQDufcgV0r3j908ysiC5Kq1Lg_zwNKQO9j7lEK19rtQ1Lh6ywNPsg0ajjG0diNYtyWjC6ok1WOQpJwFLnXAB4D7Go93AmPpXDsujJhaNMlvnP1lixyavamEg/s200/IMG_5802.JPG" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 134px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a><br />
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I joined Mike Stiles while it was still dark at Bush Lupine Overlook for the start of this year's count (I rode my bike the 2 1/2 miles in the dark). A warm onshore breeze came down over the hills to our east and it was warm enough for shorts. Birds were vocal in the estuary below at 6AM, with night herons, Semipalmated Plovers and wigeon calling. The two of us had 41 species by 7AM. In the early daylight that followed, more shorebirds and ducks called as they moved with the incoming tide and land birds such as towhees, Hermit Thrush and sparrows woke up around us. The California Towhee pictured below spent much of the day near our platform. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq4tTUWecYEt3cMlIBAg-Yz26BO4Ygr299TlGvovIIeWXncSWyCEG-jBhrfDvKMJE1j9MUyRt-thlnn4mw-HyQdKvIOJbCVXWG8bnudZcb7YATMa-Re5x_lnB5TPC41pD8z1ZxZdjF96E/s1600/IMG_1059.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5531724696966374290" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq4tTUWecYEt3cMlIBAg-Yz26BO4Ygr299TlGvovIIeWXncSWyCEG-jBhrfDvKMJE1j9MUyRt-thlnn4mw-HyQdKvIOJbCVXWG8bnudZcb7YATMa-Re5x_lnB5TPC41pD8z1ZxZdjF96E/s200/IMG_1059.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 134px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a> <br />
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As it got lighter we began to use our scopes to identify farther away terns, shorebirds, ducks, geese, grebes and herons (like the Great Blue pictured below). The tides were extreme for the day, ranging from a 6+ foot tide just after noon to a minus tide at about 7:30 PM. We had 94 species by noon, which was a little lower than usual despite the nice weather. Some grebes, ducks, loons and other species had apparently not returned to the area yet, and other common residents like Belted Kingfisher were just not moving to our part of the bay. <br />
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Birders came and went, with most staying well beyond their assigned times and some dashing off to see an unusual bird found elsewhere and then returning to resume looking for big sit birds. We had our usual variety of great food, including fresh fruit, brownies, chips, nuts, cookies and more. It was a social event as much as a birding one and most of the local long time birders showed up. We added two new species to our all time big sit list - Red-breasted Nuthatch and White-fronted Goose. We ended up with a low total - 101 species - because we missed usual "gimmee" species such as Pied-billed and Clark's Grebes, kingfisher, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, and Golden-crowned Sparrow. Additionally, we had no swallows or swifts. It seems that our totals in past years were also lower when the tides were extreme. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcNGxv0FR2Xy_ZIEKZP0uEwT-wsYJFSZrbqqBzLNdWU4jEjXBldOEDOpFj1quSIFuT67FLpuh4G3JvEPuD7S0ZxMzQ-u13MBNR7qMRT_StW2S8QwRNPfVZjob21QAkQlkHc3VralrXSo8/s1600/IMG_7540.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5531724710972944594" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcNGxv0FR2Xy_ZIEKZP0uEwT-wsYJFSZrbqqBzLNdWU4jEjXBldOEDOpFj1quSIFuT67FLpuh4G3JvEPuD7S0ZxMzQ-u13MBNR7qMRT_StW2S8QwRNPfVZjob21QAkQlkHc3VralrXSo8/s200/IMG_7540.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 200px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 148px;" /></a><br />
Over the years of October Big Sits we have had a cumulative total of 174 species from this spot in the Elfin Forest. Our highest ever was 122 species in one day. Only Cape May New Jersey has exceeded that total, although locations in the tropics would undoubtedly be much higher. While it might seem boring to count in one spot for a day, a great location like the Elfin Forest is not boring and 2010 was no exception. It was a beautiful day of birding in an extraordinry location.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3118760918564213684.post-79851133446712733932010-10-24T10:44:00.001-07:002011-03-01T14:05:11.864-08:00Birding with Beginning Birders (BIGBY Break)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSRvS2x4RNVc2AdYlRAQ6BnQnc7P4vhkGSJmmzLxfYuyFC8DWW5eI2jx-NsnlJS7LisaKYgh-1QKqa3wD1_IG5zjLMJtGyfdomiUSXzucVPTvjLzXZceSb88GDN8p7jNWTWLMK1IkWRxY/s1600/IMG_1105.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5531685941770217682" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSRvS2x4RNVc2AdYlRAQ6BnQnc7P4vhkGSJmmzLxfYuyFC8DWW5eI2jx-NsnlJS7LisaKYgh-1QKqa3wD1_IG5zjLMJtGyfdomiUSXzucVPTvjLzXZceSb88GDN8p7jNWTWLMK1IkWRxY/s200/IMG_1105.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 200px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 153px;" /></a><br />
Long-time birders sometimes talk about an obligation to bring new birders into birding or "giving back to birding", but the truth of the matter is that birding with beginners is fun! Their excitement is renewing for jaded birders: "Wow - a Double-crested Cormorant (photo left), what a cool bird!" Starting birders regularly make such excited utterances about common species that I unfortunately often don't take a second look at, even though they really are pretty amazing. Surprises lurk around every corner on such an excursion and I can't help but get caught up in their enthusiasm.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsOoZwH4ODohvl5gKp8QjdS_DSXlowrS5beS-ZS89nHjdC7ymmcxaL-V_uO_wismjvpglxhXPeEWF_okUiuwcRfX1w1g-rNVFF9VPmptQYKXeELdwBJIKfiLHxgnsfKb92Kbztno3P7q4/s1600/IMG_0713.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5531685936619424034" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsOoZwH4ODohvl5gKp8QjdS_DSXlowrS5beS-ZS89nHjdC7ymmcxaL-V_uO_wismjvpglxhXPeEWF_okUiuwcRfX1w1g-rNVFF9VPmptQYKXeELdwBJIKfiLHxgnsfKb92Kbztno3P7q4/s200/IMG_0713.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 134px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a><br />
It is even more fun when I can bird with a bunch of mostly beginning birders who are long-time friends (photo left). On September 25, I went out birding with a dozen friends who were all in Campbell for our Campbell High School reunion. This trip was obviously not part of my green year of birding since I drove the 200 miles to Campbell, but it did not have much of a carbon footprint since we were all in Campbell anyway. We birded at the Campbell Percolation Ponds (Los Gatos Creek Park - about 50 miles south of San Francisco), where I had fished as a child. I had not revisited since high school days and did not know what birds to expect. (I did take my bike around the ponds prior to meeting with the group so I would have a general feel for the place before leading the group.) These open aquifer recharging ponds are situated on either side of Los Gatos Creek and next to a freeway (Highway 17) in an urban area. There are walking/biking trails which get heavy use on weekends and fishermen still try their luck at the ponds. While we saw no other birders, it was quite birdy; we had 34 species including an Osprey, many Green Herons, 2 Common Morehens, and many more common birds like the cormorant above and the Great Blue Heron pictured below.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzie2DWQFZKefKnk3r79H4OS8WaGl3YRRj3ZrcqMqt5sV7nM536GO8istTB_uKWizup9A5RYEsTNrd8vgNNPA1L_k2jKKyFQT68NENWumUD_Kh9KX0PMde6md96pEsHd1Ybg2fWKQ7Y0M/s1600/IMG_0956.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5531671520363161330" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzie2DWQFZKefKnk3r79H4OS8WaGl3YRRj3ZrcqMqt5sV7nM536GO8istTB_uKWizup9A5RYEsTNrd8vgNNPA1L_k2jKKyFQT68NENWumUD_Kh9KX0PMde6md96pEsHd1Ybg2fWKQ7Y0M/s200/IMG_0956.JPG" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 200px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 134px;" /></a><br />
I really enjoyed the company and the birding. The ponds were a perfect place to catch up with friends and enjoy nature. We saw many of the birds with my spotting scope, including a Pied-billed Grebe with a chick on its back. Two and a half hours "flew by". So, thanks friends for a fun morning and for re-opening my eyes to common species of birds. Let's do it again, but not wait decades to do it this time!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0