Birders,

The weather didn’t cooperate, a lot of the birds were quiet, the mud accumulation on our shoes was quite measurable, we all grew taller by two inches, but we did manage to find 56 species including the elusive American Bittern, perhaps the highlight of the day.

In leaving SJWA, I spotted the Eurasian Collared Dove that Joe, a fairly new birder, felt he had heard earlier while he was birding  solo. I had discounted this as we had not seen them before in the preserve, well I didn’t remember seeing them there. Luckily Joe drove by at that point and I could compliment him on his birding by ear skills. (Well, that is what I should have said.)

Thanks  to all the intrepid birders yesterday who helped spot, hear and identify the birds of SJWA.

Sally

San Jacinto Wildlife Area, Riverside, California, US
Mar 10, 2018 8:30 AM – 12:00 PM
Protocol: Traveling
7.0 mile(s)
Comments:     A cool and drizzling morning. This was a Palomar Audubon Society sponsored walk. The purpose was not to do a bird count but rough estimates are given.
56 species

Cinnamon Teal (Spatula cyanoptera)  20
Northern Shoveler (Spatula clypeata)  40
Gadwall (Mareca strepera)  20
American Wigeon (Mareca americana)  1
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)  30
Green-winged Teal (Anas crecca)  40
Bufflehead (Bucephala albeola)  6
Ruddy Duck (Oxyura jamaicensis)  10
Pied-billed Grebe (Podilymbus podiceps)  2
American Bittern (Botaurus lentiginosus)  1
Great Egret (Ardea alba)  4
Snowy Egret (Egretta thula)  2
Black-crowned Night-Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax)  1
White-faced Ibis (Plegadis chihi)  60
Osprey (Pandion haliaetus)  1
Northern Harrier (Circus hudsonius)  6
Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis)  8
American Coot (Fulica americana)  500
Black-necked Stilt (Himantopus mexicanus)  60
American Avocet (Recurvirostra americana)  20
Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus)  6
Least Sandpiper (Calidris minutilla)  30
Western Sandpiper (Calidris mauri)  10
Long-billed Dowitcher (Limnodromus scolopaceus)  1
Wilson’s Snipe (Gallinago delicata)  3
Greater Yellowlegs (Tringa melanoleuca)  12
Bonaparte’s Gull (Chroicocephalus philadelphia)  1
California Gull (Larus californicus)  30
Eurasian Collared-Dove (Streptopelia decaocto)  1
Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura)  3
Nuttall’s Woodpecker (Picoides nuttallii)  2
Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus)  1
Black Phoebe (Sayornis nigricans)  8
Say’s Phoebe (Sayornis saya)  1
Loggerhead Shrike (Lanius ludovicianus)  4
California Scrub-Jay (Aphelocoma californica)  1
Common Raven (Corvus corax)  2
Northern Rough-winged Swallow (Stelgidopteryx serripennis)  50
Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor)  40
Violet-green Swallow (Tachycineta thalassina)  2
Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica)  1
Cliff Swallow (Petrochelidon pyrrhonota)  10
Marsh Wren (Cistothorus palustris)  8
Sage Thrasher (Oreoscoptes montanus)  1     Perched on dead bush on side of road . No picture.
European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris)  20
American Pipit (Anthus rubescens)  2
Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas)  2
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Setophaga coronata)  8
White-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys)  8
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)  8
Yellow-headed Blackbird (Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus)  2     Male and female perched between ponds A and B. No picture.
Western Meadowlark (Sturnella neglecta)  4
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus)  50
Great-tailed Grackle (Quiscalus mexicanus)  1
House Finch (Haemorhous mexicanus)  2
Lesser Goldfinch (Spinus psaltria)  7

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S43553514