Good afternoon, South Bay Birders, On a very nice Wednesday lunch hour Dan Bloch and I met 12 eager birders of various experience lengths (from 15 minutes to 25 years) at the Sunnyvale Bay Trail on Caribbean Avenue. One birder had just arrived from Ohio so we helped her create an eBird account! Bingo! As we started we were hoping for a Yellow-headed Blackbird, but there was too much of badly needed construction on the deeply rutted trail. Not to be deterred, we checked out the Moffet Channel leading to A4 pond. Twenty-three species were seen with very good views of Green Herons, Snowy Egrets, Great Egrets, and only one Black-crowned Night Heron. In the eucalyptus tree that is the usual hang out for American Crows, an adult Cooper's Hawk was seen ducking for cover, but still making small aggressive motions toward the mobbing American Crows. Later the Cooper's Hawk posed, sans crows, very nicely on a pole so we could further discuss identifying characteristics. Out at A4 pond, a small flock of stunning American White Pelicans lunched right in front of us. Preening Double-crested Cormorants along with basking Black-necked Stilts and snoozing Greater Yellowlegs lined up on the long offshore island with California Gulls and Pied-billed Grebes hanging out in the water with a couple of Forster's Terns flying by. A special note were the several Common Yellowthroats, male and female, bouncing among the tules near one of the adult Green Herons.
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.
