CA/AZ – Day 3 (March 17): Birding the Salton Sea

Having missed going to the Salton Sea on our previous visit to California, my dad and I were especially excited as we started our journey to this special area, early on the morning on Day 3.

After all, how could we not be excited? Dead fish smell, 100+ fahrenheit temps (with no shade), and swarms biting insects awaited us. Looked like it would be a blast!

The few (but notable) negatives about birding the Salton Sea aside, this area is a famed birding location, where hundreds of birds flock to the appropriate habitat created by the sea and surrounding towns, which are further surrounded by barren desert for miles around.

Among the visiting birds, Yellow-footed Gull is probably at the top of most birder’s wish-lists when visiting the sea. Restricted to the Gulf of California in Mexico just to the south, this species is an annual post-breeding visitor to this area. Unfortunately, March is probably the least productive time for finding this gull, but we were hopeful that we might run in to one or two during our jaunt through the area.

Most of my other targets were a who’s-who of the sea’s best wintering species: Mountain Plover, Sprague’s Pipit, Ferruginous Hawk, Prairie Falcon, etc. This was going to be an awesome day.

After descending from the Laguna Mountains to the warm valley floor below, we began our journey to some farm fields west of the Salton Sea, in the vicinity of the prison near Montgomery Road. Our primary target here was Mountain Plover, although we were also keeping watch for one of a few Sprague’s Pipits that had wintered in the nearby fields.

Driving through a number of fields alongside the prison, we were unable to nail any plovers until we struck gold on Montgomery Road. Here, thirty or so Mountain Plovers were foraging in one of the fields, well off the main road.

A crummy look at a few Mountain Plovers

While watching the plovers, we also noted a few quintessential species of this habitat type, such as Horned Lark and American Pipit. Other highlights from this area included Northern Harrier, Long-billed Curlew Burrowing Owl, American Kestrel, Merlin, Cliff Swallow and numerous Western Meadowlarks.

Unfortunately, we were unable to run into any Sprague’s Pipits, but Mountain Plover was definitely higher up on the target list.

Moving on towards the sea, we hit Red Hill, with high hopes of possibly coming across a Yellow-footed Gull or two. Unfortunately, gull diversity at this spot was rather low, but a plethora of other species, including Northern Pintail, American White Pelican, Black-necked Stilt, American Avocet, Marbled Godwit and Long-billed Dowitcher, made themselves known.

A small portion of the large numbers of birds present on the shoreline of Red Hill. Species portrayed in this photo include Marbled Godwit, American Avocet, Herring and Ring-billed Gulls.

We paused in our search for the gull only to visit the nearby Salton Sea NWR Visitor Center. Gambel’s Quail, Common Ground-Dove and Abert’s Towhee were all noted.

Gambel’s Quail

Abert’s Towhee

A Desert Cottontail at the visitors center.

Back on the Yellow-footed chase, we stopped off at Obsidian Butte, arguably the best location for the species at the Salton Sea. It took a while, but evenutally we were able to finesse a single first-cycle Yellow-footed Gull out of the masses. The complete white breast and belly, huge bill and blocky head shape, made this individual stand out quite boldly.

Also present at Obsidian were a couple of Green-winged Teal and Common Goldeneye, as well as Marsh Wren, Common Yellowthroat, and Verdin representing the passerine side of things. A pair of Cinnamon Teal and fifty-four Caspian Terns were loafing off a nearby road.

By this time it was well past noon, and we decided to forgo the search for the hawk and falcon until the Arizona portion of the trip.

Heading west to San Diego, we made one last stop at the Otay Lakes, in hopes with connecting with a Glaucous-winged Gull that had recently been seen there. Again, we were unable to connect with this species, although a single first-cycle Thayer’s Gull among the masses of Herring, California, Western and Ring-billed Gulls was a nice surprise.

Thayer’s Gull

Following a fantastic day of birding, in which we notched our two biggest targets, we enjoyed a celebratory sushi dinner in San Diego, which was the perfect way to cap off our first visit to such a premier birding location.

-Alex

4/28 – Lake Mohegan #2

Having birded Lake Mohegan on the same day the year before, I thought it might be a good idea to head back Sunday, not only for the awesome birding that was likely in store, but also to get an idea of the pace of arrivals in comparison to last year.

Starting early, I gradually made my way around the lake, first hitting the area around the old structure to the east of the parking lot, which is always really productive. From there I made my way to the meadows, then up to the ridges and down through the powerline cut, before finally heading through the North Pond/Cascades area, taking the trail on the west side of the lake back to the parking lot.

Lake Mohegan was again hopping on this morning, and I was able to put together a nice total of forty-six species by the time it was all said and done, including no less than 13 FOYs.

Like last year, I noted that many of the breeders had already arrived at the Lake, while a few were still missing (namely Baltimore Oriole and Scarlet Tanager). Many of the newly arrived breeders were vigorously singing throughout the visit, and included Eastern Kingbird, Red-eyed Vireo, House Wren, Wood Thrush, Gray Catbird, Eastern Towhee, Rose-breasted Grosbeak and Orchard Oriole.

As with my visit the year before, a number of early Wood Warblers took the prize as the overall highlight of the visit. I beat last year’s total of 6 warblers by one, noting seven. They were: Worm-eating, Blue-winged, Black-and-white, Blackburnian, Yellow and Yellow-rumped Warblers and American Redstart.

The Blackburnian was definitely the standout bird of the entire morning. Noted accidentally while watching a Blue-winged Warbler near the “old structure,” I spent a long time enjoying this absolutely stunning bird, as it fed and occasionally sang in the mostly bare trees.

Other highlights at Lake Mohegan included Pileated Woodpecker, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher and what were likely my first-ever Fish Crows for the location.

Birding-wise, this spot is one of the jewels of Northern Fairfield’s Open Spaces, and is always dependable for producing large numbers of quality birds during the breeding season. It has been the first daytime spot visited during the Fairfield Big Days of 2011 and 2012. I wouldn’t be surprised if it again held that position this year.

Photos below:

American Redstart

Blackburnian Warbler, singing away!

Worm-eating Warbler

Blue-winged Warbler

Rose-breasted Grosbeak

Wood Thrush

Eastern Kingbird

Orchard Oriole

-Alex

4/25 – Birdcraft Produces a First!

It’s not every day that I see a new bird for my Fairfield list. After all, I’ve been religiously birding my hometown of Fairfield for years now. There are few birds that I haven’t seen here, and that list of birds I’m missing got even smaller following a visit to the Birdcraft this past Thursday.

So what was the new species? Late into my visit, I looked skyward to note a group of large, black birds making their way east. Instinctively, species along the line of Double-crested Cormorant and Canada Goose came to mind. But something didn’t look quite right. One look through binoculars yielded the answer: Glossy Ibis! 

Count ‘em! Twenty-one Glossy Ibis making their way east over the Birdcraft.

Although regularly seen in neighboring towns of Stratford and Westport during the warmer months, Glossy Ibis is a rare species in Fairfield, and this is the first recorded occurrence that I am aware of. Despite the fact that GLIB records for Fairfield are slim to non-existent, these birds likely pass over the town on a near-daily basis during the warmer months, as they commute between nesting/roosting locations and foraging sites along the coast.

The main purpose of this visit was migrants, of which I encountered a few, including my FOY House Wrens for Connecticut. Others included Eastern Phoebe, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Ruby-crowned Kinglet and Hermit Thrush. No Wood Warblers were recorded.

House Wren

A banded Northern Flicker tending to a cavity (possibly a nest site?)

-Alex

4/20 – Yard Update

The resident Groundhog chowing down on some grub (literally!).

This week has been a busy one for the yard, with a number of new arrivals revealing themselves over the past couple of days. The male Eastern Towhee continued on Monday (4/15), and the first Opsrey of the year was noted soaring overhead. 

The highlight of the week, though, came the next day (4/16), when a pair of Yellow-crowned Night-Herons was observed nest-building at the end of my street while on the way to school. Yellow-crowned Night-Heron has been nesting on the cul-de-sac that we live on for quite some time, but has declined in recent years. After normal numbers in 2009 (4-5 pairs), 2010 saw a 50% decrease in numbers. Only one pair remained in 2011, with these birds not nesting in the usual location. By the spring of 2012, ZERO Yellow-crowned Night-Herons were breeding in the neighborhood.

I’m still not sure why breeding Yellow-crowneds have decreased here, but increasing disturbance and the lost of traditional nests from Hurricane Irene might have been a contributing factor, although these birds were decreasing before the latter event even occurred.  All of that aside, I’m especially relived and excited to see a pair making an attempt at breeding in 2013.

Proudly perched next to the nearly completed nest.

Plumes blowin’ in the wind.

If you decide to come view the birds, please be respectful and don’t approach too closely to the Night-Herons or their nest. All of the members of this neighborhood have enjoyed watching these birds nesting for years now, and will not tolerate any disturbance to either the birds or themselves.

Last but not least, a five-minute watch of the feeders yesterday afternoon yielded three Dark-eyed Juncos while only one was present today (possibly the last bird of the season here). Three Eastern Towhee (one male, two females) were scratching about under the feeders this morning. Winning the award for the most bizarre sighting of the week were two Rock Pigeons seen under the feeders for most of the day today, the first ROPIs I’ve ever seen physically in the yard (only seen them flying overhead previously).

The two Rock Pigeons, with a nearby Mourning Dove for comparison.

-Alex

4/14 – April Anticipation

For birders in the Northeast, much of April is spent waiting for the madness that is May. Yet, the oft-neglected month of April is still a terrific time for birding, and is equally a great time to be outdoors.

I often find April passerine migrants to be akin to the appetizer course of a three-course meal. While they aren’t as explosive and abundant as our main course, they do give us a taste of what’s to come, just like an appetizer. Furthermore, an appetizer can be one of the most enjoyable parts of the meal, with its small size allowing you to savor every bite. The same holds true for early spring migrants. While there aren’t as many as those that come after them, their lack of sheer abundance allows you to enjoy and savor every bird.

With this in mind, and a rare free day on my hands, I took to the field yesterday, hoping to find some of the early migrants that characterize the month of April.

My first stop was at Hoydens Hill Open Space, one of my favorite places for birding in all of Fairfield. Hoydens’ mixture of shrubland and edge habitat, in contrast with the typically forested sites throughout the rest of Fairfield, makes it unique.

With this special array of habitats comes a special group of breeders. Annual breeding bird surveys have detected birds such as Brown Thrasher, Orchard Oriole, Indigo Bunting, Blue-winged Warbler and Eastern Bluebird, species that are uncommon to absent as breeders throughout the rest of Fairfield.

Although many of these birds have yet to arrive, I still enjoyed a fantastic couple of hours at this location. Species such as Eastern Phoebe, Tree Swallow, Eastern Bluebird, Eastern Towhee and Chipping Sparrow were all back on territory and singing. The bluebirds were also observed bringing nesting material into one of the boxes, which is always a treat to see.

Tree Swallow

The female Eastern Bluebird bringing nesting material into the box, while the male keeps an eye on the surroundings.

Eastern Bluebird

Eastern Towhee

Surprises such as FOUR Pileated Woodpeckers (a high count for me in Fairfield) and two singing Field Sparrows (hoping they’ll stick around and breed!) were also noted. Some of our early spring migrant friends, such as, Barn Swallow, Ruby-crowned Kinglet and Hermit Thrush.

A crummy look at one of the singing Field Sparrows.

Other highlights included my first-ever Fish Crow at Hoydens, as well as a brief look at a soaring Red-shouldered Hawk.

After a nice couple of hours at Hoydens, and 34 species to show for it, I headed south to the Grace Richardson Conservation Area, near the intersection of Congress Street and Moreheouse Highway.

Despite all of the years that I have been birding Fairfield, I’ve never made it to Grace Richardson, a location with tons of potential. Birds noted as possible breeders in the past include Blue-winged Warbler, Louisiana Waterthrush and Field Sparrow.

With a exciting list of possible goodies, but a lack of confusing foliage and overwhelming numbers of migrants, this was a good a time as any to get my feet wet at this location.

I spent a couple of really enjoyable hours covering nearly every trail at Grace Richardson, and came away with 30 species to show for my effort. I found the open areas such as Bluebird Meadow to be especially birdy, as well as the wet area to the north of North Pond.

A number of our quintessential April migrants were present, including an absolutely stunning male Yellow-rumped Warbler as well as Golden-crowned and Ruby-crowned Kinglets and Hermit Thrush.

Stunning male Yellow-rumped Warbler. Now I know how birders in the UK and the rest of the Palearctic must feel when they notch their first one

Likely breeders already on territory included Eastern Phoebe, Northern Rough-winged Swallow, Eastern Bluebird and Eastern Towhee.

A Turkey Vulture was seen soaring above the powerline cut at the entrance, and a male American Goldfinch, with his odd, patchy April plumage, halfway between nonbreeding and breeding, was singing in Bluebird Meadow.

American Goldfinch

All in all, Grace Richardson looks like a fantastic location. Breeding Louisiana Waterthrushes seem a definite possibility along the stream, as do Worm-eating Warblers along the sloped areas, especially at the western edge of the property.

My last stop of the morning was Hemlock Reservoir in order to follow up on the status of the area after hearing concerning reports following the passing of Hurricane Sandy.

People mentioned to me that the whole area appeared “devastated” and “all of the pines were split into pieces” and that it “looked like a tornado went through there.” Needless to say, all of this got me incredibly concerned about the future potential of this place as a birding spot, including for the Pine Warblers, Red-breasted Nuthatches and Cooper’s Hawks that nest in the pines (the latter two not every year).

Upon entering the area, I was quite relived to see that many of the pines (including those that were best for Pine Warblers) were still standing, with the exception of a few truly devastated areas, where there wasn’t a standing pine for yards around.

My feeling of relief was furthered when I connected with a gorgeous singing Pine Warbler, moving about low in some of the nearby trees. My first Pine of the year and second warbler of the day, this bird was a real treat.

Pine Warbler

Pine with lunch.

Also noted at Hemlock were five Common Merganser on the reservoir. The nesting Cliff Swallows seem not to have returned yet, as there was no action near their typical nesting spot near the dam.

After my investigation at Hemlock, I returned home to relax and catch the second game of the Red Sox-Rays series. A 5-0 blanking of the Rays (including 7 innings of no-hit ball by Clay Buchholz) had me pumped for going back out into the field late in the afternoon.

The first Eastern Towhee of the year for the yard.

I had planned on spending a couple of hours owling that evening at Larsen Sanctuary, and decided to arrive with some daylight in order to hopefully catch up with a few more migrants.

A shortened version of my normal Larsen route yielded numerous highlights, including breeders such as Wood Duck, Cooper’s Hawk, Eastern Phoebe, Eastern Bluebird and Chipping Sparrow.

Cooper’s Hawk

Numerous passerine migrants were in evidence, including Winter Wren (possible wintering bird), Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (possible breeder calling near Wildlife Pond), Golden-crowned and Ruby-crowned Kinglets, NINE Hermit Thrushes, Pine Warbler and Swamp Sparrow. I also notched my third and fourth warbler species of the day, in the form of a nice group of Palm Warblers along Streamside Trail, and a surprise Louisiana Watherthrush just before sunset.

Hermit Thrush

Palm Warbler (hypochrysea)

Louisiana Waterthrush

Louisiana Waterthrush had been on my mind all day, and was likely the highlight of this day’s effort. I noted this bird just at the start of the boardwalk through the wet woodland, on the final push to Deer Meadow. Making my way through the forest, I was surprised to hear a loud boat of song, seemingly from right behind me. Being the huge warbler fan that I am, I knew who the source of the singing was almost instantly, and it didn’t take me long to find it, perched around ten feet off the ground in a tall shrub. The bird provided terrific looks and photos before it disappeared, leaving me with my first LOWA of the season, and the bird of the day.

I’m sure it’s probably pretty apparent to the followers of this blog that Wood-Warblers are my no-doubt favorite family of birds. Seeing four warbler species (my first multi-Parulid day in Connecticut of the year) was a huge treat, and had me incredibly excited for what’s in store. It also made me appreciate those often under-appreciated early warblers, who give us a taste of the “main course” that’s to come.

-Alex

In addendum: my sorry attempt at owling ended up being pretty unsuccessful, with the only owl species heard being the resident pair of Barred Owls, who truly sounded like they were having a blast responding to my recordings, no matter which owl species they were of.

Also, I’ve posted a new poll pertaining to our favorite early spring migrants, the results of which can be viewed by clicking on ‘View Results’. 

CA/AZ – Day 2 (March 16): Los Angeles to San Diego

Following another night in the LA area, my dad and I found ourselves at UCLA’s Jackie Robinson Field early the next morning. We weren’t there for baseball, but instead for a wintering Virginia’s Warbler, one of the few remaining North American members of my favorite family I have yet to see.

The Virginia’s had been frequenting a nursery adjacent to the field, which in turn bordered the LA Veterans’ Garden. Upon arrival, we found there to be quite a bit of activity in the parking lot, stalling our progress. White-crowned Sparrows and Yellow-rumped Warblers were particularly prevalent (no surprise there) and a few Townsend’s Warblers and Ruby-crowned Kinglets were moving about. A friendly Black Phoebe was also nearby.

Black Phoebe

Heading into the nursery, we were directed to the area the warbler had been frequenting by a helpful employee. Surprisingly, we found this overgrown nursery/garden/neighborhood to be quite birdy, and got our first decent taste of California landbirding on the trip.

Highlights included Red-shouldered Hawk, American Kestrel, Oak Titmouse, California Towhee and “Sooty” Fox Sparrow. 

Red-shouldered Hawk

California Towhee

“Sooty” Fox Sparrow

Unfortunately, the Virginia’s never showed in an hour and a half of searching, prolonging my wait for this sneaky parulid.

Heading south, we made our way to the Village Green, a community of sorts containing a nice variety of old trees, and attractive plantings. A Cassin’s Vireo had been wintering here, even singing on some mornings, and we hoped to possibly nail my last breeding North American vireo at this spot.

Forty-five minutes of searching failed to yield the vireo, although Allen’s and Anna’s Hummingbirds, Bushtit and Common Raven kept us occupied during our visit.

Again moving south, we decided to put in a good chunk of time at Cabrillo Beach Park in the Long Beach area, aiming to see both Glaucous-winged and Mew Gulls.

An hour at Cabrillo was extremely productive, with 30 species seen. We were also able to connect with Mew Gull, a life bird for both of us. Other highlights included Lesser Scaup, Surf Scoter, California Brown Pelican, Whimbrel, Black Turnstone, Heermann’s Gull, Royal Tern and Black Skimmer. No Glaucous-winged, unfortunately, but we did get halfway there with a nice hybrid Glaucous-winged x Western Gull.

Mew Gull

Mew Gull

Showing off the remaining immature plumage.

A nearby Ring-billed Gull for comparison.

Brown Pelican

Black Turnstone

Heermann’s Gull

Black Skimmers

Glaucous-winged x Western Gull

After lunch in the Long Beach area, we began the push to San Diego, arriving at our last location of the day, San Dieguito Lagoon, a few hours later.

A Pacific Golden-Plover had been wintering here, but we dipped on this bird in nearly an hour of scanning. A few Redhead and a Whimbrel were meager consolation.

Overall, Day 2 appears to not have been too successful a day when you count the number of misses we experienced. However, we were finally able to pick up Mew Gull and also enjoyed seeing a number of common California species, which definitely made it a success in my book.

-Alex

CA/AZ – Day 1 (March 15): Santa Cruz Déjà Vu

After a late arrival at LA International the night before, my dad and I were eager to get started on what promised to be an awesome trip. After checking out of our hotel, we headed north on CA-34 (also known as the Ventura Freeway) towards our first destination of the trip, Ventura Harbor, the port of call for our boat trip to Santa Cruz Island.

Some of you may remember snippets of last year’s fantastic trip to Santa Cruz Island, in which I was able to complete my Aphelocoma sweep with Island Scrub-Jay, nail many of the Santa Cruz endemic subspecies, and also miss Scripps’s Murrelet at a less optimal time of year for that species.

The cast of characters (both in terms of birds and people) was somewhat different this time around, but in most regards, this year’s trip was eerily reminiscent of last year’s.

Arriving at the Island Packers Office, we were immediately reminded of our changed geographic location. The cries of Western Gulls filled the air as Brewer’s Blackbirds strutted about the parking lot. In the Harbor, Brandt’s and Double-crested Cormorants and Brown Pelicans swam about, sharing the space with a noisy band of California Sea Lions.

Brandt’s Cormorant

Double-crested Cormorant

Brown Pelican

California Sea Lions doing a nice job at weighing that dock down!

Just glimpsing the quintessential species of the California Coast really got the adrenaline flowing, and also had me reflecting that, even though life birds are great, it’s also nice to enjoy some of the common species, as we don’t get to see them back home, where other birds fill their respective niches.

Speaking of life birds, my target for the day was set the minute we disembarked after last year’s trip: Scripps’s Murrelet. Although August is a poor time to find this Channel Islands nester, March is prime time for this globally rare species, and we were hopeful we might come across one or two on the way out.

Just around boarding time we ran into fellow Connecticut birder Annette Jablonski and her family. Annette and I both remarked on how crazy it was that two Connecticut birders had run into each other on the same trip.

Before leaving the Harbor, I enjoyed an array of firsts for the trip including Eared, Western and Clark’s Grebes, Willet and Black Turnstone. Also present was an American Oystercatcher of the Baja subspecies frazari, a rare but regular visitor to California.

Clark’s Grebe

American Oystercatcher – frazari

Once out into the open water, Common Murres began to make themselves apparent. Passing by raft upon raft of Western Grebes, I began to scan furiously for the murrelets. It was at a major elevational drop-off that our target revealed itself, when two Scripps’s Murrelets were seen flying directly away from the boat.  The show was only just getting started, and by the time we reached Santa Cruz Island, we had counted twenty-three Scripps’s Murrelets, many of which we saw extremely well.

Common Murre

Scripps’s Murrelets

Other notable species on the ride out included Rhinoceros and Cassin’s Auklets as well as Pigeon Guillemot. Non-avian highlights included a nice Blue Whale, as well as an impressive pod of 1,000+ Short-beaked Common Dolphins that swam with the boat for a while.

Rhinoceros Auklet

Pigeon Guillemot

Blue Whale

Common Dolphins

After dropping off passengers at Scorpion Anchorage, we continued onto Prisoners, adding Pacific Loon, Surf Scoter and Pelagic Cormorant to our trip list along the way.

Pelagic Cormorant

Once at Prisoners Anchorage, we stalled briefly at the pier to photograph some confiding Western and California Gulls, before continuing onto the island.

Western Gull

California Gull (1st cycle)

California Gull (adult)

An Island Scrub-Jay was perched up nicely in the nearby growth upon arrival, and we spent most of our short time on the island getting more looks at this fantastic bird.

Island Scrub-Jay

Other highlights on Santa Cruz included Allen’s Hummingbird (island race sedentarius), my first Common Ravens of the year, as well as Hutton’s Vireo, Black Phoebe, Orange-crowned Warbler, and Acorn Woodpecker. A Great Blue Heron was perched atop a dead snag nearby.

Allen’s Hummingbird

Great Blue Heron

All too soon our time at Prisoners was over (gotta camp there some day!), and we headed over to Scorpion to pick up passengers, before continuing to Ventura Harbor. While on the way we saw a couple of Black Oystercatchers, putting the cap on my first ever two-oystercatcher day.

On the ride back the Scripps’s Murrelets were again out in force, and we noted thirty individuals, slamming our previous total by seven. We also added Northern Fulmar to our growing trip list, as well as a beautiful Steller’s Sea Lion and a crazy look at two Gray Whales propagating the species .

Northern Fulmar

More Cali Sea Lions

Steller’s Sea Lion

Definitely not the view on your average whale watch.

Gray Whale

Passing through the harbor, we noted Horned Grebe, Snowy Egret, Ruddy Turnstone and Belted Kingfisher, species we hadn’t seen here before. The American Oystercatcher from earlier was still present, though, providing nice comparison with a nearby Black Oystercatcher.

Horned Grebe

A young California Sea Lion

Once back at the dock, we said our goodbyes to Annette before continuing south for an awesome seafood dinner in Malibu, just as we had done the year before.

-Alex