Fall 2013 Notes

Somehow I never managed to get these notes posted. Oh well, better late than never . . . .

This fall has had its share of interesting birds around Northern California. In Napa County we had a first ever record of a Hudsonian Godwit while all along the coast of California, including here in the north, there's been an eruption of Blue-footed Boobies who have wandered far from their normal range in the Gulf of California.  These spectacular airborne diving sea birds have come some distance in search of food that is apparently not as abundant in their home waters. Other Booby species are also being found with regularity in the waters of Southern California, probably extending their ranges for better food supplies as well.

The Hudsonian Godwit made his appearance at Huichica Creek mid-week of the second week of September. This was the first record for this species in Napa County and is not a regular visitor anywhere in California, so this bird caused quite a stir. For the next week and a half there was a regular stream of birders looking for this guy at Huichica Creek, a spot many of them had not visited before. On several occasions I had a chance to educate these visitors on our ongoing marsh restoration work in the Napa marshes.

I was able to get a few other excursions in around our area but did not have any noteworthy sightings. Over the Christmas I did chase a rare bird up in Mckinleyville, a town in which I once lived. This unusual Asian visitor was a Little Bunting and I missed him by a day and a half. Always nice to get up to Humboldt county but it was a lot of driving for one day.