Day 139 - Lake Los Carneros

After being away for the weekend I was looking forward to getting out on the bike and looking for birds.  I headed to Lake Los Carneros.  There was nothing in particular I was chasing, in fact I figured it would turn into more of a bike ride than birding outing.  Once I got there I found plenty of things to keep me entertained, so it turned into more of a birding outing than a biking one.

There were lots of young birds around, and adult birds working hard to feed their youngsters.  I found a Bushtit nest, and saw a very young Blue-gray Gnatcatcher chasing the parents around and begging for food (see photo).

There were some birds around that are staying beyond the period where they are typically found.  There are two Horned Grebes in the lake that are pretty much in their full breeding plumage, something that I do not recall seeing in Santa Barbara before.  There was also a Mew Gull, and a Ring-necked Duck.  These were all species I have seen before this year but it is always nice to see something a little unusual.

So as expected no new species today but a pleasant outing on a very nice spring day!

Yellow Warbler

A very young Blue-gray Gnatcatcher

Mew Gull

Ring-necked Duck

After today the year's total still stands at 228. 

Today I rode a total of 28.2 miles

More later,

Glenn

Day 134 - Rainbirds

I had plans to get up early today and chase the Yellow-breasted Chat that was reported yesterday in Goleta.  Unfortunately the forecast called for a spell of rain.  I looked at the weather radar and decided to hold off.  Well, that band of rain basically never showed up so I was kicking myself a bit for not heading out first thing.

Early in the afternoon a reliable report was posted of both Yellow-breasted Chat AND Willow Flycatchers at San Antonio Creek.  (Thanks Mark!)  These are about the only two expected spring migrants I have yet to see.  I checked the weather radar again, and wouldn't you know that band of showers had actually got itself together and was headed our way.  I figured I would get wet if I left, but it would be worth it to find these birds so I set out.

I got most of the way to the destination without getting too terribly wet and took shelter beneath an overpass to wait out the bulk of the rain.  I arrived at the trailhead just as the rain was breaking and there was blue sky overhead.  I made my way to the site where the birds were reported.  Within a few minutes I heard the song of a flycatcher, and indeed it was coming from a Willow Flycatcher (weak wing bars and very little eye ring).  The flycatcher was actually sitting in a Willow tree.  In fact I could also hear another one.  It was very nice for these birds to vocalize, as this family of flycatchers can be difficult to ID by appearance alone.  One down!

After waiting and searching the area for awhile I began to hear a clear whistling, chattering, and gurgling coming from deep in the bushes - the hallmark of a Yellow-breasted Chat.  Two birds down!  Chats have a bubbly vocal personality but often remain hidden in the bushes.  In my experience on occasion they will sing out from an exposed perch but more often stay out of sight.  I waited and did a little whistling of my own hoping that the Chat would come out but it remained hidden.

A successful and not too wet afternoon!

No photos from today, but here is one for you form last year:

Yellow-breasted Chat - San Marcos Foothill Preserve May 2014

After the addition of today's 2 species, the year's total stands at 228.

Today I rode a total of 13.3 miles

More later,

Glenn

Day 133 - Carpinteria Bluffs

It's been a few days since I have been out chasing birds.  I have been distracted by other things, and without going further afield there is not much around at the moment that I have not already seen this year.  But of course once you go out searching, you never know what you might find!

My plan this morning was to ride to the Carpinteria Bluffs via the foothills (climb more hills!).  Within the last week there were a couple of Oystercatchers reported there.  This is the one spot in the county that I know of where Oystercatchers are reported on a somewhat regular basis.  I figured there was a low probability of finding one, but at least I would get a walk on the beach at low tide.

I managed to climb all of my hills and arrived at the Bluffs as the tide was nearing its lowest level.  I walked the beach, and as I expected there were no Oystercatchers to be found.  In fact, as expected there were very few shorebirds around.  Most of them have headed north for the breeding season.  There were a couple of Spotted Sandpipers - actually with spots!  Most of the year the ones we see around here are not wearing their breeding finery.

After I climbed back up the bluff, I noticed a raven sitting on a rock outcrop above the beach.  Ravens are not very common on the coastal plain, but I did recognize this individual as one I had seen at this site before.  It has some white areas on its feathers, giving it a spotted appearance.  As I was watching I was surprised to see it fly over and into a cavity in the bluff itself.  Giving it a closer look, I could see that there was a nest in the cavity, with another Raven sitting on it!  I was very surprised to see Ravens nesting at the beach.  I did a little research in Paul Lehman's "Birds of Santa Barbara County" and was surprised again to see that Ravens have been nesting at the Bluffs since 1994.

On the way home I stopped at the Andree Clark Bird Refuge.  The Ruddy Ducks in their snazzy breeding outfits caught my attention.  While getting photos of this I was happy to see a Green Heron nearby, so I grabbed a photo of it as well.

All in all a nice outing.  Of course, as soon as I got home there was a report of a Yellow-breasted Chat in Goleta - this is one bird I need to see!  However I was simply too tired to hop on the bike and chase it down.  Perhaps tomorrow.

Raven on nest

Willet

Spotted Sandpiper

Semipalmated Plover

A very bleached 1st Cycle Glaucous-winged Gull

Green Heron

Ruddy Duck

After today the year's total still stands at 226. 

Today I rode a total of 40.8 miles

More later,

Glenn

Day 129 - A Year First!

Something happened for the first time today this year - I got a flat tire!  Now that I've got that out of the way, perhaps it will not happen again.

This morning I headed up to the Botanic Garden in search of a Swainson's Thrush.  There was one reported there a couple of days ago.  I arrived early and searched for about an hour and a half.  At one point I thought I heard one calling from up the creek a ways, but could not be certain.  Overall it was fairly quiet bird-wise.

On the way home I decided to try Rocky Nook Park, as it has a similar habitat that may be favorable for the Thrush.  Within a few minutes of arrival I heard the lovely song of none other than the Swainson's Thrush!  It took a little while to get a visual on the bird, and then it was quite cooperative for the camera.

This afternoon I met up with Peter Gaede, his son Lucas, and their friend for a bit of a Black Swift watch.  These interesting birds pass over our county only during migration.  I have only seen this species once before, in Colorado.  For me the most unusual thing about them is the fact that they like to build their nests on little ledges behind waterfalls.  We met at the "Black Swift Overlook" and watched for about an hour and a half with no luck on the swifts.  There were a few other birds around, including an Olive-sided Flycatcher, and a couple of Phainopeplas a bit farther down the hill.  A pleasant outing even without the swifts!

Swainson's Thrush

 American Crow - These have been coming to our birdbath lately

After the addition of today's 1 species, the year's total stands at 226.

Today I rode a total of 8.7 miles

More later,

Glenn

Day 126 - Finding Common Ground

This morning I headed out to western Goleta in search of a Common Ground-Dove.  Apparently there are a few that live in the orchards and agricultural areas in this area.  This is a bird I have not seen before in Santa Barbara County.  There have been a couple of recent and reliable reports from Glen Annie Road, both sightings were of a single dove flying from an orchard across the road.

The Common Ground-Dove is somewhat similar in appearance to the very common Mourning Dove, though smaller, with a short tail, and rufous color in the undersides of the wings.

I arrived in the search area and began looking around.  There are quite a few orchards in the area.  All I could think was "what are the odds that I am going to see a single dove fly across the road?"  There was a good level of bird activity in the area.  A Red-shouldered Hawk appeared to be bringing food to a nest in a Palm tree, but I could not see into the foliage to confirm this.  Interestingly, there was also a pair of Hooded Orioles in the same tree that did not seem to be bothered by the hawk's presence.

I looked around the area for about an hour.  There were Mourning Doves and Eurasian Collared-Doves, but no luck on the Ground-Dove.

I decided I would make one more pass through the area before giving up.  I came around the corner and saw a bird on the telephone wire.  When I got my binocs on it, I could see it was a compact dove with spotted wings and a short tail - my target bird!  It stayed there for a little bit and then, according to plan, flew across the road clearly showing the rufous color under its wings.  A fairly brief view but more than what I was expecting - no time for a photo.  Frankly I was a little shocked, but very happy!  This is not a species I had expected to see this year.

I passed through Devereux Slough on the way home.  There were 3 very pale Collared-Doves there.  They may be pale Eurasian Collared-Doves, or possibly African Collared-Doves.  The two species are very difficult to distinguish.  Hopefully I'll get some expert advice on this, but it is possible we may never know.  Some birds you see simply evade definitive ID.

A few photos from today:

Killdeer

Great Bue Heron

Pale Eurasian or possible African Collared-dove?

After the addition of today's 1 species, the year's total stands at 225.

Today I rode a total of 33.2 miles

More later,

Glenn

Day 125 - County Line Birding

This morning I headed to the Southeast corner of Santa Barbara County - Bates Road in Carpinteria.   I had a tip (thanks Wes!) that this may be a good spot to find Western Wood Pewee, Swainson's Thrush, and Yellow-breasted Chat.  Rincon Creek typically provides some riparian habitat here, but with the continuing drought it was bone dry this morning.

Bates road is actually the boundary between Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties.  My theory is that I can count any birds I encounter while I am in Santa Barbara County.  The birds themselves are not required to be in Santa Barbara County.  So I was careful to stay on the Santa Barbara side of the line down the center of the road while looking for birds.

Shortly after arrival at the bridge over Rincon Creek I heard the call of the Western Wood Pewee.  Sure enough after awhile it showed itself.  One new bird for the year's list!  Sadly, it never really came close enough for a photo.

Despite the lack of water there was a good level of bird activity in the area.  Today's bird youngsters included House Wrens, Robins, and Bullock's Orioles.  I stayed in the area for about an hour but could not detect any Thrushes or Chats.  At one point I heard something that sounded like it might be a rather subdued Chat, but it turned out to be merely a Black-headed Grosbeak.

I stopped at the Mission Creek outflow on the way home to watch the Gulls and Skimmers.  Skimmers are definitely one of my favorite birds, and I never tire of watching them.

Some unspectacular photos from a rather dark and dull morning:

Robin on nest, note youngster's beak poking up

Bonaparte's Gull, breeding plumage

Bonaparte's Gull, breeding plumage

Black Skimmers

Black Skimmers

After the addition of today's 1 species, the year's total stands at 224.

Today I rode a total of 39.8 miles

More later,

Glenn

Day 121 - Botanic Garden

This morning I headed up to the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden.  Besides being an uphill ride (uphill for fitness!), I had some rather slim hopes of finding a Swainson's Thrush.  It is a bit early for them but I thought it was worth a try.

Well, I did not see any Thrushes.  There was quite a bit of bird activity, and lots of young birds begging food from their parents.  These included Lesser Goldfinches, White-breasted Nuthatches, House Wrens, Orange-crowned Warblers, and Oak Titmice.

It seemed interesting to me that on one hand the Thrushes have not yet completed their migration and yet the local birds have already fledged.  Nature can work in mysterious ways.

Some photos from today:

Acorn Woodpecker

Black Phoebe - a youngster

California Thrasher - note growths on face and side

Distant view of a Lesser Goldfinch

After today the year's total still stands at 223. 

Today I rode a total of 8.4 miles

More later,

Glenn