[SBB] Skyline area 4/13/2007

Hello All,

This morning 4/13/2007 my first stop was at Skyline Ridge OSP's Gate 3 (about 1/2 mile south from the main entrance, at the Xmas tree kiosk, and marked SR03.) The first thing I heard on leaving the truck was a singing Chipping Sparrow among the Xmas trees (and in a traditional nesting territory.) This was a few feet across the county line into San Mateo County, but this bird's territory surely spans both sides of the line. I could see a lot of bird movement among the oaks and evergreens along the base of what I call Hermit Hill, just southeast from Horseshoe Lake, so I went over to investigate and found a flock of at least 60 Townsend's Warblers vacuuming oak moth caterpillars (presumably) from the oaks there. There could easily have been 100+ of the TOWA, but they were highly active in the dense foliage so I am using a conservative estimate. It was an agreeable spectacle, although I did not detect any other warblers in the mix. A single Orange-crowned Warbler sang nearby, as did a Warbling Vireo.

I then walked the Grizzly Flat Trail down into Upper Stevens Creek County Park. Very few birds were seen there, in the dense woodland with limited sight lines, but listening conditions were good. Near the top 2 Western Tanagers sang back and forth. Four Black-headed Grosbeaks were detected, 2 at the top and 2 at the bottom. A Pileated Woodpecker called and drummed near the top. A Red-breasted Nuthatch called halfway down, and a couple of Pygmy Nuthatches were near possible nest trees near the bottom. A Winter Wren sang at creekside at the base of the trail, and several Pacific-slope Flycatchers were there as well. i had just one, female Varied Thrush along the way. I listened hard for Mountain Quail, as this can be a good time and place to hear them calling from chaparral across the valley, but no luck!

I'm glad I made 2 stops. After the first, I would've said to myself, "the hills are alive with warblers today!", and if I'd only been to the second location, I would've said "there was no warbler movement in the area today". It pays to shop around...

At MB05 yesterday afternoon 4/12, there were 5 Ring-necked Ducks (4 of them males).

--Garth Harwood