Two New Additions and a Productive Fall

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all! As the year is coming to a close I have two new additions to my list to report. I think that the best part of retirement so far is the ability drop what I am doing when a rare bird shows up and take off to try and see it. That happened twice this month, both times within the city limits of Richmond. First, a small group of Nelson's Sparrows was found along the Bay shoreline at a place called Meeker Slough. I had not been to this part of Richmond before and it was really quite nice. A multi-use trail runs through the area and on down the Eastbay shoreline and the neighborhood was very attractive with lots of people out and about using the trail. Previous observations had provided a general idea of the location and after about 30 minutes of canvassing the area I found a pair of them working through the vegetation along the shoreline. A small sparrow of the Central Plains with some orange coloration in the face, they mostly winter on the Gulf Coast, however there is a small population that winters in the Bay Area. I guess it's not just people who come to California in the winter for the weather.

Nelson's Sparrow

A few days later came word of another lost wanderer, a Slaty-backed Gull. This gull is primarily an Asian species that makes regular appearances in Western Alaska. This one just chose the wrong Pacific Coast to follow in it's wanderings. I definitely owe this sighting to first, the birder who found it and second to the group of birders who had picked it out of the group of thousands of other gulls on the water just off the Bay Trail as it goes around the landfill/transfer station in northwest Richmond. To get to the spot where these gulls were you had to park near the transfer station office and then walk the Bay Trail around the landfill for a little over a mile. As I came around the corner and saw the thousands of gulls on the water I thought to myself that I was never going to find this one bird. But then on the other side of the inlet I saw a group of 6 birders and they looked like they were focusing on one area. When I reached them they were very helpful in showing me the bird and then we all took some time checking it's field marks and getting pictures. They then left for the walk back leaving me to get a few more pictures and in that time two other birders arrived and I was able to pass along the favor of pointing out the bird. One thing that I so much enjoy about birders and the birding community is the willingness to help one another that pervades any chase or chance meeting in the field. Rarely have I encountered individuals whose egos, competitiveness, or condescension have spoiled the atmosphere of the enjoyment of these magnificent creatures.

Somewhere in this flock is one Slaty-backed Gull

Slaty-backed Gull

With just over a week to go the possibility remains that I may yet add another species before the year is out. This is after all, the season of Christmas bird counts and they often turn up rarities. However, we are due to be hit with an atmospheric river this coming week which will probably dampen any efforts to get out and bird, but you never know. All told, this fall I added 8 species to my life list for a total of 551. They were Baird's Sandpiper, Northern Waterthrush, Long-tailed Jaeger, Eurasian Skylark, Willow Warbler, White Wagtail, Nelson's Sparrow, and Slaty-backed Gull. My best season for new birds in many years. I highly recommend retirement!

Happy Holidays to you and yours!

A Milestone

This past week I hit a milestone in my 40+ years of birding. Species number 550. Every year along the coast of California we seem to get a White Wagtail that has wandered down the Pacific Coast from Siberia. Maybe in L.A. or perhaps Santa Cruz. This year one appears to be roaming around the bay side of Marin county. First seen at Las Gallinas in San Rafael and lately in a marsh off Rowland Blvd. in Novato. Several weeks ago I tried for it without success at Las Gallinas so when it began being seen in Novato I took another trip over to see if I could see it. Once again I benefited from other birders being present and looking for the bird. When I parked and walked over to the group a young women had it in her scope and offered me a look. I then spent the next hour following it around as it was very actively fly-catching on the shores of the marsh. Other birders came and went and everyone had good but distant looks at this Siberian vagrant. 

White Wagtail

Fall Adventures

No doubt about it, it was hot and still summer in Napa but migration had begun. It seems to me that the shorebirds are usually the first to get going at this time of the year and in late August reports began to appear of Baird's Sandpipers in several locations in the Bay Area. Thus far this species has eluded me so when they were found at Miller/Knox Regional Shoreline I went to look for them. They were well described in both look and location so were easy to find and I enjoyed a good 10 minute photo session with them.

Baird's Sandpiper

A few days later another species I have been hoping to see, the Northern Waterthrush made an appearance at a local park in the Eastbay. This park is really an urban creek corridor and has turned up some interesting birds. My friend Jeff had seen this bird there the day before I tried for it so I had an idea where to look. Most of the sightings had come from a few hundred yards further west than Jeff's so I spent an hour checking all of the locations out with no luck. I had given up and was walking back along the creek and I stopped at Jeff's spot for a few more minutes and low and behold out he popped. Bold eye stripe, streaking on the breast and doing a bob like a dipper. I only got to see him for about 10 seconds and then he was back into cover but I was super excited that I finally got to add him to my list. 

In mid September I had a chance to fly out to Montana to visit one of my oldest college friends Brian Kelly and do some trout fishing. I had not fished in some time and we had the most enjoyable time together. We caught some really nice fish and enjoyed the waning Montana summer.

Montana Rainbow

In late September, as summer began its slow retreat for the year, we spent a few days enjoying the glories of the Mendocino coast.  Taking our kayaks with us we spent a day exploring the Big River whose mouth is just south of the town of Mendocino. Our 7+ mile paddle took us into a beautiful riparian ecosystem.  Along the way we were accompanied by cormorants, kingfishers, herons and egrets along the water, and the usual resident passerines in the trees. Even though we had to work a little bit against the wind on our return it was a glorious day out.

Big River

On our last day in Mendocino (Oct. 1) I joined a pelagic trip out of Noyo harbor in Ft. Bragg. I had joined this trip three years ago and then the pandemic interfered during the last 2 years. It was fun to renew previous acquaintances and this time I was prepared for the sea with a scopolamine patch under my right ear. Hopes were high for the expected birds but with the ocean temperatures higher than normal some rarities were a distinct possibility. We were unfortunately engulfed in fog or clouds for most of the day and were not treated to any significant rarities. We did see Pink-footed, Sooty, and Buller's Shearwaters. Ashy and Fork-tailed Storm Petrels. Pomarine, Parasitic, and Long-tailed Jaegers (the Long-tailed was my one new bird on the day). Also present were Black-footed Albatros, Cassin's and Rhinoceros Auklet, South Polar Skua, and Northern Fulmar. Fun to be out there, fun to not be seasick, I am looking forward to a spring trip with this group.

Ft. Bragg Pelagic

As mid September rolled around Jeff came up to bird the Napa-Sonoma marshes with me. We put together a good checklist of shorebirds, gulls, terns and other residents of this unique marsh environment. The long conversion of salt evaporation pond back into natural coastal marsh continues here. This process has been fascinating to watch and gives one hope that nature, with a little help from us, can reclaim what is rightfully hers. Watching over this scene was none other than a wise old owl.

Great-horned Owl

Last year when Danette and I visited the Olympic Peninsula we had hoped to cross to Victoria to visit the famous Butchart Gardens, however Canada was not allowing Americans to enter their country so we had to put off that visit. This fall we planned to rectify that with a trip up to Vancouver Island to see the gardens and to play the tourist in Victoria. We spent a wonderful four days there and really enjoyed this incredibly beautiful place. I was able to slip away to the Victoria Airport to see the resident Eurasian Skylarks to add another species to my list but the best part of the bird show was whatever chanced to fly by our lovely accommodation right on the water in Saanichton. Loons, grebes, guillemots, geese, scoters and eagles all gave us a nod in passing.

Bald Eagle

So far this had been a successful fall with four new species to add to my life list but fate was not yet done with me. I usually pay pretty close attention to the rare bird alerts that pass through my email inbox and on October 18 they started to light up with news of a rare European warbler that only had been seen a couple of other times in the new world. This Willow Warbler was delighting crowds of birders at the western end of Rodeo Lagoon in the Marin Headlands and I did not want to miss it. This is one of the best things about retirement for me, I did not have to wait for the weekend to make the chase. I told Danette about the bird and she shooed me out the door to go find it. It's always fun to arrive at a spot where a rarity is putting on a show. All you need to do is to look for the huge camera rigs and spotting scopes and look where they are pointed. I literally pulled up, parked, opened my truck door, grabbed my binos, and there it was. I spent some time with the crowd following it as it forged in the brush and managed a few reasonable photos (nothing like what those giant lenses where getting though).

Willow Warbler

My final October adventure in the field took place in Bakersfield while visiting my mother-in-law. Over the years I have visited a spring in a clump of trees along Breckenridge Road which is an old stage road from Bakersfield heading east into the mountains. At this spot I have usually found Long-eared Owls. However, the last two times I have checked they have been absent. I made a quick dash up the hill to check and low and behold, there was one back in the trees. Nice to know that they still use this spot.

Long-eared Owl on Breckenridge Road

All-in-all it was a successful fall with five new species for my life list. 

1. Baird's Sandpiper
2. Northern Waterthrush
3. Long-tailed Jaeger
4. Eurasian Skylark
5. Willow Warbler

That brings my North American ABA total to 549 species. I don't know that I will make it to 700 but it seems like it is worth a try.

In Search of the Himalayan Snowcock

The Ruby Mountains

It was hot. We had stopped for what we refer to as a’ Birding Lunch’ (sandwiches from the fixin’s in the ice chest) at an I-80 rest stop near Lovelock, Nevada. There was not a tree in sight and the only shade came from the metal awning built over the picnic table.  We were clearly in the desert as evidenced by the heat, the salt plain, the dry winds, and the lack of shade. This part of Nevada is right in the middle of the 40-mile waterless stretch that the emigrants on the California Trail had to cross in their heroic journey to a better life. Gazing around as we ate lunch, it is easy to see that we were in the middle of what is known as the Basin and Range Province, an area that includes much of the west from eastern California to western Utah. In the middle of this province sits the most mountainous state in the U. S. and in the middle of that our lunch spot. Most travelers in Nevada barely give this fact a second thought but it is true, there are over 120 named mountain ranges in the state and from where we sat we could see two of them, one on either side. I first became aware of the unique nature of this region from the book, Basin and Range by John McPhee. I say this because I discount a family vacation to Idaho in the early 70s which took us across the I-80 corridor. Back then these were just mountains and deserts that apparently couldn’t be fished. McPhee’s book, like all of his others, is a masterful work that makes it relatively easy for a layman like me to understand the basic principles of the topography and geology of the province.  In short, over the last 30 million years ongoing tension due to uplift is pulling the continental plate in an east-west direction which has led to the formation of parallel faults which are oriented north-south. As the plate stretches, fractures and thins, faulting causes mountains to rise and valleys to fall - the basins and the ranges. Jeff and I had come to the province on a mission, for in one of the highest and most scenic of the ranges, the Ruby Mountains, there lives a bird that can only be seen in North America within the confines of the higher slopes of the range - the Himalayan Snowcock. These birds were introduced into the Ruby’s in the early 1960s to provide sport for the region’s hunters and hopefully to draw some tourism dollars to the area. Snowcocks stay almost entirely above treeline and as a result few of them are actually hunted each year. Nevada Fish and Game officials in the 1960s probably had no inkling that the impact on the local economy from the introduction of these birds would not come from hunters but from birders traveling from all over to add them to their life lists. We were two such birders and, to our good fortune, we were joined by a third, Michael Morris who was traveling from his home in Eureka to Wyoming for a well-earned vacation from his life of retirement on the North Coast. Jeff and I left Napa early on the morning of August 17th and we took advantage of our crossing of the Sierra to go after his nemesis - the Mountain Quail. In the area of Yuba Gap (where I spent 2 summers at Boy Scout camp) is a road into a PG&E reservoir called Lake Valley Road. There had been recent reports of the quail so we took some time to check it out. This area appears to have been burned over a number of years ago and it proved to be a great birding spot. Highlights here included Williamson’s Sapsucker, Western Tanager, Townsend’s Solitaire, White-headed Woodpecker, and yes MOUNTAIN QUAIL!
Leaving the mountains of California behind we arrived in Lamoille Canyon in the Ruby Mountains which is just to the east of Elko.

Upper Lamoille Canyon

I really can’t say enough about the beauty of this canyon. Approaching on the highway it is visible as a slash or a crack in the range, very narrow and not too hard to miss. As you enter and move up the canyon it alternates between very narrow, steep (vertical) sides and more open sections covered in aspens. At road’s end you find trailheads up to Lamoille Lake and Island Lake, both about 2 miles long and in excellent condition. The following morning we would make the hike to Island Lake in our quest for the Himalayan Snowcocks. We found Michael at his campsite and continued birding our way up the canyon picking up Western Wood Pewee, Lewis’s Woodpecker, Mountain Bluebirds and a really nice pair of Golden Eagles to name a few. We then headed back down to Lamoille for dinner and to iron out our plan of attack for the morning. The alarm rang at 3 am the next morning and we crossed our fingers and hoped for good luck. Starting up the trail at 4:15, we really didn’t need our headlamps as the moon provided plenty of light. Most people who are lucky enough to spot the Snowcocks do so shortly after dawn as they move from the ridge tops down to feed. We were in position above Island Lake in time to enjoy a beautiful sunrise.

Ridgeline Above Island Lake

We scanned and we scanned, surprised to see a Mountain Goat and then shortly after 6 am we heard a few Snowcock calls. Unfortunately, that was going to be the best we could do. We stuck to it but after several hours neither of us had a glimpse of these birds. As we retreated we did pick up some nice birds including Lazuli Bunting, Yellow and MacGillivray’s Warblers, Mountain Chickadees, and a Rufous Hummingbird. The rest of the day would take us a few miles to the west and South Fork Reservoir. It was quite hot with occasional cloud cover relieving us. Here we added waterfowl species as well as Sandhill Cranes and a nice Cooper’s Hawk. As we left the area and headed back towards Lamoille it was quite clear that we were going to get some weather.  Driving across Nevada the last thing you think about is rain, however, it is a little known fact that the Ruby Mountains receive nearly 50” of precipitation in an average year. We were about to get a taste of one form this can take - the thunderstorm. Late afternoon in Lamoille was a show of thunder, lighting, and copious amounts of falling water, what a show!

The next morning we were up early again in hopes of getting a glimpse of the Snowcocks. We employed a different strategy this time, setting up our scopes in the valley below the large rock wall where we had heard them the morning before. But alas, not a whiff. Oh well, that just means we are going to have to come back to the Rubys to try again, not a displeasing notion.

Scanning the Cliffs

Ever since we arrived in the region and the locals discovered that we were birders we were asked if we had gone to “the marshes.” Even the Nevada highway patrolman who pulled me over to remind me of the speed limit asked me this question. We had no idea what they were talking about. It turns out that they were referring to what I can only describe as a crown jewel in the National Wildlife Refuge system - Ruby Lake. I had never even heard of this refuge and it is no surprise as it is known as perhaps the most remote refuge in the lower 48 states. Tucked along the east side of the Ruby Mountains and fed by springs and runoff, this place took our breath away. Miles of wetlands in the middle of the Basin and Range province, its beauty was sublime.

Pronghorn Antelope Grazing in the Refuge

Our list of birds in the refuge was not overly impressive but a return at the right time of year could be epic. Our best stop of the day came on the way over the mountains to the east side in the canyon a couple of miles up from the valley floor. Here we ran into a mixed flock that included Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Vesper Sparrow, Bullock’s Oriole, Western Tanager, Woodhouse’s Scrub Jay, Green-tailed Towhee, and Dusky Flycatcher to name a few.

The Birder's Lunch

Enjoying another Birder’s Lunch at the refuge headquarters we noticed a plaque by the side of the road commemorating a campsite used by the ill-fated Donner Party in 1846. It suddenly struck me, we were on the Hastings cutoff, the unreconnoitered but heavily promoted alternate route to California that cost many of that party their lives. Gazing at this landscape you could not help but to admire the courage and fortitude of the people who came overland to California in that great westward migration. We would return to the west side of the range by way of a pass called “Secret Pass” where a Badger bid us adieu as it darted across the road in front of us. Arriving back in Lamoille it was time to part ways with Michael, he would be off to Wyoming and Jeff and I would start our trip back to California. As Jeff and I traveled the interstate we had one more surprise in store for us. At a rest stop in Valmy we found a tree full of sleeping Common Nighthawks. I don’t think I have ever seen them at rest before, fitting it was at a rest stop.

Common Nighthawk

Even though we did not get our target bird we had a great time in an area of stunning beauty. I am sure we will be back next spring. To finish off our trip we stopped at a disc golf course outside of Truckee to decide who would own the bragging rights. I humbly bestowed them upon Jeff, I will get my revenge next time!

Spring in the Mojave - April 2022

*I finally got this write-up done!

Every year come spring, there awakens in me the very strong desire to go adventuring in the desert. For me that almost always has meant the Mojave Desert in Southern California. Maybe it is the desire to find some warmth after the winter season, the excitement of a road trip with friends, or perhaps the certain knowledge that migration is beginning and there will be good and sometimes great birds to be seen. Bottle this all together and you create the circumstances that have taken me to the northern edge of the Mojave year after year to begin a springtime journey at Butterbredt Springs.

There is a certain magic about Butterbredt which I can trace back to my first visit there in the early 1990s with Michael Morris. We were on our way to Arizona for a spring trip and Michael had heard about the spring from his local birding community and was told that it was a must-visit spot for any serious birder traveling through this region. We arrived there in the afternoon, not the ideal time of day, but our stroll through the spring and then down the wash was exceptional and was highlighted by a tree full of about 10 Long Eared Owls. That kind of sighting will lend any place a certain magical aura that will stick with you for the rest of your days. Every time I drive the road into Butterbredt there is that anticipation and excitement that is driven by the question, “What are we going to see this time?”

Butterbredt Spring

Once again this year we were a little early for spring migration as the date of my trip was determined not by when the best time to go would be, but by my school district’s determination of when spring break would occur. The good news is that this would be the last time that would happen as this was my last year teaching before retirement. In planning for this trip I plotted out a circular route we could follow that began at Butterbredt and took in two other places I had longed to visit, Big Morongo Canyon Preserve and the Mid Hills Campground region of the Mojave National Preserve. Joining me as he so often has these last few years was Jeff Manker who took time out from planning for his upcoming wedding to get in one last pre-marriage birding trip. Jeff has now moved up to Alameda so that is where we would begin our trip list.

We began with his local patch that includes the shoreline of San Francisco Bay. This is a strategy that is sure to pad any desert trip list. Our highlight here was the large number of Elegant Terns that were roosting on the jetty across the inlet. After this we headed for Bakersfield, picking up roadside sightings of Wild Turkey and Cattle Egret on the way. When traveling this route a stop at Kern National Wildlife Refuge is always a good idea so we made it our lunch stop. We drove the auto tour route and picked up most of our waterfowl species for the trip. I have to say that the NWR system is one of the hidden gems of the American public lands collection. The system is under stress in California due to drought and climate change but it remains critical to the health and survival of many important resident and migratory bird species. One way birders can support this system is to purchase a Duck Stamp each year. Possession of the stamp covers entry into any National Wildlife Refuge that requires a fee and supports the valuable conservation work the Fish and Wildlife service does. You can get more information and purchase your stamp here.

Later that afternoon we arrived in Bakersfield, went to Beale Park to check out the Rose Ringed Parakeets, and stayed once again with my gracious mother-in-law. Then it was up early to head to the Mojave and Butterbredt Spring. As previously mentioned we were too early for the peak of spring migration so our list here was a bit sparse. Our highlight here was what we believed to be a Gray Flycatcher. We puzzled over this id but this was our conclusion after reviewing the guides and studying the pictures. From the northern edge of the Mojave we headed due south and made for Big Morongo Canyon Preserve. On the way we stopped and birded the county park at the Mojave Narrows.

Jeff at the Narrows

This was an interesting place with plenty of water and riparian habitat. It also had a lot of wind which made things challenging. For me the highlight here were Vermillion Flycatchers, beautiful birds that I had not seen in some time. We birded, had lunch and then played a few holes of disc golf - Jeff crushed me.We got to Morongo Valley, had dinner and then drove up into Joshua Tree National Park for a dusk walkabout. This walk showed us again that we were a little early as it failed to turn up anything other than a few regular residents.

The next day began with our visit to the Big Morongo Canyon Preserve. Situated at the southern edge of the Mojave Desert, the canyon is a transition from the Mojave to the Colorado Desert below and represents one of the largest cottonwood and willow riparian habitats in California.

Trail heading south from the Preserve into the Canyon

It is a birder’s delight with trails and boardwalks snaking through the preserve. We had been concerned by the winds but fortunately for us our morning visit came before the wind rose. Highlights included: Plumbeous Vireo, Verdin, Costa’s Hummingbird, White-winged Dove, Nashville Warbler, Bell’s Vireo, Vermillion Flycatcher, and Phainopepla. Next time I visit here I hope to hike the entire canyon from top to bottom. As we ate lunch in the parking lot we considered our options. Our plan had been to head back north to the eastern region of the Mojave however the weather forecast was not favorable predicting high winds and cold temperatures at night. With that in mind we opted for a dash to the south and Anza Borrego State Park. This drive took us south through Palm Springs where we made a stop at an e-bird location for an Abert’s Towhee that we didn’t see; however, this proved to be a very interesting stop. We were on the western side of Palm Springs on the slope above town leading towards the tramway and looking into a fenced-off undeveloped property on the edge of a pretty high-class neighborhood. There were lots of Western Kingbirds, a Hooded Oriole, and a Roadrunner walking across the street but probably the most unusual sighting was the 50+ Great and Snowy Egrets roosting in the desert scrub on the hillside. Very strange.

Heading further south we made for Borrego Springs and a stop for the night. On the way we picked up a nice roadside Prairie Falcon and then took a side trip to Clark Dry Lakebed to see the nesting Bendire’s Thrasher that had been reported there throughout the spring.

Prairie Falcon

That evening after dinner we noticed that there was a lighted ballfield on the edge of town and theorized that there may be Nighthawks working the area. We only had to spend about 5 minutes waiting until one flew over the field.

We were up early the next morning and off to Culp Valley Campground in Anza Borrego State Park to go after Jeff’s nemesis bird. For the uninitiated, a nemesis bird is one that everyone else seems to see with little effort but you, for the life of you, can’t seem to get a look at. We’d missed it at Butterbredt Spring and we missed it again here. The bird? - The Mountain Quail. We have heard them calling multiple times and even once later in this trip in Upper Butterbredt Canyon, but no sightings. We had a few good birds here including California Thrashers, another Roadrunner and a Cactus Wren. From here we went to Palm Canyon, a famous palm oasis near the park visitor center. We were last here in the mid 1980s during our first NAS Bird-a-thon. Fire has passed through the canyon several times since that time and the scares are quite evident. However, the oasis is recovering nicely and we had an excellent morning birding this hotspot. We had Costa’s and Anna’s Hummingbirds, a Cooper’s Hawk, Warbling Vireo, Nashville Warbler, Loggerheaded Shrike, Black-throated Sparrow, Black-throated Gray Warbler, Wilson’s Warbler, and Western Tanager to name a few.

Borrego Palm Canyon

After another parking lot lunch we were on the road for the long drive to Mid Hills Campground in the northeastern corner of the Mojave National Preserve. We did take a brief stop at the Joshua Tree NP visitor center where we picked up a Black Tailed Gnatcatcher. Continuing on we made for Mid Hills where there were a few target birds we were hoping to get, namely Gilded Flicker, LeConte’s Thrasher, and Juniper Titmouse. We had also hoped to get a look at a Common Poorwill. It was a mad dash racing the sun and we got to the area only a little before sunset. We walked around the campground and could not add anything to our list except a Northern Flicker.

Looking west from Mid Hills Campground - Mojave National Preserve

Our final day would take us back to Butterbredt and then over the ridge and north to the Kern River Preserve. The Spring gave us very similar results to our visit a few days earlier, not even the usual Chukars made an appearance for us. In leaving Butterbredt we decided we would take the narrow track to the top of the canyon and over into the Kelso Creek drainage. As we neared the pass we picked up a Ladder-backed Woodpecker and a Prairie Falcon but what was most intriguing, the call of the Mountain Quail just up the slope from the road. We beat the bush in hopes of seeing it but alas no, it will remain Jeff’s nemesis. Coming down from the pass through a forest of Joshua trees we heard a call we had not yet heard on this trip and was not familiar to us. We turned to a tool I have been using more of lately to help us with the ID. This is the Merlin bird ID app from Cornell. What I most use it for is its ability to identify a bird by sound. It came back with a result of Scott’s Oriole so we were out of the truck and scanning. Sure enough, working through the top of a Joshua tree about 100 yards away we found him. While Merlin is not 100% accurate it can be a very helpful tool in the process of identification. Feeling very pleased with ourselves we headed down to the Kern River Preserve on the South Fork of the Kern River just upstream from Lake Isabella. This is the first time in several years I have been able to get into the preserve’s headquarters area. Either flooding or the long covid closure have kept me out. We began of course by having lunch and then talked with a volunteer who was doing some clean-up work. It seems that the pandemic has taken a toll on this great preserve and they were just starting to get back on their feet again. The afternoon winds came up and made birding this fabulous riparian habitat a challenge but we walked some of the trails and visited ‘Migrant Corner’ before beginning our return trip to the Bay Area.Over the course of our 5 days of birding we counted a total of 160 different species. Not a bad effort but I can’t wait until next year when we can do this in mid- May. One month later in the year could make a significant difference in our species list. Finally, I get to decide when to go (as long as it's ok with Danette!)

In Training For Retirement

Yesterday was a professional development day in our school district, a day when students stay home and teachers come to work to learn more about the art of educating young minds. Since Danette and I are both retiring in June and we both are feeling that we have been professionally developed enough, we chose to practice the skills we will need for retirement instead. So, rather than sit in front of the computer on Zoom, we headed for Bobelaine Audubon Sanctuary in  Sutter County along the banks of the Feather River.

Bobelaine Audubon Sanctuary

In 1975 Bob and Elaine Crandell gave this 430 acre parcel of land to the National Audubon Society to preserve and protect, an incredibly generous gift to the people of California and the nation. The preserve sits on the west bank of the Feather River between the flood levee and the water and is a prime example of the riparian woodlands which once spread along both sides of all of California's central valley rivers. Sadly, today less than 2% of those forests remain. Over 190 species of birds have been sighted in the preserve including such rarities as the Yellow-billed Cuckoo.

It was a fine spring morning with lots of sunshine and little wind. We enjoyed a complete loop of the preserve stopping to take in views of the river and to spot the usual resident bird species. A return trip in May once all the trees have leafed out would likely result in a lot more birds than we saw yesterday but just being outside on a beautiful day, in a beautiful place was our goal yesterday.

As we made our way back home we both agreed that this day had been a most successful practice day for the many to come after June 16th. You can learn more about Bobelaine Audubon Sanctuary at this link.

Another Chase With a Good Result

Since first being seen on a Christmas bird count in mid-December, a Brambling has been putting on a show for California birders in the small Northern California mountain town of Quincy. There have been less than 10 records for this species ever in California so this was a chance I did not want to let go by. My buddy Jeff was unable to join me on this chase so when a 3 day weekend rolled around I took my chance. Leaving Napa at 3:45 in the morning I headed towards Sacramento and then north in the Valley to Oroville. The road follows the Feather River from here and takes you along the edge of the gigantic burn from last year's Dixie Fire.  This fire has altered the landscape of a large area where I have both fished and birded since I was a kid. It will recover with time but I will not see it again in the state that I remember with such fondness.

Arriving at the stakeout location a little after 7 am I met another birder, Chris from Pittsburg, who already had several good looks at the Brambling.

Over the course of the next 45 minutes the bird made continuous appearances to collect seed from the ground, staying in the open at least once for 2 minutes. I collected a few low quality images because of the lighting conditions which I share here.

Seeing a migrant species like this so far from where it should be always makes me wonder about the circumstances of its journey. I mean, it is no mystery how it got here, it flew. The mystery lies in why it did not follow its species' traditional migration from northern to southern Eurasia but instead traveled east towards and across the Pacific to North America. We will not ever know the answer to this question but that mystery is one of the attractions to the birding life. The chase to see a bird you have never seen before is the excitement in the story, to wonder about how it got there gives us the mystery.

On my way home I tried unsuccessfully for a Northern Shrike that has been seen near Oroville for much of the winter. I will have to save this one for another chase in the future.

Mega-Rarity in Palo Alto

Every once-in-a-while a bird shows up a long way away from where it is supposed to be and the birding community goes a little bit crazy. That happened this past week in Palo Alto, CA. when an Oriental Turtle Dove showed up at a neighborhood feeder attracting birders from all over the country.

The Scene

This is only the third California record for this bird and only a handful of other records exist for all of North America. It has been seen most reliably all week long between 7am and 9 am so on Friday when we didn't have school I took my chance, braved the commute traffic and arrived on the scene at about 8:20. What a show! I was told by one of the 100 or so birders that it had not yet been seen that morning so I took up station to wait with everybody else and within 5 minutes, there it was. First perched in a stunted Redwood tree, then flying directly over my head to a telephone wire where it showed off for the crowd for a couple of minutes, finally dropping onto some seed scattered in a yard. A little later it flew off and, to my knowledge, was not seen for the rest of the morning. This was unfortunate as I brought my sister (who lives nearby) back to see it and it did not reappear.

The crush to see the bird on the ground.

You can learn more about the finding of this bird from this article.