Date: 7/25/25 6:54 pm From: Ryan Winkleman via groups.io <rswinkleman...> Subject: [OrangeCountyBirding] Orange County RBA: July 25, 2025
* California
* Orange County
* July 25, 2025
* CAOC25.07.25
This is the Orange County, CA weekly Rare Bird Alert (RBA) and local events
summary. California Bird Records Committee (CBRC) review species are
capitalized and marked with asterisks below. All documentation of review
species should be forwarded to the CBRC secretary, Tom Benson, at
<secretary...>
*BIRDS MENTIONED*
Laughing Gull
*SOOTY TERN*
Neotropic Cormorant
Brown-crested Flycatcher
A LAUGHING GULL was photographed from the outlook at Bolsa Chica Ecological
Reserve in Huntington Beach on July 20.
More spectacularly, a *SOOTY TERN* was found and photographed at Bolsa
Chica Ecological Reserve in Huntington Beach on July 21. It lingered for
only a couple hours before disappearing and is presumably the same bird
that was found at Dockweiler State Beach in Los Angeles County the next
day. Photographs and details should be sent to Tom Benson at
<secretary...> Counting returning birds separately, this is
the 12th record of this species for Orange County, which has by far the
highest number of records of any other county in California. Btw, all but
one of these 12 records have been at Bolsa Chica.
NEOTROPIC CORMORANTS continued on the Upper Santa Ana River in Anaheim
through July 25, at Mason Regional Park in Irvine through July 24, and at
the San Joaquin Wildlife Sanctuary in Irvine through July 21.
A BROWN-CRESTED FLYCATCHER was reported at Mile Square Regional Park in
Fountain Valley on July 21. The bird was not photographed and has not been
reported since. Should it be refound, please take copious documentation
given the mid-summer date.
LOCAL EVENTS
Note: We will no longer be listing individual trips on this weekly email.
For a complete up-to-date list of current field trips, please visit the
webpage on Sea and Sage’s website:
https://seaandsageaudubon.org/home-sas/field-trip-2/#FallFT.
The Orange County RBA and events summary is produced weekly by Ryan
Winkleman. Sightings of rare birds can be posted to the OrangeCountyBirding
listserv, emailed directly to Ryan Winkleman (<rswinkleman...>),
and/or submitted to eBird (http://ebird.org/content/ebird). Any supporting
details (descriptions, photos, audio recordings, etc.) of rare sightings
that are not already disclosed on the listserv or on eBird should also be
emailed to Ryan Winkleman separately for consideration to be mentioned in
the current quarterly report for North American Birds.
Those sightings that are included in this summary generally include those
that are considered rare (regionally or seasonally) for Orange County based
on "The Birds of Orange County: Status and Distribution" (Hamilton and
Willick), "Birds of Southern California" (Garrett and Dunn), and/or more
contemporary changes in local or regional status and distribution. Rarities
that regularly or seasonally occur at a particular location, such as
annually wintering rarities on Seal Beach National Wildlife Refuge, may or
may not be included in this digest, but reports of these same species
occurring at other, atypical locations throughout the county may be
included. We don't include hybrids, subspecies, introduced or exotic birds,
or in most cases and for no real reason, geese. All bird reports are vetted
to the extent possible prior to each publication, but in the interest of
sharing information, the accuracy of any given report cannot always be
guaranteed, nor can the presence of any given bird for those who choose to
chase after them.
Information on upcoming local events can be viewed on the Sea and Sage
Audubon website (http://www.seaandsageaudubon.org/). Sea and Sage Audubon
is based out of the Audubon House at the San Joaquin Wildlife Sanctuary in
Irvine. They sponsor a number of public field trips, special birding
events, conservation lectures, and social gatherings throughout the year.
Information regarding upcoming local events should be considered accurate
at the time of this posting. However, for the most current information
please refer to the field trip list on the Sea and Sage Audubon website at
https://seaandsageaudubon.org/home-sas/field-trip-2/#FTSchedule. It is also
recommended that you refer to that website immediately prior to engaging in
any field trip to confirm that trips are still occurring. If you know of
additional upcoming events that are not sponsored directly by Sea and Sage
Audubon, please email Ryan Winkleman for inclusion. #RBA
