---------------------------------------------
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.
eBird encourages safe, responsible birding. Some reports may be from private property. Respect access restrictions and follow the rules wherever you bird. For more information, visit the eBird and Merlin Community Guidelines: https://ebird.org/community-guidelines. Stay connected to the global birding community with eBird Updates: https://mailchi.mp/cornell/ebird-updates-sign-up-page.
Rufous Hummingbird (Selasphorus rufus) (1) CONFIRMED
- Reported Feb 13, 2026 07:00 by Kevin Zimmer
- KJZ yard, Garcia Rd, Atascadero, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.7064838&<ll...>,-120.7064838 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S300245052 - Media: 1 Photo
- Comments: "Adult male, with fully orange-red gorget, and almost entirely rufous back (with some diffuse green flecking centered in the middle of the upper back), and rufous sides, but with green wing-coverts and some green on the top of the crown. I will add more photos tomorrow. Our first Selasphorus sighting of the year, but my brother-in-law (who lives just 0.25 mile up the road from us) reported an adult male Rufous Hummingbird with a 100% rufous back, crown and wing-coverts at his feeders last Saturday."
Marbled Murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus) (3)
- Reported Feb 13, 2026 08:39 by Roger Zachary
- San Simeon Creek Mouth/Beach, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-121.1267052&<ll...>,-121.1267052 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S300374977 - Comments: "3 together. Roger initially spotted three, but when I first got them in my scope there were two until the end of out viewing when three were swimming together. These birds were inside of a small patch of bull kelp and south of our position on the north side of the bridge. We followed the birds with our scopes for 5-10 minutes. They were tiny birds compared to an adjacent Brandt's Cormorant with very small dark bills and cocked tails. They were essentially white below and dark above except for the white scapular bar running across the base of the wing. There was a small white extension up onto the flanks behind the wing. The head had a dark cap that came down to the around the eye (the birds were too distant to clearly see the extent) and the face was white. White extended up from the underparts onto the neck forming a collar that did not extend across the hind neck which had a thin dark line extending down the nape from the crown. All were in basic plumage."
Marbled Murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus) (3)
- Reported Feb 13, 2026 08:39 by Tom Edell
- San Simeon Creek Mouth/Beach, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-121.1267052&<ll...>,-121.1267052 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S300047571 - Comments: "3 together. Roger initially spotted three, but when I first got them in my scope there were two until the end of out viewing when three were swimming together. These birds were inside of a small patch of bull kelp and south of our position on the north side of the bridge. We followed the birds with our scopes for 5-10 minutes. They were tiny birds compared to an adjacent Brandt's Cormorant with very small dark bills and cocked tails. They were essentially white below and dark above except for the white scapular bar running across the base of the wing. There was a small white extension up onto the flanks behind the wing. The head had a dark cap that came down to the around the eye (the birds were too distant to clearly see the extent) and the face was white. White extended up from the underparts onto the neck forming a collar that did not extend across the hind neck which had a thin dark line extending down the nape from the crown. All were in basic plumage."
Laughing Gull (Leucophaeus atricilla) (1)
- Reported Feb 13, 2026 16:53 by Alexander Yan
- Morro Creek mouth, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.8624411&<ll...>,-120.8624411 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S300211845 - Comments: "Continuing rarity. Seen far away flying towards the chimneys/power plant area. No photo, seen when driving out of Morro creek parking lot. Noticeably smaller than western gulls flying along side it. Slender build, long winged, mostly grayish, with black wing tips and tail. Mostly white head and slender bill."
Rough-legged Hawk (Buteo lagopus) (1)
- Reported Feb 12, 2026 11:55 by Russ Namitz
- Corral--south Soda Lake Rd, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-119.5054392&<ll...>,-119.5054392 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S300470718 - Comments: "Distant buteo that was consistently hovering. I have seen RTHA hover multiple times, usually immature birds, and they always seem to struggle and not be able to hover for long periods of time or as smoothly (effortlessly) as a RLHA. I watched this bird hunt through binoculars for about 3 minutes and it hovered about 6x while cruising the hilltop back and forth, way to the south of the Hanline Corral (Hotspot)."
Harris's Sparrow (Zonotrichia querula) (1) CONFIRMED
- Reported Feb 13, 2026 07:45 by Kaaren Perry
- Morro Bay yard, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.844846&<ll...>,-120.844846 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S300095612 - Media: 2 Photos
- Comments: "Continuing at this location. Several visits in the company of other zonotrichia this morning as it fed on the scattered seeds and poked around in the low brush."
***********
You received this message because you are subscribed to eBird's San Luis Obispo County Rare Bird Alert
eBird Alerts provide recent reports of regionally or seasonally rare species (Rarities Alerts) or species you have not yet observed (Needs Alerts) in your region of interest; both Accepted and Unreviewed observations are included. Some reports may be from private property or inaccessible to the general public. It is the responsibility of every eBirder to be aware of and respectful of access restrictions. For more information, see our Terms of Use: https://www.birds.cornell.edu/home/terms-of-use/
![https://live.staticflickr.com/31337/55095031803_e03054d1c7_z.jpg"](https://live.staticflickr.com/31337/55095031803_e03054d1c7_z.jpg"){kind=link}