Date: 6/24/26 12:10 pm From: Brooke Miller via groups.io <brooke.bam...> Subject: [southbaybirds] May 2026 Cumulative Bird Report for Santa Clara County
South Bay Birders:
Before I report on May, there was 1 bird missed in a prior month. On
2-January 2026 was the first sighting of Swainson’s Hawk (4) by Howard
Friedman at Salt Pond A16.
In May we added 10 new countable birds, bringing the total to 262 at the
end of the month. The average for May is 9 new birds, with an average of
253 at the end of the month. Thank you to everyone who birded, and took
the time to report birds either on SBB, eBird, or send emails directly to
me.
Here are the birds that were found in May:
1. Black Tern (5), 2026-05-02, seen by multiple observers at Shoreline Lake
2. Black Swift (4), 2026-05-02, seen by multiple observers at Loma
Prieta—Lower Saddle
3. Broad-winged Hawk (6), 2026-05-02, found by Aidan Sinha in Coyote
Valley—Palm Avenue
4. Blue Grosbeak (4), 2026-05-03, found by Thomas Olson along the Calera
Creek Trail at Ed Levin County Park
5. Northern Parula (5), 2026-05-13, found by Karen DeMello at the ranch
house area at Joseph D Grant County Park
6. Least Bittern (6), 2026-05-16, found by Mike Mammoser at Calero Reservoir
7. Wilson’s Phalarope (2), 2026-05-18, seen by Chris Overington at
Spreckles Avenue Pond
8. Willow Flycatcher (4), 2026-05-19, found by Carter Gasiorowski at Santa
Clara University
9. Tennessee Warbler (6), 2026-05-20, found by Melissa Johnson at Ulistac
Natural Area
10. Least Tern (4), 2026-05-30, found by Richard Jeffers, Mike Mammoser,
and Mike Rogers at a closed pond in Mountain View
As a reminder, here is what each rarity code means:
**Rarity Codes:
1 = common, always seen in habitat in season.
2 = fairly common, usually in habitat in season, but missed sometimes.
3 = uncommon, always around, but sometimes you can't find.
4 = rare, occurs yearly in the county, but not always in same places.
5 = very rare, does not occur every year.
6 = casual or vagrant, generally fewer than 10 records.
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.
