[SBB] Ed Levin & Felter/Sierra Rds.

["Kris Olson" <[[email protected]]>]

A mother's day escape!
I got to Ed Levin county park about 9:30 AM and hiked up to the Sycamore
trees in pursuit  of 2 species I did not see last year. 

GRASHOPPER SPARROWS: I heard at least 6 in 3 different locations and saw 2.
The first one is really easy. It's just beyond the dog park, where the left
hand metal fence has 2 wooden fence posts -- start there and walk up to the
lone wooden fence post on the left. I saw this bird as I was both coming and
going. It was fluttering its wings like a begging youngster (immature?) and
"singing" incessantly. This may be the bird that was videotaped recently by
another birder. It seemed quite tawny all over, without strong crown
stripe(s). Its face seemed plain and tawny. I am checking The Sparrows of
the US and Canada (Rising), which says that juvenile Grasshopper Sparrows
would be July; nesting starts in April. I wonder if they nest earlier in the
West? Or why was this bird fluttering its wings? I did not see another bird
fly into it; I did hear another bird "respond" farther across the field each
time this one called.  I found more of these bird up the Agua Caliente
trail, before and after the Symcamores. I got some horse back riders to hear
the song, which was sort of cool, given how insecty and faint they can be.

So next surprise, just past the gate going up the Agua Caliente trail: a
large RATTLESNAKE. I am used to gopher snakes where I grew up in Berkeley,
so at first I thought it was just a gopher snake. Then the head shape looked
wrong, and then I saw its tail!  So I let it slither away, waiting awhile
and proceeded up the trail. Wrong! The snake suddenly reappeared further up
the trail, next to post #5 on the left, coming out from the grass toward the
road. It came right at me and rattled!  I froze, it retreated into a hole by
post #6.  I did not see it on the way down, and no one else mentioned it as
they hiked up. Anyway, beware.

When I finally reached the Sycamores (now watching the ground more than
bushes and sky), I climbed up under/past the first tree to find 3 LAZULI
BUNTINGS (male, female, immature male). The male sang almost constantly,
buzzing around the sage, rocks, grass.  I finally found 2 RUFOUS-CROWNED
SPARROWS, but they did not come as close, or let me get as close, as the
buntings. They were on the tops of sage bush, not on the rocks where I have
seen them in prior years.

There was a single AMERICAN KESTREL female hunting (here, on the way into
the park and later at the ranger station area - I assume the same one.) No
other raptors seen aside for TVs.

There were also 2 WESTERN KINGBIRDS along this trail, and I saw several
later on Felter/Marsh and Sierra Roads. No Ash-throated Flycatchers, alas.

I found one male LAWRENCE'S GOLDFINCH in the Tamarisk across from the Ranger
station/house.

I paid the requisite visit to the  BALD EAGLE nest and was able to tell some
bike riders about it. I did not see a chick but I did not stay long.

Marsh Rd (my favorite!); WARBLING VIREOS, COOPER'S HAWK and near the cattle,
a male BULLOCK'S ORIOLE that would sit on the barbed wire fence, pin a stalk
of wild oats to the wire with its right foot, and pick out the oat seed with
its bill and left foot. It repeated this over and over.  Two Western
Kingbirds were interacting here (nest?) and a pair of NORTHERN ROUGH-WINGED
SWALLOWS. And, of course, WESTERN BLUEBIRDS and YELLOW-BILLED MAGPIES.

At the top of Sierra, still in the housing area (near the road to the
iris/peonies), overlooking the little farm pond, I found a flycatcher that
has me stumped. It was in the large oak, and hunted from a curved branch
under the canopy, relatively low the ground (5-6'?) It kept returning to
this same perch, never leaving the canopy, and I don't remember if it
flicked its tail, which I think would have been key. So here goes:

1. It was big, but not so big as an Olive sided FC
2. It was brown, no yellow green or gray (Willow?)
3. It has a faint eye-ring, not tear-dropped shape, with a faint line from
eye to bill
4. It has a white throat
5. It has a super long bill, yellow/orange with a dark tip
6. 2 pale wing bars
7. Back was brown, tail darker brown
8. It has a vested look from the front -- no sign of any yellow (so not Pac
slope) - I did not notice any vested look from the sides, however, and the
vest V started about level with the bend in the wings
9. Primary projection was more like the Willow FC than the WWPewee in
Sibley-- shorter

In the past week or two, I have seen an Olive-sided Flycatcher (white throat
& strong vest, big, hunts from top of dead branch/tree) and Western
Wood-Pewee (no white throat, vested, but a gray bird, which this one
definitely was not. The one I saw was at Coyote Point, where it hunted from
half-way up a Eucalyptus, out into the open, then back to its perch.)

I am included to think Willow Flycatcher, since each time I see one I am
always struck by the brown color and faint eye ring.  The location seems
better for Pewee, however -- under a big oak.

Any ideas? Of course, I did not have my new camera along! Sigh.

Happy Mother's day to people-moms and bird-moms everywhere!

Kris Olson, Menlo Park



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