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Thank you for subscribing to the <daily> San Luis Obispo County Rare Bird Alert. The report below shows observations of rare birds in San Luis Obispo County. View or unsubscribe to this alert at https://ebird.org/alert/summary?sid=SN36231 NOTE: all sightings are UNCONFIRMED unless indicated.
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American Wigeon (Mareca americana) (1)
- Reported Sep 04, 2025 12:15 by Petra Clayton
- Whale Rock Reservoir, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.8708239&<ll...>,-120.8708239 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S271498022 - Media: 1 Photo
- Comments: "Overall medium brown; pale forehead and center crown; light cheeks; blue bill with back tip.
Most recent eBird report of this species at this eBird hotspot: 5/11/2025"
Pacific Golden-Plover (Pluvialis fulva) (1)
- Reported Sep 02, 2025 09:26 by Kevin Zimmer
- Morro Bay Sandspit, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.8670158&<ll...>,-120.8670158 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S271524998 - Media: 10 Photos
- Comments: "In with large flock of Black-bellied Plovers, Short-billed Dowitchers, Red Knots, Sanderlings and more. Smaller and more slender-billed than contiguous BBPLs, and lacking that species’ black axillaries and white rump/ upper tail coverts and white-and-gray barred tail. This bird was more golden spangled and browner on the upper parts, had a distinct dusky auricular smudge, and the rump and tail were essentially concolor with the back. All of the foregoing ID’d the bird as a Golden-Plover sp., but I identified it to species based upon its relatively short primary projection and relatively long legs (relative to American Golden-Plover). I see lots of both species on their breeding grounds in western Alaska (where the two species are sympatric) every year, so I’m used to separating them on proportions."
Solitary Sandpiper (Tringa solitaria) (1)
- Reported Sep 04, 2025 15:23 by Julie Bryson
- Atascadero Lake, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.6667256&<ll...>,-120.6667256 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S271494454 - Comments: "Medium size short bird, bold white eye ring, tail, black-and-white bar, with overlying Black primary tips. Bill two toned, greenish at base. This time it was on the west side of the lake wading. Pictures will be added later."
Neotropic Cormorant (Nannopterum brasilianum) (1) CONFIRMED
- Reported Sep 04, 2025 07:10 by Maggie Smith
- Villa Creek--Estero Bluffs State Park, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.9688341&<ll...>,-120.9688341 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S271494820 - Media: 1 Photo
- Comments: "Bird was smaller than Double-crested Cormorant so went up creek to get photo showing facial details. Feathering at gape formed small triangle, no yellow in lores,"
Yellow-crowned Night Heron (Nyctanassa violacea) (1) CONFIRMED
- Reported Sep 03, 2025 15:30 by Petra Clayton
- Morro Bay SP--Marina/Boardwalk Trail, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.8418006&<ll...>,-120.8418006 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S271340263 - Media: 14 Photos
- Comments: "Continuing juvenile since earlier today (Tom Edell).
Dark, stout bill with yellow feathers at the base of the lower mandible; small white triangular spots on the covert feathers.
Mostly standing and moving a bit on one of the Morro Bay State Park Marina docks across from the Bayside Café, between the "Wind Tamer" and the "Dragonfly."
Most recent eBird report of this species at this general location (and SLO County): 10/6/2024.
Click on the image below for a Flickr video:
<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/jack-petra-clayton/54765231342/in/dateposted-public/" title="Yellow-crowned Night-Heron (Nyctanassa violacea) juvenile, Morro Bay, CA"><img src="https://live.staticflickr.com/31337/54765231342_8b2a2dfbc1_z.jpg" alt="Yellow-crowned Night-Heron (Nyctanassa violacea) juvenile, Morro Bay, CA" /></a>"
Yellow-crowned Night Heron (Nyctanassa violacea) (1) CONFIRMED
- Reported Sep 04, 2025 10:28 by Herb Elliott
- Tidelands Park, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.8514118&<ll...>,-120.8514118 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S271474796 - Media: 7 Photos
- Comments: "Presumingly the same juvenile Yellow-crowned Night Heron found yesterday morning by Tom Edell at Morro Bay SP Marina, was relocated this morning at the last boat ramp in Tidelands Park by Jack and Petra. Kevin Zimmer and I observed the bird for ~ 20 mins before it flew into a cyprus tree.
Overall the bird looked slender, longer neck, with a larger and mostly black bill, darker in coloration with smaller spots compared to the nearby Juvenile Black-crowned Night Herons."
Yellow-crowned Night Heron (Nyctanassa violacea) (1) CONFIRMED
- Reported Sep 04, 2025 10:00 by Petra Clayton
- Tidelands Park, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.8514118&<ll...>,-120.8514118 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S271497212 - Media: 16 Photos
- Comments: "Most likely the same juvenile, that was present yesterday at the Morro Bay SP Marina (9/3/25, Tom Edell).
Dark, stout bill with yellow feathers at the base of the lower mandible; small white triangular spots on the covert feathers.
Foraging in the eel grass bed behind the last (private) boat ramp, past the public boat launch.
Most recent eBird report of this species at this eBird hotspot: 4/10/2024.
Click on the image below for a Flickr video, showing the juvenile catching and eating crabs:
<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/jack-petra-clayton/54766647079/in/dateposted-public/" title="Yellow-crowned Night-Heron (Nyctanassa violacea) juvenile, Morro Bay, CA"><img src="https://live.staticflickr.com/31337/54766647079_b1401f5f88_z.jpg" alt="Yellow-crowned Night-Heron (Nyctanassa violacea) juvenile, Morro Bay, CA" /></a>"
Little Blue Heron (Egretta caerulea) (1) CONFIRMED
- Reported Sep 04, 2025 08:17 by Ben Kolstad
- Laguna Lake, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.6903817&<ll...>,-120.6903817 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S271461219 - Media: 2 Photos
- Comments: "Medium size white heron with bicolored bill dipped in ink, large eye, pale iris and dark pupil. Greenish legs. Dark wingtips. Seen from far away, but in an almost unheard of turn of events, it flew closer rather than farther."
Merlin (Falco columbarius) (1)
- Reported Sep 02, 2025 09:26 by Kevin Zimmer
- Morro Bay Sandspit, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.8670158&<ll...>,-120.8670158 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S271524998 - Comments: "Small, dark gray backed falcon with powerful, choppy wing beats that strafed a big mixed species flock of shorebirds (mostly Sanderlings and Black-bellied Plovers) and putting them all into frenzied flight and pursuing them until out of my sight. This strikes me as a very early date for a Merlin."
Northern Waterthrush (Parkesia noveboracensis) (1) CONFIRMED
- Reported Sep 04, 2025 18:32 by The Spotting Twohees
- Hardie Park/Cayucos Creek (Ocean Ave Bridge to Hwy 1 Bridge), Cayucos, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.9062489&<ll...>,-120.9062489 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S271510286 - Media: 2 Photos
- Comments: "Continuing in the creek, originally found by Wing Nuts. Behave like a spotted sandpiper; brown above, tan and heavily streaked chest, bright eye line. Seen with Brian"
Northern Waterthrush (Parkesia noveboracensis) (1) CONFIRMED
- Reported Sep 04, 2025 18:32 by Alexander Yan
- Hardie Park/Cayucos Creek (Ocean Ave Bridge to Hwy 1 Bridge), Cayucos, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.9062489&<ll...>,-120.9062489 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S271509604 - Media: 2 Photos
- Comments: "Continuing in the creek, originally found by Wing Nuts. Behave like a spotted sandpiper; brown above, tan and heavily streaked chest, bright eye line. Seen with Brian"
Northern Waterthrush (Parkesia noveboracensis) (1) CONFIRMED
- Reported Sep 04, 2025 17:39 by Tom Edell
- Hardie Park/Cayucos Creek (Ocean Ave Bridge to Hwy 1 Bridge), Cayucos, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.9062489&<ll...>,-120.9062489 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S271508455 - Media: 1 Video, 1 Photo
- Comments: "One foraging along the creek bottom between Hwy 1 and Hardie Park. The bird had a long cream colored supercilium, long dark eye line, and heavily streaked cream colored underparts except for the undertail coverts which were white. It bobbed its rear end as it foraged along the channel bottom. Photos"
Northern Waterthrush (Parkesia noveboracensis) (1)
- Reported Sep 04, 2025 17:12 by Pair of Wing-Nuts
- Hardie Park/Cayucos Creek (Ocean Ave Bridge to Hwy 1 Bridge), Cayucos, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.9062489&<ll...>,-120.9062489 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S271520429 - Media: 8 Photos
- Comments: "Large warbler was mostly dark brown above with brown cap, pronounced creamy yellow supercilium, yellow eye-arc below eye, bold, dark eye-line from lores to nape, creamy yellow underneath from throat to lower belly with dark brown streaking on upper breast, belly and sides ending at white undertail. Bird was observed just downstream from Hwy 1 bridge vocalizing with sporadic, metallic chit calls as it foraged in shallow water along the creek bobbing its tail and rear body as it moved."
American Redstart (Setophaga ruticilla) (1)
- Reported Sep 04, 2025 12:10 by Jay Carroll
- Pecho Road Willows, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.85271&<ll...>,-120.85271 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S271494741 - Comments: "Female/immature male type first spotted by Reef; mostly gray above and white below with distinctive yellow wing and tail patches; sides of upper breast with more of an orange-yellow color; the bird was moving quickly through the willows actively foraging with characteristic tail and wing flashes, at one point interacting with a Wilson’s Warbler."
American Redstart (Setophaga ruticilla) (1)
- Reported Sep 04, 2025 11:45 by Reef Comer
- Pecho Road Willows, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.85271&<ll...>,-120.85271 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S271518859 - Comments: "FOS yellowstart actively flitting about and fanning tail. Believe this was a HY male, as wingpits were distinctly orangish, despite more lemon yellow base on tail. Gray head also looked too dark for female, but could’ve just been backlighting. Kept converting chased by nearby WIWA."
American Redstart (Setophaga ruticilla) (1)
- Reported Sep 04, 2025 08:07 by Nick & Jane
- Pismo SB--Oceano Campground, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.6265268&<ll...>,-120.6265268 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S271479235 - Comments: "Continuing male in maintenance road willows. Fanned tail a few times while foraging. Black upperparts with orange wingbars, orange flanks, black chest, white belly, and white undertail. In mixed flock with warblers and vireo. Photo"
Northern Parula (Setophaga americana) (1)
- Reported Sep 04, 2025 08:07 by Nick & Jane
- Pismo SB--Oceano Campground, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.6265268&<ll...>,-120.6265268 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S271479235 - Comments: "Continuing in willows on maintenance road. Looks much better than the last time I observed this bird. Less dingy. Brighter overall. Green back, yellow throat, egg yolk chest, white belly, light grey flanks, smoky grey wings with double-white wingbars. Grey head with broken white eyering. Photo."
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