[SBB] Stevens Creek mouth/New Chicago Marsh

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

Folks:

This morning, 8/19/07, I walked out from the end of Crittenden Lane 
to the Stevens Creek mouth.  It was not an ideal tide, as the peak 
before dawn was only about 5 feet, and it is best to have the tide 
uncover through 5.6 feet when you arrive.  But there were lots of 
shorebirds, nonetheless.  Frank Vanslager joined me about 10 min. 
after I arrived and we spent the next hour searching through the 
shorebird flocks for RED KNOTS, but without success.  I became bored 
and started to search Salt Pond AB1 and found the continuing injured 
female REDHEAD (missing flight feathers on right wing) and 
female/immature BUFFLEHEAD.  I passed on a female scaup.  Then Frank 
found a basic Red Knot with a few pale salmon feather still remaining 
on the breast (but not visible in my scope).  We checked Crittenden 
Marsh coming back.  Morning light is not the best there, but we saw 
no peeps at all, much less a Baird's.  Farther upstream we spotted 
VAUX'S SWIFT and before we split, we counted four together in a 
flock.  After Frank split off, farther upstream, the flock continued 
and at least 6 were present.

I then went over to New Chicago Marsh, where many birders were out 
and about.  I did a CW loop from the new gate, covering the RR spur, 
over to Salt Pond A16, and back via the EEC.  Two BROWN PELICANS were 
well out on A16 (or A17).  I counted at least 5 LESSER YELLOWLEGS in 
various spots in the marsh.  Phalaropes have dropped considerably 
from 5 days ago with 29 WILSON'S and 9 RED-NECKED PHALAROPES 
recorded.  As many observers out there noted today, the BLACK SKIMMER 
pair on island #2 has 2 very ambulatory chicks, and the pair on 
island #1 has 2 small chicks and are still incubating an egg.  I saw 
1 BURROWING OWL along the entrance road (and 1 east of Disk Road as well).

Bill Bousman
Santa Clara County records compiler 



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