From south-bay-birds-bounces+south-bay-birds-archive=[[email protected]] Tue Dec 16 16:35:19 2003 Received: from www.plaidworks.com (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by plaidworks.com (8.12.9/8.12.9) with ESMTP id hBH0WjPK020447 for <[[email protected]]>; Tue, 16 Dec 2003 16:32:45 -0800 (PST) Received: from rtjones.nas.nasa.gov (rtjones.nas.nasa.gov [129.99.19.30]) by plaidworks.com (8.12.9/8.12.9) with ESMTP id hBH0VhUP020401 for <[[email protected]]>; Tue, 16 Dec 2003 16:31:43 -0800 (PST) Received: from rtjones.nas.nasa.gov (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by rtjones.nas.nasa.gov (SGI-8.12.5/8.12.5/NAS-6n) with ESMTP id hBH0VgIN023888; Tue, 16 Dec 2003 16:31:42 -0800 (PST) Received: (from mrogers@localhost) by rtjones.nas.nasa.gov (SGI-8.12.5/8.12.5/Submit) id hBH0Vgta023748; Tue, 16 Dec 2003 16:31:42 -0800 (PST) Date: Tue, 16 Dec 2003 16:31:42 -0800 (PST) From: "Dr. Michael M. Rogers" <[[email protected]]> Message-Id: <[[email protected]]> To: [[email protected]], [[email protected]] Cc: Subject: [SBB] Palo Alto CBC - owls, shorebirds, and ducks X-BeenThere: [[email protected]] X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.2+ 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]] All, For the Palo Alto Christmas Bird Count yesterday 12/15/03, I owled at Monte Bello Open Space Preserve with Bill Bousman and then later birded some bayside areas with Tim Johnson. Although we had no really unexpected birds, we did find several things that can be easily missed on the count and ended up with 121 species. Bill and I started our trek down the Canyon Trail at 4:20am, hearing 4 WESTERN SCREECH-OWLS along the way. Just past the junction with the Stevens Creek Trail we got a response from a NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWL. While enjoying nice looks at this bird in the light of my Q-Beam, we heard a second NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWL nearby. This quick success meant a fairly early arrival at the "meadow" just before the Indian Creek Trail junction, where we added a BARN OWL, two pairs of GREAT HORNED OWLS, and 7 more WESTERN SCREECH-OWLS. It took over an hour, though, before we were frozen enough for the NORTHERN PYGMY-OWL to take pity on us and start calling at 6:38am. On the way back to the car we heard another NORTHERN PYGMY-OWL and a fifth GREAT HORNED OWL. I met Tim Johnson at the Mountain View Forebay, where we played a tape and elicited responses from 1 SORA and 2 VIRGINIA RAILS. Next we headed up to the end of Embarcadero Way, where we found a drab WHITE-THROATED SPARROW and at least 2 ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS. At least 11 MEW GULLS were at the nearby Water Pollution Control Plant. While we were studying CINNAMON TEAL in a channel in the nearby field, something flushed all the ducks from the plant. A male BLUE-WINGED TEAL flew in with many more CINNAMON TEAL. At Geng Road we found 6 HOODED MERGANSERS (2 adult males) in the golf course pond and a SPOTTED SANDPIPER along San Francisquito Creek before starting our bike trip out to the mouth of San Francisquito Creek. At the rusty footbridge we saw the first of two CLAPPER RAILS seen on the San Mateo County bank of the creek (two more were heard further out in the marsh). Also on the San Mateo side of the creek was an adult male BLUE-WINGED TEAL. The San Francisquito Creek delta mud flats were covered with thousands of shorebirds, the highlights being 44 RED KNOTS, 1 RUDDY TURNSTONE, and 352 SEMIPALMATED PLOVERS. Farther out on the bay at least 14,000 SCAUP were rafted up and at least 8 immature BROWN PELICANS were foraging. A quick detour along the airstrip runway failed to produce a Swamp Sparrow, but did add 2 more SORAS to the day's count. Next we headed out to Crittenden Marsh for our coverage of the salt ponds north of Moffett Field. The EURASIAN GREEN-WINGED TEAL was with 140 AMERICAN types in Stevens Creek north of the rusty bridge and the dark morph RED-TAILED HAWK was perched on the tower overhead. Scoping the ducks on pond A2E produced an immature male EURASIAN WIGEON among AMERICAN WIGEON and many SCAUP. Out at the Stevens Creek delta we again counted thousands of shorebirds, this time finally adding some vocal SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHERS. Impressive was a flock of 195 SURF SCOTERS (mostly adult males) on the bay here. Looping around between ponds B2 and A3W, we counted birds on B2 and looked over occasionally at A3W (Mike Mammoser's territory). On A3W Tim found 2 female plumaged COMMON MERGANSERS that provided a nice comparison to the 12+ RED-BREASTED MERGANSERS (including one adult male) further out on the pond; this also resulted in a 3-merganser day! Coming back north of Crittenden Marsh we refound the EURASIAN WIGEON and picked out a female COMMON GOLDENEYE on pond A2E. With very little light left, we began coverage of Moffett Field at 4:15pm. Highlights at the Moffett Golf Course included a pair of BURROWING OWLS, a COMMON SNIPE, a single male TRICOLORED BLACKBIRD, a SAY'S PHOEBE, and a LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE. Mike Rogers _______________________________________________ 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]]