[SBB] Prairie Falcon, Yellow-breasted Chat, Great-tailed Grackle (South County)

[Bill Bousman <[[email protected]]>]

Folks:

This morning, 6/24/2005, I visited a number of south county sites.  I 
started off at the South County Regional Wastewater Authority at 1500 
Southside Drive, south of Gilroy.  Although only open during the week, the 
people are very nice.  You can park your car, sign in, and walk out to the 
levee on the west side of Llagas Creek.  Then you can walk south 
(downstream), covering the same area as you would if you parked on 
Bloomfield and walked north along the levee.  Driving into the facility, I 
saw two MUTE SWANS, but they were no longer there when I left two hours 
later.  The pond immediately south of the SCRWA is now dry--there were one 
or two pairs of Great-tailed Grackles here in May.  I walked south along 
the levee to the end of the southernmost pond (#1) and then stood on the 
levee looking over the field to the west of the levee.  After a bit, a 
YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT sang a little from the western side, but I could not 
see him.  I walked along the southern levee of pond #1 to get closer, but 
he never sang again.  However, a male GREAT-TAILED GRACKLE flew over 
heading towards the plant.  Partway there, he was joined by a female.  A 
half-hour later I saw a male doing the same route by flying south.  I 
suspect they are nesting somewhere, but I was not able to track them to a 
site.  Three WILLETs in the ponds with water (#6 and 7) seemed early.

Near Bloomfield and Hwy 152, I saw a Prairie Falcon.  These birds can nest 
quite early and this may be an early dispersant.

I couldn't see any nests of Great Blue Heron or Double-crested Cormorants 
among the willows along San Felipe Lake--I don't know if they used the lake 
shore this year or not.  There were a couple of dilapidated nests in the 
Bettancourt eucalyptus.  Along the tules on the western side were what 
looked to be juvenile Great Blues, but I don't know where they nested.

On the north side of Metcalf Road, downhill from the motorcycle park, was a 
family of 2-3 ROCK WREN.

Passing by Parkway Lakes on Metcalf, there was an OSPREY on the south end 
of the islands.

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