Birders,
It was a quiet day, warm, humid and hazy, but the birds we found and observed were well worth the effort. Life birds for some. Great looks at Ridgway’s Rail baby chicks (they are black and the size of a baseball or maybe a softball). Many Yellow-crowned Night Herons. They are doing well, as are the rails. Heat shimmer at the mouth of the river made tern ID difficult but we are sure we found six species. Great views of the Gull-billed Terns flying and sitting on the mudflats. Low tide turned out to be a very good time to bird this area. It was a little challenging to make two lists for yesterday’s walk, where do you start one and end the other, but I think i did okay. As usual, please email me with additions or corrections. Thank you for your help in finding the birds.
Sally
Tijuana Slough NWR–visitor center & adjacent trails, San Diego, California, US
Jul 9, 2016 8:00 AM – 10:00 AM Protocol: Traveling 2.0 mile(s)
Comments: This was a Palomar Audubon sponsored group walk. We included the adjacent ball fields in our count.
36 species
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) 6
Double-crested Cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus) X
Brown Pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) X
Snowy Egret (Egretta thula) 8
Little Blue Heron (Egretta caerulea) 4
Black-crowned Night-Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax) 1
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron (Nyctanassa violacea) 8 Four juvenile birds, four adults. May get photos.
Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura) 2
Northern Harrier (Circus cyaneus) 2
Cooper’s Hawk (Accipiter cooperii) 1
Ridgway’s Rail (Rallus obsoletus) 10 Three very small black chicks were observed with parent on edge of pickleweed. Low tide.
Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus) 2
Western Gull (Larus occidentalis) 4
Gull-billed Tern (Gelochelidon nilotica) 1
Caspian Tern (Hydroprogne caspia) 3
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) (Columba livia (Feral Pigeon)) 10
Eurasian Collared-Dove (Streptopelia decaocto) 1
Anna’s Hummingbird (Calypte anna) 2
Allen’s Hummingbird (Selasphorus sasin) 1
Black Phoebe (Sayornis nigricans) 3
Say’s Phoebe (Sayornis saya) 2
American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) 10
Common Raven (Corvus corax) 2
Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor) 2
Cliff Swallow (Petrochelidon pyrrhonota) 12
Bushtit (Psaltriparus minimus) 63
Western Bluebird (Sialia mexicana) 3
Northern Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos) 1
European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris) 1
Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas) 3
Savannah Sparrow (Passerculus sandwichensis) 5
California Towhee (Melozone crissalis) 2
Western Meadowlark (Sturnella neglecta) 2
House Finch (Haemorhous mexicanus) 12
Lesser Goldfinch (Spinus psaltria) 1
House Sparrow (Passer domesticus) 12
Tijuana River mouth, San Diego, California, US
Jul 9, 2016 9:45 AM – 11:15 AM Protocol: Traveling 2.0 mile(s)
Comments: This walk was a continuation of the Palomar Audubon sponsored walk starting at the Tijuana Visitor Center on the same date.
24 species (+1 other taxa)
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) 4
Brandt’s Cormorant (Phalacrocorax penicillatus) 1
Double-crested Cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus) 30
Brown Pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) 30
Snowy Egret (Egretta thula) 6
Reddish Egret (Egretta rufescens) 1 Dull-colored sub-adult feeding on the edge of the channel.
Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura) 1
Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) 1
Northern Harrier (Circus cyaneus) 2
Ridgway’s Rail (Rallus obsoletus) 8 Adult and young of perhaps two families feeding at edge of piclkeweed on opposite bank. Can provide pictures.
Black-necked Stilt (Himantopus mexicanus) 1
Black-bellied Plover (Pluvialis squatarola) 6
Willet (Tringa semipalmata) 12
Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus) 1
Long-billed Curlew (Numenius americanus) 6
Marbled Godwit (Limosa fedoa) 1
Short-billed/Long-billed Dowitcher (Limnodromus griseus/scolopaceus) 6
Western Gull (Larus occidentalis) 3
Least Tern (Sternula antillarum) 4
Gull-billed Tern (Gelochelidon nilotica) 5
Caspian Tern (Hydroprogne caspia) X
Forster’s Tern (Sterna forsteri) 3
Royal Tern (Thalasseus maximus) X
Elegant Tern (Thalasseus elegans) X
Anna’s Hummingbird (Calypte anna) 1
