From south-bay-birds-bounces+south-bay-birds-archive=[[email protected]] Mon Apr 21 19:17:34 2003 Received: from www.plaidworks.com (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by plaidworks.com (8.12.7/8.12.6) with ESMTP id h3M2F8LR003908 for <[[email protected]]>; Mon, 21 Apr 2003 19:15:08 -0700 (PDT) Received: from mms2.broadcom.com (mms2.broadcom.com [63.70.210.59]) by plaidworks.com (8.12.7/8.12.6) with ESMTP id h3M2E2E6003867 for <[[email protected]]>; Mon, 21 Apr 2003 19:14:02 -0700 (PDT) Received: from 63.70.210.1 by mms2.broadcom.com with ESMTP (Broadcom SMTP Relay (MMS v5.5.2)); Mon, 21 Apr 2003 19:10:54 -0700 Received: from mail-sjcw-3.sw.broadcom.com (mail-sjcw-3.sw.broadcom.com [10.20.128.23]) by mon-irva-11.broadcom.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id TAA21574; Mon, 21 Apr 2003 19:13:41 -0700 (PDT) Received: from mail-sjcw-1.broadcom.com (mail-sjcw-1.sw.broadcom.com [10.20.128.21]) by mail-sjcw-3.sw.broadcom.com (8.12.9/8.12.9/SSM3) with ESMTP id h3M2DwMW017766; Mon, 21 Apr 2003 19:13:58 -0700 (PDT) Received: from pc2kmikem (dhcpe1-sjcw-254 [10.20.64.254]) by mail-sjcw-1.broadcom.com (8.12.9/8.12.4/SSM) with SMTP id h3M2DvHg007473; Mon, 21 Apr 2003 19:13:58 -0700 (PDT) From: "Mike Mammoser" <[[email protected]]> To: SBB <[[email protected]]>, [[email protected]], [[email protected]] Date: Mon, 21 Apr 2003 19:13:15 -0700 Message-ID: <[[email protected]]> MIME-Version: 1.0 X-Priority: 3 (Normal) X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook IMO, Build 9.0.2416 (9.0.2910.0) X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V5.50.4910.0300 Importance: Normal X-MIME-Autoconverted: from 8bit to quoted-printable by mon-irva-11.broadcom.com id TAA21574 X-WSS-ID: 12BA7B241079344-01-01 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit X-MIME-Autoconverted: from quoted-printable to 8bit by plaidworks.com id h3M2E2E6003867 Subject: [SBB] Spring Birdathon X-BeenThere: [[email protected]] X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.1+ Precedence: list List-Id: South Bay Birding List-Unsubscribe: , List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Sender: south-bay-birds-bounces+south-bay-birds-archive=[[email protected]] Errors-To: south-bay-birds-bounces+south-bay-birds-archive=[[email protected]] The weather was forecast as perfect and, after almost a week of rain and wetness, was a welcome anouncement for this inaugural Spring Birdathon Roundup on Saturday, 19 Apr 03. Mike Rogers was our talented guide for this daylong jaunt around Santa Clara County. I had a great deal of experience with birdathons, much of it with Mike, and knew what to expect on this day. I wasn’t sure what our other two participants, Ann Verdi and Jean Meyers, were expecting, but their enthusiasm for the event was more than a match for Mike’s drive and energy. We started our Big Day at 4:00 am, meeting at the Mt. View Forebay, where cooperative VIRGINIA RAILS were offset by stubborn SORAS, and fussy tape hardware caused delays. However, the wait got our passerine list off to a good start, with twittering BARN SWALLOWS, chattering MARSH WRENS, and singing COMMON YELLOWTHROATS. Didn’t these birds know what time it was? Next was the typical early morning walk into Montebello OSP, where GREAT HORNED OWLS were dueting right near the sag pond. A bright moon lit our way, making the flashlights we brought almost superfluous. Once away from the Great Horned Owls, we were able to coax WESTERN SCREECH-OWLS into approaching, but they refused to be lit up for the visual benefit of the participants. We walked a short way down the Stevens Creek Trail from its junction with the Canyon Trail and were rewarded with a NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWL calling from further down the drainage. At the overlook of the canyon between the Stevens Creek Trail and the Indian Creek Trail we waited patiently for Northern Pygmy-owl to speak out as the sky gradually lightened, and were sadly disappointed when it failed to show. In the meantime we listened to the calling of COMMON POORWILLS from the chaparral upslope and began to tally birds from the rising tide of the dawn chorus. After a short walk up the Indian Creek Trail to check for chaparral birds, we continued down the Canyon Trail into the douglas fir drainage. Both BLACK-THROATED GRAY and TOWNSEND’S WARBLERS were singing from the treetops, but remained generally furtive and difficult to spot. A WINTER WREN sang loudly from the edge of the trail, but also refused to come out into view. However, a pair of PYGMY NUTHATCHES was quite cooperative, responding to a tape and coming into a bay tree 10 feet above our heads. A couple of singing WESTERN TANAGERS at the very tops of the douglas firs were a welcome sight. PILEATED WOODPECKERS called repeatedly after first light from across the drainage. Fortune smiled on us as we were heading back to the car. Mike heard the possible buzz call of a bunting and scrambled up the hill to check the oak tree from which it had emanated. After finding a LAZULI BUNTING, which we were able to see from the trail, Mike got us all climbing the hill by finding a HERMIT WARBLER as well. While we searched out the warbler, Mike proceeded to pull out a HAMMOND’S FLYCATCHER! Eventually, we all got looks at these birds, except for Ann, who had managed to miss the bunting and had to wait until later in the day to pick it up. A flyby flock of 14 PINE SISKINS rounded out a nice start to our day. Our next scheduled stop was Stevens Creek Park, but we picked up some species en route – such as WHITE-THROATED SWIFT and NORTHERN ROUGH-WINGED SWALLOW, among other commonalities. At the Villa Maria Picnic Area we managed ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER and YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER, while a RED-SHOULDERED HAWK and OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER called from downstream. A loop walk from the Bay Trees Picnic Area to the dam and back produced a CASSIN’S VIREO. Linda Sullivan gave us some scope views of a GREAT HORNED OWL she had staked out at the visitor’s center. Further up Stevens Canyon Road a pair of COOPER’S HAWKS in courtship flight flew high overhead and an AMERICAN DIPPER played hide-and-seek along the creek, with most of us just getting flyby views. Down at McClellan Ranch we found both BULLOCK’S and HOODED ORIOLES. Then it was off to Alviso. Arzino Ranch came through with the hoped for RING-NECKED PHEASANT, LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE, BURROWING OWL, and 5 LONG-BILLED CURLEWS. Along the way, on Zanker Road, we had a single BONAPARTE’S GULL, and 4 high-flying AMERICAN WHITE PELICANS turned out to be the only representatives of this species on the day. At the EEC, the nest box along the creek gave everyone satisfatory scope looks at the BARN OWLS inside. The salt pond out front of the EEC was a mini-bonanza of gulls, with WESTERN, CALIFORNIA, HERRING, and THAYER’S being represented by only 8 individual birds sitting on the dredge island. This salt pond, and others along the bay, currently have hundreds of breeding-plumaged EARED GREBES. We walked out along the impoundment north of the Alviso Marina, checking it for shorebirds. Unfortunately, the Sanderling that was here the day before didn’t make an appearance, but we did pick up WESTERN and LEAST SANDPIPER, WILLET, GREATER YELLOWLEGS, SEMIPALMATED PLOVER, and our only DUNLIN. Interestingly, 3 dowitchers here proved to be SHORT-BILLED. We arrived at the Palo Alto Baylands a little behind schedule, but the mudflats were still well exposed on the rising tide. RING-BILLED and GLAUCOUS-WINGED GULLS rounded out what was a great gull day, considering the time of year. Hundreds of MARBLED GODWITS, 10 WHIMBRELS, and a single BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER were found, fleshing out our shorebird list. The duck pond had the GREATER SCAUP we needed. We then made quick strikes at the Palo Alto Flood Control Basin, getting BUFFLEHEAD, AMERICAN WIGEON, and NORTHERN HARRIER, and to Shoreline Lake/Mt. View Forebay, where we garnered 4 BLACK SKIMMERS, another WHIMBREL, a GREEN HERON, and 17 SURF SCOTERS. As the day moved into late afternoon we headed for the Diablo Mountains and Ed Levin County Park with 138 species in the bank. Sometimes there is a worry that passerine birding later in the day will produce little activity. That wasn’t the case at Ed Levin. No sooner did we get to the outskirts of Milpitas when WESTERN KINGBIRDS began appearing in some numbers. At the entrance to the park Mike spotted the only WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW that we saw all day. TREE SWALLOWS foraging over Sandy Wool Lake would occasionally hit the water like little terns. A male RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD that was working the eucalyptus trees along the edge of the lake was the first of 7 seen on the day. We hiked up the trail to the sycamore draw above the lake, hearing a GRASSHOPPER SPARROW singing along the way. Just before the sycamores we stopped to admire the feeding LESSER GOLDFINCH and a nice male LAWRENCE’S GOLDFINCH was spotted among them. At the sycamores a HOUSE WREN was singing, a LAZULI BUNTING was singing, some numbers of RUFOUS-CROWNED SPARROWS were singing, and more GRASSHOPPER SPARROWS were singing. Two lingering LINCOLN’S SPARROWS popped up to pishing and an immature GOLDEN EAGLE soared over the ridge. A silent CASSIN’S VIREO here was undoubtedly a migrant. Heading back down the hill, Mike climbed off the trail and flushed up a few GRASSHOPPER SPARROWS, which adamantly refused to sit up for inspection. We turned left at the green gate and worked our way to the Elm Picnic Area while Mike retrieved the car. Here we made a fruitless search for owls in the pines before moving to the eucalyptus trees along the golf course fence to concentrate on hummingbirds. More RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRDS were seen here (we had about 14 female selasphorus on the day). I joked to Mike that we needed at least one more species, as our total for the moment stood at 149. Mike responded with a real winner, finding a male CALLIOPE HUMMINGBIRD perched in full view in a eucalyptus. We walked up under it for good binocular views, but the bird continued to sit cooperatively so Mike ran back to the car to get a scope. We then enjoyed scope-filling views from a couple different angles on this “bird of the day”. Mike then found a male ALLEN’S HUMMINGBIRD, but it disappeared before the rest of us could get on it. We finished up Ed Levin Park with a couple WILD TURKEYS that Jean found along Calaveras Road and a single male RING-NECKED DUCK on a golf course pond. A drive down Marsh Road gave us WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH, which we had been in real danger of missing on this day. As we were losing light, we entered Coyote Creek Field Station. Not a good time of day to be hitting this spot, but we had to skip it earlier in the day due to a slipped schedule and the need to get to the Baylands. However, we gathered up a few more species with a WHITE-TAILED KITE sitting on a nest, a SHARP-SHINNED HAWK in the overflow channel, and finally 3 BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERONS heading out to feed by the waterbird pond. We made a last ditch effort to get Clapper Rail at the Baylands after dark, but they weren’t cooperating. We finished with a splendid 157 species for our 16.5 hours of birding. All that’s left now is for the money to roll in. Mike Mammoser _______________________________________________ Do not post admin requests to the list. They will be ignored. south-bay-birds mailing list ([[email protected]]) Help/Unsubscribe/Update your Subscription: http://www.plaidworks.com/mailman/options/south-bay-birds/south-bay-birds-archive%40plaidworks.com This email sent to [[email protected]]