Date: 10/21/24 9:42 pm From: Marty Freeland via groups.io <martinf3...> Subject: [pen-bird] Recent notes: Blackburnian, Black-and-Whites, etc.
Hi all,
After a very solid September in San Mateo, October has been quite slow by comparison. Until yesterday I had had exactly three coastal vagrants in the month of October, all of which were Black-and-White Warblers (and one of which was a continuing bird). Much of the rest of coastal NorCal has also seen a lackluster October so far.
Yesterday (10/20) a beautiful HY male Blackburnian Warbler at Mori Pt. was my first on the north coast and a change from a number of full days put in on the coast with no real vagrants to show for them. Taking into account this bird as well as the one found today (10/21) by A. DeMartini at Central Park, there have 8 Blackburnians in the county since 2020. This is an increase; during the previous 5-year period I believe only 4 individuals were reported. A somewhat late Wilson's Warbler was along San Pedro Creek also on 10/20 near where one wintered last year; it may well be the same bird returning for a second winter. Nearby was an Orange-crowned Warbler apparently of the Channel Islands race sordida. An individual of this race also wintered (10/22/24) at the same site last year. Later in the day, a gray-headed Orange-crown showing characteristics of the easternmost race celata was at the Obispo Rd. willows in Half Moon Bay. This is the rarest of the four subspecies in the county.
Friday (10/18), another note on OCWA subspecies, a sordida-type was on outer Ano Nuevo Point. At a nearby site a lingering HY Western Flycatcher was slightly late.
The Black-and-Whites mentioned above were mostly quite some time ago now. Most recently, the bird that Logan Kahle and Caitlin Chock found at the Johnston House on 10/15 was still there the next day. (The other two were both on the south coast on 10/9 and reported at that time.)
If you are interested in getting Golden-crowned Kinglet as a patch bird just about anywhere in the county, or for that matter nearly anywhere in the region, now is your chance. They are everywhere. Numbers of Yellow-rumped Warblers are also way up from last week. Orestera-type Orange-crowned Warblers are present in perhaps slightly above-average numbers this season also (two together 10/19 afternoon at Miramar Willows, one each yesterday at Thornton SB and Denniston Creek, etc.).
Date: 10/20/24 5:02 pm From: Ronald- Thorn via groups.io <Tronthorn...> Subject: [pen-bird] Miscellaneous sightings the last several days
I noted the long staying male Harlequin Duck at Coyote Point County Park on the 15th. The Harlequin Duck was with( 71 ) Surf Scoters on the bay east of the concrete slabs. ( 4 ) Male Buffleheads on the Redwood Shores Lagoon onthe 17th are the first arrivals I have noted. A casual visitor on San Francisco Bay in the county were ( 2 ) Heermann'sGulls on the jetty at Oyster Point among ( 1,040 ) Elegant Terns. There were ( 3 ) lingering Caspian Terns on the saltpond at the Don Edwards- -Ravenswood Salt Pond SF2. The last couple of years, the salt pond have attracted alarge number of waterfowl. There were ( 420 ) Northern Pintails and ( 1,300 ) Northern Shovelers. This morning,I did a short skywatch from home in Redwood Shores. ( 5 ) Tree Swallows were winging it south. Most commonpasserine in flight that has greatly increased in numbers the last two days is Yellow-rumped Warbler. Unexpectedwere ( 3 ) male Great-tailed Grackles flying over the Redwood Shores Lagoon. The irruption of Red-breastedNuthatches last fall and winter appears to not be a repeat performance. The only Red-breasted Nuthatch I have noted this fall was along the bay shoreline in Foster City.
Ron Thorn
Date: 10/20/24 10:19 am From: maliadances via groups.io <maliadances...> Subject: [pen-bird] San Mateo County Cumulative Year-list Report for --- September 2024
*Greetings Pen-birders,*
*San Mateo County birders found a total of 21 species* that were new for the year by the end of September. But before we cover those new September birds for the year, I need to add two species from the month of August that I missed. Marty Freeland photographed a NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH (4) while birding the Pescadero Creek Rd. Butano Creek riparian area on August 31 st. During a pelagic with Alvaro’s Adventures, a NAZCA BOOBY (6) was spotted offshore in San Mateo waters also on August 31 st. In a Pen-bird post, Alvaro noted: “We saw an adult *Nazca Booby* on Aug 31, while two different fishing boats saw 2 in the area at about that time. One was a juvenile one was an adult. So at least two were in the Half Moon Bay area”. With the inclusion of the waterthrush and booby, the end of August total increased to 291 and the addition of the 21 species found in September bring the end of the ninth month totals to 312. 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. The definitions for the rarity codes can be found below the current month's list. The rarity code system was set up in 2009 By the late Kris Olson based on Peter Metropulos' codes on the San Mateo County Checklist which was published by Sequoia Audubon Society in 2006. *From the link below* , you can *download a checklist* which shows seasonality, frequency, and county breeding information. A full list of the birds observed so far in 2024, plus all monthly reports going back to 2009 can be found here: http://www.sequoia-audubon.org/SMCbirds.php ( http://www.sequoia-audubon.org/SMCbirds.php ) **
*Here are the new birds for September, their finders and locations where found:*
In the Pillar Point Marsh area, Donna Pomeroy found a WHITE-WINGED DOVE (5). Ron Thorn noted a CHIMNEY SWIFT (6) that he spotted during a visit to Cypress Lawn Cemetery. Ron posted the sighting to Pen-bird and gave a very detailed description of the bird mentioning field marks and flight style comparisons to Vaux’s Swift. Peter Metropulos noted a PECTORAL SANDPIPIER (5) at the Pillar Point Marsh creek outflow. GUADALUPE MURRELET (6) and MANX SHEARWATER (5) were spotted on different pelagic trips with Alvaro’s Adventures. During a Moss Beach seawatch, Ron Thorn spotted a BLACK-VENTED SHEARWATER (5). BROAD-WINGED HAWKS (5) were spotted by multiple observers at San Bruno Mountain and an unusual coastal sighting of this species was made by Alvaro Jaramillo at Burleigh Murray State Park on the same day. While skywatching at Skylawn Cemetery, Keith Gress spotted and photographed a northbound ZONE-TAILED HAWK (6). Not too much later the same day, a northbound Zone-tailed Hawk was observed and photographed by others in San Francisco, possible the same bird. Keith’s sighting of the Zone-tailed Hawk appears to be a county first! Bringing county species totals to 478. Frank Davis heard a BARRED OWL (6) vocalizing at the Wurr Rd. Flat Campground for two nights in a row. Ron Thorn and Leonie Batkin encountered a GRAY FLYCATCHER (5) at Sem Lane in Belmont. Howard Higley emailed me that he had observed an EASTERN KINGBIRD (5) near the parking lot along the trail at the Pillar Point Marsh. Marty Freeland contributed 3 species to the September list; RED-EYED VIREO (4) along Gazos CreeK Rd., CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER (4) along the San Pedro Terrace and coastal trail, and PRAIRIE WARBLER (5) in the Water Lane/Round Hill area in Pescadero. Caitlin Chock discovered a SAGE THRASHER (5) at Skylawn Cemetery. Tristan Yoo and Karen Tu photographed a LAPLAND LONGSPUR (5) while hiking a trail at San Bruno Mountain. BLACK-CHINNED SPARROW was photographed by Adam Dudley near the old gun club on the Rancho Corral God’s Trail above El Granada. The first VESPER SPARROW (4) of the year was observed by multiple observers, Dessi Sieburth, Marty Freeland and Noah Eckman at Ano Nuevo State Park. Alvaro spotted an ORCHARD ORIOLE (4) in his yard. Chris Hayward spotted a BALTIMORE ORIOLE (6) in his yard. While visiting Ano Nuevo State Park, Diego Perez found a BLACKPOLL WARBLER (4).
*Birding San Mateo County:* There are plenty of ways to see birds both on land and at sea. Did you know *Sequoia Audubon Society 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 Also *Alvaro’s Adventures runs offshore pelagic trips* with the *last scheduled trip of the season on October 26 th*. View Alvaro’s pelagic schedule and one can book a trip here:
*To stay informed of the latest bird news, consider creating an account with both Peninsula Birding (Pen-bird) and eBird*. Please join and post your bird sightings to <peninsula-birding...> ( <peninsula-birding...> ) and/or www.eBird.org ( https://www.eBird.org ). When posting to Pen-bird, please include the date of your sighting in either the subject line or in the body of your email. When submitting records to eBird, if prompted for details for a rare or unusual bird, please add details which describe the bird using a physical description and field marks that helped you confirm the ID. Thank You eBird users for adding your descriptions and uploading your photos and audio to your checklists. *To join eBird,* simply go to https://ebird.org/home ( https://ebird.org/home ) and create an account. *To join the Peninsula Birding group,* join here: https://groups.io/g/peninsula-birding ( 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. *About* *This Report:* As a volunteer for Sequoia Audubon Society, every month, I gather content for this report mainly by 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, please email: <maliadances...> ( <maliadances...> )
*Malia DeFelice*
Sequoia Audubon Society Volunteer
**Cumulative Year Report**
At home this morning in Redwood Shores, I set up my scope for a skywatch. With the brisk wind out of the NNEI was hoping for any raptors making there way along the bayside. At eleven, I spotted a juvenile Broad-winged Hawk high up drifting south over the border of Belmont and Redwood Shores.
A partial list of birds noted during a seawatch from Moss Beach yesterday. I was really surprised that I did nothave any tubenoses! Southbound waterfowl were ( 9 ) Northern Pintails, ( 2 ) Greater Scaup, ( 4 ) male BlackScoters together, a low number of ( 18 ) Surf Scoters, ( 1 ) Red-breasted Merganser. Loons have yet to be notedin high numbers. There were ( 115 ) Red-throated Loons, ( 12 ) Pacific Loons, and ( 2 ) Common Loons. Gettingnear the late side was a group of ( 12 ) Red-necked Phalaropes. ( 8 ) Parasitic Jaegers were trailing ElegantTerns south. A Pomarine Jaeger passed through one of the many feeding frenzies of gulls. A single Bonaparte'sGull. On the late side was a Pigeon Guillemot flying north.
Ron Thorn
Date: 10/12/24 2:06 pm From: maliadances via groups.io <maliadances...> Subject: [pen-bird] Bullock's Oriole and more Clay-colored Sparrows - Half Moon Bay
Hi All,
for the 4th consecutive day (today, 10/12 being the 4th) we have had a female type BULLOCK'S ORIOLE coming to our suet feeder and Bottlebrush plants in the backyard. Photos here:
https://ebird.org/checklist/S198365630
On 10/7 Chris found a CLAY-COLORED SPARROW along the Ben Cunha's Country Rd. that leads into the Sewer Authority Mid-Coastside, aka the Half Moon Bay Water Treatment Plant. Chris's photos are here https://ebird.org/checklist/S197959578 Chris notes a gps in the comments under Clay-colored Sparrow on the eBird checklist. He saw the bird again on 10/11 at the same location.
On 10/8 I spotted another CLAY-COLORED SPARROW along the trail leading to the Cowell Ranch beach access hand typed gps here 37.4224064, -122.4295735
ebird checklist with photos here https://ebird.org/checklist/S198063734
Date: 10/11/24 5:39 pm From: Chris M. via groups.io <chrismac...> Subject: [pen-bird] Christmas Bird Counts (CBCs) in San Mateo county
Hi everyone, I am again organizing two CBCs and hope you will sign up to help with these counts.
Saturday, Dec 14 - Crystal Springs count
Saturday, Dec 28 - Ano Nuevo count.
Both are great fun, have some of the highest species tallies in the country, and end with very enjoyable dinners.
Date: 10/10/24 4:48 pm From: Ronald- Thorn via groups.io <Tronthorn...> Subject: [pen-bird] Clay-colored Sparrow in Foster City
Today in Foster City, there was a Clay-colored Sparrow at Sea Cloud Park. The Clay-colored Sparrow was onthe lawn with crown sparrows and Savannah Sparrows. Occasionally flying back to bushes along the fence when chased by a White-crowned Sparrow. This area is on the south side of the parking lot at the end of Sea Cloud Drive. There are two benches and a batting cage near the parking lot where the sparrows were foraging. Verygood view of the Clay-colored Sparrow out in the open on the lawn!
At the Nob Hill Pond in Redwood Shores, there have been ( 3 ) Blue-winged Teal since September. The 2nd. of this month, the number of Blue-winged Teal increased to ( 8 ). Among the ( 8 ) there were ( 6 ) males. Thenew arrivals were migrants, as the next day ( 3 ) continued and are still being noted.
Looking forward to the approaching cold front over the weekend!
Ron Thorn
Date: 10/9/24 9:32 pm From: Marty Freeland via groups.io <martinf3...> Subject: [pen-bird] Recent notes: Two Black-and-white Warblers, etc.
Hi all,
The weather this weekend was for the most part clear and blazing hot along the coast and migrants were in rather short supply. Covering the central and south coast Saturday, Sunday, and today (Wednesday) yielded only two vagrants, both Black-and-White Warblers on the south coast this afternoon. Not much around compared to last week!
Saturday 10/5 the most notable bird was a White-breasted Nuthatch along Tunitas Creek Rd. a short distance above the intersection with Lobitos Creek Cutoff. This was my first in the coastal portion of San Mateo County. (It was about 2 miles from the coast, so not actually too close, but stillthis oak forest specialist is very unusual outside of the portions of the county in which it is resident, and in a strict sense probably rarer on Tunitas than many Eastern warblers would be.) As far as I could tell the appearance of this bird was consistent with the expected ssp. S. c. aculeata. Migrant numbers were not very high and activity was low in the heat. Black-throated Gray Warblers continue to be well represented with one along Tunitas, one at the Purisima Cemetery, and one at Arroyo Leon near the Johnston House.
Sunday 10/6 another pulse of Golden-crowned Kinglets brought birds to the cypresses at Pigeon Pt. (!) and to miniature conifers in the Christmas tree plantation just north of Pie Ranch. During a short seawatch at Pigeon Pt., which was slow despite perfect visibility, the Golden-crowned Kinglet made a couple short flights out to the NW over the ocean but turned back to the cypresses each time. The recent incursion also brought one to Jasper Ridge, present during fieldwork today (10/9), where they are quite rare. The first Hermit Warbler I have noted near the coast this fall was in riparian along Pescadero Creek viewed from a pullout on Cloverdale Rd. just south of Pescadero Ck. Rd., the same spot where a Chestnut-sided was last weekend.
By this afternoon (10/9) the hot clear spell had ended and the coast was birdier. A Black-and-White Warbler was along Whitehouse Creek near Costanoa with a large flock and another was behind the gas station on lower Gazos Creek about half an hour later. The latter bird was an adult male, perhaps the same individual photographed on 9/28 by Noah Arthur less than a quarter-mile upstream. A Black-and-White was present on lower Gazos at least into mid-November last year and may have wintered, found by Dessi Sieburth I believe, making one wonder whether this adult male might be that bird returning. Its plumage last year looked fine for HY male as I recall but I do not think it was ever photographed. (Another BAWW also wintered on upper Gazos last year a couple miles away.) Incredible gull numbers (6,000+) were at the mouth of Gazos Creek and another large flock was on Pescadero SB. These should be checked for Laughing, Lesser Black-backed, and other rare gulls that are not as strictly tied to winter.
In other minor news, 2 of the Swainson's Thrushes tagged at Jasper Ridge this past summer have been detected elsewhere so farone at Pt. Mugu, Santa Catalina Is., and Pt. Loma (9/279/28), and the other in Ensenada and then at Punta Mazo in Baja California (9/119/12). Both were HY birds.
Date: 10/4/24 1:03 pm From: Alvaro Jaramillo via groups.io <chucao...> Subject: [pen-bird] Orchard Oriole train keeps on chugging through.
Hello
I saw an Orchard Oriole yesterday morning, and one this morning. Each
visit of the orioles has been for a few minutes at the most. I am tempted to
think they may all be stop overs during diurnal migration. We shall see. So
far I have had 5 days with sightings, one day with 2 birds together. A
maximum of 6 birds, a minimum of two. The reality is likely in between. All
have been in my backyard in Half Moon Bay. The bird today I photographed
poorly and it seems to have new darker central tail feathers, suggesting it
is a young male.
Otherwise lots of Tricolored Blackbirds were about at Cowell Ranch Beach
Park in Half Moon Bay yesterday afternoon. Many flying south, perhaps to the
area by Bob's Pumpkins. I estimated 800 in the flock when they were all
together. They began to fly in smaller groups of 50 - 100 or so in the
evening. What was interesting was seeing a good number (20+) Anna's
Hummingbirds in the area. I think they are attracted to the big field of
flowering faba beans there!!
Date: 10/3/24 7:15 am From: Peter Metropulos via groups.io <pjmetrop...> Subject: [pen-bird] CACKLING GOOSE at Lake Lucerne
Yesterday afternoon (10/2) I found a lone CACKLING GOOSE on Lake Lucerne near the causeway at Bean Hollow Road. Most Cacklers we find locally are of the Aleutian race which are dark-breasted and usually have a white neck ring.But this bird was pale-breasted and lacked the ring and was therefore most likely a "Richardson's".
There was a nice gull flock at Gazos Creek Beach which included my first-of-Fall HERRING GULL .This is a typical arrival date for the species.
Highlights from the San Mateo coast this weekend were five species of Eastern warbler, including Prairie.
On Friday (9/27) I covered the north coast for much of the morning before stopping by the SF Grace's Warbler stakeout. Migrant numbers were solid but there was little out of the ordinary. At dawn from the Pillar Point headland I had a Chaetura swift flying south just offshore. My views were not good but while in view it was gliding almost uninterruptedly. A little frustrating, as although I guess it was likely a Vaux's it seemed that there was a chance it might have been a Chimney, especially given the two very recent records from relatively nearby.
Saturday (9/28) the south coast was excellent despite patchy fog early on and NW winds picking up in the middle of the afternoon. There were solid migrant numbers just about everywhere. In the morning I had a Black-and-White Warbler and a female-type American Redstart at a restricted-access location on the south coast. (Unfortunately it's not possible to open the site for general access right now; I hesitate even to mention these birds, as they are not chaseable, but I figured the news might be of some interest nevertheless.) In the early afternoon, stopping at a pullout along Cloverdale Rd. near Pescadero town, basically west across Pescadero Creek from Phipps Ranch, a Chestnut-sided Warbler was with a small flock. It only had one tail feather. And a little later I found a beautiful bright Prairie Warbler with a flock out on the Round Hill Trail from the end of Water Lane, likely a HY male. This is the 9th Prairie Warbler in the county since 2020, a major increase over just 3 in the preceding 5-year period.
Sunday (9/29) migrant numbers were generally somewhat lower despite what seemed like better weather (basically calm with a highish overcast), though Yellow Warbler numbers bucked this trend and were up a bit, and there were still some good birds around. A Blackpoll Warbler was in willows near the docent kiosk (still under construction) on outer Ao Nuevo Point. I was surprised to see an early White-throated Sparrow at Pie Ranch with impressive numbers of other sparrows along scrub at the edge of a small cornfield; this is the first I have seen in September in the region. The setup at Pie Ranch now is great: the north side of the farm is loaded with sparrows and seems excellent for Bobolink and similar also. Pie Ranch is private but has many visitors and I have been informed that birders are welcome. It would be good manners to buy something at the farmstand if you are there. My FOS coastal Yellow-rumped Warbler and FOS gray-headed Orange-crowned Warbler were together in hemlock along Reservoir Rd.
Monday morning (9/30) was again slow and I did not note anything unusual. Except that, while working at Jasper Ridge in the afternoon, I tallied 5 Black-throated Gray Warblers, and I also had a total of 6 along the coast across 9/28 and 9/29. These numbers are remarkable. I have also noted a couple Golden-crowned Kinglets at coastal sites where they are not regular, though the incursion has not been on the scale reported recently in San Francisco and Marin. Western Flycatchers, Warbling Vireos, and Wilson's Warblers have really cleared out; I had only small handfuls of these. House Wren numbers are still high but not as extreme as they have been for the past couple weeks. Late in the afternoon I tried and failed to relocate the Gray Flycatcher found by Ron Thorn and Leonie Batkin at Sem Lane.
As always, photos, location details, and other documentation will be on eBird. In the case of restricted-access sites, like the BAWW/AMRE spot this weekend, eBird submission may be delayed.
Date: 9/30/24 12:15 pm From: Ronald- Thorn via groups.io <Tronthorn...> Subject: [pen-bird] Gray Flycatcher at Sem Lane
This morning Leonie and I had a Gray Flycatcher at the end of Sem Lane in Belmont. The Gray Flycatcher was working along the public access trail in the trees from the blue garbage bin and to the second bench. When itwas not foraging, it spent time inside the canopy of the trees. Could be located by the whit calls it was giving.Last seen by the blue garbage bin. It had flown over to the public access trail across the slough. Sem Lane has had an attraction for Gray Flycatchers, as todays one is the fourth record from there.
Other notes from today. More sparrows have arrived along the bayside. An increase in the number of SavannahSparrows. There was Chipping Sparrow at Coyote Point County Park. Another Chipping Sparrow was in FosterCity. The first arrival of White-throated Sparrow I have noted was in Foster City.
Ron ThornLeonie Batkin
Date: 9/28/24 7:17 am From: Ronald- Thorn via groups.io <Tronthorn...> Subject: [pen-bird] Moss Beach seawatch Friday 27th
With no dense fog in the forecast for the coast, I headed out for a seawatch from Moss Beach. There was not a lot of activity going on and I kept the seawatch to two hours. Sightings are from a partial list. The first I have noted this fall was the arrival of a Black-vented Shearwater. Other tubenoses were ( 11 ) Pink-footed Shearwaters, ( 37 ) SootyShearwaters. Jaegers put on a nice showing, ( 6 ) Parasitic Jaegers and ( 4 ) Pomarine Jaegers. Migrant loons were( 4 ) Red-throated Loons, ( 5 ) Pacific Loons and ( 3 ) Common Loons.
Ron Thorn
Date: 9/27/24 9:14 pm From: Alvaro Jaramillo via groups.io <chucao...> Subject: [pen-bird] lots of backyard action in Half Moon Bay.
Hello all,
It has been a pretty good week or so for birds in the backyard. Today I
saw two (together) Orchard Orioles in the backyard and they seem to be
different ones than the one that was around a few days back (Sept 24) based
on plumage. https://ebird.org/checklist/S196390845
On Sept 19 a "Calaveras" Nashville Warbler, the western subspecies was in
the yard:
Date: 9/27/24 7:48 pm From: Christopher Hayward via groups.io <p_t_nymph...> Subject: [pen-bird] Chestnut-sided Warbler, Half Moon Bay WTP, and Broad-winged Hawks, San Bruno Mountain, 9/27/24
Hi All,
This morning the riparian area along the creek at the Half Moon Bay Water Treatment Plant was very active, with good numbers of Townsend Warblers and the first Yellow-rumped Warbler I've noted here this fall. Highlight was a bright Chestnut-sided Warbler.
From there I went to a location on the north side of San Bruno Mountain Park which has great views looking north towards San Francisco. After about 20 minutes 2 Broad-winged Hawks went by just to the west of my location, I was then joined by Dorian Anderson who shortly after arriving spotted a group of 3 distant hawks heading south towards us from the city, once near us we confirmed 3 more Broad-winged Hawks as the group circled over us, just west of our location. Dorian had 2 more Broad-winged Hawks as he descended the mountain on his bike.
Photos of the Chestnut-sided Warbler on my ebird checklist link below.
Date: 9/25/24 5:49 pm From: Christopher Hayward via groups.io <p_t_nymph...> Subject: [pen-bird] Vesper and Clay-colored Sparrows, Pilarcitos Creek, 9/25/24
Hi All,
This morning I was checking Pilarcitos Creek Mouth for shorebirds, not much happening on that front, but there seemed to be a good number of Savannah Sparrows along the dry weedy area of the creek. While checking through them I found a Vesper Sparrow, first seen here, 37.47506, -122.44819 but moving around a lot.
A bit later, slightly farther downstream I also saw a Clay-colored Sparrow, first along the dry creek bed, but occasionally popping up to the Lupine Bushes on the edge of the bluff.
A few photos are on my ebird checklist, link below.
Not repetitive at all, different perspectives on the days and it is great to have some more traffic on here to let people know what is around and what is going on.
Lists like penbird are great for context unlike the rare bird socials. Thanks for the posts from both of you.
Golden-crowned Sparrow arrival in my Half Moon Bay backyard today. Lincoln’s Sparrow arrived yesterday.
From: <peninsula-birding...> <peninsula-birding...> On Behalf Of Alexandre Castelein
Sent: Tuesday, September 24, 2024 8:40 AM
To: <alex.castelein...>
Cc: <peninsula-birding...>
Subject: Re: [pen-bird] Recent Birds - Broad-winged Hawks, Tennessee & Chestnut-sided Warblers, Chipping Sparrow, etc
Apologies for the repetitiveness from Marty's email, as my first post had to be approved before it went through and I couldn't edit it after sending the email.
One more note I forgot to add - I checked the Foster City Shell Bar at high tide on 9/22, and had a very nice count of 202 Black Skimmers (probably slightly less than the actual number there) and did not expect to see the 2 Surfbirds I had among the thousands of more common waders.
I wanted to share a couple notes from the last week or two, excluding the outings that Marty has already summarized.
First off Bedwell Bayfront Park has been attracting a small number of migrants in the blooming fennel patches. The most promising one is on the southeast edge of the park, where there was a Chipping Sparrow on 9/15 and several warblers including my FOS Audubon's on 9/22. There is also a decent patch by the main parking lot (the one with the restrooms) that held several Yellow Warblers, and could yield something better. One more note here, there seems to be a feral cat population residing in the northwest fennel patch, which might explain why I saw no birds there...
Hitting some North Coast spots on 9/18, the best bird was a Chestnut-sided Warbler at the lower end of San Pedro Creek, which appeared to be a different bird from the one Marty had a little farther up 4 days earlier. There was also a continuing singing Cassin's Vireo at Fitzgerald and Peter Metropulos's continuing Pectoral Sandpiper at Pillar Point Harbor in the freshwater pond.
On my way back from the SF Rare Bird Roundup on 9/20, I decided to try stopping by San Bruno Mountain for an afternoon hawk watch with a specific species in mind. Unfortunately there was someone at the kiosk and the conditions weren't the best so I decided to turn around, but more on San Bruno Mt later...
Today (9/23) Marty and I were planning to start early and hit the south coast, until I slept in a little too long and stood him up until 8 am (yikes!). By then others had found good birds in HMB, so we decided to try our luck on the North Coast instead. Decent migrant numbers held the first notable bird at upper Tunitas Creek where there was an apparent sordida subspecies of Orange-crowned Warbler. This subspecies is only usual on the Channel Islands and in coastal Socal, and quite rare (though certainly overlooked) anywhere else. Driving between spots we had a Loggerhead Shrike on the wires above Verde Rd just south of the pond. Finally we walked up to a nice Tennessee Warbler foraging calmly in the tree right above the path at a willow patch in Miramar, shortly before connecting with the Blackpoll Warbler that Grigory Heaton found in the Pillar Point cypresses.
After failing to refind Chris's Baltimore in HMB, we gunned up to San Bruno Mountain to attempt a hawk watch, having heard about dozens of Broad-winged Hawks passing through SF and hoping to try our luck for a few stragglers in San Mateo County. We found a nice spot to set up on a ridge at these coords: 37.703496, -122.429908, which provided great views in every direction. After an inquisitive visit by a yote, we started noting Accipiters (mostly Sharp-shinned), Red-tails, and Vaux's Swifts migrating south along several flight paths. It only took about 30 minutes for our efforts to be rewarded with 3-4 Broad-winged Hawks west of our position, slowly meandering south! They circled together with a Red-tail in one area for a minute or two while gaining altitude, before continuing on their journey southward. The warm and clear conditions with little to no wind today made for perfect hawk watch conditions. We couldn't stick around too long, but with one other broadie report from San Bruno Mt today it's certainly worth watching from this area more often in good conditions.
I'm heading back to UCSB tomorrow, but I wish everyone a great rest of the fall here! More detailed locations and documentation for all these birds can be found on eBird.
Apologies for the repetitiveness from Marty's email, as my first post had
to be approved before it went through and I couldn't edit it after sending
the email.
One more note I forgot to add - I checked the Foster City Shell Bar at high
tide on 9/22, and had a very nice count of 202 Black Skimmers (probably
slightly less than the actual number there) and did not expect to see the 2
Surfbirds I had among the thousands of more common waders.
On Tue, Sep 24, 2024 at 8:34 AM Alexandre Castelein via groups.io
<alex.castelein...> wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> I wanted to share a couple notes from the last week or two, excluding the
> outings that Marty has already summarized.
>
> First off Bedwell Bayfront Park has been attracting a small number of
> migrants in the blooming fennel patches. The most promising one is on the
> southeast edge of the park, where there was a Chipping Sparrow on 9/15 and
> several warblers including my FOS Audubon's on 9/22. There is also a decent
> patch by the main parking lot (the one with the restrooms) that held
> several Yellow Warblers, and could yield something better. One more note
> here, there seems to be a feral cat population residing in the northwest
> fennel patch, which might explain why I saw no birds there...
>
> Hitting some North Coast spots on 9/18, the best bird was a Chestnut-sided
> Warbler at the lower end of San Pedro Creek, which appeared to be a
> different bird from the one Marty had a little farther up 4 days earlier.
> There was also a continuing singing Cassin's Vireo at Fitzgerald and Peter
> Metropulos's continuing Pectoral Sandpiper at Pillar Point Harbor in the
> freshwater pond.
>
> On my way back from the SF Rare Bird Roundup on 9/20, I decided to try
> stopping by San Bruno Mountain for an afternoon hawk watch with a
> specific species in mind. Unfortunately there was someone at the kiosk and
> the conditions weren't the best so I decided to turn around, but more on
> San Bruno Mt later...
>
> Today (9/23) Marty and I were planning to start early and hit the south
> coast, until I slept in a little too long and stood him up until 8 am
> (yikes!). By then others had found good birds in HMB, so we decided to try
> our luck on the North Coast instead. Decent migrant numbers held the first
> notable bird at upper Tunitas Creek where there was an apparent sordida
> subspecies of Orange-crowned Warbler. This subspecies is only usual on the
> Channel Islands and in coastal Socal, and quite rare (though certainly
> overlooked) anywhere else. Driving between spots we had a Loggerhead Shrike
> on the wires above Verde Rd just south of the pond. Finally we walked up to
> a nice Tennessee Warbler foraging calmly in the tree right above the path
> at a willow patch in Miramar, shortly before connecting with the Blackpoll
> Warbler that Grigory Heaton found in the Pillar Point cypresses.
>
> After failing to refind Chris's Baltimore in HMB, we gunned up to San
> Bruno Mountain to attempt a hawk watch, having heard about dozens of
> Broad-winged Hawks passing through SF and hoping to try our luck for a few
> stragglers in San Mateo County. We found a nice spot to set up on a ridge
> at these coords: 37.703496, -122.429908, which provided great views in
> every direction. After an inquisitive visit by a yote, we started noting
> Accipiters (mostly Sharp-shinned), Red-tails, and Vaux's Swifts migrating
> south along several flight paths. It only took about 30 minutes for our
> efforts to be rewarded with 3-4 Broad-winged Hawks west of our position,
> slowly meandering south! They circled together with a Red-tail in one area
> for a minute or two while gaining altitude, before continuing on their
> journey southward. The warm and clear conditions with little to no wind
> today made for perfect hawk watch conditions. We couldn't stick around too
> long, but with one other broadie report from San Bruno Mt today it's
> certainly worth watching from this area more often in good conditions.
>
> I'm heading back to UCSB tomorrow, but I wish everyone a great rest of the
> fall here! More detailed locations and documentation for all these birds
> can be found on eBird.
>
> All the best!
> Alex Castelein
> Menlo Park
>
>
>
I wanted to share a couple notes from the last week or two, excluding the outings that Marty has already summarized.
First off Bedwell Bayfront Park has been attracting a small number of migrants in the blooming fennel patches. The most promising one is on the southeast edge of the park, where there was a Chipping Sparrow on 9/15 and several warblers including my FOS Audubon's on 9/22. There is also a decent patch by the main parking lot (the one with the restrooms) that held several Yellow Warblers, and could yield something better. One more note here, there seems to be a feral cat population residing in the northwest fennel patch, which might explain why I saw no birds there...
Hitting some North Coast spots on 9/18, the best bird was a Chestnut-sided Warbler at the lower end of San Pedro Creek, which appeared to be a different bird from the one Marty had a little farther up 4 days earlier. There was also a continuing singing Cassin's Vireo at Fitzgerald and Peter Metropulos's continuing Pectoral Sandpiper at Pillar Point Harbor in the freshwater pond.
On my way back from the SF Rare Bird Roundup on 9/20, I decided to try stopping by San Bruno Mountain for an afternoon hawk watch with a specific species in mind. Unfortunately there was someone at the kiosk and the conditions weren't the best so I decided to turn around, but more on San Bruno Mt later...
Today (9/23) Marty and I were planning to start early and hit the south coast, until I slept in a little too long and stood him up until 8 am (yikes!). By then others had found good birds in HMB, so we decided to try our luck on the North Coast instead. Decent migrant numbers held the first notable bird at upper Tunitas Creek where there was an apparent sordida subspecies of Orange-crowned Warbler. This subspecies is only usual on the Channel Islands and in coastal Socal, and quite rare (though certainly overlooked) anywhere else. Driving between spots we had a Loggerhead Shrike on the wires above Verde Rd just south of the pond. Finally we walked up to a nice Tennessee Warbler foraging calmly in the tree right above the path at a willow patch in Miramar, shortly before connecting with the Blackpoll Warbler that Grigory Heaton found in the Pillar Point cypresses.
After failing to refind Chris's Baltimore in HMB, we gunned up to San Bruno Mountain to attempt a hawk watch, having heard about dozens of Broad-winged Hawks passing through SF and hoping to try our luck for a few stragglers in San Mateo County. We found a nice spot to set up on a ridge at these coords: 37.703496, -122.429908, which provided great views in every direction. After an inquisitive visit by a yote, we started noting Accipiters (mostly Sharp-shinned), Red-tails, and Vaux's Swifts migrating south along several flight paths. It only took about 30 minutes for our efforts to be rewarded with 3-4 Broad-winged Hawks west of our position, slowly meandering south! They circled together with a Red-tail in one area for a minute or two while gaining altitude, before continuing on their journey southward. The warm and clear conditions with little to no wind today made for perfect hawk watch conditions. We couldn't stick around too long, but with one other broadie report from San Bruno Mt today it's certainly worth watching from this area more often in good conditions.
I'm heading back to UCSB tomorrow, but I wish everyone a great rest of the fall here! More detailed locations and documentation for all these birds can be found on eBird.
Date: 9/23/24 10:36 pm From: Marty Freeland via groups.io <martinf3...> Subject: [pen-bird] Notes 9/20–9/23: Broad-winged Hawks, Vesper Sparrow, new Summer Tan, Tennessee + Chestnut-sided, sordida Orange-crown, etc.
Hi all,
Highlights from the past few days in the county included Broad-winged Hawks, Tennessee and Chestnut-sided warblers, Vesper Sparrow, a new Summer Tanager, Baird's Sandpiper, a sordida Orange-crowned Warbler, and a continuing Blackpoll Warbler.
On Friday 9/20 I birded the south coast with Dessi Sieburth and Noah Eckman. At Ao Nuevo a Vesper Sparrow and a Western Kingbird were just west of the pond. Last fall, and in fact all of last year, no Vesper Sparrows were recorded in the county, but over the past couple days there have been two (this bird and one in Daly City found by Sam Talarigo). Along Whitehouse Creek we had a dull reddish Summer Tanager. And late in the day a Baird's Sandpiper, the fourth this fall on the coast and the fifth in the county, was with Killdeer on Tunitas Creek Beach. Migrant numbers were excellent throughout the day, with impressive counts of Western Flycatcher, among others, and my county first-of-fall Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Lincoln's Sparrow, Say's Phoebe, and American Pipit at various locations. A Cassin's Vireo was with a large flock along San Gregorio Creek. Two Golden Eagles, adult and juvenile, were along Gazos and Cloverdale roads respectively.
Saturday 9/21 I covered the central coast and encountered many fewer passerine migrants than the previous day, but some waterfowl movement over the past night was evident. At Pescadero Marsh arrivals included 5 Greater White-fronted Geese, quite early, and numbers of Northern Shoveler, American Wigeon, and Cinnamon Teal, along with a lone Green-winged Teal. Northern Pintails were on various small coastal ponds as well. My FOS Hermit Thrush was along Gazos Creek and another early American Pipit was at San Gregorio SB. A single Nashville Warbler at a feeder stream of San Gregorio Creek along Madera Loop off of Hwy. 84 was the most notable passerine all day.
Sunday 9/22 on the north coast migrant numbers were fair and I had 12 Chestnut-sided Warblers along San Pedro Creek, near where I had one last weekend and where Alex Castelein had one during the week. My FOS Golden-crowned Sparrow was nearby in Pacifica. A Hooded/Orchard Oriole was briefly in Eucalyptus along Sunshine Valley Rd in Moss Beach. And a MacGillivray's Warbler was at Princeton Willows.
Monday 9/23 I covered the central coast in the morning and San Bruno Mountain in the afternoon with Alex Castelein. An Orange-crowned Warbler of the Channel Islands subspecies sordida was along Tunitas Creek. This is the second county record, to my knowledge, although undoubtedly many go unreported. (I had the first at San Pedro Creek last October and it stayed for the winter, during which it was found independently by Cdric Duhalde.) We also found a Tennessee Warbler at Miramar Willows (#3 this fall) and saw the Blackpoll Warbler found by others at Pillar Pt. Efforts to relocate the Baltimore Oriole around Chris and Malia's neighborhood were unsuccessful. What a yard bird!
With excellent weather conditions and a good date we hoped to catch a flight of Broad-winged Hawks in the afternoon. Reports of numbers crossing San Francisco were very encouraging, so we headed up to San Bruno Mountain, which I tend to think is the county's best vantage for hawks in fall. Sure enough, we tallied 17 Sharp-shinned Hawks and eventually three light-morph juvenile Broad-winged Hawks came by at about 2:40 PM. We also had about 15 Chaetura swifts, presumably all Vaux's but all very distant, and one each of Say's Phoebe and Townsend's Warbler dropping in to the summit, coming from the north and very high up. My FOS Yellow-rumped Warblers in the county were present also.
As mentioned earlier Western Flycatcher numbers have been high across the board with more than 20 (!) individuals on Friday and almost as many on Sunday. House Wren numbers also continue to be incredibly high, with an especially remarkable tally of at least 7 along just over a mile of trail in Pescadero Marsh on Saturday morning. Both these species seem to be having an excellent season region-wide. I have also noted above-average numbers of Black-throated Gray Warbler.
Date: 9/23/24 6:54 pm From: Christopher Hayward via groups.io <p_t_nymph...> Subject: [pen-bird] Backyard Baltimore Oriole, 9/23/24
Hi All,
This morning while having morning coffee in the backyard an Oriole popped up briefly on our Bottle Brush, in the bright morning sun it seemed very orange especially on the breast, as I reached for my camera it flew into our neighbors yard. Fortunately I could see it moving around in one of their large bushes and I managed a couple of photos.
The photos confirmed the quick look I had when it first popped up, very nice orange color especially on the upper breast, Baltimore Oriole!
The encounter was less than a minute before it flew off east. We have kept an eye on the yard today but so far it has not shown up again.
Photos on my ebird checklist link below.
Date: 9/23/24 3:22 pm From: richard s. cimino via groups.io <rscimino...> Subject: Re: [pen-bird] Chimney Swift and other recent notes
Ron, an Interesting posting.
Two weeks ago, during a McNear Brick Yard Vaux's Swift count, several experienced counters, Rusty Scalf, Mike and Brenda Helms, Maureen Lahiff, including myself, heard a Chimmy Swift. Of course, once we start counting, we cannot take our eyes off the chimneys to look up. No one saw the bird, but we did have a lengthy conversation about the call.
Vaux's Swift continuous chatter is ongoing as they vortex in a chorographic manner around the Chimney’s, so we are in tune with Vaux's Swift call. The call we agreed on was a Chimney Swift. We're not in the habit of posting the brickyard activity, so we did not report the Chimney on a listserv or eBird.
From: <peninsula-birding...> <peninsula-birding...> On Behalf Of Ronald- Thorn via groups.io
Sent: Monday, September 23, 2024 7:09 AM
To: Peninsula Birding <peninsula-birding...>
Subject: [pen-bird] Chimney Swift and other recent notes
Notes from yesterday morning at the Cypress Lawn Cemetery in Colma. I got on a swift coming in from the north. My
impression at first it was a White-throated Swift. As it got close, it was all uniform dark looking. Black Swift would be
larger. For about 30 seconds I watched it glide low over the cemetery. Wings narrow and swept back. Secondaries
wide. The Vaux's seen earlier, the flight more hurried and less gliding. My impression is when I see a Vaux's is more
bat like. The Vaux's wings appear more tapered. The Chimney Swift has dark underparts, throat slightly lighter. Vaux's
pale throat contrasts with a dark crown. I could not get a great look at the upperparts, but my impression was all dark
It is not the first from San Mateo County, as there have been others and some I have seen. I have seen Chimney
Swifts breeding in Minnesota, New York, Missouri, and eastern New Mexico. There was not much different in what
I have been noting at the cemetery. Leonie did have a Golden-crowned Kinglet.
Other notes from during the week at drop-in migrant locations along the bayside were the arrival of Yellow-rumped
Warblers, Chipping Sparrows and the first Gambel's and Puget Sound White-crowned Sparrows on the 19th. The
first Golden-crowned Sparrow the 21st. The number of Western Flycatchers this fall along the bayside have been
very high. I may average a few during the fall. At this date, there have been ( 40 ) noted this month and still more
Date: 9/23/24 7:12 am From: Ronald- Thorn via groups.io <Tronthorn...> Subject: [pen-bird] Chimney Swift and other recent notes
Notes from yesterday morning at the Cypress Lawn Cemetery in Colma. I got on a swift coming in from the north. Myimpression at first it was a White-throated Swift. As it got close, it was all uniform dark looking. Black Swift would belarger. For about 30 seconds I watched it glide low over the cemetery. Wings narrow and swept back. Secondarieswide. The Vaux's seen earlier, the flight more hurried and less gliding. My impression is when I see a Vaux's is more bat like. The Vaux's wings appear more tapered. The Chimney Swift has dark underparts, throat slightly lighter. Vaux'spale throat contrasts with a dark crown. I could not get a great look at the upperparts, but my impression was all darkIt is not the first from San Mateo County, as there have been others and some I have seen. I have seen ChimneySwifts breeding in Minnesota, New York, Missouri, and eastern New Mexico. There was not much different in what I have been noting at the cemetery. Leonie did have a Golden-crowned Kinglet.
Other notes from during the week at drop-in migrant locations along the bayside were the arrival of Yellow-rumpedWarblers, Chipping Sparrows and the first Gambel's and Puget Sound White-crowned Sparrows on the 19th. Thefirst Golden-crowned Sparrow the 21st. The number of Western Flycatchers this fall along the bayside have beenvery high. I may average a few during the fall. At this date, there have been ( 40 ) noted this month and still moreto come.
Ron ThornLeonie Batkin
Date: 9/22/24 4:36 pm From: Kent Forward via groups.io <kforward...> Subject: [pen-bird] Red-naped Sapsucker, Chestnut-sided Warbler at San Pedro Valley County Park 9/22/24
Hi All,
I had an eventful afternoon trip to San Pedro Valley County Park today that included a Red-naped Sapsucker. It was seen along the paved entrance trail that parallels Trout Farm Road (the entrance road). A well drilled live oak (most holes looked aged, not freshly drilled), on the left just before you get to main parking lot and a "Mile 0" sign (if walking in), approximate GPS: 37.5795103, -122.4754555
Also, a Chestnut-sided Warbler was in a somewhat small but active flock that also included a Black-Throated Gray Warbler. This was along the Trout Farm Trail riparian at approximately GPS: 37.5762564, -122.4766343
Happy migration!
Kent Forward,El Granada
