Good afternoon, South Bay Birders, What a nice day to go birding at the good ole sewage treatment plant! By pre-arrangement, Dan and I met 7 other birders of various experience/skill to explore the trail behind the Sunnyvale WPCP (I personally was hoping to see a Black Tern). As we started along the trail, it was evident that the Marsh Wrens have been busy in the last month. Numerous "brown pineapple-looking" nests were found with parent wrens exiting and entering while tending their young. If they weren't tending their young, they were singing up a storm. On the hillside an odd flock of Red-winged Blackbirds and a bunch of Barn Swallows found some yummy stuff in a small grassy area and proceeded to actively feed. As we traveled along the slough, Snowy and Great Egrets and a Great Blue Heron with its cousin, a Green Heron, floated by and landed, affording us really nice views of these elegant creatures. Some Black-crowned Night Herons fed on minnows along the slough. Forster's Terns and the ubiquitous California Gulls were nice pure white splashes in the blue sky as were the far off American White Pelicans. No Black Tern in amongst the Forster's Terns. *Sigh* A young Red-tailed hawk perched on the lower supports of a high voltage tower and thoroughly preened and tidied its plumage. It is so hard to look your best when you are moulting! One lone Great-tailed Grackle and a couple of American Crows allowed a size/body/tail comparison. And the grand finale of the day was one lone Western Grebe paddling in the slough, showing off its white cheeks, red eye, and that amazing fish-catching bill! It did not dive even once! A real treat!
Do not disclose information that identifies the location of nesting birds of any species, to minimize stress on the nesting birds and the risk of vandalism or abuse.
