Date: 3/12/26 12:47 pm From: Conor McMahon via groups.io <conormcmahon22...> Subject: [sbcobirding] Birding - Goleta Bay, Campus Point - Various Soggy Birds
Hi all,
Yesterday I birded at Goleta Beach, and today at Campus Point and thereabouts. There's been a big collection of grebes/cormorants/loons fishing together on Goleta Bay for the last few days, including several hundred Brandt's Cormorants and dozens of Pacific Loons.
I think it's unusual to have large numbers of PALO from shore this early in the season? I don't see any records on eBird of more than 10 on the South Coast for another week at least, and Lehman's book says "In winter, most individuals are believed to be offshore... Along the South Coast, the species is uncommon most winters within sight of land." The numbers of Brandt's Cormorants I've been seeing lately also feel unusual, but maybe there's been an increase in the birds nesting at the 'Bird Island' platforms and feeding in our nearshore waters? I have been seeing Brandt's on the platforms out there, and there's also Double-crested and Great Blue Herons back on nests in the blue gum rookery at Goleta Beach.
This morning there were also two Wandering Tattlers out on the rocks at Campus Point, and two more (healthy-looking, actively diving) Common Murres mixed in with the cormorants/loons/grebes just off the point. So combined with the several beached Murres folks have reported lately it feels like maybe something weird is going on offshore.
I've been hearing lots of Hooded Orioles and Western Flycatchers around town again. I feel like those were two of the species which seemed most anomalously late/low in numbers last spring, and already this year it feels like there's been a lot more around. I've also had a couple Bullock's Orioles the last few days, which seem like they're about on track, too.
