Date: 6/24/25 3:50 pm From: Ronald- Thorn via groups.io <Tronthorn...> Subject: [pen-bird] Summer Tanager at Coyote Pt.
A female SUMMER TANAGER was in a Eucalyptus Tree along the public access trail next to the Coyote Point Museum today. There has been more shorebird arrival. Yesterday on theSteinberger Slough next to the Nob Hill Pond in Redwood Shores was the first arrival of a Short-billed Dowitcher in alternate plumage. The Earliest arrival is the 13th. On the slough were( 40 ) Willets that increased to ( 460 ) today. The pond had ( 13 ) Greater Yellowlegs yesterday increasing to ( 22 ) today. An over-summering Surf Scoter was on the slough.
Ron Thorn
Date: 6/22/25 5:35 pm From: Marty Freeland via groups.io <martinf3...> Subject: [pen-bird] American Redstart, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, other notes
Hi all,
This morning an adult male American Redstart was along Gazos Creek Road just above the intersection with Cloverdale. It was singing frequently and quite cooperative. This is not the same bird that was present a little over a week ago (found by Chris Henry and Cedro von Briel and photographed by Chris and Malia), as that was a SY male (a "yellowstart"). Adult males are quite rare in the county and also are incredibly fun birds. Incidentally, the adult male I had last spring on upper Pomponio Creek was exactly a year ago, to the day.
A male Rose-breasted Grosbeak was in the same area of Gazos Creek, perhaps one of the 2 males present nearby in May. It feels like we have had a pretty good spring for Rose-breasted Grosbeaks on the Peninsula: San Mateo has had 5 (2 on Gazos, 1 near Pescadero, 1 on Tunitas, 1 in El Granada) plus a hybrid, San Francisco has had ~10ish, and I had another male later in the day at Rancho del Oso, just south of the border with Santa Cruz County.
The Hooded Orioles nesting in Pescadero have successfully fledged young. Two Lawrence's Goldfinches in upper Montara yesterday were part of the great year that species is having regionally. Although it really does seem like Bullock's Orioles may be absent from their traditional breeding spot on Stage Rd. for the first time since 2018 (I have not detected them there at all this season despite stopping many times, and there are no eBird reports either), a pair was in a Eucalyptus stand along Whitehouse Canyon Road today.
Date: 6/22/25 4:25 pm From: Ronald- Thorn via groups.io <Tronthorn...> Subject: [pen-bird] Recent sightings, Ancient Murrelet
On the 18th, I did a seawatch from Pigeon Pt. The seawatch was cut short as there was not much activity. Low numbers of Sooty Shearwaters in the gloom at the horizon. A very lateRed-throated Loon in alternate plumage was northbound. A number of alcids were on the water close to shore. There were ( 83 ) Common Murres, ( 17 ) Pigeon Guillemots, ( 24 )Rhinoceros Auklets and ( 4 ) Marbled Murrelets. Flying north was an Ancient Murrelet rare for this time of year. There is a scattering of summer records from the county. On the 18th,Leonie and I stopped along Cloverdale Road between the addresses 3800 and 4309 listening for Grasshopper Sparrows on the hillside. A Loggerhead Shrike was on a fence near the top of the hillside. The Later part of June post-breeding dispersal Loggerhead Shrikes have been noted. There has been no confirmed breeding in county since the nineties thatI am aware of. Did it summer in the county or come from the outside of the county? I did see the Loggerhead Shrike well enough that is was not a juvenile.
Ron Thorn, Leonie Batkin
Date: 6/16/25 10:51 am From: Ronald- Thorn via groups.io <Tronthorn...> Subject: [pen-bird] Recent sightings, Hooded Warbler
June 13, I did a seawatch from Pigeon Point. A partial list of what was noted. ( 4,500 ) Sooty Shearwaters. Nothing compared to ( 40,000 ) noted the day before from observers at Pt. Pinos,Monterey County. The first arrival of Pink-footed Shearwaters at Pigeon Point with ( 8 ) noted. Late migrants were ( 4 ) alternate-plumaged Pacific Loons. ( 30 ) Rhinoceros Auklets passedby with Common Murres. Later, I did a check of riparian corridors. The highlight was a singing male HOODED WARBLER seen in a willow thicket on private property off of Stage Rd. inPescadero. No public access! Notes from Leonie and I. The first arriving shorebirds. ( 23 ) Alternate-plumaged Willets on the Nob Hill Pond on the 14th. Arriving Willets can be as earlyas the 9th. Also that day on the pond was an early alternate-plumaged Greater Yellowlegs and ( 2 ) there yesterday. Passerine migration has pretty much come to just a trickle along thebayside with only Western Tanager and Swainson's Thrush noted. A couple of Orange-crowned Warblers in Redwood Shores were most likely early post-breeding dispersals.
Ron ThornLeonie Batkin
Date: 6/14/25 6:45 pm From: Christopher Hayward via groups.io <p_t_nymph...> Subject: [pen-bird] American Redstart, Gazos Creek, 6/14/2025
Hi All,
Whilst birding Gazos Creek Road today about 100 yards up from the Cloverdale Road intersection Malia and I first heard then had nice looks at a singing American Redstart. It was flitting around in a small oak on the north side of the road and occasionally crossing over to the riparian area above the creek.
This is the gps where the bird was first seen 37.18601, -122.33852
It appears to be a first summer male showing black flecks on the neck, throat and lores. It was singing frequently.
This is possibly the same bird that was heard by Cedric Von Briel and Chris Henry on 6/11 in the same general area.
We have put photos and audio recordings on the ebird checklist, link below.
Date: 6/10/25 6:27 pm From: Chris M. via groups.io <chrismac...> Subject: [pen-bird] Lawrence’s Goldfinch - windy Hill OSP
Hi birders, we saw the Lawrence’s Goldfinch (a pair) this afternoon, close to 5 pm, on the Spring Ridge Trail at Windy Hill OSPby the spring that trickles in to an old bathtub, below the cypress grove. The sign at the spring reads « non potable » as others have noted (great for dogs, I expect). We had about 45 minutes to hang out and study these while Lesser Goldfinch that came in several times. Which was nice , because then the difference in female attire was clear.
A House Wren sang from the uphill side of the Cypress grove. Lots of quail and a couple of Lazuli Bunting.
Date: 6/8/25 9:54 am From: maliadances via groups.io <maliadances...> Subject: [pen-bird] Bay-breasted Warbler 6/7/25 San Bruno Mt. Park
All,
For those who are not on all the social media platforms that report rare bird sightings.
Yesterday 6/7/25, Sam Talarigo found an adult male BAY-BREASTED WARBLER along the Bog Trail at San Bruno Mountain Park. Gps here 37.6981635, -122.4379589
Caitlin Chock and I were made aware of this find while we were doing a bird survey for the Palo Alto Summer Bird Count at Los Trancos OSP. After we completed our survey we went to San Bruno Mt. and spent over an hour searching for the bird. Michael Long joined us in the search and after another hour Michael called out that the bird was there. I didn’t think I got any document photos, but I did https://ebird.org/checklist/S247913347 The bird was infrequently singing while we were there.
We begin the season later on this month with multiple trips to the Farallon
Islands, most out of Sausalito on the fast and comfortable "Outer Limits."
The summer pelagic, the earliest offshore pelagic (non-island trip) will be
on July 20 from Half Moon Bay. At that point we begin a mix of some offshore
trips, and the remaining Farallon Island trips, which end on the Aug 9 trip
from Sausalito. Some people have asked me why the Farallon trips are early
in the season, and there is an easy answer. The earlier you go, the more
breeding birds that are there. Late June should have masses of murres there,
hundreds of thousands. These birds begin to fledge throughout July and by
August it is still amazing, yet there are fewer birds than earlier in the
season. We still have spaces on the first two Farallon trips, so if you want
to be overwhelmed by nesting seabirds, give those a try.
Later on in August and September we have the peak for offshore pelagic
birds. This is the time to be out there looking for storm-petrels,
albatross, shearwaters, migrant jaegers, Sabine's Gull, alcids from the
south (offshore murrelets) and migrant terns. As the season winds down into
October, the late season species like Flesh-footed (Sable) Shearwater become
easier, as can other rarer shearwaters as well as the Short-tailed
Shearwater. Rare species can show up anytime, but the early and late
offshore trips may be luckier for those. Also, during this period is when we
will be offering our Monterey trips, which this year are all 10 hour long
(albacore grounds) trips. These have more time to go to deeper water, the
albacore water is not always there, but these get us deeper into the bay
than 8-hour trips.
There are two special trips - the San Francisco pelagic on Aug 30 which
leaves from Sausalito. We have done this trip that tries to maximize time in
SF waters off the Farallon Islands. But this year we are expanding it to a
10-hour trip, allowing us to get deeper. Similarly, the San Mateo County
pelagic on Sept 1 leaves from Half Moon Bay, and weather dependent we try to
go southwest, keeping us in San Mateo County waters for the max time on that
day. Both of these trips are great for anyone, even those not interested in
county borders, but we do make an effort to keep in county for those who are
keen on their county lists. Both counties are fantastic pelagic birding
waters, some of the best in the world.
We always make time to point out whales, dolphins, sharks, and any other
marine creature we find. That is standard on all our trips. We have plenty
of time out there to enjoy birds, as well as other critters!
You can book here, some trips are starting to get near sell out:
Date: 6/6/25 10:19 am From: maliadances via groups.io <maliadances...> Subject: [pen-bird] San Mateo County Cumulative Year-list Report for --- May 2025
*Greetings Pen-birders,*
San Mateo County birders found a total of 6 species that were new for the year by the end of May. The 6 new bird species will bring the total species observed by the end of the fifth month to 272. 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 2025 *, plus* *all monthly reports going back to 2009.* http://www.sequoia-audubon.org/SMCbirds.php ( http://www.sequoia-audubon.org/SMCbirds.php )
*Here are the new birds for May, their finders and locations where found:*
BLACK SWIFT (4) was photographed by Marcus Stephens at Año Nuevo State Park . Eva Seay posted on the ID Discussion channel on Telegram, that she had seen a shorebird at Pomponio State Beach, that she could not identify and added a less than optimal photo of the bird. Joe Morlan went to Pomponio State Beach, identified the bird as a RED PHALAROPE (2) and posted that the bird was still present. Both Eva and Joe are given credit for the phalarope observation. Caitlin Chock observed CASSIN’S AUKLET (2) during a seawatch at Pigeon Point. During a repositioning cruise a SHORT-TAILED ALBATROSS (6) was photographed by a number of passengers while the ship moved through San Mateo County offshore waters. Ron Thorn found a LEWIS’S WOODPECKER (4) while birding Coyote Point County Park. A visit to San Bruno Mountain provided Sam Talarigo with clear looks at a YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT (4).
*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* starting in June, with many seabird, whale and sea-life finding trips out of Half Moon Bay and other ports. Alvaro’s pelagic schedule here:
*To stay informed of the latest 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: 6/2/25 4:05 pm From: Ronald- Thorn via groups.io <Tronthorn...> Subject: [pen-bird] Sightings the last several days
Here are sightings, Leonie and I have had the last several days. Migrant passerines have been in low numbers along the bayside in the spring. The last several days there has been a push ofmigrants. Western Flycatchers, Western Wood-Pewees slightly above average in numbers, ( 3 ) Ash-throated Flycatchers at Sem Lane, Warbling Vireos, Swainson's Thrushes, Wilson's Warblers, Yellow Warblers, Western Tanagers and Lazuli Buntings. Time will tell going into June what late migrants may still be coming through.
At the Nob Hill Pond in Redwood Shores, ducks that are not usually noted during the summer period in the county are a drake Northern Pintail, ( 2 ) drakes and a female American Wigeon,( 2 ) drake Northern Shovelers and a female Canvasback. More American Wigeon. A drake and female at Bridge Parkway and Shell Parkway. Leonie and I were surprised to observed anOsprey on a nest at one of the towers near the old radio station at Radio Road. A new location in the county for breeding Osprey.
This morning, an old long-time favorite the drake Harlequin Duck was on a concrete slab out on the bay across from the Coyote Point Marina.
Ron ThornLeonie Batkin
