Salton Sea/San Bern. Mtns. birding notes

Notes from a private birding tour (incl. 10/19 - 10/21/2010):

Coming down the western side of the Sea, we stopped in at Desert Shores, Salton Sea Beach, and Salton City, all of which had good access to the rapidly-retreating shoreline, and loads of usual SS waterbirds. Had a late WHITE-WINGED DOVE at Salton Sea Beach (10/19), and an unexpected PACIFIC GOLDEN-PLOVER that called (chu-WEET?) at Johnson's Ldg.(Salton City) that I had Dave Bell report (10/19). This was a dark bird, maybe an adult (very brown back), with a good yellow wash on the face. I got some very distant photos that I'll try to post later.

Down at the south end, the end of Poe Road was muddy and I didn't want to risk driving it (deep mud puddles). One could walk a couple hundred yards pretty easily and bird it though. Unit 1 had water in the impoundments and a had at least two likely Pectoral Sandpipers among the numerous stilts (10/20), seen only in flight when hunters started shooting in the distance. No geese yet, but 4 SANDHILL CRANES were in a field near the end of the road.

There was telephone pole construction at Lindsay/Lack, blocking access to the seawall road heading southwest. To the north(east) and toward Obsidian Butte, the seawall was very muddy and again, I might have been able to do it in my SUV but didn't want to risk it. Ditto for roads leading in to Obsidian Butte from the east - it had rained all morning and all dirt roads were muddy. Still, we had 3 LAUGHING GULLS just north of Lindsay/Lack, and a good variety of shorebirds here on 10/20.

Cattle Call park was a serious disappointment, and aside from Gila Woodpeckers (still common), we missed all of the scrubland birds here. Could have been the cool weather, but nothing was even calling (got there around 8 AM). Missed Cactus Wren!! We caught up with most of these species at the refuge headquarters (Sinclair Rd.) later that day, incl. Gambel's Quail, Black-tailed Gnatcatcher, etc.

A stop in at the Coachella Valley Wild Bird Center (and constructed wetlands) in Indio was a great break. Lots of ducks, common moorhen, and cooperative Abert's Towhees, a crowd-pleaser. *Note that the CORRECT DIRECTIONS are to exit I-10 at Golf Center Dr., head south to 45th St., turn left, and continue on 45th (as it becomes Van Buren). The site is on the left after the treatment plant, and generally CLOSES AT NOON (but was open for a delivery late so we lucked out).
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Up in the San Bernardino Mountains, I'd reserved rooms at the Whispering Pines cabins in hopes of doing some owling and dawn birding in the foothills, but it was basically rainy/misty from when we arrived, through the night, and the next morning. Light was terrible, and we saw almost not a single individual bird. Not insignificantly for a tour, the cabins are apparently for sale and are not being kept up. (Maybe some day, someone will figure out how to run an inn somewhere in our local mountains??)

Seven Oaks (Glass Rd.) was socked-in with dense fog, and despite calling birds (incl. many White-headed Woodpeckers), we had to turn back. We headed up to Heart Bar for high-country species, and had CLARK'S NUTCRACKER and RED CROSSBILL overhead, but nothing landing, and despite clearer skies, again, very few birds to even look at (You know your tour may be in trouble when you're trying to tape-in a Mountain Chickadee...). Things brightened at Barton Flats, where the campground along Hwy. 38 (the only one open along the route) was decently birdy, and our perseverance was rewarded with scope-filling views of a male WILLIAMSON'S SAPSUCKER. Success!!

Big surprise during otherwise boring job

While "baby-sitting" an incubating Great Horned Owl last week (trust me, it's dull), I watched in amazement as an adult male Scissor-tailed Flycatcher glided by, and perched on a Mexican elderberry downslope from where I was standing in an active restoration area (11 Jan. 2010). Fewer than 15 records for L.A. County of this midwestern bird, apparently, and they're probably rarest (but still known) in winter, when the bulk of the population is in Central and South America.

I managed to get off a lousy picture with a colleague's point-and-shoot (my camera was safely stored at home).

Curve-billed invasion!

Curve-billed Thrasher, 30 Dec. 2009, Chiriaco Summit, Riverside Co.

Long-staying bird was about the only thing around during our mid-morning stop - part of an unprecedented invasion by this species into California this winter.

Birdcam, Sept.

For September, we changed the location of Birdcam to a re-purposed bathtub filled with water and cattails. Wanted to shake things up a bit, and see if any species were visiting this thing, which is located down a steep hill and out of sight of the house. Lighting was pretty poor (maybe it got splashed?), but a male California Quail stopped by on the 13th (below), and on the afternoon of the 30th, Wile E. Coyote did the same.





Otherwise, the usual visitors were represented (Band-tailed pigeon, Hooded Oriole, etc.), along with a California ground-squirrel.

We now have two birdcams going, one at the "tub", and the other back at the cube-fountain, so we'll be able to gauge the difference in visitorship.

Birdcam, late June

June is one of the dullest birding months over most of the L.A. area, as residents and summer visitors finish up nesting, and shorebirds and most waterfowl are elsewhere, mostly far to the north. An unmistakable American Robin livened things up on the 16th, the first photo of this species for the birdcam. Robins nest locally in town, usually around well-watered lawns like at public parks and golf courses, and pick the shadiest spots for their nests. Twenty years ago, a nesting robin away from the mountains was something of a rarity, but they've really increased throughout southern California (as a breeder) since then. This one probably bred somewhere in the neighborhood, and stopped by for a drink.

Phainopepla (below) also nests in small numbers in the area, especially in sites with large oaks and sycamores, and generally away from urban areas. This series shows a female, with the last image showing her distinctive red eye.








The most surprising find thus far was this streaky juvenile Dark-eyed Junco, a briefly -held plumage rarely seen far from the breeding grounds. For this reason, and given the time of year (juncos migrate late in the fall), it was almost certainly hatched locally. This species, like the robin, has increased greatly in the Santa Monica Mountains, probably responding to all the planted pine trees (formerly restricted to mountains and remote oak woodland in the higher Santa Monicas). Interestingly, it nests near sea level elsewhere in southern California, including La Jolla in San Diego Co.

Birdcam, early June

This period saw more of the same array species, including lots of young birds, often accompanied by one or more parents.

A sharp female Bullock's Oriole dropped by on the 4th of June, showing the ash-gray back and bright wingbars which help distinguish it from the (locally) more common Hooded Oriole.















A Western Scrub-Jay (below), not new to the birdcam but relatively infrequent, was a daily visitor during this period.




The biggest surprise, however, was a stunning male Purple Finch, pretty rare in mid-summer in Los Angeles, though a scarce breeder in the Santa Monica Mountains (including at nearby Franklin Canyon). It might have been taking a break from duties there, or perhaps it was a dispersing male that failed to attract a mate, possible given the small size of the local population.

It's told from the much more abundant House Finch by the wine-colored pinkish-red crown, and the suffusion of the same wine-red color throughout its upperparts. This individual shows a good amount of brownish streaking along the flanks, as well as a large bill, which are typical for the local California race of the species.

Birdcam, pt. II

We had the birdcam back up and running from 5/2 - 5/9 (all day each day). As before, huge numbers of Lesser Goldfinches and House Finches - owing to the thistle and seed feeders nearby. Around 1,500 shots were of these species. The next most frequently-photographed bird was Mourning Dove (170 shots), Band-tailed Pigeon and Hooded Oriole (145 each) and Spotted Towhee (136).
A gorgeous male Black-headed Grosbeak was a nice surprise, visiting twice on 5/3.













Two days later, a second grosbeak came in, this one without the solid black head (shown with a House Finch).








Keeping with the orange theme, a nice female Bullock's Oriole dropped in briefly on 5/8 (below), which was actually a migrant - only the Hooded seems to nest in the area, though Bullock's are common nesters in nearby Franklin Canyon.



















We're noticing lots of young birds at the bath (juvenile Song Sparrow, right), including several instances of adults feeding and interacting with young at the bath.


A Spotted Towhee was nice surprise (below), though not exactly rare in the area - check out the red eye.



A female Western Tanager (below) might have been passed off as a female oriole, but this shot shows the fat bill and eyering, as well as the broad wingbars.













Warblers are always a treat, and this male Yellow Warbler on the 8th spent some time getting wet (below).