Date: 2/21/26 11:59 pm From: Ryan Winkleman via groups.io <rswinkleman...> Subject: [OrangeCountyBirding] Orange County RBA: February 21, 2026
* California
* Orange County
* February 21, 2026
* CAOC26.02.21
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
“American” Oystercatcher
Neotropic Cormorant
Little Blue Heron
Tricolored Heron
Western Cattle-Egret
Bald Eagle
Zone-tailed Hawk
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Bell’s Vireo
Plumbeous Vireo
Vesper Sparrow
Baltimore Oriole
Black-and-white Warbler
Northern Parula
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
An AMERICAN-type OYSTERCATCHER continued along the coast, this time at Dana
Point Harbor, through February 19.
NEOTROPIC CORMORANTS continued along the Upper Santa Ana River in Anaheim
this week, as well as at Tri-City Regional Park in Placentia and Centennial
Regional Park in Santa Ana.
At least one immature LITTLE BLUE HERON continued at Bolsa Chica Ecological
Reserve in Huntington Beach through February 21.
A TRICOLORED HERON continued at Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve in
Huntington Beach through February 21. Another was reportedly continuing in
the lower Santa Ana River on February 14.
A WESTERN CATTLE-EGRET continued at Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve in
Huntington Beach through February 15.
A BALD EAGLE continued on the coast at Huntington Central Park in
Huntington Beach on February 20.
A ZONE-TAILED HAWK was over Irvine Regional Park in Orange on February 21.
A YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER continued at Tustin Heritage Park in Tustin
through February 21.
A wintering BELL’S VIREO continued at the Fullerton Arboretum in Fullerton
on February 14.
A PLUMBEOUS VIREO continued at Tustin Heritage Park in Tustin through
February 18. Another was at Centennial Regional Park in Santa Ana on
February 17, another was at Killefer Park in Orange on February 14, and
another was at Woodbury Community Park in Irvine on February 18. Btw, Loren
Wright is really knocking it out of the park finding rarities at little
hole-in-the-wall places in North County. More people should be covering
neighborhood parks and areas that are getting little to no coverage.
VESPER SPARROWS continued at Irvine Regional Park in Orange through
February 15. Another was in Limestone Canyon on February 14.
A BALTIMORE ORIOLE continued at Pepperwood Park in Irvine through February
18, while another continued at Emery Park in Fullerton on February 19.
A BLACK-AND-WHITE WARBLER was reported from residential Laguna Beach on
February 14.
A NORTHERN PARULA continued at Manzanita Park in Cypress on February 21.
A CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER continued at Rossmoor Park in Rossmoor on February
20.
A BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLER continued at Brenner Park in Buena Park
through February 21.
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/field-trips/.
BIRDING WORKSHOPS AND CLASSES
Sylvia Gallagher’s Learning More California Land Birds Workshop will be
starting in March. Registration doesn’t open until March 2 so I will post
the link when it gets closer!
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/field-trips/. 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
