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20 Nov continuing RUBL (Humboldt) ["Ken Burton" ] 20 Nov continuing RUBL (Humboldt) ["Ken Burton" ] 18 Nov murrelet at salton sea ["STEVE ARLOW" ] 18 Nov Kings Co. Lesser Black-backed Gull ["Steve & Priscilla Summers" ] 17 Nov Re: nesting/breeding status of Heerman's Gull in California [Jamie Chavez ] 17 Nov RE: Re: Lesser Black-backed age ["James F. Holmes" ] 17 Nov Re: Lesser Black-backed age ["woodshots" ] 17 Nov Kings County Lesser Black-backed Gull died ["John Sterling" ] 17 Nov Kings County Lesser Black-backed Gull died ["John Sterling" ] 17 Nov Re: Kings Co. Lesser Black-backed Gull ["Steve Hampton" ] 17 Nov nesting/breeding status of Heerman's Gull in California [] 17 Nov Kings Co. Lesser Black-backed Gull ["woodshots" ] 14 Nov GREATER ROADRUNNER - TULARE COUNTY ["Luv2bird" ] 13 Nov Condor Express Trip - Good to Go Sunday the 15th ["toddamcgrath" ] 13 Nov Re: Santa Barbara Condor Express Pelagic - Moved to Sunday the 15th ["thunefeld" ] 13 Nov Santa Barbara Condor Express Pelagic - Moved to Sunday the 15th ["toddamcgrath" ] 13 Nov Re: Condor Express Deepwater pelagic GO GO GO GO [Terry Hunefeld ] 13 Nov Condor Express Deepwater pelagic GO GO GO GO ["thunefeld" ] 12 Nov RE: Condor Express Deepwater pelagic - rescheduled for Nov 14th ["Ed Stonick" ] 12 Nov A Christmas Bird Count for Kids! ["torusert" ] 07 Nov Bar-tailed Godwit YES ["Monte" ] 06 Nov Re: Northern Fulmars in CA ["thunefeld" ] 5 Nov THREAD CLOSED: Possible+Mot-mot+split? [Douglas Aguillard ] 05 Nov Condor Express Deepwater pelagic - rescheduled for Nov 14th ["toddamcgrath" ] 4 Nov Oceanic algae blooms off CA coast [] 3 Nov Interest in winter observations of Swainson's Hawks and Harlan's Hawks [Brian Sullivan ] 3 Nov Northern Fulmars in CA [Brian Sullivan ] 03 Nov Christmas Bird Counts [Alison Sheehey ] 2 Nov Re: Gray Silky-flycatcher at Santa Ynez Nov. 2, 2009 [Dave Compton ] 03 Nov Gray Silky-flycatcher at Santa Ynez Nov. 2, 2009 ["markbrown1848" ] 2 Nov Orange County godwit ["Linda LeRoy" ] 03 Nov Oroville Christmas Bird Count : Sunday, January 3 2010 ["bigbirderscott" ] 02 Nov Upper Newport Bay, Orange Co, Bar-tailed Godwit Rump Photo ["wagtail1997" ] 02 Nov Photo request for OC Bar-tailed Godwit ["Jim" ] 02 Nov Monterey Christmas Count, Monday 12.28 [] 1 Nov Bar-tailed Godwit Update (Sun. PM) ["Ed Stonick" ] 01 Nov Bar-tailed Godwit continues: Upper Newport Bay, Orange County ["wagtail1997" ] 1 Nov FW: [OrangeCountyBirding] Bar-tailed Godwit contines, 11/1/09 ["Ed Stonick" ] 1 Nov FW: [OrangeCountyBirding] Bar-tailed Godwit, etc. - 10/31/09 ["Ed Stonick" ] 31 Oct Bar-tailed Godwit: Orange County CA: Upper Newport Bay ["wagtail1997" ] 31 Oct Male Western Tanager in East Sacramento ["pensioner" ] 26 Oct Long-toed Stint [Eddie Marsh ] 30 Oct Major Bird Rescue Effort at IBRRC - Update 10/30 ["torusert" ] 30 Oct Lewis' Woodpecker in Los Carneros Park, Goleta Oct 28,2009 ["eppygriffin" ] 26 Oct Request for help ["STEVE ARLOW" ] 26 Oct IBRRC Treating Oregon Sea Birds - Help Needed ["torusert" ] 25 Oct RE: Marin Co. STINT 10/25 **Photos** ["John Sterling" ] 25 Oct RE: [NBB] Marin Co. STINT 10/25 **Photos** ["John Sterling" ] 25 Oct Re: Marin Co. STINT 10/25 **Photos** [Joseph Morlan ] 25 Oct Re: [NBB] Marin Co. STINT 10/25 **Photos** [Joseph Morlan ] 26 Oct Long-toed Stint Marin County CA ["ed3de" ] 25 Oct FWD: NBB: Long-toed Stint [Stan Walens ] 21 Oct Monterey Seabirds this Saturday [Roger Wolfe ] 21 Oct Oct 24th Half Moon Bay and Nov 7th Santa Barbara Pelagic Updates ["toddamcgrath" ] 21 Oct Voting is underway for Audubon California's 2009 Bird of the Year ["FROST, Garrison" ] 21 Oct Last Call- CVBS ["Cheri Pillsbury" ] 18 Oct RE: WHITE-CHINNED PETREL off Half Moon Bay. ["John Sterling" ] 18 Oct WHITE-CHINNED PETREL off Half Moon Bay. ["Alvaro Jaramillo" ] 17 Oct GC Flyc-yes, BW Warb-no [Paul Keller ] 17 Oct re Sedge Wren at Glen Helen ["profile440" ] 17 Oct Sedge Wren in San Bernardino County ["profile440" ] 16 Oct SE Farallon Bird Wave including Yellow-breasted Bunting [Jim Tietz ] 15 Oct Yellow Wagtail in San Mateo County ["peter_colasanti" ] 15 Oct Tropicbird Daze - San Diego To The Shelf Edge Pelagic Trip Report ["thunefeld" ] 14 Oct RE: Request for "countable" California Condor record from Kings County ["Jim Gain" ] 14 Oct Birdathon for Kids (Sat. Oct 17th) 8:30-2:00PM ["torusert" ] 14 Oct Request for "countable" California Condor record from Kings County ["calexandrinus" ] 13 Oct WFO website updates [Joseph Morlan ] 12 Oct Raptor Workshop with Bill Clark Nov 14-15 ["allenf21" ] 12 Oct Humboldt County AMGP update ["Ken Burton" ] 8 Oct Luke Cole Memorial Challenge Wrap-up [Steve Glover ] 07 Oct Re: (unknown) [Peter Headland ] 7 Oct (unknown) [Kris Olson ] 07 Oct 1200 Least Storm-Petrels Off San Diego; Nov San Diego Grande trip cancelled ["thunefeld" ] 07 Oct Nov 7 Deepwater Petrel Hunt - Santa Barbara ["toddamcgrath" ] 6 Oct Re:Inquiry about HUGO ["Robert J. Keiffer" ] Subject: continuing RUBL (Humboldt) From: "Ken Burton" <brdnrd AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:33:56 -0800 The female RUSTY BLACKBIRD was still at the Lanphere Road dairy just west of Seidel Road in the Arcata Bottoms this morning. Ken Burton & Cindy Moyer Arcata Subject: continuing RUBL (Humboldt) From: "Ken Burton" <brdnrd AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:33:56 -0800 The female RUSTY BLACKBIRD was still at the Lanphere Road dairy just west of Seidel Road in the Arcata Bottoms this morning. Ken Burton & Cindy Moyer Arcata Subject: murrelet at salton sea From: "STEVE ARLOW" <birder.steve AT btinternet.com> Date: Wed, 18 Nov 2009 19:42:07 -0000 today ancient murrelet at obsideian butte with ruddy ducks by small outfall Steve Arlow Website - www.birdersplayground.co.uk [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Kings Co. Lesser Black-backed Gull From: "Steve & Priscilla Summers" <summers AT ocsnet.net> Date: Wed, 18 Nov 2009 06:42:05 -0800 The Lesser Black-backed Gull at the Kent Ave. pond in Kings Co. is now California's first specimen for this species. I was the only one there when it died at 11:47a on 17 Nov. With the help of John Lockhart we retrieved the bird around 2:30p. I have put some photos of the bird in the CALBIRDS Gulls-Terns folder. Steve Summers Porterville, CA Subject: Re: nesting/breeding status of Heerman's Gull in California From: Jamie Chavez <almiyi AT verizon.net> Date: Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:37:33 -0800 Alan, In San Luis Obispo County there are a couple of records of territorial and/or nest-building Heermann's Gulls along the bluff off Shell Beach. I don't believe the few attempts there have actually produced young, but the gulls went through the motions nonetheless. Pressures from Western Gulls and roosting Brown Pelicans may have something to due with those unsuccessful nesting attempts. I photographed one of the birds on territory in June as it tended to the nest site, but I don't remember if any eggs were actually seen that particular year. http://www.flickr.com/photos/almiyi/169059513/ Jamie Chavez Santa Maria, CA http://www.sbcobirding.com SiriusGuy AT aol.com wrote: > Don Roberson's Monterey Birds discusses a small breeding colony of > Heerman's Gull in the Monterey area, continuation as of 2002 somewhat precarious > due to competition with Canadian Goose in the same habitat. > > What is the current status of HEGU for nesting/breeding in that county, or > recently elsewhere in the state? I know that primarily they breed/nest in > Mexico. Thanks. > > Alan Birnbaum > Fresno Ca > > > Subject: RE: Re: Lesser Black-backed age From: "James F. Holmes" <jfholmes AT ucdavis.edu> Date: Tue, 17 Nov 2009 13:38:01 -0800 I am not able to see the photos (not sure why), but I would agree about salvaging the specimen. I am not aware of field characteristics that separate this age Lesser Black-backed Gull (Heuglin's Gull) from the expected race of Lesser Black-backed Gull. I believe that this could be solved by a specimen. Jim Holmes _____ From: CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com [mailto:CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of woodshots Sent: Tuesday, November 17, 2009 1:22 PM To: CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com Subject: [CALBIRDS] Re: Lesser Black-backed age Steve Hampton's sharp eyes caused me to go back through the photos and I added two to the gulls file that clearly show the pale base to the lower mandible and an ivory bill tip. I don't have any better shots showing gray in the back, but just from the bill alone it's clearly not a first winter bird. The eye looks dark in all photos and you can barely make out pale edges on the primary tips in some photos so I wonder if it's an advanced first summer/second winter bird that's not very far along in feather molt. Would it's health, or lack of it, contribute to a tardy molt and dark eyes as well? Hopefully someone can preserve the bird and it won't go to waste. Gary Woods-Fresno [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Re: Lesser Black-backed age From: "woodshots" <woodshots AT yahoo.com> Date: Tue, 17 Nov 2009 21:22:24 -0000 Steve Hampton's sharp eyes caused me to go back through the photos and I added two to the gulls file that clearly show the pale base to the lower mandible and an ivory bill tip. I don't have any better shots showing gray in the back, but just from the bill alone it's clearly not a first winter bird. The eye looks dark in all photos and you can barely make out pale edges on the primary tips in some photos so I wonder if it's an advanced first summer/second winter bird that's not very far along in feather molt. Would it's health, or lack of it, contribute to a tardy molt and dark eyes as well? Hopefully someone can preserve the bird and it won't go to waste. Gary Woods-Fresno Subject: Kings County Lesser Black-backed Gull died From: "John Sterling" <jsterling AT wavecable.com> Date: Tue, 17 Nov 2009 12:04:12 -0800 I just received a phone call from Steve Summers. The Kings County Lesser Black-backed Gull died a few minutes ago. John Sterling VVVVVVVVVV 26 Palm Ave Woodland, CA 95695 cell 530 908-3836 jsterling AT wavecable.com [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Kings County Lesser Black-backed Gull died From: "John Sterling" <jsterling AT wavecable.com> Date: Tue, 17 Nov 2009 12:04:12 -0800 I just received a phone call from Steve Summers. The Kings County Lesser Black-backed Gull died a few minutes ago. John Sterling VVVVVVVVVV 26 Palm Ave Woodland, CA 95695 cell 530 908-3836 jsterling AT wavecable.com [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Re: Kings Co. Lesser Black-backed Gull From: "Steve Hampton" <shampton AT ospr.dfg.ca.gov> Date: Tue, 17 Nov 2009 11:19:32 -0800 Isn't this second winter? I think I see "adult gray" in the back. Steve Hampton ________________ Resource Economist Office of Spill Prevention and Response California Dept of Fish and Game PO Box 944209 Sacramento, CA 94244-2090 ----------------------------------- (916) 323-4724 phone (916) 324-8829 fax >>> "woodshots" 11/16/2009 7:16 PM >>> On my way back from seeing my lifer Nelson's Sparrow this morning at Morro Bay I decided to check out the ponds at Jersey and Kent along Hwy 41 in Kings county and I found a gull in the south pond that I believe is a first winter Lesser Black-backed Gull. When I left at 4:40 it was still there but Mark Stacey couldn't locate it as it was getting dark this evening so hopefully it will be back. There had been 75 Bonapartes Gulls in the ponds as well that Mark didn't notice so maybe all the gulls are roosting somewhere else. I put 3 photos of the bird in the gulls photo folder here. Good luck if you go looking for it! Gary Woods-Fresno ------------------------------------ Unsubscribe: mailto:CALBIRDS-unsubscribe AT yahoogroups.com Website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CALBIRDS Listowners: mailto:CALBIRDS-owner AT yahoogroups.com For vacation suspension of mail go to the website. Click on Edit My Membership and set your mail option to No Email. Or, send a blank email to these addresses: Turn off email delivery: mailto:CALBIRDS-nomail AT yahoogroups.com Resume email delivery: mailto:CALBIRDS-normal AT yahoogroups.com Yahoo! Groups Links Subject: nesting/breeding status of Heerman's Gull in California From: SiriusGuy AT aol.com Date: Tue, 17 Nov 2009 11:23:50 EST Don Roberson's Monterey Birds discusses a small breeding colony of Heerman's Gull in the Monterey area, continuation as of 2002 somewhat precarious due to competition with Canadian Goose in the same habitat. What is the current status of HEGU for nesting/breeding in that county, or recently elsewhere in the state? I know that primarily they breed/nest in Mexico. Thanks. Alan Birnbaum Fresno Ca [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Kings Co. Lesser Black-backed Gull From: "woodshots" <woodshots AT yahoo.com> Date: Tue, 17 Nov 2009 03:16:39 -0000 On my way back from seeing my lifer Nelson's Sparrow this morning at Morro Bay I decided to check out the ponds at Jersey and Kent along Hwy 41 in Kings county and I found a gull in the south pond that I believe is a first winter Lesser Black-backed Gull. When I left at 4:40 it was still there but Mark Stacey couldn't locate it as it was getting dark this evening so hopefully it will be back. There had been 75 Bonapartes Gulls in the ponds as well that Mark didn't notice so maybe all the gulls are roosting somewhere else. I put 3 photos of the bird in the gulls photo folder here. Good luck if you go looking for it! Gary Woods-Fresno Subject: GREATER ROADRUNNER - TULARE COUNTY From: "Luv2bird" <jillrucker AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Sat, 14 Nov 2009 19:53:16 -0000 Not since April has there been a confirmed sighting of a GREATER ROADRUNNER in Tulare County - at least on eBird. Wednesday a beautiful male species was sighted along Rocky Hill Road near Yokohl Valley Road. Birding guide Gary Lindquist led groups from the Tulare/Kings County Audubon and the (Wednesday Walk) Fresno Audubon Society through Yokohl Valley. Other noted species were: ROCK WREN, CANYON WREN, BARN OWL, GREAT-HORNED OWL, and both PRAIRIE and PEREGRINE FALCONS. "Watch the Birdie." Jill Rucker Fresno, CA Subject: Condor Express Trip - Good to Go Sunday the 15th From: "toddamcgrath" <toddamcgrath AT yahoo.com> Date: Fri, 13 Nov 2009 19:46:17 -0000 Birders, We have enough particpants to run the trip on Sunday, so the trip is a "go". Weather is looking much improved for Sunday with winds dropping to 10-15 by the afternoon. Unfortunately, Some of our passengers for Saturday are not going to make the Sunday trip. As a result a few (about 10) spaces are available. Call the SeaLanding at 888-77WHALE or 805-882-0088 if you would like to ride out to the deepwater with us. Meet at 6:30AM for a prompt 7AM departure. I would like to thank all the particpants for their patience and understanding about the weather issues. Hopefully, my next post will be a very good trip report! Todd McGrath Calabasas (usually) and the shelf edge (Sunday) SKUA AT MSN.com Subject: Re: Santa Barbara Condor Express Pelagic - Moved to Sunday the 15th From: "thunefeld" <thunefeld AT gmail.com> Date: Fri, 13 Nov 2009 17:40:14 -0000 Todd, Thanks for posting early regarding the Condor Express trip. Most or all of us from San Diego have set our Motel 6 reservations back 24 hours and eagerly anticipate this trip, and we may even add one or two more participants for Sunday. Only 6 Stejneger's Petrels have been recorded and accepted in California waters, 4 in mid-November. We are in the heart of the calendar's sweet spot for this mega-rarity, exactly 30 years (to the week!) after McCaskie and Stallcup's first historic sighting. In light of the phenomenal Cook's Petrel year we've had, plus the perfect wind conditions forecast for Sunday, this trip has incredible promise. I know the call to invoke a one-day delay after the one-week delay was a "damned if you do and damned if you don't" call for you and Matt to make, but I have enormous respect for the way your team factors in birding opportunity, safety and passenger comfort into your decisions. Now birders from all around California have the opportunity to see that we'll have ideal conditions Sunday, call the Condor Express and reserve a space, drive to Santa Barbara on Saturday and be back in their own beds Sunday evening after what promises to be a rollicking good time on Sunday. Trip Details: http://www.socalbirding.com/release/santabarbaranov72009.html Condor Landing: (805) 882-0088. Terry *********** W. Terry Hunefeld, Encinitas Life is short. Seabird often. In memory of Luke Cole "Come on out with us to see what's out there." Southern California Seabirding Trips by: Buena Vista Audubon Society http://www.SoCalBirding.com Los Coronados Islands & Nine Mile Bank all the way to the edge of the Continental Shelf --- In CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com, "toddamcgrath" wrote: > > Birders, > > The forecast for Saturday has deteriorated offshore to the point where Capt. Matt feels it would be better to go Sunday. The weather for Sunday looks quite good, with winds 10knots less than Saturday. The Sea Landing will be calling all the particpants and asking them if they can make it Sunday. We need 40 of the sixty plus particpants to make it a go, so I am confident that we can get the folks required. The current forecast would be marginal at best, and likely wuld result in a cancellation at the dock tomorrow. > > Deepwater trips in early spring and late fall are subject to this kind of weather issue, and Matt has been great about rearranging the boat's schedule to try and get us offshore. > > I am confident we will get offshore Sunday, as the weather looks much improved, with both the NOAA forecast and satellite wind projections showing a much nicer day. > > If you were not booked on Saturday,but can make it Sunday, I suspect that there will be a few spots. Call the SeaLanding at 888-77WHALE or 805-882-0088, and they will let you know if there is room on Sunday. > > Todd McGrath > SKUA AT ... > Calabasas and offshore SUNDAY! > Subject: Santa Barbara Condor Express Pelagic - Moved to Sunday the 15th From: "toddamcgrath" <toddamcgrath AT yahoo.com> Date: Fri, 13 Nov 2009 16:15:15 -0000 Birders, The forecast for Saturday has deteriorated offshore to the point where Capt. Matt feels it would be better to go Sunday. The weather for Sunday looks quite good, with winds 10knots less than Saturday. The Sea Landing will be calling all the particpants and asking them if they can make it Sunday. We need 40 of the sixty plus particpants to make it a go, so I am confident that we can get the folks required. The current forecast would be marginal at best, and likely wuld result in a cancellation at the dock tomorrow. Deepwater trips in early spring and late fall are subject to this kind of weather issue, and Matt has been great about rearranging the boat's schedule to try and get us offshore. I am confident we will get offshore Sunday, as the weather looks much improved, with both the NOAA forecast and satellite wind projections showing a much nicer day. If you were not booked on Saturday,but can make it Sunday, I suspect that there will be a few spots. Call the SeaLanding at 888-77WHALE or 805-882-0088, and they will let you know if there is room on Sunday. Todd McGrath SKUA AT MSN.COM Calabasas and offshore SUNDAY! Subject: Re: Condor Express Deepwater pelagic GO GO GO GO From: Terry Hunefeld <thunefeld AT gmail.com> Date: Fri, 13 Nov 2009 06:55:46 -0800 hi ed see you there! http://maps.google.com/maps/place?hl=en&sourceid=navclient-ff&rlz=1B3GGGL_enUS214US214&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=DELGADO%27S+CARPINTERIA&fb=1&gl=us&hq=DELGADO%27S&hnear=CARPINTERIA&cid=9412179699891935312 On Fri, Nov 13, 2009 at 12:09 AM, thunefeld wrote: > Greetings Ed, et al > > Todd McGrath and Captain Matt at the Condor Express have been monitoring > Saturday's weather every few hours for the past 3 days. Captain Matt thinks > we are good to go Saturday (it was his call to cancel last Saturday). > Thought was given to delaying the trip to Sunday, but while the weather maps > are predicting gusty winds close to shore on Saturday, they are predicting > only 20 knots or so out in the deep water which is where we will be heading, > and the trip is currently a go. > > Of course, the forecast can change between now and tomorrow afternoon so > stay tuned to CalBirds, but myself and 7 other San Diego area birders are > loading up our vehicles and are on our way to Santa Barbara ON Friday > morning, expecting to drink a few beers Friday night and go on a lusty, > gusty ride with fresh winds in our faces on Saturday. If there ever was a > day for pterodromas, Saturday is it. > > I hope the trip goes and look forward to seeing you onboard! Either way, > I'll be in my comfy Carpinteria Motel 6 suite with Tom Blackman by Friday > evening after dinner at Delgado's Mexican Restaurant. > > W. Terry Hunefeld, Encinitas > Life is short. Seabird often. > In memory of Luke Cole > "Come on out with us to see what's out there." > > Southern California Seabirding Trips > by: Buena Vista Audubon Society > http://www.SoCalBirding.com > Los Coronados Islands & Nine Mile Bank > all the way to the edge of the Continental Shelf > > > --- In CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com, "Ed Stonick" wrote: > > > > Greetings Todd and others, > > > > > > > > The NWS report shows gale warnings for the Central Coast tonight and > gusty > > winds continuing through the weekend. Is the trip still scheduled to go? > > > > > > > > Regards, > > > > Ed > > > > > > > > Ed Stonick > > > > Pasadena, CA > > > > edstonick AT ... > > > > > > > > > > > > _____ > > > > From: CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com [mailto:CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com] On > Behalf > > Of toddamcgrath > > Sent: Wednesday, November 04, 2009 5:48 PM > > To: CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com > > Subject: [CALBIRDS] Condor Express Deepwater pelagic - rescheduled for > Nov > > 14th > > > > > > > > > > > > Birders, > > > > The sold out Condor Express deepwater pelagic scheduled for November 7th > > has been rescheduled due to extremely bad weather exepcted offshore on > Sat. > > The trip was sold-out, but due to the change in date, there are a limted > > number of spots available. > > > > We will meet at the dock in Santa Barbara at 6:30AM for a prompt 7:00 Am > > departure. Our goal will be the 2000 fathom water along the continental > > shelf, where species like Stejneger's Petrel and Mottled Petrel have been > > recorded. > > > > 2009 has been a great pelagic season off of So Cal, as well as further > north > > in CA. This is the final trip of the 2009 season, and I am looking > forward > > to getting out at this time of year. > > > > The cost of the trip is $195, a bargain considering we will be covering > over > > 200 miles of water round trip. No other birding boat in CA can get you > out > > to the shelf edge and back in a 12-13 hour trip. In addtion, the Condor > is a > > great boat from which to observe birds. The roomy cabin and great food > for > > purchase make for a change from the usual pelagic fare. The boat holds > well > > over 100, but we are limiting this trip to around 60 participants to > ensure > > adequate room and ideal viewing conditions. > > > > Call the Sea Landing at 888-77WHALE or 805-882-0088 to reserve your spot. > > Let's hope for good weather and better birds on the 14th! > > > > Todd McGrath > > SKUA AT ... > > > Calabasas CA > > > > > > > > > > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > > > > > > ------------------------------------ > > Unsubscribe: mailto:CALBIRDS-unsubscribe AT yahoogroups.com > Website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CALBIRDS > Listowners: mailto:CALBIRDS-owner AT yahoogroups.com > > For vacation suspension of mail go to the website. Click on Edit My > Membership and set your mail option to No Email. Or, send a blank email to > these addresses: > Turn off email delivery: mailto:CALBIRDS-nomail AT yahoogroups.com > Resume email delivery: mailto:CALBIRDS-normal AT yahoogroups.com > > Yahoo! Groups Links > > > > -- Join us for the Oceanside Christmas bird count: http://www.socalbirding.com/christmasbirdcount/2009cbc.html W. Terry Hunefeld, Encinitas Life is short. Seabird often. In memory of Luke Cole “Come on out with us to see what’s out there.” Southern California Seabirding Trips by: Buena Vista Audubon Society http://www.SoCalBirding.com Los Coronados Islands & Nine Mile Bank all the way to the edge of the Continental Shelf [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ Unsubscribe: mailto:CALBIRDS-unsubscribe AT yahoogroups.com Website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CALBIRDS Listowners: mailto:CALBIRDS-owner AT yahoogroups.com For vacation suspension of mail go to the website. Click on Edit My Membership and set your mail option to No Email. Or, send a blank email to these addresses: Turn off email delivery: mailto:CALBIRDS-nomail AT yahoogroups.com Resume email delivery: mailto:CALBIRDS-normal AT yahoogroups.com Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CALBIRDS/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CALBIRDS/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: CALBIRDS-digest AT yahoogroups.com CALBIRDS-fullfeatured AT yahoogroups.com <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: CALBIRDS-unsubscribe AT yahoogroups.com <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ Subject: Condor Express Deepwater pelagic GO GO GO GO From: "thunefeld" <thunefeld AT gmail.com> Date: Fri, 13 Nov 2009 08:09:07 -0000 Greetings Ed, et al Todd McGrath and Captain Matt at the Condor Express have been monitoring Saturday's weather every few hours for the past 3 days. Captain Matt thinks we are good to go Saturday (it was his call to cancel last Saturday). Thought was given to delaying the trip to Sunday, but while the weather maps are predicting gusty winds close to shore on Saturday, they are predicting only 20 knots or so out in the deep water which is where we will be heading, and the trip is currently a go. Of course, the forecast can change between now and tomorrow afternoon so stay tuned to CalBirds, but myself and 7 other San Diego area birders are loading up our vehicles and are on our way to Santa Barbara ON Friday morning, expecting to drink a few beers Friday night and go on a lusty, gusty ride with fresh winds in our faces on Saturday. If there ever was a day for pterodromas, Saturday is it. I hope the trip goes and look forward to seeing you onboard! Either way, I'll be in my comfy Carpinteria Motel 6 suite with Tom Blackman by Friday evening after dinner at Delgado's Mexican Restaurant. W. Terry Hunefeld, Encinitas Life is short. Seabird often. In memory of Luke Cole "Come on out with us to see what's out there." Southern California Seabirding Trips by: Buena Vista Audubon Society http://www.SoCalBirding.com Los Coronados Islands & Nine Mile Bank all the way to the edge of the Continental Shelf --- In CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com, "Ed Stonick" wrote: > > Greetings Todd and others, > > > > The NWS report shows gale warnings for the Central Coast tonight and gusty > winds continuing through the weekend. Is the trip still scheduled to go? > > > > Regards, > > Ed > > > > Ed Stonick > > Pasadena, CA > > edstonick AT ... > > > > > > _____ > > From: CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com [mailto:CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com] On Behalf > Of toddamcgrath > Sent: Wednesday, November 04, 2009 5:48 PM > To: CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com > Subject: [CALBIRDS] Condor Express Deepwater pelagic - rescheduled for Nov > 14th > > > > > > Birders, > > The sold out Condor Express deepwater pelagic scheduled for November 7th > has been rescheduled due to extremely bad weather exepcted offshore on Sat. > The trip was sold-out, but due to the change in date, there are a limted > number of spots available. > > We will meet at the dock in Santa Barbara at 6:30AM for a prompt 7:00 Am > departure. Our goal will be the 2000 fathom water along the continental > shelf, where species like Stejneger's Petrel and Mottled Petrel have been > recorded. > > 2009 has been a great pelagic season off of So Cal, as well as further north > in CA. This is the final trip of the 2009 season, and I am looking forward > to getting out at this time of year. > > The cost of the trip is $195, a bargain considering we will be covering over > 200 miles of water round trip. No other birding boat in CA can get you out > to the shelf edge and back in a 12-13 hour trip. In addtion, the Condor is a > great boat from which to observe birds. The roomy cabin and great food for > purchase make for a change from the usual pelagic fare. The boat holds well > over 100, but we are limiting this trip to around 60 participants to ensure > adequate room and ideal viewing conditions. > > Call the Sea Landing at 888-77WHALE or 805-882-0088 to reserve your spot. > Let's hope for good weather and better birds on the 14th! > > Todd McGrath > SKUA AT ... > Calabasas CA > > > > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > Subject: RE: Condor Express Deepwater pelagic - rescheduled for Nov 14th From: "Ed Stonick" <edstonick AT earthlink.net> Date: Thu, 12 Nov 2009 21:46:27 -0800 Greetings Todd and others, The NWS report shows gale warnings for the Central Coast tonight and gusty winds continuing through the weekend. Is the trip still scheduled to go? Regards, Ed Ed Stonick Pasadena, CA edstonick AT earthlink.net _____ From: CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com [mailto:CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of toddamcgrath Sent: Wednesday, November 04, 2009 5:48 PM To: CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com Subject: [CALBIRDS] Condor Express Deepwater pelagic - rescheduled for Nov 14th Birders, The sold out Condor Express deepwater pelagic scheduled for November 7th has been rescheduled due to extremely bad weather exepcted offshore on Sat. The trip was sold-out, but due to the change in date, there are a limted number of spots available. We will meet at the dock in Santa Barbara at 6:30AM for a prompt 7:00 Am departure. Our goal will be the 2000 fathom water along the continental shelf, where species like Stejneger's Petrel and Mottled Petrel have been recorded. 2009 has been a great pelagic season off of So Cal, as well as further north in CA. This is the final trip of the 2009 season, and I am looking forward to getting out at this time of year. The cost of the trip is $195, a bargain considering we will be covering over 200 miles of water round trip. No other birding boat in CA can get you out to the shelf edge and back in a 12-13 hour trip. In addtion, the Condor is a great boat from which to observe birds. The roomy cabin and great food for purchase make for a change from the usual pelagic fare. The boat holds well over 100, but we are limiting this trip to around 60 participants to ensure adequate room and ideal viewing conditions. Call the Sea Landing at 888-77WHALE or 805-882-0088 to reserve your spot. Let's hope for good weather and better birds on the 14th! Todd McGrath SKUA AT MSN.com Calabasas CA [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: A Christmas Bird Count for Kids! From: "torusert" <sonomabirding AT gmail.com> Date: Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:23:06 -0000 CBC for Kids!  Celebrate the holiday season with kids birding.... Every year for over a century “Christmas Bird Counts” (CBC's) have been run across America during the holiday season. Young kids with their families are often not included with this important 24 hour rigorous “citizen science” effort...so we created the Audubon CBC for Kids... and families...using some of the important basic ingredients of this grand old tradition. The objective is to have fun and potentially create a “farm team” of birders and conservationists for the future of birding and encourage families to enjoy nature together.  It is a wonderfully simple, healthy, holiday celebration for almost any school, youth group or community. Here is a helpful information packet to get started: http://www.sonomabirding.org/blogsection/Events_New/ Tom Rusert Sonoma Ca. http://www.sonomabirding.org/ Subject: Bar-tailed Godwit YES From: "Monte" <tsuru8 AT yahoo.com> Date: Sat, 07 Nov 2009 15:54:18 -0000 Christopher Taylor just called to state that the Bar-tailed Godwit is in view at the Jamboree bridge crossing of Newport Back Bay in Newport Beach this morning, Saturday, November 8th for those wishing to grab this chance before it's too late! Monte Taylor for Christopher Taylor Subject: Re: Northern Fulmars in CA From: "thunefeld" <thunefeld AT gmail.com> Date: Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:15:45 -0000 Brian, too, have a good slug of Northern Fulmars down here in San Diego..... on Tuesday November 3 we saw 4 Brown Boobies at the south end of the Nine Mile Bank, 35 more on the Coronados Islands and around 20 Northern Fulmars. Tom Blackman got a killer photo of a Peregrine Falcon scooping a Cassin's Auklet off the water for lunch – tastes like chicken. Trip report and Tom's photos: http://www.socalbirding.com/tripreports/sandiegonov32009.html W. Terry Hunefeld, Encinitas Life is short. Seabird often. In memory of Luke Cole "Come on out with us to see what's out there." Southern California Seabirding Trips Buena Vista Audubon Society http://www.SoCalBirding.com Los Coronados Islands, Channel Islands to the Edge of the Continental Shelf --- In CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com, Brian Sullivan wrote: > > Birders > > I've noticed a big movement of Northern Fulmars into Monterey Bay over the > past few weeks. Each time I seawatch from Pt. Pinos I see dozens, regardless > of wind/weather conditions, most just off the kelp. The vast majority are > gray-morph juveniles, of which I've found a few dead recently. There is a > severe algal bloom happening in coastal Oregon and Washington now, and I > wonder if past invasions of Northern Fulmars have corresponded with such > events up north? > > -- > =========== > Brian L. Sullivan > Pacific Grove, CA > > eBird/AKN Project Leader > www.ebird.org > www.avianknowledge.net > > Photographic Editor, > Birds of North America Online > http://bna.birds.cornell.edu/BNA > > Cornell Lab of Ornithology > 159 Sapsucker Woods Rd. > Ithaca, NY 14850 > > Photographic Editor, > North American Birds > American Birding Association > www.americanbirding.org > > bls42 AT ... > 609-694-3280 > ------------------------------- > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > Subject: THREAD CLOSED: Possible+Mot-mot+split? From: Douglas Aguillard <dwaguillard AT gmail.com> Date: Thu, 5 Nov 2009 08:12:04 -0800 This message has nothing to do with California birds/birding. This thread ia closed. Douglas Aguillard Calbirds Moderator San Diego, CA Doug AT basiclink.com [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Condor Express Deepwater pelagic - rescheduled for Nov 14th From: "toddamcgrath" <toddamcgrath AT yahoo.com> Date: Thu, 05 Nov 2009 01:47:45 -0000 Birders, The sold out Condor Express deepwater pelagic scheduled for November 7th has been rescheduled due to extremely bad weather exepcted offshore on Sat. The trip was sold-out, but due to the change in date, there are a limted number of spots available. We will meet at the dock in Santa Barbara at 6:30AM for a prompt 7:00 Am departure. Our goal will be the 2000 fathom water along the continental shelf, where species like Stejneger's Petrel and Mottled Petrel have been recorded. 2009 has been a great pelagic season off of So Cal, as well as further north in CA. This is the final trip of the 2009 season, and I am looking forward to getting out at this time of year. The cost of the trip is $195, a bargain considering we will be covering over 200 miles of water round trip. No other birding boat in CA can get you out to the shelf edge and back in a 12-13 hour trip. In addtion, the Condor is a great boat from which to observe birds. The roomy cabin and great food for purchase make for a change from the usual pelagic fare. The boat holds well over 100, but we are limiting this trip to around 60 participants to ensure adequate room and ideal viewing conditions. Call the Sea Landing at 888-77WHALE or 805-882-0088 to reserve your spot. Let's hope for good weather and better birds on the 14th! Todd McGrath SKUA AT MSN.com Calabasas CA Subject: Oceanic algae blooms off CA coast From: John_Small AT toyota.com Date: Wed, 4 Nov 2009 13:02:10 -0800 Good Afternoon CA Birders I have an important question. Are the algae blooms that occur off the California coast been a common thing since the beginning of time itself? Or have these instances been a thing of recent? I would like to know. Thank You John Small Torrance, CA [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Interest in winter observations of Swainson's Hawks and Harlan's Hawks From: Brian Sullivan <heraldpetrel AT gmail.com> Date: Tue, 3 Nov 2009 16:30:23 -0800 Birders I'm interested in photographing adult Swainson's Hawks this winter for a study I'm working on regarding molt. If anyone finds any Swainson's spending the winter in the Central Valley please let me know, as I'd like to make an attempt to relocate them for photos. I'm also interested in any observations of Red-tailed Hawks that you think might be Harlan's, regardless of where they are in the state. Please feel free to forward this on to more regional lists! Thanks for the help Brian -- =========== Brian L. Sullivan Pacific Grove, CA eBird/AKN Project Leader www.ebird.org www.avianknowledge.net Photographic Editor, Birds of North America Online http://bna.birds.cornell.edu/BNA Cornell Lab of Ornithology 159 Sapsucker Woods Rd. Ithaca, NY 14850 Photographic Editor, North American Birds American Birding Association www.americanbirding.org bls42 AT cornell.edu 609-694-3280 ------------------------------- [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Northern Fulmars in CA From: Brian Sullivan <heraldpetrel AT gmail.com> Date: Tue, 3 Nov 2009 16:25:42 -0800 Birders I've noticed a big movement of Northern Fulmars into Monterey Bay over the past few weeks. Each time I seawatch from Pt. Pinos I see dozens, regardless of wind/weather conditions, most just off the kelp. The vast majority are gray-morph juveniles, of which I've found a few dead recently. There is a severe algal bloom happening in coastal Oregon and Washington now, and I wonder if past invasions of Northern Fulmars have corresponded with such events up north? -- =========== Brian L. Sullivan Pacific Grove, CA eBird/AKN Project Leader www.ebird.org www.avianknowledge.net Photographic Editor, Birds of North America Online http://bna.birds.cornell.edu/BNA Cornell Lab of Ornithology 159 Sapsucker Woods Rd. Ithaca, NY 14850 Photographic Editor, North American Birds American Birding Association www.americanbirding.org bls42 AT cornell.edu 609-694-3280 ------------------------------- [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Christmas Bird Counts From: Alison Sheehey <natureali AT gmail.com> Date: Tue, 03 Nov 2009 07:01:58 -0800 Birders, A schedule of most all of this year's Christmas Bird Counts with contact information can be found here. www.natureali.org/cbcs.htm If you are a compiler or coordinator and have a date to add or information to add, please contact me right away. Ali Sheehey Weldon, CA www.natureali.org http://kern.audubon.org Subject: Re: Gray Silky-flycatcher at Santa Ynez Nov. 2, 2009 From: Dave Compton <davcompton AT verizon.net> Date: Mon, 2 Nov 2009 23:27:08 -0800 (PST) Mark,   Wild or not, your Gray Silky-Flycatcher looks like a Phainopepla. If I'm not mistaken, the latter is more likely in Santa Ynez.   Dave Compton Santa Barbara --- On Mon, 11/2/09, markbrown1848 wrote: From: markbrown1848 Subject: [CALBIRDS] Gray Silky-flycatcher at Santa Ynez Nov. 2, 2009 To: CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com Date: Monday, November 2, 2009, 9:45 PM All: I was at private residence in Santa Ynez this afternoon and I heard a whit call.  I thought it sort of sounded like a Willow Flycatcher.  I went to look for the bird making the call and it was a male Phainopepla.  Then another bird flew in the tree.  I thought it was a female Phainopeple but it had a yellow belly! It was a Gray Silky-flycatcher.  Photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/33835670 AT N00/4070437999 . http://www.flickr.com/photos/33835670 AT N00/4070438117 . http://www.flickr.com/photos/33835670 AT N00/4070503047 . This bird is on the supplemental list for the state.  The first California record was from Ventura in 1976.  This is a bird that is kept in cages in Mexico.  Still a cool looking bird to see flycatching over a Santa Ynez street.  The Committee says that all escapes of this species should be reported if they are also possible wild birds? Huh? Mark Brown Santa Maria      ------------------------------------ Unsubscribe: mailto:CALBIRDS-unsubscribe AT yahoogroups.com Website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CALBIRDS Listowners: mailto:CALBIRDS-owner AT yahoogroups.com For vacation suspension of mail go to the website. Click on Edit My Membership and set your mail option to No Email. Or, send a blank email to these addresses: Turn off email delivery: mailto:CALBIRDS-nomail AT yahoogroups.com Resume email delivery: mailto:CALBIRDS-normal AT yahoogroups.com Yahoo! Groups Links [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Gray Silky-flycatcher at Santa Ynez Nov. 2, 2009 From: "markbrown1848" <lawoffmarkbrown AT verizon.net> Date: Tue, 03 Nov 2009 05:45:21 -0000 All: I was at private residence in Santa Ynez this afternoon and I heard a whit call. I thought it sort of sounded like a Willow Flycatcher. I went to look for the bird making the call and it was a male Phainopepla. Then another bird flew in the tree. I thought it was a female Phainopeple but it had a yellow belly! It was a Gray Silky-flycatcher. Photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/33835670 AT N00/4070437999 . http://www.flickr.com/photos/33835670 AT N00/4070438117 . http://www.flickr.com/photos/33835670 AT N00/4070503047 . This bird is on the supplemental list for the state. The first California record was from Ventura in 1976. This is a bird that is kept in cages in Mexico. Still a cool looking bird to see flycatching over a Santa Ynez street. The Committee says that all escapes of this species should be reported if they are also possible wild birds? Huh? Mark Brown Santa Maria Subject: Orange County godwit From: "Linda LeRoy" <lizharryabe AT msn.com> Date: Mon, 2 Nov 2009 19:48:54 -0800 I have posted 2 pictures of the juvenile bar-tailed godwit in flight in the "OC Godwit" folder. These were taken as he was chased off by a whimbrel, & then flew under the Jamboree bridge. I hope they offer a new view in further id'ing the bird. Linda LeRoy Downey, Ca [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Oroville Christmas Bird Count : Sunday, January 3 2010 From: "bigbirderscott" <bigbirderscott AT yahoo.com> Date: Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:37:17 -0000 137 species in 2008! Lots of Raptors and Owls. All levels of birders are welcome to join us on the Oroville Christmas bird count. Bring warm clothes, hiking shoes, lunch, bird books and binoculars. You will be assigned an area and spend the day counting all of the birds in this area, we will pair out-of-area birders with locals. We will meet at 7:30 a.m. at the Agricultural Commissioner's Office on Nelson Rd. just east of Highway 70. Please contact Scott Huber at (530) 321-5579 for more information and to let us know how many to expect. For possibly updated information, check the Altacal web site at www.altacal.org Scott Huber Forest Ranch, Ca. Subject: Upper Newport Bay, Orange Co, Bar-tailed Godwit Rump Photo From: "wagtail1997" <orcorba AT cox.net> Date: Mon, 02 Nov 2009 20:34:39 -0000 Courtesy of Bruce Aird, I've posted his photo of the bird in flight. The direct link to the jpg is: http://members.cox.net/orcorba/BruceAird.jpg Joel Weintraub Dana Point, CA Subject: Photo request for OC Bar-tailed Godwit From: "Jim" <jpike44 AT earthlink.net> Date: Mon, 02 Nov 2009 19:19:35 -0000 Hi, Questions are being raised as to which subspecies is involved with the recently-discovered (thanks, Neil) Bar-tailed Godwit at Newport Backbay. The three recognized subspecies of Bar-tailed exhibit geographical variation across their range, with the northern Eurasia-breeding lapponica having a mostly white, lightly-barred back, rump, and underwing, and the Alaska and eastern Siberia-breeding L.l.baueri showing a browner, well-barred back, rump and underwing. Menzbieri of central Russia is intermediate in appearance. Baueri is believed to be responsible for most of the California records, although two records involved birds "with mostly white rumps that exhibited other marks typical of menzbieri and lapponica" (CBRC 2007). I will soon post two photos of the Orange County bird (see 'OC godwit'), one showing its mostly white rump and the other showing its relatively lightly-marked axillars (ie, the long feathers closest to the body). Pyle (2008) has depictions of two axillar feathers for both the lapponica and baueri subspecies, illustrating the range of variation even within Bar-tailed subspecies, as the "western populations average fewer and smaller black markings than eastern populations". I judge the axillars of the OC bird to be more similar in appearance to lapponica than baueri, but,given its range, lapponica would be a long shot. However, menzbieri is a consideration, as is the western population of baueri (ie, the eastern Siberia-breeding "anadyrensis"). So, after this long-winded/worded introduction, I'm asking that photographers that may have obtained photos of the underwing, rump and, especially, the back, please post them to the group. Feel free to use the 'OC godwit' folder. Maybe someone will get lucky from the Jamboree St. bridge and get a good pic of the (white? dark?) back in flight. thanks, Jim Pike Huntington Beach Subject: Monterey Christmas Count, Monday 12.28 From: Lammergeiereyes AT aol.com Date: Mon, 02 Nov 2009 12:38:47 -0500 Greetings Just a reminder to any interested Calbirders who have not yet contacted me that the Monterey Peninsula Christmas Bird Count will be held on Monday, 12.28. Please let me know if you would like to participate. We would love to have you. Best wishes, Blake T. Matheson "Men still live who, in their youth, remember Passenger Pigeons. Trees still live who, in their youth, were shaken by a living wind. But a decade hence only the oldest oaks will remember, and at long last only the hills will know." Leopold (1949). [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Bar-tailed Godwit Update (Sun. PM) From: "Ed Stonick" <edstonick AT earthlink.net> Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 17:49:56 -0800 Greetings! Ruby Gardner and I drove down in the afternoon to look for the Bar-tailed Godwit. It had returned to the rocky areas just below the Jamboree Rd. bridge. It was feeding actively and was beautiful to watch in the bright late day sun. It was still present at 4:30 p.m. when we left. Regards, Ed Ed Stonick Pasadena, CA edstonick AT earthlink.net [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Bar-tailed Godwit continues: Upper Newport Bay, Orange County From: "wagtail1997" <orcorba AT cox.net> Date: Sun, 01 Nov 2009 21:06:45 -0000 Group Arrived at upper Upper Newport Bay around 10 AM. High tide, not a shorebird in sight. Damn...... Parked on East Bluff Drive, and walked down Jamboree along the bike path to the overlook area of the outlet of San Diego Creek. Other birders there, none of us had seen the bird, but we knew it had been seen earlier. It turns out the Godwit had flown down the bay, and was on a muddy area on the north side of the bay well below us but giving views for earlier birders. As the tide receded, we started to see shorebirds..... lots of Godwits but not what we wanted. Then, the bird flew in from the lower area. First it was on the north side/mud spit below the outlet of San Diego Creek, and then flew across and landed 40 feet below us on the south side of the outlet. Gave fine views. Many birders by then were there and all satisfied. When I left about 12:15 the bird had flown up the creek, but was still visible. I took a number of photos with my super-zoom camera..... and I put two of them where anyone can see them on the auxillary website: http://members.cox.net/orcorba/ One of the photos shows the two Godwit species in the same frame. The photos have only been cropped. Enjoy Joel Weintraub Dana Point, CA Subject: FW: [OrangeCountyBirding] Bar-tailed Godwit contines, 11/1/09 From: "Ed Stonick" <edstonick AT earthlink.net> Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 08:34:45 -0800 FYI Regards, Ed Ed Stonick Pasadena, CA edstonick AT earthlink.net _____ From: OrangeCountyBirding AT yahoogroups.com [mailto:OrangeCountyBirding AT yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of short_eared_owl12 Sent: Sunday, November 01, 2009 7:56 AM To: OrangeCountyBirding AT yahoogroups.com Subject: [OrangeCountyBirding] Bar-tailed Godwit contines, 11/1/09 birders, I just got a call from John Garrett saying the BAR-TAILED GODWIT is still present this morning at Upper Newport Bay. Apparently it moved ~3/8 of a mile towards East Bluff Drive along the edge of the bay. cheers, Neil Gilbert Orange [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: FW: [OrangeCountyBirding] Bar-tailed Godwit, etc. - 10/31/09 From: "Ed Stonick" <edstonick AT earthlink.net> Date: Sun, 1 Nov 2009 08:34:26 -0800 FYI Regards, Ed Ed Stonick Pasadena, CA edstonick AT earthlink.net _____ From: OrangeCountyBirding AT yahoogroups.com [mailto:OrangeCountyBirding AT yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of short_eared_owl12 Sent: Saturday, October 31, 2009 7:01 PM To: OrangeCountyBirding AT yahoogroups.com Subject: [OrangeCountyBirding] Bar-tailed Godwit, etc. - 10/31/09 birders, Well, I guess a post about this bird is pretty much superfluous by now, but I figured those wanting to chase it would be interested in more details. I first found the juvenile BAR-TAILED GODWIT at Upper Newport Bay around 11:30 a.m. It is at the easternmost end of the bay, near the Jamboree Road bridge. It spent most of its time on the rocky area near the bridge, but it also frequently wandered UNDER the bridge itself (foraging on the muddy margins of the creek), where viewing was problematic thanks to the road supports that blocked views much of the time. It also flew 100-150 meters upstream at one point. Parking is tricky. Your best bet would probably be to park along East Bluff Drive and walk from there along the bike trail towards the Jamboree Road bridge. Or, you can do what I did and ride your bike! :) A few other (barely) notable birds today: -American Bittern: one in flight near the old salt dike at Upper Newport Bay -Yellow Warblers: three in the willows lining the San Diego Creek between Michelson and Campus. Probably wintering birds. -Little Corona City Beach: (1) Parasitic Jaeger, (3) Pacific Loons, (400+) Black-vented Shearwaters happy godwit chasing, Neil Gilbert Orange, CA http://ocbirding. blogspot.com/ PS - I'll try to post pics of the Bar-tailed Godwit on my blog tonight or tomorrow. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Bar-tailed Godwit: Orange County CA: Upper Newport Bay From: "wagtail1997" <orcorba AT cox.net> Date: Sat, 31 Oct 2009 20:24:06 -0000 Confirmed. Neil Gilbert sighted a juvenile Bar-tailed Godwit this morning in upper Upper Newport Bay. The bird is by the outlet of San Diego Creek where Jamboree crosses. Parking available on Bay View Way. Still there as of this post. Joel Weintraub Or Co RBA Compiler Subject: Male Western Tanager in East Sacramento From: "pensioner" <al_knoll AT pacbell.net> Date: Sat, 31 Oct 2009 00:00:26 -0000 This morning, in the ash tree. Positive ID. Unusual for my patch. Al Knoll Sacramento, CA Subject: Long-toed Stint From: Eddie Marsh <marshharrier AT btinternet.com> Date: Mon, 26 Oct 2009 08:25:29 -0700 (PDT) Holland had a Long-toed Stint a few days ago, see link, it may help, the dutch bird looks good in comparrison! http://www.dutchbirding.nl/gallery.php?p=bigpic&gal=1&fid=1682&page=1 Hope it helps  Eddie Marsh 17, Post Mill Gardens Grundisburgh Woodbridge Suffolk IP13 6UP Mobile: 07740720961 Home: 01473 735425 Email: marshharrier AT btinternet.com [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Major Bird Rescue Effort at IBRRC - Update 10/30 From: "torusert" <sonomabirding AT gmail.com> Date: Fri, 30 Oct 2009 17:20:13 -0000 Oregon and Washington wildlife rescue centers are overwhelmed with epidemic numbers of wet, cold, and dying sea birds soiled by unusual sea slime. The first group of 150 of the slimed sea birds were driven Saturday from Portland, Oregon by van to International Bird Rescue's (IBRRC) Fairfield, CA bird center for treatment. On Monday the U.S. Coast Guard lent a hand. Using a C-130 a crew flew an additional 305 harmed seabirds birds from Astoria, Oregon to McClellan Air Force Base in Sacramento, CA. Because of the shear number of casualties, IBRRC is treating this emergency as an oil spill, with one significant difference â€" there is no oil. This means that there is no responsible party and therefore no financial support for our rescue effort. Here is the latest update - http://www.ibrrc.org/algae-slime-response-2009.html The birds being treated at IBRRC include the following: Grebes, Murres Red Throated Loons, Pacific Loons, Common Loons and Scoters. Individuals and organizations wishing to assist the effort should contact our volunteer line at 707-207-0380 ext. 109. Tom Rusert Community Outreach ibrrc.org Fairfield, CA Subject: Lewis' Woodpecker in Los Carneros Park, Goleta Oct 28,2009 From: "eppygriffin" <eppygriffin AT yahoo.com> Date: Fri, 30 Oct 2009 07:11:23 -0000 Hi All, I apologize for the delayed post but I couldn't get access to my account before now. On Wednesday morning around 7:30am I had a beautiful male Lewis' Woodpecker in Los Carneros park in Goleta. He was perched in the open on a large dead snag of a tree to the west of the "lake". This snag and the others near it are usually filled with squawking Acorn Woodpeckers but this morning when I looked up into the tree I saw a good sized woodpecker with an almost maraschino pink belly. Only one thing it could be in this area. I eventually got close enough and in the right lighting to see his other field marks clearly. As the guides say "unmistakable". The Google Earth coordinates are: lat: 34.441146° lon: -119.851085 Ed Griffin Rancho Palos Verdes, CA Subject: Request for help From: "STEVE ARLOW" <birder.steve AT btinternet.com> Date: Mon, 26 Oct 2009 16:52:57 -0000 I will be birding in Southern California from mid November for a few weeks from the UK and was hoping someone would be able to give me a few reliable sites for a few target species, namely Mountain Plover, some of the woodpeckers, Clarkes Nutcracker and Yellow-footed Gull (if any are around in November). I have a number of locations but don't know if they are still valid. I am also trying to rearrange an extra day which I would like to spend trying to get two specific target birds, Rock Sandpiper and Harlequin ,north of or around San Francisco, if anyone knows of a good site for these I would be grateful. For those that are able to help please contact me directly, many thanks in advance Steve Arlow Website link - www.birdersplayground.co.uk [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: IBRRC Treating Oregon Sea Birds - Help Needed From: "torusert" <sonomabirding AT gmail.com> Date: Mon, 26 Oct 2009 05:48:24 -0000 Many of you may already know about the incident that is going on along the Oregon / Washington coast right now. A massive rescue effort is under way to save birds caught up in a toxic algae bloom that's proven fatal to hundreds of birds off the coast .Oregon and Washington wildlife rescue centers are overwhelmed with epidemic numbers of wet, cold, and dying sea birds soiled by unusual sea slime. To help, yesterday about 150 of the sea birds were transported from Portland, Oregon via van to International Bird Rescue's (IBRRC) Northern California bird center for treatment.The birds being treated at IBRRC include the following: 38 Grebes, 51 Murres, 40 Red Throated Loons,1 Pacific Loon, 5 Common Loons ,12 Scoters. Hundreds more are expected. Anyone wishing to help contact. ibrrc.org or phone the hospital line at 707-207-0380 x110. http://www.ibrrc.org/algae-slime-response-2009.html Tom Rusert IBRRC- Outreach Fairfield, CA Subject: RE: Marin Co. STINT 10/25 **Photos** From: "John Sterling" <jsterling AT wavecable.com> Date: Sun, 25 Oct 2009 22:36:10 -0700 I just looked at the photos and talked to Todd Easterla. We both agree that the bird looks like a Least Sandpiper to us. I also just looked at photos of Long-toed Stint that I took in Thailand a few years ago. The Pt. Reyes bird has short legs, and very narrow dark centers to the scapulars (should be large black centers on Long-toed), and an all dark bill in most photos, with some photos perhaps showing a pale green base to the lower mandible-which Least can have. The bird looks squat too unlike the more upright stance of Long-toed. So before you jump in your car to chase this bird, you may want to look at the photos critically and decide whether it is worth the chase. Also just spoke with Curtis Marantz about the photos and he is also unconvinced. John John Sterling VVVVVVVVVV 26 Palm Ave Woodland, CA 95695 cell 530 908-3836 jsterling AT wavecable.com From: northbaybirds AT yahoogroups.com [mailto:northbaybirds AT yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Noah Strycker Sent: Sunday, October 25, 2009 9:56 PM To: northbaybirds; palo Subject: [NBB] Marin Co. STINT 10/25 **Photos** Hi birders, Thanks to a timely call from Rich Stallcup, Natalia Ocampo and I were able to relocate the apparent LONG-TOED STINT at Limantour Beach late this afternoon. A few good PHOTOS are posted here: http://www.noahstrycker.com/photos/700/longtoedstint.htm I haven't had much time to study this bird with sources in hand, but I think the images should be carefully examined. Meanwhile, kudos and thanks to Rich for getting the word out! Happy chasing, Noah Strycker [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: RE: [NBB] Marin Co. STINT 10/25 **Photos** From: "John Sterling" <jsterling AT wavecable.com> Date: Sun, 25 Oct 2009 22:36:10 -0700 I just looked at the photos and talked to Todd Easterla. We both agree that the bird looks like a Least Sandpiper to us. I also just looked at photos of Long-toed Stint that I took in Thailand a few years ago. The Pt. Reyes bird has short legs, and very narrow dark centers to the scapulars (should be large black centers on Long-toed), and an all dark bill in most photos, with some photos perhaps showing a pale green base to the lower mandible-which Least can have. The bird looks squat too unlike the more upright stance of Long-toed. So before you jump in your car to chase this bird, you may want to look at the photos critically and decide whether it is worth the chase. Also just spoke with Curtis Marantz about the photos and he is also unconvinced. John John Sterling VVVVVVVVVV 26 Palm Ave Woodland, CA 95695 cell 530 908-3836 jsterling AT wavecable.com From: northbaybirds AT yahoogroups.com [mailto:northbaybirds AT yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Noah Strycker Sent: Sunday, October 25, 2009 9:56 PM To: northbaybirds; palo Subject: [NBB] Marin Co. STINT 10/25 **Photos** Hi birders, Thanks to a timely call from Rich Stallcup, Natalia Ocampo and I were able to relocate the apparent LONG-TOED STINT at Limantour Beach late this afternoon. A few good PHOTOS are posted here: http://www.noahstrycker.com/photos/700/longtoedstint.htm I haven't had much time to study this bird with sources in hand, but I think the images should be carefully examined. Meanwhile, kudos and thanks to Rich for getting the word out! Happy chasing, Noah Strycker [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Re: Marin Co. STINT 10/25 **Photos** From: Joseph Morlan <jmorlan AT gmail.com> Date: Sun, 25 Oct 2009 22:34:23 -0700 Noah, Thanks for posting these excellent photos. I don't have much experience with this species, but I am unclear what field marks point to Long-toed vs. Least Sandpiper. I think the photos show a bird in formative plumage with retained juvenal feathering on the wing coverts. In this plumage I would expect the basic-like mantle feathers to be completely dark centered, rather than gray with dark limited to the feather shafts. The pattern shown looks to me more like basic Least Sandpiper. I think the retained juvenal wing coverts should be mostly pale fringed rather than buff or rusty as in the photos. Also these feathers should be broken at the tip, rather than complete as in these photos. Juvenal Least normally has these feathers complete at the tips. The head feathers are basic-like, but in all plumages, Long-toed Stint should show the dark crown continuing to the bill and the lore stripe fading towards the eye. Here the forehead appears to be largely pale and the lore stripe extends all the way to the eye as in Least Sandpiper. Structurally, Long-toed Stint has not only long toes, but also a very long tarsus which is usually longer than the bill. I tried to compare Measure bill/tarsus ratios from these photos and it seems to me that the tarsus is shorter than the bill. This would be more expected in Least Sandpiper. Long-toed Stint usually (not always) has a pale base to the mandible. I don't see this mark on this bird. Sorry if this sounds negative, but I remain unsure what field marks make this a Long-toed Stint? I am happy to be educated. Thanks again for posting these excellent photos. On Mon, 26 Oct 2009 17:56:27 +1300, Noah Strycker wrote: >Hi birders, > >Thanks to a timely call from Rich Stallcup, Natalia Ocampo and I were >able to relocate the apparent LONG-TOED STINT at Limantour Beach late >this afternoon. > >A few good PHOTOS are posted here: > >http://www.noahstrycker.com/photos/700/longtoedstint.htm > >I haven't had much time to study this bird with sources in hand, but I >think the images should be carefully examined. Meanwhile, kudos and >thanks to Rich for getting the word out! > >Happy chasing, > >Noah Strycker -- Joseph Morlan, Pacifica, CA jmorlan (at) ccsf.edu SF Birding Classes start Nov. 3 http://fog.ccsf.edu/~jmorlan/ California Bird Records Committee http://www.californiabirds.org/ Western Field Ornithologists http://www.westernfieldornithologists.org/ Subject: Re: [NBB] Marin Co. STINT 10/25 **Photos** From: Joseph Morlan <jmorlan AT gmail.com> Date: Sun, 25 Oct 2009 22:34:23 -0700 Noah, Thanks for posting these excellent photos. I don't have much experience with this species, but I am unclear what field marks point to Long-toed vs. Least Sandpiper. I think the photos show a bird in formative plumage with retained juvenal feathering on the wing coverts. In this plumage I would expect the basic-like mantle feathers to be completely dark centered, rather than gray with dark limited to the feather shafts. The pattern shown looks to me more like basic Least Sandpiper. I think the retained juvenal wing coverts should be mostly pale fringed rather than buff or rusty as in the photos. Also these feathers should be broken at the tip, rather than complete as in these photos. Juvenal Least normally has these feathers complete at the tips. The head feathers are basic-like, but in all plumages, Long-toed Stint should show the dark crown continuing to the bill and the lore stripe fading towards the eye. Here the forehead appears to be largely pale and the lore stripe extends all the way to the eye as in Least Sandpiper. Structurally, Long-toed Stint has not only long toes, but also a very long tarsus which is usually longer than the bill. I tried to compare Measure bill/tarsus ratios from these photos and it seems to me that the tarsus is shorter than the bill. This would be more expected in Least Sandpiper. Long-toed Stint usually (not always) has a pale base to the mandible. I don't see this mark on this bird. Sorry if this sounds negative, but I remain unsure what field marks make this a Long-toed Stint? I am happy to be educated. Thanks again for posting these excellent photos. On Mon, 26 Oct 2009 17:56:27 +1300, Noah Strycker wrote: >Hi birders, > >Thanks to a timely call from Rich Stallcup, Natalia Ocampo and I were >able to relocate the apparent LONG-TOED STINT at Limantour Beach late >this afternoon. > >A few good PHOTOS are posted here: > >http://www.noahstrycker.com/photos/700/longtoedstint.htm > >I haven't had much time to study this bird with sources in hand, but I >think the images should be carefully examined. Meanwhile, kudos and >thanks to Rich for getting the word out! > >Happy chasing, > >Noah Strycker -- Joseph Morlan, Pacifica, CA jmorlan (at) ccsf.edu SF Birding Classes start Nov. 3 http://fog.ccsf.edu/~jmorlan/ California Bird Records Committee http://www.californiabirds.org/ Western Field Ornithologists http://www.westernfieldornithologists.org/ Subject: Long-toed Stint Marin County CA From: "ed3de" <ed.debell AT gmail.com> Date: Mon, 26 Oct 2009 03:11:29 -0000 I was able to view the Stallcup Long-toed Stint at Limantour Beach Pt. Reyes Nat. Seashore Marin Count at 5:00pm today. According to Rich Stallcup's audio post on NoCal Bird Box he found the bird yesterday and returned today to photograph it. When I arrived the sun was out and light was good. The bird was alone and not associating with the Sanderings running on the beach. There were five other birders they looking at the bird from about 15 feet away when I arrived. The bird was very approachable. It was feeding in washed-up dried-out kelp strands on the dry beach sand about 15 feet toward the ocean from the grasses growing on the dunes. So it was not feeding on the wet sand but in the dry sand area. The bird is in basic plumage and looks much like a Least Sandpiper. To my eye the bird was browner than a western basic and grayer that a Least basic. The bill was longer than a Least more like a Western Sanpiper bill and curved down. The leg and toe color is strikingly different being yellow-green (chartreuse) and uniform throughout. The legs from the ankles to the toes were long and the toes were very long and tipped with black claws. Chin and throat was white and had white under-wings and a white line running down the upper wing. Clear white belly and UTCs. There was a birder from PRBO taking close up photos so those and Rich's should be posted soon. Sorry I did not have a camera. The bird bobbed it's tail slightly (not as much as a Tattler or a Spotted), ran between the kelp strands holding its rump slightly up, walked when feeding sticking its bill deep into the sand and every so often cleaning it bill with its long toes. From the main parking lot walk across the new brdige as if you were walking towards the beach. Make a right turn before the dunes and walk about a quarter mile (to one-half mile) until you reach some 30-40 foot high Monterey Cypress (last ones) . At the last Monterey pine, turn left towards the beach. Walk through the dunes to the beach itself. There is some bull kelp up around the dunes, Keep going. The bird was 50 yards further where north. Some times hiding in the kelp strands. Hope it stays a few more day so many of you can get to see this extraordinary vagrant. Ed DeBellevue San Francisco Subject: FWD: NBB: Long-toed Stint From: Stan Walens <swalens AT ucsd.edu> Date: Sun, 25 Oct 2009 19:14:11 -0700 The following message was posted on North Bay Birds at 6:50 tonight. Thought it should be on Calbirds asap. Stan Walens, San Diego From the North Cal BirdBox Marin Co. --------- On Oct 24-25, a juvenile LONG-TOED STINT in basic plumage was seen at Limantour Beach (1:00pm). From the main parking lot walk across the new brdige as if you were walking towards the beach. Make a right turn before the dunes and walk about a quarter mile (to one-half mile) until you reach some 30-40 foot high Monterey pines. At the last Monterey pine, turn left towards the beach. Walk through the dunes to the beach itself. There is some bull kelp up around the dunes, Keep going. The bird was 50-100 yards further where volunteers were doing work. (Rich Stallcup) The bird was re-found by others later. The bird seemed to like the grass area up near the dunes. (Ed DeBellevue) Transcribed by Calvin Lou SF Subject: Monterey Seabirds this Saturday From: Roger Wolfe <rogwolfe AT cruzio.com> Date: Wed, 21 Oct 2009 16:55:18 -0700 Monterey Seabirds will be running our last trip of the season on Sat. Oct. 24 out of Monterey. Cost is $105 per person. Todd Easterla and Dan Singer will be on board as spotters. October brings the richest diversity of seabirds to the Monterey Bay and the best chance for seeing megararities. STREAKED SHEARWATERS have been found the last two consecutive years on the mid October pelagic trips with Monterey Seabirds. Other October highlights have included Manx and Flesh-footed Shearwater, Yellow-billed Loon, Laysan Albatross and Tufted Puffin. Marine Mammal sighting in October include Orca and Blue, Sei and Humpback Whales. You can register online at http://www.montereyseabirds.com or call 831 375 4658 to reserve. Cheers, Roger Wolfe for Monterey Seabirds Soquel Subject: Oct 24th Half Moon Bay and Nov 7th Santa Barbara Pelagic Updates From: "toddamcgrath" <toddamcgrath AT yahoo.com> Date: Wed, 21 Oct 2009 22:32:23 -0000 Birders, Both these trips now have above the minimum number required to run the trip. In other words they are a "go". I will attach Debi Shearwater's instructions about the Saturday trip out of Half Moon Bay at the end of this note. Over the last several weeks, Half Moon Bay has produced a couple of outstanding birds; White-chinned Petrel and Short-tailed Albatross, plus a good variety of other sought after birds including Laysan ALbatrosses and Flesh-footed Shearwaters. Just a few spaces remain, contact Debi by e-mail at Debi AT shearwaterjourneys.com if you wish to join us. Cost is $135 meet at 6:30AM. Full details are in Debi's email at the bottom of the post. On November 7th, we will be running a 12-13 hour trip to the shelf edge west of Santa Barbara. Our July deepwater trip signaled the start of "Cook's Petrel Fever." We will be looking for things like Stejenger's and Mottled Petrel, but who knows what might be out there? There are about 15 spots left, but we have enough participants now to run the trip. The superfast Condor Express will be our boat for this trip. Check out condorcruises.com to see the boat. Call SeaLanding at (888) 77-WHALE to book your spot. Cost is $195 and we meet at 6:30AM for a 7AM departure. These two trips, along with Debi's October 25th Monterey Bay trip are likely the last chances to get offshore in 2009. I am really looking forward to all three of these trips, and I hope you will be able to join one or more of them. I am particularly excited about the Half Moon Bay trip, as there have been very few trips off this part of the coast, and it will be a new water for me. Todd McGrath SKUA AT MSN.COM Calabasas, CA Debi's trip information: Departing from: Half Moon Bay Sportfishing Vessel: New Captain Pete Skipper: Dennis Baxter Leaders: Todd McGrath & Debi Shearwater Meeting time: 6:30 am Return time: 3:30 to 4:30 pm Cost: $135 per person Bring: lunch, including drinks; cameras, waterproof outer layers, including protection for cameras. Dress: warmly, gloves, hats. No persons in open-toed shoes will be admitted to the boat. Take seasickness precautions/medications No scopes or tripods Payment: Cash, $135, exact amount preferred, at the dock. Reservations: Absolutely essential. Please email me, You will need to send the following by email: Your full name Your snail mail address (the USCG requires this) Your cell phone number, or a number where you can be reached Your email address Your reservation will only be considered secure when you have received a return email or phone call from me. Space is limited, and reservations are taken on a first-come, first-served basis. Directions: From San Francisco: Take Highway 1 south, through Pacifica. Approximately 15 miles south of Pacifica, turn right at the first light at Capistrano Blvd. Make the first left into parking lot, then take the first right at stop sign and head toward the pier. Half Moon Bay Sportfishing is on the right with other shops. From the Peninsula: Take Highway 92 west to Highway 1 in Half Moon Bay, then turn right and head north on Highway 1. Go approximately 4 miles, then turn left at the light at Capistrano Avenue. Make the first left into parking lot, then take the first right at stop sign and head toward the pier Half Moon Bay Sportfishing is on the right with other shops Subject: Voting is underway for Audubon California's 2009 Bird of the Year From: "FROST, Garrison" <gfrost AT audubon.org> Date: Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:03:15 -0400 Voting has begun for Audubon California's 2009 Bird of the Year, which will recognize a California bird species of conservation interest that made a significant impact in 2009. All members of the public are encouraged to cast their votes online on Audubon California's website at www.ca.audubon.org through Dec. 7. You can vote as many times as you like. Audubon California created the designation this year to highlight the state's remarkable birds and the conservation challenges many of them face. Soon after voting ends on Dec. 7, the winner will be announced to those who provided their email address to Audubon California while voting. A more public announcement will be made soon afterwards. Although the public can vote for any bird, the Audubon California Board of Directors has nominated six species in particular: California Condor, Brown Pelican, Peregrine Falcon, Acorn Woodpecker, Yellow-billed Magpie, and Western Snowy Plover. Garrison Frost Audubon California Emeryville, CA gfrost AT audubon.org [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Last Call- CVBS From: "Cheri Pillsbury" <cpillsbury AT softcom.net> Date: Wed, 21 Oct 2009 00:49:15 -0700 It's less than a month until one of the best birding festivals around is back- this time with some new field trips, scheduling, speakers, and hotel (well, newly renovated). One field trip already has a waiting list, and others are almost full. Don't miss out on the trips you want- register soon! The 13th Annual Central Valley Birding Symposium is happening Nov.19-22 in Stockton, CA, at the Hilton Stockton (or the Stockton Hilton, as most people call it). Attend workshops with raptor expert Bill Clark, birding pros Jon Dunn and Joe Morlan, as well as other informative folks. Our evening programs include Murrelet Halterman on Yellow-billed Cuckoos and Stephen Shunk on "The Magic of Birding". We have drawing and digiscoping workshops, our always popular and informative ID Panel with guest experts, programs for beginning birders, and more. The many Field Trips frequently turn up chasable goodies. The Birder's Market is full of artists and vendors with a wonderful selection of bird and nature related items. FOR MORE INFO OR TO REGISTER check the brochure on the website at www.cvbs.org where you can also register online for the first time. We have a secure link and are accepting credit cards. Or, as always, you can contact Frances Oliver at hummer52 AT sbcglobal.net or (209) 369-2010. Need a break from these stressful times? Treat yourselves to some good times with good folks doing what you love. See you there! Cheri Pillsbury, Stockton Central Valley Birding Symposium Subject: RE: WHITE-CHINNED PETREL off Half Moon Bay. From: "John Sterling" <jsterling AT wavecable.com> Date: Sun, 18 Oct 2009 22:38:09 -0700 I put up a few photos of the petrel on my website at http://sterlingbirds.smugmug.com (click on Sterling's Rare California Birds gallery). Thanks to Alvaro who got us on the right track with the species identification. WOW, what a day. John Sterling VVVVVVVVVV 26 Palm Ave Woodland, CA 95695 cell 530 908-3836 jsterling AT wavecable.com From: CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com [mailto:CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Alvaro Jaramillo Sent: Sunday, October 18, 2009 9:09 PM To: CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com Subject: [CALBIRDS] WHITE-CHINNED PETREL off Half Moon Bay. Folks Sequoia Audubon Society ran their first ever pelagic out of Half Moon Bay, San Mateo, today and it was fantastic! This tops the one last week for the San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory where three species of albatross were seen (BF, Laysan, and Short-tailed). Today we struck gold with a White-chinned Petrel, if accepted a new record for California! The bird first was in the wake of the boat and wheeled off, fortunately we were able to make it come in to some chum and it gave some close passes before sitting behind the boat. Everyone on the boat had looks and we were able to study the features of the species. The bulky structure, short tail, large body, big belly of the bird were noticeably different from a Flesh-footed Shearwater (which we saw soon after this sighting). As well the bill was dull yellow to the tip, with each bill plate nicely outlined in black. Zooming up on photos we could see the small white chin patch, but this was not visible in the field. The bird was fresh looking and even in wear state. I should also mention we did see one or perhaps two Laysan Albatross today as well. I set up a quicky website to post a few of my photos of the petrel. Others on the boat were able to get much higher quality shots, and I look forward to seeing those (please send me the good ones all!). Here are the photos: http://www.birdsofchile.com/WCPE.htm Thanks Jennifer Rycenga and Gary Dehgi for helping in the setup of this trip! Also for having the perserverance after being shut out by poor weather earlier in the fall. It was soooo Awesome!!!! Alvaro Alvaro Jaramillo chucao AT coastside.net Half Moon Bay, California Field Guides - Birding Tours Worldwide www.fieldguides.com [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: WHITE-CHINNED PETREL off Half Moon Bay. From: "Alvaro Jaramillo" <chucao AT coastside.net> Date: Sun, 18 Oct 2009 21:08:41 -0700 Folks Sequoia Audubon Society ran their first ever pelagic out of Half Moon Bay, San Mateo, today and it was fantastic! This tops the one last week for the San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory where three species of albatross were seen (BF, Laysan, and Short-tailed). Today we struck gold with a White-chinned Petrel, if accepted a new record for California! The bird first was in the wake of the boat and wheeled off, fortunately we were able to make it come in to some chum and it gave some close passes before sitting behind the boat. Everyone on the boat had looks and we were able to study the features of the species. The bulky structure, short tail, large body, big belly of the bird were noticeably different from a Flesh-footed Shearwater (which we saw soon after this sighting). As well the bill was dull yellow to the tip, with each bill plate nicely outlined in black. Zooming up on photos we could see the small white chin patch, but this was not visible in the field. The bird was fresh looking and even in wear state. I should also mention we did see one or perhaps two Laysan Albatross today as well. I set up a quicky website to post a few of my photos of the petrel. Others on the boat were able to get much higher quality shots, and I look forward to seeing those (please send me the good ones all!). Here are the photos: http://www.birdsofchile.com/WCPE.htm Thanks Jennifer Rycenga and Gary Dehgi for helping in the setup of this trip! Also for having the perserverance after being shut out by poor weather earlier in the fall. It was soooo Awesome!!!! Alvaro Alvaro Jaramillo chucao AT coastside.net Half Moon Bay, California Field Guides - Birding Tours Worldwide www.fieldguides.com [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: GC Flyc-yes, BW Warb-no From: Paul Keller <wrentitpk AT verizon.net> Date: Sat, 17 Oct 2009 23:31:50 -0700 Saw the Laguna Grande Lake GREAT-CRESTED FLYCATCHER at the yellowjacket nest site today at 1pm for about 10 minutes working the willows at eye level. Birders that I met when I just arrived told me that it had made an appearance at about 9:30 at the same place. Park at Virgin St and Grant ave and walk down the trail to a 3-way intersection of the trail near the broken yellow tape near the yellowjacket nest. (Google maps: enter Virgin and Grant, Del Rey Oaks CA 93940) I arrived at the Manresa bicycle wheel overlook site at about 2pm and stayed until about 3:30 and did not see the BLUE-WINGED WARBLER reported earlier this week. A birder that I met told me that he had been there since late morning also without seeing it. Paul Keller, SB Vandenberg Village Subject: re Sedge Wren at Glen Helen From: "profile440" <beren001 AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Sat, 17 Oct 2009 19:25:03 -0000 It was pointed out to me that my directions were unclear. If you park in the first parking lot near the lake and walk between the lake and the riparian area you will come to a reedy channel that goes into the lake with a little bridge that crosses. The bird was seen between the bridge and the main marshy area. Last seen about 11:50. Dave Chadsey Etiwanda Subject: Sedge Wren in San Bernardino County From: "profile440" <beren001 AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Sat, 17 Oct 2009 17:21:23 -0000 A Sedge Wren was found this morning by Mike San Miguel at Glen Helen Park off hwy 15 north of hwy 210. The bird is the reedy channel east of the main lake near the riparian area. Subject: SE Farallon Bird Wave including Yellow-breasted Bunting From: Jim Tietz <jimtietz AT yahoo.com> Date: Fri, 16 Oct 2009 11:30:42 -0700 (PDT) Hi Cal Birders, After several weeks of very few birds, we finally got a good migration wave. The wave started on 8 October with good number of western birds. On the 9th, we had ideal fallout conditions and the birds kept coming and coming. The Violet-green Swallows were the most obvious as everytime you'd try to count them there would be more. Also conspicuous were the Yellow-rumped Warblers which were flycatching off the rocks everywhere. A very drab BLUE-HEADED VIREO turned up early in the morning that I initially dismissed as a Cassin's Vireo, but I became more interested in it after I got some better looks, though, we still could not be certain of the ID until I examined some photos that Kristie Nelson took with my camera late in the day that showed the complete white edging to the outer rectrices. In the early afternoon, Ryan spotted a GRAY-CHEECKED THRUSH amongst the hordes of Hermit Thrushes on the, tough to view, northside of the lighthouse. We ended the day with an incredible 1332 landbirds seen on the island. Island high counts were set for Violet-green Swallow and Audubon's Warbler. See below for a more detailed list. The following day brought more ideal weather, but fewer birds. Today was the last day for Matt Brady, Kristie Nelson, and me, and we only had half a day to bird. Because we had to pack our gear and clean, we did not get much time to look at birds in the morning. Ryan Terrill, Jill Gautreaux, Mark Dettling, and Andrew Greene were staying behind and Pete Warzybok was coming out on the boat. After I went over some of our protocols with Pete at the lighthouse, he and I started heading down the trail. About halfway down, I flushed two birds from the side of the trail – one was a junco, the other was similar sized, but had a brown back with white outer rectrices. I thought it would be a Vesper Sparrow so I stopped to take a look at it. The bird did not have a Vesper-type eyering, and it had strong buffy lines down the back. I told Pete, “I’m not sure what this bird is.” I thought maybe a longspur, but quickly ruled them out for various reasons. The bird had a strong mustard-yellow wash across the chest, narrow (but distinct) streaking on the sides and flanks, conical bill larger than the junco's with a black maxilla and pink lower mandible, a dark line wrapping around the auricular and pale lores, short wings, and white outer rectrices on a moderately long tail. I then realized that I was looking at an Asian bunting; I was thinking Yellow-breasted Bunting, but didn’t want to say that because I didn't really know the field marks for this bird, and I wasn’t sure about other possibilities such as Yellowhammer. At that moment, I heard somebody mentioning on the radio something about the Black-throated Green Warbler that Kristie had seen just 20 minutes earlier. Over the radio, I said something like, “Drop whatever you’re doing, there’s a bunting from Asia up here.” Matt, Ryan, and Kristie then started sprinting up the hillside. Unfortunately, the bunting flew up Little Lighthouse Hill by the time they got there and we could not relocate it before leaving. On the boat, Matt showed me all the possibilities in the Birds of East Asia book, and it was undoubtedly a YELLOW-BREASTED BUNTING. It was certainly a good bird to see just before leaving, but I feel bad that nobody else saw it. Sadly, the rest of the crew still on the island were not able to relocate it either. So no photos and no resight does not bode well for CBRC acceptance, but I'll submit my description anyway. The highlights of our bird wave are listed below: --9 October: 87 spp of migrants, 1332 individual landbirds Intergrade Flicker: 1 Least Flycatcher: 1 BLUE-HEADED VIREO: 1 Red-eyed Vireo: 1 Violet-green Swallow: 250 - island high count GRAY-CHEEKED THRUSH: 1 Hermit Thrush: 100 Tennessee Warbler: 1 Audubon's Warbler: 400 - island high count Blackburnian Warbler: 1 Blackpoll Warbler: 1 American Redstart: 1 Ovenbird: 1 Clay-colored Sparrow: 2 Brewer's Sparrow: 1 Song Sparrow: 1 morphna White-throated Sparrow: 7 Chestnut-collared Longspur: 1 Rose-breasted Grosbeak: 1 Bobolink: 1 Lawrence's Goldfinch: 1 --10 October: 85 migrant bird species, 692 individual landbirds Greater white-fronted Goose:1 Band-tailed Pigeon: 1 Common Poorwill: 1 (not an arrival) Horned Lark: 1 Hammond's Flycatcher: 1 Golden-crowned Kinglet: 59 -island high count Ruby-crowbed Kinglet: 54 American Pipit: 69 Chestnut-sided Warbler: 1 Magnolia Warbler: 1 Black-throated Green Warbler: 1 Palm Warbler: 1 Black-and-white Warbler: 1 White-throated Sparrow: 8 -island high count YELLOW-BREASTED BUNTING: 1 Orchard Oriole: 1 --11 October-- Northern Shoveler:1 Tropical Kingbird:1 Weird American Pipit (see IDfrontiers post, and this link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/henicorhina) Black-throated Blue Warbler: 1 Ovenbird: 1 Lark Bunting: 1 Yellow-headed Blackbird: 1 James R. Tietz Davis, CA Subject: Yellow Wagtail in San Mateo County From: "peter_colasanti" <peter_colasanti AT yahoo.com> Date: Thu, 15 Oct 2009 23:59:02 -0000 Hi All, I was birding Pillar Point Harbor today with Arnel Guanlao and we found a Yellow Wagtail. From the parking lot northwest of Princeton, the bird was about 2/3 of the way down the West Shoreline Access trail which ends at the base of the north jetty. There are some Coffeeberry/Buckthorn/Rhamnus bushes and the bird's activities were centered around these for over 15 minutes starting at about 10:30 this morning. Peter Colasanti Subject: Tropicbird Daze - San Diego To The Shelf Edge Pelagic Trip Report From: "thunefeld" <thunefeld AT gmail.com> Date: Thu, 15 Oct 2009 03:38:24 -0000 Greetings, Buena Vista Audubon Society's Oct 10-12 pelagic trip to shelf edge from San Diego aboard Grande into San Diego, Los Angeles and Ventura County waters had it all: Multiple tropicbirds, multiple San Diego boobies, 9000 storm-petrels on the Nine Mile Bank, Skua, many hypoleucus Xantus's, myriad jaegers, up close and personal Blue & Fin Whales, Sabine's Gulls, Arctic Tern and Burrowing Owls 130 n miles offshore. Visit this link for video, trip track, trip report, photos, list totals and species list by regions. http://www.socalbirding.com/tripreports/sandiegooct10112009.html W. Terry Hunefeld, Encinitas Life is short. Seabird often. In memory of Luke Cole "Come on out with us to see what's out there." Southern California Seabirding Trips Buena Vista Audubon Society http://www.SoCalBirding.com Los Coronados Islands, Channel Islands to the Edge of the Continental Shelf Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/SoCalBirding Subject: RE: Request for "countable" California Condor record from Kings County From: "Jim Gain" <phalarope AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Wed, 14 Oct 2009 19:36:20 -0700 When I researched the birds and birders from Stanislaus County I used the following websites: For more information about the early contributors to the knowledge of birds in Stanislaus County go to the following websites: * Archival Field Notebooks Query Page - http://elib.cs.berkeley.edu/mvz/volumes.html * Berkeley Museum of Vertebrate Zoology - http://mvz.berkeley.edu/Biographies.html * Berkeley Natural History Museum Archives - http://bnhm.berkeley.edu/query/index.php * Searchable Ornithological Research Archive - http://elibrary.unm.edu/sora/ It looks like you tried SORA already, but maybe the others might help. Jim Gain Modesto From: CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com [mailto:CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of calexandrinus Sent: Tuesday, October 13, 2009 10:56 PM To: CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com Subject: [CALBIRDS] Request for "countable" California Condor record from Kings County I have taken to researching Kings County birds and am helping to document and compile a checklist. Starting with Cole and Hansen 2005 and Sterling's county lists I am at 197. Missing is California Condor. I have been researching the internet and have found many wonderful resources but no Kings Co record, I have tried SORA, Kings Co historical sites, historical photo sites, etc. I do have http://www.ventanaws.org/pdf/about_research/HTharveyreport_finalNov07.pdf p 21 that has a nice range map, GPS satellite, of zoo hatched birds based out of Pinnacles NM, 306, 307, 312, and 313 showing that most have entered Kings Co airspace. I also have the following narrative from the NPS site 307 During the October 2004 release event, 307 delighted the crowd with her graceful flight away from the release pen. She was hatched at the LA Zoo on 5/5/03. Equipped with a GPS transceiver, she continued to be one of the most adventurous condors in the flock and was always expanding her range which included San Benito, Monterey, Merced, Fresno, Kings and San Luis Obispo Counties. She underwent multiple rounds of chelation and was released back into the wild. Unfortunately, she was found dead of unknown causes in May of 2007. But alas these are all Zoo birds. If anyone knows of a sighting of a countable bird in Kings Co please contact me. I have made this request locally without luck. Maybe one of you longtime birders will come up with it. John Lockhart Visalia [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: Birdathon for Kids (Sat. Oct 17th) 8:30-2:00PM From: "torusert" <sonomabirding AT gmail.com> Date: Wed, 14 Oct 2009 17:01:42 -0000 Bird with your kids in Sonoma Valley this Saturday October 17th 8:30AM- 2:00PM ! Oct. 17, 2009 - Kids Bird-A-Thon to help support the important bird science at PRBO-Conservation Science based in Sonoma. Support our team - "SONOMA VALLEY KITES". Join us and bird with your kids this weekend for a half day rain or shine! Start time 8:30AM at the Sonoma Community Center, 276 East Napa St. Kids ages 8-16 are welcomed. We will car pool and move through Sonoma Valley and surrounds as a team. Phone 707-939-8007 to sign up or email sonomabirding AT gmail.com. Visit http://www.firstgiving.com/sonomabirding-prbo-bird-a-thon to see how well we are doing. tom rusert darren peterie sonoma,ca. Subject: Request for "countable" California Condor record from Kings County From: "calexandrinus" <j_f_lockhart AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Wed, 14 Oct 2009 05:56:23 -0000 I have taken to researching Kings County birds and am helping to document and compile a checklist. Starting with Cole and Hansen 2005 and Sterling's county lists I am at 197. Missing is California Condor. I have been researching the internet and have found many wonderful resources but no Kings Co record, I have tried SORA, Kings Co historical sites, historical photo sites, etc. I do have http://www.ventanaws.org/pdf/about_research/HTharveyreport_finalNov07.pdf p 21 that has a nice range map, GPS satellite, of zoo hatched birds based out of Pinnacles NM, 306, 307, 312, and 313 showing that most have entered Kings Co airspace. I also have the following narrative from the NPS site 307 During the October 2004 release event, 307 delighted the crowd with her graceful flight away from the release pen. She was hatched at the LA Zoo on 5/5/03. Equipped with a GPS transceiver, she continued to be one of the most adventurous condors in the flock and was always expanding her range which included San Benito, Monterey, Merced, Fresno, Kings and San Luis Obispo Counties. She underwent multiple rounds of chelation and was released back into the wild. Unfortunately, she was found dead of unknown causes in May of 2007. But alas these are all Zoo birds. If anyone knows of a sighting of a countable bird in Kings Co please contact me. I have made this request locally without luck. Maybe one of you longtime birders will come up with it. John Lockhart Visalia Subject: WFO website updates From: Joseph Morlan <jmorlan AT gmail.com> Date: Tue, 13 Oct 2009 08:01:56 -0700 Calbirders, Thanks to generous contributions from Todd Easterla, Roy Carlson and others, the Western Field Ornithologists website has been updated to include photo of the recent Blue-winged Warbler near Santa Cruz, and Short-tailed Albatross off Half Moon Bay. http://www.westernfieldornithologists.org/ Abstracts from the latest issue of "Western Birds" (vol 40 No 3) have also been posted. The full text including photos of 33rd report of the California Bird Records Committee has been posted at the CBRC site: http://www.californiabirds.org/ Enjoy! -- Joseph Morlan, Pacifica, CA jmorlan (at) ccsf.edu SF Birding Classes start Nov. 3 http://fog.ccsf.edu/~jmorlan/ California Bird Records Committee http://www.californiabirds.org/ Western Field Ornithologists http://www.westernfieldornithologists.org/ Subject: Raptor Workshop with Bill Clark Nov 14-15 From: "allenf21" <afish AT parksconservancy.org> Date: Mon, 12 Oct 2009 23:31:48 -0000 A RARE OPPORTUNITY for Bay Area birders: Bill Clark, author of the Peterson Guide to Hawks and other raptor books, will teach a Weekend Raptor Identification Class in the Marin Headlands on November 14-15, 2009. Sponsored by the Golden Gate Raptor Observatory, the class will be held from 9 am to 4 pm, both Saturday and Sunday, meeting at Fort Cronkhite in the Marin Headlands each day. Saturday, November 14th, will be a classroom day with Bill presenting slides of western US raptors and his detailed ID tips. Sunday, November 15th will be a field day, where the class will carpool to a field site in Marin, the Delta, or elsewhere in the Bay Area to see the greatest possible diversity of raptors. Cost of the two-day session will be $150 per person. If you want to be part of this class, please send a $50 minimum down payment by November 1st to: GGRO Bill Clark Class Golden Gate Raptor Observatory Bldg 1064 Ft Cronkhite Sausalito, Ca 94965 Please make out your check to "GGNPC", noted with "Bill Clark Class" in the memo section. Please include your email address and phone numbers, so we can email you verification of your down payment. The reminder of your payment must be received by the day of the class. If you have questions about the class, please call GGRO at 415-331-0730 or email Allen Fish at afish AT parksconservancy.org. Bill Clark is the author of the Peterson Field Guide to Hawks, as well as other world raptor guides, and many scientific papers on raptor trapping, identification, and behavior. He was a founder of Cape May Bird Observatory, especially pioneering the banding station there in the mid-1960s. He was employed as the first director of the National Wildlife Federation's Raptor Information Center in the 1980s, and started his own ecotour company, Raptours, in the 1990s. Bill currently lives in Texas but continues to travel widely to see new raptor species. Subject: Humboldt County AMGP update From: "Ken Burton" <brdnrd AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Mon, 12 Oct 2009 13:59:58 -0700 The juvenile AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER found yesterday in Loleta by Rob Fowler continues today. Late this morning I found it with a dozen Pacific Golden-Plovers and a Black-bellied Plover in the active pasture (where there was also a freshly-deceased cow being tagged and vandalized by a gang of ravens) on the north side of Cannibal Island Road just west of Cock Robin Island Road. This is a field west of where I think Rob found it and the vegetation is sparser. The flock stayed pretty close to the road. Ken Burton Arcata Subject: Luke Cole Memorial Challenge Wrap-up From: Steve Glover <countylines AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Thu, 8 Oct 2009 18:03:04 -0700 (PDT) Hi all, The Luke Cole Memorial Challenge was conducted over the weekend of September 26th-27th. The spirit and generosity of the California birding community has probably never been on display at the level it was that weekend. Literally hundreds of birders, many of whom knew Luke and some of them who didn't, sifted through nearly all of California's counties in search of as many species as possible in a 48-hour period. Many of those birders were organized by volunteer coordinators who also compiled county lists. We wish we could thank everyone who participated! Don Roberson has posted a nice page about Luke and the effort in Monterey County on his website at: http://creagrus.home.montereybay.com/LukeColeWeekend.html Luke's webpage is still active and highly entertaining. There you can see just how obsessed with Root Beer Luke truly was, as well as view a list of links to other Luke Coles around the world (!). His website is at: http://www.lukecole.com The cumulative list has settled in at between 385 and 387 species! This is a lot more than I had guessed and not far from 400, which is where Alan Hopkins, one of the organizers of the event, set the bar. The list includes 24 species of duck, 11 of heron and egret, 18 of vulture and raptor (we include here wild-fledged California Condors), 38 of shorebird, 21 of gull and tern, 10 of owl, 14 of woodpecker, 15 of flycatcher, 10 of vireo, 10 of crow and jay, 25 of warbler, and 23 of sparrow. Please note that the cumulative list currently includes Flesh-footed Shearwater and Bell's Vireo. Did anyone actually see those species during the challenge? If so, please let us know. If neither was seen, we tallied 385. Amongst the notables was Manx Shearwater, Blue-footed and Brown boobies, Broad-winged Hawk, Crested Caracara, American Oystercatcher, Hudsonian Godwit, Great-crested Flycatcher, White-eyed, Yellow-throated, Blue-headed and Philadelphia vireos, Gray Catbird, Brown Thrasher, Painted Bunting, and Dickcissel. In addition to the cumulative state list, we have also tabulated lists for each of California's 58 counties. Many of the lists are probably about as complete as possible (with Monterey far ahead of the field at 232 species) but others have a lot of room to grow. If you were in the field during the challenge, please look over the lists for the counties you were in and see if you have anything to add. If you do, please email me at countylines AT sbcglobal.net. To view the cumulative state lists and the individual county lists, please go to: http://www.markeaton.org/lukeColeChallenge.html Some of you will probably need to right click on the highlighted word "here" to open the file. Finally, this is the last call to make a pledge to the Center for Race, Poverty and the Environment, the organization Luke co-founded in 1989. To do so, please go to: http://www.markeaton.org/lukeColeChallenge.html A heartfelt thanks to everyone who helped with this event! Steve Glover Mark Eaton Alan Hopkins Brent Plater Subject: Re: (unknown) From: Peter Headland <Peter AT matrixlink.com> Date: Wed, 07 Oct 2009 15:24:50 -0700 *The previous message which appears to come from Kris is a link to a malicious site that will try to infect your computer. DO NOT CLINK THE LINK!* Kris - your PC may be infected... -- Peter Headland [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Subject: (unknown) From: Kris Olson <kristenolson AT yahoo.com> Date: Wed, 7 Oct 2009 14:56:10 -0700 (PDT) http://www.arcoval.eu/4sQCjtNGr0.html Subject: 1200 Least Storm-Petrels Off San Diego; Nov San Diego Grande trip cancelled From: "thunefeld" <thunefeld AT gmail.com> Date: Wed, 07 Oct 2009 19:26:57 -0000 Greetings, The trip track showing locations of Grande (off San Diego) this past weekend including the locations of the spectacular flocks of Least Storm-Petrels, the official trip list, photos and Paul Lehman’s trip report is now posted: http://socalbirding.com/tripreports/sandiegooct32009.html This weekend’s 48-hour trip to the shelf edge aboard Grande from San Diego still has 6 openings available. We’ll spend some time on the Nine Mile Bank on the way out and hit the Thirty Mile Bank for one more attempted look at the enormous storm-petrel flocks and try to get better looks at Craveri’s Murrelets before heading out to and past the Cortez and Tanner Banks. The weather and seas appear to be nearly perfect for a wonderful 48 hours on the Pacific. Details: http://socalbirding.com/release/sandiegooct10112009.html We regret to announce that after much head-scratching and hair-pulling, we reluctantly had to make the decision today to cancel the undersubscribed November 14-15 San Diego Grande 48-hour trip. Rather than waiting until the last minute to “pull the plug” we wanted to give registrants the opportunity (albeit short notice) to switch to this weekend’s trip or with more time to possibly to switch to the tantalizing deep-water November 7 trip on the fastest-boat-on-the coast, Santa Barbara's Condor Express. Details: http://socalbirding.com/release/santabarbaranov72009.html Those who have registered for the November 14-15 Grande trip will receive a phone call from Point Loma Sportfishing within the next 5 days to process a refund. If you wish to switch to this weekend’s trip, you should call the Sportfishing office immediately at 619-223-1627. We sincerely regret this cancellation and do not take it lightly, understanding that many participants make airline reservations and other plans that are difficult to alter. W. Terry Hunefeld, Encinitas Life is short. Seabird often. In memory of Luke Cole “Come on out with us to see what’s out there.” Southern California Seabirding Trips Buena Vista Audubon Society http://www.SoCalBirding.com Los Coronados Islands, Channel Islands to the Edge of the Continental Shelf Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/SoCalBirding Subject: Nov 7 Deepwater Petrel Hunt - Santa Barbara From: "toddamcgrath" <toddamcgrath AT yahoo.com> Date: Wed, 07 Oct 2009 18:24:17 -0000 Autumn Petrel Chase On The Condor Express Santa Barbara It was November 17, 1979. An intrepid group of some of California's most experienced birders was headed towards the Davidson Seamount, about 60 nmi southwest of Pt. Sur Monterey Co, to look for Cook's Petrels. A research boat has seen some the previous month, and hopes were high. Along with 7 Cook's petrels, a Stejneger's Petrel was seen, the first for California and North America. The fascinating story of this record is documented by Guy McCaskie and Don Roberson in a 1992 Western Birds article link below: http://elibrary.unm.edu/sora/wb/v23n04/p0145-p0152.pdf Since then only a handful of Stejneger's Petrels have been recorded off CA, almost all from research vessels . The paucity of records is likely due to the fact that Stejneger's is present off CA mostly in the late fall (late Oct-Nov), and well offshore past the shelf edge. Few trips venture out that far at that season. On November 7th, 2009 at 7:00 a.m. another group of intrepid birders will be looking to repeat history and locate this species along the shelf edge off Southern California thanks to Condor Cruises. Our plan will be to head to the shelf break near Arguello Canyon or the San Juan Seamount. So far 2009 has proven to be a remarkable year for Cook's Petrels reasonably close to shore, and our hope is that these conditions will persist, increasing our chances. Mottled Petrel is also possible in Nov. , and it is quite possible that Cook's will linger this late into the fall. In Early November it is also possible to find Red-billed and Red-tailed tropicbird, Black-footed and Laysan Albatross, as well as lingering fall migrants. Flesh-footed Shearwater seems to peak off So Cal in early November, and there are still new species to be found at this season. 2009 has been the best year of Southern California pelagic birding in decades. As a result, the folks at Condor Cruises have scheduled an all day (12-13 hour) pelagic trip to the continental shelf edge on November 7, 2009 departing at 7:00 a.m. This trip will cost $195 and will head either due west to Arguello Canyon, or to the San Juan Seamount, depending on weather and sea surface temps. Either place could produce Stejneger's Petrel (with a cluster of records Oct-Nov) just to the north. I hope you will join us on the final Condor Express birding trip of the year. REGISTRATION This trip is NOT sponsored by the Los Angeles or Buena Vista Audubon Societies - it is posted here for information purposes only. To reserve a space on this trip you must telephone the Condor Cruises folks at Sea Landing, Condor Cruises have asked Todd McGrath to arrange to have experienced pelagic leaders on board to find and identify birds. All arrangements regarding reservations, cancellations, payment, credit cards, etc will be handled by the good folks at Condor Cruises. For reservations or more information about this trip, call Condor Cruises at 888-77WHALE or (805) 882-0088 Todd McGrath Skua AT msn.com Calabasas and the shelf edge Subject: Re:Inquiry about HUGO From: "Robert J. Keiffer" <rjkeiffer AT ucdavis.edu> Date: Tue, 6 Oct 2009 12:36:14 -0700 Last report from Mendocino County was September 29th at Virgin Creek Beach, MacKerricher State Park, north of Fort Bragg. That bird had been there since Sept 20th. Bob Keiffer rjkeiffer AT ucdavis.edu [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]