Date: 10/12/26 9:28 pm From: Lola Ross <lolabones...> Subject: Re: [MBBIRDS] Loma Prieta neighbor threatened birders with rifle
Hi folks,
Just wanted to update you. One of the birders who was threatened spoke with
a deputy and explained everything that happened. The Santa Cruz Sheriffs
Department determined that this incident doesn’t warrant any further action
on their part. They told the birder that a person living in that locale is
allowed to shoot a gun on their own property. And based on the conversation
with the birders, the Sheriffs Department determined that the birders were
far enough away when the man pointed the gun at them that he wasn’t an
actual threat to them.
That being said, please do use caution and common sense when birding Loma
Prieta or anywhere else, especially when it’s in a residential community.
Sincerely,
Lola
On Mon, Oct 12, 2026 at 8:04 PM David Apgar <d_apgar...> wrote:
> Maybe Audubon had the right idea about bird identification, after all.
>
> David
>
> On Oct 12, 2026 4:55 PM, Kent Johnson <kentjohnson...> wrote:
>
> This is not the first time this has happened. I had an unpleasant
> encounter with a man at that same location several years ago. No gun was
> involved, but the man did claim that he owned the road and could prohibit
> anyone from using it, which is clearly untrue. At least one other birder
> had a similar experience in the area. If he is becoming more aggressive it
> certainly needs the attention of law enforcement. His home is on the Santa
> Cruz side of the road, so the incident should be reported to the Santa Cruz
> County Sheriff.
> Kent Johnson
> ------------------------------
> *From:* <mbbirds...> <mbbirds...> on behalf of
> Lola Ross <lolabones...>
> *Sent:* Monday, October 12, 2026 2:39 PM
> *To:* MBBirds <mbbirds...>
> *Subject:* [MBBIRDS] Loma Prieta neighbor threatened birders with rifle
>
> Hey all,
>
> This morning I went up to Loma Prieta and ran into several birders up
> there when I was at the Wiliamson’s Sapsucker stakeout pine (never saw it,
> but I did get nice photos of a RBS).
> Three birders from Santa Clara Co said a Loma Prieta resident threatened
> them with a rifle, fired two shots in the air, motioned them violently to
> go away, flipped them off, and pointed his rifle at them (not necessarily
> in that order). The birders were on the public county road. One of the
> three birders shared the location where it occurred (see link below). She
> took photos of the man and the location and was planning to file a report
> with the SC County Sheriff’s Office, but at Kim’s suggestion, I’m posting
> the info here so you can all be aware.
>
> Brian Spence also returned from that direction a little later on, and had
> not encountered anything untoward, but I chose not to walk up that way
> anyway. Two drivers also sped past us at various times, purposefully
> revving through the softer dirt to try to coat us with dust (once by the
> sapsucker tree and once at the parking area). Most drivers were courteous,
> but not those two.
>
> Stay safe out there. Here’s the location that was shared with me of the
> guy with the rifle:
>
> https://maps.app.goo.gl/diiWnzvfDEUGjFfR7?g_st=ig >
> --
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> "mbbirds" group.
> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
> email to mbbirds+<unsubscribe...>
> To view this discussion visit
> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/mbbirds/CAFCCGgm_N6wmud9%<3Dg9fY3qbD8TGupsh5tqGwoV8Fqbcmyxo-Mg...> > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/mbbirds/CAFCCGgm_N6wmud9%<3Dg9fY3qbD8TGupsh5tqGwoV8Fqbcmyxo-Mg...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > .
>
> --
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> "mbbirds" group.
> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
> email to mbbirds+<unsubscribe...>
> To view this discussion visit
> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/mbbirds/<BL1PPFCDE88AB4399A9209CECA42E5A8C5CAA9F2...> > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/mbbirds/<BL1PPFCDE88AB4399A9209CECA42E5A8C5CAA9F2...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > .
>
>
> --
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> "mbbirds" group.
> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
> email to mbbirds+<unsubscribe...>
> To view this discussion visit
> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/mbbirds/<DM6PR12MB34036BD721B4ED921512BFAF9B9E2...> > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/mbbirds/<DM6PR12MB34036BD721B4ED921512BFAF9B9E2...>?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > .
>
