Date: 11/9/26 7:02 pm From: Kent Forward via peninsula-birding <kforward...> Subject: [pen-bird] Chestnut-sided Warbler / Nashville Warbler - in the yard 11/9/26
Hi All,
Just a note about a great day for warblers in our yard. This morning I spotted a Nashville Warbler in a bottlebrush we have out front. Then later today I spotted a quite late Chestnut-sided Warbler in our water feature! Last Friday we also had a Northern Yellow Warbler in the bottlebrush out front. So far, none of these birds has returned, but will definitely be keeping an eye out as it has been an interesting fall migration to say the least along the SMC coastside!
Good birding all,Kent ForwardEl Granada
Kent Forward Music
Date: 11/9/26 5:57 pm From: David Assmann via peninsula-birding <david_assmann...> Subject: [pen-bird] Join the San Francisco Christmas Bird Count in San Mateo County on Monday December 28th
Join one of the top Christmas Bird Counts in the country! The San Francisco Count regularly ranks in the top 15 for the country. Registration is now open for this year's count, which will be held on Monday December 28th and there will be a count dinner afterwards to share results and experiences. Four of the areas in the Count are in San Mateo County (see map at https://cbcviewer.appspot.com/ - select San Francisco on the drop down menu). You can register as a Field Observer and you can also sign-up for the Count Dinner at the link below. Participation is free; there is a $35 fee for the optional dinner.
Date: 11/7/26 8:37 am From: Leonie Batkin via peninsula-birding <Lbatkin111...> Subject: [pen-bird] Black-throated Green Warbler Continuing
The Black-throated Green Warbler originally found by Cedric Dehalde and spotted this morning by Ginny Marshall was present along the Pacifica Police Department exit driveway. It popped up onto the top of a willow for an excellent view.
Date: 11/5/26 9:20 pm From: Marty Freeland via peninsula-birding <martinf3...> Subject: [pen-bird] Recent notes: Great Crested Fly etc.
Hi all,
Yesterday was the most amazing day I have ever had in San Mateo County, with a Philadelphia Vireo at Pie Ranch, a Black-throated Blue Warbler on Eden West Rd, and a Great Crested Flycatcher along San Gregorio Ck at Seaside School Rd. Highlights from the week or so before that were a stunning Grace's Warbler in Pescadero; an assortment of more regular eastern warblers including a remarkable 5 Tennessees, 2 Black-and-whites, one N. Parula, and one Am. Redstart; late Yellow Warblers, Warbling Vireo, and Western Flycatcher; and a couple other misc. birds of note, like a Tropical Kingbird, a Slate-colored Junco, a couple Palm Warblers, and a Long-tailed Duck. More detailed notes are in reverse chronological order below, and (as always) photos/audio, exact locations, and so on are on eBird for all rarities. San Mateo is always a phenomenal county, but this has been a truly unimaginable lucky run of astounding birds and I feel like I should go and buy up all the lottery tickets I can find!
First and more importantly, congratulations to Chris Hayward on breaking the San Mateo County big year record this week!!! A fantastic and very well-deserved achievement by Chris, and all the more impressive as he broke the record in October! I think the record-breaking bird was Cédric's Black-throated Green Warbler in Pacifica on 10/26 and it will be exciting to see Chris's sky-high final tally.
Yesterday, 11/4, I birded the south coast from Green Oaks Ck to San Gregorio Ck. A White-throated Sparrow was with excellent sparrow flocks along Artichoke Rd in the early morning. At Pie Ranch, a small flock in the willows south of the barn contained a Philadelphia Vireo. This is a late date; in fact it is only the sixth November record for NorCal to my knowledge, following one in Marin this week (found by Lucas Stephenson on 11/2), one 1991 record for Marin, one 1993 record from Southeast Farallon Island, and two records from Humboldt (2023 and 2024). After enjoying the cooperative Philly Vireo with local birders for a while, I checked Gazos Ck and had a large group of c. 30 Red Crossbills at Kent Forward's Kentucky Warbler spot, but no Kentucky Warbler. Driving back to Pescadero, I stopped at Eden West Rd to check for sapsuckers and was astonished to find a gorgeous male Black-throated Blue Warbler feeding on newly-emerged flying termites with many Townsend's Warblers. It put on an amazing show, at one point perching briefly on the white fence/vehicle barrier in the parking area at the end of the road. After tearing myself away from the Black-throated Blue, I checked Pescadero and Stage Rd and noted two more White-throated Sparrows in the yard with feeders at Stage Rd x North St in Pescadero town. Making a final stop at San Gregorio Ck and Seaside School Rd, a large flycatcher with a bright yellow belly popped up onto the powerlines. Expecting to see a Tropical Kingbird, I was astonished yet again to see that it was a huge Myiarchus with a vivid saturated yellow belly. Great Crested Flycatcher has been a county dream bird for ages and it was unbelievably electric to see one after years of having it in mind. I had time to obtain photos and run around for a better angle to try and see the bird's back to view the tertial pattern before it dropped back into the riparian. Despite effort by a group of up to 20 people until dusk, the bird was not relocated, as far as I know, although several folks thought they might have heard it calling around sunset. This is a very long overdue first for the county and leaves Mendocino and Del Norte as the only remaining coastal counties in the state lacking a record of this species. It is also an exceptionally late date, as with Philadelphia Vireo, except with even less precedent; I am not aware of any other November Great Crested Flycatchers for NorCal, though there are records as late as October 31 and several records of migrants from the first week of November in SoCal.
On Tuesday 11/3 the central coast was windy with gusts from the south breaking 20 kt and bringing occasional periods of fairly heavy rain. Passerine activity was correspondingly not too great, although chunks of the day without rain were not bad. On upper Miramontes St in eastern Half Moon Bay, a Western Flycatcher was in elderberries by the old emu paddock. At this date it is very likely to winter; the area is suitable for a winterer too. In riparian at the end of Bridgeport Dr in El Granada, a small flock contained a nice male Northern Parula. This is the first November parula I have had in the county. Nearby, in willows and bottlebrushes at at Princeton-by-the-Sea Park, there was a late male Yellow Warbler with a gummed-up face, also (I think) a likely winterer. I had great numbers of Orange-crowned Warblers on this day, unlike the past several days, including 4 gray-headeds, something like 10–15 normal lutescens, 2 dusky birds (sordida-ish, but neither clearcut), and a couple ambiguous ones, including one of the very gray individuals that shows some traits of nominate celata at the east end of San Juan Ave in El Granada.
On Monday 11/2 I covered parts of the north-central coast between Frenchman's Ck and Montara. Starting at Pillar Pt, a Scaly-breasted Munia flew out of the marsh in the early morning. Over the past two years or so munias have been patchier and scarcer than they were over the preceding 3–5 years: this calendar year so far there was one at Alpine Pond a couple days ago (George Chrisman), and that is all. Two very late Yellow Warblers were in separate parts of Princeton Willows. At the Park Ave neighborhoods in Moss Beach, a Tennessee Warbler was right where I had a Palm Warbler last week (Park x Orval) and a Slate-colored Junco, I think consistent with Boreal Slate-colored, was at Park x Alton in a yard with feeders, already my second this season. Checking eastern Moss Beach, a Black-and-white Warbler was in precisely the same location where the Yellow-browed Warbler was 10 days ago and another Tennessee Warbler was in the bottlebrushes at the base of the driveway to the Moss Beach hospital. While this fall was not equal to last year's amazing fall for Tennessees, this winter is off to a very strong start. Also at the Moss Beach hospital was a striking leucistic Pygmy Nuthatch all-white remiges and rectrices and scattered white dorsal contour feathers. Seeing a huge raft of scoters off of Montara SB while driving along Hwy 1, I stopped to scan through them and counted about 1600 Surf Scoters, 4 Black Scoters, and one nice male Long-tailed Duck, the earliest one I have seen in the county. 7 Aleutian Cackling Geese at the Miramar Farm Pond were the first I have seen on the ground this year. At Sweetwood, another Black-and-white Warbler was along Frenchman's Ck. Malia DeFelice and Chris Hayward had one here on 10/16, perhaps the same individual.
On Saturday 10/31, for most of the morning I covered neighborhoods and ag fields in southern Half Moon Bay. Yet another session of birding pumpkin patches produced very little of note, although some of them were birdy with good numbers of Lincoln's Sparrows, Gambel's White-crowns, and so on. Giving up on pumpkin patches and checking neighborhood spots in Half Moon Bay, a beautiful female-type American Redstart was along lower Miramontes Ck. Last year I had a redstart on Miramontes Ck on Halloween too! (Though it was on the upper part of the creek by Moonridge.) Two Tennessee Warblers were along Pilarcitos Ck at Oak Ave Pk, right where Logan Kahle and Caitlin Chock had two winterers last year, but at least one of the birds I saw appeared to be HY and thus a new bird; the other may well have been a returnee.
On Thursday 10/29, I birded Pacifica with Cédric Duhalde for most of the morning. A leucistic Chestnut-backed Chickadee was in neighborhoods near Pedro Pt. Cédric's continuing Black-throated Green Warbler in lower Vallemar put on a great show, and a Northern Mockingbird (rare on the coast, although less so in Pacifica) was at the upper end of the neighborhoods in Rockaway Valley, along with a Nuttall's Woodpecker, continuing these species' expansions on the north coast. Another Nashville Warbler was on San Pablo Terrace. We had few Orange-crowned Warblers all morning and only one gray-headed, but in the afternoon we birded San Francisco (where we had a Yellow-green Vireo, sadly in the wrong county!) and saw many Orange-crowns, including a reasonable number of gray-headeds.
On Wednesday 10/28 I covered the central coast from Pescadero to Half Moon Bay. At Pescadero SB, there was a great spectacle of northbound Black-vented Shearwater movement at dawn and a single female Black Scoter was southbound with Surfs. The marsh trails are largely flooded but the water is shallow and the back of the marsh can be accessed with boots. The habitat is very cool and in the early morning you are flushing many snipe, Marsh Wrens, etc., walking toward the riparian and dead Eucalyptus on lower Pescadero Ck. Two Palm Warblers and a Tropical Kingbird were in this area. Along Stage Rd, a Hermit Warbler was with a flock in eucs near Shaw Gulch and a very late Warbling Vireo was at the bridge over San Gregorio Ck. The vireo was in exactly the location where I had a Philadelphia Vireo a few years ago, but this one was very much not a Philadelphia, unfortunately! I thought a Thalasseus tern foraging offshore from the mouth of Tunitas Ck was probably Royal, but views were too distant to be sure. At the end of Bloom Ln in Half Moon Bay, there was a Nashville Warbler. The Nashville repeatedly attempted to use a hummingbird feeder, I think unsuccessfully.
On Tuesday 10/27, I birded the south coast from Weed Farms to Pescadero. My first Bufflehead of the season was at Lake Lucerne and five more were at Pescadero Marsh later in the morning. The southern portion of Pescadero Marsh has very high water and excellent numbers of marsh ducks, better than in recent years. Continuing from last week was a White-winged Dove on the wires along eastern Pigeon Point Rd. Doves use these wires mainly around sunrise and the White-winged Dove was flushed off the wires by a group of Wild Turkeys departing their roost high in a pine tree just after dawn. A Tennessee Warbler was on Whitehouse Creek at Costanoa. I checked all the fennel patches along Hwy 1 between Pigeon Point and Gazos and was surprised to have only one Orange-crowned Warbler across eight stops. Reaching Pescadero, I checked the end of Water Ln and was astonished to find a Grace's Warbler in the riparian!!! It moved to the pines shortly afterward and was still being reported from those pines as of 11/2. This bird appears to be a male, and in fact other observers heard it sing later in the day, but I am unsure of its age; it is certainly attempting to winter, and hopefully it will succeed and maybe even return in following years, like the SF Grace's did.
Before this week, my guesses at the next five firsts for San Mateo were Great Crested Flycatcher, Pine Warbler, Neotropic Cormorant, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, and either stint, with Grace's as a runner-up along with Blue-winged Warbler, White-rumped Sandpiper, Wood Thrush, etc. It will be exciting to see which shows up next!
Date: 11/3/26 11:49 am From: Dominik Mosur via peninsula-birding <dominikmosur...> Subject: [pen-bird] misc. from the Coast 11/2/26
Spent some time birding around the San Mateo county coast yesterday, with most of my efforts around the Purisima Creek mouth/Cowell Ranch Coastal trail and Verde Road. Some observations I found of note were: a Cackling Goose with Canada geese in the field south of the junction of Purisima and Verde Rd.s (2) Canvasbacks and (2) American Wigeons along with more expected waterfowl on the Ranch pond viewable from the shoulder of HWY 1 a few hundred meters south of the trailhead/parking lot for Cowell-Purisima a massive gathering of (~4500) TRICOLORED BLACKBIRDS on the utility wires along Verde road starting around an hour before sunset. This appears (at least as far as eBird records) the largest concentration seen in the county. I hope someone who lives closer to the area can go back there in upcoming weeks and check my work. I counted 200 Trikes on one section of utility line and extrapolated from there so some +/- margin of error is entirely possible. an Orange-crowned warbler showing the field marks of a potential Channel Islands (subspecies _sordida_) was in with a flock of bushtits et al near the mouth of Purisima Creek accessed via the Coastal Trail. Also of possible interest was a squeaky sounding Pacific/Winter wren that I managed to record in the same general area.
Earlier in the morning I collaborated with Nicholas Sundeen of Santa Cruz to track down the continuing AMAZING Grace's Warbler at the edge of Pescadero (thank you MARTY). Took a couple of hours but well worth the effort. Also of note here were (13) Evening Grosbeaks and (10) Type Red Crossbills.
Date: 11/3/26 11:10 am From: Ronald- Thorn via peninsula-birding <Tronthorn...> Subject: [pen-bird] Miscellaneous sightings the last several days
At Coyote Point County Park, there were ( 3 ) Greater White-fronted Geese that flew out of the golf course. Redwood Shores had an Aleutian Cackling Goose. This morningat the Nob Hill Pond, there were ( 4 ) Eurasian Wigeons, three adult males and a female paired with a male. First arrival of Canvasbacks on the pond. Another arrival were ( 34 )Buffleheads on the bay off of the mouth of Steinberger Slough. ( 5 ) Lesser Yellowlegs were with Greater Yellowlegs on the Ravenswood Salt Ponds. The number of LesserYellowlegs this fall have been low. Leonie and I noted a late Northern Yellow Warbler in Redwood Shores. I was surprised to see ( 3 ) male Great-tailed Grackles in with aflock of blackbirds flying south while I was doing a morning skywatch from home in Redwood Shores. Yesterday, there was a Clay-colored Sparrow in with other sparrowsat the brussel sprouts field on the east side of Arroyo Leon Creek, the north side of Higgins Canyon Road in Half Moon Bay. A White-throated Sparrow was also in thefield.
Ron Thorn Leonie Batkin
Date: 11/3/26 7:23 am From: Ronald- Thorn via peninsula-birding <Tronthorn...> Subject: [pen-bird] Moss Beach seawatch 11/2
Yesterday morning, I did a seawatch from Moss Beach. I cut the seawatch short as the number of birds were low with exception of Surf Scoter and Black-vented Shearwater.For this time of the fall, the number of migrating loons are low. Here is a partial list of what was noted. Surf Scoter ( 2,070 ), Bonaparte's Gull ( 2 ), Royal Tern ( 1 ) south, ElegantTern ( 56 ), late Common Tern trailing Elegant Terns south, Red-throated Loon ( 27 ), Common Loon ( 2 ), Pacific Loon ( 34 ), Black-vented Shearwater ( 630 ) and late a Buller'sShearwater.
Ron Thorn
Date: 11/1/26 12:56 pm From: John Osner via peninsula-birding <osner.math...> Subject: Re: [pen-bird] common murre at Nob Hill Pond redwood shores
There is a common murre at Nob Hill Pond redwood shores sitting by the side of the trail. Please text me at 650-207-2756 for information about who I should contact about this. The bird is allowing close approach by a human without moving, so I'm guessing it is not in good shape. I have photos an GPS coordinates.
Date: 10/31/26 7:18 pm From: Kent Forward via peninsula-birding <kforward...> Subject: [pen-bird] Kentucky Warbler - Old Woman's Creek Road - 10/31/2026
Good Evening Birders,
I spotted a Kentucky Warbler around 3:22 PM at the end of the bridge at the entrance to Old Woman's Creek Road today! It was beside the trail in the brambles along the ground at 37.1857703, -122.3395101. At first I thought I'd flushed an Orange-crowned Warbler since I only saw the back of the bird, uniformly olive greenish as it disappeared into the understory. When I got the binoculars on it as it skulked along the ground I was completely stunned to see a Kentucky Warbler staring back at me! I lost it again, but soon found it perched a bit higher up in a bush just off the trail where it miraculously stayed mostly still long enough for a few photos and a video! Apparently the 4th county record and 1st fall record! It's been a remarkable October, so many rare warblers! A photo and video in my eBird checklist:
https://ebird.org/checklist/S407051828 Good birding!Kent ForwardEl Granada
Date: 10/31/26 6:45 pm From: Carol J via peninsula-birding <eyekidoe...> Subject: [pen-bird] Baltimore Oriole
I have had a female BAOR at our suet feeder for the last three days...... showed up very briefly in the morning, then again in the pm. Beautiful yellow orange throat and breast, white belly, yellow undertail coverts. Greyish brown head . Photos on my ebird posts. After the suet, she seemed to hang out in the tallest birch tree in the yard, then return to the suet. Best time to view maybe between 430 and 530 pm. Carol Miller, 639 Ferdinand Ave, El Granada
Date: 10/31/26 11:42 am From: maliadances via peninsula-birding <maliadances...> Subject: [pen-bird] Reporting the Black-throated Green Warbler on eBird
Hi Pen-birders,
For those who plan to chase the BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLER, or who already have seen this bird and reported it on eBird, I have created a Stake-out hotspot for the correct location of this bird. To my knowledge the warbler has only been seen on the east side of Hwy 1. However some have used the Calera Creek hotspot which is no where near where this bird has been seen and this has created some confusion.
* - If you used the Calera Creek hotspot for the warbler please change your checklist location to the following to help others know where to look for this bird and avoid more confusion.
* - If you created a personal location on the east and correct side of Hwy 1 to report the warbler, please consider changing to the new stakeout hotspot, link below, to cut down on personal location splatter on the eBird search map.
* - THANKS!
I’ve also renamed the Calera Creek hotpot to help define it better.
Calera Creek - WEST of HWY 1 *ONLY* - memorial gardens, trails and riparian areas out to the shoreline ( https://ebird.org/hotspot/L1522565 )
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The LARK BUNTING is at the Calera Creek hotspot on the west side of Hwy 1 , The BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLER is at the new Stake-out hotspot on the east side og Hwy 1. Please use accordingly. Thank You!
Date: 10/29/26 10:50 am From: Kent Forward via groups.io <kforward...> Subject: [pen-bird] Green-tailed Towhee - El Granada - 10/29/2026
Hello birders! Had a pretty epic yard bird pop into our water feature this morning for a quick bath, a Green-tailed Towhee! It flew back into Rancho willows in this general GPS location after its bath: 37.513642, -122.486923 and I haven't re-located it since. That area might be worth checking today if anyone is in the area (public trails all around this area that lead into Rancho), will be interesting to see if it returns to the yard again or just passing through!
https://ebird.org/checklist/S406381925 Happy Migration,Kent ForwardEl Granada
On Tue, 27 Oct 2026 11:38:09 -0700, "Dominik Mosur via groups.io"
<dominikmosur...> wrote:
>Lark Bunting - the bird first reported by Fox Vasquez 10/17 was still feeding on seed spilled from feeders in the community gardens at the entrance to Calera Creek in the early morning.
--
Joseph Morlan, Pacifica, CA
Date: 10/27/26 11:38 am From: Dominik Mosur via groups.io <dominikmosur...> Subject: [pen-bird] Misc. observations from the coast 10/26/26
Spent Monday 10/26 birding various locations along the San Mateo County coast. Started at Calera Creek in Pacifica, followed by a couple of hours along the Ranch Rd.stables /Etheldore riparian. Then a brief seawatch from Pescadero Beach above Bird Rock followed by a loop of the Coastal Terrace Prairie Ano Nuevo SP site between Cascade and Whitehouse Creeks where they recently conducted a prescribed burn,
Working my way back up the coast made a stop at Gazos Creek Beach, several stops along Gazos Creek and Cloverdale Rd.s and in Pescadero finishing up at the recently opened park above Tunitas Creek Beach. Neotropical migrants were not detected at any spots but there were a few observations I thought interesting enough to share.
Royal Tern - one was loafing with the gull flock at the mouth of Gazos Creek on the beach
Black-vented Shearwaters - the incursion into N. California shows no sign of slowing with an estimate (8000) visible from Pescadero Beach
Loggerhead Shrike - in the recently burned area of Ano Nuevo where they are somewhat regular in fall and winter
Evening Grosbeak - detected a minimum of 4 along two stops on Gazos Creek Rd where they have been present for weeks. One, possibly 2 flying over Ranch Rd. in Moss Beach were at a location not yet reported so far during the irruption, and the northernmost in the county so far this year but not really surprising given they have been ubiquitous in SF since the end of September.
Red Crossbill - one was briefly in the small grove of pines on the north side of Ranch Rd., several flew over the Ano Coastal Terrace mid-day
Lark Bunting - the bird first reported by Fox Vasquez 10/17 was still feeding on seed spilled from feeders in the community gardens at the entrance to Calera Creek in the early morning.
Date: 10/26/26 11:57 am From: Ronald- Thorn via groups.io <Tronthorn...> Subject: [pen-bird] Cocos Booby on San Francisco Bay
One hour ago, I was scanning the salt marsh from the observation deck at the end of Canvasback Way in Redwood Shores. I was surprise to see a Cocos Booby flyingnorth over the bay. I watched the Cocos Booby, where near the San Mateo Bridge it gained elevation and crossed over the bridge. Yesterday, there was a record highof ( 18 ) Cocos Boobies on Southeast Farallon Island.
Ron Thorn
Date: 10/25/26 5:13 pm From: Barbara Kossy via groups.io <bkossy...> Subject: [pen-bird] Half Moon Bay by Kayak
I was happy to get out on the ocean in our double kayak with my husband on a sunny and calm October afternoon. Just last week the harbor was packed with Brown Pelicans. There was hardly standing room on the jetties. Today we saw long stretches of empty guano covered rock, with just a Western Gull here and there, evenly spaced. In the area where we typically see the Northern Gannet (absent at about 1:30 pm) were a smattering of Brandt's Cormorants, 4 Black Oystercatchers, a few Black Turnstones, and about 20 Pelicans. Out on the waters of Half Moon Bay we paddled past flocks of 20 Western Grebes, team foraging (no Clark's were noticed.) At least 2 Common loons flew over, one heading NW and the other East. Out towards the red buoy at about 1.8 miles was a smallish (comparatively) group of birds feeding. There were sitting and low-flying shearwaters. When I got a look they were the Black-vented Shearwaters, smaller than sootys, and with the white belly and charcoal smear underwings. In the group were Double-crested Cormorants, Common Murres, Western Gulls, and Brown Pelicans. A line of 12 Surf Scoters flew low over the water and NW. Paddling along I think I got a glimpse of a pair of Short-billed gulls on the water. Smaller than Westerns, cuter look, white head, black with either back dot or perhaps ring on the bill. We were pressing into the wind, so I didn't get a great look. Elegant terns were still in the harbor. They looked especially dapper sitting on top of spherical red buoys. I looked around for a possible Royal Tern. No luck there. The Caleb sunken tug hosted some Double-crested Cormorants, but no night herons. I didn't check the inner harbor for the Yellow-Crowned Night Heron. (I forgot!!) The ocean outside of the harbor was pleasantly more birdy than I expected. Other highlights included being followed by a sea lion close to 2 miles out near the red buoy that held 6 or 8 sea lions. It seemed a bit too interested in us, but people were fishing in small boats not far away. We slapped the water with our paddles to warn it off after it swam under the kayak a couple of times.
Aside from the Yellow-browed Warbler in Moss Beach, highlights from a fair amount of coverage over the past ten days or so in San Mateo included Hooded, Blackburnian, Black-and-white, Palm, and Tennessee (3x) warblers, a White-winged Dove, a Yellow-headed Blackbird, a somewhat early Slate-colored Junco, a handful of Nashvilles and FOS White-throated Sparrows and things, a very surprising unseasonable pulse of Swainson's Thrushes, and (presumed) last-of-season Western Flycatcher, Wilson's Warbler, and so on. Red-breasted Nuthatches have died down somewhat and are about half or two-thirds as numerous as they were three weeks ago. Red Crossbill numbers have really picked up, however, and they are nearly everywhere. So far, all the crossbills I have heard have sounded fine for Type 2 to me, which seems to be the dominant type locally in this year's irruption.
On Tuesday 10/13, I started at Mori Pt, where phenomenal numbers of sparrows at dawn included the first White-throated Sparrow I have noted in the county this fall. (I also had one the previous day in Santa Cruz.) I left San Mateo Co. briefly to go see the Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher in S.F., which was a walk-up bird, and then birded the rest of the north coast from Thornton SB to Montara. A Warbling Vireo and two Yellow Warblers were along upper Calera Ck. Entering the willows at lower Calera Ck, I heard a Northern Waterthrush chipping and while trying to pish it in for views, I heard a different sharp thin chip note and eventually got good views of a bright Tennessee Warbler. Shortly afterward I learned that the waterthrush had been found four days previously by Cdric Duhalde. Meeting up with Cdric, we birded the Farallone Willows in Montara, where Cdric spotted a Nashville Warbler. Two were together here on 10/5. Singles of Western Flycatcher on lower Sunshine Valley Rd and Wilson's Warbler along Pilarcitos Ck behind the lowest pumpkin patch were the only other Neotropical migrants I had all day.
On Thursday 10/15, I found few passerine migrants in a full day of coverage of the central coast from Pescadero to Half Moon Bay under clear skies all day, with a light NW breeze in the morning picking up substantially by midafternoon. A group of about 25 Greater White-fronted Goose flew out of Pescadero Marsh at dawn. A single Yellow Warbler and a Nashville Warbler were behind the gas station in Pescadero, where two Nashvilles were on 10/7. A Palm Warbler, my second this fall in the county, was along Butano Ck Cutoff near the high school. The sole Neotropical migrant on all of Tunitas Ck was a getting-late Swainson's Thrush near the mouth; a Black-crowned Night Heron at the same spot was notable locally. At the Johnston House I had my second White-throated Sparrow of the fall in the county, and a Warbling Vireo was behind Mariners Church in Half Moon Bay. Yet another Nashville Warbler was along Pilarcitos Ck at Oak Ave Pk. I saw relatively few (c. 5) Red-breasted Nuthatches all day.
On Friday 10/16, I birded north Half Moon Bay from Pillar Point to Miramar in the morning. The conditions were bizarre with a fairly strong gusty east wind and very high temperatures, 74 F in Half Moon Bay before sunrise (!). Morris the Northern Gannet was present on the inner breakwater. At Princeton Willows, a striking female Hooded Warbler popped out near the western end of the patch and right off the road to Mavericks in response to pishing. This was a long-awaited self-find in the county! At eight more stops in northern Half Moon Bay I had zero additional Neotropical migrants.
On Saturday 10/17, I birded the south coast from Weed Farms to Pescadero in the morning. Weed Farms was below its usual standard, being dry with low sparrow numbers. However, the fields north of Cascade Ck have been burned again; while they had few open-country birds on this day, after the last burn a couple years back these fields were extremely productive, and they should be checked through the next couple months for longspurs, Horned Lark, and similar. Excellent sparrow numbers at Pie Ranch included a junco showing characteristics of the Slate-colored group. (I think of the Slate-colored group as encompassing both Boreal Slate-colored, hyemalis/carolinensis, and Cassiar Slate-colored, cismontanus; for female-types like this bird I generally prefer not to say anything more specific than Slate-colored group in the broad sense, absent excellent photos etc.) This is a rather early date and indeed I do not know of many documented records for the county before October 20, though I am sure there are some older ones of which I am not aware. I was surprised to learn that ridgewatchers in Marin, Santa Cruz, and elsewhere have reported Slate-colored Juncos this year starting on September 30. No doubt these are side effects of increased coverage aimed at irruptive montane birds, but it is still interesting. I average 12 Slate-colored Juncos per year on the San Mateo coast, usually in NovDec. Also at Pie Ranch was a Warbling Vireo, and a Black-throated Gray Warbler was along Whitehouse Ck at Costanoa. Along lower Gazos Ck, birded from the gas station parking lot, a very dull Blackburnian Warbler was with a small flock. I think that puts the tally at 66 BlackburnianBlackpoll this year in the county. Still a little while left for one of them to pull ahead and break the tie!
On Sunday 10/18, Chris Henry and I started at Ano Nuevo, where we had single Yellow and Black-throated Gray warblers, as well as several flocks of Red Crossbills, including on the outer part of the peninsula. I believe most or all were Type 2, as most of the invaders have been this fall. We then birded Santa Cruz Co. for ten hours and had nothing better than a single Palm Warbler because Santa Cruz is not as good a county as San Mateo is. To prove the point, while we were off seeing no birds in Santa Cruz, Ryan Mense found a beautiful male Black-throated Blue Warbler at the previous day's Blackburnian spot :)
On Monday 10/19, I birded pumpkin patches and odds and ends for sparrows and weedfield birds around Half Moon Bay for most of the day. Numbers of Golden-crowned and Lincoln's sparrows were very low, especially with far fewer Lincoln's (812 all morning) than expected by this date. Among the very numerous White-crowned Sparrows were several Gambel's, including three together at Andreotti Family Farms. One each of Nashville and Yellow warblers were at the Farallone Willows in Montara. A couple scattered Red Crossbills were all Type 2, I think. An access point to Pilarcitos Ck that I rarely check, along the north side by Hwy 92 x Hwy 1, had a large flock that included a nice-looking female Black-and-white Warbler.
On Tuesday 10/20, I started in San Francisco and spent far longer there than expected because Caitlin Chock and I had a Yellow-green Vireo and a Blackburnian Warbler in the arboretum. Rushing to get through a couple spots on the northern San Mateo coast on the way back, a Yellow Warbler was at Thornton SB and the Northern Waterthrush discovered on 10/9 by Cdric Duhalde was still at Calera Ck.
On Wednesday 10/21, I birded the central coast from Pigeon Pt to Half Moon Bay under high overcast and light shifting winds for the most of the day, strengthening with a couple light rain showers in the late afternoon. At the residences on eastern Pigeon Pt Rd, a White-winged Dove was with Eurasian Collared-Doves on the wires and a calling Northern Mockingbird was down near the small pond. Northern Mockingbird is rare on most of the San Mateo coast, but one was at this same location last December. At Pescadero Marsh, a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher was with a small flock in the riparian and I was surprised to hear a Swainson's Thrush calling. I was still more surprised to hear another Swainson's Thrush along Butano Ck and then others on San Gregorio Ck, at the Verde Rd Pond, and two (!) along Miramontes Ck. I had a late on 10/15 and otherwise none since 10/6 in the county, so having a minimum of six individuals today was truly astonishing. To make sure I had not developed a recurrent Swainson's Thrush auditory hallucination, I worked hard to obtain views of the calling bird at Miramontes Ck and only in doing so did I realize two individuals were present. A late pulse of Swainson's Thrush like this one is very interesting and quite noteworthy. Possibly related were single birds reported the following day (10/22) on Corona Hill, SF, and on Southeast Farallon Island. Reaching Pescadero, two Tennessee Warblers were together (more or less; each seemed to staking out one bush) in bottlebrushes near the end of Water Ln and an adult male Black-throated Gray Warbler was at the Stage Rd bridge over Pescadero Ck with a large flock. A Nashville Warbler was along Tunitas Ck just above the dip. Red Crossbills were noted at Water Ln, Goulson St, San Gregorio Ck, and Mariners Church. The blackbird roost along Verde Rd had more than five times its usual number of blackbirds, even when I stopped at 2:20 p.m., well before the usual peak time. Scanning through these I noted a high proportion of Tricolored Blackbirds with at least 1,500 individual trikes in 2,0002,500 total blackbirds. The remainder were mostly Red-wings, with a couple dozen Brewer's and a single Yellow-headed Blackbird. The Yellow-headed was a bright HY bird and only the second I have seen on the San Mateo coast.
On Thursday 10/22, there was a heavy low overcast with rain showers over the central coast, so I started in neighborhoods in El Granada. I rarely visit these neighborhood patches before November. Passerine numbers were a little lower than usual in these locations, but that may be a result of the early date. At Princeton Willows, I relocated the female Hooded Warbler from last week, deeper in the willows, and others also relocated it the following day (10/23). With a weeklong stay at this late date, there is a chance this bird may attempt to winter. Checking neighborhoods in Pillar Pt Bluff southwest of Fitzgerald, a Palm Warbler was at the corner of Park Way and Orval Ave. Then I checked upper San Vicente Ck at Ember Ridge and lightning struck with a beautiful Yellow-browed Warbler. Details on the Yellow-browed Warbler are on eBird and elsewhere and will be submitted to the CBRC.
On Friday 10/23, I spent much of the day seeing the Yellow-browed Warbler with others, but also birded other locations on the central coast between Pillar Pt and Hwy 92. A group from San Luis Obispo including Kilian Hampl, Reef Comer, Ann Stockert, and perhaps others found an immature Yellow-crowned Night Heron at Pillar Pt; this is the fifth county record and the first away from Coyote Pt and Ano Nuevo, which have two records each. Morris was present as well. A Black-throated Gray Warbler continuing from the previous day at the Yellow-browed Warbler spot was the only Neotropical migrant all day.
Here are some details on today's Yellow-browed Warbler along San Vicente Ck at Ember Ridge, Moss Beach, San Mateo County. First off, it was seen more or less continuously (never absent for more than about 15 minutes) today from 11:15ish, when I found it, through around 5 pm. As far as I know, it was not seen after 5 pm. It calls fairly regularly, sometimes in flight, and is often located by call. It is extremely active and stays at or above eye level. It was occasionally with loose flocks of gleaners, but not tightly tied to them. Fortunately, it remained quite faithful to the willows around (37.5245821, -122.5039195); I think the furthest it ranged was about (37.52411, -122.50385). The weather overnight looks reasonably promising for the bird to remain, for whatever that's worth; the Alpine bird stayed two days (10/2425/2019) and the BC bird stayed seven (10/1824/2019).
Birders are permitted to walk around the entirety of the Ember Ridge stables area. However, we are NOT permitted to park there. *Please park along Etheldore St* (e.g., around 37.52247, -122.50647) and walk about 5 minutes up the dirt road to the stakeout. Whatever you do, do NOT park in the stable's parking lot, where the bird was seen. Ember Ridge is a working stable and there are people walking horses around and so forth. They have all been okay with the presence of birders so far, even at times when there were more than 50 people there today, but please stay out of the way as much as possible and be super nice to them and all that.
Identification in this genus is of course challenging. In a North American context, the only Yellow-browed-type Phylloscopus recorded in Alaska are Yellow-browed (of course) and Pallas's Leaf, and Pallas's is readily eliminated by the San Mateo bird's lack of a bold central crown stripe, lack of a contrasting pale rump patch, less compact structure, etc. Other potential vagrants to North America, as yet unrecorded, include Two-barred and Hume's warblers. Two-barred is longer-billed, longer-tailed, and lacks contrasting pale tips/edges to the tertials, which the San Mateo bird shows; Hume's is supposed to lack a pale base to the lower mandible, which the San Mateo bird has. And, more importantly, the San Mateo bird has been giving "suweet" calls, kind of like the ascending call ("male position note") of a Western Flycatcher but more symmetrical, i.e., with more downsweep before the upsweep, and without any break in it. This is unlike the calls of Two-barred, Hume's, and I believe also rules out a bunch of really implausible things like Brook's Leaf Warbler, Emei Leaf Warbler, etc.
Photographs and audio are on eBird (e.g., https://ebird.org/checklist/S404567035), and further written details will be added as well. This is the second for California after a bird found by Todd Easterla in Markleeville, Alpine Co., in 2019. Consider submitting documentation to the California Bird Records Committee (https://www.californiabirds.org/report_sighting.html) if you see it.
Spending all day with this bird and so many awesome birders from around the Bay Area was the birding experience of a lifetime! Good luck to all chasers!!!
Get Outlook for iOS<https://aka.ms/o0ukef> ________________________________
From: <peninsula-birding...> <peninsula-birding...> on behalf of Marty Freeland via groups.io <martinf3...>
Sent: Thursday, 22 October 2026 11:46:32
To: 'Peninsula Birding' <peninsula-birding...>; CALBIRDS <calbirds...>
Subject: [pen-bird] Putative YELLOW-BROWED WARBLER
Phylloscopus warbler appearing to be a YELLOW-BROWED in Moss Beach, San Mateo Co. photos and further details forthcoming
Date: 10/21/26 11:35 am From: Dorian Anderson via groups.io <thespeckledhatchback...> Subject: [pen-bird] Recent bird photos, a giveaway, and a request
All -
Here are 17 images from the fall plus 2 holdovers from the summer. There also is a screenshot from my Bay Area biking eBird account. As you can see, it's been a productive ~6 weeks with 8 birds added to my running total (375). I've biked over 900 miles in that span (and near 2,600 for the year), so yay for me. I've also pushed my San Mateo bike list to 309, and my SF bike list grew to 298 with yesterday's Lapland Longspur and Black-vented Shearwater. Santa Clara lagging a bit with 245. 852 total ticks across the the peninsula counties - woo hoo!
Anyway......do you see that framed painting of the Coppery-tailed (i.e. formerly Elegant) Trogon in the gallery? It's free to the first person who claims it from my apartment. I'm near the intersection of Delaware and Peninsula, at the interface of San Mateo and Burlingame. Email/call for specifics.
Lastly, if you've bought, read, and enjoyed my book, I'd greatly appreciate a review on Amazon, Goodreads, or other online platform. Star ratings are super, but a few lines of explanatory text really elevate the review. I'll thank you in advance for whatever you can offer.
It's been fun to be around for most of the fall, but that run comes to an end on Saturday, when I leave to lead a three-week photo tour in South Africa. A highly undesirable assignment, I know......
Date: 10/16/26 4:10 pm From: Ronald- Thorn via groups.io <Tronthorn...> Subject: [pen-bird] Lewis's Woodpecker in Belmont
At the south end of the public access trail off of Sem Lane in Belmont, I looked up to see a Lewis's Woodpecker flying south overhead. There were two sightings of Lewis'sWoodpeckers in San Francisco yesterday. A late Lazuli Bunting was along the trail. An early morning skywatch from home in Redwood Shores, I noted the first arrival of amale Bufflehead flying over the Redwood Shores Lagoon. During the week, a juvenile Parasitic Jaeger was on the bay at Coyote Point.
Ron Thorn
From: Jane Tatchell <Jane...>
To: "peninsula-birding"<peninsula-birding...>
Date: Thu, 15 Oct 2026 17:45:04 -0700
Subject: Re: [pen-bird] House Finch with a deformed beak?
Given that this looks like Avian Keratin Disorder, I'll take down my feeders for a couple of weeks.
Since you have a long-term perspective and have been seawatching longer than perhaps anyone else in the county. Would you say that this Black-vent incursion is the biggest ever you have seen? There were numbers in Monterey Bay last week that suggested that a huge part of the world population of this bird is now in our area, just like your observation. Estimates range from 46,000 to 120,000 pairs of this species, as such your observation may mean that half the breeding population (using the lower estimate) is in San Mateo right now, that is amazing. But I don’t have a handle on if it has happened like this before. I don’t know what it was like during the 81-82 El Niño.
From: <peninsula-birding...> <peninsula-birding...> On Behalf Of Ronald- Thorn via groups.io
Sent: Thursday, October 15, 2026 2:49 PM
To: Peninsula Birding <peninsula-birding...>
Subject: [pen-bird] Moss Beach seawatch 10/14
Yesterday, I did a seawatch from Moss Beach. I was amazed in the large feeding frenzies spread out over the water. During the three hour seawatch is a partial list of what
was noted. No surprise that the dominant species were the Black-vented Shearwaters. I was doing one minute counts, as the Black-vented Shearwaters were moving
north through the feeding frenzies. A tally of ( 48,460 ) Black-vented Shearwaters. A single Sooty Shearwater was all I could note. Sooty Shearwaters have been scarce
in numbers south to Monterey County looking at seawatch reports from others. Southbound migrants were Surf Scoter ( 25 ), Red-necked Grebe ( 1 ), Red-throated
Loon ( 9 ), Pacific Loon ( 6 ). There was a high of ( 42 ) Parasitic Jaegers southbound. A single Pomarine Jaeger. A very low number of only ( 4 ) Common Murres.
Date: 10/15/26 11:48 am From: Ronald- Thorn via groups.io <Tronthorn...> Subject: [pen-bird] Moss Beach seawatch 10/14
Yesterday, I did a seawatch from Moss Beach. I was amazed in the large feeding frenzies spread out over the water. During the three hour seawatch is a partial list of whatwas noted. No surprise that the dominant species were the Black-vented Shearwaters. I was doing one minute counts, as the Black-vented Shearwaters were movingnorth through the feeding frenzies. A tally of ( 48,460 ) Black-vented Shearwaters. A single Sooty Shearwater was all I could note. Sooty Shearwaters have been scarcein numbers south to Monterey County looking at seawatch reports from others. Southbound migrants were Surf Scoter ( 25 ), Red-necked Grebe ( 1 ), Red-throatedLoon ( 9 ), Pacific Loon ( 6 ). There was a high of ( 42 ) Parasitic Jaegers southbound. A single Pomarine Jaeger. A very low number of only ( 4 ) Common Murres.
Ron Thorn
Date: 10/14/26 10:07 am From: maliadances via groups.io <maliadances...> Subject: [pen-bird] San Mateo County Cumulative Year-list Report for --- September 2026
*Greetings Pen-birders,*
San Mateo County birders confirmed a total of 15 species that were new for the year by the end of September. This brings the total species confirmed by the end of the ninth month to 324. This is the 2 nd highest end of September total since this report began in 2009, with 2015 ending at 325, one bird species higher! In reading the following, please note, the number in parenthesis next to the bird name is the rarity code assigned for San Mateo County birds. *From the link below* , you can *see definitions for the rarity codes,* *download a checklist* which shows seasonality, frequency, and county breeding information, *find a full list of the birds* observed so far in 2026 *, plus* *all monthly reports going back to 2009.*
*Here are the new birds for September, their finders and locations where found:*
WHITE-WINGED DOVE (5) was found by Vanderpoels, John, William, Mark and Jim at Pillar Point Harbor. Peter Metropulos encountered a PECTORAL SANDPIPER (5) in the creek-bed at Venice Beach. BLACK TERN (5) was photographed by Cricket Raspet at Pillar Point Harbor. LEWIS’S WOODPECKER (4) was called out by Alvaro Jaramillo and Chris Hayward, and seen by others, during a skywatch at a location along Skyline. Dorian put word out he had a DUSKY FLYCATCHER (5) while bike-birding at Cypress Lawn Cemetery. TROPICAL KINGBIRD (4) was spotted on the wires above the Mavericks parking area by Chris Hayward and Kent Forward. Two groups at two different locations, on the same day, observed CLARK'S NUTCRACKER (6). One group was Ron Thorn and Leonie Batkin at Cypress Lawn Cemetery. The other group included Alvaro Jaramillo, Caitlin Chock, Chris Hayward, Eli Gross, Jari Toivanen, Liam Murphy, Malia DeFelice, Marty Freeland, Michael Long who spent 4 hours skywatching at a location on Skyline. There Eli called out the 1 st nutcracker then later Liam called out a 2 nd nutcracker. GRAY CATBIRD (6) was discovered by Nathan Malick and Chris Hayward at Seaside School Rd. in San Gregorio. Two different locations each produced EVENING GROSBEAK (4) for Ben Golet at Gazos Creek and Kent Forward at Purisima Creek Redwoods on the same day. Jari Toivanen was the finder of the LARK BUNTING (5) at the seed patch along the trail to Mavericks Beach. While visiting Coyote Point County Park, a VESPER SPARROW (4) was found and photographed by Terry Crowe. Michael Long located a BLACKBURNIAN WARBLER (4) along Canyon Rd. in Pescadero. Darlene McNeil and Todd McGrath had the first CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER (4) along Gazos Creek Rd. Leonie Batkin and Ron Thorn detected a BLACKPOLL WARBLER (4) at Cypress Lawn Cemetery. A group including Kaiting H., Marty Freeland, Michael Long and Tino Castillo espied a PRAIRIE WARBLER (5) at Año Nuevo.
*Birding San Mateo County:* There are plenty of ways to see birds. Did you know *The San Mateo County Bird Alliance leads birding Field Trips* on a regular basis? To join a field trip, check out their schedule here: http://www.sequoia-audubon.org/fieldtrips.html
*Alvaro’s Adventures runs offshore pelagic trips* *now through November,* with many seabird, whale and sea-life finding trips out of Half Moon Bay and other ports. Alvaro’s pelagic schedule here: https://www.alvarosadventures.com/pelagic-dates-2026.html
*California’s First Statewide Breeding Bird Atlas* *-* This landmark effort is being led by *California Bird Atlas* ( https://www.californiabirdatlas.org/ ) ( CBA), an independent nonprofit, in collaboration with state agencies, thousands of volunteers, and dozens of partner organizations. All birders are now officially invited to join the project by visiting the new *California Bird Atlas eBird website* ( https://ebird.org/atlascalifornia/home ). Simply click “ *Join Project* ” ( or “Log in to Join Project”) and you will automatically be able to contribute checklists to the Atlas project. The Atlas is fully integrated with the eBird mobile app. If you submit checklists on mobile, this *Quick Start Tutorial video* ( https://www.youtube.com/shorts/8Z3kbqiO9rw ) provides a brief overview.
*To stay informed of the latest local bird news, consider creating an account with both Peninsula Birding (Pen-bird) and eBird.* To join eBird, simply go to https://ebird.org/home and create an account. To join the Peninsula Birding group, join here: https://groups.io/g/peninsula-birding You can post your sightings there and be kept informed of sightings throughout the county including discussions about birds, population trends, where-can-I-find topics, events, field trips, webinars, pelagic trips and conservation issues. You can engage with other members of the birding community and can connect with online/offline discussions.
*This Report:* As a volunteer for the San Mateo County Bird Alliance I gather content for this report, each month, by primarily using eBird and Pen-bird. When posting to Pen-bird, please include the location and date of your sighting in either the subject line or in the body of your email. If you don’t use eBird or Pen-bird, you can always email me directly. Thank you!
If you have questions or comments regarding this report, or if I missed something,
Date: 10/13/26 6:54 am From: Ronald- Thorn via groups.io <Tronthorn...> Subject: [pen-bird] Skywatch sightings, Prairie Falcon, Mountain Bluebird 10/12
Yesterday morning, I did a skywatch at Skyline Memorial Park. Finally no fog! I focus mostly on birds in flight over the Santa Cruz Mountains. Here is a partial list of whatwas noted in the park. Double-crested Cormorant ( 2 ), are rarely noted over the mountains, Red-tailed Hawk ( 2 ), Prairie Falcon ( 1 ) southbound, Golden Eagle ( 2 )near Scarper Peak, Band-tailed Pigeon ( 372 ), Mountain Bluebird ( 1 ) male briefly landing in a tree nearby before taking off and headed south towards Highway 92,Western Bluebird ( 5 ), Varied Thrush numbers increasing with ( 106 ), American Robin ( 31 ), Yellow-rumped Warbler ( 5 ), Western Meadowlark ( 3 ), Brewer's Blackbird( 7 ), Purple Finch ( 12 ), House Finch ( 18 ), Red Crossbill ( 35 ), Pine Siskin ( 2 ), Lesser Goldfinch ( 12 ). Later checking out crown sparrows through-out the park, therewas the first White-throated Sparrow I have noted for the fall.
Ron Thorn
Date: 10/11/26 10:06 am From: Chris M. via groups.io <chrismac...> Subject: [pen-bird] Big Sit today
Come and join us at Pescadero Marsh today (till 3 pm) for the Big Sit. Even better, pledge an amount per species recorded - anything, small or large, will help to fund the SMCBA's work - education, conservation, showing people how bird-wonderful our county is...
Date: 10/10/26 10:41 am From: San Mateo County Bird Alliance via groups.io <office...> Subject: Re: [pen-bird] Big Sit.
Hi Susie,
This year we'll be counting in Pescadero Marsh, and due to conditions, we will be setting up on the Butano Creek Trail that is accessible from the parking area along Pescadero Creek Road right after you turn off Hwy 1. If you have any other questions or have issues finding them tomorrow, please contact Nelle Lyons at <1tigger1nl...> or (650) 515-9052.
