A number of us have been stewing over the need to explore more of San Diego County's desert slope in the mountains to find some good morning-flight sites. This spring, a few folks have now given Banner Grade a try, and the results are encouraging. Too bad it is so far away for almost everyone. There are a number of prospective sites up and down the grade, but the one Paul Mulholland and I tried today (Weds) AM was one checked earlier this month but later in the AM than optimal by Chris Hinkle and then by Ted Keyel and Nick Thorpe. The site is at approx. 33.0694, -116.5525--in fact, that is the downhill side of the site, with a large gravel pullout just 50 feet before that, where the flight-line actually starts. This morning, birds were streaming by uphill already just after first light, and already started tailing off by 7:30AM--although perhaps every day could well be a bit different as to start and end times and as to which exact spot would be best to stand in this 100-foot+ wide corridor. The birds came fast and furious for the first hour (up to 100/minute), many birds just shot by, and it took both of us all we could muster standing a bit apart to try to tally the flight. Clearly multiple observers spread out a bit would be much better than just one person. Having a head-wind blowing down the valley/grade is very helpful to keep the birds low and likely to up the totals. Totals for this morning from 5:50-8:00AM were:
Top Species:
W. Warbling-Vireo 430 (a new single-site high count for the county)
N. Yellow Warbler 120 (a new single-site high count for the county)
Wilson's Warbler 200
Western Tanager 225 (a new single-site high count for the county)
Black-headed Grosbeak 130 (a new single-site high count for the county)
passerine sp. 400
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