Date: 3/11/26 7:07 pm From: Christopher Hayward via groups.io <p_t_nymph...> Subject: [pen-bird] Clay-colored Sparrow, Johnston House, Half Moon bay, 3/11/26
Hi All,
Today as Malia and I were birding around the Johnston House in Half Moon Bay, a pale sparrow popped on to a power line near a willow thicket, I barely got my Binoculars on it before it flew back down into the thicket, as I called out Clay-colored Malia had just a split second look before it dropped down.
We then spent about 40 minutes wandering around the willows before Malia spotted it again on the south side of the thicket, it got on the ground at one point giving decent looks. Bit of a surprise, but after closely studying our photos the bird is molting so almost certainly a bird that has been wintering here.
This is the location of the thicket and where I first saw the bird, 37.45132, -122.42309.
Checklist with photos on our ebird list link below.
