I have visited Calero Reservoir a few times over the past week, and have confirmed that both CLARK'S and WESTERN GREBES are breeding there. I saw both of these species on nests in the cattails. I don't know how they tolerate all the human activity on these waters. Yesterday, 17 Jun 2018, I saw one bird of the SWAINSON'S HAWK pair by the charter school on Monterey Hwy in Coyote Valley. Today, 18 Jun 2018, I saw a GREAT-TAILED GRACKLE fly by over Bailey Ave, heading towards the IBM facility. Michael Mammoser
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Date: 6/18/18 9:58 am From: Chuq Von Rospach <chuqvr...> Subject: [southbaybirds] FYI: West Nile Season
FYI to everyone — the first birds confirmed to have the West Nile virus
have been found in the county, so we’re now in West Nile season. This is
mosquito borne, so you need to take precautions against the buggers.
The county is going to start fogging efforts because of this find, with
sections of Santa Clara and Sunnyvale to be covered.
Just your annual reminder that this is one more thing we have to be a bit
worried about, like ticks and the ultimate heat death of the universe.
Date: 6/17/18 8:07 am From: Frank Vanslager via Groups.Io <Vanslagerf=<aol.com...> Subject: [southbaybirds] The Charleston Slough Field Trip of 6/16/18
All:
On Nick Yatsko's excellent field trip I recorded 46 species. Some excellent sightings near the end were of a male Hooded Oriole and a male Bullock's Oriole in the same tree, and a perched Black Skimmer on the island in Shoreline Lake.
Frank Vanslager
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Date: 6/15/18 3:30 pm From: bbow_watcher via Groups.Io <craigow=<yahoo.com...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Reply to msg 18455 Bald Eagles at Curtner, Sandy Wool; pics
I spoke to someone who works for the East Bay Regional Parks in early May and he happened to mention he had discovered a new Bald Eagles nest in a big oak tree somewhere in the vicinity of Ed Levin Park. I don't remember the details but he used Ed Levin as one of the reference points. He knew about the tower nest and the other nest used by those Eagles by the Calaveras Dam.
Craig OwSan Jose
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Date: 6/14/18 1:53 pm From: Brooke Miller <idbirds...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Santa Clara County 2018 Cumulative Year List - MAY
Hello South Bay Birders!
We had 10 new birds in May, bringing the total count to 253. The average new birds found in May is 9, while the average total bird species recorded through May is 251. The new birds for May, with rarity codes in parentheses were:
2-May: Two Wilson’s Phalaropes (2) were seen by Bill Pelletier at the Alviso Marina County Park (Salt Pond A12);
4-May: A Gray Flycatcher (5) was found along the Los Gatos Creek Trail near Meridian Ave., by Louise Liou;
8-May: A Black Swift (5) was seen by Garth Harwood near the Monte Bello OSP Gate 5;
8-May: A Yellow-breasted Chat (5) was heard by Ozzie Altus along the creek at West Valley College;
9-May: Two Blue Grosbeaks (4) were seen by Alex Rinkert at CCFS (Coyote Creek Field Station);
9-May: A Yellow-headed Blackbird (5) was seen by Richard Jeffers at Ulistac Natural Area;
12-May: A Black Tern (5) was seen and photographed by Raymond Liao flying above Salt Pond A12;
12-May: A Common Nighthawk (6) was seen flying by The Junction Café by several members of a GGAS (Golden Gate Audubon Society) field trip including Anne Hoff and Dan Brown;
21-May: Two Black-chinned Sparrows (4) were seen flying above the canyon by Bill Pelletier on the Santa Clara County side of the Loma Prieta Area; and
22-May: A Northern Parula (6) was discovered by Gena Zolotar at Mitchell Park in Palo Alto.
Date: 6/13/18 2:18 pm From: Steve Cavigliano <scavigliano...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Bald Eagles at Curtner, Sandy Wool; pics
Hi All,This is my first post to the group and major thanks to all posters. My friends and I use the info posted on SBB frequently. As a matter of fact, my friend Raymond suggested i post this. I am a mainly a photographer who loves to capture birds. Especially large birds of prey. So I make no claim to be a bird expert. My photography buddies and I frequent Ed Levin and Sandy Wool Lake pretty much on a daily basis. We've been shooting these eagles for a few years and we're certain that the Ed Levin eagles and the Curtner eagles are not the same birds. My shooting buddies also photograph the Curtner eagles at least once a week. So they know those birds well also.
The original photo posted is what we've always call the male. The male we see at the Park, should be missing a feather in the left wing and have a full display of tail feathers when seen in-flight. Unlike the poor male at the school, that has like 3 tail feathers. https://photos.smugmug.com/February-2018/i-LZPVPfj/0/c7ac2eb7/X3/4T1A1274a-X3.jpghttps://photos.smugmug.com/February-2018/i-9vJzLfx/0/f79f9364/X3/4T1A1143a-X3.jpg The "mate, that we think of as the female, is larger, has a much "taller" beak and more shadow around the eyes. https://photos.smugmug.com/February-2018/i-HRJxp3m/0/6dd24a6c/X3/4T1A1325a-X3.jpghttps://photos.smugmug.com/February-2018/i-QCJQVbn/3/91af7b46/X3/4T1A0573a-X3.jpg She's also a much better hunter :-P
The main reason we call one "the male" and the other "the female", is that the "male" bird is always on top when we've caught them mating https://photos.smugmug.com/March-2018/i-b72CgPQ/0/4711a5c2/X3/4T1A3261a-X3.jpghttps://photos.smugmug.com/March-2018/i-mxZXTC5/0/20a399d0/X3/4T1A3266a-X3.jpg Plus, he's really lazy. He would rather bully other birds into dropping their fish/mice/voles, then work for it...lol
Hoping to see at least one fledgling soon at "the Ed" as well as the 2 at the school take to the sky in the next week or so :-)
So many eagles so little time...lol
Steve Cavigliano
On Tuesday, June 12, 2018 11:35 AM, Chris Johnson <ryanjohnson77...> wrote:
#yiv7113840095 #yiv7113840095 -- P {margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;}#yiv7113840095 A quick search shows that Bald Eagle territory size is around 0.6-1.2 square miles in Florida. Perhaps they need bigger territories out here, who knows, but at least it gives some idea. From Curtner to Ed levin is around 3-4 miles as the crow flies, so these are probably different pairs. Also, I drive 680 between San Jose and Fremont almost every weekday and have never seen a Bald Eagle crossing the freeway.
http://myfwc.com/wildlifehabitats/managed/bald-eagle/information/biology/
Chris J
From: <southbaybirds...> <southbaybirds...> on behalf of William Pelletier via Groups.Io <wrpelletier=<yahoo.com...>
Sent: Tuesday, June 12, 2018 2:19 PM
To: sbb; tgrey41; Chuq Von Rospach
Cc: <southbaybirds...>
Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Bald Eagles at Curtner, Sandy Wool; pics Chuq,
You bring up some great points. I heard recently that we are estimated to have 8 nesting pairs in the county, but that it is a tough number to gauge accurately. What you say makes sense ... however, there are Coot at Ed Levin as well. In my experience at Curtner, though, they do seem to fly back and forth toward the bay and not Sandy Wool. It would be fun if we could get enough particular field marks to differentiate these birds.
Speaking of particular field marks, the source for info on my previous email included field marks to two particular birds at Decorah, as per this video ...Decorah Eagles - How to Tell Difference between Mom and Dad
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Decorah Eagles - How to Tell Difference between Mom and Dad
I wanted to put together a little tutorial video to help the new folks how to tell the difference between the Ma... |
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This eliminates some of these field marks as ways to differentiate male from female in general :( However, it does give us hope in identifying individual birds to help determine who is nesting/hunting and where. So far, the general rules for male vs female seem to be size of bird, bill size and talon length. I'd like to put some of the other theories to the test and see if any of them hold up.
Good birding,Bill
p.s. Thanks to Mike Mammoser for digging into this and helping straighten out the individuals vs general situation
On Monday, June 11, 2018, 11:07:08 PM PDT, Chuq Von Rospach <chuqvr...> wrote:
For what it’s worth, I’ve had suggestions around the nest suggesting the opposite: the people I’ve talked to who seem to be near the nest a lot indicate the male usually heads bayside to hunt, not towards the hills, and given the number of coots it seems to bring in, that seems likely. They felt the eagles hunting Sandy Wool were a pair from in the hills, not from Curtner.
All of this is speculating, I don’t believe anyone’s done definitive ID. But my thinking was that it wouldn’t surprise me to have an eagle pair in the area around Sandy Wool. I have talked to people who’ve seen eagles at Calaveras, but not using the old nest site but seeming to come from somewhere on the east (Sunol) side. And if we have an eagle pair at Curtner, another in the Sunol watershed area, then having a third nest would be somewhere in the middle roughly around Ed Levin with Sandy Wool as a hunt zone would (a) make sense in terms of territories, and (b) be absolutely wonderful if true.
I went back and looked at my numbers on that Calaveras nest pair, and they actively nested for a decade, and fledged by my count and research at least 12 birds across 9 successful years (their first year they didn’t fledge, after that my notes indicate they fledged at least one, commonly two, after that). At least half of the birds that fledged out of that nest that survived are now mature and ready to nest; would it surprise me that they would look for territory near “home” that didn’t conflict with other pairs territory?
It would not surprise me to find we had three bald eagle nests in the territory between Calaveras Resv. And the bay. There are water hunting grounds (Bay, Sandy Wool, and Calaveras) and a zillion ground squirrels.
All speculation, but boy, remember when Bald Eagles were rare in the county? I think there might be six nests in the county this year, maybe more. I was talking to someone who had been asked to come look at a nest in the Almaden area on private land this last week with three chicks getting ready to fledge, and that was a new nest to both of us.
My one worry about the growth of Bald eagle pairs in the county is what it’s doing to other species. Is it just me, or are Osprey harder to find? Are the bald eagles kicking them out of their territory?
--
Chuq Von <Rospachchuqvr...>://www.chuqui.com
On June 10, 2018 at 3:19:18 PM, tgrey41 (<tgrey...>) wrote:
Then drove over to Sandy Wool Lake at Ed Levin where an adult BALD EAGLE was perched in a eucalyptus on the west side. Another birder believed this was the male of the Curtner pair:http://www.pbase.com/image/167625573
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Date: 6/13/18 1:38 pm From: janna pauser <jannapauser...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Audubon field trip on Alamitos Creek trail
Twenty birders trickled in at Almaden Lake this morning for the last Wednesday field trip until September. We spent a lot of time viewing birds on the lake and island before birding south on the Alamitos Creek trail. Birds of interest were a GREAT BLUE HERON above its island nest with two chicks visible. A male GREAT TAILED GRACKLE called and perched atop the tallest tree. The island bird sanctuary was teaming with nesting GREAT EGRET, SNOWY EGRET and BLACK CROWNED NIGHT HERONS. Some mutt ducks with young were interesting but we spent most of our time keeping track of two SPOTTED SANDPIPERS on the small sandy island to the south.
We made a quick trip across the pedestrian bridge to see the Hooded Oriole nest before tree trimmers started up. A CASPIAN TERN flew over the lake as we started birding south on the trail. HUTTON'S VIREO, WESTERN BLUEBIRD, WARBLING VIREOS, ASH THROATED FLYCATCHER and BLUE GRAY GNATCATCHERS were seen before the Mazzone bridge. A COOPERS HAWK was perched for a nice view and an adult and juv. RED TAILED HAWK were on the tower. It was quiet until we neared the end of the unpaved equestrian trail. We didn't find the Scaly-breasted Munia reported here yesterday but the trail proved to be a good choice with a CAL. SCRUB JAY pair at a nest and more BLUE GRAY GNATCATCHERS. A family group of CAL. THRASHERS on the trail caught our attention as we watched a NO. FLICKER peeking out of a tree cavity. Two HOODED ORIOLE, a COMMON RAVEN and a VAUX'S SWIFT were seen. An obliging Coyote was on the grassy hillside. On our return north, HOUSE WREN, WRENTIT and CAL. QUAIL were heard only. Lastly a PACIFIC SLOPE FLYCATCHER flew out across the trail and back to its nest, then flew off with a fecal sack. A fine way to end the morning.
Janna Pauser & Eve Meier San Jose
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Date: 6/12/18 11:32 am From: Chris Johnson <ryanjohnson77...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Bald Eagles at Curtner, Sandy Wool; pics
A quick search shows that Bald Eagle territory size is around 0.6-1.2 square miles in Florida. Perhaps they need bigger territories out here, who knows, but at least it gives some idea. From Curtner to Ed levin is around 3-4 miles as the crow flies, so these are probably different pairs. Also, I drive 680 between San Jose and Fremont almost every weekday and have never seen a Bald Eagle crossing the freeway.
________________________________
From: <southbaybirds...> <southbaybirds...> on behalf of William Pelletier via Groups.Io <wrpelletier=<yahoo.com...>
Sent: Tuesday, June 12, 2018 2:19 PM
To: sbb; tgrey41; Chuq Von Rospach
Cc: <southbaybirds...>
Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Bald Eagles at Curtner, Sandy Wool; pics
Chuq,
You bring up some great points. I heard recently that we are estimated to have 8 nesting pairs in the county, but that it is a tough number to gauge accurately. What you say makes sense ... however, there are Coot at Ed Levin as well. In my experience at Curtner, though, they do seem to fly back and forth toward the bay and not Sandy Wool. It would be fun if we could get enough particular field marks to differentiate these birds.
Speaking of particular field marks, the source for info on my previous email included field marks to two particular birds at Decorah, as per this video ...
Decorah Eagles - How to Tell Difference between Mom and Dad<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5lARYcL5A50>
I wanted to put together a little tutorial video to help the new folks how to tell the difference between the Ma...
This eliminates some of these field marks as ways to differentiate male from female in general :( However, it does give us hope in identifying individual birds to help determine who is nesting/hunting and where. So far, the general rules for male vs female seem to be size of bird, bill size and talon length. I'd like to put some of the other theories to the test and see if any of them hold up.
Good birding,
Bill
p.s. Thanks to Mike Mammoser for digging into this and helping straighten out the individuals vs general situation
On Monday, June 11, 2018, 11:07:08 PM PDT, Chuq Von Rospach <chuqvr...> wrote:
For what its worth, Ive had suggestions around the nest suggesting the opposite: the people Ive talked to who seem to be near the nest a lot indicate the male usually heads bayside to hunt, not towards the hills, and given the number of coots it seems to bring in, that seems likely. They felt the eagles hunting Sandy Wool were a pair from in the hills, not from Curtner.
All of this is speculating, I dont believe anyones done definitive ID. But my thinking was that it wouldnt surprise me to have an eagle pair in the area around Sandy Wool. I have talked to people whove seen eagles at Calaveras, but not using the old nest site but seeming to come from somewhere on the east (Sunol) side. And if we have an eagle pair at Curtner, another in the Sunol watershed area, then having a third nest would be somewhere in the middle roughly around Ed Levin with Sandy Wool as a hunt zone would (a) make sense in terms of territories, and (b) be absolutely wonderful if true.
I went back and looked at my numbers on that Calaveras nest pair, and they actively nested for a decade, and fledged by my count and research at least 12 birds across 9 successful years (their first year they didnt fledge, after that my notes indicate they fledged at least one, commonly two, after that). At least half of the birds that fledged out of that nest that survived are now mature and ready to nest; would it surprise me that they would look for territory near home that didnt conflict with other pairs territory?
It would not surprise me to find we had three bald eagle nests in the territory between Calaveras Resv. And the bay. There are water hunting grounds (Bay, Sandy Wool, and Calaveras) and a zillion ground squirrels.
All speculation, but boy, remember when Bald Eagles were rare in the county? I think there might be six nests in the county this year, maybe more. I was talking to someone who had been asked to come look at a nest in the Almaden area on private land this last week with three chicks getting ready to fledge, and that was a new nest to both of us.
My one worry about the growth of Bald eagle pairs in the county is what its doing to other species. Is it just me, or are Osprey harder to find? Are the bald eagles kicking them out of their territory?
On June 10, 2018 at 3:19:18 PM, tgrey41 (<tgrey...><mailto:<tgrey...>) wrote:
Then drove over to Sandy Wool Lake at Ed Levin where an adult BALD EAGLE was perched in a eucalyptus on the west side. Another birder believed this was the male of the Curtner pair:
http://www.pbase.com/image/167625573
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Date: 6/12/18 11:19 am From: William Pelletier via Groups.Io <wrpelletier=<yahoo.com...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Bald Eagles at Curtner, Sandy Wool; pics
Chuq,
You bring up some great points. I heard recently that we are estimated to have 8 nesting pairs in the county, but that it is a tough number to gauge accurately. What you say makes sense ... however, there are Coot at Ed Levin as well. In my experience at Curtner, though, they do seem to fly back and forth toward the bay and not Sandy Wool. It would be fun if we could get enough particular field marks to differentiate these birds.
Speaking of particular field marks, the source for info on my previous email included field marks to two particular birds at Decorah, as per this video ...Decorah Eagles - How to Tell Difference between Mom and Dad
|
|
|
| | |
|
|
|
| |
Decorah Eagles - How to Tell Difference between Mom and Dad
I wanted to put together a little tutorial video to help the new folks how to tell the difference between the Ma...
|
|
|
This eliminates some of these field marks as ways to differentiate male from female in general :( However, it does give us hope in identifying individual birds to help determine who is nesting/hunting and where. So far, the general rules for male vs female seem to be size of bird, bill size and talon length. I'd like to put some of the other theories to the test and see if any of them hold up.
Good birding,Bill
p.s. Thanks to Mike Mammoser for digging into this and helping straighten out the individuals vs general situation
On Monday, June 11, 2018, 11:07:08 PM PDT, Chuq Von Rospach <chuqvr...> wrote:
For what it’s worth, I’ve had suggestions around the nest suggesting the opposite: the people I’ve talked to who seem to be near the nest a lot indicate the male usually heads bayside to hunt, not towards the hills, and given the number of coots it seems to bring in, that seems likely. They felt the eagles hunting Sandy Wool were a pair from in the hills, not from Curtner.
All of this is speculating, I don’t believe anyone’s done definitive ID. But my thinking was that it wouldn’t surprise me to have an eagle pair in the area around Sandy Wool. I have talked to people who’ve seen eagles at Calaveras, but not using the old nest site but seeming to come from somewhere on the east (Sunol) side. And if we have an eagle pair at Curtner, another in the Sunol watershed area, then having a third nest would be somewhere in the middle roughly around Ed Levin with Sandy Wool as a hunt zone would (a) make sense in terms of territories, and (b) be absolutely wonderful if true.
I went back and looked at my numbers on that Calaveras nest pair, and they actively nested for a decade, and fledged by my count and research at least 12 birds across 9 successful years (their first year they didn’t fledge, after that my notes indicate they fledged at least one, commonly two, after that). At least half of the birds that fledged out of that nest that survived are now mature and ready to nest; would it surprise me that they would look for territory near “home” that didn’t conflict with other pairs territory?
It would not surprise me to find we had three bald eagle nests in the territory between Calaveras Resv. And the bay. There are water hunting grounds (Bay, Sandy Wool, and Calaveras) and a zillion ground squirrels.
All speculation, but boy, remember when Bald Eagles were rare in the county? I think there might be six nests in the county this year, maybe more. I was talking to someone who had been asked to come look at a nest in the Almaden area on private land this last week with three chicks getting ready to fledge, and that was a new nest to both of us.
My one worry about the growth of Bald eagle pairs in the county is what it’s doing to other species. Is it just me, or are Osprey harder to find? Are the bald eagles kicking them out of their territory?
--
Chuq Von <Rospachchuqvr...>://www.chuqui.com
On June 10, 2018 at 3:19:18 PM, tgrey41 (<tgrey...>) wrote:
Then drove over to Sandy Wool Lake at Ed Levin where an adult BALD EAGLE was perched in a eucalyptus on the west side. Another birder believed this was the male of the Curtner pair:http://www.pbase.com/image/167625573
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Date: 6/11/18 11:07 pm From: Chuq Von Rospach <chuqvr...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Bald Eagles at Curtner, Sandy Wool; pics
For what it’s worth, I’ve had suggestions around the nest suggesting the
opposite: the people I’ve talked to who seem to be near the nest a lot
indicate the male usually heads bayside to hunt, not towards the hills, and
given the number of coots it seems to bring in, that seems likely. They
felt the eagles hunting Sandy Wool were a pair from in the hills, not from
Curtner.
All of this is speculating, I don’t believe anyone’s done definitive ID.
But my thinking was that it wouldn’t surprise me to have an eagle pair in
the area around Sandy Wool. I have talked to people who’ve seen eagles at
Calaveras, but not using the old nest site but seeming to come from
somewhere on the east (Sunol) side. And if we have an eagle pair at
Curtner, another in the Sunol watershed area, then having a third nest
would be somewhere in the middle roughly around Ed Levin with Sandy Wool as
a hunt zone would (a) make sense in terms of territories, and (b) be
absolutely wonderful if true.
I went back and looked at my numbers on that Calaveras nest pair, and they
actively nested for a decade, and fledged by my count and research at least
12 birds across 9 successful years (their first year they didn’t fledge,
after that my notes indicate they fledged at least one, commonly two, after
that). At least half of the birds that fledged out of that nest that
survived are now mature and ready to nest; would it surprise me that they
would look for territory near “home” that didn’t conflict with other pairs
territory?
It would not surprise me to find we had three bald eagle nests in the
territory between Calaveras Resv. And the bay. There are water hunting
grounds (Bay, Sandy Wool, and Calaveras) and a zillion ground squirrels.
All speculation, but boy, remember when Bald Eagles were rare in the
county? I think there might be six nests in the county this year, maybe
more. I was talking to someone who had been asked to come look at a nest in
the Almaden area on private land this last week with three chicks getting
ready to fledge, and that was a new nest to both of us.
My one worry about the growth of Bald eagle pairs in the county is what
it’s doing to other species. Is it just me, or are Osprey harder to find?
Are the bald eagles kicking them out of their territory?
On June 10, 2018 at 3:19:18 PM, tgrey41 (<tgrey...>) wrote:
Then drove over to Sandy Wool Lake at Ed Levin where an adult BALD EAGLE
was perched in a eucalyptus on the west side. Another birder believed this
was the male of the Curtner pair:
http://www.pbase.com/image/167625573
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Date: 6/11/18 4:47 pm From: JULIANA <juliana.manoliu...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Bald Eagles at Curtner, Sandy Wool; pics-male vs female
On Jan. 20, 2018 one of the regulars described to me which was the female and which was the male of the nesting pair at Curtner school. The male has a flattened head in addition to being smaller than the female.
Juliana Manoliu
On 6/11/2018 10:10 AM, William Pelletier via Groups.Io wrote: > Tom, > > Those are some great shots! The bird at Sandy Wool Lake looks to be > female to me, but it isn’t entirely clear. I use 8 different factors > to try to sex adult Bald Eagles, as follows: > 1. Depth of mandible - Female has a gape that goes back way under the > eye (like in your photo) and the male’s gape end’s more toward the > front of the eye. This is my main reason for guessing female. > 2. Black dot under eye - Male Bald Eagles usually have a more > pronounced black dot under the eye, which I’ve seen at quite a > distance. The dot on this photo is hard to tell, but I’d lean toward > female. > 3. Depth of eye socket - The female has a deep set eye socket which > gives the bird a much more menacing look. Your photo doesn’t show > this, so I’d actually lean toward male on this one. > 4. Eye shadow - Female has more gray eye shadow that is in front of > and back behind the eye, while the male has much more pure white. > Again, your photo would lean toward male. > 5. Guy liner - Male has a black ring around the eyeball, which your > photo seems to have, but a little thinner than usual. Leans toward male. > 6. Head color - Male head is dazzling white while female has gray > flecks and the previously mentioned eye shadow. This bird seems to be > quite white headed for a female, so I’d barely lean toward male. > 7. Bill color & size - Male has brighter and more orange-yellow bill, > while the females is paler & larger. Hard to tell in this case, but it > looks large (female) and bright (male) to me. Indeterminate. > 8. Size of bird. Difficult to tell unless they are together. > Indeterminate. > > The reason I stick with female even against some of the evidence that > points toward male is the depth of the gape is clearly at the back of > the eye. I would bet on it either way ;) By a vote for the above my > (ammature) analysis has 4 for male, 2 for female and 2 indeterminate. > > I’d love to hear more inputs on prioritizing the above factors and any > other pointers the SBB community may have in sexing BAEA. > > Thanks for posting your pictures! > Bill P > > On Sunday, June 10, 2018, 3:18 PM, tgrey41 <tgrey...> wrote: > > On a morning that temptingly combined beautiful early sun with > Sunday light traffic, I got off early to Curtner School in > Milpitas arriving shortly after 7. But even that was late; earlier > arrivals said that the male BALD EAGLE had already flown in and > dropped off food for the female and the nestlings. I stayed for > nearly two pleasant hours, with views of the two nestlings > flapping wings and appearing ready to fledge: > http://www.pbase.com/image/167625574 > http://www.pbase.com/image/167625570 > > The adult female perched a few feet above the nest: > http://www.pbase.com/image/167625572 > > Then drove over to Sandy Wool Lake at Ed Levin where an adult BALD > EAGLE was perched in a eucalyptus on the west side. Another > birder believed this was the male of the Curtner pair: > http://www.pbase.com/image/167625573 > > -- > Tom Grey > www.pbase.com/tgrey <http://www.pbase.com/tgrey> > tgreybirds.com <http://tgreybirds.com> > >
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Date: 6/11/18 1:08 pm From: JULIANA <juliana.manoliu...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Bald Eagles at Curtner, Sandy Wool; pics- male vs female bald eagle
I sent a reply with a photo attached which didn't come through, so this is a different way of replying without a photo
On Jan. 20, 2018 a regular at the Curtner school nest gave me the description of the male of the pair: it has a flattened head and it is smaller than the female; the photo which didn't come through showed both features quite clearly
juliana manoliu
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Date: 6/11/18 10:10 am From: William Pelletier via Groups.Io <wrpelletier=<yahoo.com...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Bald Eagles at Curtner, Sandy Wool; pics
Tom,
Those are some great shots! The bird at Sandy Wool Lake looks to be female to me, but it isn’t entirely clear. I use 8 different factors to try to sex adult Bald Eagles, as follows:1. Depth of mandible - Female has a gape that goes back way under the eye (like in your photo) and the male’s gape end’s more toward the front of the eye. This is my main reason for guessing female.2. Black dot under eye - Male Bald Eagles usually have a more pronounced black dot under the eye, which I’ve seen at quite a distance. The dot on this photo is hard to tell, but I’d lean toward female.3. Depth of eye socket - The female has a deep set eye socket which gives the bird a much more menacing look. Your photo doesn’t show this, so I’d actually lean toward male on this one.4. Eye shadow - Female has more gray eye shadow that is in front of and back behind the eye, while the male has much more pure white. Again, your photo would lean toward male.5. Guy liner - Male has a black ring around the eyeball, which your photo seems to have, but a little thinner than usual. Leans toward male.6. Head color - Male head is dazzling white while female has gray flecks and the previously mentioned eye shadow. This bird seems to be quite white headed for a female, so I’d barely lean toward male.7. Bill color & size - Male has brighter and more orange-yellow bill, while the females is paler & larger. Hard to tell in this case, but it looks large (female) and bright (male) to me. Indeterminate.8. Size of bird. Difficult to tell unless they are together. Indeterminate.
The reason I stick with female even against some of the evidence that points toward male is the depth of the gape is clearly at the back of the eye. I would bet on it either way ;) By a vote for the above my (ammature) analysis has 4 for male, 2 for female and 2 indeterminate.
I’d love to hear more inputs on prioritizing the above factors and any other pointers the SBB community may have in sexing BAEA.
Thanks for posting your pictures!Bill P
On Sunday, June 10, 2018, 3:18 PM, tgrey41 <tgrey...> wrote:
On a morning that temptingly combined beautiful early sun with Sunday light traffic, I got off early to Curtner School in Milpitas arriving shortly after 7. But even that was late; earlier arrivals said that the male BALD EAGLE had already flown in and dropped off food for the female and the nestlings. I stayed for nearly two pleasant hours, with views of the two nestlings flapping wings and appearing ready to fledge:http://www.pbase.com/image/167625574http://www.pbase.com/image/167625570
The adult female perched a few feet above the nest:http://www.pbase.com/image/167625572
Then drove over to Sandy Wool Lake at Ed Levin where an adult BALD EAGLE was perched in a eucalyptus on the west side. Another birder believed this was the male of the Curtner pair:http://www.pbase.com/image/167625573
--
Tom Grey
www.pbase.com/tgrey
tgreybirds.com
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Date: 6/10/18 11:01 pm From: m_m_rogers <m.m.rogers...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Henry Coe fire recovery bird survey - 6/10/18
All,
Today 6/10/2018, Richard Jeffers and I did our Henry Coe fire recovery bird surveys. My route starts at sunrise (5:46am) 7.1 miles east of Coe headquarters along the East Fork of Coyote Creek and ascends Bear Mountain Road to County Line Road, 4.1 miles further from headquarters. Not surprising given the early June date, bird numbers and variety were less than during the mid-May surveys of the past few years. The chaparral was dominated by Wrentits, Spotted Towhees, and Scrub Jays, with no Lazuli Buntings or Black-headed Grosbeaks detected at all this year. Nevertheless, there were some nice birds seen today. A total of 24 BELL'S SPARROWS included 3 in Segment 1 near the car, where they are not usually found. Four singing BLACK-CHINNED SPARROWS were also found, all in segment 2 along lower Bear Mountain Road. A real surprise - and a first on my route - was a vocal PURPLE MARTIN near the segment 2/segment 3 boundary at 8:25am. On the return, a cooing GREATER ROADRUNNER was heard from 10:19am to 10:23am in lower segment 3 along Bear Mountain Road.
A late migrant "yellow" WARBLER (presumably either Yellow or Wilson's) flew into the scrub along lower Bear Mountain Road, only to fly out and head north a few moments later.
A COMMON POORWILL was seen on the road near Jackass Peak east of the Poverty Flat Campground just after 5am on the way in.
Other birds of note inluded a GREEN HERON, 2 SONG SPARROWS, and two LAWRENCE'S GOLDFINCHES along the East Fork of Coyote Creek in segment 1 and single singing RUFOUS-CROWNED SPARROWS in segments 1 and 2.
After leaving Coe, Richard and I headed to San Felipe Road off Highway 152. A juvenile CASSIN'S KINGBIRD was perched on the telephone wires as we drove up, suggesting that breeding was successful there this year. Two SWAINSON'S HAWKS were seen in Coyote Valley on the way home.
Mike Rogers
Sunnyvale, CA
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Date: 6/10/18 3:19 pm From: tgrey41 <tgrey...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Bald Eagles at Curtner, Sandy Wool; pics
On a morning that temptingly combined beautiful early sun with Sunday light traffic, I got off early to Curtner School in Milpitas arriving shortly after 7. But even that was late; earlier arrivals said that the male BALD EAGLE had already flown in and dropped off food for the female and the nestlings. I stayed for nearly two pleasant hours, with views of the two nestlings flapping wings and appearing ready to fledge: http://www.pbase.com/image/167625574 http://www.pbase.com/image/167625570
Then drove over to Sandy Wool Lake at Ed Levin where an adult BALD EAGLE was perched in a eucalyptus on the west side. Another birder believed this was the male of the Curtner pair: http://www.pbase.com/image/167625573
-- Tom Grey www.pbase.com/tgrey tgreybirds.com
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Date: 6/10/18 8:01 am From: Kathryn Tobias <tobiaskj...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] A Polemic, Which Should Probably Be Ignored.
As a person who works for parks, the best way to get an improvement that you want is to fund it yourself (as a group or whatever), in consultation with the park organization. All parks are strapped for funds, and moving an existing gate would probably be way down the list of priorities. In addition, moving a gate further down a road just tends to allow people to park, dump and otherwise abuse an area that is out of the way. Adjacent landowners don’t like those secluded areas either. JMHO
Sent from Mail for Windows 10
From: Frank Vanslager via Groups.Io
Sent: Saturday, June 9, 2018 6:29 PM
To: <southbaybirds...>
Cc: <southbaybirds...>
Subject: [southbaybirds] A Polemic, Which Should Probably Be Ignored.
All:
On Jim Johnson's excellent field trip to Steven's Creek I argued with several field trip leaders that we should not schedule field trips for 15 minutes later than the posted opening times. Because of all bird's very high metabolic rates, they have to feed in the early morning, so we are sacrificing some valuable observing time. It was correctly argued that there is a safety problem for cars waiting to get in on that narrow, curvy road.
I tried to argue that the park could move the gate further down the entrance road for this particular park. However, in the need for safety, I would really like to see the various parks agreeing to a policy of opening the park gates15 minutes earlier than their posted time.
Frank Vanslager
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Date: 6/9/18 6:29 pm From: Frank Vanslager via Groups.Io <Vanslagerf=<aol.com...> Subject: [southbaybirds] A Polemic, Which Should Probably Be Ignored.
All:
On Jim Johnson's excellent field trip to Steven's Creek I argued with several field trip leaders that we should not schedule field trips for 15 minutes later than the posted opening times. Because of all bird's very high metabolic rates, they have to feed in the early morning, so we are sacrificing some valuable observing time. It was correctly argued that there is a safety problem for cars waiting to get in on that narrow, curvy road.
I tried to argue that the park could move the gate further down the entrance road for this particular park. However, in the need for safety, I would really like to see the various parks agreeing to a policy of opening the park gates15 minutes earlier than their posted time.
Frank Vanslager
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My wife, Marilyn, and I led a hike for MROSD this morning. We had 14 people on our walk including one young boy who might have been 6, but was really into watching for and then identifying birds.
We did the same walk two weeks ago and saw several species then that we did not see today. The highlight today was an excellent view of a Wrentit which I think everyone in the group got a good look. We saw two Warbling Vireos and a few dozen Orange-crowned Warblers. The more common birds we saw were Turkey Vulture, Red-shouldered Hawk, Northern Harrier, Band-tailed Pigeon, Mourning Dove, California Scrub-jay, American Crow, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, European Starling, Spotted Towhee, California Towhee, Anna's Hummingbird, Acorn Woodpecker, Hairy Woodpecker, White-breasted Nuthatch, Bewick's Wren and Dark-eyed Junco.
Bill Bauriedel
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Today 6-8-2018 I started at Ulistac where I did not see much of note; having read the Audubon outing report from Wednesday of this week, I decided to stop at WTCP in Sunnyvale on my way back to the West Bay. This was much more productive.
The highlight were 7-8 */Common gallinules /*
-5 juveniles about half size of an adult with pale areas on the neck and belly- in a group
-2-3 adults, one of which sat on a nest briefly, but they mostly foraged or swam around their usual hangout by the Lockheed antenna
Other birds of interest at WTCP:
-a /*White-tailed kite*/
-a pair of/*Great-tailed grackles*/- M+F
-a/*Green heron*/ which displaced a /*Black-crowned night heron*/ in the channel closest to the plant
On the subject of searching for Common gallinules at Charleston Slough: had 3 tries this week with negative results- checked both the pond across the forebay and the North side of the forebay where I had seen gallinules earlier this spring. In the no name pond I saw one gallinule on May 27, but not later.
Some sightings from these Charleston slough forays:
On 6-5-2018 there was a /*Caspian tern*/ with the gulls on the high point of Adobe creek; seem to recall a Caspian tern last year also
On 6-7-2018
-there was a /*Turkey vulture*/ feeding frenzy between the old and the new White-tailed kite nests around Shoreline lake/cafe; the object of the frenzy was a jackrabbit which by the time I saw it was missing its head;
-a /*Bullock's oriole */not far from the feeding frenzy
-3 /*Cinnamon teal*/- one male in breeding plumage in Adobe Creek and a pair on the North side of the forebay with the male molting
-a pair of/*Northern shovelers */in Adobe Creek- don't know if they stayed over the summer or doing the fall migration
-around 50 /*Avocets*/ in Charleston slough both on 6-5 and on 6-7; this may also be fall migration? they were 100% in breeding plumage
Juliana Manoliu
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Date: 6/8/18 7:21 am From: janna pauser <jannapauser...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Alum Rock Park breeding birds June 7
Alum Rock Park was very birdy Thursday June 7th. It's been a month since my last visit here with birding friends Frank and Joan Brauch. We always bird the valley floor which I find much easier and more productive than the North rim trail. Today were birded a short span from the rangers office to Sasha's picnic area. The nesting BLACK HEADED GROSBEAKS we saw in May had fledglings today, many feeding on the ground. A CASSIN'S VIREO pair near YSI chased off a scrub jay and another pair was heard near Sasha's Picnic site. HOODED ORIOLE, two ASH THROATED FLYCATCHER pair and many BULLOCKS ORIOLES were seen. We saw just one LAZULI BUNTING but didn't bird along the road where we had so in May. HOUSE WRENS and ACORN WOODPECKERS were seen throughout the morning. A NO. FLICKER pair repeatedly entered a nest cavity to feed nestlings. AM. ROBIN'S were on the lawn feeding fledglings and three more active nests were found. Several HUTTON'S and WARBLING VIREO family groups were seen. A quiet WESTERN TANAGER pair was found near the creek across from the rangers station. The female flew off with a twig in her bill and the male flew after her. A WESTERN WOOD PEWEE was seen near the entrance parking lot and a PACIFIC SLOPE FLYCATCHER was heard only here.
Janna Pauser San Jose
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Date: 6/7/18 10:29 pm From: Ann Hepenstal via Groups.Io <annhep=<yahoo.com...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Wed SCVAS at Sunnyvale Water Pollution Control Plant
The First Wed walk led by Allen Royer yielded mostly the usual suspects, with a few bonus finds.
As this walk is designed to enable lunchtime participation by the nearby office workers, we were happy to have our regulars show up but especially our birder nuclear engineers. We were delighted that they brought a small crowd of young adults along with them for the noon birding walk.
We enjoyed....
Great view of White Tailed Kite kiting, which thrilled our first-time birders
Common Gallinule pair, sitting on a nest
Marsh Wrens and their nest
Ruddy Duck in bright colors and gorgeous bill
The swallows were working hard overhead, mostly barn and cliff but we also picked out violet green and northern rough winged. And--we had some swifts cruise by. The entirely dark ones we decided were Vaux's, and the ones that glimpsed white, white-throated.
6/6/18 A 1st Summer male HOODED ORIOLE killed a male ANNA'S HUMMINGBIRD at one of my oriole feeders yesterday evening. I was videotaping the feeder in the hopes of catching a fledgling oriole. https://www.flickr.com/photos/karensbirds/
Date: 6/6/18 3:26 pm From: Eve Meier <eve_m_meier...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Bald Mountain Trail in Sierra Azul, June 6
Hi Everyone,
This morning I walked along the Bald Mountain Trail in Sierra Azul Open Space. Highlights were a single female BLACK-CHINNED HUMMINGBIRD on a leafless scrub bush behind the bathroom. I also heard a single GRASSHOPPER SPARROW calling from the grasses towards the end of the trail.
Date: 6/5/18 9:27 pm From: Jennifer Rycenga <gyrrlfalcon...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Lawrence's Goldfinch and Grasshopper Sparrow at Stile Ranch Trail
Hey birders! The mini “Patagonia-Rest-Stop-Effect” of Stile Ranch Trail (trailhead at San Vicente) continues. Today I detected two LAWRENCE’’S GOLDFINCH in a larger flock of LESSER GOLDFINCH. In addition to this, three GRASSHOPPER SPARROWS are still singing along the trail, along with the usual plethora of RUFOUS-CROWNED SPARROWS. Enjoy!
Date: 6/5/18 10:16 am From: Garth Harwood <gharwood...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Palo Alto SBC 6-2-2018, western Monte Bello OSP
Hi All,
My coverage area for the PA-SBC includes mostly San Mateo County areas, but I do cover the westernmost section of Monte Bello as well. Cathy Brown and I descended the Skid Road Trail to the low point of Stevens Creek Canyon, where we found two singing Pacific Wrens and a calling Pileated Woodpecker. Alas, we found no uncommon nuthatches, kinglets, or warblers down there, although that old growth fir stand has produced all of the above on previous counts. An Olive-sided Flycatcher was a welcome find, as they grow ever scarcer in the Skyline region.
There were 4 Lazuli Buntings singing between gates MB04 and MB05 as well.
Happy trails, Garth Harwood
-- *Garth Harwood *Director of Education, The Trust for Hidden Villa 26870 Moody Rd., Los Altos Hills, CA 94022 *(650) 949-8643*
Date: 6/3/18 5:38 pm From: Dave Weber <dwbirdster...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Blue-winged Teal in Alviso Jun 3
Went to the EEC in Alviso today around 1:30pm. From the south levee I was somewhat surprised to see what I thought might be a male Blue-winged Teal standing on the NE end of the first island (#20) on pond A16. I presume the featureless duck next to it was a BW female. I used the scope mounted at the top of the boardwalk for a closer view. It was hazy but sharp and they looked like BWs. I walked over to the east levee and the male was obvious. Based on my own records BWT is uncommon this time of year (maybe just laying low) so I was glad to see them. Dave Weber By phone
Yesterday 10AM on June 2, 2018 an adult male LAWRENCE'S GOLDFINCH was feeding close to the ground in the middle of the trail with a small group of LESSER GOLDFINCHES, right at the start of the Indian Creek Trail (just below the Black Mtn backpack camp). The first time I have had the species on my Montebello route. A couple of bikers and a hiking group dispersed the birds and I did not hang around to see if there were other LAGO nearby.
A good reward for an 8 mile hike on a warm day. Other highlights were an Olive-sided Flycatcher, 2 Pacific Wrens, Grasshopper Sparrow, several Black-throated Grey Warblers and Lazuli Buntings, among 45 woodland and grassland species.
Date: 6/3/18 1:33 pm From: tgrey41 <tgrey...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Western Tanagers Sanborn Park, pics
I went to "Eve's Place" (aka Sunnyvale Mountain Trailhead in Sanborn Park) this morning arriving around 9, and found Alan Walther also there with camera in hand. Highlight was two male WESTERN TANAGERS in the trees right over the small parking area, both singing repeatedly. I first heard one singing and saw it at the top of a tall fir, and later two were lower down, singing at the same time. Maybe one or both will find a mate and nest there, or already has!
Also seen on this mostly windless warm morning in this lovely spot, a HOUSE WREN (also singing), and heard only, both CASSIN'S and WARBLING VIREOs. I also heard a RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH on the east side of 35. I might have identified more of the birds others have reported in this spot by doing more or more careful listening, but I'm a hopeless slave to eye candy.
Date: 6/2/18 3:34 pm From: Frank Vanslager via Groups.Io <Vanslagerf=<aol.com...> Subject: [southbaybirds] The Field Trip to Ranch del Oso/Waddell Creek on 6/2/18
All:
A half-dozen on us had a very enjoyable and productive time on Rich Page's trip to Waddell Creek. Three memories that I have are 1) a pair of Pacific Loons in full, bright, breeding plumage -- which I seldom get to see. 2) hearing a MacGillivray's Warbler, and then seeing Norm Kikuchi standing a few feet further along the trail (he showed us a great photo that he took 5 minutes earlier). And 3) Seeing two Pygmy Nuthatches doing some kind of fluttery flight across the meadow and back. And then, near the end of the trip, watching two PYNUs from less than 8 feet away as they tried, several times, to get seeds from some pine cones on the ground. Some great photos may have been taken.
Date: 6/1/18 8:48 pm From: Peter LaTourrette <platourrette...> Subject: [southbaybirds] New trail at Villa Maria
As some of you know, a Disc (Frisbee) Golf Course is under construction in the Villa Maria portion of Stevens Creek Park. Three of the "holes" are up slope from the east side of the flat, beyond the "Do Not Enter" signs, and a trail has been opened up to access them and act as fairways. I stumbled across it today (June 1), and a nice fellow explained what was going on. They hope to have the course open by the end of the month.
Anyway, this short trail was pretty birdy, even after 11 AM. There was a Black-throated Gray Warbler (seen and heard) near each end, as well as many of the "usual suspects." Unfortunately, I neglected to ask about any access restrictions.
Date: 6/1/18 6:37 pm From: Brooke Miller <idbirds...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Black Swift - Montevina x Black Rd., Fri June 1, 2018
Folks,
A single Black Swift was slowly fluttering not too high above my car just before turning up Black Road from Montevina, from nearby Highway 17. I pulled over and got a bit better look at it before it disappeared behind the trees. I thought this area was in Santa Cruz County, but how happy I was when I entered my sighting into eBird and found that it’s in Santa Clara County!
Brooke Miller
San Jose
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Date: 6/1/18 6:32 pm From: Brooke Miller <idbirds...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Lovely Morning at Sunnyvale Mountain - Sanborn County Park, Fri June 1, 2018
Hi all,
I checked out Eve Meier’s parking lot at Sunnyvale Mountain off Route 35 this morning. It was a clear day, with a little breeze, and a blue sky! Many of the birds were heard singing, but not seen.
My best birds were a Hermit Warbler across 35, a Black-throated Gray Warbler and Cassin’s Vireo singing in the trees next to the parking lot entrance, a couple Pygmy Nuthatches and Red-breasted Nuthatches in the redwood and fir area. There were many Black-headed Grosbeaks, Warbling Vireos, and Orange-crowned Warblers singing everywhere. Also of note were a couple Lazuli Buntings and at least 4 Western Tanagers. No pileated woodpeckers, but I did have Acorn, Nuttall’s and Hairy Woodpeckers.
To get to this spot I took Highway 17 to the Bear Creek Road exit, up Black Road and right on Skyline/35. Drive 1.8 miles and the parking lot is on your right just past the new road section that Caltrans built.
Thank-you, Eve, for pointing out this birding spot!
Good birding!
Brooke Miller
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Date: 6/1/18 2:30 pm From: Ryan Phillips via Groups.Io <harpiabz=<yahoo.com...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Loma Prieta NorCal Birding Excursion Highlights
Hello Birders,I led an excursion up to Loma Prieta this morning (June 1) from 7:00-12:00, which there were six of us (Gerry Escobedo, Alyse Gee, Wanda Studzinski, Larry Volpe, and Dave Zittin).
Highlights included:5 PURPLE MARTINS (2 males and 3 female types) seen from the lower saddle knoll looking down into canyon below house) (SCL)
1 BELL'S SPARROW seen and photographed from close range at the lower saddle knoll (SCL)
2 BLACK-CHINNED SPARROWS seen chasing each other SW below the junction of Loma Prieta Ave and Mt Madonna Road on the chamise ridge line near rock outcropping. Observed through scopes and heard and seen singing (SCZ).
4 LAWRENCE'S GOLDFINCHES along Loma Prieta Ave from Lower Saddle to Mt Madonna junction in both counties. Flying over giving distinct calls and seen. The most unexpected birds of the day.
4 OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHERS, 1 in the canyon below lower saddle knoll, 2 in burnt area on road above Mt Madonna junction, and 1 at the upper saddle.
2 WESTERN WOOD-PEWEES, 1 at the lower saddle drainage and one at the upper saddle.
At least 6 LAZULI BUNTINGS seen throughout.
3 PURPLE FINCHES at close range at the Mt Madonna Road junction
The weather was perfect with little to no wind and lots of wild flowers. A spectacular morning.
Good Birding,Ryan
Ryan Phillips
NorCal Birding
www.norcalbirding.com@norcalbirding
Date: 5/31/18 3:12 pm From: Larry Spivak via Groups.Io <larry8141=<yahoo.com...> Subject: Fw: [southbaybirds] Sanborn Park: Sunnyvale Mountain Trailhead
Hi all
Just got back from cold and very windy Santa Cruz after visiting Eve's parking lot off of Highway 35 and running into Peter LaTourfrette there. He chased a Cassins Vireo up the hill but could not get a photo and I followed the trail East. Together, we did not see or hear as many birds as Eve but did see a WILD TURKEY, 2 HAIRY WOODPECKERS, a female BLACK HEADED GROSBEAK, and heard many CALIFORNIA QUAIL calling everywhere. I am pretty sure I flushed one by the parking lot. Was surprised at how many birds were heard even though the temp was 50 F and the wind was stiff. Got very cold and left to Westside Drive in SCZ for the BROWN PELICANS, cormorants and breakfast.
Larry Spivak
From: Eve Meier <eve_m_meier...>
To: South Bay Birds <southbaybirds...>
Sent: Wednesday, May 30, 2018 4:12 PM
Subject: [southbaybirds] Sanborn Park: Sunnyvale Mountain Trailhead
Hi Everyone,
I wanted to recommend a birding location: the parking lot of Sunnyvale Mountain Trailhead in Sanborn County Park. The parking lot is paved and provides good views of a small meadow. It’s on Hwy 35, 1.5 miles northwest from the intersection of Hwy 35 and Black Rd. I’ve visited twice now and have had great birding both times with almost all the birds being viewed from the parking lot. So far, I’ve seen a pair of PILEATED WOODPECKERS, RED-BREASTED NUTHATCHES, WARBLING VIREOS, CASSIN'S VIREOS, BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAKS, 1 OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER, 1 ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER, LAZULI BUNTING, WESTER TANAGER, BROWN CREEPERS, and more.
Date: 5/31/18 1:59 pm From: janna pauser <jannapauser...> Subject: [southbaybirds] swifts over Los Capitancillos Ponds
There were perhaps a thousand swallows and swifts feeding over the west Los Capitancillos Ponds at noon today. I estimated 75% were CLIFF SWALLOWS, another 10% VIOLET GREEN and NO. ROUGH WINGED SWALLOWS. At least 50 birds were twittering VAUX'S SWIFTS and fewer were WHITE THROATED SWIFTS. The last pond had TREE SWALLOWS over the pond and at a nest box along the creek. The birds were high in the sky in all directions but many were flying past at eye level or skimming insects off the ponds.
Date: 5/30/18 11:20 pm From: merav vonshak <meravvon...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Invitation to three June BioBlitzes
I’d like to invite you to join me for three great BioBlitzes in June. As always, we are hoping to document as many plants, animals, bugs, and such, using iNaturalist. It would be great to get more birders with us. Details:
- *Alum Rock Park, Sunday 6/17 from 9:00-11:00* , in collaboration with Keep Coyote Creek Beautiful. Alum Rock Park is a 720 acres park in east San Jose, with the beautiful Penitencia Creek running through the park, surrounded by maples, sycamore, bays, and oaks. The BioBlitz will take place by the farthest parking lot, near the YSI and some historical remains of bath houses and grottos. RVSP for the event here ( https://180617-bioblitz.eventbrite.com/?aff=web ).
During a morning stroll in Rancho San Vicente Open Space (McKean Road) Janna Pauser and I saw or heard* 54 species*. We took Cottle Trail to Calero Reservoir. It is a long but mostly level and very pleasant trail. Highlights were 2 Bald Eagles on one of the towers, a very vocal Ring-necked Pheasant, and a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher making final touches on her nest. *Janna's Video on YouTube - https://youtu.be/83tDzd0F2cI <https://youtu.be/83tDzd0F2cI>*
The *Monarch Butterflies* come into the story as I am giving away native *Showy Milkweed* plants (Asclepias speciosa) that I propagated from the seeds of my plant. They are small now but grow fast. These plants are a nectar source for adult butterflies and a nutrient source for their larvae. Your goal is to get caterpillars on them! You can help the Save the Monarch programs *and* add butterflies to your yard. The milkweed is also a host plant for Checkerspots, Swallowtails, Painted Ladies, and many more. The plants get 3'x 4' and the flowers are 5" across. The seed pods look like something out of *The Little Shop of Horrors*. email me at <karenburnson...> if you would like some.
1. Canada Goose 2. Mallard 3. * Ring-necked Pheasant * h 4. California Quail 5. Western Grebe 6. Great Blue Heron 7. Great Egret 8. Turkey Vulture 9. Bald Eagle 10. Red-shouldered Hawk Red tailed Hawk 11. *Golden Eagle pair * 12. American Kestrel 13. American Coot 14. Killdeer 15. Caspian Tern 16. Band-tailed Pigeon 17. Mourning Dove 18. Anna's Hummingbird 19. Acorn Woodpecker 20. Nuttall's Woodpecker 21. Hairy Woodpecker h 22. Red-shafted Flicker 23. Western Wood-Pewee h 24. Black Phoebe 25. Ash-throated Flycatcher 6 26. Hutton's Vireo 27. Warbling Vireo h 28. Western Scrub Jay 29. American Crow 30. Common Raven 31. Tree Swallow 32. Violet-green Swallow 33. Cliff Swallow 34. Chestnut-backed Chickadee 35. Oak Titmouse 36. Bushtit 37. White-breasted Nuthatch 38. Bewick's Wren 39. House Wren 40. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 10 inc.nesting pair 41. Western Bluebird 2 family groups 42. American Robin 43. Orange-crowned Warbler 4 h 44. Yellow Warbler ? 45. Spotted Towhee 46. California Towhee 47. Rufous-crowned Sparrow pair 48. Lark Sparrow likely pair 49. Dark-eyed Junco 50. Red-winged Blackbird 51. Western Meadowlark 52. Brewer's Blackbird 53. House Finch 54. Lesser Goldfinch
I wanted to recommend a birding location: the parking lot of Sunnyvale Mountain Trailhead in Sanborn County Park. The parking lot is paved and provides good views of a small meadow. It’s on Hwy 35, 1.5 miles northwest from the intersection of Hwy 35 and Black Rd. I’ve visited twice now and have had great birding both times with almost all the birds being viewed from the parking lot. So far, I’ve seen a pair of PILEATED WOODPECKERS, RED-BREASTED NUTHATCHES, WARBLING VIREOS, CASSIN'S VIREOS, BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAKS, 1 OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER, 1 ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER, LAZULI BUNTING, WESTER TANAGER, BROWN CREEPERS, and more.
Date: 5/30/18 3:36 pm From: Garrett Lau <Garrett.Lau...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Lawrence's Goldfinches at Ulistac
This morning (May 30), a pair of Lawrence's Goldfinches was a short distance from the bottom of the northern ramp at Ulistac Natural Area. However, when I went back this afternoon, I could not find them again.
This morning at Monte Bello's Gate 5, I had a single, calling Red Crossbill pass over me calling all the while, following the fog line to the north. Otherwise, it was not a fit day for man nor beast, feeling much colder than the official 45F reported by my car due to a persistent raw wind that kept changing direction, and the fog that advanced and retreated adding a slight drizzle to the proceedings. There were 2 broods of coot young on the pond.
For what it's worth, I had a small group of crossbills headed SOUTH recently over Thornewood Preserve (San Mateo County, but just 3-4 miles from MB05 as the bird flies).
-- *Garth Harwood *Director of Education, The Trust for Hidden Villa 26870 Moody Rd., Los Altos Hills, CA 94022 *(650) 949-8643*
Date: 5/30/18 8:11 am From: Chris Johnson <ryanjohnson77...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Out of area Ebird report: 720,000 warblers in 9 hours
Excellent! Thanks again Alvaro.
Chris J.
________________________________
From: Alvaro Jaramillo <chucao...>
Sent: Wednesday, May 30, 2018 12:00 AM
To: 'Chris Johnson'; <southbaybirds...>
Subject: RE: [southbaybirds] Out of area Ebird report: 720,000 warblers in 9 hours
Chris,
There are birds which migrate in the day such as , tubenoses, pelicans, cormorants, Gulls/terns, loons, sea ducks, geese, raptors, corvids, many blackbirds, finches, hummingbirds, swallows, waxwings, kingbirds, flickers, pipits, larks, and in some cases American Robin and Yellow-rumped Warbler. Some birds migrate only in the day, others both day and night.
Thinking of re-orientation, we do have some of it happen in CA, but at low volumes. Birds that find themselves over the ocean at dawn, will re-orient to the coast. So at vagrant hot spots on the coast, rarities can essentially land at any time of day, although most will do so in the morning. Similarly, in desert oases, birds flying over large expanses of desert will eventually reorient to some direction that will take them to the greenery, and this can be during the day, most likely morning. Reorientation is what was sometimes called reverse migration out on the Great Lakes, birds heading south during spring. Essentially they had overshot and were re-orienting rather than migrating in the wrong direction.
Mid-winter during cold fronts one can get a mid-winter migration (facultative migration), mainly from American Robins, and Yellow-rumped Warblers, although this may be more likely in areas where weather and resource scarcity are more extreme than in our neck of the woods.
I am sure I am missing a lot of other details and processes, but that is what comes to mind.
From: <southbaybirds...> <southbaybirds...> On Behalf Of Chris Johnson
Sent: Tuesday, May 29, 2018 4:28 PM
To: Alvaro Jaramillo <chucao...>; <southbaybirds...>
Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Out of area Ebird report: 720,000 warblers in 9 hours
Alvaro,
Thanks for clarifying. Besides overnight flights and reorientation, are there any other types of flight movements observers on the ground might see (however unlikely)?
Also, I've seen springtime migrants forage (especially on or over a ridgeline) while moving very quickly in some general direction (usually N, or NW/NE). Are they just taking advantage of feeding opportunities or is there some "choice" in their direction?
Chris
________________________________
From: Alvaro Jaramillo <chucao...><mailto:<chucao...>> Sent: Tuesday, May 29, 2018 4:11 PM
To: 'Chris Johnson'; <southbaybirds...><mailto:<southbaybirds...> Subject: RE: [southbaybirds] Out of area Ebird report: 720,000 warblers in 9 hours
Chris,
Actually what these birds in Tadoussac were doing was reorientation. When migrants overnight get blown out to areas away from their route, they will re-orient during morning and sometimes into the day. This is something we do not tend to see in California given that the West Coast migration is slow and short hops, rather than quick and long hops as it is in the East. I gather that in Tadoussac the birds had been blow east, and they were making their way westwards along the coast, reorienting during the day.
This was shared on Calbirds so I thought people in this group might find it interesting. Sorry that it is duplicative for some.
What I found especially interesting (other than the ridiculous numbers) is that these warblers were all moving during the day, and that they would stop and forage during periods of especially bad weather (i.e. heavy rain) and then continue on their way. This supports what I've seen myself and what I've noted from other observers' reports of daytime flights, and it kind of quiets the myth that migrating birds simply fly at night and then exclusively rest/forage during day.
Date: 5/29/18 9:00 pm From: Alvaro Jaramillo <chucao...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Out of area Ebird report: 720,000 warblers in 9 hours
Chris,
There are birds which migrate in the day such as , tubenoses, pelicans, cormorants, Gulls/terns, loons, sea ducks, geese, raptors, corvids, many blackbirds, finches, hummingbirds, swallows, waxwings, kingbirds, flickers, pipits, larks, and in some cases American Robin and Yellow-rumped Warbler. Some birds migrate only in the day, others both day and night.
Thinking of re-orientation, we do have some of it happen in CA, but at low volumes. Birds that find themselves over the ocean at dawn, will re-orient to the coast. So at vagrant hot spots on the coast, rarities can essentially land at any time of day, although most will do so in the morning. Similarly, in desert oases, birds flying over large expanses of desert will eventually reorient to some direction that will take them to the greenery, and this can be during the day, most likely morning. Reorientation is what was sometimes called "reverse migration" out on the Great Lakes, birds heading south during spring. Essentially they had overshot and were re-orienting rather than migrating in the "wrong" direction.
Mid-winter during cold fronts one can get a mid-winter migration (facultative migration), mainly from American Robins, and Yellow-rumped Warblers, although this may be more likely in areas where weather and resource scarcity are more extreme than in our neck of the woods.
I am sure I am missing a lot of other details and processes, but that is what comes to mind.
From: <southbaybirds...> <southbaybirds...> On Behalf Of Chris Johnson Sent: Tuesday, May 29, 2018 4:28 PM To: Alvaro Jaramillo <chucao...>; <southbaybirds...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Out of area Ebird report: 720,000 warblers in 9 hours
Alvaro,
Thanks for clarifying. Besides overnight flights and reorientation, are there any other types of flight movements observers on the ground might see (however unlikely)?
Also, I've seen springtime migrants forage (especially on or over a ridgeline) while moving very quickly in some general direction (usually N, or NW/NE). Are they just taking advantage of feeding opportunities or is there some "choice" in their direction?
Chris
_____
From: Alvaro Jaramillo <chucao...> <mailto:<chucao...> > Sent: Tuesday, May 29, 2018 4:11 PM To: 'Chris Johnson'; <southbaybirds...> <mailto:<southbaybirds...> Subject: RE: [southbaybirds] Out of area Ebird report: 720,000 warblers in 9 hours
Chris,
Actually what these birds in Tadoussac were doing was reorientation. When migrants overnight get blown out to areas away from their route, they will re-orient during morning and sometimes into the day. This is something we do not tend to see in California given that the West Coast migration is slow and short hops, rather than quick and long hops as it is in the East. I gather that in Tadoussac the birds had been blow east, and they were making their way westwards along the coast, reorienting during the day.
This was shared on Calbirds so I thought people in this group might find it interesting. Sorry that it is duplicative for some.
What I found especially interesting (other than the ridiculous numbers) is that these warblers were all moving during the day, and that they would stop and forage during periods of especially bad weather (i.e. heavy rain) and then continue on their way. This supports what I've seen myself and what I've noted from other observers' reports of daytime flights, and it kind of quiets the myth that migrating birds simply fly at night and then exclusively rest/forage during day.
Date: 5/29/18 4:27 pm From: Chris Johnson <ryanjohnson77...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Out of area Ebird report: 720,000 warblers in 9 hours
Alvaro,
Thanks for clarifying. Besides overnight flights and reorientation, are there any other types of flight movements observers on the ground might see (however unlikely)?
Also, I've seen springtime migrants forage (especially on or over a ridgeline) while moving very quickly in some general direction (usually N, or NW/NE). Are they just taking advantage of feeding opportunities or is there some "choice" in their direction?
Chris
________________________________
From: Alvaro Jaramillo <chucao...>
Sent: Tuesday, May 29, 2018 4:11 PM
To: 'Chris Johnson'; <southbaybirds...>
Subject: RE: [southbaybirds] Out of area Ebird report: 720,000 warblers in 9 hours
Chris,
Actually what these birds in Tadoussac were doing was reorientation. When migrants overnight get blown out to areas away from their route, they will re-orient during morning and sometimes into the day. This is something we do not tend to see in California given that the West Coast migration is slow and short hops, rather than quick and long hops as it is in the East. I gather that in Tadoussac the birds had been blow east, and they were making their way westwards along the coast, reorienting during the day.
From: <southbaybirds...> <southbaybirds...> On Behalf Of Chris Johnson
Sent: Tuesday, May 29, 2018 12:40 PM
To: <southbaybirds...>
Subject: [southbaybirds] Out of area Ebird report: 720,000 warblers in 9 hours
All,
This was shared on Calbirds so I thought people in this group might find it interesting. Sorry that it is duplicative for some.
What I found especially interesting (other than the ridiculous numbers) is that these warblers were all moving during the day, and that they would stop and forage during periods of especially bad weather (i.e. heavy rain) and then continue on their way. This supports what I've seen myself and what I've noted from other observers' reports of daytime flights, and it kind of quiets the myth that migrating birds simply fly at night and then exclusively rest/forage during day.
Date: 5/29/18 3:52 pm From: Patricia Brennan <pat2brennan...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Out of area Ebird report: 720,000 warblers in 9 hours
> Begin forwarded message:
>
> From: "Alvaro Jaramillo" <chucao...>
> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Out of area Ebird report: 720,000 warblers in 9 hours
> Date: May 29, 2018 at 1:11:22 PM PDT
> To: "'Chris Johnson'" <ryanjohnson77...>, <southbaybirds...>
>
> Chris,
> Actually what these birds in Tadoussac were doing was reorientation. When migrants overnight get blown out to areas away from their route, they will re-orient during morning and sometimes into the day. This is something we do not tend to see in California given that the West Coast migration is slow and short hops, rather than quick and long hops as it is in the East. I gather that in Tadoussac the birds had been blow east, and they were making their way westwards along the coast, reorienting during the day.
> Alvaro
>
> Alvaro Jaramillo
> <alvaro...> <mailto:<alvaro...> > www.alvarosadventures.com <http://www.alvarosadventures.com/> >
> From: <southbaybirds...> <mailto:<southbaybirds...> <southbaybirds...> <mailto:<southbaybirds...>> On Behalf Of Chris Johnson
> Sent: Tuesday, May 29, 2018 12:40 PM
> To: <southbaybirds...> <mailto:<southbaybirds...> > Subject: [southbaybirds] Out of area Ebird report: 720,000 warblers in 9 hours
>
> All,
>
>
>
> This was shared on Calbirds so I thought people in this group might find it interesting. Sorry that it is duplicative for some.
>
>
>
> What I found especially interesting (other than the ridiculous numbers) is that these warblers were all moving during the day, and that they would stop and forage during periods of especially bad weather (i.e. heavy rain) and then continue on their way. This supports what I've seen myself and what I've noted from other observers' reports of daytime flights, and it kind of quiets the myth that migrating birds simply fly at night and then exclusively rest/forage during day.
>
>
>
> https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S46116491 <https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S46116491> >
>
> Best,
>
>
>
> Chris Johnson
>
> San Jose, CA
>
>
Yesterday 5/28/18, I did my Breeding Bird Survey for the 25th consecutive year. I haven't had time to analyze all the numbers, but did want to report a few highlights:
The highlight and new for the list of birds seen on this survey was a vocal WILLET flying past the intersection of Bailey Ave and Santa Teresa Blvd (stop number 19 out of 50) - an unusual location for this species in the county, especially on this late May date.
Other birds of note included an OSPREY, a male WOOD DUCK, and a singing YELLOW WARBLER at Almaden Reservoir, a pair of CANADA GEESE with 5 precocial young and a flyover LAWRENCE'S GOLDFINCH at Guadalupe Reservoir, 10 WESTERN and 7 CLARK'S GREBES on upper Calero Reservoir, and a singing male GREAT-TAILED GRACKLE along Bailey Road opposite IBM. GRASSHOPPER SPARROWS were heard singing near Metcalf Road summit (4+) and north of Calero Reservoir (2). A singing HORNED LARK was at the former location as well.
A singing BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER at stop 46 along Hick's Road north of Mt Umunhum Road was the first found on the survey since 2010, at a location where they have been recorded before. Singing WESTERN TANAGERS were found along Bailey Ave near IBM and at 20250 Almaden Road - both may have been migrants.
After the survey, I headed up to the summit of Mt. Umunhum (having never been there before) and enjoyed the view. A vocal pair of VAUX'S SWIFTS and a single WHITE-THROATED SWIFT were circling the concrete radar facility (perhaps nesting there?). Another singing BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER was heard while descending Mt Umunhum Road.
Date: 5/29/18 1:11 pm From: Alvaro Jaramillo <chucao...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Out of area Ebird report: 720,000 warblers in 9 hours
Chris,
Actually what these birds in Tadoussac were doing was reorientation. When migrants overnight get blown out to areas away from their route, they will re-orient during morning and sometimes into the day. This is something we do not tend to see in California given that the West Coast migration is slow and short hops, rather than quick and long hops as it is in the East. I gather that in Tadoussac the birds had been blow east, and they were making their way westwards along the coast, reorienting during the day.
From: <southbaybirds...> <southbaybirds...> On Behalf Of Chris Johnson Sent: Tuesday, May 29, 2018 12:40 PM To: <southbaybirds...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Out of area Ebird report: 720,000 warblers in 9 hours
All,
This was shared on Calbirds so I thought people in this group might find it interesting. Sorry that it is duplicative for some.
What I found especially interesting (other than the ridiculous numbers) is that these warblers were all moving during the day, and that they would stop and forage during periods of especially bad weather (i.e. heavy rain) and then continue on their way. This supports what I've seen myself and what I've noted from other observers' reports of daytime flights, and it kind of quiets the myth that migrating birds simply fly at night and then exclusively rest/forage during day.
Date: 5/29/18 12:40 pm From: Chris Johnson <ryanjohnson77...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Out of area Ebird report: 720,000 warblers in 9 hours
All,
This was shared on Calbirds so I thought people in this group might find it interesting. Sorry that it is duplicative for some.
What I found especially interesting (other than the ridiculous numbers) is that these warblers were all moving during the day, and that they would stop and forage during periods of especially bad weather (i.e. heavy rain) and then continue on their way. This supports what I've seen myself and what I've noted from other observers' reports of daytime flights, and it kind of quiets the myth that migrating birds simply fly at night and then exclusively rest/forage during day.
Date: 5/29/18 12:28 pm From: janna pauser <jannapauser...> Subject: [southbaybirds] White-throated Sparrow Los Gatos Creek trail 5-29-18
I finally gave up trying to find a Black-chinned Hummingbird in my neighborhood and birded the Los Gatos Creek trail in Willow Glen this morning. I found two male BLACK CHINNED HUMMINGBIRDS; one at the reported 2.75 marker and one past the pedestrian bridge near Blackstone school.
A tan striped WHITE THROATED SPARROW was on the trail across from the green tank before Meridian. I first mistook it for a Song Sparrow before I noticed the yellow lore. A WILSON'S WARBLER, YELLOW WARBLER, WESTERN TANAGER and HOODED ORIOLE were seen. A DOWNY WOODPECKER was heard only, female HAIRY WOODPECKER and pair of NUTTALL'S seen.
A YELLOW WARBLER and PACIFIC SLOPE FLYCATCHER have been singing in my neighborhood for the past few weeks.
Date: 5/28/18 9:10 pm From: rfredrick2 <ronmar1...> Subject: [southbaybirds] San Antonio Open Space - 05/24/18
Late in the day, last Thursday, 05/24/18, I went to San Antonio Open Space hoping to see and photograph a LAZULI BUNTING. Unfortunately, it was not to be as I didn’t even *see* a bunting, much less photograph one. I did however, photograph some finches eating thistle seeds and finally decided that what I photographed was a PURPLE FINCH, not a HOUSE FINCH. I also photographed a typically cooperative ACORN WOODPECKER. While walking to my car, a RED-TAILED HAWK, flew into a sycamore tree with a California Ground Squirrel that it had just caught and I took way too many photos of it while it was devouring its catch. For anyone interested in seeing the photos I took, especially if it’s to confirm or refute my finch identification, they’re posted at: https://www.flickr.com/photos/ronfredrick/
This morning, 5/28/18, I visited Pond A2E and walked out to the Stevens Creek mouth. A male COMMON GOLDENEYE, still in mostly alternate plumage was on Pond A2E. A female-plumaged RED-BREASTED MERGANSER was in Crittenden Marsh adjacent to the Bay Trail. Two pairs of LESSER SCAUP were in the southwest corner of Pond AB1, the females had lost most or all of the their white facial patches.
Date: 5/26/18 10:02 pm From: Chuq Von Rospach <chuqvr...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] NYTimes.com: As Google Feeds Cats, Owl Lovers Cry Foul
These seem to be some of the nastiest political fights that exist, and from
what I’ve seen, are rarely productive. FWIW.
On May 26, 2018 at 7:16:29 PM, Patricia Brennan (<pat2brennan...>)
wrote:
FYI! What action is being done to keep cats out of the Baylands? It seems
like the problem is coming from cat lovers Is there any plan to dismantle
feral cat feeding places to assist in reducing this problem?
Date: 5/26/18 8:13 pm From: Bill Bousman <barlowi...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Palo Alto to Alviso
Folks:
This morning I visited various places from the Palo Alto estuary mouth to the Alviso EEC, not expecting much in way of shorebirds for the summer period. I found only a few resident shorebirds at the estuary mouth. The surprise there were two BLACK SKIMMERS skimming for food at different times between eight and nine. When they left, each flew northwest, so perhaps nesting birds from the Ravenswood Point ponds.
Charleston Slough had two WILLETS and two 1st-cycle BONAPARTE'S GULLS. I saw the two female-plumaged SURF SCOTERS on one of the aerators at Shoreline Lake. I was surprised to see 10 GREATER YELLOWLEGS on the triangular island there, mostly in alternate plumage. About a half an hour later I counted six in the Mountain View Forebay, most likely part of the original group. Walking by Shoreline Lake, I heard the call of a short-billed dowitcher, the sound appeared to be coming from a tree along the lake where a mockingbird was holding forth. The lake also had another BONAPARTE'S, this one appeared to be a non-breeding adult.
I saw a single WESTERN KINGBIRD at a tower at Disk and Grande in Alviso, the same place I saw a pair two weeks ago. I didn't find a nest.
Date: 5/26/18 7:16 pm From: Patricia Brennan <pat2brennan...> Subject: [southbaybirds] NYTimes.com: As Google Feeds Cats, Owl Lovers Cry Foul
FYI! What action is being done to keep cats out of the Baylands? It seems like the problem is coming from cat lovers Is there any plan to dismantle feral cat feeding places to assist in reducing this problem? Pat Brennan
> Begin forwarded message:
>
> From: Patricia Brennan <pat2brennan...>
> Subject: NYTimes.com: As Google Feeds Cats, Owl Lovers Cry Foul
> Date: May 26, 2018 at 7:11:57 PM PDT
> To: Phyllis Swanson <countinghousequeen...>, Alice Hoch <amhoch...>, Evelyn Cormier <ev.cormier...>, Susan Hammer <mayorsusan...>, Lisa Myers <Lisa...>
>
> From The New York Times:
>
> As Google Feeds Cats, Owl Lovers Cry Foul
>
> In a Silicon Valley park, burrowing owls are dying and disappearing. Public records and a bit of snooping uncovered a path that led to Google and its feline-loving employees.
>
> https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/26/technology/google-cats-owls.html
Date: 5/26/18 11:26 am From: Gena Zolotar via Groups.Io <gzolotar=<yahoo.com...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Northern Parula
As of 9:45am this morning (5/26) the Northern Parula had not been re-located at Mitchell Park. Other birders were still present when Jeff and I left the park and may have updates.
Gena Zolotar
Mountain View
> On May 25, 2018, at 1:44 PM, Matthew Dodder <mdodder...> wrote:
>
> Still present and singing at Mitchel Park. Very windy, however.
>
> Matthew Dodder
> Mountain View
>
>
>
Date: 5/25/18 11:54 am From: Bob Bolles <bolles...> Subject: [southbaybirds] European Goldfinch on Los Alamitos Creek Trail
All ...
This morning I saw a European Goldfinch on the Los Alamitos Creek Trail, sitting on the top of a 15-foot tall dead tree across the trail from the four-sided chin up exercise device (where the auxiliary dirt path meets the paved path -- near the southern-most corner of Crossview Circle). The checklist with two not-so-great pictures is at
Date: 5/25/18 8:56 am From: Garrett Lau <Garrett.Lau...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Continuing northern parula
The Northern Parula has been singing in the circle of sycamores for the past 40 minutes (now 8:55am). It is audible above the noise of the lawn mowers.
I spent the entire afternoon here yesterday without seeing or hearing it, so I would recommend arriving before the lunchtime hockey game that is played in the circle.
Date: 5/24/18 11:58 pm From: Garth Harwood <gharwood...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Foothills and Shoup Park birds 5-24-2018 (and - bird counters needed for 6/2)
Hi All,
Persistent fog has driven me out of my usual mountain haunts up on Skyline
this week. Today I took an early AM stroll at Foothills Park. Foothills, as
many of you know, is generally restricted to Palo Alto residents and
guests, but I have enjoyed access for some years now because I tend the
nestboxes there. Near the Visitor Center I encountered a singing Chipping
Sparrow in a large Valley Oak a stone's throw from the VC. A Black-throated
Gray Warbler was singing an atypical song that was also audible form that
point. Other than that, there was a good assortment of oak woodland species
as well as singing Wilson's Warblers, Warbling Vireos, and a variety of
swallows.
This picture will not win any awards, but I like it all the same because it
reveals that brand new Chickadees, at least, have blue feet!
Sadly, Foothills Park does not have a team as of yet for the Summer Bird
Count on June 2. If you would like to explore the birds of this big,
beautiful, and under-birded park, this is your big chance even if you are
not a PA resident - the park staff are always very gracious about allowing
special access to our count team. Please contact me at gharwood AT
hiddenvilla.org if you'd like to help out on June 2! (Do not reply directly
to this message or everyone may have to deal with it.)
I also need a team for Los Trancos Open Space on June 2, if you're
interested.
This afternoon I lunched in Shoup Park in Los Altos and walked the adjacent
Redwood Grove area, where there were nesting Pygmy Nuthatches and Nuttall's
Woodpeckers:
Note nestling showing its orange gape below the parent bird. And the
Nuttall's were close to fledging age:
Happy trails to all, Garth Harwood
--
*Garth Harwood
*Director of Education,
The Trust for Hidden Villa
26870 Moody Rd., Los Altos Hills, CA 94022
*(650) 949-8643*
On May 24, 2018 at 9:07:10 AM, Peter Hart (<peterehart...>) wrote:
At daybreak this morning, 5/24/18, the Northern Parula was singing in the mature sycamores as previously reported. This morning it occasionally flitted to the saplings lining the dirt path between the big trees and the horseshoe pit, where it was briefly out in the open.
Another birder and I heard and saw the continuing male Northern Parula between about 3:00 and 3:55 PM in the "ring" of Sycamores in Mitchell Park in Palo Alto. When first heard and seen it was about half way up a tree but later spent most of it's time about three-fourths of the way up the trees in the northwest and northern portion of the "ring".
Date: 5/23/18 1:56 pm From: Jim Yurchenco via Groups.Io <jimy=<ideo.com...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Northern Parula
I just returned from Mitchell Park, where the Northern Parula is still present in the Sycamore grove. The bird was singing and calling intermittently when I was there and was seen briefly by two people. It had become quite before I left.
James Yurchenco
Palo Alto, CA
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Groups.io Links:
Date: 5/23/18 9:29 am From: Joan Bliss via Groups.Io <cjbliss37=<yahoo.com...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Today's Northern Parula . . .
> On May 22, 2018, at 5:26 PM, Bill Bousman <barlowi...> wrote:
>
> Folks:
>
> Gena Zolotar's wonderful find of a singing adult Northern Parula at Mitchell Park in Palo Alto is the 11th record for the county. It is also only the second spring record (Mar-May). The first record in the county on 11-17 May 1992 was also a spring record. There are four summer records (Jun and July), four fall records (Aug-Nov), and one in winter (Dec-Feb). For this vagrant, probably all of the spring and summer records are misoriented spring migrants and all the fall and winter birds are misoriented fall migrants. Surprisingly, this is one of the few eastern warblers that has nested on the California coast (the Hooded Warbler is another). There are nesting records on the coast from Monterey to Humboldt counties. It has nested at least four times in Marin County and twice in San Mateo County.
>
> Bill
>
>
>
Acorn Woodpeckers build nesting cavities in many different palm trees and these are frequently usurped by starlings.
Bill
On 5/22/2018 10:40 AM, Chuq Von Rospach wrote: > > > On May 20, 2018 at 2:08:10 PM, Michael Mammoser (<mmammoser...> > <mailto:<mmammoser...>) wrote: > >> Starlings are cavity nesters, while Hooded Orioles build their own >> nests from palm fronds. There is no nest competition between the two >> species. However, the orioles are fan palm obligates, so the removal >> of local palm trees will certainly affect their ability to nest. >> > > Now that you note that, I realize your correct. Before the palms came > down it seemed the Starlings adopted it as a favorite hangout for the > group near the house; perhaps they carved a cavity in it or just liked > the view, but it seemed like they took ownership of the tree from the > hoodies before it was pulled down (these were huge, tall and > unmaintained things for many years…) > > > > -- > Chuq Von Rospach > <chuqvr...> <mailto:<chuqvr...> > http://www.chuqui.com > >
Gena Zolotar's wonderful find of a singing adult Northern Parula at Mitchell Park in Palo Alto is the 11th record for the county. It is also only the second spring record (Mar-May). The first record in the county on 11-17 May 1992 was also a spring record. There are four summer records (Jun and July), four fall records (Aug-Nov), and one in winter (Dec-Feb). For this vagrant, probably all of the spring and summer records are misoriented spring migrants and all the fall and winter birds are misoriented fall migrants. Surprisingly, this is one of the few eastern warblers that has nested on the California coast (the Hooded Warbler is another). There are nesting records on the coast from Monterey to Humboldt counties. It has nested at least four times in Marin County and twice in San Mateo County.
The NORTHERN PARULA found by Gina Zolotar continues where previously reported. Five of us waited about an hour for it to sing. It gives an atypical song that a few of us found similar to a Black-throated Gray. Don Pendleton and Calvin Lou heard it give its more familiar song a few times before I arrived. It was by itself and fairly high in the leaves but not at the top-top.
Good birding, Eric Goodill
Menlo Park
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Groups.io Links:
Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone -------- Original message --------From: Matthew Dodder <mdodder...> Date: 5/22/18 12:07 PM (GMT-08:00) To: <southbaybirds...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Northern Parula Still present and singing in sycamores off of Lot at Mitchell Park Palo Alto.
This morning (5/22) Frank Vanslager and I birded the blue skies of Mt Umunhum (the West Summit was above the cloud layer). Birding was slow but species seen included three PURPLE MARTIN (all three circled one another for a short period and included at least one adult female), an OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER, a nearby female BLACK-CHINNED HUMMINGBIRD (and a possible male seen briefly near the OSFL as it returned to its perch), ANNA'S HUMMINGBIRD, lots of ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHERS, several vocalizing CALIFORNIA THRASHERS, WRENTITS, BEWICK'S WRENS, CALIFORNIA TOWHEES, SPOTTED TOWHEES, NORTHERN FLICKERS, BAND-TAILED PIGEONS, CALIFORNIA QUAIL and good numbers of high flying, unidentified, Swallows. Earlier on our way up Hicks Rd we had several TREE SWALLOWS and a small group of VAUX'S SWIFTS at the reservoir.
Date: 5/22/18 11:27 am From: Gena Zolotar via Groups.Io <gzolotar=<yahoo.com...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Northern Parula Mitchell Park Palo Alto 5/22 10:45am
Bird has left the sycamore area or gone quiet as of 11:20am. There is a singing Townsend’s Warbler in the area as well.
> On May 22, 2018, at 11:00 AM, Gena Zolotar via Groups.Io <gzolotar=<yahoo.com...> wrote:
>
> East Meadow Drive not Road. Approx coordinates 37.4219617,-122.1148600.
>
>> On May 22, 2018, at 10:50 AM, Gena Zolotar via Groups.Io <gzolotar=<yahoo.com...> wrote:
>>
>> In circle of sycamores just south of parking lot off of E Meadow Rd. I don’t have a camera. Bird singing typical upward buzz repeatedly.
>>
>> Gena Zolotar
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>
>
>
>
Date: 5/22/18 11:16 am From: Chuq Von Rospach <chuqvr...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] FOS Hooded Oriole
On May 20, 2018 at 2:08:10 PM, Michael Mammoser (<mmammoser...>) wrote:
Starlings are cavity nesters, while Hooded Orioles build their own nests
from palm fronds. There is no nest competition between the two species.
However, the orioles are fan palm obligates, so the removal of local palm
trees will certainly affect their ability to nest.
Now that you note that, I realize your correct. Before the palms came down
it seemed the Starlings adopted it as a favorite hangout for the group near
the house; perhaps they carved a cavity in it or just liked the view, but
it seemed like they took ownership of the tree from the hoodies before it
was pulled down (these were huge, tall and unmaintained things for many
years…)
Date: 5/22/18 11:00 am From: Gena Zolotar via Groups.Io <gzolotar=<yahoo.com...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Northern Parula Mitchell Park Palo Alto 5/22 10:45am
East Meadow Drive not Road. Approx coordinates 37.4219617,-122.1148600.
> On May 22, 2018, at 10:50 AM, Gena Zolotar via Groups.Io <gzolotar=<yahoo.com...> wrote:
>
> In circle of sycamores just south of parking lot off of E Meadow Rd. I don’t have a camera. Bird singing typical upward buzz repeatedly.
>
> Gena Zolotar
>
>
>
>
>
Date: 5/22/18 9:59 am From: William Pelletier via Groups.Io <wrpelletier=<yahoo.com...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Loma Prieta Black-chinned Sparrows (SCZ)
Ryan,
I happened to be up there yesterday afternoon as well and it was pleasantly warm and calm winds. I got some decent (for the distance) recordings of the Black Chinned Sparrow song, which is something quite special. I’d encourage anyone who isn’t familiar to look up their song and have a listen.
I did not see/hear the Purple Martin but had a pair of Lawrence’s Goldfinch fly by, which surprised me a bit. There were also a lot of Blue Gray Gnatcatchers, Lazuli Bunting, Wrentit, and a persistently singing Black Headed Grosbeak. There was also a pair of Ash Throated Flycatchers calling and flying about.
We likely just missed crossing paths ;)
Good birding,
Bill P
p.s. Here is a video (not mine) of what I heard:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hItvYUf_4fQ I really love the way it finishes with increasing speed. Almost like you flicked a spring or two metal balls on a string.
> On May 22, 2018, at 7:22 AM, Ryan Phillips via Groups.Io <harpiabz=<yahoo.com...> wrote:
>
> Hi Birders,
> Yesterday late afternoon I spent a short time around the lower saddle and Mt Madonna Road. I had 2 different singing BLACK-CHINNED SPARROWS. I was able to get distant views of one. Both on the SCZ county side. One SW of the large pull out area right at the Mt Madonna Road junction and one further down Mt Madonna Road. Also had 5 singing and easily seen LAZULI BUNTINGS.
>
> I am leading a NorCal Birding trip on June 1 up to Loma Prieta if you are interested.
> Details here:
> https://www.norcalbirding.com/excursions/ >
> Good birding,
> Ryan
>
> Ryan Phillips
> NorCal Birding
> www.norcalbirding.com
>
Date: 5/22/18 9:39 am From: William Pelletier via Groups.Io <wrpelletier=<yahoo.com...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Hooded Orioles in Cupertino
David,
Hooded Oriole will multi-clutch with two (or even three) broods per year. Perhaps what you seeing is an older sibling feeding, from a previous brood, while the hatchling begs.
Just a thought,
Bill P
> On May 22, 2018, at 8:16 AM, David Zittin <dzittin...> wrote:
>
> Hi Birders,
> Approximately a month ago 3 hooded orioles showed up at our jelly feeder, an adult male, an adult female and an immature male.
>
> Today we have hooded oriole #4, a recent hatch with no black throat markings so I assume it is an immature female. This immature bird was seen begging as the adult female was taking jelly. It was seen begging again when the immature male (uncle?) was taking jelly.
>
> In both cases, the feeding bird and the begging bird left together so I could not determine if either fed the immature bird. if anyone knows of aunt or uncle rearing participation in this species, please send an email to me.
>
> -Dave Zittin
> <dzittin...>
>
Date: 5/22/18 8:16 am From: David Zittin <dzittin...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Hooded Orioles in Cupertino
Hi Birders,
Approximately a month ago 3 hooded orioles showed up at our jelly feeder, an adult male, an adult female and an immature male.
Today we have hooded oriole #4, a recent hatch with no black throat markings so I assume it is an immature female. This immature bird was seen begging as the adult female was taking jelly. It was seen begging again when the immature male (uncle?) was taking jelly.
In both cases, the feeding bird and the begging bird left together so I could not determine if either fed the immature bird. if anyone knows of aunt or uncle rearing participation in this species, please send an email to me.
Date: 5/22/18 7:22 am From: Ryan Phillips via Groups.Io <harpiabz=<yahoo.com...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Loma Prieta Black-chinned Sparrows (SCZ)
Hi Birders,Yesterday late afternoon I spent a short time around the lower saddle and Mt Madonna Road. I had 2 different singing BLACK-CHINNED SPARROWS. I was able to get distant views of one. Both on the SCZ county side. One SW of the large pull out area right at the Mt Madonna Road junction and one further down Mt Madonna Road. Also had 5 singing and easily seen LAZULI BUNTINGS.
I am leading a NorCal Birding trip on June 1 up to Loma Prieta if you are interested. Details here: https://www.norcalbirding.com/excursions/ Good birding,Ryan
Ryan Phillips
NorCal Birding
www.norcalbirding.com
Date: 5/21/18 12:19 pm From: Brooke Miller <idbirds...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Hermit Warbler at Belgatos Park (5/20)
All,
No Hermit Warbler was detected this morning, Monday May 21, 2018, between 9 and 11 am.
Brooke Miller
> On May 20, 2018, at 4:51 PM, steve a via Groups.Io <steve_altus=<yahoo.com...> wrote:
>
> Visible (but silent) at 4:45pm, in oaks just southeast of the playground
>
> Steve Altus (with Ozzie)
> Campbell
>> On May 20, 2018, at 2:47 PM, Eve Meier <eve_m_meier...> wrote:
>>
>> Hi Everyone,
>>
>> This morning there was a Hermit Warbler in Belgatos Park in Los Gatos. I first spotted the bird along the fire road that starts at the far end of the parking lot. I spotted him a second time when I was standing on the wooden bridge that runs over the creek. I was facing towards the playground area.
>>
>> Eve Meier
>> San Jose (Cambrian Area)
>>
>>
>>
>
>
>
>
Date: 5/20/18 4:51 pm From: steve a via Groups.Io <steve_altus=<yahoo.com...> Subject: Re: [southbaybirds] Hermit Warbler at Belgatos Park (5/20)
Visible (but silent) at 4:45pm, in oaks just southeast of the playground
Steve Altus (with Ozzie)
Campbell
> On May 20, 2018, at 2:47 PM, Eve Meier <eve_m_meier...> wrote:
>
> Hi Everyone,
>
> This morning there was a Hermit Warbler in Belgatos Park in Los Gatos. I first spotted the bird along the fire road that starts at the far end of the parking lot. I spotted him a second time when I was standing on the wooden bridge that runs over the creek. I was facing towards the playground area.
>
> Eve Meier
> San Jose (Cambrian Area)
>
>
>
Date: 5/20/18 4:39 pm From: Jason Vassallo <jason.vassallo...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Santa Clara University Macgillivrays Warbler
I tried sending this earlier but it does not appear that it went through so I will try again.
This morning I found a male Macgillivrays Warbler on campus at Santa Clara University. This is now the 2nd year in a row I have found a male Macgillivrays on campus. It was very active and moving around a lot. Also of note was an Olive-sided Flycatcher which was the first I have ever seen on campus.
In case anyone wanted to chase the warbler, location details are on my ebird checklist and you can find a map of campus online.
Date: 5/20/18 3:57 pm From: David Zittin <dzittin...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Audubon Walk, 5/20/2018, at Sanborn Park
Hi Birders,
Nine of us had a great day enjoying good weather and a few interesting birds today at Sanborn Park.
Some highlights:
- Pileated woodpecker heard several times, but not seen.
- 4 Pacific slope flycatchers. Two seen.
- 1 singing (loud) Cassin's vireo
- At least 5 warbling vireos heard, one seen
- 2 Pacific wrens, both singing, one seen
- 2 brown creepers
- 4 orange-crown warblers of which 3 were seen foraging on the same tree together.
- Two Wilson's warblers
- 1 singing western tanager male (which was a year bird for Frank and me)
Date: 5/20/18 2:47 pm From: Eve Meier <eve_m_meier...> Subject: [southbaybirds] Hermit Warbler at Belgatos Park (5/20)
Hi Everyone,
This morning there was a Hermit Warbler in Belgatos Park in Los Gatos. I first spotted the bird along the fire road that starts at the far end of the parking lot. I spotted him a second time when I was standing on the wooden bridge that runs over the creek. I was facing towards the playground area.
Date: 5/20/18 10:59 am From: Chuq Von Rospach <chuqvr...> Subject: [southbaybirds] FOS Hooded Oriole
Yesterday I have my FOS female hooded oriole visit the back yard. She
didn’t check out the feeder (I was moving stuff around) but at least I now
know they are in the neighborhood. FWIW, we used to be really reliable for
hoodies here, but a few years ago some very old, ragged and unstable palms
were removed and that seems to have been where the nested, and the species
has been a lot harder to see since. I think we’ve also had a family of
starlings move in (fwiip! Pop!) and they compete with nesting for them.
Ripe Kumquats along the Alamitos Creek trail south of Graystone attracted SWAINSON'S THRUSH again this year. I eventually found four in or near the huge tree. A family group of WILSON'S WARBLER was seen nearby and two more calling WIWA were heard a little further south. A PACIFIC SLOPE FLYCATCHER was nesting in the top of a tall snag close to the creek. BLACK HEADED GROSBEAK, YELLOW WARBLER and WARBLING VIREO were all singing and a DOWNY WOODPECKER was at a snag. Further north across Graystone, a YELLOW WARBLER pair was bringing food to a hidden nest. A NUTTALL'S WOODPECKER nestling was begging from a cavity and a BLUE GRAY GNATCATCHER was high in a Sycamore tree. CEDAR WAXWINGS were flying about and a ASH THROATED FLYCATCHER was calling over the creek.
I still have CEWA, a singing WESTERN TANAGER and PURPLE FINCH in my neighborhood. Five VAUX'S SWIFTS were seen from my yard yesterday evening.
