Re: [SBB] Indigo Bunting at Skyline Ridge

[Al Eisner <[[email protected]]>]

On Sat, 30 Jun 2007, Matthew Dodder wrote:

> Kelly and I visited Skyline Ridge this morning....
>
> On our way back to the cars, an unusual song caught our ears. It
> sounded much like a Lazuli Bunting, but when we located the source it
> turned out to be a spectacular male INDIGO BUNTING. We watched it for
> about 10 minutes as it moved from bush to bush, singing loudly and
> even while in flight. The bird was easily seen from the main parking
> area but moved around considerably around the patch of coyote bushes.

The Indigo Bunting was still present and singing today.  To clarify the
location:  one enters Skyline Ridge OSP from Skyline Blvd. about a mile
southeast of Page Mill Road.  There are three parking lots.  The proper
one is the farthest one to the northeast, that is, drive back paralleling
Skyline Blvd.  As Maatthew noted, the bird moves around quite a bit.
While the entrance road here, Horseshow Pond and the Ridge Trail are
in San Mateo County, if the NGS topo map is to be believed the county
line is at the edge of the parking lot.  Hence the bird was dividing its
time between Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties.  In particular, the hill
past the lot to the northwest is apparently Santa Clara.  (Maybe Bill and
other county-line experts will want to comment.)

The bird, an adult male, is best located by song:  typically eight notes,
evenly spaced, on roughly (not quite) the same pitch, lacking the faster
turns/vocal acrobatics of most Lazulis.  I found there could be significant
intervals without songs, perhaps (but I don't think always) because it moves
out of audible range.  Nice find!

Purely in San Mateo County:  my attempt at Sage Sparrow didn't succeed,
but perhaps Kris Olson (who came up later, thought she had a glimpse, 
and was sticking around) will have a definite report.  The area did have
at least one agitated California Thrasher, and I heard two singing
Black-throated Gray Warblers on the way up through the oaks.

 								Al Eisner

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