It was a lovely day in the neighborhood as twenty-seven birders took to the hills to discover as many species as they could before lunch. The total: 54, excluding a basketball and tennis ball, both of which were in excellent condition. This count was much better than the previous year, but shy of the 2014 count of 57. Of our group, seven were newcomers to our outings, although one couple were National members. It was good to see Marj Freda out whom we had been missing for a few months. The temperature was just right and we think a couple of red-shouldered hawks thought so too as they chose to mate in plain view of our scopes. Jack Friery will swear that in addition to this fine list he also clearly identified a Western Flycatcher and a Common Raven, but then again, you know Jack. Max also really wanted to put down a California Thrasher, but for the lack of additional eyes on the subject, he declined. We were all treated to doughnut holes and pink lemonade at the end our sojourn. Guajome is one of those sites that lends itself perfectly to such frivolity. Here’s our list:
| 54 Species | 48 Species | 57 Species | ||
| February 5, 2015 | January 24, 2015 | January 25, 2014 | ||
| – | – | Canada Goose | ||
| Gadwall | – | – | ||
| Mallard | Mallard | – | ||
| Northern Shoveler | Northern Shoveler | Northern Shoveler | ||
| – | – | Northern Pintail | ||
| Buffelhead | – | – | ||
| Hooded Merganser | – | – | ||
| Ruddy Duck | Ruddy Duck | Ruddy Duck | ||
| – | – | California Quail | ||
| Pied-billed Grebe | Pied-billed Grebe | Pied-billed Grebe | ||
| Eared Grebe | Eared Grebe | – | ||
| – | American Bittern (H) | – | ||
| – | – | Double-crested Cormorant | ||
| Green Heron | – | – | ||
| Black-crowned Night-Heron | – | Black-crowned Night-Heron | ||
| Turkey Vulture | Turkey Vulture | Turkey Vulture | ||
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | – | – | ||
| – | – | White-tailed Kite | ||
| Cooper’s Hawk | Cooper’s Hawk | Cooper’s Hawk | ||
| Red-shouldered Hawk | Red-shouldered Hawk | Red-shouldered Hawk | ||
| Red-tailed Hawk | Red-tailed Hawk | Red-tailed Hawk | ||
| – | American Kestrel | American Kestrel | ||
| Common Gallinule | Common Gallinule | Common Gallinule | ||
| Killdeer | – | – | ||
| American Coot | American Coot | American Coot | ||
| – | Western Gull | Western Gull | ||
| Ring-billed Gull | Ring-billed Gull | – | ||
| Rock Pigeon | Rock Pigeon | Rock Pigeon | ||
| Eurasian Collared-Dove | Eurasian Collared-Dove | Eurasian Collared-Dove | ||
| Mourning Dove | Mourning Dove | Mourning Dove | ||
| Greater Roadrunner (3) | Greater Roadrunner | |||
| Anna’s Hummingbird | Anna’s Hummingbird | Anna’s Hummingbird | ||
| Allen’s Hummingbird | Allen’s Hummingbird | Allen’s Hummingbird | ||
| Rufous Hummingbird | Rufous Hummingbird | – | ||
| Costa’s Hummingbird | ||||
| – | – | Red-naped Sapsucker | ||
| – | – | Red-breasted Sapsucker | ||
| Nuttall’s Woodpecker | Nuttall’s Woodpecker | Nuttall’s Woodpecker | ||
| Downy Woodpecker | – | Downy Woodpecker | ||
| Northern Flicker | Northern Flicker | Northern Flicker | ||
| Black Phoebe | Black Phoebe | Black Phoebe | ||
| Say’s Phoebe | Say’s Phoebe | Say’s Phoebe | ||
| Cassin’s Kingbird | Cassin’s Kingbird | Cassin’s Kingbird | ||
| Western Scrub-Jay | Western Scrub-Jay | Western Scrub-Jay | ||
| American Crow | American Crow | American Crow | ||
| – | Common Raven | Common Raven | ||
| – | – | Tree Swallow | ||
| Bushtit | Bushtit | Bushtit | ||
| – | Bewick’s Wren | Bewick’s Wren | ||
| House Wren | – | House Wren | ||
| Marsh Wren (H) | Marsh Wren | Marsh Wren | ||
| Ruby-crowned Kinglet | Ruby-crowned Kinglet | Ruby-crowned Kinglet | ||
| – | – | Blue-grey Knatcatcher | ||
| Western Bluebird | Western Bluebird | Western Bluebird | ||
| Wrentit | – | Wrentit | ||
| Northern Mockingbird | Northern Mockingbird | Northern Mockingbird | ||
| European Starling | European Starling | European Starling | ||
| American Pipit | – | – | ||
| Cedar Waxwing | – | Cedar Waxwing | ||
| Orange-crowned Warbler | Orange-crowned Warbler | Orange-crowned Warbler | ||
| – | Townsend’s Warbler | – | ||
| Common Yellowthroat | Common Yellowthroat | Common Yellowthroat | ||
| Yellow-rumped Warbler | Yellow-rumped Warbler | Yellow-rumped Warbler | ||
| California Towhee | California Towhee | California Towhee | ||
| Song Sparrow | Song Sparrow | Song Sparrow | ||
| White=crowned Sprrow | – | White-crowned Sparrow | ||
| Red-winged Blackbird | Red-winged Blackbird | Red-winged Blackbird | ||
| Great-tailed Grackle | Great-tailed Grackle | Great-tailed Grackle | ||
| House-Finch | House-Finch | House-Finch | ||
| Lesser Goldfinch | Lesser Goldfinch | Lesser Goldfinch |
Flying high as usual
Doug Walkley
