[SBB] Varied Twitchers Santa Clara County Big Day - 4/23/05

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All,

On Saturday 4/23/05, the Varied Twitchers (consisting of me and 11 other birders in a 3-car radio-linked caravan) scoured Santa Clara County for as many bird species as we could find.

Our day started at the Mountain View Forebay, where we failed to get any rails to respond to tapes. This continued at Monte Bello OSP, where we failed to get any owls to respond in "showers" (weatherman jargon for what appeared to us to be continuous, at times hard, rain). A pair of GREAT HORNED OWLS called of their own volition, but didn't really help our total since we saw two later in the day (Stevens Creek Park and Felter Road). At dawn it was still raining, and this meant no poorwills, no pygmy-owls, and a weak dawn chorus.

But with a never-say-die attitude, we persevered. Hiking partway up to Black Mountain, we found a NASHVILLE WARBLER and 8+ LAZULI BUNTINGS. We then descended further down the Canyon Trail, finding several uncooperative BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLERS and a few WESTERN TANAGERS. The moist forest near our turn-around point added a singing WINTER WREN and BROWN CREEPERS, but no flocks of migrants as in past years. An attempt to tape for Pygmy Nuthatches failed, as both tape recorders were waterlogged and the Ipod refused to obey the commands of wet fingers. Even my second pair of binoculars was now fogged up.

A depressing start, but as we climbed our way back out to the cars, the rain ceased and the fog started to clear. At the patch of brush and willows not far below the sag pond we spent some time chasing a LINCOLN'S SPARROW and soon realized there were other migrants about: GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROWS, a HERMIT THRUSH, 2 YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS, and ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS. While scaring up these birds, I heard the "whit" of an empidonax flycather.  It flew back towards the group on the trail, but headed off to distant trees before it could be identified. Just as we were leaving, I heard it again.  This time several members of our group got brief looks, confirming a grayish empidonax.  The bird proved frustratingly hard to see, limiting its foraging to the bases of the coyotebrush. Eventually, I and a few others got good (although somewhat brief) looks at the bird, confirming it as a DUSKY FLYCATCHER. We spent another twenty minutes here hoping that it would offer views to the rest!
  of the group, but it remained uncooperative. A PILEATED WOODPECKER calling from the canyon and an adult COOPER'S HAWK perched in a nearby oak offered some compensation, however. But we reached the cars over a half hour behind schedule.

On our way down Page Mill Road, we encountered our first TURKEY VULTURE and lots of bird song just above Arastradero Road. We made a spontaneous stop here and added several new species, including both WHITE-THROATED and VAUX'S SWIFTS. A quick detour to the I280 overpass over Arastradero Road added NORTHERN ROUGH-WINGED SWALLOWS and more WHITE-THROATED SWIFTS.

Upon arriving at Stevens Creek County Park, we headed straight to the Villa Maria picnic area, hoping for migrants. Indeed there was lots of Dendroica song, but it proved to be coming from only YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS (8+) - we ended up not finding any Townsend's or Hermit Warblers all day. But we added OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER and WESTERN WOOD-PEWEE, both DOWNY and HAIRY WOODPECKERS, and a flyover pair of WOOD DUCKS. We skipped a hike to the dam (perhaps costing us Cassin's Vireo, Yellow Warbler, and Blue-gray Gnatcatcher - species we missed for the day) in an attempt to get back on schedule. Quick checks of the reservoir and Camp Costanoan failed to add much of note, although a cooperative singing BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER at the latter spot was appreciated by all of us.

A quick check of McClellan Ranch added more of both ORIOLES, a BARN OWL, CEDAR WAXWINGS, and the day's first HOUSE WREN.

We raced to the Palo Alto Baylands, hoping to find some mudflats left on the incoming tide. The old yacht harbor basin was full and we missed Whimbrel as a result, but the lagoon behind the duck pond held both species of DOWITCHERS and WESTERN SANDPIPERS and watching the shorebirds flying in the yacht harbor basin led to the discovery of 2 SEMIPALMATED PLOVERS, 2 BLACK-BELLIED PLOVERS, and a DUNLIN. The duck pond still held the stake-out COMMON GOLDENEYE and injured HERRING GULL, as well as both species of SCAUP, and 5 other gull species. Two WESTERN KINGBIRDS at the duck pond edge were an unexpected surprise!

A quick visit to the Palo Alto Flood Control Basin added a few species and brought the day's total to 120. Moving on to the Forebay and Shoreline Lake, we rapidly added more species, including several GREEN HERONS and the day's only WHITE-CROWNED SPARROWS (2). The COMMON LOON was initially a no-show from the west edge of the lake, but after finding 4 AMERICAN WIGEON and 23+ BLACK SKIMMERS on Salt Pind A1, we rechecked the lake from the north shore and were rewarded with nice looks at the loon. A pair of CANVASBACK scoped on outer Charleston Slough was a welcome surprise, as was the secretive VIRGINIA RAIL in the Forebay reeds, hiding behind our only COMMON MOORHEN of the day. Many shorebirds on the Forebay flats included 20 SEMIPALMATED PLOVERS; across the way in the old settling ponds an alternate-plumaged SPOTTED SANDPIPER worked the pond edge, lifting our total to 135.

We next headed to the Alviso Marina, adding a stake-out BURROWING OWL along the way. Scoping pond A8 form the Marina levee added 4 RED-NECKED PHALAROPES, 4 SNOWY PLOVERS, and 6+ SANDERLINGS, all species missed by the Varied Twitchers in past years. The overcast weather helped us here, as there was no heat haze or sun in our eyes, as would normally be the case at 3:15pm!

Moving on to the Arzino Ranch, we added RING-NECKED PHEASANT, but no Lesser Yellowlegs or American Pipits, both present two days earlier. The EEC entrance road had perched AMERICAN KESTREL and PEREGRINE FALCON (adult), the next box had BARN OWLS, and Salt Pond A16 had the expected EARED GREBES. A single male BLUE-WINGED TEAL flew to the slough as we tried to refind a briefly seen LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE; later good looks at the shrike and singing SAVANNAH SPARROWS were had by all from the boardwalk, but scanning down the slough failed to turn up the teal. A driveby behind the Jubilee Christian Center added nothing new.

Upon arriving at the Elm picnic area in Ed Levin County Park, we immediately located a roosting LONG-EARED OWL. A chip from the moist area in the northeast corner of the picnic area was almost certainly that of a MacGillivray's Warbler, but no amount of pishing could bring it forth or induce it to call again (although 2 ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS and a YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER were quite inquisitive). While driving around to the parking lot above Sandy Wool Lake, we made an emergency stop for scope-views of an ALLEN'S HUMMINGBIRD. The trip up to the sycamores netted 2 RUFOUS-CROWNED and 2 GRASSHOPPER SPARROWS. The Spring Valley picnic area added the day's second RED-SHOULDERED HAWK, another GREEN HERON, another ALLEN'S HUMMINGBIRD, and 5 bright AMERICAN GOLDFINCHES adorning the top of a leafless tree.

We left the park and headed up to Calaveras Reservoir. Just after turning left off Felter Road onto Calaveras Road the former "Rock Wrens" in our group spotted a ROCK WREN, species 152 for the day. The reservoir added BUFFLEHEAD but no Ring-necked Ducks. We couldn't find a Clark's among the twenty or so WESTERN GREBES, which didn't help our total since we had seen single Westerns at Palo Alto and on Salt Pond A12 earlier. WILD TURKEYS and YELLOW-BILLED MAGPIES were somewhat expected, but a single CASPIAN TERN heading west from the reservoir was a surprise - and our only one of the day! Sierra Road added GOLDEN EAGLE and HORNED LARK, our last two species of the day, bringing our total to 157. A quick check of Palo Alto at 8:12pm produced no Whimbrel and rails still refused to answer our tape at the Forebay, so we called it quits at 9:00pm after 17 hours of birding.

In past years we have always heard both rails, Common Poorwill, and 2 of the 3 small owls before dawn, reaching totals of 157 in 2003 and 158 in 2004. With better weather before dawn we would likely have broken into the 160's - an excellent total indeed - but our group was quite happy with our strong comeback effort, leading to a very respectable 157 species.

And we'll get that 160 next year!

Mike Rogers
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