[SBB] Wild Gull Chase

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

Folks:

Today, 1/22/06, I visited bayside locations from Sunnyvale to Alviso.  I 
started out on the old landfill at the Sunnyvale WPCP with a brisk wind 
from the northwest and beautifully clear weather.  There were few gulls on 
the levees there (<100), mostly Ringed-bills, with at least one 
Western.  Salt Pond A4 had 200+ gulls on the water, but I did not go over 
there to check them out.  A BURROWING OWL was high on the landfill.

I stopped at the Alviso EEC and the 1st island held a few gulls (<50), 
including some Westerns.  There was a continuous movement of gulls from the 
Zanker Road landfill, but these appeared to be Californias and they 
continued north (towards the Knapp?).  I saw one male RED-BREASTED 
MERGANSER in A16.  However, I did notice many gulls in New Chicago Marsh 
near the railroad spur.  I drove over there and walked out along the 
railroad.  There were about 1500 Herring Gulls in the marsh there, with a 
few Californias, Ringed-bills, Glaucous-wingeds and 2 juv. Westerns.

I then drove over to the Alviso Marina and cycled out the Alviso Slough 
Trail along Alviso Slough to the edge of Salt Pond A9.  Across the slough 
in Salt Pond A8, there were thousands of gulls, but too far to ID.  A11 had 
perhaps 3000 gulls, but most were Californias (75%) with the remainder 
Herrings.  There were three RED-BREASTED MERGANSERS and two SURF SCOTERS in 
A11.  A10 had about 250 California Gulls and 31 RED-BREASTED 
MERGANSERS.  A9 had few gulls, but thousands of ducks. I was able to pick 
out seven REDHEADS.  Across Alviso Slough, I guessed there were 3,000 to 
5,000 gulls in the Knapp, probably mostly Californias.


Bill Bousman
Santa Clara County records compiler 


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