Birdingonthe.Net Recent Postings from Peninsula Birding > Home > Mail > Alerts Updated on Sunday, July 5 at 02:24 PM ET The most recently received Mail is at the top.	Gyrfalcon,©John Schmitt

05 Jul [events] trip leaders - Pacifica State Beach - thank you ["spectaclebear" ] 4 Jul San Mateo County Bird Sightings June 2009 ["Kris Olson" ] 4 Jul Russian Ridge, Windy Hill ["Kris Olson" ] 03 Jul Re: Sparrow ID Help please [Joseph Morlan ] 3 Jul Re: Bayside notes ( Tuesday ) [Al Eisner ] 03 Jul Sparrow ID Help please ["pacificalefty" ] 03 Jul Male Indigo Bunting at Windy Hill OSP ["kschnei1000" ] 2 Jul Butano SP 7/1 & 7/2 [] 1 Jul Radio Rd/Nob Hill - Redwood Shores ["Kris Olson" ] 1 Jul Re: Gazos & Butano area, Orchard Oriole [] 30 Jun Bayside notes ( Tuesday ) [] 30 Jun Gazos & Butano area, Orchard Oriole [] 30 Jun Yard birds of interest ["Laurie Graham" ] 30 Jun James V. Fitzgerald Marine Reserve, Monday 6/29/09 ["Laurie Graham" ] 28 Jun Radio Rd/Nob Hill this evening ["Kris Olson" ] 28 Jun Sunday Northern Parula at Portola State Park and Radio Road ["Leonie Batkin" ] 29 Jun Oyster Point Sunday ["Laurie Graham" ] 28 Jun Filoli Field Trip 6/27/09 ["George Chrisman" ] 28 Jun Filoli Field Trip 6/27/09 ["George Chrisman" ] 27 Jun Monte Bello & Portola SP-- beating the heat ["Kris Olson" ] 27 Jun Arrival of Elegant Terns [] 27 Jun Re: Portola SP and vicinity June 22-26 [] 27 Jun Re: Strike out on buntings - Monte Bello ["George Chrisman" ] 26 Jun House Wren inquiry [] 26 Jun Portola SP and vicinity June 22-26 [] 25 Jun RE: Caspian Terns - 2nd egg? [Tom Merigan ] 25 Jun [event] Bird Watching on Pacifica State Bearch June 28 ["spectaclebear" ] 24 Jun Strike out on buntings - Monte Bello ["Kris Olson" ] 25 Jun SB Mt. Park-Crocker Gate Feeder-New RB Grosbeak ["lee" ] 23 Jun RE: Caspian Terns - 2nd egg? [Al Eisner ] 22 Jun RE: Caspian Terns - 2nd egg? ["Kris Olson" ] 22 Jun leucistic loon ["Alvaro Jaramillo" ] 22 Jun Re: Caspian Terns - 2nd egg? [Tom Merigan ] 22 Jun Caspian Terns - 2nd egg? [sonny mencher ] 22 Jun San Bruno Mt.-Olive-sided Flycatcher ["lee" ] 22 Jun Red Crossbill types. ["Alvaro Jaramillo" ] 22 Jun Re: Butano SP June 8-11, tardy summary report [] 21 Jun RE: Slow birding on the coast 6/20/09 ["Kris Olson" ] 22 Jun Butano SP June 8-11, tardy summary report [] 21 Jun Pigeon Pt. seawatch and other notes [] 21 Jun Pillar Pt. [Barbara Kossy ] 21 Jun RE: Slow birding on the coast 6/20/09 ["Kris Olson" ] 21 Jun Slow birding on the coast 6/20/09 ["Kris Olson" ] 18 Jun Radio Road - Pintails/Caspian Tern Chick [sonny mencher ] 19 Jun Long-billed Curlews at Dumbarton ["George Chrisman" ] 18 Jun Caspian Chick [sonny mencher ] 18 Jun Re: Indigo Bunting - Monte Bello [Peter Headland ] 17 Jun Re: Caspian chick at Radio Road ? [hazel ] 17 Jun Caspian chick at Radio Road ? [Tom Merigan ] 17 Jun Indigo Bunting - Monte Bello [Brooke Miller ] 15 Jun Development of Brisbane Baylands - city council meeting Monday June 22 ["Laurie Graham" ] 15 Jun San Bruno Mountain, June 14, 2009 ["Laurie Graham" ] 14 Jun Foster City Lagoon by kayak [Barbara Kossy ] 15 Jun Grasshopper Sparrows & Piliated Woodpecker 6/14/09 ["George Chrisman" ] 14 Jun Caspian tern parent at Radio Road has silver leg band [hazel ] 14 Jun Male Hooded Warbler at Butano S.P. [] 14 Jun Yellow-breasted Chat, no Ovenbird, and some breeding records ["Garth Harwood" ] 13 Jun Radio Road tern chick [Chuq Von Rospach ] 13 Jun Sequoia Audubon Field Trip- Coyote Point [] 12 Jun Caspian Tern chick at Radio Road, pics [Tom Grey ] 12 Jun Continuing Ovenbird and Hooded Warbler, and other birds [] 12 Jun Re: Sequoia Audubon Field trip 6/13 [sonny mencher ] 12 Jun Re: Sequoia Audubon Field trip 6/13 ["Garth Harwood" ] 12 Jun Re: Sequoia Audubon Field trip 6/13 [] 12 Jun Indigo Bunting, Los Trancos OSP 6-12-2009 ["Garth Harwood" ] 12 Jun Re: Sequoia Audubon Field trip 6/13 ["Garth Harwood" ] 11 Jun Sequoia Audubon Field trip 6/13 [] 11 Jun Species Search Capability, Technical Notes and RFI [Jennifer Rycenga ] 11 Jun San Mateo County Birding Guide now features Species Search! [Jennifer Rycenga ] 10 Jun RE: Red fox in Moss Beach ["Alvaro Jaramillo" ] 10 Jun Red fox in Moss Beach ["J.R. Blair" ] 10 Jun Caution: attack owls crossing [Chris MacIntosh ] 10 Jun Yellowthroat breeding at Coyote Pt. [] 10 Jun Another Rose-breasted Grosbeak? ["Alvaro Jaramillo" ] 10 Jun Coastside Land Trust Presents Songbird & Seabird Workshop and Walk ["Alvaro Jaramillo" ] 10 Jun Re: May 2009 - San Mateo County Bird Sightings ["Garth Harwood" ] Subject: [events] trip leaders - Pacifica State Beach - thank you From: "spectaclebear" <mkeitelman AT hotmail.com> Date: Sun, 05 Jul 2009 19:23:58 -0000 Pacifica Shorebird Alliance says thank you for trip leadership on Pacifica State Beach last sunday. Turn out was good, trip was very informative and fun. We're always looking for new trip leaders in Pacifica -- If you would like to participate, please e-mail us at outreach AT pacificashorebird.org Trip report: --------------------------------- Trip Lead: Murray Cherkas Pacifica State Beach 6-28-09, 12:30 pm-2pm, 80 degrees F or more, sunny, 500-700 people on beach Of the birds seen or heard, the most surprising was the immature black-crowned Night Heron in the federal wetland at the south end of the beach. Location: San Pedro Creek mouth Observation date: 6/28/09 Notes: Night Heron is a juvenile. 2 Goldfinches are fledglings. 4 Red-Winged Blackbirds are fledglings. Several hybrid type gulls seen. Number of species: 21 Western Grebe 30 Brown Pelican 10 Pelagic Cormorant 6 Black-crowned Night-Heron 1 Black Oystercatcher 3 Heermann's Gull 14 Western Gull 20 Western x Glaucous-winged Gull (hybrid) 2 California Gull 2 Glaucous-winged Gull 2 gull sp. 6 Pigeon Guillemot 3 Mourning Dove 1 Barn Swallow 3 Common Yellowthroat 2 Song Sparrow 2 Red-winged Blackbird 6 Brewer's Blackbird 6 Brown-headed Cowbird 1 American Goldfinch 5 House Sparrow 4 This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org) ------------------------- non bird species include: Many (live/dead?) sand crabs-- one was a female with bright orange eggs http://nathistoc.bio.uci.edu/crustacea/Decapoda/Sand%20crab.htm California Sea Lion, dead, very young; knife wound and stones on neck, placed by humans Harbor Seal -- large, head rotted, rest of body apparently intact; 3 small wounds on body 500-700 people and AT 10 dogs ---------- Thank you, Mary www.pacificashorebird.org Subject: San Mateo County Bird Sightings June 2009 From: "Kris Olson" <kristenolson AT yahoo.com> Date: Sat, 4 Jul 2009 22:47:07 -0700 June is the month for breeding birds, and our observations were filled with sightings of pairs, parents feeding young or the fledglings themselves. Some of the more exciting observations were new Snowy Plover chicks at Half Moon Bay, Wood Duck ducklings on Sausal pond at Windy Hill OSP, and a Caspian Tern chick nearly grown found on closed ponds along the Ravenswood Trail during the Summer Bird Count. The Caspian Tern chick that many were able to see was at the Radio Road ponds in Redwood City. It was born about June 8 and was not seen after June 16. Luckily for birders, its parents seem to be back on the nest again. (Not sure that will be so lucky for the chick, given that Radio Road is home to herons and egrets.) David Suddjian also reported hearing Marbled Murrelets (a few, at least -- an ever declining number he says) in breeding areas. Other breeding bird or probable breeding bird sightings on Pen Bird included (in no particular order) Wilson's Warbler, MacGillivray's Warbler, Orange-crowned Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Yellow Warbler, Hermit Warbler, Warbling Vireo, Hutton's Vireo, Western Wood-Pewee, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Pacific-slope Flycatcher, Black Phoebe, Ash-throated Flycatcher, Brown Creeper, Pygmy Nuthatch, Black-headed Grosbeak, Swainson's Thrush, Western Bluebird, Nuttall's Woodpecker, Hairy Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Mallard, Northern Pintail, Ruddy Duck, White-throated Swift, Vaux's Swift (1 pair), Northern Rough-winged Swallow, Cliff Swallow, Violet-green Swallow, Tree Swallow, Lazuli Bunting, Grasshopper Sparrow, Bullock's and Hooded Orioles, Pine Siskin, Purple Finch, American Dipper, Red-tailed Hawk, Red-shouldered Hawk, White-tailed Kite, a single pair of American Kestrels with one young, Black-necked Stilt, American Avocet, Killdeer, Chestnut-backed Chickadees, House Wren, Bewick's Wren, Wrentit, Dark-eyed Junco, Oak Titmouse, Western Scrub Jay, Forster's Tern, Black Skimmer. And more! Along the coast, Western Gull, Pigeon Guillemot. Check out the Sequoia Audubon checklist of San Mateo County birds; it includes 172 species for which nesting evidence exists. Some arrive for the summer to breed, and some are here all year. http://www.sequoia-audubon.org/SMClist.pdf New Species in June (total list to date = 285) New species seen in San Mateo County in June numbered five. On June 9, a Horned Puffin and an Ovenbird were seen on the coast (no, not together!). They are both rarity code "5". The Ovenbird remained for a day or two more in Butano State Park. On June 23, a Northern Parula warbler was seen in Portola State Park, remaining at least through June 28. On June 27 the first returning Elegant Tern was seen on the Bay. And on the last day of the month, an Orchard Oriole was seen along Cloverdale Road, but was not found again. The county now has 285 species on its collective list for the year. Ovenbird 6/9/2009 5 Horned Puffin 6/9/2009 5 Northern Parula 6/23/2009 4 Elegant Tern 6/27/2009 2 Orchard Oriole 6/30/2009 4 We also welcomed several new observers this month with sightings of Hooded Oriole and Indigo Bunting. Thank you. See the full county list year to date here: http://www.sequoia-audubon.org/SMCbirds.php (Thanks to Bill Groll, SAS webmaster) July promises shorebirds -- so be on the lookout! Some of the more unusual species on the San Mateo list could be passing through this month. If you have any questions, comments, corrections, etc. please email me. Kris Olson Subject: Russian Ridge, Windy Hill From: "Kris Olson" <kristenolson AT yahoo.com> Date: Sat, 4 Jul 2009 18:01:03 -0700 Today I met Ron Thorn and Leonie Batkin at 7:15am at the top of Windy Hill--which was sunk deep in fog and lived up to its windy name. We wanted to look for the Indigo Bunting, but decided to retreat to warmer stretches of Skyline for awhile. We stopped at Russian Ridge and hiked up the hill for awhile. We found a family of 5 Western Bluebirds with 3 spotted youngsters--often hopping and feeding on the ground. We also saw 2 Grasshopper Sparrows, one singing and at one point two together -- we think one was an immature. On the wires we found an immature Western Meadowlark-- more breeding evidence. There were also many swallows on the wires -- Violet-green and Cliff. As well as an Ash-throated Flycatcher. After a dip down to Monte Bello gates 4-5 to see that Indigo Bunting, we headed back to Windy Hill where most of the fog had lifted. We walked down the cypress trees and Leonie immediately heard the bunting there singing and found it under the trees in some grass. Before we could get a good look at it, it flew down hill a little but was still in the Cypress. Ron checked it with his scope and believes it is an adult male (vs. the one at Monte Bello)-- he may post more about this. I have a few out-of-focus photos (gotta fix the camera settings) of various birds that I'll post later. Here is one of the bunting: http://www.flickr.com/photos/27741504 AT N08/3688907914/ Happy 4th! Kris Olson Subject: Re: Sparrow ID Help please From: Joseph Morlan <jmorlan AT gmail.com> Date: Fri, 03 Jul 2009 22:30:12 -0700 On Fri, 03 Jul 2009 18:40:17 -0000, "pacificalefty" wrote: >please see images posted in "A Sparrow ID" in the photos section. Where exactly is the photo? I've checked all through the photo gallery albums and cannot find it. Thanks. -- Joseph Morlan, Pacifica, CA jmorlan (at) ccsf.edu SF Birding Classes start Sept. 15 http://fog.ccsf.edu/~jmorlan/ California Bird Records Committee http://www.californiabirds.org/ Western Field Ornithologists http://www.westernfieldornithologists.org/ Subject: Re: Bayside notes ( Tuesday ) From: Al Eisner <eisner AT SLAC.Stanford.EDU> Date: Fri, 3 Jul 2009 14:29:16 -0700 (PDT) On Tuesday June 30 Ron thorn wrote: > Late this afternoon at Radio Road, shorebirds had come in to roost. > Willets swelled from ( 1,000 ) on June 27 to ( 2,600 ) today. Marbled > Godwits from an arriving adult on June 28 to ( 38 ) today. The first > alternate plumaged Short-billed Dowitchers arrived today with ( 10 ). > Other arrivals today were ( 6 ) alternate plumaged Greater Yellowlegs > and a single alternate plumaged Western Sandpiper. The first > Elegant Tern showed up at that part of San Francisco Bay and > was seen resting on the island with the nesting Caspian Terns. Yesterday (July 2), late morning, I estimated about 1000 Willets here. I had seen about 200 on either June 21 or June 23, but I failed to write it down at the time and I had visited the ponds on both days. I picked out at least a dozen Marbled Godwits and a few Dowitchers, but there could have been more of each hiding among the Willets. Some fairly recent additions: two Killdeer chicks with two adults on the strip island in the SE pond. No Elegant Tern. In addition to the Caspian pair on one of the round islands, there was a Forster's pair with a fairly large chick on the other round island. These adults were rather aggressive. (Wearing a hat if you get out of your car would be a good precaution, although for my visit it wasn't actually required.) A few other adult Forster's later came in. I wonder if the apparent end of theirnesting attempts on the NW pond is related to the unusually high water this year. A couple of years ago someone on this forum was in touch with the people responsible for managing the water level, so I'd be interested to hear any feedback on this issue. Al Eisner Subject: Sparrow ID Help please From: "pacificalefty" <califlefty AT gmail.com> Date: Fri, 03 Jul 2009 18:40:17 -0000 Hi all, I need help with a sparrow ID - please see images posted in "A Sparrow ID" in the photos section. I saw this bird at Pillar Point marsh in early June. Could this be a "large billed" Savannah sparrow? Thanks Subject: Male Indigo Bunting at Windy Hill OSP From: "kschnei1000" <kschnei1 AT hotmail.com> Date: Fri, 03 Jul 2009 18:01:26 -0000 I birded the upper portion of the Spring Ridge trail at Windy Hill OSP this morning from about 6-9 am. The highlight was a very persistently singing male INDIGO BUNTING about 0.3 miles downhill from the Skyline parking lot, in the cluster of mature cypress trees set amidst the grassland. I'm not aware of a previous report of this bird (although there have been several of these birds at Monte Bello OSP further south), so please forgive me if this one has been seen and reported previously. Also saw several GRASSHOPPER SPARROWS along the trail and a male LAZULI BUNTING in the same general area as it's more exotic congener. Pics of the INBU and one of the GRSP are here: http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2479/3684302915_8090b79cde_b.jpg http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3607/3684302577_a52ea7bb9d_b.jpg http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2531/3684303421_989df9a4f4_b.jpg Subject: Butano SP 7/1 & 7/2 From: dsuddjian AT aol.com Date: Thu, 2 Jul 2009 19:49:42 EDT MARBLED MURRELET activity picked up slightly on surveys at two stations along Little Butano Creek on 7/1 and 7/2 (5 and 16 detections, respectively), but activity is still the lowest it has been in the 7 years I've been surveying these stations. At least there were three detections of murrelets flying below canopy today...only the 2nd morning all season I've observed any "occupied site" flight behavior. On 7/1 I found a female VARIED THRUSH carrying food along a "volunteer" trail that takes off of Little Butano Creek Trail near the 2nd seasonal foot bridge, about 0.7 mile upstream of the trail head. This was very near where I had a confirmation in 2008, and in the general area where I'd had a singing male earlier this season. Then today I found another female Varied. This one got bothered by my imitation of a Pygmy-Owl along Doe Ridge Trail about 500 yards before the junction with Olmo Fire Trail. A real NORTHERN PYGMY-OWL responded to my imitation after sunset on 7/1 along the main park road upstream of the picnic area. It followed me downstream for 0.3 mile, and I had some terrific looks in the flashlight beam, as it came in quite close at several spots. I suspect this may be the same owl I heard along Butano Fire Road, uphill of the picnic area, on 6/29 and 6/30. I have been calling for Pygmy many times down in that area along the main park road this season, but this was the first time I got a response there. The pair of GREAT HORNED OWLS that nest in that area has fledged at least one young, begging last night. NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWLS responded with advertising calls ("toot-toot-toot...) for the first time since 5/29. And tehre were several WESTERN SCREECH and one BARN OWL, for a 5 owl evening. A RED CROSSBILL flew over the Ben Ries Campground this morning, and another (or the same) was noted about an hour later along Little Butano Creek Trail west of the campground. A pair of COMMON RAVENS fledged three young today from a nest located just north of the campground. I only found the site yesterday, the day before fledging. I noted about 8 PILEATED WOODPECKERS on 7/1 and 7/2. Last, I've always been interested in how undetectable HERMIT WARBLER can become after June, when singing basically ceases. I had just one on my efforts in the Butano area from June 30-July 2 (today along Doe Ridge Trail, call notes only), even though I sampled birds in many areas where the species nests and where I had many on my June 9-11 visit. I really wonder if they don't go away earlier than we think they do, as they become very hard to find, even to hear call notes, or have them respond to pishing or owl imitations, as they readily do before July. Fun mammal sightings included a Gray Fox carrying a large wood rat along Little Butano Creek Trail. It came trotting up the trail very close to me before it spotted me and turned aside. Based on all the scat in many spots they are pretty plentiful in that park. And last night a young Striped Skunk kept escorting me up the Jackson Flat Trail. Eventually I caught up to it and surprised us both...it was surprised a little more than I would have liked, if you follow me. David Suddjian Capitola **************Dell Summer Savings: Cool Deals on Popular Laptops – Shop Now! (http://pr.atwola.com/promoclk/100126575x1222696924x1201468348/aol?redir=http:%2F%2Faltfarm.mediaplex.com%2Fad%2Fck%2F12309%2D81939%2D1629%2D1) [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Radio Rd/Nob Hill - Redwood Shores From: "Kris Olson" <kristenolson AT yahoo.com> Date: Wed, 1 Jul 2009 21:48:41 -0700 I stopped by Redwood Shores for a little while about 5:30 tonight. I saw 3 adult Forster's Terns and no others. Someone mentioned that they abandoned their nests in the north pond. Radio Road 1 Caspian Tern on the nest, barely visible. 2 Black Skimmers 1 Killdeer chick and adult in a plant nest at the west end of the long thin island 10 Greater Yellowlegs flew in, touched down, and apparently flew out again 100s of Willets Several Marbled Godwits At least 10 dowitchers, some of which I could tell were Short-billed, and one of which looked like an adult in winter plumage (gray)-- lots to remember again each fall when they return North pond-- family of Ruddy Ducks with 4 ducklings, not even all that small. Where have they been hiding? I have been looking for Ruddy Duck babies. That male is certainly protective and orders those ducklings around. Nob Hill pond 26 American White Pelicans Last week I saw the male Redhead here. I think he was here again but head tucked and molting. Kris Olson Subject: Re: Gazos & Butano area, Orchard Oriole From: dsuddjian AT aol.com Date: Wed, 1 Jul 2009 15:10:55 EDT In a message dated 6/30/2009 3:41:11 PM Pacific Daylight Time, dsuddjian AT aol.com writes: It made a long flight to the south-southeast, towards Gazos Creek, and went out of view over the rise to the south of the swale. I spent some time looking to the south along the road and around the junction of Gazos Creek Road and Cloverdale, but did not refind it. If I had to guess, it was headed toward Gazos Creek. I looked without success for the Orchard Oriole late yesterday afternoon (~5:00) and again this morning (~9:30-10:00) at the eucalyptus along Cloverdale (which is flowering by the way), and along Gazos Creek Road downstream of Cloverdale. I did not search extensively, but I did try. I did see and hear the female ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK at Little Butano Creek again last evening. David Suddjian **************Dell Laptops: Huge Savings on Popular Laptops – Deals starting at $399(http://pr.atwola.com/promoclk/100126575x1222883570x1201497211/aol?redir=http:%2F%2Faltfarm.mediaplex.com%2Fad%2Fck%2F12309%2D81939%2D1629%2D0) [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Bayside notes ( Tuesday ) From: Tronthorn AT aol.com Date: Tue, 30 Jun 2009 22:35:27 EDT Today, I decided to see what birds of interest might be at Coyote Point. The long staying male Harlequin Duck was seen preening atop one of the concrete blocks east of the marina during a high tide. Although the light was poor, the Harlequin Duck appeared to be in eclipse plumage, as expected at this time of the year. Arriving shorebirds were on the move headed south low over the bay, but were at a distance not identified to species. First arrivals were ( 17 ) alternate plumaged Western Sandpipers joined by ( 25 ) that flew in. An alternate plumaged Greater Yellowlegs another first arrival was in the fresh water marsh. An adult Cliff Swallow headed south over the bay was clearly a migrant. ( 2 ) Adult Savannah Sparrows along the dirt path near the yacht club were post-breeding dispersants. Late this afternoon at Radio Road, shorebirds had come in to roost. Willets swelled from ( 1,000 ) on June 27 to ( 2,600 ) today. Marbled Godwits from an arriving adult on June 28 to ( 38 ) today. The first alternate plumaged Short-billed Dowitchers arrived today with ( 10 ). Other arrivals today were ( 6 ) alternate plumaged Greater Yellowlegs and a single alternate plumaged Western Sandpiper. The first Elegant Tern showed up at that part of San Francisco Bay and was seen resting on the island with the nesting Caspian Terns. Ron Thorn [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Gazos & Butano area, Orchard Oriole From: dsuddjian AT aol.com Date: Tue, 30 Jun 2009 18:39:31 EDT I'll cut to the chase for the adult male ORCHARD ORIOLE!...(not to say that it will prove chaseable). This morning (6/30) I was counting birds along Cloverdale Road from a point beside the first drainage north of Gazos Creek Road, just over 0.4 mile from Gazos Creek, where there is a eucalyptus (or two, I can't recall) along the road. There were a number of birds flying into and out of the eucalyptus, keeping me busy trying to figure out who was who (mostly Purple Finches and Pine Siskins). I was stunned to see a chestnut and black oriole fly from the north into the eucalyptus, where it essentially disappeared leaving me slack-jawed, heart pounding. The color combo was distinctive, but I had to see it better. After a neck-breaking couple of minutes I spotted as it perched in the relative open for about 30 seconds before flying out of the tree. It made a long flight to the south-southeast, towards Gazos Creek, and went out of view over the rise to the south of the swale. I spent some time looking to the south along the road and around the junction of Gazos Creek Road and Cloverdale, but did not refind it. If I had to guess, it was headed toward Gazos Creek. Orchard Oriole was well down on my mental list of possibilities for the morning, to say the least! It was a small-sized oriole, not too much larger than a Purple Finch. The only colors I could see on the bird were black and chestnut. The head was all black with the black hood extending well onto the breast and onto the back (what I could see of the back). The rest of the underparts were chestnut. The wings were black with chestnut on the upper coverts (or toward the bend of the wing) and an indistinct pale wing bar below that. The tail was black and proportionately short. I did not see the rest of the upper parts. Views were not close enough to say much about the bill, except it was pale gray toward the base and looked smallish. Wow! Another rare bird today was a female ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK that was offering outstanding views along Cloverdale Road were it crosses Little Butano Creek, just south of the entry to Butano SP, with a female and imm. BLACK-HEADED close by for neat comparisons. Backtracking in time now to 6/28 and 6/29...An adult and juv. AM. DIPPER were along the lower reach of the North Fork of Gazos Creek on June 28, close to the location where I saw an active nest in late April. At least one was present early on June 29, and a PILEATED WOODPECKER called in the same area. MARBLED MURRELETS were moderately active in the vicinity of Gazos Mountain Camp on June 29, with 19 detections from the spot I was stationed at for the dawn flight. Some stops along Gazos Creek Road on June 29 produced a PILEATED WOODPECKER 0.6 mile upstream of Cloverdale junction, and a NORTHERN PYGMY-OWL closer to Cloverdale. Three WARBLING VIREOS 0.4 mile upstream of Cloverdale were the only ones I heard, and two OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHERS from 0.4 to 0.6 mile upstream of Highway 1 were the only ones I noted at the stops I made. A RED-BREASTED SAPSUCKER was near the pumphouse. A HOUSE WREN was about 0.3 mile downstream of Cloverdale. I hadn't had any at that spot on three prior stops there this season (or elsewhere along Gazos). Seven MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLERS were noted at five stops ranging from 0.2 mile upstream of Cloverdale downstream to the pumphouse, including six singing males and a female carrying food at 0.2 mile upstream of Cloverdale. SWAINSON'S THRUSH and WILSON'S WARBLER were the most plentiful of the breeding migrants, with a total of 37 and 42 noted on 12 stops, respectively. But the Wilson's tally included at least 11 juvies, so Swainson's was more numerous if only adults are considered. After sunset on 6/29 a NORTHERN PYGMY-OWL responded to my imitation along Butano Fire Road just north of where the road leaves the grassland behind, about 1.1 miles up from Cloverdale, or 0.2 mile northeast (as the owl flies) of the Butano entry kiosk. It was heard and seen there again this morning 6/30. I had NORTHERN PYGMY-OWLS at two spots along Canyon Road this morning: 0.4 miles in from Cloverdale, and in the area around Camp Butano Creek, further up the road. This morning I heard 6 PILEATED WOODPECKERS from Butano Fire Road between Jackson Flat Trail and Cloverdale, with 2 close to the road and the rest distant. Three other Pileateds were noted along Canyon Road. A RED-BREASTED SAPSUCKER was calling along Butano Creek near Canyon road about 0.7 mile from Cloverdale. Other early dispersing HOUSE WRENS were along the start of Butano Fire Road near the gate, and along Cloverdale where the Orchard Oriole was seen. An adult male PEREGRINE FALCON flew down the Butano canyon, likely one of the pair that nests in the South Fork of Butano Creek. Two or three OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHERS were in the general vicinity of the start of Canyon Road. I had three BELTED KINGFISHERS along Butano Creek at Canyon Road, and one other (perhaps one of the same) that flew over Butano Fire Road heading from the Little Butano watershed toward Butano Creek. I heard one singing MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLER along Canyon Road (0.2 mile from Cloverdale), two along Little Butano Creek as heard from Cloverdale, and two along Cloverdale south of Little Butano Creek. The male WESTERN BLUEBIRD was in the vicinity of the nest boxes in that area, and one SAVANNAH SPARROW was singing in that area, too. Pine Siskins were fairly numerous, with 27 noted along Cloverdale, esp. between the Butano entry and Gazos Creek. Not surprisingly, the same two breeding migrants topped the charts today: 68 SWAINSON'S THRUSHES and 43 WILSON'S WARBLERS (3 juv.) noted at 27 stops. Last, I looked at Gazos Creek mouth today and was impressed by 215 CALIFORNIA GULLS (mostly 3rd summer birds, but also 1st and 2nd summer). California Gull numbers are usually fairly thin along the coast by June, but this year there was a late push and large numbers are still present (and still moving). I had even larger flocks in Santa Cruz County today and yesterday (high of 615 at Scott Creek mouth!). A WHITE-TAILED kITE and NORTHERN HARRIER were also seen near Gazos Creek mouth. David Suddjian Butano via Capitola **************A Good Credit Score is 700 or Above. See yours in just 2 easy steps! (http://pr.atwola.com/promoclk/100126575x1222377075x1201454393/aol?redir=http://www.freecreditreport.com/pm/default.aspx?sc=668072&hmpgID=62&bcd= JunestepsfooterNO62) [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Yard birds of interest From: "Laurie Graham" <fair80 AT comcast.net> Date: Tue, 30 Jun 2009 02:34:46 -0000 Today we had five Western Scrub-jays in the yard, three of whom were juveniles, one of which has white wing patches. At 5:30 this evening, we had eight Mourning Doves (2 Juv), which is the largest number we have had in several years. Recently we have had a return of male House Finches with begging broods. Yesterday we saw one male with four babies. Another male landed nearby. I wonder if there is any kind of communal care-taking in House Finches. We have had zero HOFI for several years. Wednesday I saw three Pygmy Nuthatches (1 Juv) in the pine tree out front, and Tuesday Jeff had a flyover White-tailed Kite! Our Chestnut-backed Chickadees fledged on 6/09 (a Tuesday, as usual), and this week the juveniles have returned to visit the feeders. The Brown-headed Cowbird chick which was reared by Dark-eyed Juncos has left, but two adult males and two adult females continue to feed here. We still have new juvenile Dark-eyed Juncos, about two a week. Laurie Graham Jeff Fairclough SSF Subject: James V. Fitzgerald Marine Reserve, Monday 6/29/09 From: "Laurie Graham" <fair80 AT comcast.net> Date: Tue, 30 Jun 2009 02:20:01 -0000 Observation date: 6/29/09, 9:00 a.m. - 11:25 a.m. Notes: Low fog, not too cold. Low tide 10:34 a.m. We walked from the Reserve parking lot south along the riparian trail, to the Moss Beach Distillery and came back along the bluffs overlooking the ocean. The low fog and gray ocean made seawatching difficult. I saw a loon at one point, but lost it in the waves. We couldn't distinguish anything except pelicans beyond the breaker line. Saw our first Heermann's Gulls of the year. There were 144 Harbor Seals hauled out on the rocks, with a California Sea Lion pretending to be one of them. Also seen, one Harbor Dolphin. Laurie Graham Jeff Fairclough SSF Number of species: 28 loon sp. 1 Western Grebe 1 Brown Pelican 87 Brandt's Cormorant 27 Double-crested Cormorant 3 Pelagic Cormorant 13 Cooper's Hawk 1 Black Oystercatcher 2 Heermann's Gull 6 Western Gull 12 California Gull 4 Caspian Tern 1 Pigeon Guillemot 2 Band-tailed Pigeon 1 Eurasian Collared-Dove 1 Mourning Dove 1 Western Scrub-Jay (Coastal) 1 Common Raven 6 Bushtit 1 Swainson's Thrush 2 heard only European Starling 12 Spotted Towhee 2 California Towhee 3 one was singing from a roof near the ranger station Song Sparrow 2 White-crowned Sparrow 4 Dark-eyed Junco 3 American Goldfinch 3 House Sparrow 4 This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org/california/) Subject: Radio Rd/Nob Hill this evening From: "Kris Olson" <kristenolson AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 28 Jun 2009 22:12:07 -0700 I made a short visit to Radio Rd and Nob Hill this evening about 6pm. Tide seemed pretty high. When I drove in, there was a seal swimming in the channel along Radio Rd but I could not find it on the way out. Radio Rd-- this time I did see a Caspian Tern back on its nest site and another one in the water on the east end of the long thin island-- with hundreds of Willets. It later flew over near the nesting tern. Other birds of interest: 3 Black Skimmers 1 Greater Yellowlegs, preening actively 1 Scaup on the wide levee 2 Forester's Terns on the south pond islands-- adults 1 Canvasback on the wide berm/levee 3 Dowitchers-- one by itself (the injured one?) and the heads of two more just visible on the far side of the long thin island Fewer Cliff Swallows than usual 2 Ravens swooped down on the birds on the berm several times until many Ring-billed gulls, ducks and avocets flushed Over at Nob Hill pond: 20 American White Pelicans 1 Redhead male, changing plumage 2 male Green-winged Teal that I spotted under the bushes on the island And 1 Caspian Tern-- same as the one on Radio Rd? Kris Olson Subject: Sunday Northern Parula at Portola State Park and Radio Road From: "Leonie Batkin" <lbatkin AT stanford.edu> Date: Sun, 28 Jun 2009 20:22:05 -0700 Today, Sunday June 28th, we went to Portola State Park. We arrived at 9am and at 9:05am we heard the NORTHERN PARULA singing from an oak tree uphill from the Park Ranger residence. It later flew into a coyote bush on the hillside about 20 feet from us. It flew back and forth across the road several times while we were there until we left at 9:30am at which point it had either stopped singing or flew far enough to be out of our range of hearing. Later in the afternoon we went to Radio Road in Redwood Shores and we saw a fall arrival adult Marbled Godwit there were also two second calender year birds that have summered there which should not be confused with the newly arrived adult. On the island where the Caspian Terns have been nesting there was a recently hatched Forester's Tern with an adult. While we were there another adult was bringing in fish for the youngster. Unfortunately the other Forester's Terns on the north pond have all left and apparently abandonded their nest sites. There was a first arrival of an adult Ring-billed Gull. There was a post breeding dispersant adult Tree Swallow foraging over the pond. Leonie Batkin Ron Thorn [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Oyster Point Sunday From: "Laurie Graham" <fair80 AT comcast.net> Date: Mon, 29 Jun 2009 00:25:02 -0000 Observation date: 6/28/09, 9:25 a.m. - 12:10 p.m. The day was hot. Tides were high at 5:05 a.m., 5.9'; low at 11:34 a.m., 0.3'. We went because it was nearby and might be cool. Also, I am currently unable to walk long distances, so I drove to the three parking areas along the Bay Trail, while Jeff walked. There was a flock of Willets on the beach in the cove south of San Bruno Point. We did not see Ron Thorn's post from yesterday before we went, but did not see any Elegant Terns. We had our first Galucous-winged Gull in a dozen visits. There was a large flock of Canada Geese by the Harbormaster's Office, with no obvious goslings. There were four crows at the Marina; one was a juvenile with the barest hint of a gape, and the head was fluffy and not shiny. Number of species: 32 Canada Goose 37 Mallard 8 Western Grebe 63 Clark's Grebe 3 Brown Pelican 32 Double-crested Cormorant 37 Great Blue Heron 2 Great Egret 2 Snowy Egret 8 Black-crowned Night-Heron 1 Killdeer 1 Black Oystercatcher 3 Willet 33 Whimbrel (American) 3 Marbled Godwit 2 Western Gull 54 California Gull 7 Glaucous-winged Gull 1 Caspian Tern 2 Forster's Tern 26 Rock Pigeon 24 Anna's Hummingbird 1 American Crow 4 Common Raven 1 Barn Swallow 2 American Robin 1 Northern Mockingbird 2 European Starling 6 Song Sparrow 1 Brewer's Blackbird 41 House Finch 17 House Sparrow 5 This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org/california/) Subject: Filoli Field Trip 6/27/09 From: "George Chrisman" <geodani55 AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 28 Jun 2009 15:05:09 -0000 Yesterday, Leonie Batkin and I led a Sequoia Audubon field trip to Filoli Estate in Woodside. It was warm in the morning, reaching over 90 degrees as we finished the walk. Best birds of the day were a family group of WILD TURKEYS with 2 hens and at least 4 fairly young chicks. There were also 3 toms in a different area in the hayfield north of the mansion. The best activity was around the parking lot and the riparian area east of the orchard, where we saw a silent WILSON'S WARBLER, BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER, several WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCHES, and newly fledged NORTHERN ROUGH-WINGED SWALLOWS. There are WESTERN BLUEBIRDS and ACORN WOODPECKERS everywhere. NUTTALL'S WOODPECKERS were also abundant, with up to three seen in a single fruit tree in the orchard with many more heard throughout the property. Keep Cool! Goerge Chrisman Burlingame, CA Location: Filoli Estate/SF Watershed Observation date: 6/27/09 Notes: Audubon Field Trip co-led with Leonie Batkin. Hot day, temp above 90 at noontime when we finished. Number of species: 43 Wild Turkey 9 Two hens with at least 4 young. Toms in hayfield by themselves. California Quail 2 White-tailed Kite 1 Red-shouldered Hawk (California) 3 Red-tailed Hawk 1 Band-tailed Pigeon 4 Mourning Dove 3 Anna's Hummingbird 7 Acorn Woodpecker 25 Nuttall's Woodpecker 8 Downy Woodpecker 2 Western Wood-Pewee 4 Pacific-slope Flycatcher 8 Black Phoebe 6 Hutton's Vireo 5 Warbling Vireo 6 Steller's Jay 7 Western Scrub-Jay (Coastal) 5 American Crow 2 Common Raven 2 Tree Swallow 2 Violet-green Swallow 9 Northern Rough-winged Swallow 4 Chestnut-backed Chickadee 30 Oak Titmouse 8 Bushtit 25 White-breasted Nuthatch 5 Bewick's Wren 4 Western Bluebird 22 American Robin 7 Wrentit 3 European Starling 6 Black-throated Gray Warbler 1 Wilson's Warbler (Pacific Coast) 1 Spotted Towhee 9 California Towhee 5 Song Sparrow 2 Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon) 20 Black-headed Grosbeak 1 Red-winged Blackbird 3 Purple Finch (Western) 4 House Finch 6 Lesser Goldfinch 15 This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org) Subject: Filoli Field Trip 6/27/09 From: "George Chrisman" <geodani55 AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 28 Jun 2009 15:40:38 -0000 Yesterday, 6/27/09, Leonie Batkin and I led a Sequoia Audubon field trip to the Filoli Estate in Woodside. It was a warm morning with temperatures exceeding 90 degrees by noon time. The best birding was in the morning near the main parking lot, orchard, and riparian area east of the orchard. Best birds of the day included silent WILSON'S WARBLER & BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER in the willows along the creek near the main entrance. NUTTALL'S WOODPECKERS were seen and heard throughout the property, but most visible in the orchard, with up to three in a single fruit tree. There was a family of NORTHERN ROUGH-WINGED SWALLOWS with newly fledged young perched on the fence near the overflow parking area by the orchard. ACORN WOODPECKERS & WESTERN BLUEBIRDS were everywhere. Most rewarding sighting was a family of two hen WILD TURKEYS with at least four very young chicks seen walking through the tall grass along the San Andreas Fault trail near Old Canada Road. Three adult tom turkeys were also in the hay field north of the main mansion. Keep Cool! George Chrisman Burlingame, CA Location: Filoli Estate/SF Watershed Observation date: 6/27/09 Notes: Audubon Field Trip co-led with Leonie Batkin. Hot day, temp above 90 at noontime when we finished. Number of species: 43 Wild Turkey 9 Two hens with at least 4 young. Toms in hayfield by themselves. California Quail 2 White-tailed Kite 1 Red-shouldered Hawk (California) 3 Red-tailed Hawk 1 Band-tailed Pigeon 4 Mourning Dove 3 Anna's Hummingbird 7 Acorn Woodpecker 25 Nuttall's Woodpecker 8 Downy Woodpecker 2 Western Wood-Pewee 4 Pacific-slope Flycatcher 8 Black Phoebe 6 Hutton's Vireo 5 Warbling Vireo 6 Steller's Jay 7 Western Scrub-Jay (Coastal) 5 American Crow 2 Common Raven 2 Tree Swallow 2 Violet-green Swallow 9 Northern Rough-winged Swallow 4 Chestnut-backed Chickadee 30 Oak Titmouse 8 Bushtit 25 White-breasted Nuthatch 5 Bewick's Wren 4 Western Bluebird 22 American Robin 7 Wrentit 3 European Starling 6 Black-throated Gray Warbler 1 Wilson's Warbler (Pacific Coast) 1 Spotted Towhee 9 California Towhee 5 Song Sparrow 2 Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon) 20 Black-headed Grosbeak 1 Red-winged Blackbird 3 Purple Finch (Western) 4 House Finch 6 Lesser Goldfinch 15 This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org) Subject: Monte Bello & Portola SP-- beating the heat From: "Kris Olson" <kristenolson AT yahoo.com> Date: Sat, 27 Jun 2009 21:21:05 -0700 To be the heat (more or less), Michael Scott and I started at 6:30 at the Page Mill/280 Park and Ride and got to Gate 2 (orchard) at Monte Bello before 7am, where we walked in and did find a singing Indigo Bunting. Ok, Santa Clara County but lovely bird. We did not see/hear any sign of any bunting at Gate 4, but decided not to tarry due to rising temperatures. We then followed some of David Suddjian's route from his report of June 26-- covering June 23-26, I think. 1) Lawrence's Goldfinches -- NO -- looked for them in several places along the upper reaches of Alpine, west of Skyline 2) Western Bluebirds -- we found a pair at 291 Alpine Rd, one of the pairs that David reported 3) American Kestrels -- we found two at 291 Alpine, though they were not immediately present. We got good looks at the male and saw another one quite a distance away on a tall tree-- we saw this from a pull out uphill from 291 Alpine. Later, we saw another American Kestrel further down on Portola State Park Road, #1355. 4) Possibly heard Northern Pygmy Owl? We heard something tooting distantly uphill from 291 Alpine Road. 5) Big excitement for us around 9am was refinding the NORTHERN PARULA male singing just uphill from the ranger house. Michael saw it moving in the coyote bush (or a bush that looked similar) midway up the hill on the right (right if headed downhill), pished and it came in closer. We both got photos, I have posted mine to Flickr. It's a stunningly beautiful little warbler. -- slate blue back of head, most of back and wings -- prominent white wing bars (in photos, some black along the lower edge) -- some olive green on upper back -- black lores -- split white eye ring -- yellow breast, white below that -- Dark band of black across chest (sometimes not very visible depending on his position) and chestnut markings under the black band -- long slim bill with a brilliant yellow lower mandible http://www.flickr.com/photos/27741504 AT N08/3666284965/ 6) On the way back up Portola SP Road, we stopped at the curve with 2 very large blue gum eucalyptus trees. The mail boxes said 231 and 229. In the downhill tree (left of the wooden gate), we found a pair of WARBLING VIREOS apparently incubating a nest. They took turns sitting on the nest, and the first one we saw was bringing a worm to the nest. They changed positions often and the one arriving would sing briefly before exchanging positions. We took photos; Michael used a tripod so he got a good shot of a vireo on the nest, which I am going to post to my Flickr account (in the absence of his own). Breeding evidence. The nest was a very deep round cup. http://www.flickr.com/photos/27741504 AT N08/3666497059/ Missed birds: we looked extensively for the male Hooded Warbler inside Portola SP, but the park was hopping with campers and we found no sign of it. We looked for the Vaux's Swifts over HQ but did not find them. We looked for the Rose-breasted Grosbeak by the eucalyptus trees but only finally roused a male Black-headed Grosbeak; by now it was at least noon and even in this park the heat was rising. We then checked Yerba Buena Nursery, but it was very hot and quiet. Nice dragonflies and a swimming newt. Good idea, newt. So once again, thanks to David Suddjian for a wonderful warbler! It was a county bird for me, and only the fourth one I have seen-- I think the best looks, plus the pleasure of savoring the photos when I get home. Kris Olson Subject: Arrival of Elegant Terns From: Tronthorn AT aol.com Date: Sat, 27 Jun 2009 17:47:43 EDT This morning I headed to Colma Creek on the bay in South San Francisco to see if any arriving shorebirds have come in. There were none! I decided to check the bay at the end of Oyster Point Boulevard in South San Francisco. I took particular interest in the jetty at the marina, as there are always Forster's Terns. My interest was to see if any Elegant Terns were present and indeed there were ( 12 ). The Elegant Terns are what I am aware of to be the first arrivals this season in the county. Checking for shorebirds at Redwood Shores, there was still only one species that has arrived so far. From a total of ( 15 ) Willets at the beginning of last week at Radio Road, the number has increased to ( 1,000+ ) today. During the week, there was confirmation of Violet-green Swallow breeding in block 6055 of the breeding bird atlas. The swallows have been seen entering a laundry room vent at an apartment building on Flores Street in San Mateo. Ron Thorn [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Re: Portola SP and vicinity June 22-26 From: dsuddjian AT aol.com Date: Sat, 27 Jun 2009 01:48:08 EDT I wish to add a note on PILEATED WOODPECKERS noted over these dates. They were not especially evident at Portola SP this time, although I found about 7. I only heard one bird drumming over the 6 days. Another Pileated was south of Portola Trail in Pescadero Creek County Park. Additional birds were heard on 6/23 in the Alpine Creek watershed from a point 1.2 miles up Alpine from Portola SP Road, and in the west fork of Lambert Creek watershed in Skyline Ridge OSP. David Suddjian Capitola **************An Excellent Credit Score is 750. See Yours in Just 2 Easy Steps! (http://pr.atwola.com/promoclk/100126575x1222585065x1201462786/aol?redir=http://www.freecreditreport.com/pm/default.aspx?sc=668072&hmpgID=62&bcd=Jun eExcfooterNO62) [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Re: Strike out on buntings - Monte Bello From: "George Chrisman" <geodani55 AT yahoo.com> Date: Sat, 27 Jun 2009 05:07:05 -0000 Kris & Group, I had a male INDIGO BUNTING at Monte Bello Gate 5 on Monday 6/22/09 around 4 PM singing loudly from the top of the ornamental spruce or fir trees at the private residence near the intersection with Alpine Road. It was originally down the trail to the pond at Gate 5 on the Santa Clara side of the road, but as I was returning to my car from the pond, it flew across the road and landed in the trees. I was able to approach the bird within a few yards, as it was right above my car parked on Page Mill Road. George Chrisman Burlingame, CA --- In peninsula-birding AT yahoogroups.com, "Kris Olson" wrote: > > I arrived at Monte Bello gate 4 today at 7:30am. All was quiet on the south, > north, east and western fronts. Sigh. I spent two hours wading through weeds > until I finally found the White Oak trail, which I shared with a Coyote who > definitely wished I would move off the trail so that s/he could use it and > not have to go wading through more weeds. I walked down the trail into the > woodlands -- nice little birdy spot. [Last date Indigo Bunting reported > here was June 17.] > > Other birds: > Grasshopper sparrow greeted me. I think it's an immature since it has dark > streaking on its breast, a whiter supercilium, "warm brown ear-coverts" and > "scaly-looking upperparts" (quotes from Rising and Beadle sparrow book). > See what you think. Also it tried to make noise and not much came out.. > http://www.flickr.com/photos/27741504 AT N08/3658951268/in/photostream/ > to compare, an adult Grasshopper Sparrow from last year on Windy Hill: > http://www.flickr.com/photos/27741504 AT N08/3505652311/in/set-7215761198834347 > 1/ > > > > Ash-throated Flycatcher - 2 > Acorn Woodpecker -- 1 on power pole near oaks, one in the oaks > Lesser Goldfinch - 6 > Band-tailed Pigeons passing over - 19 > Dark-eyed Juncos with young - 4 > Chestnut-backed Chickadees with young (heard) > California Towhee > Red-tailed Hawk > White-tailed Kite > Black-headed Grosbeak - 1 > > Then I decided to look for the Indigo Bunting at Monte Bello gate 3 (main > gate). I also checked the walk in from Page Mill (gate 2) along the orchard, > back through and around the orchard, down the nature tail to the Bobcat > sign, etc. No buntings period, of any persuasion, male female Indigo or > Lazuli. [Last date Indigo Bunting reported here was June 21.] > > A family of 3 Ash-throated Flycatchers flew across Page Mill into Monte > Bello, pausing briefly on the wires. Purple Finches were intensely colored > and singing in the orchard. > > Better bunting luck than I had today! > > Kris Olson > Subject: House Wren inquiry From: dsuddjian AT aol.com Date: Fri, 26 Jun 2009 20:19:39 EDT Does anyone have any information on the current/recent status of nesting House Wrens along the crest of the Santa Cruz Mountains in SCL and SM northwest of Hwy 17, or coastward of the crest in SM? I'm just curious and seeking to put some recent observations into context. Even general comments (e.g., uncommon at Los Trancos, fairly common at Monte Bello, that sort of thing) would be helpful. But I'm mostly interested in info that reflects the current status or that in the last several years...not 20 years ago. Thanks and feel free to reply off list. David Suddjian Capitola **************Stay connected and tighten your budget with a great mobile device for under $20. Take a Peek! (http://pr.atwola.com/promoclk/100122638x1222405996x1201457362/aol?redir=http://www.getpeek.com/aol) [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Portola SP and vicinity June 22-26 From: dsuddjian AT aol.com Date: Fri, 26 Jun 2009 17:58:13 EDT Spent time at Portola SP and a bit into Pescadero Creek CP from late on June 22 to this morning June 26, with some time also paid along Alpine Road and Portola State Park Road above the park on June 23, and along Highway 9 where it swings in and out of San Mateo County in the upper watersheds of Oil Creek and Waterman Creek on June 26. Rarity highlights were three vagrants on June 23. A singing male HOODED WARBLER was at on the slope west of Madrone Picnic Area in Portola SP. It was moving widely as it sang, ranging from the Iverson Trail head to Hillside Group Campground. It led me on a merry chase as I tried to get a look at it as it sang frequently. I did not hear it on the next few mornings. A singing male NORTHERN PARULA was more cooperative. It was along Portola State Park Road at milemarker 0.21, near the ranger residence that is just down the road from the entry to the park. It came right in when I pished and offered excellent views as it sang, and it was still there on June 24. I did not hear it on a brief attempt this morning, but I only gave it a few minutes. A singing male ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK was at 237 Portola State Park Road, about 1 mile down from the junction with Alpine Road, where there are two large blue gum eucalyptus at a curve in the road. Two AMERICAN CROWS in that same spot on June 23 were pioneers, but not far from where I heard some in late May. MARBLED MURRELET activity was the lowest ever for late June at Portola, with long-term monitoring since 1992 providing a nice frame of reference. A survey at Pescadero Creek at the downstream crossing of Iverson Trail on June 23 had zero detections. Three surveys at Peter's Creek Bridge beside the main campground on June 24-26 had 6, 2 and 6 murrelet detections, respectively, with no below canopy flights. The strangest thing was a calling murrelet I heard over the main campground at 11:05-11:07 a.m. on June 25. They are "never" active over the forest at that time of day. The only other daytime occurrence I can recall experiencing outside the usual crepuscular flight periods was one I heard at mid-day near Loma Mar in April 1991. Members of a single pair of VAUX'S SWIFT were evident in the general area of Portola park HQ on each day from June 22-26. My best assessment from what I observed was that there is likely an active nest in incubation phase somewhere in that area, but it is not in the traditional chimney at HQ, as that is no longer accessible to swifts, as I mentioned in a previous post. There did not seem to be any other pairs of swifts in the park. I was happy to see WESTERN BLUEBIRDS at three spots. One pair was along Portola State Park Road on June 22 from 1.1 to 1.2 mile downhill from the junction with Alpine Road. Two flew over Alpine Road about 1.2 mile up from the junction with Portola State Park Road, and another pair was about 0.3 mile further up at 291 Alpine Road. Having traveled those roads repeatedly in late June to August since 2001 I have seldom seen any bluebirds. A pair of AMERICAN KESTRELS had one juvenile along Alpine Road in the area of address 291 Alpine on June 23. That area has been reliable for a pair in recent breeding seasons. More from June 23...A male and female LAWRENCE'S GOLDFINCH pair was at Alpine Road 0.1 mile from Skyline Blvd (coastside). A WILD TURKEY was about 1.5 mile down Alpine Road, and single RED-BREASTED NUTHATCHES were 1.5 and 0.35 miles down from Alpine. A singing MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLER and a WILD TURKEY were at 200 Portola State Park Road, about 0.1 or 0.2 mile down from Alpine. A NUTTALL'S WOODPECKER at Crocker's Curve, just up from the Portola SP entry was (I think) the nearest I've ever had one to that park. Down in Portola SP, at least 2 female COMMON MERGANSERS were along Pescadero Creek in the vicinity of park HQ, and a GREAT BLUE HERON (only occasional up that far in the nesting season) was at the confluence with Falls Creek. EUROPEAN STARLINGS apparently fledged a second brood near park HQ on June 23 and were out of there after that. A DOWNY WOODPECKER in the main campground on June 26 was unusual for the park in summer. WESTERN SCREECH-OWLS were very responsive everywhere I tried for them, with lots of unsolicited calling (i.e., no recordings played), too. The best moment was 8 individuals calling at the same time (5 males, 2 females, 1 juvie) along Upper Escape Road just north of the campground on June 24. A family of juv. NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWLS was at the north end of the campground that evening, too. Lastly, today I had a YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER nest with young at the top of Shingle Mill Road off Highway 9, and a female WESTERN TANAGER carrying food just down the road from there. Both good breeding confirmations for SM (atlas block 7520...not new for the block, but I think little precedent for SM). David Suddjian Capitola **************Stay connected and tighten your budget with a great mobile device for under $20. Take a Peek! (http://pr.atwola.com/promoclk/100122638x1222405996x1201457362/aol?redir=http://www.getpeek.com/aol) [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: RE: Caspian Terns - 2nd egg? From: Tom Merigan <merigan AT stanford.edu> Date: Thu, 25 Jun 2009 11:58:11 -0700 To all- I agree with Al and have photos to back up the presence on June 23 and today of the incubating tern on the island where the prior incubation took place. It is hard to see unless it pokes it head up as it is on the opposite side of the grass patch from both western or southern viewing spots Let's hope the chicks do better this time Tom Merigan At 03:42 PM 6/23/2009, Al Eisner wrote: >On Mon, 22 Jun 2009, Kris Olson wrote: > > > I stopped by Radio Rd tonight around 6:30. No Caspian Terns in sight on any > > island or in the air. I did find one at Nob Hill later, along with 36-38 > > American White Pelicans (these guys are hard to count when they are lying > > down.) > >The pair of Caspian Terns is in fact still at the Radio Road ponds -- I >saw them there on the weekend and I rechecked today, as I was not too >far from there. If indeed the chick was lost, they are probably >re-nesting. However, the vegetation on the (same) island now almost >entirely conceals the incubating bird. On the weekend I just had >intermittent views of it. Today, while its mate was standing nearby, >I didn't see it at all until the two birds exchanged positions. > > > 1 Black Skimmer at Radio Road. > >Still just the one today. >Al Eisner > > ---------- [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: [event] Bird Watching on Pacifica State Bearch June 28 From: "spectaclebear" <mkeitelman AT hotmail.com> Date: Thu, 25 Jun 2009 15:30:24 -0000 hi All, For your junior birder friends in the area: Birdwatching on the Beach Sunday, June 28, 12:30 p.m. til 2 p.m. or later Meet on Pacifica State Beach at the Monterey Cypress Tree, located at Highway One and Crespi Drive. Last week's surprise: Common Yellowthroat warbler adult bird feeding two fledglings. Get an education on the birds commonly found on and around Pacifica State Beach. Learn the difference between a Western Snowy Plover and a Sanderling. Bring binoculars if you have them. All ages welcome! This is a regular hike on the fourth sunday of the month. Please contact us for more information or other Pacifica birdwalks: outreach AT pacificashorebird.org www.pacificashorebird.org Subject: Strike out on buntings - Monte Bello From: "Kris Olson" <kristenolson AT yahoo.com> Date: Wed, 24 Jun 2009 23:05:30 -0700 I arrived at Monte Bello gate 4 today at 7:30am. All was quiet on the south, north, east and western fronts. Sigh. I spent two hours wading through weeds until I finally found the White Oak trail, which I shared with a Coyote who definitely wished I would move off the trail so that s/he could use it and not have to go wading through more weeds. I walked down the trail into the woodlands -- nice little birdy spot. [Last date Indigo Bunting reported here was June 17.] Other birds: Grasshopper sparrow greeted me. I think it's an immature since it has dark streaking on its breast, a whiter supercilium, "warm brown ear-coverts" and "scaly-looking upperparts" (quotes from Rising and Beadle sparrow book). See what you think. Also it tried to make noise and not much came out.. http://www.flickr.com/photos/27741504 AT N08/3658951268/in/photostream/ to compare, an adult Grasshopper Sparrow from last year on Windy Hill: http://www.flickr.com/photos/27741504 AT N08/3505652311/in/set-7215761198834347 1/ Ash-throated Flycatcher - 2 Acorn Woodpecker -- 1 on power pole near oaks, one in the oaks Lesser Goldfinch - 6 Band-tailed Pigeons passing over - 19 Dark-eyed Juncos with young - 4 Chestnut-backed Chickadees with young (heard) California Towhee Red-tailed Hawk White-tailed Kite Black-headed Grosbeak - 1 Then I decided to look for the Indigo Bunting at Monte Bello gate 3 (main gate). I also checked the walk in from Page Mill (gate 2) along the orchard, back through and around the orchard, down the nature tail to the Bobcat sign, etc. No buntings period, of any persuasion, male female Indigo or Lazuli. [Last date Indigo Bunting reported here was June 21.] A family of 3 Ash-throated Flycatchers flew across Page Mill into Monte Bello, pausing briefly on the wires. Purple Finches were intensely colored and singing in the orchard. Better bunting luck than I had today! Kris Olson Subject: SB Mt. Park-Crocker Gate Feeder-New RB Grosbeak From: "lee" <leewaysf AT pacbell.net> Date: Thu, 25 Jun 2009 04:29:47 -0000 Wonderful day at the feeder, (another RB Grosbeak) AND a new bird for the feeder list: a female Downy Woodpecker gleaning the suet log. I'm hoping she has hooked up with the M Downey that has been drumming all week. Although I hear the Downies, I rarely see them and none have come to the feeder b4. Coincidentally, last week at the baby bird care program we recieved a baby M Downy and I was just telling my wife about him today when I got home. She then said there's a woodpecker on the log! So, while I set up the camera the RBG lands on the feeder. Pics in the SB Mt. Park-Crocker Gate Feeder Photos, also, the 06-20 immature M BH Grosbeak, and the snarky cowbird getting fed by a WC Sparrow right in front of our office window pics, too. They are gone, but another cowbird chick that duped a junco is in the back yard; the incessant begging has been going on for 3 days. Also, the Olive-sided Flycatcher is now singing from 5 am to 5:30am-too dark to try to get a pic ;^( Subject: RE: Caspian Terns - 2nd egg? From: Al Eisner <eisner AT SLAC.Stanford.EDU> Date: Tue, 23 Jun 2009 15:42:39 -0700 (PDT) On Mon, 22 Jun 2009, Kris Olson wrote: > I stopped by Radio Rd tonight around 6:30. No Caspian Terns in sight on any > island or in the air. I did find one at Nob Hill later, along with 36-38 > American White Pelicans (these guys are hard to count when they are lying > down.) The pair of Caspian Terns is in fact still at the Radio Road ponds -- I saw them there on the weekend and I rechecked today, as I was not too far from there. If indeed the chick was lost, they are probably re-nesting. However, the vegetation on the (same) island now almost entirely conceals the incubating bird. On the weekend I just had intermittent views of it. Today, while its mate was standing nearby, I didn't see it at all until the two birds exchanged positions. > 1 Black Skimmer at Radio Road. Still just the one today. Al Eisner Subject: RE: Caspian Terns - 2nd egg? From: "Kris Olson" <kristenolson AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 22 Jun 2009 22:32:33 -0700 I stopped by Radio Rd tonight around 6:30. No Caspian Terns in sight on any island or in the air. I did find one at Nob Hill later, along with 36-38 American White Pelicans (these guys are hard to count when they are lying down.) 1 Black Skimmer at Radio Road. The American Avocet next to the former Caspian Tern nest is still on a nest. I also checked out the Forster Terns on the north pond. There were maybe 10 I could see and double that when they all flew—many fewer than had been hanging out there in late May. I don’t see any chicks yet, but I just used my binoculars. Something positive to watch for. Kris Olson From: peninsula-birding AT yahoogroups.com [mailto:peninsula-birding AT yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Tom Merigan Sent: Monday, June 22, 2009 3:30 PM To: peninsula-birding AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: [pen-bird] Caspian Terns - 2nd egg? Sonny I thought there was a second egg which I got a picture of on July 9th http://www.pbase.com/merigan/image/113580558/original ,the day that I first photographed the chick. I has not been sat on for several days or it is a freshly lad one which we should be able to tell by when we see the chick. So 'I"ll be watching starting tomorrow Tom At 03:02 PM 6/22/2009, you wrote: >Went to Radio Road this morning. Two adult Caspian Terns at the >"nest site". One sitting , as if in egg. After awhile they changed >places. Adults were very careful, seemed to be arranging the nest. >Behavior at nest similar to seen 10-20 days ago. > >I viewed from many angles - Stop sign around to plant entrance road. >Vegetation is deeper so nothing could be seen beneath, next to adult >Tern Could there be a new egg? > >Also, did see what appears to be Great Blue Heron in nest on front >most tower off to left of dog park. Nest at junction of lower cross >bar at right upright > > > >[Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > ---------- [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: leucistic loon From: "Alvaro Jaramillo" <chucao AT coastside.net> Date: Mon, 22 Jun 2009 20:37:15 -0700 Folks, Forgot about this, while coming back from my son's soccer game on Saturday we did a quick looksie in Pillar Point Harbor. In the inner harbor there were two Red-throated Loons and one was a leucistic (washed out plumage, creamy-white) bird. Several years back we had a near albino Pacific Loon in Half Moon Bay, I thought it was going to be that bird again until I got my glasses on it and realized this was a different kind of loon altogether. Al Alvaro Jaramillo chucao AT coastside.net Half Moon Bay, California Field Guides - Birding Tours Worldwide www.fieldguides.com [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Re: Caspian Terns - 2nd egg? From: Tom Merigan <merigan AT stanford.edu> Date: Mon, 22 Jun 2009 15:29:40 -0700 Sonny I thought there was a second egg which I got a picture of on July 9th http://www.pbase.com/merigan/image/113580558/original ,the day that I first photographed the chick. I has not been sat on for several days or it is a freshly lad one which we should be able to tell by when we see the chick. So 'I"ll be watching starting tomorrow Tom At 03:02 PM 6/22/2009, you wrote: >Went to Radio Road this morning. Two adult Caspian Terns at the >"nest site". One sitting , as if in egg. After awhile they changed >places. Adults were very careful, seemed to be arranging the nest. >Behavior at nest similar to seen 10-20 days ago. > >I viewed from many angles - Stop sign around to plant entrance road. >Vegetation is deeper so nothing could be seen beneath, next to adult >Tern Could there be a new egg? > >Also, did see what appears to be Great Blue Heron in nest on front >most tower off to left of dog park. Nest at junction of lower cross >bar at right upright > > > >[Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > ---------- [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Caspian Terns - 2nd egg? From: sonny mencher <soccerquiz AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 22 Jun 2009 15:02:21 -0700 (PDT) Went to Radio Road this morning. Two adult Caspian Terns at the "nest site". One sitting , as if in egg. After awhile they changed places. Adults were very careful, seemed to be arranging the nest. Behavior at nest similar to seen 10-20 days ago.   I viewed from many angles - Stop sign around to plant entrance road. Vegetation is deeper so nothing could be seen beneath, next to adult Tern  Could there be a new egg?   Also, did see what appears to be Great Blue Heron in nest on front most tower off to left of dog park. Nest at junction of lower cross bar at right upright     [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: San Bruno Mt.-Olive-sided Flycatcher From: "lee" <leewaysf AT pacbell.net> Date: Mon, 22 Jun 2009 17:56:47 -0000 Has been waking us up for the last week at 5:30 am to 6 am. I didn't know the call, so it took some time to figure it out. Just like the field guide says, he's on a dead euc tree limb. Was also stumped because I don't see the white center breast, or get the "quick-three-beers" call at all! (I just played the call from the Cornell page on my computer to listen again and he's calling back! Sorry, didn't mean for that to happen) Also, a downy woodpecker, one I can actually see, is drumming in the same area. An immature M BH Grosbeak came to the feeder the other day, and tons of fledglings from my usual feeder birds. Only other new bird was a Northern Mockingbird in the tall pine and it came into yard, but then left quickly; thought it was going for the bird bath. A WC Sparrow was feeding a cowbird chick in the front feeder, and fortunetly that only went on for 2 days, last year the poor mother was running ragged for a week trying to keep the chick quiet. The RT Hawks that were nesting flew over my house last week together, it was great to see the female out and about, and saw them circling the nest area with thier 2 fledged chicks. I always forget to list the flyovers, I had about 10 Canadian geese fly over towards Guadalupe Canyon, gulls (don't know my gulls) toward SF, and the usual Ravens that let me know when the RT's are close to the house. Subject: Red Crossbill types. From: "Alvaro Jaramillo" <chucao AT coastside.net> Date: Mon, 22 Jun 2009 10:51:23 -0700 Folks I just returned from an airport drop-off and on my way home stopped at the Skylawn Cemetery to see if any Red Crossbills were vocalizing. Indeed they were and I was able to record some songs and flight calls. Comparing sonograms I was able to determine that these are "Type 2" Red Crossbills, also known as Ponderosa Pine Red Crossbills. They are the most widespread Red Crossbills in the West. Earlier in the spring I heard a second type that sounded more like a White-winged Crossbill and I think these were Type 3, but without a recording it is impossible to know. I just know that I heard two different types of Red Crossbills on the same day in Half Moon Bay. For more info on Red Crossbill types here is a spot that gives good leads to more information. http://earbirding.com/blog/archives/31 Al Alvaro Jaramillo chucao AT coastside.net Half Moon Bay, California Field Guides - Birding Tours Worldwide www.fieldguides.com [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Re: Butano SP June 8-11, tardy summary report From: dsuddjian AT aol.com Date: Mon, 22 Jun 2009 02:03:43 EDT In a message dated 6/21/2009 10:23:28 PM Pacific Daylight Time, dsuddjian AT aol.com writes: Having worked extensively in various areas of the park now for 20 breeding seasons, I get the sense that most birders seldom visit the place...I have yet to encounter one! I should revise this comment to acknowledge that much of my work has been in the more remote areas of the park, and/or at hours before and after when most birders would visit. Still, it is an underbirded place, as are so many of our forest parks. Some of my favorite areas for birding, with reasonable access, include Butano Fire Road between Cloverdale and Jackson Flat Trail, the middle reach of Jackson Flat Trail, Goat Hill Trail, Gazos Trail, Six Bridges Trail, Ano Nuevo Trail, and Olmo Fire Road between Goat Hill to above the junction with Gazos Trail. There are some nice opportunities for loops, but hard to avoid some decent uphill/downhill travel. Doe Ridge Trail is simply lovely...not the most birdy, but quite a place. David **************Make your summer sizzle with fast and easy recipes for the grill. (http://food.aol.com/grilling?ncid=emlcntusfood00000004) [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: RE: Slow birding on the coast 6/20/09 From: "Kris Olson" <kristenolson AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 21 Jun 2009 22:26:22 -0700 Ok, try this once more. Also forgot to mention that we found what we think is a Wild Turkey feather on the Olmo Fire Road, just past Ano Nuevo trail. It is about 4" long, last 1/3 is black with an orange band on the end, square cut across the tip. The first 2/3 are soft and downy, black. I can send a photo if anyone wants one. It looks something like this one that I found on google: http://www.hiltonpond.org/images/TurkeyWildFeather01.jpg Looking back through Pen Bird, I see that several Wild Turkeys have been seen in Butano since about 2002, and Ron Thorn reported that they used to be common in the marsh at the entrance about 10 years earlier. We also found a smaller, strikingly striped black and white feather, which we guessed is from a Red-shouldered Hawk. Too big to be from a woodpecker. Such fun playing detective! Kris Olson From: peninsula-birding AT yahoogroups.com [mailto:peninsula-birding AT yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Kris Olson Sent: Sunday, June 21, 2009 1:12 PM To: 'Peninsula-Birding' Subject: RE: [pen-bird] Slow birding on the coast 6/20/09 Forgot to mention. (problem with not taking written notes as you go!) Brown Creeper adult and 2 youngsters in Butano SP From: peninsula-birding AT yahoogroups.com [mailto:peninsula-birding AT yahoogroups.com ] On Behalf Of Kris Olson Sent: Sunday, June 21, 2009 12:16 PM To: Peninsula-Birding Subject: [pen-bird] Slow birding on the coast 6/20/09 Yesterday, I spent some time at Butano State Park with Michael Scott trying to relocated the signing male Hooded Warbler that Ron Thorn and Leonie Batkin had found on June 13. We hiked up the Ano Nuevo trail from near the visitor's center, stopping and pishing frequently. Many Wilson's Warblers and one Orange-crowned carrying food, but no Hooded that we saw or heard. We found a male McGillivray's near the start of the Ano Nuevo trail and a Hutton's Vireo or two. We then hiked back down the Olmo fire road, which drops you out on the main road in Butano SP, some ways from the visitor center. We also looked carefully along the first part of that road, and did find a marshy area back off the trail which looked interesting. (I had forgotten that David Suddjian found a female Hooded Warbler on June 10 and 11th on the Olmo Fire road, just uphill from where it interests the Ano Nuevo Trail, so we did not hike back up that area.) It was fairly windy and cloudy along these trails; I am not sure if that is why we had such relatively little activity. Then we tried for the Ovenbird, which has not been reported since June 12-- along the Butano Fire road. We did not wait too long, but heard nothing. Driving south along highway 1, we passed a single Tricolored Blackbird. And in two places, one of which was by the Cloverdale Ranch green gate, we found pairs of Pine Siskins. I had totally forgotten that they breed in San Mateo county. In fact, according to the Breeding Bird Atlas, they breed all over the county. I have only 2 June records and none for May, July or August. As Garth mentioned, there are Tree Swallows you can see from the Green Gate/Cloverdale Ranch (private). Good birding, Kris Olson [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Butano SP June 8-11, tardy summary report From: dsuddjian AT aol.com Date: Mon, 22 Jun 2009 01:21:19 EDT Sorry to be a bit behind on this summary of field work and other time at Butano State Park from the late afternoon on June 8 to midday on June 11, with time away out of the park on parts of the afternoons of June 9 and 10. In addition to two dawn surveys for Marbled Murrelets from stationary points, and nighttime surveys for owls from 11 stationary points, I managed to count birds along 19.9 miles of trails and roads, sampling most of the available trails and roads in the southwestern 2/3 of the park, but only within the Little Butano Creek watershed, and not including areas in the Gazos watershed. Trails and roads covered are listed at the end of this report. The weather was overcast nearly all the time, and sometimes drizzly, but always calm. No doubt the drizzle dampened some totals of birds, but with no wind it was not too bad. I'll summarize some highlights and things of interest below, and then include a list of all species and the totals. Anyone wishing more info on locations or any species can feel free to ask me. This is a fun park to bird, if you like forest birding, getting out early, and hiking. Having worked extensively in various areas of the park now for 20 breeding seasons, I get the sense that most birders seldom visit the place...I have yet to encounter one! I had posted in a timely fashion about the Ovenbird along Butano Fire Road on June 9-12, and the Hooded Warbler along Olmo Fire Road on June 10-11. Both species have been found in the park previously, including a breeding record for Hooded Warbler. Disheartening was a dearth of MARBLED MURRELET activity. In most recent years Butano has had the best activity in the SC Mtns parks where I have been conducting monitoring surveys, but activity dipped there last year and this year has been very low. I've had zero detections on three prior mornings, and this trip I had just three detections involving about 5 birds at one station (a spot with formerly high activity) on June 10 and zero at another on June 11. This is not good. I found two VARIED THRUSHES. One was a female flushed on June 9 from near Jackson Flat Trail about 250 yards southeast from the junction with Canyon Trail. The other was a singing bird before sunrise on June 10, heard about 300-400 yards downstream of the eastern end of the Service Road, northeast of Ben Ries campground. This was in the same general area that I had one on May 13 this year (and a breeding confirmation in 2008). It is somewhat hard to sort out the varied detections of PILEATED WOODPECKERS over the multiple dates, but my best take on it is that I encountered 19 different individuals. They were widely dispersed, but I had some great looks along Goat Hill Trail west of its junction with Doe Ridge Trail on June 11. Two RED CROSSBILLS flew over Olmo Fire Road near the top of Gazos Trail on June 10. I tallied a nice 24 adult MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLERS, including 3 females and 21 males. Breeding evidence included a pair carrying food along Butano Fire Road near Mill Ox Trail on June 9 and a female feeding a new fledgling along Ano Nuevo Trail on June 11. Of an even 100 ALLEN'S HUMMINGBIRDS tallied, there were only three adult males, so most breeding males had already left the area by these dates. Owls included a pair of GREAT HORNED OWLS near the picnic area, moderately response WESTERN SCREECH-OWLS (15 adults) and 3-4 juvenile Screech-Owls, just one NORTHERN PYGMY-OWL (Jackson Flat Trail (~800 yards east of Mill Ox Trail), and just one adult NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWL (still at the ebb of their calling for the annual cycle). But I did encounter begging juvenile SAW-WHETS in two spots (Mill Ox Trail and the main road near Olmo Fire Road junction) on June 10. The Saw-whet's hissing begging call has an interesting property of carrying a very long distance (I could hear it clearly at a distance of 200 yards along the main road), and having a ventriloqual quality and sounding as if it is much closer than it is. It always seems to be just a short ways down the trail...and so on, and so on... The forests of Butano host some impressive numbers of some species. Note these tallies from my coverage: 264 PACIFIC-SLOPE FLYCATCHERS, 184 GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLETS, 133 SWAINSON'S THRUSHES, 68 HERMIT WARBLERS, and 267 WILSON'S WARBLERS. Some other species are notably sparse: 1 OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER, just 14 ACORN WOODPECKERS, and no WARBLING VIREOS. Missing this year was Sharp-shinned Hawk, although a pair nested successfully at the campground for the last two years. They are no doubt somewhere in the park still. And I had no Turkey Vultures, but the foggy and sometimes drizzly weather was not good for finding them. There are at least a few other species that nest in the park that I did not find, sparse and/or in areas I did not visit: Cooper's Hawk, Cal. Thrasher, Red-breasted Nuthatch. Here is my list and tallies. Dependent young are not included in the counts. California Quail 23 Red-shouldered Hawk (California) 3 Red-tailed Hawk 2 Marbled Murrelet 5 Band-tailed Pigeon 175 Mourning Dove 4 Western Screech-Owl 15 Northern Pygmy-Owl 1 Great Horned Owl 2 Northern Saw-whet Owl 1 Allen's Hummingbird 100 Acorn Woodpecker 14 Downy Woodpecker 1 Hairy Woodpecker 58 Northern Flicker (Red-shafted) 10 Pileated Woodpecker 19 Olive-sided Flycatcher 1 Pacific-slope Flycatcher 264 Hutton's Vireo 47 Steller's Jay 162 Western Scrub-Jay (Coastal) 26 Common Raven 8 Violet-green Swallow 2 Cliff Swallow 4 Barn Swallow 4 Chestnut-backed Chickadee 293 Bushtit 10 Pygmy Nuthatch 133 Brown Creeper 68 Bewick's Wren 14 Winter Wren (Western) 144 Golden-crowned Kinglet 184 Swainson's Thrush (Russet-backed) 133 Hermit Thrush 72 American Robin 115 Varied Thrush 2 Wrentit 93 Orange-crowned Warbler (lutescens) 64 Hermit Warbler 68 MacGillivray's Warbler 24 Common Yellowthroat 2 Ovenbird 1 Hooded Warbler 1 Wilson's Warbler (Pacific Coast) 267 Spotted Towhee 47 California Towhee 6 Song Sparrow 75 Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon) 113 Black-headed Grosbeak 20 Brewer's Blackbird 4 Red Crossbill 2 Purple Finch (Western) 87 House Finch 2 Pine Siskin 35 American Goldfinch 4 Areas visited: Main park road (from entry to campground), Six Bridges Trail, Jackson Flat Trail, Butano Fire Road (from Cloverdale Road to Jackson Flat), Cloverdale Road (from entry to Butano Fire Road), Ano Nuevo Trail, Olmo Fire Road (from main road to Doe Ridge Trail), Ben Ries Campground, Service Road, Goat Hill Trail, Doe Ridge Trail, connection trail from campground to Goat Hill, Mill Ox Trail. David Suddjian Wandering Doe Ridge in my heart **************Make your summer sizzle with fast and easy recipes for the grill. (http://food.aol.com/grilling?ncid=emlcntusfood00000004) [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Pigeon Pt. seawatch and other notes From: Tronthorn AT aol.com Date: Sun, 21 Jun 2009 22:42:33 EDT Yesterday ( June 20 ), Leonie Batkin and myself did a seawatch from ( 09:00-12:30 ) at Pigeon Point. The wind had shifted out of the west the day before and was quite gusty. I had a feeling tubenoses would be quite close to shore. At once, we noticed Sooty Shearwaters flying north from very close to shore to about three-quarters of the ways to the horizon with most being seen about halfway out to the horizon. We total ( 510 ) Sooty Shearwaters. Flying north along side the Sooty Shearwaters we had a high total of ( 136 ) PINK-FOOTED SHEARWATERS. Most of the Pink-footed Shearwaters were between half-way to three-quarters of the way out to the horizon. At least a couple of Pink-footed Shearwaters were very close to shore giving us exceptional views. We most likely missed some that got by us in the large swells, but others were detected by Leonie before the species disappeared into the swells. An alternate plumaged Common Loon flying north was very late, as the previous latest record I have noted was June 7. ( 3 ) basic plumaged Common Loons flying north were the latest record by ( 4 ) days. An alternate plumaged Pacific Loon flying north was late. There were also ( 6 ) basic plumaged Pacific Loons flying north. ( 3 ) Surf Scoters flying north were late. Many adult Heerman's Gulls are now passing through flying north. ( 70 ) Adult California Gulls flying north are not migrants, but are post-breeding dispersants. Gazos Creek had ( 2 ) late or summering first-cycle Glaucous-winged Gulls among Western Gulls. Today, we took a walk around the Horseshoe Pond at Skyline Open Space Preserve. A Sharp-shinned Hawk in flight overhead appeared to be a fledgling. We had stunning views of an adult Western Tanager as it perched on a wire mesh enclosure at the old Christmas tree farm. We were not expecting the Western Tanager to be out in the open area. Western Tanager was never confirmed as a breeder in the block of the breeding bird atlas that covers the area and still remains only as a probable breeder. On June 15 in Redwood Shores I was surprised to see an adult Western Kingbird at Radio Road. It could have been a late migrant or maybe a post-breeding dispersant. Also a female Green-winged Teal last seen in the later part of May, reappeared and joined the ( 2 ) male Green-winged Teal at the Nob Hill pond. It is thought that she might have been nesting during her absence, but failed in her attempt. On June 19 at Coyote Point, an arriving adult Long-billed Curlew was expected with the earliest arrival date June 11. I was most surprised in the arrival of ( 21 ) adult Semipalmated Plovers, as the earliest date for a fall arrival of the species in northern California is June 24. A post-breeding dispersant Loggerhead Shrike was in the fresh water marsh on the same day. My earliest record for a post-breeding dispersant is June 20. Ron Thorn [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Pillar Pt. From: Barbara Kossy <bkossy AT coastside.net> Date: Sun, 21 Jun 2009 19:23:47 -0700 Walking the beach I notice one Brant Goose in the Princeton Marsh. It was more brown and white than black and white. Up on the bluffs, near the red and white antenna I saw two California Thrashers. Barbara Moss Beach Subject: RE: Slow birding on the coast 6/20/09 From: "Kris Olson" <kristenolson AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 21 Jun 2009 13:12:27 -0700 Forgot to mention. (problem with not taking written notes as you go!) Brown Creeper adult and 2 youngsters in Butano SP From: peninsula-birding AT yahoogroups.com [mailto:peninsula-birding AT yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Kris Olson Sent: Sunday, June 21, 2009 12:16 PM To: Peninsula-Birding Subject: [pen-bird] Slow birding on the coast 6/20/09 Yesterday, I spent some time at Butano State Park with Michael Scott trying to relocated the signing male Hooded Warbler that Ron Thorn and Leonie Batkin had found on June 13. We hiked up the Ano Nuevo trail from near the visitor's center, stopping and pishing frequently. Many Wilson's Warblers and one Orange-crowned carrying food, but no Hooded that we saw or heard. We found a male McGillivray's near the start of the Ano Nuevo trail and a Hutton's Vireo or two. We then hiked back down the Olmo fire road, which drops you out on the main road in Butano SP, some ways from the visitor center. We also looked carefully along the first part of that road, and did find a marshy area back off the trail which looked interesting. (I had forgotten that David Suddjian found a female Hooded Warbler on June 10 and 11th on the Olmo Fire road, just uphill from where it interests the Ano Nuevo Trail, so we did not hike back up that area.) It was fairly windy and cloudy along these trails; I am not sure if that is why we had such relatively little activity. Then we tried for the Ovenbird, which has not been reported since June 12-- along the Butano Fire road. We did not wait too long, but heard nothing. Driving south along highway 1, we passed a single Tricolored Blackbird. And in two places, one of which was by the Cloverdale Ranch green gate, we found pairs of Pine Siskins. I had totally forgotten that they breed in San Mateo county. In fact, according to the Breeding Bird Atlas, they breed all over the county. I have only 2 June records and none for May, July or August. As Garth mentioned, there are Tree Swallows you can see from the Green Gate/Cloverdale Ranch (private). Good birding, Kris Olson Subject: Slow birding on the coast 6/20/09 From: "Kris Olson" <kristenolson AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 21 Jun 2009 12:15:53 -0700 Yesterday, I spent some time at Butano State Park with Michael Scott trying to relocated the signing male Hooded Warbler that Ron Thorn and Leonie Batkin had found on June 13. We hiked up the Ano Nuevo trail from near the visitor's center, stopping and pishing frequently. Many Wilson's Warblers and one Orange-crowned carrying food, but no Hooded that we saw or heard. We found a male McGillivray's near the start of the Ano Nuevo trail and a Hutton's Vireo or two. We then hiked back down the Olmo fire road, which drops you out on the main road in Butano SP, some ways from the visitor center. We also looked carefully along the first part of that road, and did find a marshy area back off the trail which looked interesting. (I had forgotten that David Suddjian found a female Hooded Warbler on June 10 and 11th on the Olmo Fire road, just uphill from where it interests the Ano Nuevo Trail, so we did not hike back up that area.) It was fairly windy and cloudy along these trails; I am not sure if that is why we had such relatively little activity. Then we tried for the Ovenbird, which has not been reported since June 12-- along the Butano Fire road. We did not wait too long, but heard nothing. Driving south along highway 1, we passed a single Tricolored Blackbird. And in two places, one of which was by the Cloverdale Ranch green gate, we found pairs of Pine Siskins. I had totally forgotten that they breed in San Mateo county. In fact, according to the Breeding Bird Atlas, they breed all over the county. I have only 2 June records and none for May, July or August. As Garth mentioned, there are Tree Swallows you can see from the Green Gate/Cloverdale Ranch (private). Good birding, Kris Olson Subject: Radio Road - Pintails/Caspian Tern Chick From: sonny mencher <soccerquiz AT yahoo.com> Date: Thu, 18 Jun 2009 17:28:56 -0700 (PDT) Did have a chance to look at my photos from today - Even after zooming in -no sign of tern chick.   On the bright side I did see 2 male Northern Pintails, one in each pond as well as the one Canvasback. Many Cormorant nests on power poles looking back towards Redwood City. Someone mentioned to me that thay saw a Great Blue Heron nest on these power poles - I did not see it nor can I picture it.   Sonny [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Long-billed Curlews at Dumbarton From: "George Chrisman" <geodani55 AT yahoo.com> Date: Fri, 19 Jun 2009 00:06:15 -0000 This morning on my way to work (6/18/09), I stopped at the breached pond north of the anchorage to the Dumbarton Bridge. I have been seeing LONG-BILLED CURLEWS there the past few days in the exposed mud. Today I stopped to count 34 LBCU actively feeding, along with 26 SNOWY EGRETS, & 2 GREAT-BLUE HERONS. This seemed like a high number of Curlews in mid June. This pond is the most reliable area in the County to see high numbers of Curlews at any time of the year, especially when the mud flats in the Bay are flooded but the water has not yet flooded the breached pond. George Chrisman Burlingame, CA Subject: Caspian Chick From: sonny mencher <soccerquiz AT yahoo.com> Date: Thu, 18 Jun 2009 17:04:37 -0700 (PDT) I was at Radio Road between 2 and 3 this afternoon. There were 2 adults at the nest site but I never saw the chick. One adult was sitting in the grass and the other stading along side. Both seemed calm and were there the entire 30 minutes I was there.   In the past when both adults present or if one adult was there andstanding outside the vegetation the chick was visably up and moving around. I looked at the site from the Stop sign and around most of the way to the plant entrance -   Sonny [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Re: Indigo Bunting - Monte Bello From: Peter Headland <Peter AT matrixlink.com> Date: Thu, 18 Jun 2009 09:06:54 -0700 Brooke Miller wrote: > Mary Ann Allen, Sonny Mencher and myself got quick views of an Indigo > Bunting just inside Gate 4 this morning around 9:15 or so. It was on > top of a bush right past the parking area for less than 30 seconds, so > we barely got our binoculars on it, then it flew. From previous > posts, this appears to be San Mateo County. After yet more research, I believe that anything that is past the parking area is in Santa Clara County. -- Peter Headland Subject: Re: Caspian chick at Radio Road ? From: hazel <hazelh2000 AT yahoo.com> Date: Wed, 17 Jun 2009 21:34:12 -0700 (PDT) All, I was out there for a couple of hours yesterday hoping the chick was sleeping off a big meal, but never did see it. I did see a parent looking slightly agitated leave the nest area without protection so I'm guessing something happened to the chick. Shortly after that the other parent dropped in with a fish and looked down like it was waiting for the chick to step up to the plate, but the chick did not appear. After a few minutes it flew to the other small island and consumed the fish itself. A sad day. On another note, the Humane Society was out there releasing a rehabilitated Canada goose that looked awfully confused when it was let out of the carrier but eventually paddled away. They said to call them (if so inclined) about injured/sick birds and they would come out and pick them up for possible rehab. -Hazel --- On Wed, 6/17/09, Tom Merigan wrote: From: Tom Merigan Subject: [pen-bird] Caspian chick at Radio Road ? To: peninsula-birding AT yahoogroups.com Date: Wednesday, June 17, 2009, 9:05 PM Now that we photographers have all seen and photographed the Caspian chick found by Ron Thorn at Radio Road pond,I have been going for follow up shots the last 2 days Although I saw the parent on the island off the nest I could not see the chick. Has anyone else seen him or did those Black-crowned night herons make off with the little guy as he got more active? [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Caspian chick at Radio Road ? From: Tom Merigan <merigan AT stanford.edu> Date: Wed, 17 Jun 2009 21:05:59 -0700 Now that we photographers have all seen and photographed the Caspian chick found by Ron Thorn at Radio Road pond,I have been going for follow up shots the last 2 days Although I saw the parent on the island off the nest I could not see the chick. Has anyone else seen him or did those Black-crowned night herons make off with the little guy as he got more active? Subject: Indigo Bunting - Monte Bello From: Brooke Miller <brooke-bam AT alumni.calpoly.edu> Date: Wed, 17 Jun 2009 16:46:32 -0700 All, Mary Ann Allen, Sonny Mencher and myself got quick views of an Indigo Bunting just inside Gate 4 this morning around 9:15 or so. It was on top of a bush right past the parking area for less than 30 seconds, so we barely got our binoculars on it, then it flew. From previous posts, this appears to be San Mateo County. Later on in the late morning, or about noon time, we found a/(nother?) Indigo Bunting near the orchard inside the 'regular' Monte Bello parking lot. This bird also did not stay on top of its bush for more than 30 seconds, and flew off into a tree in the canyon briefly, then across the canyon. Apparently, this area is in Santa Clara County. We weren't able to study the markings on either bird, and both were moving around a lot. So, no idea whether it was the same bird we saw at both locations or different birds. However, we all saw an Indigo Bunting in each county this morning. Brooke Miller Los Altos Subject: Development of Brisbane Baylands - city council meeting Monday June 22 From: "Laurie Graham" <fair80 AT comcast.net> Date: Mon, 15 Jun 2009 18:44:55 -0000 If you have ever birded Brisbane Lagoon and care about the plans for development, you might want to attend. Laurie Graham SSF From the city blog: The ongoing process of developing a community alternative for the Baylands has highlighted the critical importance of public space as a cornerstone of any future Baylands Specific Plan. Beginning in early 2007 with the first Brisbane Baylands Speaker Series, the community was asked to provide input on their preferences for the development of the site. With the public encouraged to attend neighborhood workshops throughout the proceeding years, it was evident that Brisbane is home to a passionate citizenry who never failed to deliver informative, and thought-provoking insights. Please come to the June 22nd City Council meeting, as it will be a continuation of the Council hearing from the community and providing their direction on the policy issues pertaining to the community alternative. Included in these policy issues are: the location of the Caltrain station location, alternative energy, and a retail/entertainment district. Subject: San Bruno Mountain, June 14, 2009 From: "Laurie Graham" <fair80 AT comcast.net> Date: Mon, 15 Jun 2009 18:27:37 -0000 Observation date: 6/14/09, 8:00 a.m. - 12:15 p.m. Notes: We led a walk for Dolores Butrus and her Oakland Club. The weather was perfect for SBM: cloudy and warm with little wind. Number of species: 32 California Quail 4 Turkey Vulture 2 Red-tailed Hawk 2 One hawk was carrying a large mammal, possibly a rabbit, and was being pursued and harrassed by ravens. Western Gull 2 Rock Pigeon 2 Band-tailed Pigeon 8 Mourning Dove 1 Anna's Hummingbird 1 Allen's Hummingbird 4 Northern Flicker 2 Olive-sided Flycatcher 2 Steller's Jay 6 Western Scrub-Jay (Coastal) 6 Common Raven 6 Barn Swallow 1 Chestnut-backed Chickadee 11 Bushtit 2 Pygmy Nuthatch 4 Swainson's Thrush 2 American Robin 30 Wrentit 11 Northern Mockingbird 1 European Starling 29 Wilson's Warbler 6 Spotted Towhee 5 California Towhee 4 Song Sparrow 13 White-crowned Sparrow 9 Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon) 3 Brown-headed Cowbird 2 House Finch 6 American Goldfinch 9 This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org/california/) Subject: Foster City Lagoon by kayak From: Barbara Kossy <bkossy AT coastside.net> Date: Sun, 14 Jun 2009 21:46:35 -0700 I kayaked Foster City Lagoon today. There were approx. 8 Green Herons on the shore closest to Edgewater Blvd, mostly concentrated in an area on the south shore with trees. Five adults were in a tree, a euc. I think. Also, I do think I saw one immature Green Heron (lots of streaks) roosting as well. Along the same bank of note was one female - type Common Merganser. A flock of about 30 noisy Forster's Terns were roosting on the banks directly across from the rec. center Other birds included about 30 Canada Geese, including a nursery area with 2 adults and about 10 young. Two Double-Crested Cormorants, and one Brandt's Cormorant. . Barbara Kossy Subject: Grasshopper Sparrows & Piliated Woodpecker 6/14/09 From: "George Chrisman" <geodani55 AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 15 Jun 2009 04:38:54 -0000 This morning, Sunday 6/14/09, Gary Deghi, Sue Cossins, and I completed our third survey of Cascade Creek on the northern edge of Ano Nuevo. We have been surveying a parcel west of Highway 1 as part of a grant from California Audubon to restore the creek to native vegetation to replace the eucalyptus and non-native trees along the creek. The grassland prarie north of Cascade Creek and south of of the Costanoa Campground is covered with SAVANNAH SPARROWS, along with lesser numbers of SONG SPARROWS, and a couple of WHITE-CROWNED SPARROWS as you walk across it. Gary commented to keep an eye out for a GRASSHOPPER SPARROW during out walk from the parking area to Cascade Creek. On the way back, we did indeed spot a singing GRASSHOPPER SPARROW that was holding a large worm or caterpiller in its bill. We were able to get very good looks and approach within 60-70 feet before it flushed to another coyote brush. The bird was harrassed by a SAVANNAH SPARROW and moved about the area, carrying food the entire time. As we got closer to Highway 1, we spotted two additional GRASSHOPPER SPARROWS in this field singing on territory. The three of us then headed for Butano State Park to look for Ovenbird, without success. While waiting near the marker for nearly an hour, a PILEATED WOODPECKER drummed and then called from a huge Douglas Fir very close to the location where the Ovenbird has been seen. George Chrisman Burlingame, CA Subject: Caspian tern parent at Radio Road has silver leg band From: hazel <hazelh2000 AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 14 Jun 2009 20:40:18 -0700 (PDT) One of the Caspian tern parents has a silver leg band on the right leg, think this is the same bird that was here last year at this time? I added a couple of photos of this bird to the "Birds with Leg bands" folder. Hazel Holby [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Male Hooded Warbler at Butano S.P. From: Tronthorn AT aol.com Date: Sun, 14 Jun 2009 22:13:51 EDT Yesterday ( June 13 ) Leonie Batkin and myself took a nice hike in Butano State Park. Along the Ano Nuevo Trail about three-quarters of the way to the Olmo Fire Road, we had a singing male HOODED WARBLER in the thick low vegetation. We enjoyed watching a fledgling Winter Wren and commented on the juvenal plumage as it moved out in the open curious to our present. Birds of note along the coast on June 13. ( 15 ) Pelagic Cormorants were at nest sites on the precipitous bluff just south of the mouth of Tunitas Creek. At San Gregorio State Beach, the Western Gull was still sitting on a nest at the least expected nest site on the beach along San Gregorio Creek. This would be first confirmation of breeding in block 5030. Another confirmation of breeding of Western Gull was an individual on a nest at a rocky ledge at Pescadero Beach. This would be first confirmation in block 5020. ( 3 ) Common Mergansers were at Pescadero Creek just east of the Highway 1 bridge. In the late afternoon, we stopped at the Nob Hill pond in Redwood Shores. We had the highest total of White Pelicans this season with ( 37 ) adults. The summering male Green-winged Teal was joined by a second male. A Tree swallow was late or if not an early post-breeding dispersant surprised us with an unfamiliar behavior, as it was gleaming insects as it landed on the ground on the island. An Ash-throated Flycatcher was late, but could also could be an early post-breeding dispersant. ( 3 ) Hooded Orioles were present with an adult male, second-calendar year male and a female seen carrying food. The first arriving fall adult Willets at Redwood Shores were ( 1 ) on June 9, two days earlier than the earliest arrival date June 12. ( 7 ) More adults arrived on June 12. Ron Thorn [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Yellow-breasted Chat, no Ovenbird, and some breeding records From: "Garth Harwood" <gharwood AT hiddenvilla.org> Date: Sun, 14 Jun 2009 18:00:03 -0700 Hi All, Yesterday 6-13-2009 I tried unsuccessfully for the Ovenbird at Butano Fire Road from 6-7AM and again at about 3PM. Not a peep. As I was in the area I next went to check on the bluebirds and Tree Swallows at Cloverdale Ranch, the closed POST property which has its main gate at the hilltop about 1 mile south from Butano Fire Rd, or maybe 1/4 mile south of the Butano SP entrance, along Cloverdale Rd. Both species were present and staying close to the nestboxes, which are close to the gate but almost invisible now in the tall grass. A pair of TRSW was observed copulating on the phone wires above one of the boxes. I think it's safe to assume that both species are going for second clutches. (Later a second pair of WEBL was seen in front of Pescadero High School as well; they are a fixture there I think.) As I was studying this activity I began to hear a familiar, extra-loud series of changeable phrases, first a harsh kak-kak-kak-kak-kak, then a few loud toots, etc, and it dawned on me that I was listening to a Yellow-breasted Chat from down near the marshy area visible from the gate. It seemed to be coming from first one, then another of the few clumps of willow by the marshy area. I tried to scope it but never succeeded. Other species heard from the gate were Grasshopper Sparrow and MacGillivray's Warbler, among other species. This was the first time I've encountered MGWA at this location. I listened here again in midafternoon but in the interval between visits, a large tractor had visited and mowed the verge along the access road that parallels the marsh. I don't know if that was a factor, but I heard no chat. Between visits to the Butano area I walked my own neighborhood for my regular ebird survey. Lots of fledglings were about. These included W Scrub Jays, CB Chickadees, Black Phoebe, Black-headed Grosbeak, DE Junco, 2 sets of Wilson's Warblers, and best of all 2 sets of Warbling Vireos. Other confirmations included a new nest site for Cliff Swallows on a neighbor's house (seen entering nest); a Tree Swallow removing a fecal sac from a nestbox on Dearborn Park Rd, and my personal favorite, a very wary Wood Duck hen with 7 downy young the size of tennis balls. General observations included one Vaux's Swift seen from home and one female Common Merganser that flew over headed upstream. --Garth Harwood [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Radio Road tern chick From: Chuq Von Rospach <chuqui AT me.com> Date: Sat, 13 Jun 2009 22:11:46 -0700 I went out to radio road today to photograph the tern chick. For those interested, some photos are in my flickr stream starting here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/chuqui/3624367166/ Didn't see anything else that hasn't been reported; one black skimmer, two avocet nests and a canvasback were all sharing the island with the Caspian tern. A couple of mallard hybrid females were hauling around downy chicks (one had two, one had about eight, both clutches looked to be the same age). Given the number of night herons in the area, not a good place for raising families) -- Chuq Von Rospach blog: http://www.chuqui.com photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/chuqui email: chuqui AT me.com Subject: Sequoia Audubon Field Trip- Coyote Point From: soccerquiz AT yahoo.com Date: Sat, 13 Jun 2009 20:43:00 -0700 (PDT) Small group - Matthew Dodder, leader and 5 participants - 8-11:30   Following Matthew's presentation last Thursday we were better able to ID juvenile birds. Most exciting was ID'ing the Chickadee juvenile - recognized for 1st time by several of us.   By my count we had 7 juvenile species.Disappointing that we did not see a juvenile Junco although we saw 10 adults   I expect Matthew to post a report as well-   Location:     Coyote Point County Park Observation date:     6/13/09 Notes:     Sequoia Audubon Society walk with Matthew Dodder. Number of species:     46 E-bird compilation by Eric Goodill Mallard     6 Surf Scoter     1 Western Grebe     2 Clark's Grebe     1 Western/Clark's Grebe     3 Double-crested Cormorant     10 (1 Juvenile) Great Blue Heron     1 Snowy Egret     15 Red-tailed Hawk     1 Black-bellied Plover     4     Basic plumage. Killdeer     14 Whimbrel (American)     1 Long-billed Curlew     1 Western Gull     2 California Gull     1 Caspian Tern     1 Forster's Tern     30 (several juveniles) Rock Pigeon     3 Eurasian Collared-Dove     3 Mourning Dove     6 Anna's Hummingbird     8 Nuttall's Woodpecker     3     Heard only. Black Phoebe     5 American Crow     2 Common Raven     2 Cliff Swallow     2 Barn Swallow     30 (1 juvenile) Chestnut-backed Chickadee     4 (1 juvenile) Bushtit     10 Pygmy Nuthatch     7 (1 juvenile) Marsh Wren     1 American Robin     10 (2 juveniles) European Starling     40 Common Yellowthroat     1 Spotted Towhee     2 California Towhee     4 Song Sparrow     1     Heard only. Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon)     10 Red-winged Blackbird     2 Brewer's Blackbird     2 Brown-headed Cowbird     5 House Finch     40 Lesser Goldfinch     20 ( 1 or 2 juveniles) American Goldfinch     8     Heard only. House Sparrow     1     Heard only. Semipalmated Plovers  4 [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Caspian Tern chick at Radio Road, pics From: Tom Grey <tgrey AT law.stanford.edu> Date: Fri, 12 Jun 2009 13:08:13 -0700 Following Tom Merigan and Sonny Mencher, I took some pictures of the nesting Caspians from my car window last evening, showing both adults and a single chick -- the best views were from the south end, rather than right across from the dog park, and so morning would have been better. http://www.pbase.com/tgrey/latest Tom Grey http://www.pbase.com/tgrey http://tgreybirds.com Subject: Continuing Ovenbird and Hooded Warbler, and other birds From: dsuddjian AT aol.com Date: Fri, 12 Jun 2009 15:31:33 EDT I stopped along Cloverdale Road this morning (6/12) downslope of the OVENBIRD spot and I did not have to wait long before I heard it sing in the distance. So it is still there. This spot is about 0.5 mile from the main Butano entrance, where the willows of the drainage extend toward the road. But other than confirming its continued presence, I would not recommend trying to enjoy the Ovenbird from along Cloverdale, as there is no hope of seeing it and the song is quite distant. The female HOODED WARBLER continued along Olmo Fire Road in Butano SP yesterday morning, 6/11. I hope to post some more about birds at Butano soon. Not too much of note at Memorial CP on a visit from the afternoon on 6/11 to midmorning today. A pair of NORTHERN PYGMY-OWLS was in the area of the confluence of Peterson Creek and Pescadero Creek, at the south end of Sequoia Flat campground (near camp site D9). A BARN OWL called there last night and before dawn. A female COMMON MERGANSER flew down Pescadero Creek this morning. There were just a few detections of MARBLED MURRELET, all far off to the south. Four PILEATED WOODPECKERS (two pairs) were calling frequently, with one pair at Huckleberry Flat and the other southwest of the south end of Sequoia Flat. Some other recent birds...a VAUX'S SWIFT was over Cloverdale Road near Gazos Creek Road on 6/10. I very seldom see them in the Cloverdale region after the main period of migration. I visited the Butano Marsh area of Pescadero Marsh on 6/11 and was surprised to find a male BLUE-WINGED TEAL and two alternate-plumaged GREATER YELLOWLEGS. Pretty good birds for the 2nd week of June. This morning I stopped at a spot along Gazos Creek Road that I knew to be the home of a pair of NORTHERN PYGMY-OWLS. Within about 15 seconds of doing my imitation the male responded and popped into view close by in an alder. He was literally all wet, as I had apparently gotten his attention shortly after bath time. He was very soon displaced off his perch by the female (not wet), and he shifted to another branch. As we talked, and the two moved around the trees in that area, the female always followed the male every time he flew to a new perch, hot on his tail trailing him by just a few feet each time. That was pretty cool. David Suddjian Capitola **************Download the AOL Classifieds Toolbar for local deals at your fingertips. (http://toolbar.aol.com/aolclassifieds/download.html?ncid=emlcntusdown00000004) [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Re: Sequoia Audubon Field trip 6/13 From: sonny mencher <soccerquiz AT yahoo.com> Date: Fri, 12 Jun 2009 12:30:56 -0700 (PDT) I agree with you about the fee - Let me say how, I believe, it started.   These field trips are not lead by the usual Sequoia Audubon members. Several times a year we invite a guest speaker who are paid an honorium for the presentation at the meeting. They are also asked to lead a field trip as a follow up to the formal presentation - additional compensation was suggested for this.   Before my time at SAS a policy of collecting the $5.00 was started. I will bring this up at next weeks Board of Directors meeting to get some more details about history and if any changes should be made in the policy.   Sonny Mencher   --- On Fri, 6/12/09, mdodder AT sbcglobal.net wrote: From: mdodder AT sbcglobal.net Subject: Re: [pen-bird] Sequoia Audubon Field trip 6/13 To: soccerquiz AT yahoo.com, "peninsula birding" , "Garth Harwood" Date: Friday, June 12, 2009, 11:04 AM Garth,  I was not aware of the $5 fee until I saw the announcement. Any funds received for the outing will go directly back to Sequola Audubon. I'm sorry for any misunderstanding. Matthew  --- On Fri, 6/12/09, Garth Harwood wrote: From: Garth Harwood Subject: Re: [pen-bird] Sequoia Audubon Field trip 6/13 To: soccerquiz AT yahoo.com, "peninsula birding" Date: Friday, June 12, 2009, 10:49 AM Hi All, Anybody else concerned about the precedent of paying field trip leaders to local sites? If not I'll just live with it. But, how do we decide who's worth a few bucks and who isn't? And, if payment becomes a norm, it will have an exclusionary effect. --Garth Harwood ----- Original Message ----- From: soccerquiz AT yahoo. com To: peninsula birding Sent: Thursday, June 11, 2009 10:11 PM Subject: [pen-bird] Sequoia Audubon Field trip 6/13 Coyote Point Marina, San Mateo Saturday, June 13, 2009, 8:00am We meet at 8:00 in the parking area by the harbor bathrooms. We'll bird the mud flats and bay during low tide, the small freshwater marsh and trees around the museum. Open to everyone with a $5.00 fee paid to the instructor. Instructor: Matthew Dodder [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Re: Sequoia Audubon Field trip 6/13 From: "Garth Harwood" <gharwood AT hiddenvilla.org> Date: Fri, 12 Jun 2009 11:17:22 -0700 Thanks Matthew - just concerned about the precedent, not about you or any other individual. --Garth ----- Original Message ----- From: mdodder AT sbcglobal.net To: soccerquiz AT yahoo.com ; peninsula birding ; Garth Harwood Sent: Friday, June 12, 2009 11:04 AM Subject: Re: [pen-bird] Sequoia Audubon Field trip 6/13 Garth, I was not aware of the $5 fee until I saw the announcement. Any funds received for the outing will go directly back to Sequola Audubon. I'm sorry for any misunderstanding. Matthew --- On Fri, 6/12/09, Garth Harwood wrote: From: Garth Harwood Subject: Re: [pen-bird] Sequoia Audubon Field trip 6/13 To: soccerquiz AT yahoo.com, "peninsula birding" Date: Friday, June 12, 2009, 10:49 AM Hi All, Anybody else concerned about the precedent of paying field trip leaders to local sites? If not I'll just live with it. But, how do we decide who's worth a few bucks and who isn't? And, if payment becomes a norm, it will have an exclusionary effect. --Garth Harwood ----- Original Message ----- From: soccerquiz AT yahoo. com To: peninsula birding Sent: Thursday, June 11, 2009 10:11 PM Subject: [pen-bird] Sequoia Audubon Field trip 6/13 Coyote Point Marina, San Mateo Saturday, June 13, 2009, 8:00am We meet at 8:00 in the parking area by the harbor bathrooms. We'll bird the mud flats and bay during low tide, the small freshwater marsh and trees around the museum. Open to everyone with a $5.00 fee paid to the instructor. Instructor: Matthew Dodder [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Re: Sequoia Audubon Field trip 6/13 From: mdodder AT sbcglobal.net Date: Fri, 12 Jun 2009 11:04:48 -0700 (PDT) Garth,  I was not aware of the $5 fee until I saw the announcement.Any funds received for the outing will go directly back to Sequola Audubon. I'm sorry for any misunderstanding. Matthew  --- On Fri, 6/12/09, Garth Harwood wrote: From: Garth Harwood Subject: Re: [pen-bird] Sequoia Audubon Field trip 6/13 To: soccerquiz AT yahoo.com, "peninsula birding" Date: Friday, June 12, 2009, 10:49 AM Hi All, Anybody else concerned about the precedent of paying field trip leaders to local sites? If not I'll just live with it. But, how do we decide who's worth a few bucks and who isn't? And, if payment becomes a norm, it will have an exclusionary effect. --Garth Harwood ----- Original Message ----- From: soccerquiz AT yahoo. com To: peninsula birding Sent: Thursday, June 11, 2009 10:11 PM Subject: [pen-bird] Sequoia Audubon Field trip 6/13 Coyote Point Marina, San Mateo Saturday, June 13, 2009, 8:00am We meet at 8:00 in the parking area by the harbor bathrooms. We'll bird the mud flats and bay during low tide, the small freshwater marsh and trees around the museum. Open to everyone with a $5.00 fee paid to the instructor. Instructor: Matthew Dodder [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Indigo Bunting, Los Trancos OSP 6-12-2009 From: "Garth Harwood" <gharwood AT hiddenvilla.org> Date: Fri, 12 Jun 2009 10:56:51 -0700 Hi All, An adult male Indigo Bunting was seen in San Mateo County this morning at 9:30 AM after moving directly across the road from Gate 4 at Monte Bello Preserve. This bird lacked the dark blotching which characterizes the other local INBU which has now been confirmed breeding along a nearby trail at MB. Best viewing opportunity for this area is on the Santa Clara County side by walking in thru gate 4 (or 5 for better parking), and looking northwest from the hilltop just inside that gate. The bird was first seen on that hilltop anyway. --Garth Harwood [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Re: Sequoia Audubon Field trip 6/13 From: "Garth Harwood" <gharwood AT hiddenvilla.org> Date: Fri, 12 Jun 2009 10:49:02 -0700 Hi All, Anybody else concerned about the precedent of paying field trip leaders to local sites? If not I'll just live with it. But, how do we decide who's worth a few bucks and who isn't? And, if payment becomes a norm, it will have an exclusionary effect. --Garth Harwood ----- Original Message ----- From: soccerquiz AT yahoo.com To: peninsula birding Sent: Thursday, June 11, 2009 10:11 PM Subject: [pen-bird] Sequoia Audubon Field trip 6/13 Coyote Point Marina, San Mateo Saturday, June 13, 2009, 8:00am We meet at 8:00 in the parking area by the harbor bathrooms. We'll bird the mud flats and bay during low tide, the small freshwater marsh and trees around the museum. Open to everyone with a $5.00 fee paid to the instructor. Instructor: Matthew Dodder [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Sequoia Audubon Field trip 6/13 From: soccerquiz AT yahoo.com Date: Thu, 11 Jun 2009 22:11:33 -0700 (PDT) Coyote Point Marina, San Mateo Saturday, June 13, 2009, 8:00am We meet at 8:00 in the parking area by the harbor bathrooms. We'll bird the mud flats and bay during low tide, the small freshwater marsh and trees around the museum. Open to everyone with a $5.00 fee paid to the instructor. Instructor: Matthew Dodder [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Species Search Capability, Technical Notes and RFI From: Jennifer Rycenga <gyrrlfalcon AT earthlink.net> Date: Thu, 11 Jun 2009 09:34:51 -0700 Dear San Mateo County Birders: For those of you wondering how species lists for the forty-seven sights on the San Mateo County Birding Guide (SMCBG) were generated, here's the scoop. I used the following five resources: 1) any existing formal checklist for a location 2) the archives of PenBirds 3) eBird data 4) the new CBRC book, Rare Birds of California 5) discussions with others who have birded extensively at a site That being said, these lists are still incomplete. First, I need to indicate seasonality for most of them, so out-of-towners aren't searching for Golden-crowned Sparrows in mid-June. Second, there may still be some places where common sense needs to be applied; I think there are ten sites that lack European Starling (oh! where are these brave places that lack such birds in them?!), an oversight that will only be rectified with time and a finer-tooth comb than I currently am employing. Third, there are some county rarities that my methodology could not accurately catch. This pertains particularly to those county rarities that occurred prior to peninsula-birds and are _not_ CBRC rarities (e.g. Sage Thrasher, Black Tern, Stilt Sandpipier, etc.). Those of you who are expert birders, and/or folks with very long memories, please send me your best recounting of these types of memorable sightings. It is very easy for me to update the species listings; such updatings appear instantaneously (for instance, I will add Hooded Warbler and Ovenbird to Butano's account as soon as I send this email). Thanks so much to all the authors, editors, photographers, users, kibbitzers, and, of course, our fine web master, Bill Groll, for helping to make the SMCBG the success that it is. Now the long road of fine-tuning begins: please send me your updates, corrections, emendations, and suggestions. Jennifer Rycenga Half Moon Bay, CA Subject: San Mateo County Birding Guide now features Species Search! From: Jennifer Rycenga <gyrrlfalcon AT earthlink.net> Date: Thu, 11 Jun 2009 09:08:33 -0700 Dear Peninsula Birders: In April of this year, Sequoia Audubon launched the new San Mateo County Birding Guide (SMCBG), providing accounts of dozens of birding sites in our area. Each entry contains maps, pictures, web links, and more. Please take a test run today, by accessing the website at http://birding.sequoia-audubon.org/ . Users have responded enthusiastically, and traffic has climbed on the site. We appreciate all the feedback and support we have received. One suggestion heard from many users dove-tailed with the plans of both the SMCBG's editor and its designer: to develop the ability to search the website for individual species. We are now ready to unveil this most useful tool. It will help beginning birders to anticipate which birds to expect in which habitats; intermediate bird-watchers can fill gaps in their lists; advanced birders and scientists can trace patterns of vagrant and rare birds in our area. Furthermore, we think it is just fun to explore using this latest gadget! The search capability runs directly from a menu at the top of the SMCBG home page. All species recorded in San Mateo County are listed in alphabetical order by their common English name, with an abundance code in parentheses. The abundance code is explained on the County Abundance Codes Explained page in the Additional References menu on the Birding Guide. In the mid-1990s, Sequoia Audubon published the second edition of San Francisco Peninsula Birdwatching. The new SMCBG builds from the accounts in that book, while editing them substantially to record changes and include new material. We are also adding many sites that were left uncovered, or only marginally mentioned in the book, due to space limitations. Because the SMCBG can be expanded, there will be many more sites added to the forty-seven that you will see if you visit today. At the moment, over seventy-five sites are projected; suggestions for new sites can be submitted to the editor. There are a few special features worthy of mention on the SMCBG. Be certain to check out the "Help" and "Look Here" sections, located in the buttons atop the table of contents. The Help button will show you how to use the many fine map features built into the SMCBG. The Look Here category includes a list of sites to be added, guidelines for authors and photographers, and a copy of Francis Toldi's fine essay on the natural features of the county (it originally appeared in the San Mateo County Breeding Bird Atlas.) Other exciting advances in the SMCBG include new accounts covering such popular sites as Coyote Point, FItzgerald Marine Reserve, Moss Beach Seawatch, Holbrook-Palmer Park, and more. Watch for announcements of coming key site accounts: Radio Road, the San Francisco Watershed, the Half Moon Bay Beaches, Wavecrest, Skyline Ridge Open Space Preserve, and the Pescadero Creek County Parks. At this time, we are also enabling you to donate to Sequoia Audubon directly from the pages of the SMCBG, via PayPal. If you appreciate the work we have done to make San Mateo Birding more accessible, please consider donating in whatever amount you can. Jennifer Rycenga Half Moon Bay, CA...and Bill Groll, web designer [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: RE: Red fox in Moss Beach From: "Alvaro Jaramillo" <chucao AT coastside.net> Date: Wed, 10 Jun 2009 23:43:09 -0700 JR, A bunch of years ago, maybe 10 by now, I saw a Red Fox at the mouth of Pilarcitos Creek. It seemed that at that time they really had a boom, spreading throughout the bayside, and eventually to the coast. But since then I have gotten the feeling that they retreated a bunch, although I could be wrong. At SFBBO, the field station on Coyote Creek, there were more Red Foxes 10 years ago than there are now, and that is a reason why I think they have gone down in numbers over time. Cheers, Al Alvaro Jaramillo chucao AT coastside.net Half Moon Bay, California Field Guides - Birding Tours Worldwide www.fieldguides.com _____ From: peninsula-birding AT yahoogroups.com [mailto:peninsula-birding AT yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of J.R. Blair Sent: Wednesday, June 10, 2009 10:40 PM To: peninsula-birding AT yahoogroups.com Subject: [pen-bird] Red fox in Moss Beach No, not a red fox sparrow, rather the mammal. My apologies for the non-bird posting but I thought some on this list would be interested. Late last night I heard an odd mammalian call - kwah! - single note, short and sharp. It got louder until, near my window it was very loud. I investigated and was astonished to see a red fox on Vermont Street. My flashlight did not disturb it and it "barked" once more while I was watching it. It seemed to be looking up the street toward perhaps a noise in the eucs there. I watched it for two or three minutes before it loped up the hill and out of sight. I never heard the bark again. Size of a medium dog with disproportionately long legs that were distinctly darker than the body. The body fur appeared deer brown in my flashlight. Somewhat pointy snout and largish ears. I did not see the tell-tale white-tip on the tail but I'm positive of my identification. I have heard of red foxes on the Bay and in SF but I have never heard of one on the Coastside. I'd be interested if anyone has seen or heard of red foxes here before. Also, if anyone knows where a report should be filed I'd be glad to submit one. J.R. Blair 895 Sierra St at Vermont Ave, Moss Beach 650-728-9405 [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Red fox in Moss Beach From: "J.R. Blair" <jrblair AT outrageous.net> Date: Wed, 10 Jun 2009 22:39:39 -0700 No, not a red fox sparrow, rather the mammal. My apologies for the non-bird posting but I thought some on this list would be interested. Late last night I heard an odd mammalian call - kwah! - single note, short and sharp. It got louder until, near my window it was very loud. I investigated and was astonished to see a red fox on Vermont Street. My flashlight did not disturb it and it "barked" once more while I was watching it. It seemed to be looking up the street toward perhaps a noise in the eucs there. I watched it for two or three minutes before it loped up the hill and out of sight. I never heard the bark again. Size of a medium dog with disproportionately long legs that were distinctly darker than the body. The body fur appeared deer brown in my flashlight. Somewhat pointy snout and largish ears. I did not see the tell-tale white-tip on the tail but I'm positive of my identification. I have heard of red foxes on the Bay and in SF but I have never heard of one on the Coastside. I'd be interested if anyone has seen or heard of red foxes here before. Also, if anyone knows where a report should be filed I'd be glad to submit one. J.R. Blair 895 Sierra St at Vermont Ave, Moss Beach 650-728-9405 Subject: Caution: attack owls crossing From: Chris MacIntosh <cmaci AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Wed, 10 Jun 2009 22:42:07 -0700 (PDT) Honestly! I got beaned several times tonight. Robin Smith is my witness - you should have seen us both ducking from 8" of feather - and talon. For the past couple of evenings, coming home late to my Menlo Park home, I heard unusual sounds in the valley oak across the street. There were two radically different sounds, but coming from the same tree and after dark, I thought they had to be related. By Tuesday I'd figured that I probably had a Western Screech-owl (back in May I had heard the first one ever around home), but the chirpy sounds were a puzzle. Scouring the internet for owl clips came up with nothing remotely related. There are a lot of trees on the street here, including live and valley oaks, so there's a lot of cover. Great Horned and Barn owls have been seen and heard in the past. Robin Smith came over tonight to help with ID, just as I was hearing an adult owl next to our driveway.As I stood in the middle of the street waiting for Robin to get out of her car, something gave me a good whack on the head, though I saw nothing! We stood in the street for a while, listening to different sounds, and identifying adult W. Screech-owl. Then one flew in and perched in silhouette on a tree trunk, and we watched it moving around. At one point, an owl was on the phone line along the street and we could see it calling. Then it flew out at us, turned around and re-perched further down the line! We moved to cover and stood under an oak, listening to a variety of different calls. Some were recognizable owl calls but some, which we only heard and never matched to a seen bird, were very different. The calls moved around a lot, some in the trees on my side of the street and some on the other side. We agreed that there seemed to be at least 3 owls. Several times a bird flew at us. We could duck when we saw the bird flying towards us, but when it came from behind, I got hit -- to Robin's amusement until she, too, had to duck. Our (well, if it's wrong, it's my guess not Robin's) best guess is that there's a family of owls here and that the parents are being protective. We did try to move away from where the birds seemed not to like us being, and we weren't out there very long. A rather entertaining evening. Chris MacIntosh cmaci AT sbcglobal.net [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Yellowthroat breeding at Coyote Pt. From: Tronthorn AT aol.com Date: Wed, 10 Jun 2009 20:27:03 EDT Yesterday morning I stopped at the freshwater marsh at Coyote Point to follow up on the male Common Yellowthroat, I saw last week. I had significant interest, as there are no confirmed breeding records along the bayside north of Highway 84 and University Avenue in East Palo Alto. If Common Yellowthroat was breeding in the large field next to the freshwater marsh, it would be difficult to get access into the field. Walking up to the freshwater marsh I saw what I knew was coming and it was the summer mowing of the field. I thought, if there was a nest in the field, it was no longer and there would be no confirmation of breeding. There was now limited habitat around the marsh, but I did find this played in my advantage, as I spotted in a Coyote Bush a male Common Yellowthroat several times feeding a fledgling with a fleshy gape. On the same day, there was an alternate plumaged Common Murre on San Francisco Bay near the entrance to the Coyote Point Marina. This species does wander to Coyote Point from the July to September period every year, but the June record sighting was unexpected and was most likely related to other recent sightings in the bay. The Nob Hill pond in Redwood Shores had a rare summering male Green-winged Teal. There was also the first brood of Ruddy Ducks. This morning just after sunrise, ( 18 ) WhIte Pelicans staying overnight on the Nob Hill pond departed to foraging areas. Ron Thorn [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Another Rose-breasted Grosbeak? From: "Alvaro Jaramillo" <chucao AT coastside.net> Date: Wed, 10 Jun 2009 15:43:30 -0700 Folks I have a friend of mine, Jeff Gordon visiting from Delaware, was birding Gazos Creek yesterday and had a Rose-breasted Grosbeak near the junction of Gazos and Cloverdale. I don't recall if one had been seen here already this season, at that spot that is, or if this is a new bird. He is out today as well, hopefully he will turn up something neat. Cheers, Alvaro Alvaro Jaramillo chucao AT coastside.net Half Moon Bay, California Field Guides - Birding Tours Worldwide www.fieldguides.com [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Coastside Land Trust Presents Songbird & Seabird Workshop and Walk From: "Alvaro Jaramillo" <chucao AT coastside.net> Date: Wed, 10 Jun 2009 15:36:42 -0700 Folks Just in case folks are interested in catching a presentation and an afternoon bird walk this Saturday, see below. I am going to be giving an intro to some of the local birds and trying to get people interested in the birds and preservation of land on the coast. Gary Deghi will be about helping out with the birding as well. Details are below! Good birding! Al Alvaro Jaramillo chucao AT coastside.net Half Moon Bay, California Field Guides - Birding Tours Worldwide www.fieldguides.com _____ AllensHummingbird.jpg Allen's Hummingbird - Alvaro Jaramillo Seabird & Songbird Workshop and Bird Walk with Alvaro Jaramillo Saturday, June 13 Seabird & Songbird Workshop - 1-2:30pm Back by popular demand after his previously sold-out event, Alvaro Jaramillo will present an entertaining workshop on the seabirds and songbirds found on the Coastside. Learn about their behavior, field marks, ecology, and migratory patterns. Light refreshments will be served. Cost: Suggested donation is $15. Seniors $5. Under 18 years old free. Location: Ocean Shore Train Depot at the foot of the Johnston House, 110 Higgins Canyon Rd, Half Moon Bay Bird Walk - 3-5pm Participants will walk through beautiful bluff top open space looking for birds and applying the knowledge learned in the workshop. Dress in layers, wear sturdy shoes and bring binoculars or scopes if desired. Snacks and beverages will be served after the walk. Cost: Free Location: Meet at Smith Field, Wavecrest Road, Half Moon Bay. Both the Workshop and Walk are suitable for beginning to expert birders, as well as families. (To donate to CLT, please click here.) CLT-logo-100.gif Jo Chamberlain Executive Director 650 284 5056 [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Re: May 2009 - San Mateo County Bird Sightings From: "Garth Harwood" <gharwood AT hiddenvilla.org> Date: Wed, 10 Jun 2009 15:30:18 -0700 Nice report, Kris. Thanks for all the extra effort involved. Between your efforts and those of Jennifer, Rich, Leonie et al. there is a nifty renaissance of birding in progress in our home county - well done everyone! --Garth Harwood ----- Original Message ----- From: Kris Olson To: Pen Bird Sent: Wednesday, June 10, 2009 12:41 PM Subject: [pen-bird] May 2009 - San Mateo County Bird Sightings May was an exciting month in San Mateo County for birders: we collectively saw 14 new species for a year-to-date total of 279 species. All of these had a rarity rating of "4" and above -- and one was a brand new species for the county. Four were seen on the Bay-side, one in the hills near Skyline, and the rest on the coast. We started off with a Magnolia Warbler (whose sex cannot be determined, according to our experts) on Tunitas Creek Road. That was followed by 3 birds on the Bay: A Dusky Flycatcher ("5") at Coyote Point; a White-faced Ibis ("5") at Radio Rd. in Redwood Shores for a single day; and a Solitary Sandpiper ("4") again at Coyote Point, also a one-day wonder. Next, a migrating Swainson's Hawk ("5") was seen over Pescadero on May 12; a Black Swift ("4") at Coal Creek Open Space Preserve (off Skyline); three Yellow-breasted Chats ("4") were all seen the same day, May 16, in different locations (Burleigh Murray State Park in Half Moon Bay, Pacifica and Alpine Pond on Skyline); a Franklin's Gull ("4") from a Pigeon Point sea watch May 16; and finally on that busy date, an Eastern Kingbird ("5") was seen at Venice Beach by an Audubon group from Sacramento. The biggest news of the month was the appearance of a GULL-BILLED TERN on May 17-18 at Radio Road in Redwood Shores. It was found by Lisa Hug from Petaluma. One May 3, Mike Danzenbaker had photographed a Gull-billed Tern in Palo Alto, presumably the same bird, but it was not seen again until it appeared at Radio Road the evening of May 17. This is the first documented occurrence of this species in northern California; thus it's also a new bird for the San Mateo County List. Also on May 17 a Red-eyed Vireo ("4") was found in Pescadero, seen just for one day. We had almost a week's break until the next new species on May 24: a Willow Flycatcher in Half Moon Bay (and shortly thereafter, in Pacifica). The last two were "Eastern" warblers found on the coast: American Redstart ("4") on Tunitas Creek Road and a Hooded Warbler ("4") in Pescadero Creek County Park. While not a new species, an interesting male hybrid Black-headed cross Rose-breasted Grosbeak was found at Gazos Creek on May 9th. It was last reported on June 1. What is in store for June? We're already at June 8th and have no new species. The Santa Clara Year List historically reports just a few new species for June (4) and July (7), though July may bring some shorebirds returning from the north. But keep looking in June, there are occasional rare vagrants out there. (Santa Cruz County gets 6 new species in May on average and 3 in July-- just to compare.) Observers One result of all this rare bird activity is more observers coming to San Mateo Co and contributing to Pen Bird. I hope I have captured everyone's name in the list of observers on the Sequoia Audubon web site. Please let me know if I have missed you. If you have any corrections, additions, omissions, please email me at kristenolson AT yahoo.com. http://www.sequoia-audubon.org/SMCbirds.php — Kris Olson, June 8, 2009 New Species Seen in May 2009 Magnolia Warbler 5/03/2009 4 (rarity rating) Dusky Flycatcher 5/06/2009 5 White-faced Ibis 5/08/2008 5 Solitary Sandpiper 5/11/2009 4 Swainson's Hawk 5/12/2009 5 Black Swift 5/15/2009 4 Franklin's Gull 5/16/2009 4 Yellow-breasted Chat 5/16/2009 4 Eastern Kingbird 5/16/2009 5 Gull-billed Tern 5/17/2009 6 Red-eyed Vireo 5/17/2009 4 Willow Flycatcher 5/24/2009 5 American Redstart 5/25/2009 4 Hooded Warbler 5/28/2009 4 [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]