Date: 10/29/26 5:23 pm From: Courtney Buechert via northbaybirds <courtney...> Subject: [northbaybirds] Eurasian Widgeon on Bolinas Lagoon
I was doing some traffic control on Calle de Arroyo in Stinson Beach today at the afternoon high tide and saw two bright male Eurasian Widgeon with a group of American Widgeon. Also notable were three Hooded Mergansers nearby (one males and two females). Good to see the winter birds returning already.
Date: 10/28/26 4:44 pm From: Denise Hamilton via groups.io <2napabirders...> Subject: [northbaybirds] If you haven't seen enough Lewis's Woodpeckers this fall, head to Lake Berryessa
Hi all,
David and I went out to Lake Berryessa, Napa Co, yesterday just to see what
is out there. Stops at the Olive Orchard Day Use area and a stop at the
Eticuera Creek 'fishing area' that comes* before* the day use area with the
bathroom added some nice birds to the trip. (At Eticuera Creek Day Use
Area (where we've seen Vesper Sparrows in the past years) is now a staging
area for a lot of stuff for some PG&E work out on East Side Rd, so not very
birdy at times.)
No ducks out on the lake yet, just lots of Coots and Canada Geese. We
drove to the end of East Side Rd, seeing a few Lewis's Woodpeckers, but
when we turned around to drive back they were everywhere! Going down to
the lake for a drink, hawking insects and chasing each other around. And a
first for us was seeing multiple birds several times down on the road
eating grit. Birds of the World, online states: *Grit, from small rocks,
makes up large component (50–98%) of stomach contents during periods of
fall and winter when acorns are part of diet, but much less during summer
(Neff 1928a, Snow 1941).*
We counted over 60 birds out there, guessing probably more since they were
constantly on the move. This eBird reports shows a pic of them down on the
road:
Then we drove down Berryessa-Knoxville Rd about 3 miles where we came upon
more Lewies!! This time, some were flying around so high, they looked more
like swifts or swallows. Well over 100 of them here! eBird report has
more info:
Date: 10/23/26 12:43 pm From: Mike Carozza via groups.io <mike.carozza...> Subject: [northbaybirds] Common Poorwill, Sebastopol
Hi Birders,
Following up on the COMMON POORWILL party, I flushed one yesterday mid-morning in a vineyard on Pleasant Hill Road near Bloomfield. It was a small nightjar, had a very short tail, no distinct pattern. It flew to the forest edge where I flushed it again, giving soft clucks as it departed.
At night, I re-found it on the old vineyard road. It fluttered up and returned to the same spot, then flew off and disappeared deeper into the vines.
Took 12 years of birding for me to see that commoner!
Recently had RED CROSSBILL and EVENING GROSBEAK here, too.
Date: 10/23/26 11:42 am From: cermaklaw via groups.io <cermaklaw...> Subject: [northbaybirds] Common Poorwill
This last Monday, after many years of looking, I found EIGHT Common Poorwill in Solano County. As is typical, they were sitting on a canyon road 1/2 hour after dark. I have only seen one torpid individual before found by Keith Hanson and Rich Stalcup years ago on a WCCBC near Bodega Bay of all places.
Date: 10/20/26 9:26 pm From: Denise Hamilton via groups.io <2napabirders...> Subject: [northbaybirds] Black-backed Lesser Goldfinch backyard in Napa
Hi all,
This morning in our yard in Napa was quite birdy! Ended up with 34 species. The most interesting bird was a Lesser Goldfinch - a black-backed subspecies, we believe, which would be a first for our yard. Looked at a lot of pictures and info online to confirm. The main thing that matches is the black ear coverts, which this bird has. If interested in seeing the bird:
Date: 10/13/26 10:20 am From: Ryan DiGaudio via groups.io <rdigaudio...> Subject: [northbaybirds] Williamson's Sapsucker in Inverness
Good morning birders,
At about 8:00 this morning I saw a female Williamson's Sapsucker working her way up a Bishop Pine in Inverness- this was near Sir Francis Drake at the top of the grade just before entering the Seashore (a.k.a. Ottinger's Hill). Unfortunately the bird vanished without a trace before I could get a photo, and hasn't shown itself since so it's probably not chaseable, but wanted to let birders know there's yet another montane species in our area.
Date: 10/12/26 9:50 am From: Diane Hichwa via groups.io <dhichwa...> Subject: Re: [northbaybirds] White-headed Woodpecker
Realized maybe needed old email
Diane Hichwa
Email: <dhichwa...>
Telephone: 707-785-1922 (Sea Ranch)
707-483-3130 (cell)
More Tail Wagging!!! Less Barking!!
Millie 2007
From: Diane Hichwa <tsrbirdlady...>
Date: Monday, October 12, 2026 at 9:00 AM
To: "<northbaybirds...>" <northbaybirds...>
Subject: Re: [northbaybirds] White-headed Woodpecker
Sat October 10 there was a white-headed woodpecker on a snag near the entrance to Gualala Point Regional Park in Sonoma County.
It was photographed Saturday and was seen again this morning Oct 12
Date: 10/10/26 7:29 am From: Peter Pyle via groups.io <ppyle...> Subject: Re: [northbaybirds] Noyo Pelagics -August 3rd
Greetings Bay area birders -
We still have some room on our pelagic trip for this coming Saturday, October 17th. At this point light to moderate NW winds are predicted but this can change. These conditions would be great for birding and whale-watching if the prediction holds.
We continue to have strong upwelling which has kept our sea surface temperatures cool. Fisherman have been reporting an abundance of birds and marine mammals over Noyo Canyon, attracted by the marine productivity associated with upwelling. At the same time signs of El Niño have come in the form of 6-8 boobies so far off Mendo and some 400 Black Storm-Petrels on a half day trip we ran on September 27th. We also had some close and thrilling encounters with Blue Whales that day; see our report and photos at
We still have 1-2 scholarships available for high school and college students, sponsored by Mendocino Coast Audubon. If interested in one of these, contact Tim Bray (cc'd above). Also sponsored by MCAS is a camp site reserved at MacKerricher State Park for the night of the 16th-17th. If interested in taking advantage of this, contact Roger Adamson (cc'd above).
Also note that we have added a full-day trip for November 30th to see if we can find Mottled Petrels, a species that has become somewhat of a Holy Grail for pelagic bird enthusiasts off California. They pass through during a short period in late November and early December, a time of the year when only a lucky few one-day pelagic trips have been able to get out and find them. With our Pterodroma manna, we figure outer Noyo Canyon will be as good as any place to see them,
Date: 10/8/26 11:40 am From: Peter Pyle via groups.io <ppyle...> Subject: Re: [northbaybirds] Sausalito Pelagic with the Yolo Bird Alliance - SUNDAY, OCTOBER 18TH
For those who like doubleheaders, we have a Noyo trip on the 17th as well:
On 10/8/2026 11:21 AM, Zane Pickus via groups.io wrote: > Greetings Central Valley and North Bay Birders! > > On behalf of the *Yolo Bird Alliance*, Emmett Iverson and I are > excited to announce an upcoming *pelagic trip out of Sausalito on > Sunday, October 18th*. We will spend *10 hours aboard the /Outer > Limits/*, aiming to spend as much time offshore as possible in search > of pelagic species. Our exact route will depend on weather and sea > conditions on the day of the trip, but we will likely spend much of > the day exploring the deeper waters beyond continental shelf and > around the Pioneer Seamount. > > The trip is filling quickly, but there are still a few spaces > available on the trip. *The price is $175 for general admission and > $120 for students.* Please contact Emmett and I at > *<yolobirdalliance...>* to sign-up or with any questions. > https://yolobirdalliance.org/event/yolo-bird-alliance-pelagic-from-sausalito/ > > It has already been an interesting year in offshore Northern > California with late-summer reports of hundreds of *Cook's Petrels* > and a more recent invasion of *Black-vented Shearwaters* and *Black > Storm-Petrels*. October is an especially good time to see > *Flesh-footed Shearwater, whales, and storm-petrels*. An August trip > aboard this same vessel was fortunate enough to encounter a *Streaked > Shearwater*, and with the record-breaking El Nino well underway in the > east Pacific, the potential for rare seabirds may be higher than ever > this year. > > We hope to see many of you on board! > > Happy fall, > Zane Pickus > Davis, CA >
Date: 10/8/26 11:21 am From: Zane Pickus via groups.io <zanep987...> Subject: [northbaybirds] Sausalito Pelagic with the Yolo Bird Alliance - SUNDAY, OCTOBER 18TH
Greetings Central Valley and North Bay Birders!
On behalf of the *Yolo Bird Alliance*, Emmett Iverson and I are excited to announce an upcoming *pelagic trip out of Sausalito on Sunday, October 18th*. We will spend *10 hours aboard the Outer Limits*, aiming to spend as much time offshore as possible in search of pelagic species. Our exact route will depend on weather and sea conditions on the day of the trip, but we will likely spend much of the day exploring the deeper waters beyond continental shelf and around the Pioneer Seamount.
The trip is filling quickly, but there are still a few spaces available on the trip. *The price is $175 for general admission and $120 for students.* Please contact Emmett and I at *<yolobirdalliance...> <yolobirdalliance...>* to sign-up or with any questions. https://yolobirdalliance.org/event/yolo-bird-alliance-pelagic-from-sausalito/
It has already been an interesting year in offshore Northern California with late-summer reports of hundreds of *Cook's Petrels* and a more recent invasion of *Black-vented Shearwaters* and *Black Storm-Petrels*. October is an especially good time to see *Flesh-footed Shearwater, whales, and storm-petrels*. An August trip aboard this same vessel was fortunate enough to encounter a *Streaked Shearwater*, and with the record-breaking El Nino well underway in the east Pacific, the potential for rare seabirds may be higher than ever this year.
Date: 10/2/26 11:50 am From: Daniel Edelstein via groups.io <danieledelstein...> Subject: [northbaybirds] Interested in more Evening Grosbeak information?
Some of you may have seen the following excellent Sylvia Wright note that highlights an illuminating YouTube talk (by UC-Davis biologist Thomas Hahn) related to the five type calls, etc. corresponding to Evening Grosbeak:
(Regards, Daniel Edelstein, Novato)
Sierra Foothills Audubon has a spectrogram-rich public talk on Evening Grosbeaks, by UC Davis biologist Thomas Hahn, on our YouTube channel.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUfNNrohqZ8&t=275s Jul 19, 2025
This public talk – “Evening Grosbeaks of the Sierra Nevada and the West” – was presented on June 25, 2025, at the monthly meeting of the Sierra Foothills Audubon Society, in Nevada City, California. About the Talk Evening Grosbeaks are showy finches of the sub-family Carduelinae—a group that includes many familiar western songbirds such as goldfinches, house finches, crossbills, rosy-finches and siskins. Their white, black and gold plumage makes them stand out at a feeder or along the gravelly side of the road as you drive into the Sierra. About the Speaker Thomas Hahn, Ph.D., is a field biologist who has been studying western finches since he was a graduate student at the University of Washington in the late 1980s and early 90s. He is a professor at University of California, Davis, in the Department of Neurology, Physiology and Behavior. His research interests include environmental regulation of avian annual cycles of behavior, physiology and morphology, and behavioral and physiological responses of birds to unpredictable environmental events. He is an authority on avian communication, especially use of heterospecific mimicry in song, and learned non-song vocalizations.
Date: 10/1/26 12:42 pm From: NANCY AND EUGENE HUNN via groups.io <enhunn323...> Subject: Re: [northbaybirds] Evening Grosbeaks & Clark's Nutcrackers
Apparently Eurasian Nutcrackers are also on the move in Europe. Gene
On 09/30/2026 5:18 PM PDT richard s. cimino via groups.io <rscimino...> wrote:
What about the Clarks Nutcracker eruption?
For several years, the CLNU were rare during the summer birding season.
This past July during a four day back packing trip we had Clark’s Nutcrackers in small groups along our route: all be very vocal.
Could these CLNU be Rocky Mountain Nutcrackers on the move?
A birder in Southern California two weeks ago post 1500 CLNU’s, that a lot of birds.
Rich Cimino
Yellowbilledtours.com
From: <peninsula-birding...> <peninsula-birding...> On Behalf Of Alvaro Jaramillo via groups.io Sent: Wednesday, September 30, 2026 5:19 AM To: <kforward...>; 'Peninsula Birding' <peninsula-birding...> Subject: Re: [pen-bird] Evening Grosbeaks at Purisima Creek Redwoods OSP 9/29
Kent
Looking at the spectrograms, it looks like this is a type 1 Evening Grosbeak. You could change the ID to that specifically. This is a population from the Pacific Northwest and BC/Alberta. Not the type you have in the Cascades/Sierra. This is interesting as it suggests that the “montane invasion” birds may be coming from various different places, so what is affecting Evening Grosbeaks may not be the same thing as what is influencing Pinyon Jays.
From: <peninsula-birding...> <peninsula-birding...> On Behalf Of Kent Forward via groups.io Sent: Tuesday, September 29, 2026 11:22 PM To: Peninsula Birding <peninsula-birding...> Subject: [pen-bird] Evening Grosbeaks at Purisima Creek Redwoods OSP 9/29
Today while birding the riparian area of lower Purisima I heard Evening Grosbeaks! I wasn't able to obtain a visual. I have been studying the vocalizations of some of the rarer birds partaking in the current large irruption of montane birds to our area so when I heard these vocalizations it reminded me of Evening Grosbeak, so I got Merlin going and it concurred, and also I got feedback from several skilled ear-birders in the affirmative for Evening Grosbeak! This was in the lower parking lot at 37.437585, -122.370610
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