On the Road Again

Story and photos by Cory Ritter

Well...March was hiatus month for me. So, while I wasn't posting, I was doing a good deal of traveling and finding lifers and year-birds. I finished up at Point Reyes on the last day of February, and I began my trip back to the Midwest on March 1st. I decided to take a little detour through Arizona and visit friends in Texas before heading north to Whitefish Point to count hawks for the spring. Now that I'm settled in here at Whitefish Point in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, I'll be recounting some of my travel stories along with the birds that I happened upon.

So, my first day was pretty simple, and consisted of driving across California towards a destination of Lake Havasu City, Arizona. My plan was to head out to Planet Ranch Road in Bill Williams National Wildlife Refuge to look for the Nutting's Flycatcher that has been seen there for most of the winter.

Although birds weren't a number one priority the first day, I did make a few stops along the way. First, I tried for Greater Roadrunner, Lewis's Woodpecker, and Phainopepla along Mine's Road just south of Livermore, California. This was a fruitless venture because I realized I was just about out of gas when I started down Mine's Road. I ended up taking a different route to find a gas station, and didn't feel like backtracking after filling up. I was able to get a decent look at a flock of Yellow-billed Magpies while searching for a gas station.

Yellow-billed Magpies, Alameda County, California

Yellow-billed Magpies, Alameda County, California

After the magpies, I drove a long stretch without stopping, but I ended up stopping in Bakersfield, CA for gas and a quick driving break. I happened to be filling up next to a McDonalds, so I checked the web real quick for any nearby birds. As luck would have it, there was a Spotted Dove reported a couple of days prior at Beale Park, just a few minutes down the road. Naturally, I stopped by to check it out. At first I didn't find much, and the only activity was a bunch of Rose-ringed Parakeets moving from tree to tree. I saw a dove-like bird in a tree across the street, but, when I made my way over there, it was gone. I began birding up and down the street and ran into a bunch of Audubon's Warblers, a few Acorn Woodpeckers, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Western Scrub-Jay, and most surprisingly a single Black-throated Gray Warbler--a good looking male. However, it didn't stay put for more than a few seconds, and I was unable to get a photo of this bird. This was a great pickup, and a bird I wasn't counting on seeing this year!

Finally, just before I was about to give up I found a pair of Spotted Doves perched in a tree just down the road from my parked car. Although not overly cooperative, I was able to get a decent shot.

Spotted Dove, Beale Park, Kern County, California

Rose-ringed Parakeet, Beale Park, Kern County, California

Rose-ringed Parakeet, Beale Park, Kern County, California

After I was done getting photos of the Spotted Dove, I went to check one other place just outside of Bakersfield. There were Sage Thrashers and Greater Roadrunners reported a few days earlier from a personal location, but when I arrived I found it to be a little too personal. There were plenty of no trespassing signs--and they looked serious. So, I settled for a few White-crowned Sparrows and a Northern Mockingbird viewed from the car, and I went on my way.

Next stop: Bill Williams NWR...

Recent Birds at Palo and in Alameda County

The past few days have been beautiful here in the bay area, and the birding has been pretty good around Palo and elsewhere.  Birds are getting ready to move and getting ready to breed here at Palo.  We're beginning to find our first CP's (Cloaical Protuberance - male sex organ during the breeding season), and I found the first nest about two weeks ago that is still going strong.  It was an Anna's Hummingbird with two jellybelly-sized eggs, that are now two nestlings.  Dan Lipp has been hearing Red Crossbills across the Arroyo Honda almost daily, and heard a Northern Rough-winged Swallow as we were banding up on the hill a few days ago.  Tree Swallows and the occasional Violet-green Swallow have been seen as well.  Mixed feeding flocks have been found around the area as well including larger than usual numbers of Townsend's Warblers.  Less than a week ago I came across a large mixed flock of mostly Bushtits, Chestnut-backed Chickadees, and Ruby-crowned Kinglets on the nature trail.  I didn't detect a single warbler, but hopefully something interesting will turn up one of these days.  A few Hutton's Vireos, a Red-breasted Nuthatch, and several Golden-crowned Kinglets were also in the flock.  1 or 2 Fox Sparrows, and a Hermit Thrush also may have been loosely associating with the group.  A Northern Saw-whet Owl has been heard almost nightly as well.  And, just now, an Orange-crowned Warbler was heard and then seen right outside the field station library.

Red-breasted Nuthatch, PRBO Palomarin Field Station, Bolinas, CA

Chestnut-backed Chickadee, PRBO Palomarin Field Station, Bolinas, CA

Yesterday Rich Cimino graciously offered to show me around some great birding spots in Alameda county.  We hit Del Valle Park, Mines Road, and Patterson Pass among other locations.  Some highlights from the day include Prairie Falcon, Golden Eagle, Lark Sparrow, Loggerhead Shrike, Horned Lark, Mountain Bluebird, Yellow-billed Magpie, Phainopepla, Chipping Sparrow, and large numbers of Lesser Goldfinches (though we couldn't pick out any Lawrence's Goldfinch despite our best efforts).  We missed a few target birds such as Northern Pygmy-Owl, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, and Lawrence's Goldfinch, but who could complain with all the great birds we got.  Rich is an active conservationist in the bay area doing great work to help protect birds and their habitat.  He also knows the area really well, and owns/operates a great bird tours company, Yellowbilled Tours.  If you are looking to bird in California, definitely contact him.  He also leads tours in Nome, Wisconsin, and New Mexico with more destinations possibly to come.

Lesser Goldfinch, Mines Road, Alameda county, CA

White-crowned Sparrow, Mines Rd, Alameda, County, CA

Mountain Bluebird, Patterson Pass Wind Farm, Alameda county, CA

By Luke Musher