[SBB] 23-24 Apr 05

["Michael Mammoser" <[[email protected]]>]

On Saturday, 23 Apr 05, I headed up to Smith Creek, thinking that the
weather may have grounded some migrant warblers. If it did, they were
certainly grounded somewhere else, as this location was quite dead. I headed
up the hill behind the fire station, checking both north and south from the
saddle. I had a single warbler right at the green gate behind the fire
station that was very uncooperative. It may have been a Hermit Warbler, but
I never got a good enough look in proper light to be sure. Other than that,
there was a handful each of the usual ORANGE-CROWNED and WILSON'S WARBLERS
singing. South of the saddle I did have a reasonably cooperative HAMMOND'S
FLYCATCHER that was calling repeatedly from a valley oak. I flushed a male
WOOD DUCK from a small pond here, and found 4 HERMIT THRUSHES in the
undergrowth of this area, more likely migrants than wintering birds. A few
lingering GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROWS were about, and a small flock of CEDAR
WAXWINGS flew by. 

>From here, I headed down into Hall's Valley, stopping first at the Grant
Park headquarters. I made a short walk out the Hotel Trail, hoping to find
Grasshopper Sparrow, but had no luck with them. A pair of WESTERN BLUEBIRDS
was along the fenceline, near a nest box, and the female was carrying food.
I never saw her enter a box though. A couple of LINCOLN'S SPARROWS were in
the weedy area between the trail and the stream. Back by the old ranch
house, I found a female YELLOW WARBLER foraging in the redwoods along the
small stream there. I found a couple of male LAZULI BUNTINGS, one along Mt.
Hamilton Rd above Grant Lake and another right along the lake edge. A
lingering BUFFLEHEAD was on the lake. A walk along the Canal Trail produced
some cackling from a COOPER'S HAWK, which never showed itself, and a flushed
GREEN HERON. 

On Sunday, 24 Apr 05, I visited Llagas Creek off of Bloomfield Ave. I found
4 YELLOW-BREASTED CHATS singing here, 2 towards the center or east side of
the creek and the other 2 along the west levee bordering the
willow-overgrown field just before the drying ponds. One was kind enough to
give me some close open views. Ducks still present on the ponds included
MALLARD (with precocial young), GADWALL, a handful of CINNAMON TEAL, half
dozen NORTHERN SHOVELERS, a male NORTHERN PINTAIL, a RUDDY DUCK, a
BUFFLEHEAD, and the male BLUE-WINGED TEAL. Shorebirds included a couple
AMERICAN AVOCETS, a handful of BLACK-NECKED STILTS, a GREATER YELLOWLEGS,
and a BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER. Some distant peeps were unidentifiable. A
RING-NECKED PHEASANT crowed from the area back towards Bloomfield Ave.

Afterwards, I went to Gilroy Hot Springs Road, where I had my season's first
WESTERN WOOD-PEWEE at the intersection of Canada Road. A NASHVILLE WARBLER
was singing in the riparian, as were WARBLING and CASSIN'S VIREOS, while a
silent male WESTERN TANAGER skulked. A WOOD DUCK flushed from Coyote Creek,
and a BEWICK'S WREN was feeding young. At the intersection of Canada and
Jamieson Roads I found a small tree with half a dozen YELLOW-RUMPED
WARBLERS, but no other species with them. Also here, a BOBCAT was actively
hunting along a ranch road; crouching, tail flicking, and pouncing - though
I never saw it come up with anything. A COYOTE was keeping watch further
down Canada Road, for the second decent mammal on the day. Finally, a
NUTTALL'S WOODPECKER was carrying food about 1.9 miles up Canada Road from
hwy 152.

Michael Mammoser



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