California North Bay Area Feb. 1-11 2015 Common Scoter, Snowy Plovers

February 1, 2015 we loaded up the car and headed south.  Nephew Collin, who lives in San Francisco, had graciously offered his weekend cottage (more like a mansion) in Healdsburg for a week.  Our little townhouse at home will not feel the same after staying here.  The first night we stayed in Medford Oregon.  This made for a six hour trip to Healdsburg the next day but Colusa wildlife reserve was on our way.  A Falcated Duck has been reported here so we made a side trip.  After spending about an hour searching and talking to other like-minded birders, we ascertained the Falcated was not to be found that day.  On to Healdsburg.

California Towhee Colusa

Black-tailed Jackrabbit Colusa

Snowy Egret Colusa

White-faced Ibis Colusa

White-fronted Geese Colusa

Black-crowned Night Herons Colusa

The bushes were dripping with Black-crowned Night Herons.  This is only a small section.

While we were sitting at home in Abbotsford, we kept reading reports of a rare Rustic Bunting in Golden Gate Park.  This was one of the reasons we decided to make the trip.  It is amazing how one can drive hundreds of miles and within minutes find a tiny bird in the middle of San Francisco.  It helped to have a local lady named Lee to point it out to us.

Another bird we wanted to see was a Brown Booby.  One had been reported at Point Reyes.  After finding the Rustic Bunting we headed there.  Here is the trail leading to Chimney Rock where the bird was seen.  It is about a mile long.

Chimney Rock.  We were talking to some girls there and told them what we were after.  One of them had binoculars and said "is that it?"

Yes, she had picked it out.  It is the brown one behind the Pelicans.  This picture is highly cropped.

While checking this picture when I got home, I see there is another one in the upper left hand corner.  It is barely visible.  It isn't often I get to see 2 boobies in one day. (Wait a minute).

On the beaches below the trail,  Elephant Seals were numerous.  This bull is battle scarred.

Dian on the return hike.

February 4 we drove through the Napa Valley vineyards to Putah Creek Wildlife area.  Ebird states it is a good place to find Wrentits and Nuttall's Woodpecker.

A scene from Solano Lake Park along Putah Creek where we found the following  birds.

A Hermit Thrush greeted us at the Putah rest area.

It wasn't long before we spotted a male Nuttall's Woodpecker.

A female Nuttall's was close by.

Oak Titmice were common.  

An obliging Wrentit appeared.  Another check on our life list. 

This goose was mostly Canada but I do believe a White-fronted Goose may have jumped in there when no one was looking.

We stayed close to home on Feb 5.  A Hutton's Vireo was the only bird we photographed but we saw a White-tailed Kite In the distance.

Another picture of the Vireo?  No, it is a Ruby-crowned Kinglet to show the similarities with the Hutton's Vireo.  Note thinner bill, dark lores

Bodega Bay was listed as a great place for birds so we hit it Feb 10.  The reports were right on.  Birds  abound here and I wish we could have had more time to explore it further.  Here are some of what we did see.

Some Black Turnstones were gleaning the shore behind a restaurant.  Bits of seafood were being discharged  from the restaurant and the birds were taking advantage of the bonanza.

2 Ruddy Turnstones also reaped the bounty.

Having only seen Snowy Plovers once before in Texas we were happy to find 35 on  the beach at Bodega.  This one was ringed.  I reported it and will disclose the findings in a future blog when I get a reply.

Snowy Plover

There had to be over 1000 Marbled Godwits around Bodega Bay.  The most I have ever witnessed.

An Elephant Seal was providing a feast for the Turkey Vultures.

Brants were very common on Bodega Bay.

While in California we heard reports of a Common Scoter in Crescent City.  We detoured there Feb. 11 on our way home.

While searching for the Scoter a local girl approached us and asked if we were looking for the rare bird.  (Story sound familiar?)    She said someone from British Columbia had shown her the bird the day before.  ( WW?)  Luck was with us again. Unfortunately the sun was behind the bird and the distance was too great for a good picture.

This bird is usually found in Europe and Asia and may be the first recorded sighting for North America.

At the same location a Long-tailed Duck was escorted by some Surf Scoters. The Long-tailed Duck was right at home with the Surf Scoters, unlike the Common Scoter which always remained apart from the other seabirds.

We saw this bird on the way home.  Not sure of the exact location but I think around Willets, Ca.   I thought juvenile White-tailed Kite but can't find any images to match this.  Send me a message if you can help.
jellicoes@shaw.ca
Mystery solved.  Light phase Ferruginous Hawk.  Thanks to everyone who replied.  I always thought this was a Prairie bird.

We spent 9 days birding north of San Francisco and we didn't get to see all we wanted to see.  We made 2 more futile trips to Colusa to find the Falcated Duck.  One day we missed it by ten minutes. 3 of the 9 days we had rain.  That only means one thing-we have to return and we can't wait.  

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January 2015 Gyrfalcons, Golden Eagles, Owls and more.

January was raptor month.  Golden Eagles were at Boundary Bay and Sumas Prairie.  Northern Pygmy Owls were causing a commotion in Chilliwack as was a Long-eared Owl at Boundary Bay.  Gyrfalcons were in Sumas Prairie and at Viterra grain terminal in Vancouver.  Here are some of them and few more.

This Golden Eagle was on one of his favourite perches at Boundary Bay 

It took off to inspect a flock of ducks.

Here it approaches the ducks which scatter for the water filled ditch.  For some reason the water is safer than dry land.

One mallard was late taking off and barely escaped.

This is a another Golden Eagle in Sumas Prairie.  It was a cloudy day which made getting detail difficult.

A Brewers Blackbird flies by a Rusty Blackbird near Fooks Rd. Abbotsford.

A Gyrfalcon appears to be shrieking but is actually regurgitating.  Do you know there is such a word as gurgitating?

This Gyrfalcon was taken on a different day but I believe it is the same bird as above.

This very dark hawk is a dark morph Redtail.  I had some help identifying this one.  It was quite small so probably a male.

Northern Pygmy Owl in Chilliwack.  The following pictures are the same bird taken in different lighting conditions.

This Long-eared Owl was well hidden along a dike.  

A Coyote appeared to be planting potatoes in Sumas Prairie.

Bald Eagle also in Sumas Prairie.

Belted Kingfisher tossing back a "Sardine" from a ditch in Sumas Prairie.

We are off to California this weekend thanks to our nephew who has a cottage in wine country.  The next blog will record the experience.

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Tundra Bean Goose Twitch Jan 11-14 2015 Nestucca NWR Oregon

Ever since a Tundra Bean Goose was reported in Oregon on November 12 2014, I have been itching to drive the 615 kilometres to see it.  That is a long way to go without a guarantee that it will be there when we arrive.  (See the blog report in November of our trip to Neah Bay, Washington unsuccessfully searching for the rare Hobby).  Almost every day I would get a rare bird ebird report in my inbox stating the bird was still there. Then Christmas came along and stalled the plans.  Finally New Years passed and we started checking the weather reports.  A three day window of sunny weather appeared on January 11-14.  Dian gave the go ahead (as usual) and we left Abbotsford on the 10th in pouring rain. It was around 4 PM when we came to the intersection of coastal highway 101 and Highway 18.  We had to decide whether to turn south to Lincoln City and check in to our motel or turn north towards Nestucca NWR in the fading light and try for the goose before we settled in.  A short drive brought us to the reserve.  We travelled about 500 yards into the reserve when Dian said we had just passed a few geese.  We continued into the reserve until we came to a lookout where we scanned the the fields below.  We saw lots of Canada and Cackling Geese but not our target.  After half an hour the light was really fading so we decided to check out the small flock we had seen when we entered.  Sure enough, there it was about 50 yards off the road right where we had passed it.

Information sign at the lookout shelter.

Tundra Bean Goose.  Shot from the car in fading light as we were leaving the reserve.  Sometimes it is difficult to ascertain if a rare bird is an escapee from a zoo or collector.  Usually these sources clip the spur behind the foot to prevent injury to other birds and people.  Here the spur is visible.

Nestucca Reserve fields where we scanned for a half hour without success before we decided to leave.

Another shot on our first try.

Three Black-tailed deer were resident at the reserve.

The next day when we returned, the sun was shining and the Bean Goose was in the same area-right beside the road-close to the entrance.

Seal Rocks beach is one of our favourite spots for birds.  This is south of Newport.

The last time I saw a Red-shouldered Hawk was November 2000 on Spences Island, close to Marysville Washington.  This one was about 5 miles south of Tillamook where I did a fast brake and u-turn.  By the way-don't buy cheese at the Tillamook Cheese Factory.  It is cheaper in the supermarkets : > )

Otter Crest resort.  We stayed here about 35 years ago.

This blog is about the Bean Goose so here it is again.

Even if we didn't find the goose a trip to the Oregon Coast is always a delight (when the sun is shining).

A young spike horn Roosevelt Elk was in Ecola Park close to Cannon Beach.

One last shot of our target.

     The Tundra Bean Goose typically winters in Northern Europe and Asia.  This one is only the fifth sighting for North America (outside of Alaska).  I found out that a flock of Bean Geese is called a "pod".  How appropriate is that?  The goose gets its name from the bean fields it migrates to and frequents in Europe and Asia.  There was only one Bean Goose species up to 2007 when it was split into 2 species-the Taiga and the Tundra.

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