Hi, Birders,

All in all it was a very nice day at Aqua Dulce and in the Lagunas, never getting too hot. A breeze and shade were welcome. The meadows and trails were adorned with flowers and butterflies, so always something to look at when the birds got scarce.  Here is the list. As always, please send me corrections, etc. I didn’t count the Allen’s Hummingbird as ebird wanted some proof and I didn’t feel like coping with that. If anyone got a photo, please send it to me. I also didn’t add the potential immature Olive-sided Flycatcher seen by one participant.  It was a little hard coming up with numbers. I feel we heard lots of Purple Finches but only put 6. Hard to say if it was one or two red-tails. I added Mourning Dove to the list as John had spotted one in the parking area before we started out.  We didn’t get any new species at the Visitor Center or the Desert View Picnic Area, but in the future we should check out the center’s bird feeder. The docent rattled off a number of birds that come by for a snack.

Laguna Mtns.–Agua Dulce Creek, San Diego, California, US
Jun 25, 2016 8:00 AM – 11:00 AM Protocol: Traveling 3.0 mile(s)
Comments: This was a Palomar Audubon sponsored walk. The weather was 73 degrees to start and about 83 when we finished.

28 species

Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura) 2
Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) 2
Band-tailed Pigeon (Patagioenas fasciata) 5
Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) 1
Anna’s Hummingbird (Calypte anna) 8
Acorn Woodpecker (Melanerpes formicivorus) 20
Nuttall’s Woodpecker (Picoides nuttallii) 1
Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) 1
Western Wood-Pewee (Contopus sordidulus) 8
Pacific-slope Flycatcher (Empidonax difficilis) 1 Heard only.
Steller’s Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri) 12
Western Scrub-Jay (Aphelocoma californica) 1
American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) X
Common Raven (Corvus corax) 3
Violet-green Swallow (Tachycineta thalassina) 12
Mountain Chickadee (Poecile gambeli) 20
Bushtit (Psaltriparus minimus) 10
White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis) 6
Pygmy Nuthatch (Sitta pygmaea) 8
House Wren (Troglodytes aedon) 4
Western Bluebird (Sialia mexicana) 4
American Robin (Turdus migratorius) 8
Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis) 12
Spotted Towhee (Pipilo maculatus) 4
Western Tanager (Piranga ludoviciana) 1
Black-headed Grosbeak (Pheucticus melanocephalus) 1
Purple Finch (Haemorhous purpureus) 6
Lesser Goldfinch (Spinus psaltria) 3

Leader: Sally Sanderson