Birdingonthe.Net Recent Postings from Sierra Nevada > Home > Mail > Alerts Updated on Monday, January 30 at 09:44 AM EST The most recently received Mail is at the top.	White-winged Tern,©Jan Wilczur

30 Jan Plumas Birds [] 30 Jan Northern Shrike, Sierra Valley, 29 Jan 12 ["zsgavilan71" ] 29 Jan hermit thrushes [Health Asso ] 29 Jan Foresthill Birding (Placer) ["Ron Pozzi" ] 22 Jan Fw: Bill Hart's birding library [Susan Stevenson ] 16 Jan Full plate of finches [Craig Swolgaard ] 15 Jan Red Shouldered Hawk close up pics ["Randy Finley" ] 14 Jan Lake Forest loon [Will Richardson ] 13 Jan Re: El Dorado County Townsend's warbler [Chris Conard ] 9 Jan Re: Tahoe Basin local interest [Will Richardson ] 9 Jan Tahoe Basin local interest [Bruce Mast ] 09 Jan Barrow's Goldeneye (PLA) ["rossierran" ] 9 Jan Re: Info: Great Grey Owls near Placerville [Steve Hampton ] 9 Jan Re: El Dorado County Townsend's warbler ["rdarling AT sbbmail.com" ] 8 Jan El Dorado County Townsend's warbler [Craig Swolgaard ] 6 Jan Info: Great Grey Owls near Placerville [Craig Swolgaard ] 6 Jan NEV Greater Yellowlegs ["Rudy Darling" ] 07 Jan Varied Thrushes (PLA) ["rossierran" ] 5 Jan Varied Thrush - Grass Valley [Jozyme ] 5 Jan Re: Fwd: [CALBIRDS] Placerville Great Gray Owls, Laysan Albatross [John Sterling ] 5 Jan Fwd: [CALBIRDS] Placerville Great Gray Owls, Laysan Albatross [Craig Swolgaard ] 06 Jan Re: Lewis's Woodpeckers (PLA) ["rossierran" ] 05 Jan Lewis's Woodpeckers (PLA) ["rossierran" ] 05 Jan bald eagles ["marinbirder" ] 4 Jan Another NEV White-throated Sparrow ["Rudy Darling" ] 2 Jan Grass Valley CBC ["Rudy Darling" ] 02 Jan Kern River Valley Barrow's Goldeneye Update [Bob Barnes ] 30 Dec Folsom CBC Highlights from 26 Dec 2011 [Chris Conard ] 27 Dec Northern Shrike and Burrowing Owl Folsom CBC Area 2 [Kevin Thomas ] 27 Dec Northern Shrike and Burrowing Owl Folsom CBC Area 2 [Kevin Thomas ] 22 Dec Honey Lake CBC - December 20 - results [] 19 Dec Re: Auburn CBC Northern Waterthrush [Frances Oliver ] 19 Dec Re: Auburn Area CBC Results ["rossierran" ] 18 Dec Auburn Area CBC Results ["rossierran" ] 17 Dec Auburn CBC Northern Waterthrush [Craig Swolgaard ] 12 Dec Northern Shrike, Barrow's Goldeneye among Sierra Valley birds today [] 09 Dec Sierra Valley - Swainson's Hawk and more ["Will" ] 7 Dec South Lake Tahoe Christmas Bird Count [Will Richardson ] 03 Dec 12/3: RED-NECKED GREBE-Isabella Reservoir [Bob Barnes ] 30 Nov Varied Thrush in Truckee [Andrew or Andrea Oddo ] 28 Nov Lewis's Woodpecker in Amador Co. [Steve Hampton ] 28 Nov Tahoe Red-throated Loons, etc. ["Will" ] 26 Nov Tahoe bits and bobs ["Will" ] 20 Nov Re: large migration seen - anyone else? [Steve Hampton ] 21 Nov large migration seen - anyone else? ["schmiechenkid" ] 14 Nov Hybrid wigeon still in Glenshire Pond [Will Richardson ] 13 Nov Hybrid American X Eurasian Wigeon at Glenshire Pond (Truckee) [] 13 Nov Southern Sierra: Canebrake Ecological Reserve [Bob Barnes ] 11 Nov correction to yesterday's sierra valley post [] 10 Nov Excellent day in Sierra Valley [] 03 Nov 4 White-winged Scoters: Isabella Reservoir, Kern Co. [Bob Barnes ] 24 Oct Mono birds ["marinbirder" ] 19 Oct 10/19/11: Tillie Creek CG Wonderland of Birds [Bob Barnes ] 10 Oct Sierra Valley Birding - PLU and SIE [] 09 Oct Lewis's and Owls ["marinbirder" ] 8 Oct Sierra Valley raptors [] 08 Oct SABINE'S GULL+ Isabella Reservoir (Kern River Valley) [Bob Barnes ] 7 Oct Tahoe 10/5-7/11 [Will Richardson ] 7 Oct Tahoe Chestnut-sided Warbler [Will Richardson ] 7 Oct Tahoe Chestnut-sided Warbler [Will Richardson ] 07 Oct Check out eBird Version 3 ­ The ultimate birding tool [Bob Barnes ] 6 Oct TV Migration (Mom get me out of here!) [] 5 Oct Tahoe update [Will Richardson ] 4 Oct Tahoe wind, finally [Will Richardson ] 4 Oct Tahoe Black-backed [Richard Carlson ] 03 Oct Turkey Vultures (PLA) ["rossierran" ] 25 Sep Re: vultures [Lisa ] 24 Sep Tahoe Pileated etc [] 24 Sep vultures ["marinbirder" ] 15 Sep Pine Grosbeak near Barney Lake ["Bob Hislop" ] 9 Sep Tahoe - recent and not so recent [Will Richardson ] 07 Sep Late summer birds ["marinbirder" ] 2 Sep Re: ID question [Will Richardson ] 01 Sep ID question ["schmiechenkid" ] 31 Aug Tulare Co.: 31 Aug 2011 Black-backed Woodpeckers [Bob Barnes ] 31 Aug Re: RFI - Tahoe City area birding [Will Richardson ] Subject: Plumas Birds From: dillingham7 AT digitalpath.net Date: Mon, 30 Jan 2012 06:35:16 -0800 I spent the weekend out and about in Plumas. Saturday, I went north towards Lake Almanor. Out of Indian Valley, I found a NORTHERN PYGMY OWL 1.3 miles up Keddie Ridge Rd at dawn. On the east shore of Lake Almanor, opposite Indian Hill Rd I found a male BARROW'S GOLDENEYE and a CLARK'S GREBE. On the causeway of Hwy 36, I ran into Peggy and Larry Gustafson and we saw a male BARROW'S GOLDENEYE and 2 REDHEAD. Sunday, at dawn in Butterfly Valley, I heard the male BARRED OWL and found a VARIED THRUSH. In American Valley (Quincy) on Bell Lane I found a male TRICOLORED BLACKBIRD about 100 yards from Quincy Junction Rd. I tried later to relocate it with Scott and Amber Edwards but we didn't have any luck, although we found the flock of Brewer's Blackbirds it was with earlier in the day. David and River Arsenault, Kara Rockett and I saw an immature GOLDEN EAGLE fly over the Sewage Treatment Ponds around noon. It was a nice weekend! Colin -- Colin Dillingham 530-283-1133 ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Northern Shrike, Sierra Valley, 29 Jan 12 From: "zsgavilan71" <zsgavilan AT gmail.com> Date: Mon, 30 Jan 2012 04:27:43 -0000 In case anyone's interested, a Northern shrike was hanging around today along Hwy. 49 about 5 miles east of Sierraville. To echo/quote Martin's post from December, "not really unexpected, but always nice to find." I haven't seen one for a while, so, yes, nice. I'd guess this is the same bird (this one a juvenile). Bird was really cooperative for photos/video, perching right along the highway for 5 minutes. Zach Smith Davis, Ca. ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: hermit thrushes From: Health Asso <healthassociates2003 AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 29 Jan 2012 09:03:49 -0800 (PST) Greetings: I saw seen several hermit thrushes in our backyard and on neighborhood walks in the Lake Vera area of Nevada City this past week.  Best, Will Mora Nevada City ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Foresthill Birding (Placer) From: "Ron Pozzi" <gbbirder AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 29 Jan 2012 03:17:51 -0000 1-28-2012 Greetings Birders, Scott Dietrich and I birded along Foresthill Road out of Auburn, CA this morning. Hiking along the Fuel Break Trial just past the Foresthill Bridge we picked up a flock of 5 LAWRENCE'S GOLDFINCHES, 2 SAGE SPARROWS, and a CALIFORNIA THRASHER. Along Blackhawk Lane in Foresthill we had a single CHESTNUT-BACKED CHICKADEE and a TOWNSEND'S WARBLER. Just before mile marker 14 along Mosquito Ridge Road we had a CANYON WREN and a few TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRES along the way. In Granite Bay, CA got to see the WHITE-THROATED SPARROW posted by Chad Aakre on Central Valley Birds. What a great day. Get Out There! Ron Pozzi Granite Bay, CA ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Fw: Bill Hart's birding library From: Susan Stevenson <sssfromslt AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Sun, 22 Jan 2012 08:54:11 -0800 (PST) I'm forwarding this message about Bill Hart's extensive collection of briding books that are for sale. Please contact Mark Stirling, if you are interested.   Sue --- On Sat, 1/21/12, Mark Stirling wrote: From: Mark Stirling Subject: Bill Hart's birding library To: NVBIRDS AT LIST.AUDUBON.ORG Date: Saturday, January 21, 2012, 9:06 AM Many of you will remember Bill Hart, avid Nevada birder. He died almost three years ago after a long retirement from the California Dept. of Fish and Game, mostly as warden in the South Lake Tahoe region.   His family has asked me to find a buyer or buyers for the bulk of his birding library. It comprises more than 110 volumes, about 60 are hardbound, all of them retain dust jackets, when issued. The rest are paperbound. As you might imagine, most are heavily illustrated. The great majority are in fine condition, Bill took good care of his books. Price -- $450 for the lot, see list below.   The books may be seen at my house in Gardnerville, by appointment. Please call me, Mark Stirling, at 530 318-4787, or email markstirling AT sbcglobal.net   Bill enjoyed traveling to look for birds. He made several trips to Hawaii, Florida, Michigan, coastal Texas, S.E. Arizona, and southern California, especially around the Salton Sea. He went twice to Alaska, including far out on the Aleutian Islands, and as far north as Nome. He went to Tahiti, twice to Belize, to Costa Rica, and two or three times deep into Mexico. He was also a competitive decoy carver - he won blue ribbons for both decorative and service birds. Let me know if you are interested in the 10 or 12 decoy/wood carving books he left.   Hardbound Brazil, The Birds of Japan, 1991 Wolfe, Penguins, Puffins, and Auks, 1993 LeMaster, Ducks and Other Waterfowl, 1985 Grossman and Hamlet, Birds of Prey of the World, 1964 (jacket worn) Ortega, Cowbirds and Other Brood Parasites, 1998 Harrison, Seabirds, an Identification Guide,1983 Alderton, The Atlas of Quails, 1992 Byers, Curson, and Olsson, Sparrows and Buntings, 1995 Nero, The Great Grey Owl, 1980 Curson, Quinn, and Beadle, Warblers of the Americas, 1994 McFarlane, A Stillness in the Pines: Ecology of the Red-Cockaded Woodpecker, 1992 Johnsgard, Waterfowl, 1968 Preston-Mafham, Madagascar. A Natural History. 1991 Yates, The Nature of Borneo, 1992 Fisher and Peterson, The World of Birds, no date Newman, Tropical Rain Forest, 1990 Pickford, Pickford, and Tarboton, African Birds of Prey, 1990 Klein, Loon Magic, 1985 Johnsson, Birds of Europe, 1993 Skutch, Trogons, Laughing Falcons, and Other Neotropical Birds, 1999 Raffaele, Birds of Puerto Rico & the Virgin Islands, 1989 Am. Birding Assoc., ABA Checklist, 1995 Richards, Shorebirds, 1998 Heinzel, Galapagos Diary (Guide to the Archipelago’s Birdlife), 2000 Lewington, Alstrom, Colston, Rare Birds of Britain and Europe, 1992 Heinzel, Birds of New Providence & the Bahama Islands, 1975 Pratt, Bruner, Berrett, Birds of Hawaii & the Tropical Pacific, 1987 Zeranski and Baptist, Connecticut Birds, 1990 Johnsgard, Grouse and Quails of North America, 1973 Bradley, Birds of the Cayman Islands, 1985 Bond, Birds of the West Indies, 1979 Burk, Waterfowl Studies (for the decoy maker, hunter, bird watcher, etc.), 1976, jacket edgeworn, With, Burk, Complete Waterfowl Studies, V.3, Geese and Swans, 1984 Livingston, Birds of the Eastern Forest, parts1 and 2, and Birds of the Northern Forest, paintings by John Lansdowne, 3 volumes, all 1977 Forshaw, Howell, Lindsey, Stallcup, Birding, 1996 Karmali, Birds of Africa, 1990 Tyrrell, Hummingbirds of the Caribbean, 1990 Harrison, editor, Bird Families of the World, 1978 Eckert, The Wading Birds of North America, 1981 Low and Mansell, North American Marsh Birds, 1983 Mackenzie, Birds of the World – Game Birds, 1989 Daws, Hawaii, The Islands of Life, 1988 Robbins, Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Maryland and D.C., 1996 Sick, Helmut, (transl. from the Portuguese by William Belton), Birds in Brazil, 1993 Elphick, editor, Atlas of Bird Migration, 1995 Tveten, Coastal Texas. Water, Land, Wildlife, 1982, jacket top edge worn Richards, Birds of Kenya, 1991 Parmelee, Antarctic Birds, 1992 Inskipp and Inskipp, Birds of Nepal, 1985 Berger, Hawaiian Bird Life, 1981 Newfield and Nielsen, Hummingbird Gardens, 1996 Stokes, Stokes, and Brown, Stokes Purple Martin Book, 1997 Fry, Fry, and Harris, Kingfishers, Bee-Eaters, & Rollers, 1992 Clements, Birds of the World, a Check List, 1978, jacket with a little edge wear Peterson, Field Guide to Western Birds, 1961 (6th printing), jacket with edge chips Cleere and Nurney, Nightjars, 1998 Restall, Munias and Mannikins, 1996 Barnard and Thompson, Gulls and Plovers, 1985 Bolen and Flores, The Mississippi Kite, 1993   Paperbound Rappole and Blacklock, Birds of Texas, 1994, pb Cohen, Bird Nests, 1993, pb Delorey, A Birder’s Guide to New Hampshire, 1996, pb Castro and Phillips, The Birds of the Galapagos Islands, 1996, pb Holt, A Birder’s Guide to Colorado, 1997, pb Holroyd and Coneybeare, The Compact Guide to Birds of the Rockies, 1989, pb Wauer, Birder’s Mexico, 1999, pb Sequoia Audubon Soc., San Francisco Peninsula Birdwatching, 1996, pb Hine and Schoenfeld, editors, Canada Goose Management, 1968, pb Root, Atlas of Wintering North American Birds, 1988, pb Searby, The Costa Rica Traveler, 1990, pb Erlich, et al, Birds in Jeopardy, 1992, pb Kemper, Birding Northern California, 2001, pb Muse and Muse, The Birds and Bird Lore of Samoa, 1982, pb Mlodinow and O’Brien, America’s 100 Most Wanted Birds, 1996, pb Massey and Zembal, Guide to Birds of the Salton Sea, 2002, pb Matthiessen, The Wind Birds, 1994, pb Henderson, The Caribbean and the Bahamas, 1994, pb D’Arcy, Birds of Ireland, 1986, pb Sheck, Costa Rica: A Natural Destination, 1996, pb Fussell, Birder’s Guide to Coastal North Carolina, 1994, pb Cruikshank and Cruikshank, 1001 Questions Answered About Birds, 1976, pb Taylor, Birder’s Guide to Southeastern Arizona, 1995, pb, some wear Davis and Russell, Finding Birds in Southeast Arizona, 1995, pb Kennedy, et al. Guide to the Birds of the Philippines, 2000, pb Anderson & Squires, The Prairie Falcon, 1997, pb Eckert, Birder’s Guide to Minnesota, 1994, pb White, Birdwatching Sites – Eastern States, Western States, 2 volumes, both 1999, pb Harrison, Seabirds of the World, 1996, pb Wauer, Birds of the Big Bend, 1996, pb Morse, Birder’s Guide to Ocean Shores, Washington, 1994, pb Scott, Birder’s Guide to Wyoming, 1993, pb Finlay, Bird Finding Guide to Canada, 2000, pb Forsyth and Miyata, Tropical Nature, 1995, pb Armstrong, A Guide to the Birds of Alaska, 1981, pb (some leaves loose) Wauer, A Birder’s West Indies, 1996, pb Kricher, A Neotropical Companion, 1997, pb Bolander and Parmeter, Birds of Sonoma County, California, 2000, pb Ffrench, Birds of Trinidad and Tobago, 1991, pb Chartier, A Birder’s Guide to Churchill, 1994, pb Soehren, The Birdwatcher’s Guide to Hawaii, 1996, pb Potter, Parnell, Teulings, Birds of the Carolinas, 1980 pb Duncan, Bird Migration, Weather, and Fallout….Alabama and N.W. Florida, 1994, pb Harrison, Seabirds of Hawaii, 1990, pb Am. Birding Assoc., Birdfinding in Forty National Forests and Grasslands, 1994, pb National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America (4th ed), pb Pranty, A Birder’s Guide to Florida, 1996, pb Westrich and Westrich, Birder’s Guide to Northern California, 1991, pb White, A Birder’s Guide to the Bahama Islands, 1998, pb West, A Birder’s Guide to the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska, 1994, pb McEneaney, The Birder’s Guide to Montana, 1993, pb Am. Birding Assoc., A Birder’s Guide to Eastern Massachusetts, 1994, pb Schram, A Birder’s Guide to Southern California, 1968, pb 　 　 　 　 [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Full plate of finches From: Craig Swolgaard <cswol AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Mon, 16 Jan 2012 20:14:24 -0800 This weekend has been great for finches at my backyard in Georgetown. Within two days I've had house finch, purple finch, Cassin's finch, lesser goldfinch, and pine siskin. I have a feeling that the continuing cold weather will bring in more. Craig Swolgaard Georgetown, CA ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Red Shouldered Hawk close up pics From: "Randy Finley" <docdaneeka5 AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 15 Jan 2012 00:00:34 -0000 Hi all, Just did the EBMUD pontoon boat eagle tour at Lake Camanche. Only saw a few distant eagles, but it was a beautiful morning and I got some nice shots of Red Shouldered Hawk, common loon, white pelican, grebes and a few others. The Red Shouldered Hawk was perched on a wind vane, watching something in the nearby grass ... then she swooped, sitting over her prey for a minute before flying off with the mouse in her talons to eat in a tree. [Too bad I missed taking pics of the flight...] I put up the red shouldered pics on my blog http://www.wildlifist.com/ for anyone interested. Will put up the other pics in the next day or two. Cheers Randy Finley Roseville, CA --------------- www.wildlifist.com Wildlife of California ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Lake Forest loon From: Will Richardson <t.will.richardson AT gmail.com> Date: Sat, 14 Jan 2012 08:33:08 -0800 Hey Folks, Yesterday was the Mid-Winter Bald Eagle Survey at the Lake, and I spent the morning at Lake Forest. There was one incredibly confiding Pacific Loon swimming around and fishing the very shallow water on either side of the island all morning. There was also a very sizeable flock of finches (Cassin's, a few House, and mostly siskins), but I was unable to turn any into a redpoll. A female Belted Kingfisher kept us company all morning as well. And of course we saw an eagle, but it was waaaaay down the shoreline near Sunnyside. Anyway, nothing terribly unusual, but the loon being so close to shore all morning, often in perfect light, sure was a treat. Will Richardson Truckee, CA ____________________ T. Will Richardson, Ph.D. Co-Executive Director, Tahoe Institute for Natural Science 530.412.2792 www.tinsweb.org ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: El Dorado County Townsend's warbler From: Chris Conard <conardc AT gmail.com> Date: Fri, 13 Jan 2012 14:09:40 -0800 Folks, My experience in the foothills and low mountains is somewhat limited, but I'd echo Craig's surprise in finding this species. I was interested to learn of Rudy's experience, and this is certainly another reflection of how one's necessarily limited experience influences his or her expectations. Perhaps the Folsom CBC area is a middle ground in which this is a very rare bird in winter. I am most familiar with the Sacramento, Rio Cosumnes, and Folsom CBCs. Townsend's and Black-throated Gray Warblers are regular in low numbers at the first two, but extremely rare at the latter (only two of each recorded in 33 years!). Since this species is regular in the slightly warmer Sacramento area (at least less apt to freeze), and mostly absent in the only slightly higher Folsom CBC area, I apparently falsely assumed this held for the foothills in general. Maybe there is a habitat difference at higher elevation (more conifers) than are found in the oak-dominated Folsom CBC circle. Out of curiosity, I checked the reported Auburn CBC data on Audubon's very user-unfriendly on-line database ( http://birds.audubon.org/historical-results)--shockingly poor for such an organization, but that's another topic--and there were only three years in its history for Townsend's Warbler (8 one year) and three years for Black-throated Gray as well. By contrast, Grass Valley had Townsend's on ~2/3s of counts,but listed only one Black-throated Gray in the available data (I'm adding BT Gray in my comments, since they are found in like settings in the Sacramento area in winter). Interesting stuff. Chris Conard Sacramento On Mon, Jan 9, 2012 at 8:38 AM, rdarling AT sbbmail.com wrote: > In Nevada County at the 3000' elevation where I live, Townsend's Warblers > are a > occasional, but regularly-occurring member of the mixed-species feeding > flocks > most winters. We find them many years in the Grass Valley Christmas Bird > Count. > I suspect the same would be true all along the middle elevations of the > Sierra > and that it is not often reported because not many people bird these areas > in > winter. > > Rudy Darling > Nevada County > > > > > On January 8, 2012 at 4:37 PM Craig Swolgaard wrote: > > > Birders- > > > > I visited some sites uphill from Georgetown today, including Loon Lake > and > > Rubicon River. It was very sunny T-shirt weather (50 - 56 deg. F) with > very > > little snow. Loon Lake was inactive bird-wise other than some juncos and > > jays. So was the Rubicon River, save for an immature bald eagle at the > bridge > > (11 Pines Road). However, I happened upon a flock of foraging birds on a > > Forest Service road off of Wentworth Springs Rd. at about 4500 feet. > They > > included ruby and gold-crowned kinglets, Hutton's vireo, brown creeper > and a > > Townsend's warbler- the surprise of the day. Is it winter?? > > > > Craig Swolgaard > > Georgetown, CA > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: Tahoe Basin local interest From: Will Richardson <t.will.richardson AT gmail.com> Date: Mon, 9 Jan 2012 23:14:35 -0800 Hey Bruce (and the rest of y'all), Sorry you had no luck with the sapsucker. Most of them head downhill when it gets cold and the sap stops flowing, but this year has been weird. I had a young male Williamson's Sapsucker in Van Sickle SP behind Harrah's on Saturday. Right next to the paved trail all morning, working the same Jeffrey Pine for hours (if you know the area, it's between the two roads). For future reference, all those exotic pines and fruit trees in the Tahoe Keys are your best bet for sapsuckers in fall and early winter. Follow Tahoe Keys Blvd. all the way to the end, park, and then start backtracking. We had a handful of Red-breasteds in there during the CBC a few weeks ago. There are NO records of Short-eared Owl for the Tahoe Basin. There have been a couple of reports in recent years, based solely on calls, but they've all been Long-eareds (either proven so with visual confirmation, or highly suspected based on habitat). Long-eared Owls do nest in the Upper Truckee Marsh, using old magpie nests. I have to wonder if screech-owls ever do the same. If and when a Short-eared Owl finally does show up in Tahoe, however, that'll surely be the spot. Incidentally, I had a couple of interesting birds in the Taylor Creek Marsh LAST weekend (1/1/12), including singles of Audubon's Warbler and Great Egret - good Tahoe birds for January. Will Richardson Truckee, CA ____________________ T. Will Richardson, Ph.D. Co-Executive Director, Tahoe Institute for Natural Science 530.412.2792 www.tinsweb.org ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Tahoe Basin local interest From: Bruce Mast <cathrasher4 AT gmail.com> Date: Mon, 9 Jan 2012 22:56:21 -0800 Folks, I had an opportunity to spend a few days birding the Tahoe Basin, an area I suspect doesn't get much coverage this time of year. On 1/5, my wife and I hiked the Velma Lake Trail from Emerald Bay to the highest point in the trail before Velma Lakes. On 1/6, I spent the day exploring Upper Truckee Marsh and Tahoe Keys. On 1/7, my wife and I hike from Echo Lake to Tamarack Lake. Conditions were remarkable for the almost complete lack of snow, even at 8000 ft. A few species of note: 4 Sooty Grouse along the Velma Lake trail above Eagle Lake 12 Evening Grosbeaks at the Echo Lakes marina 4 Townsends Solitaires and 1 Varied Thrush along the trail to Tamarack Lake At Upper Truckee Marsh, I stayed out well past sunset in hopes that a Short-eared Owl would show up. No such luck. I had no reason to think one would show up except the habitat. Does anyone know if documented SEOW at this location? Between Tamarack and Echo Lakes, I taped extensively for Williamson's Sapsucker with no success. Full report available on ebird. Bruce Mast Oakland ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Barrow's Goldeneye (PLA) From: "rossierran" <derenross AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Mon, 09 Jan 2012 20:50:27 -0000 Hello Birders, There are at least two male Barrow's on Alta Reservoir and some females. This is private property. This is an annual wintering location. From Alta, +/- 4000 ft., along I-80, Deren Ross ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: Info: Great Grey Owls near Placerville From: Steve Hampton <shampton AT ospr.dfg.ca.gov> Date: Mon, 9 Jan 2012 09:47:17 -0800 FYI, last week I observed a Great Gray Owl at Crane Flat (west meadow), which is quite easy to access in the current dry conditions. The bird was only present in the PM, not the AM. Pic and link to map are at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S9481972 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 >>> Craig Swolgaard 1/6/2012 6:08 PM >>> Thanks to those who answered my request for info. Looks like they are on private timber land, but interesting to know. Craig Swolgaard Georgetown, CA ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: El Dorado County Townsend's warbler From: "rdarling AT sbbmail.com" <rdarling@sbbmail.com> Date: Mon, 9 Jan 2012 08:38:07 -0800 (PST) In Nevada County at the 3000' elevation where I live, Townsend's Warblers are a occasional, but regularly-occurring  member of the mixed-species feeding flocks most winters. We find them many years in the Grass Valley Christmas Bird Count.  I suspect the same would be true all along the middle elevations of the Sierra and that it is not often reported because not many people bird these areas in winter.   Rudy Darling Nevada County    On January 8, 2012 at 4:37 PM Craig Swolgaard wrote: > Birders- > > I visited some sites uphill from Georgetown today, including Loon Lake and > Rubicon River.  It was very sunny T-shirt weather (50 - 56 deg. F) with very > little snow.  Loon Lake was inactive bird-wise other than some juncos and > jays.  So was the Rubicon River, save for an immature bald eagle at the bridge > (11 Pines Road).  However, I happened upon a flock of foraging birds on a > Forest Service road off of Wentworth Springs Rd. at about 4500 feet.  They > included ruby and gold-crowned kinglets, Hutton's vireo, brown creeper and a > Townsend's warbler- the surprise of the day.  Is it winter?? > > Craig Swolgaard > Georgetown, CA > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: El Dorado County Townsend's warbler From: Craig Swolgaard <cswol AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Sun, 8 Jan 2012 16:37:47 -0800 Birders- I visited some sites uphill from Georgetown today, including Loon Lake and Rubicon River. It was very sunny T-shirt weather (50 - 56 deg. F) with very little snow. Loon Lake was inactive bird-wise other than some juncos and jays. So was the Rubicon River, save for an immature bald eagle at the bridge (11 Pines Road). However, I happened upon a flock of foraging birds on a Forest Service road off of Wentworth Springs Rd. at about 4500 feet. They included ruby and gold-crowned kinglets, Hutton's vireo, brown creeper and a Townsend's warbler- the surprise of the day. Is it winter?? Craig Swolgaard Georgetown, CA ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Info: Great Grey Owls near Placerville From: Craig Swolgaard <cswol AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Fri, 6 Jan 2012 18:08:01 -0800 Thanks to those who answered my request for info. Looks like they are on private timber land, but interesting to know. Craig Swolgaard Georgetown, CA ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: NEV Greater Yellowlegs From: "Rudy Darling" <rdarling AT sbbmail.com> Date: Fri, 6 Jan 2012 17:57:17 -0800 Greetjings fellow birdophiles, Late this afternoon there was a Greater Yellowlegs at the Lake-of-the-Pines wastewater plant in the pond to the left as one drives in. The ponds are low, ready to receive winter rains (please!), with some shorebird habitat as a result. Rudy Darling Nevada City [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Varied Thrushes (PLA) From: "rossierran" <derenross AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Sat, 07 Jan 2012 00:09:18 -0000 Hello Birders, Today, I made a run all the way up Foresthill Road to Robinson Flat. At 2.4 miles east of American Hill Road, I came upon a fun mix of mtn. birds...+/- 15 VARIED THRUSHES, 2 HAIRY WOODPECKERS, 4 WHITE-HEADED WOODPECKERS, 1 RED-BREASTED SAPSUCKER, and 1 STELLER'S JAY. A spring on the downhill side of the road was one of the few places that I found running water, not counting the melting ice patches on the road. I also found HAIRY and DOWNY at various burn sites along the way. The brush-lined stretch of road just east of the Sugar Pine Reservor turn-off had more Fox Sparrows than I've seen in one place. Snowless in the Sierra, Deren Ross Auburn,CA ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Varied Thrush - Grass Valley From: Jozyme <jozyme AT earthlink.net> Date: Thu, 5 Jan 2012 18:28:08 -0800 (GMT-08:00) This a.m. on our side lawn there were 13 Varied Thrushes imitating Robins. They have been in the neighborhood all winter. John Lace Grass Valley at 2900' ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: Fwd: [CALBIRDS] Placerville Great Gray Owls, Laysan Albatross From: John Sterling <jsterling AT wavecable.com> Date: Thu, 5 Jan 2012 19:26:09 -0800 the owls are on private timber company land and are off limits to us birders, unfortunately...... John Sterling 26 Palm Ave Woodland, CA 95695 530 908-3836 jsterling AT wavecable.com www.sterlingbirds.com (photos, classes, tours, county birding) On Jan 5, 2012, at 6:34 PM, Craig Swolgaard wrote: > Sierra Birders- > > This is the first I've heard about great gray owls near Placerville. I live close by and would love to see & photograph them if they are chase-able and not a rumor. Could someone let me know more about this sighting if possible? > Thanks! > > Craig Swolgaard > Georgetown, CA > > > > > Begin forwarded message: > >> From: Libby Wolfe >> Date: January 5, 2012 2:02:37 PM PST >> To: CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com >> Subject: [CALBIRDS] Placerville Great Gray Owls, Laysan Albatross >> >> Traveling to California soon, and would like any information on the above birds. >> >> Are the Great Gray Owls on public land, and if so, where is the best place, and time of day to possibly see one. >> >> Last year I looked for the "Big Al" when visiting CA for the Brown Shrike, and I missed him. Any tips on best time of day to be at the pier? >> >> Any information would be appreciated. Thanks for the help. >> >> Libby Wolfe >> Ooltewah, TN >> >> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] >> >> > > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > > > ------------------------------------ > > to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Fwd: [CALBIRDS] Placerville Great Gray Owls, Laysan Albatross From: Craig Swolgaard <cswol AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Thu, 5 Jan 2012 18:34:01 -0800 Sierra Birders- This is the first I've heard about great gray owls near Placerville. I live close by and would love to see & photograph them if they are chase-able and not a rumor. Could someone let me know more about this sighting if possible? Thanks! Craig Swolgaard Georgetown, CA Begin forwarded message: > From: Libby Wolfe > Date: January 5, 2012 2:02:37 PM PST > To: CALBIRDS AT yahoogroups.com > Subject: [CALBIRDS] Placerville Great Gray Owls, Laysan Albatross > > Traveling to California soon, and would like any information on the above birds. > > Are the Great Gray Owls on public land, and if so, where is the best place, and time of day to possibly see one. > > Last year I looked for the "Big Al" when visiting CA for the Brown Shrike, and I missed him. Any tips on best time of day to be at the pier? > > Any information would be appreciated. Thanks for the help. > > Libby Wolfe > Ooltewah, TN > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: Lewis's Woodpeckers (PLA) From: "rossierran" <derenross AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Fri, 06 Jan 2012 00:06:39 -0000 Hello Birders, Locally speaking, I'm getting word that Lewis's have been seen at their favorite haunts this winter but have not seen far beyond. Sounds like we were just unlucky in getting 'what the little boy shot at' on our three CBC's. Deren Ross Auburn,CA --- In sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com, "rossierran" wrote: > > Hello Birders, > > This morning, Dennis Cavallo and I spent a few hours birding around Auburn and we were surprised when we came upon 8 or more Lewis's Woodpeckers near the intersection of Cramer Road and Bell Road. This site has had Lewis's in the past but nothing this winter. In fact, there were no Lewis's Woodpecker reported at all for three of the local area CBC's(Lincoln, Grass Valley, and Auburn). There may have been one on Auburn CBC this year but I've yet to find the record for it. With essentially no local reports of Lewis's Woopecker, we began to wonder if these birds had just arrived. The birds were very active, chasing and foraging above an open pasture with several tall oaks. > > Deren Ross > Auburn, Ca > ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Lewis's Woodpeckers (PLA) From: "rossierran" <derenross AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Thu, 05 Jan 2012 22:10:42 -0000 Hello Birders, This morning, Dennis Cavallo and I spent a few hours birding around Auburn and we were surprised when we came upon 8 or more Lewis's Woodpeckers near the intersection of Cramer Road and Bell Road. This site has had Lewis's in the past but nothing this winter. In fact, there were no Lewis's Woodpecker reported at all for three of the local area CBC's(Lincoln, Grass Valley, and Auburn). There may have been one on Auburn CBC this year but I've yet to find the record for it. With essentially no local reports of Lewis's Woopecker, we began to wonder if these birds had just arrived. The birds were very active, chasing and foraging above an open pasture with several tall oaks. Deren Ross Auburn, Ca ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: bald eagles From: "marinbirder" <david AT sierranaturalist.com> Date: Thu, 05 Jan 2012 18:15:56 -0000 I don't know if there is a slight uptick in activity or if this is just a fluke. I normally see about one bald eagle a year along one of the rivers around here (Tuolumne or Merced), but this morning for the first time I had two adult bald eagles circling in close formation over Groveland, which is up on the ridges and not even in the canyons. That's in addition to another adult I saw about a month ago up on Cherry Lake Road (along the Tuolumne River)and at least two recent reports along the Merced River (including one on the Yosemite CBC). If nothing else it's nice to have them making a strong showing in the central Sierra, where they are still pretty scarce. David Lukas Groveland ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Another NEV White-throated Sparrow From: "Rudy Darling" <rdarling AT sbbmail.com> Date: Wed, 4 Jan 2012 19:45:02 -0800 'Tis the season for WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS here in Nevada County. Ted Beedy found one on the Auburn CBC Dec. 17 at the bridge at the far end of Garden Bar Rd. (about a mile past Rosemary Lane). He found another on the Grass Valley CBC (Dec. 31) on Indian Springs Rd. near its intersection with the Hwy 20 frontage road. Steve Rose found another on the GV CBC off Gold Flat Rd. in Nevada City (GPS coordinates 39.250748,-121.014911). Today a tan-striped WT Sparrow showed up at my feeder at the Lake Wildwood Wastewater Treatment Plant (Penn Valley). It is the third one I've had there in the nine years I've worked at the plant. I wonder how many are around that no one ever identifies or reports! Rudy Darling Nevada County [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Grass Valley CBC From: "Rudy Darling" <rdarling AT sbbmail.com> Date: Mon, 2 Jan 2012 20:11:01 -0800 Preliminary results for the Grass Valley CBC: Great weather helped us set a new record - 112 species, well above our average of 101 and edging previous highs of 111 species. Two new species were added to our list: Eurasian Collared-dove - Penn Valley area Clark's Grebe - Lake Wildwood Some of the "good" species (for the Grass Valley area) for the day: White-throated Sparrow - Nevada City area Tricolored Blackbird - Penn Valley Snow Goose Greater White-fronted Goose Cackling Goose Both Golden and Bald Eagles Rock Wren Rudy Darling Nevada City [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Kern River Valley Barrow's Goldeneye Update From: Bob Barnes <bbarnes AT lightspeed.net> Date: Mon, 02 Jan 2012 07:57:33 -0800 Happy New Year 2012! I received 7:30am phone calls from Alison Sheehey and Susan Steele reporting the continuance of a male Barrow's Goldeneye in the southern Sierra Nevada's Kern River Valley which was first found by Alison during yesterday's Kern River Valley Christmas Bird Count. Alison and Susan first relocated this goldeneye in the Borel Canal below Isabella Reservoir's Auxiliary Dam (the dam next to CA Hwy 178 at the edge of the community of Lake Isabella). It has since moved up over the dam to the small portion of reservoir surface flanked by the Auxiliary Dam, Engineers' Point, and the southwestern/western end of the reservoir's south shore along CA Hwy 178. Susan reports that Alison has taken additional photos this morning to supplement the record shot image she took yesterday. Serving as the Messenger, Bob Barnes, Ridgecrest, Kern County, CA 24/7 Cellular Phone Number: 760-382-1260 [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Folsom CBC Highlights from 26 Dec 2011 From: Chris Conard <conardc AT gmail.com> Date: Fri, 30 Dec 2011 06:11:48 -0800 Folks, Despite clear and calm weather most parties reported slightly below average activity and species totals. Sixty-five participants provided good coverage and there was a greater number of rarities than in a typical year, but the dearth of waterfowl undercut any chance at a high species total. Perhaps the weather has been too good? Of the preliminary count of 135 species (historic range of 123 to 146), the biggest highlight in my opinion was the report of an adult male BLACK-CHINNED HUMMINGBIRD by experienced observers (Brian Acord and Krysta Rogers) at a hummingbird mecca near the end of Lake Hills Drive north of El Dorado Hills. They watched the bird for 20-30 minutes. This house has maintained multiple feeders year-round for more than 20 years and has up to 40 Anna's Hummingbirds present all winter over many years. You might have a sense of déjŕ vu as this species was reported at this site in Dec 2006. After some confusion I was able to get and post photos of an immature male Costa's Hummingbird a week later (Jan 07), though the original observers said the photo of the Costa's was not one of the bird(s) they saw. As in 2006, I wasn't free to go back to this site until a week after the fact. I am going to try to visit this site and hope to get photos/recordings. Costa's has been found at this site several times, but Black-chinned is a remarkable winter report. Please respond off list if you have further interest in this topic. Other highlights include two additions I learned of after the compilation gathering. John Trochet found a Red-breasted Nuthatch and a CANYON WREN. The Canyon Wren was near the American River in the canyon upstream of the Rainbow Bridge in Folsom. I don't know the exact location, but it was flushed into view by a kayaker (trails and paths go along both sides of the river, though end on the east side at the Folsom Prison property--there is free parking at the Folsom Rodeo Grounds and you can take one of a series of paths toward the river--from the large lot, go between the arena and forest, then follow dirt paths down the hill to the river--see Google Maps along river above Old Folsom). According to Tim Manolis, there are records from this site in the late 1960s, but there has not be a publicly accessible Canyon Wren in Sacramento County since then. Additional highlights include the previously reported Red-breasted Merganser, Northern Shrike and Hermit (possibly Hermit x Towsend's) Warbler, and a Black-necked Stilt on private land. In a post to another list I forgot to add four White-throated Sparrows. Misses include White Geese, Tundra Swan, any teal, Canvasback, Redhead, either scaup, Ring-necked Pheasant, "uncommon" loon, bittern or night-heron, Rough-legged Hawk, Long-billed Dowitcher, Band-tailed Pigeon, Eurasian Collard-Dove, Steller's Jay, Brown Creeper, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Mountain Bluebird, Common Yellowthroat, Vesper Sparrow, and Pine Siskin. I think the lack of storms may explain misses in the waterfowl and montane songbird categories. Thanks to all the counters and especially to the area leaders and party leaders. Chris Conard Sacramento [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Northern Shrike and Burrowing Owl Folsom CBC Area 2 From: Kevin Thomas <bionerdkevin AT yahoo.com> Date: Tue, 27 Dec 2011 13:08:34 -0800 (PST) Yesterday on the Area 2 portion of the Folsom CBC a Northern Shrike and Burrowing Owl were found on the peninsula extending down from Rattlesnake Bar Road (El Dorado County) at Folsom Lake. Unfortunately these birds would not be easy to chase but I wanted to let everyone know about them. Both birds were located on the peninsula out towards the tip where it is grassland and small willow patches. You can see this area directly across from the granite bay boat launch. The access from Rattlesnake Bar road is blocked by a locked gate at the park entrance, and from that point it would be 5-6 miles to the location of the birds. The shrike was seen for several minutes initially by myself and then refound at the end of the day by the rest of our group.  Kevin Thomas Sacramento [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Northern Shrike and Burrowing Owl Folsom CBC Area 2 From: Kevin Thomas <bionerdkevin AT yahoo.com> Date: Tue, 27 Dec 2011 13:08:34 -0800 (PST) Yesterday on the Area 2 portion of the Folsom CBC a Northern Shrike and Burrowing Owl were found on the peninsula extending down from Rattlesnake Bar Road (El Dorado County) at Folsom Lake. Unfortunately these birds would not be easy to chase but I wanted to let everyone know about them. Both birds were located on the peninsula out towards the tip where it is grassland and small willow patches. You can see this area directly across from the granite bay boat launch. The access from Rattlesnake Bar road is blocked by a locked gate at the park entrance, and from that point it would be 5-6 miles to the location of the birds. The shrike was seen for several minutes initially by myself and then refound at the end of the day by the rest of our group.  Kevin Thomas Sacramento [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ Subject: Honey Lake CBC - December 20 - results From: ylightfoot AT aol.com Date: Thu, 22 Dec 2011 00:38:51 -0500 (EST) Hi folks: The 41st Honey Lake CBC was held on Tuesday, December 20th. Weather was excellent, sunny and calm with mild temperatures. Variety and numbers of diurnal raptors were excellent, with both species of eagle in double digits, and new high counts for Red-tailed Hawk and Merlin. One Red-shouldered Hawk was seen. This species has become a rare but regular year-around resident of the Susanville area. Water levels in ponds and lake were low and still waters mostly frozen, so waterfowl numbers were low, except for a flock of a few thousand white geese, including Ross's and a few Blue Geese. Other highlights were only the second count record of Clark's Nutcracker, a nice little flock of at least 4 American Tree Sparrows, and a large, pale immature gull. Unfortunately, the latter bird was only readily observed at some distance (about a half-mile or so?) at sunset or sunrise in the middle of Leavitt Lake. I surmise it spends most of the day at the High Desert Prison waste water ponds, which are off-limits to the public, as it was flying in that direction when it left Leavitt Lake at sunrise on Wednesday, when I had my best (but still poor) looks at the bird. My best guess is Glaucous-winged Gull, but I couldn't rule out Glaucous from the distant looks I had. Either bird is very rare in Lassen County, but there are more records of Glaucous-winged, including one previous Honey Lake CBC record. Tentative species total is 86. I suspect we would have found a few more with better coverage, but there were a lot of last-minute cancellations, and we had only 10 participants (Thanks for your help!) in 4 parties. I'm hoping more of you can make it next year. I'll probably schedule the 2012 count for Tuesday, December 18th, as Lew Oring is tentatively scheduling the Eagle Lake CBC for Thursday, December 20th, so mark your 2012 calendars;-). Happy Holidays, Tim [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: Auburn CBC Northern Waterthrush From: Frances Oliver <hummer52ffo AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 19 Dec 2011 12:01:56 -0800 NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH appeared briefly this morning. Jim Rowoth & I refound the waterthrush around 11am. Only thing I would add to Craig's excellent description is to turn to the right after you go through the berries. Look for the exposed white rocks. The pool is just behind the rocks. Then you will see the old log surrounded by willows. The waterthrush was in the willow on the left side of the log. Craig's directions: it is close to Lake of the Pines off Highway 49. There is an unnamed road on the east side of Hwy 49, 0.8 mile south of Combie Rd. (the turnoff to Lake of the Pines) or 1.3 miles north of the Bear River bridge. There are some mailboxes in front of you as you turn onto it. The road is not signed and looks deceptively like a driveway but it isn't. On Google Earth the road is called Sharonjack. Immediately to the left of the mailboxes the road passes right in front of a house. Pass the house and stay on the dirt road, which then parallels a creek that supports a rather sizable marshy area with willows. Follow this road about 0.16 miles (according to Google Earth measurements) to where it starts to turn away from the creek area. There will be a pullout there. The fenced property begins there, but where you park it is not fenced and you can walk through an opening in the blackberries to get close to the creek if you want to search there. The bird was actually observed from the roadside next to the pullout (39 deg. 01'53.04" N; 121 deg. 05' 39.77" W). It was found behind the fenced area, about 100 feet from the road in a small opening where water from the creek can be seen, surrounded by brush and willow. An old tree trunk lays next to the water. The bird was seen near the water, changing perches from the mud to the tree trunk, to smaller branches beside the water. Scott saw it bathe in the water. It had a skulky habit but it didn't do enough walking around to show its tail bobbing habit because of the constrained space around the water. Be reminded that this road is meant for the use of the few homes back there and you might be approached as we were by concerned neighbors. Please be respectful of private property. Frances Lodi, CA ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: Auburn Area CBC Results From: "rossierran" <derenross AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Mon, 19 Dec 2011 00:19:55 -0000 Hello Birders, I received additional count information this afternoon and added one more species(Osprey)for a new total of 130 species. There were 54 participants including six students from Lincoln High School. Deren Ross Auburn, CA --- In sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com, "rossierran" wrote: > > Hello Birders, > > The Auburn Area CBC was held on Saturday, December 17th. It was a banner birding day in the Sierra foothills. With over 50 observers in the field and fantastic weather, we tallied a possible record high of 129 species. There were three new species for the count- Northern Waterthrush (as reported earlier by Craig Swolgard), Lawrence's Goldfinch, and Great-tailed Grackle. Other birds of note: Cassin's Finch, six Black Rails, a juvenile Trumpeter Swan (Nev. Co.), Ross' Goose, a high number of Golden Eagles, one Rough-legged Hawk, Peregrine Falcon, Greater Yellowlegs, a good number of Yellow-billed Magpies (Lake of the Pines area, Nev. Co.), two low elevation American Dippers found east of Lincoln, five Varied Thrush, White-throated Sparrow, and plenty of Pine Siskins found on Liquid Amber trees throughout the town of Auburn. > > Thank you to all the volunteers and leaders for another fun year and continuing the tradition. > > Best of Birding and Happy Holidays, > > Deren Ross > Auburn, Ca > ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Auburn Area CBC Results From: "rossierran" <derenross AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Sun, 18 Dec 2011 17:31:16 -0000 Hello Birders, The Auburn Area CBC was held on Saturday, December 17th. It was a banner birding day in the Sierra foothills. With over 50 observers in the field and fantastic weather, we tallied a possible record high of 129 species. There were three new species for the count- Northern Waterthrush (as reported earlier by Craig Swolgard), Lawrence's Goldfinch, and Great-tailed Grackle. Other birds of note: Cassin's Finch, six Black Rails, a juvenile Trumpeter Swan (Nev. Co.), Ross' Goose, a high number of Golden Eagles, one Rough-legged Hawk, Peregrine Falcon, Greater Yellowlegs, a good number of Yellow-billed Magpies (Lake of the Pines area, Nev. Co.), two low elevation American Dippers found east of Lincoln, five Varied Thrush, White-throated Sparrow, and plenty of Pine Siskins found on Liquid Amber trees throughout the town of Auburn. Thank you to all the volunteers and leaders for another fun year and continuing the tradition. Best of Birding and Happy Holidays, Deren Ross Auburn, Ca ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Auburn CBC Northern Waterthrush From: Craig Swolgaard <cswol AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Sat, 17 Dec 2011 20:15:49 -0800 Hi Birders- Today Scott Dietrich and I found a northern waterthrush in Nevada County while helping Jeri Langham do his section of the Auburn CBC. The bird had striking fresh plumage with high contrast streaking on the breast and flanks over a yellow-buffy wash and strong supercilium. It matched the "yellow adult" seen in Sibley's guide. I was asked to give directions for those interested in trying for it and I will do my best: it is close to Lake of the Pines off Highway 49. There is an unnamed road on the east side of Hwy 49, 0.8 mile south of Combie Rd. (the turnoff to Lake of the Pines) or 1.3 miles north of the Bear River bridge. There are some mailboxes in front of you as you turn onto it. The road is not signed and looks deceptively like a driveway but it isn't. On Google Earth the road is called Sharonjack. Immediately to the left of the mailboxes the road passes right in front of a house. Pass the house and stay on the dirt road, which then parallels a creek that supports a rather sizable marshy area with willows. Follow this road about 0.16 miles (according to Google Earth measurements) to where it starts to turn away from the creek area. There will be a pullout there. The fenced property begins there, but where you park it is not fenced and you can walk through an opening in the blackberries to get close to the creek if you want to search there. The bird was actually observed from the roadside next to the pullout (39 deg. 01'53.04" N; 121 deg. 05' 39.77" W). It was found behind the fenced area, about 100 feet from the road in a small opening where water from the creek can be seen, surrounded by brush and willow. An old tree trunk lays next to the water. The bird was seen near the water, changing perches from the mud to the tree trunk, to smaller branches beside the water. Scott saw it bathe in the water. It had a skulky habit but it didn't do enough walking around to show its tail bobbing habit because of the constrained space around the water. Be reminded that this road is meant for the use of the few homes back there and you might be approached as we were by concerned neighbors. Please be respectful of private property. Those needing more help are welcome to contact me, though I will only be home part of the day tomorrow. Good luck and good birding, Craig Swolgaard Georgetown, CA (530) 333-4345 ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Northern Shrike, Barrow's Goldeneye among Sierra Valley birds today From: <martin AT sierrabirdbum.com> Date: Mon, 12 Dec 2011 17:56:04 -0700 It was overcast and a bit breezy most of the day in Sierra Valley today. Walking into the wind was pretty chilly. Red-tailed Hawks were abundant (my rough count was about 70), but Rough-legs and Ferruginous Hawks were harder to come by. I had a beautiful dark-morph male Rough-leg on A24 just west of Harriet/Heriot Lane. Only three or four other Rough-legs. And only four Ferruginous Hawks (plus one distant bird that struck me as a dark-morph Ferug, but lighting and distance prevented a positive ID.) The largest concentration of raptors was at the intersection of A24 and Poole Lane in Loyalton (sewer pond road), but there were not nearly as many birds there today as I'd had on a few occasions earlier in the fall. However, there was one pleasant surprise along Poole Lane not far from the corner of A24, a NORTHERN SHRIKE. Not really unexpected, but always nice to find. The other surprise was a female BARROW'S GOLDENEYE on Harriet/Heriot Lane. It was in the ditch at the second bridge (coming from the north.) Hopefully the goldeneye and shrike will hang around for the Christmas Count. Other raptors included three Prairie Falcons, numerous Northern Harriers, and a few American Kestrels. Oddly, I did not see any eagles today. Other species included Black-billed Magpies, Common Ravens, Eurasian Collared-doves, White-crowned Sparrows, European Starlings, House Finches, Great Blue Herons, Canada Geese, Gadwalls, Green-winged Teal, Pied-billed Grebes, and American Coots. Martin --------------- Martin Meyers email: Martin (...AT...) SierraBirdbum.com Photo website: http://SierraBirdbum.com Truckee, CA ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Sierra Valley - Swainson's Hawk and more From: "Will" <t.will.richardson AT gmail.com> Date: Fri, 09 Dec 2011 06:06:42 -0000 Ben Tweed and I did the December winter raptor survey route today, and it was hopping! After a rough tally, it looks like we got the following over the ~ 30 miles transect: Red-tailed Hawk: 89 Northern Harrier: 31 Rough-legged Hawk: 23 Ferruginous Hawk: 21 Bald Eagle: 7 Unknown Buteo: 5 Golden Eagle: 2 Prairie Falcon: 2 American Kestrel: 2 Red-shouldered Hawk: 1 Swainson's Hawk: 1 Total 184 raptors = approx. 6.13 raptors per mile, average We saw a number of mice meet their fate today, and there were a few Great Blue Herons out working the fields as well. Without question, the greatest concentration of raptors was just north of Loyalton, along Beckwith/County Rd. A24. There was another nice concentration of birds along the last few miles of A24 before it hits 70, to the north. The Swainson's Hawk was a real surprise, and was a dark morph adult, preening on a telephone pole, just barely west of the town grid, viewed adjacent from a gravel pullout along 49. The Red-shouldered was in Loyalton, and we had another in Sierraville that wasn't on the transect, both immatures. Will Richardson Truckee PS - I still can't post to Yahoo Groups from email!!!!!! What in the heck's going on? Anybody else having this problem? ____________________ T. Will Richardson, Ph.D. Co-Executive Director, Tahoe Institute for Natural Science 530.412.2792 www.tinsweb.org ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: South Lake Tahoe Christmas Bird Count From: Will Richardson <t.will.richardson AT gmail.com> Date: Wed, 7 Dec 2011 14:55:37 -0800 Today seems to be the day CBC emails are going around for the region, and the South Lake CBC is coming up quickly: Friday, 16 December. We will meet at Alpina Coffee Cafe in South Lake Tahoe (map here: http://www.yelp.com/map/alpina-coffee-cafe-south-lake-tahoe) at 8:00 am. End-of-count tally location TBD. Please shoot me an email if you're thinking of participating, so I can formulate a plan of attack for everybody and keep you posted of any changes. The Tahoe Institute for Natural Science (TINS) has advertised the CBC a little more broadly this year, so maybe we'll get more participation than the skeleton crew that we usually get. It will be fun either way, I'm sure! Updates will be posted on the TINS CBC page, here: http://tinyurl.com/23puwg7 Hope to see you there!! Will ____________________ T. Will Richardson, Ph.D. Co-Executive Director, Tahoe Institute for Natural Science 530.412.2792 www.tinsweb.org [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: 12/3: RED-NECKED GREBE-Isabella Reservoir From: Bob Barnes <bbarnes AT lightspeed.net> Date: Sat, 03 Dec 2011 10:55:34 -0800 Hi, Susan Steele just called a very few minutes ago to report a RED-NECKED GREBE on Isabella Reservoir in the Kern River Valley in the southern Sierra Nevada of Kern County. The reservoir surface is at an elevation of 2500'-2600' and is reached c. 45 miles northeast on CA Hwy 178 from CA Hwy 99 in Bakersfield. The observation was/is being made from the south shore of the reservoir off CA Hwy 178. The Red-necked Grebe is currently around the small island at the (accessible - high clearance recommend to get to the very end) end of Engineers' Point - the point which sticks out into the reservoir for about one mile from between the Auxiliary Dam (next to CA Hwy 178) and Main Dam (next to CA Hwy 155). This bird has been studied in the company of a Western Grebe and Eared Grebe for comparison. This Red-necked Grebe is species #327 tallied by Susan for her 2011 Kern County Big Year list with twenty-nine days to go to try to reach 330+ species in Kern County for the year! Serving as the messenger, Bob Barnes, Ridgecrest, Kern County, California [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Varied Thrush in Truckee From: Andrew or Andrea Oddo <aaagolfers AT aol.com> Date: Wed, 30 Nov 2011 23:13:38 -0500 (EST) Today for the first time in 22 years I looked outside and saw three Varied Thrush in the trees next to our deck. They did not approach the feeder but fed on the ground beneath. I thought they were weird Robins until I looked them up - no doubt - Varied Thrushes!! We have had very few visitors this year compared to other years except for an abundance of Pine Siskins still feeding on our Finch sock! Steller's Jays are always around and a few Dark-eyed Juncos but I don't know where all the Mountain Chickadees and Red-breasted Nuthatches have gone this year. Andrea Oddo, Tahoe Donner elev. 6680' ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Lewis's Woodpecker in Amador Co. From: Steve Hampton <shampton AT ospr.dfg.ca.gov> Date: Mon, 28 Nov 2011 09:44:11 -0800 I'm fwding this from a visiting birder: Perhaps more interesting, this afternoon we headed over to Amador County for a spot of wine tasting, and just as we were approaching Youngs Winery (http://www.youngsvineyards.com/) I spotted a bird from the car that has evaded me for some time... Lewis's Woodpecker. The bird was amazingly confiding as it worked the telegraph poles and trees along the road verge. Not sure how tricky these are to find, so thought you might be interested to know about this sighting. Kind regards Martin SNEARY Martin (202 270 5432) 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 ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Tahoe Red-throated Loons, etc. From: "Will" <t.will.richardson AT gmail.com> Date: Mon, 28 Nov 2011 01:35:07 -0000 I took advantage of the glorious weather and birded all around the Lake today (Sunday 11/27). Friday's masses of gulls had completely vanished, but I found plenty of fun stuff to make up for it. Highlights: ~15 swans in the deep water off Sunnyside. Female Barrow's Goldeneye, kingfisher, and a Northern Mockingbird at Edgewood Golf Course. The late-season mockingbird lends credence to a CBC mockingbird from '92 that I'd suspected might have been a misidentified shrike. He was right by that bathroom shack next to the parking lot. Edgewood also had a Variegated Meadowhawk (dragonfly) which was really surprising given how much ice has formed over the ponds and the Tahoe Keys canals in the last few days. 120-140 Cedar Waxwings and ~ 40 American Robins working the Mtn. Ash next to the Tahoe Keys Marina canal. The waxwings were flycatching a lot too. I sat there on the Cove East side for about a half hour just enjoying the show and unsuccessfully looking for a Bohemian. Also at Cove East was a very tame Northern Saw-whet Owl. I have no idea if he'll roost in that spot regularly, but in case he does, I've made it easy to find. If you're familiar with Cove East, you'll know the depression on the right/east side of the trail (after it forks; staying straight) that forms a pond on years like we just had. If you go to the far end of that and start walking towards the northeast, towards that main clump of somewhat elevated tall pines near the mouth of the Upper Truckee (which is an island right now), keep your eyes peeled for a 2-3' x 5" blue foam cushion, standing upright. It should be quite easy to find if you're looking for it, just wander around in those trees until you do. The bird was about 15' up a lodgepole next to that cushion, and I hung a large forked stick, some lupine, and a hunk of wasp nest at eye level in the roost tree, to make it obvious. Bird was on the WSW side of the tree. Best birds of the day were two Red-throated Loons seen off the Camp Richardson pier from 2:30-2:50. I haven't been carrying my digiscoping camera around lately, and today is a good lesson on why that's foolish - I could have gotten some great shots! Anyway, I did manage some cruddy record shots with my DSLR, and then at 2:50 they picked up and started flying in a bee-line for Kingsbury Grade. I watched them flying for what must have been a couple of minutes through the scope, before a pier piling blocked my view and I couldn't pick them up again. I'll bet they wind up on Topaz, Bridgeport Reservoir, or Crowley tomorrow or the next day (assuming they pushed on in that trajectory). These are only the second record of Red-throated Loon for Tahoe, following a pair found by Dave Quady in Carnelian Bay 2/13/06. Interesting that the smaller loons so often turn up in pairs. I also had a Pacific Loon off Cove East and Commons at Cove East and Hurricane Bay (west shore), making it a three loon day!! I may post a photo of the owl, but the loons shots are pretty bad. Maybe I'll stick one up on the Sierra list for posterity, but if I don't, and you want to see them, shoot me an email. Will Richardson Truckee ____________________ T. Will Richardson, Ph.D. Co-Executive Director, Tahoe Institute for Natural Science 530.412.2792 www.tinsweb.org ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Tahoe bits and bobs From: "Will" <t.will.richardson AT gmail.com> Date: Sat, 26 Nov 2011 19:32:31 -0000 I birded most of the Tahoe hotspots yesterday (Friday), scouring for rare ducks and gulls and whatnot, but mostly encountered lots and lots and lots of dogs off the leash. It was almost completely futile, and I guess I should have known better. Regardless, it was a beautiful day, and I did have a couple of noteworthy observations that may be worth sharing: A very close and surprisingly vocal Horned Grebe at Sunnyside. I'm not used to hearing the Podiceps make any noise. The Aythya flock in the Tahoe Keys has really grown. Most of the flock is probably best viewed off Dover early to mid-morning. A flock of about 40 Bushtits on the north side of Taylor Creek had at least 4-5 brown-capped, Pacific-slope-type individuals. The rest appeared to be the expected plumbeus. More importantly, I finally got some decent photos of brown-capped birds at Tahoe; they have eluded my camera for years! I even got a lousy shot of two females of the different types perched on the same branch, which I'll post in the list's Tahoe album. A flock of 80+ gulls at the mouth of Taylor Creek held the promise of something interesting, but it was just the usual suspects. Lots and lots of gulls out over the water all around the south end of the Lake today, however, and I'm sure there's a good gull somewhere in the mix. I may try again on Sunday. PS - I had to compose this on the list's Yahoo! page, as my emails weren't going through. Anybody else encounter this lately? Will RichardsonTruckee [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: large migration seen - anyone else? From: Steve Hampton <shampton AT ospr.dfg.ca.gov> Date: Sun, 20 Nov 2011 21:42:59 -0800 Sounds like Snow Geese, but could easily have been White-fronted Geese, Tundra Swans, or various ducks (often Pintails). They all winter in the Central Valley and sometimes shift around and will make large movements north or south within the valley, probably moving from one field to another, depending on water levels, etc. This is not a daily occurrence in winter, but is fairly regular. 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 >>> schmiechenkid 11/20/11 9:27 PM >>> Nov 19th around 8-9 am I was driving north on I-5 between Stockton and Sacramento when I noticed a distant V of birds, headed N-NW. Too distant to ID, plus I was driving. But I kept an eye on the group, and saw another V attached to the first. Then another line, another V, more and more, as far as I could see. As I drove, I tracked the lines of birds for about 10-15 miles, stretched into one long continuous line, before I lost them. All I could note were dark wings and light bodies (white pelicans?). I wondered if they were heading toward the ocean. Has anyone else seen something like this, or can anyone take a guess at what they were? It was very exciting to see. Even got a "wow" out of my non-birder husband who I called to share it with. :-) Thank you for your thoughts. Kathie Schmiechen Auburn, Placer Co, California. ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: large migration seen - anyone else? From: "schmiechenkid" <schmiechenkid AT yahoo.com> Date: Mon, 21 Nov 2011 04:39:04 -0000 Nov 19th around 8-9 am I was driving north on I-5 between Stockton and Sacramento when I noticed a distant V of birds, headed N-NW. Too distant to ID, plus I was driving. But I kept an eye on the group, and saw another V attached to the first. Then another line, another V, more and more, as far as I could see. As I drove, I tracked the lines of birds for about 10-15 miles, stretched into one long continuous line, before I lost them. All I could note were dark wings and light bodies (white pelicans?). I wondered if they were heading toward the ocean. Has anyone else seen something like this, or can anyone take a guess at what they were? It was very exciting to see. Even got a "wow" out of my non-birder husband who I called to share it with. :-) Thank you for your thoughts. Kathie Schmiechen Auburn, Placer Co, California. ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Hybrid wigeon still in Glenshire Pond From: Will Richardson <t.will.richardson AT gmail.com> Date: Mon, 14 Nov 2011 14:56:29 -0800 This is the male Eurasian x American Wigeon that Martin Meyers found yesterday, in the Glenshire Pond here in Truckee. Very cool bird, and very easy to pick out. Will ____________________ T. Will Richardson, Ph.D. Co-Executive Director, Tahoe Institute for Natural Science 530.412.2792 www.tinsweb.org ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Hybrid American X Eurasian Wigeon at Glenshire Pond (Truckee) From: <martin AT sierrabirdbum.com> Date: Sun, 13 Nov 2011 18:15:54 -0700 When I took a walk down to the Glenshire Pond today, I was a bit surprised by the number of wigeons -- at least 150 or so. With that many present, I thought I had a good chance of finding a Eurasian amongst them. I was half right! I've posted a photo on my website (address below) of the hybrid male American X Eurasian Wigeon (with an American Wigeon present for comparisons). Select the "Recent" tab -- it's currently the first photo on that page. By the way, if you like hybrids, take a look at the next photo on the same page -- it's from Nevada (state, not county), but amusing all the same. Comments on that critter would be appreciated. Martin --------------- Martin Meyers email: Martin (...AT...) SierraBirdbum.com Photo website: http://SierraBirdbum.com Truckee, CA ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Southern Sierra: Canebrake Ecological Reserve From: Bob Barnes <bbarnes AT lightspeed.net> Date: Sun, 13 Nov 2011 14:40:56 -0800 Hi, This morning a two hour birding visit was made to the Canebrake Ecological Reserve*** located at an elevation of 3000' at the east end of the Kern River Valley's subset South Fork Valley. No true rarities were found. Even so, the diversity at the Canebrake ER was decent (43 species) considering the relatively brief visit and the fact that bird activity approached non-existent during the first half of the walk along the Public Access Trail. For context, a complete list for this eBird hot spot location follows below... ABA's "A Birder's Guide to Southern California," pp. 148-149*** The following report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org/california/): South Fork Valley--Canebrake Ecological Reserve, Kern, US-CA Nov 13, 2011 8:25 AM - 10:25 AM Observer: Bob Barnes Protocol: Traveling - 1.25 mile(s) Comments: Cloud Cover: 100%. Temperature: 45F-52F. Coverage: Entire length of Public Access Trail plus edge of pond and marsh. Mammal: Coyote 1. 43 species (+1 other taxa) * Wood Duck 1 * American Wigeon 2 Two pairs. * Mallard 10 * California Quail 1 * Sharp-shinned Hawk 1 immature * Red-shouldered Hawk 2 * Red-tailed Hawk 1 * American Kestrel 1 male * Virginia Rail 7 * Sora 2 * American Coot 31 * Red-breasted Sapsucker 1 * Nuttall's Woodpecker 3 * Downy Woodpecker 1 * Northern Flicker 2 * Northern Flicker (Red-shafted) 1 * Black Phoebe 2 * Western Scrub-Jay 2 * Common Raven 2 * Oak Titmouse 4 * Bushtit 18 * White-breasted Nuthatch 2 * Rock Wren 2 * Canyon Wren 3 * Bewick's Wren 4 * Marsh Wren 2 * Ruby-crowned Kinglet 2 * Western Bluebird 18 * American Robin 1 * European Starling 6 * Yellow-rumped Warbler (Audubon's) 6 * Spotted Towhee 1 * California Towhee 3 * Song Sparrow 4 * Lincoln's Sparrow 1 * White-crowned Sparrow 76 * Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon) 5 * Red-winged Blackbird 10 * Tricolored Blackbird 40 (known wintering location with 800-2000 individuals present in "good" winters) * Western Meadowlark 5 * Brewer's Blackbird 5 * blackbird sp. 140 * House Finch 3 * Lesser Goldfinch 3 Bob Barnes, Ridgecrest, Kern County, California [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: correction to yesterday's sierra valley post From: <martin AT sierrabirdbum.com> Date: Fri, 11 Nov 2011 21:05:34 -0700 This is from my phone __ please forgive any typing errors. Anyway, yesterday I described "Ferug Corner" as being at the intersection of A24 and 49. That should have said Heriot and 49. The name was assigned by Lin, who ran the Xmas counts quite a few years ago. The field there was, and still is, good for a couple of Fer Hawks nearly any time I go by there (in season.) Martin --------------- Martin Meyers email: Martin (...AT...) SierraBirdbum.com Photo website: http://SierraBirdbum.com Truckee, CA ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Excellent day in Sierra Valley From: <martin AT sierrabirdbum.com> Date: Thu, 10 Nov 2011 18:16:12 -0700 I had a really enjoyable day in Sierra Valley today. Weather was cool, with some high clouds, calm winds. There were plenty of birds all around, but the most amazing location was at the corner of A24 and the Loyalton sewer pond road (Poole Lane). In the field northwest of the corner were seventeen Red-tailed Hawks, eight Ferruginous Hawks (all light), and one Prairie Falcon. Just across A24 to the east was a giant flock of American Pipits (at least 250) plus about a hundred Horned Larks and sixteen Killdeer. Alas, no un-American Pipit, and no longspurs. A couple of Northern Harriers buzzed the birds a few times. The field southwest of the corner had twenty American Crows. Further down Poole, near the sewer ponds, there was a Black Phoebe, which was pursued (but not caught) by a Sharp-shinned Hawk. Oddly, the only White-crowned Sparrow of the day was one along Poole Road. Sparrows were in very short supply today. Also near the sewer ponds were three American Goldfinches with some House Finches, plus a few Northern Shovelers in the ponds and a couple more Northern Harriers. One Bewick's Wren, plus the usual Starlings and Magpies, finished off the Loyalton part of the day. My route was pretty much the one I almost always do: Sierraville to Sattley, north on A23 to Marble Hot Springs Road (Dysan Lane), across Dysan to A24, north on A24 to Maddalena Ranch, then back south and east on A24 to Harriet/Heriot, south to 49, east to Loyalton, north on A24 to Poole, walk Poole to sewer ponds, then back to Sierraville and home to Truckee. Sierraville to Marble Hot Springs was relatively uneventful, with about a dozen Red-tailed Hawks and some Canada Geese, Common Ravens, and a couple of American Kestrels. As usual Marble Hot Springs Road from A23 to the intersection with A24 was great. Three American Bitterns flew off near the first (eastmost) water crossing. The first two of the day's five Bald Eagles were seen from here, as well. (One adult, one appeared to be nearly adult.) A Prairie Falcon was perched on a power pole. A couple of Ferruginous Hawks were flying about, as were several Red-tailed Hawks. Lots of Northern Harriers. Plus one Kestrel. A single Ring-necked Duck was at the farm pond near A24. A Western Grebe was at the Iron Bridge, as were several Marsh Wrens and Pied-billed Grebes. One Spotted Towhee in the same area was one of only six sparrow-types seen all day. And a fly-by Ring-billed Gull was the only gull of the day. As I started north on A24 toward Maddalena Ranch, a gorgeous dark-morph Rough-legged Hawk circled over me, allowing some really nice photos. Another adult Bald Eagle was flying to the west. Three other (light) Rough-legs were seen between there and the Sierra County line on Harriet/Heriot. Along Harriet (I was in Plumas, so it's Harriet) I stopped and scoped some ponds, finding 35 Greater White-fronted Geese, five Snow Geese, plus Northern Pintails, Northern Shovelers, Green-winged Teal, American Wigeon,and Mallards. Also two more adult Bald Eagles and three Savannah Sparrows. Back in Sierra County, two Ferruginous Hawks were in "Ferrug Corner" (the field on the west side of A24 just before the intersection with 49.) Just before entering Loyalton, I found the obvious highlight of the day, Eurasian Collared-doves! Then off to Loyalton sewer pond road, about which I've already written. Here's a complete list for the day: (Plumas) Greater White-fronted Goose 35 (Plumas) Snow Goose (Plumas) Canada Goose (Sierra) Canada Goose (Plumas) Mallard (Sierra) Mallard (Plumas) Green-winged Teal (Plumas) American Wigeon (Plumas) Northern Pintail (Plumas) Northern Shoveler (Sierra) Northern Shoveler 6 (Plumas) Ring-necked Duck 1 (Plumas) Pied-billed Grebe 4 (Plumas) Western Grebe 1 (Plumas) American Bittern 3 (Plumas) Bald Eagle 5 (Plumas) Northern Harrier 10 (Sierra) Northern Harrier 4 (Sierra) Sharp-shinned Hawk 1 (Plumas) Red-tailed Hawk 13 (Sierra) Red-tailed Hawk 36 (Plumas) Rough-legged Hawk 4 (Sierra) Ferruginous Hawk 10 (Plumas) Ferruginous Hawk 2 (Plumas) American Kestrel 1 (Sierra) American Kestrel 4 (Sierra) Prairie Falcon 1 (Plumas) Prairie Falcon 1 (Plumas) American Coot (Sierra) Killdeer 17 (Plumas) Ring-billed Gull 1 (Sierra) Eurasian Collared-dove 3 (Sierra) Black Phoebe 1 (Sierra) Black-billed Magpie (Sierra) American Crow 20 (Plumas) Common Raven (Sierra) Common Raven (Sierra) Horned Lark AT 100 (Sierra) Bewick's Wren (Plumas) Marsh Wren 5 (Plumas) European Starling (Sierra) European Starling (Sierra) American Pipit AT 250 (Plumas) Spotted Towhee 1 (Plumas) Savannah Sparrow 3 (Sierra) White-crowned Sparrow 1 (Sierra) Western Meadowlark 1 (Sierra) Brewer's Blackbird (Sierra) House Finch (Sierra) American Goldfinch 3 --------------- Martin Meyers email: Martin (...AT...) SierraBirdbum.com Photo website: http://SierraBirdbum.com Truckee, CA ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: 4 White-winged Scoters: Isabella Reservoir, Kern Co. From: Bob Barnes <bbarnes AT lightspeed.net> Date: Thu, 03 Nov 2011 17:58:04 -0700 Hi, The following concerns what I think is an unprecedented "flock" of FOUR WHITE-WINGED SCOTERS for Kern County. In this case, on the middle portion of Isabella Reservoir in the Kern River Valley at c. 2600' in the southern Sierra Nevada Spent the day birding around Isabella Reservoir with Ken Burton who is down from Humboldt County for a few days. At about 1:30pm we pull of CA Hwy 178 into the Isabella Reservoir's South Fork Recreation Site located along the south shore between the communities of Lake Isabella on the west and Mountain Mesa on the east. Ken head off to the west to check out some birds. At about 1:35pm I spotted four dark ducks on the water at a considerable distance and noticed that one had a white patch showing on the side. When Ken came back in sight several minutes later I told him, "I think I have four White-winged Scoters here. You see them a lot more often than I do. Come take a look." He did and said they were definitely White-winged Scoters and said the issue was not the species, but the plumages. Eventually we were able to see them stretch their wings and reveal their distinctive broad, bright, solid white wing patches. I then called Susan Steele and Alison Sheehey. Ken and I held onto the birds for over an hour when Susan arrived followed by Alison a very few minutes later. Susan eventually got enough looks to state at least two White-winged Scoters in the flock. Alison headed to the far side of the reservoir to try and get closer and Susan followed a bit later. The last I talked with Susan (c. 3:30pm), she and Alison had closer looks than Ken and I had at the four White-winged Scoters from the west side of the reservoir and said they were all non-adult males in different states of plumage with one significantly darker than the other three. Alison JUST called as I wrote here and told me she did get close enough for I.D. photos. She will post the photos in the a Kerncobirding folder this evening and send an announcement via the listserv. Also present on the reservoir today was a First of Fall/First of Season (wintering) adult BALD EAGLE along with the usual impressive numbers of Eared Grebes (hundreds), Western and Clark's Grebes (1000-2000), and Double-crested Cormorants (150-200). Bob Barnes, Ridgecrest, Kern County, California [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Mono birds From: "marinbirder" <david AT sierranaturalist.com> Date: Mon, 24 Oct 2011 19:16:14 -0000 Dear All, Yesterday I had two Long-billed Curlews winging south over Mono Lake, with eared grebes on the lake as far as you could see! It would be a great time to go see the grebes, not to mention the fall foliage! I also had a solitary eared grebe on the small lake along the Nunatak Trail at Tioga Pass, that would be about 9500' or so. David Lukas Groveland ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: 10/19/11: Tillie Creek CG Wonderland of Birds From: Bob Barnes <bbarnes AT lightspeed.net> Date: Wed, 19 Oct 2011 18:23:28 -0700 Hi: I spent two of the most rewarding hours of birding this morning at Tillie Creek Campground at the base of the community of Wofford Heights bordering Isabella Reservoir in the Kern River Valley in the Kern County portion of the southern Sierra Nevada. There were no particularly rare birds. But, the birding was sublime. The wonderfully in your face numbers of Phainopepla and Spotted Towhee alone were worth the visit. Further contextual comments, species list, species numbers, and partial species notes follow next... Wofford Heights--Tillie Creek Campground, Kern, US-CA Oct 19, 2011 6:50 AM - 8:50 AM Observer: Bob Barnes Protocol: Traveling - 2.0 mile(s) Comments: Elevation - 2600'+. Temp - 52F at start, 61F at end. Sunrise listed as c. 7am for Kern River Valley. Good light at campground starting at 7am. But, sunlight first hit campground at 7:25am. "Very birdy." Lots of calling and singing the first hour+. Good concentration of species and individuals at food sources. Impressive numbers of several species. The concentrations of individuals were in the extensive area of fruiting shrubbery in the back half of the campground The estimated two miles of walking was based on walking all interior roads of the 40-50 acre Tillie Creek Campground. This was a one-by-one count. Some birds may have been missed due to looking down to write each bird or flock of birds detected along the way on a tally card. 38 species (+1 other taxa) * Mallard 1 * California Quail 51 * Western Grebe 1 * Clark's Grebe 3 * Western/Clark's Grebe 550 One-by-one count of individuals on Isabella Reservoir as viewed from a distance from the edge of Tillie Creek Campground * Double-crested Cormorant 6 * Red-tailed Hawk 1 * Merlin 1 gray-backed (male) bird perched in snag behind campsite # 101. * Anna's Hummingbird 8 To be expected through winter as there are flowering Eucalyptus trees in the campground children's play area and hummingbird feeders at a house in the line of houses bordering the back fence of the campground. * Acorn Woodpecker 8 * Red-naped Sapsucker 2 Appears to be annual at this location. N John Schmitt tracks them and reports multiple individuals virtually every "winter." I often see one. Seeing two this morning without John Schmitt taking me to them was a treat. * Nuttall's Woodpecker 4 * Northern Flicker 4 * Black Phoebe 1 * Western Scrub-Jay 27 * American Crow 1 Rare in the Kern River Valley. However, they are regular and resident at this location and have been noted as nesting (as reported by N John Schmitt who has visited this area numerous times a year in every month for several years). * Common Raven 5 * Oak Titmouse 9 * White-breasted Nuthatch 2 * Bewick's Wren 6 * Ruby-crowned Kinglet 6 * Wrentit 1 * Western Bluebird 3 * American Robin 2 * Northern Mockingbird 27 Remarkable concentrations in several single, fruiting shrubs... * California Thrasher 3 * European Starling 2 * Phainopepla 41 Numbers have been building. I believe my high count in a past winter was 48 individuals. N John Schmitt's high counts have reached 60-70+ individuals. * Spotted Towhee 22 * California Towhee 6 * White-crowned Sparrow 41 * Golden-crowned Sparrow 1 Personal First of Fall * Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) 2 * Western Tanager 1 * Brewer's Blackbird 2 * Purple Finch (Western) 8 Numerous individuals of this species have spent the winter at this location for several years. Numbers are currently building. * House Finch 14 * Lesser Goldfinch 1 * House Sparrow 4 The above report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org/california/) Continued Happy & Productive Birding, Bob Barnes, Ridgecrest, Kern County, California [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Sierra Valley Birding - PLU and SIE From: dillingham7 AT digitalpath.net Date: Mon, 10 Oct 2011 21:27:50 -0700 -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Scott and Amber Edwards and I had a nice day birding Sierra Valley today. Highlights were 23 ferruginous hawks, including 19 in Sierra County on A-24 between Loyalton and the Plumas County Line. 3 of them were dark phase ferruginous hawks. We also found 125 red-tailed hawks and a total of 60 species. See the attached excel spreadsheet if you are interested in seeing our complete list. Colin Dillingham 530-283-1133 The attachment was created by ebird, in a tab delimited format, which excel can easily read. Excel will give you a warning notice asking if you sure it is from a trusted source. Click yes and the file will open. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Lewis's and Owls From: "marinbirder" <david AT sierranaturalist.com> Date: Sun, 09 Oct 2011 03:09:12 -0000 Dear All, I have two sightings from today at 3000' in Groveland. First was a Lewis's Woodpecker flying west. I assume this is indicative of their annual movements from east side breeding areas to wintering areas on the west slope, but I can't recall seeing them around Groveland before, or at least not in the fall. Then, in keeping with my previous post about an uptick in owl activity, tonight at sunset around my yard I had simultaneously calling Great Horned Owls, Pygmy Owls, Saw-whet Owls, Spotted Owls, and Screech Owls. Crazy! Plus the Great Horns, Spotteds, and Saw-whets were loudly duetting pairs. I'm not sure what this means, but it sure was cool to hear them all at once. David Lukas Groveland ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Sierra Valley raptors From: ERPfromCA AT aol.com Date: Sat, 8 Oct 2011 11:56:05 -0400 (EDT) Bill Yeates and I made a very quick pass through Sierra Valley (Plumas and Sierra Counties) late yesterday afternoon. While finding Ferruginous Hawks the first week of Oct is not unusual, we were surprised to find seven in a short, 6-mile stretch along Road A-24 west from Hwy 49. Red-tailed Hawks were remarkably numerous all over, at a significantly higher density then even in winter, so I assume that many are still on their way into the CV. Lots of harriers, as well. Just one sub-adult Golden Eagle. No sign of the Short-eared Owls that summered in the valley during our pass along Harriet/Heriot Rd at dusk. Two family groups of cranes along Marble Hot Springs Rd and more flying high overhead. Ed Pandolfino Carmichael, CA [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: SABINE'S GULL+ Isabella Reservoir (Kern River Valley) From: Bob Barnes <bbarnes AT lightspeed.net> Date: Sat, 08 Oct 2011 07:34:20 -0700 Hi, Based on a phone call from John Schmitt... SABINE'S GULL- 1, Friday, October 7 - John Schmitt - over Isabella Reservoir and near shoreline below Tillie Creek Campground, Wofford Heights. I believe this is the 2nd record for Isabella Reservoir and the Kern River Valley. The areas where the vast majority of Sabine's Gulls are found in Kern County are at publicly off-limits portions of military bases. At those locations, Sabine's Gulls often remain for multiple days after first being detected. Thus, the Sabine's Gull found by John Schmitt at Isabella Reservoir yesterday may still be present and accessible for viewing by birders. John also reported that reliable friends observed an adult BALD EAGLE interacting with an Osprey over the Kern River next to the Kern Valley Golf Course which is located above/north of Isabella Reservoir between the communities of Kernville and Wofford Heights. This was a first of fall/winter detection ahead of expected November arrival. Although late in expected first of fall/winter arrival, John reported that the first RED-NAPED SAPSUCKER arrived at Tillie Creek Campground in Wofford Heights this week. Dozens of the expected scores (winter counts of up to seventy+ individuals) of PHAINOPEPLAS have already arrived for winter at Tillie Creek Campground; supplementing the pairs which nest there. BB's Editorial Comment: Since three paved roads taken together border and go around all three sides of roughly triangular-shaped Isabella Reservoir, getting to best light angles throughout the day for viewing birds is possible due to numerous paved pull-outs looking down on the water's surface. Overall, the October through January time period has yielded surprises suggesting a drive with multiple stops around the perimeter of the Isabella Reservoir as time permits. November is perhaps the best time to check Isabella Reservoir for unexpected "sea ducks" (e.g.: scoters), loons, and grebes. Serving as the messenger, Bob Barnes, Ridgecrest, Kern County, California [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Tahoe 10/5-7/11 From: Will Richardson <t.will.richardson AT gmail.com> Date: Fri, 7 Oct 2011 18:38:53 -0700 Sorry about today's delayed post on the warbler. I hit "send" as I was headed out the door, and the server kicked it back while I was away. I forgot to mention that two days ago, on the 5th, there were huge flocks of Mountain Bluebirds swirling around Martis Valley, and smaller flocks along Glenshire Drive in Truckee. Unless they were all sticking to the roadsides, I'd estimate several thousand birds were in the general area. I've seen flocks like this form in stormy weather in May in Inyo County. Impressive stuff! I had a couple of afternoon meetings in S. Lake Tahoe yesterday, so I took the opportunity to bird my way down. I met Kirk Hardie and TINS' AmeriCorps Member Ben Tweed a bit too early, around 8:30, at Lake Forest Beach. It was QUIET, but at least it wasn't snowing, yet. Couple of N. Shovelers were about all that was interesting. We went over to Pomin. Must have been quiet there too, 'cause I can't really remember any birds of note. We did, however, look back over to Lake Forest and see a Snowy Egret on one of the rocks. Steam coming off the water prevented a good scan of the lake, and sewage line road work prevented access to the Aspen St. overlook. So I headed south. Taylor Creek was full of fish (the Kokanee are running), and people along the Rainbow Tr. Wow. People sure like red fish in shallow water. Then the snow started to come down with zeal. There were a few yellowthroats in the willows, and a kingfisher posed for photos, and a fly-over ibis was surprising. I drove up the road on the W side of Taylor Creek (past the Sno-Park that's right there), and pulled over near the weir to see if there were any bear or mink or bobcats or who knows what fishing right there). There weren't, but there were two surprisingly tame Pileated Woodpeckers hanging out and posing for snowy pictures. There was also one Varied Thrush amid lots of robins and Steller's Jays cruising the Serviceberries. Onward to the Camp Richardson pier, but it was way too snowy to scan for interesting ducks and whatnot. A Savannah Sparrow out on the pier was curiously out of context. Also, the Snowy Owl decoy is gone, which made me sad. I liked that thing. I then birded the woods along the edge of Pope's Marsh and ... it was birdy!! Really birdy, in fact. Got some nice Hermit Thrush photos, and was interested to see a Western Wood-Pewee foraging on the forest floor (2 days past my previous late date). On to Cove East, where it was snowing so hard I was starting to worry about how wet my waterproof scope was getting (Kowa recently did a full clean, recase, and reseal/purge on it, for free!). Anyway, I was amazed by how many sparrows there were. It was evocative of a fullout day on the Farallones, where you're walking along and every few steps flushes up 5-10 more birds. Really fun, but impossible to track any one bird. Also, all the snow and moisture meant serious problems for binoculars. Lots and lots of lens wiping. Anyway, despite the thousands of birds I sifted through, it was all the usual suspects. it was mostly Zonotrichia, but there was one imm. white-crowned with very strong malars with sooty-black feathers. Maybe it was a Z. l. pugetensis, but I don't recall the bill color. I also managed to find one Mountain White-crowned Sparrow adult, which is about three weeks past my previous late date. The humidity was bringing out very rich color tones in the Savannahs, and each looked like a possible candidate for Henslow's or Baird's or ... but they all sounded exactly alike. Two Violet-greened Swallows flying by was quite a surprise, too. It was hard to tear myself away from, but my meetings wouldn't wait. After my meetings, the snow had stopped, so I returned to work the swarms of sparrows with low and dry optics. There were still lots of sparrows around, but most of the hordes had clearly dispersed. Bummer. Notable on my evening visit was one Western Scrub-Jay and lots of Violet-Green and late N. Rough-winged Swallows, picking insects off the surface of the lake. I should also mention that the Harrimans birded Cove East earlier in the day and had a Peregrine, some more ibis (these are all first records for Oct, by the way), and a late Empidonax flycatcher. Meanwhile, at the Harriman's house in South Lake Tahoe, they found a Hatch-year female Chestnut-sided Warbler yesterday, late morning. It was still there this morning, and I finally saw it around 11:30 (I think; all I remember is that I waited for a couple of hours and was anxious to get back to work). Tahoe's first record, and a great bird. The Harriman's yard has pulled in two Tahoe firsts in the last two years!! They also have a lingering Green-winged Towhee that's helping to nudge my late date back a bit. Still lots of sparrows at Cove East today, but nothing even remotely like mid-day yesterday. Probably a lot of other avian flotsam out there from this crazy storm. Get out there this weekend and find it!!! Will ____________________ T. Will Richardson, Ph.D. Co-Executive Director, Tahoe Institute for Natural Science 530.412.2792 www.tinsweb.org ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Tahoe Chestnut-sided Warbler From: Will Richardson <t.will.richardson AT gmail.com> Date: Fri, 7 Oct 2011 14:23:26 -0700 I was out most of the day yesterday, so I need to give an update on all that I saw (including more sparrows at Cove East than I've ever seen there). But in the meantime, I just got a call from Don Harriman that the Chestnut-sided Warbler he and Lynn had in their S. Lake Tahoe yard yesterday is still there. No guarantees that the bird will stick around now that it's not a blizzard, but if other folks want to try for it, the Harriman's number is 530.544.8825. I'm off... Will ____________________ T. Will Richardson, Ph.D. Co-Executive Director, Tahoe Institute for Natural Science 530.412.2792 www.tinsweb.org ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Tahoe Chestnut-sided Warbler From: Will Richardson <t.will.richardson AT gmail.com> Date: Fri, 7 Oct 2011 14:21:38 -0700 I was out most of the day yesterday, so I need to give an update on all that I saw (including more sparrows at Cove East than I've ever seen there). But in the meantime, I just got a call from Don Harriman that the Chestnut-sided Warbler he and Lynn had in their S. Lake Tahoe yard yesterday is still there. No guarantees that the bird will stick around now that it's not a blizzard, but if other folks want to try for it, the Harriman's number is 530.544.8825. I'm off... Will ____________________ T. Will Richardson, Ph.D. Co-Executive Director, Tahoe Institute for Natural Science 530.412.2792 www.tinsweb.org ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Check out eBird Version 3 ­ The ultimate birding tool From: Bob Barnes <bbarnes AT lightspeed.net> Date: Fri, 07 Oct 2011 07:42:38 -0700 Hi, California eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ca Sent on behalf of Team eBird (Marshal Iliff, Brian Sullivan, Chris Wood): Check out eBird Version 3 – The ultimate birding tool If you haven’t been to eBird (www.ebird.org) in a while, it’s time for another look. Over the past few months we’ve updated eBird so that it’s easier to use and more useful than ever to the birding community. eBird can help you find birds through our “Alerts” or by exploring our newly revised mapping tools and bar charts. Recording and keeping track of your birds is easier than ever with a completely redesigned data entry system and our automated listing pages (My eBird). Most importantly, you’ll become part of a growing community of tens of thousands of birders around the world whose data are now being used in real science and conservation. Best of all – it’s free! eBird Version 3 includes: ***Global scope­enter and explore observations from anywhere around the world ***Streamlined data entry­getting your data into the system is faster and more customizable than ever ***Improved range maps­explore interactive range maps for any bird in the world ***Alerts system­get customized reports about birds of interest to you in a region ***eBird Top 100­find out how your totals rank among other birders in any region ***Birding + Science connection­by participating, your data become available to the science and conservations communities We’re proud of the new developments at eBird, and we hope you’ll take the time to take the new tools for a test spin. Even if you don’t enter data, you can still explore the information submitted by other eBirders. Moving forward we’ll continue to develop eBird as the ultimate tool to serve the birding community, while always ensuring that the data we collect for science is of the highest possible quality. Join the flock, become an eBirder! The preceding was sent to you on behalf of Team eBird (Marshal Iliff, Brian Sullivan, Chris Wood). As many of you know, I am an avid user of eBird, having entered bird lists for several counties in California (especially the Sierra Nevada of Kern County where I live and nearby Tulare County), plus Arizona, Costa Rica, Massachusetts, Nevada, New York, and Texas. I have enjoyed seeing the ever increasing number of birders entering their Sierra Nevada bird observations data sets into the eBird database. I find the California eBird web site to be a great one to visit for entering my bird observations and for exploring data presented in a myriad of friendly ways. California eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ca Continued Happy & Productive Birding, Bob Barnes, Ridgecrest, Kern County, California 1969-2011 active birder of the southern Sierra Nevada (Kern River Valley region, Sequoia National Forest, and bordering lands managed by the USDI-Bureau of Land Management (BLM) [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: TV Migration (Mom get me out of here!) From: rccarl AT pacbell.net Date: Thu, 6 Oct 2011 15:20:39 -0700 (PDT) We've seen a few Turkey Vultures migrating along the east side of the Sierra the last few weeks, but today we hit the jackpot. We were having lunch here in Tahoe City at 6,700 ft watching 5 inches of snow melt and another huge bank of clouds coming in, when my wife said. "What are all those birds?  I looked up and against the clouds came a huge flock moving west far above Lake Tahoe.  I grabbed my binocs and counted 50 Turkey Vultures, flapping hard in windless 35 degree weather, clearly desperate to get out.   No chance for thermals, they were working harder than I've ever seen Vultures work.  (No they weren't geese:  but TV's). I'm sure they'll be flying over AZ as soon as possible.  We're off to Africa where I expect to see many new vultures, few of which migrate as far as these TV's headed for Venezuela. Richard Carlson Full-time Birder, Biker and Rotarian Part-time Economist Tucson, AZ, Lake Tahoe, CA, & Kirkland, WA rccarl AT pacbell.net Tucson 520-760-4935 Tahoe 530-581-0624 Kirkland 425-828-3819 Cell 650-280-2965 [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Tahoe update From: Will Richardson <t.will.richardson AT gmail.com> Date: Wed, 5 Oct 2011 15:22:55 -0700 Not much to report from the Lake Forest area today. In ~ 1.5 hours, the only interesting birds were two Common Terns, a distant grebe that looked Horned, and two westbound Turkey Vultures (what were they thinking?!?!). There were lots and lots of California Gulls gobbling down crayfish though. I like to think all the action would have attracted a jaeger, were there any in the vicinity. I also made stops at Agate and Carnelian Bays, and Common's Beach. Nada. In hummingbird news, however, I was surprised to see an Anna's Hummingbird at my feeder this morning, sipping at the feeder despite heavy snow falling. Sue Stevenson also reported that she still has a few Anna's at her South Lake Tahoe feeders today - not new arrivals, but they're sticking it out through this weather. Latest record I have for Tahoe is 16 Oct. The previously birdy action at Pomin Park was also way down, and I think a lot of birds got out of Dodge before this storm hit. We'll see what tomorrow brings... Will Richardson Truckee, CA ____________________ T. Will Richardson, Ph.D. Co-Executive Director, Tahoe Institute for Natural Science 530.412.2792 www.tinsweb.org ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Tahoe wind, finally From: Will Richardson <t.will.richardson AT gmail.com> Date: Tue, 4 Oct 2011 16:23:45 -0700 It's been a depressingly placid September, with no winds to concentrate the "pelagics." That all changed today, with a storm coming tomorrow that might drop a foot of snow above 7000. About 2 PM today, I stole a quick trip to Lake Forest "beach," and immediately found several Sabine's Gulls and a number of terns out in the hazy chop. So, I quickly relocated myself up to the Aspen St. overlook to get a better perspective. I noted four juv. Sabine's Gulls, 1 Arctic Tern, 4-5 Common Terns, and then another dozen or so "Commic" Terns spreading out towards downtown Tahoe City. I relocated to the Coast Guard pier for a better look at the string of terns, but the wind and waves were making the pier hum and jump around and panning with the scope was useless. Tomorrow should be nasty, but I'm going to try to get out for another look in the driving snow and sleet and rain (I'll report back), and then Thursday ought to still be pretty decent birding for anything that didn't get flushed out. In smaller bird news, last Friday I banded at Blackwood Canyon again, and had really good numbers again (72 birds in 5 hrs). Audubon's Warblers and Zonotrichia sparrows were THICK, with the first Golden- crowneds having showed up. Kinglets are really starting to arrive too. Also notable was one Purple Finch, heard for about an hour after sunrise, but not captured, and not heard again after that. After a Sept. remarkably thick with Anna's, the hummers finally seem to have moved on. Will Richardson Truckee ____________________ T. Will Richardson, Ph.D. Co-Executive Director, Tahoe Institute for Natural Science 530.412.2792 www.tinsweb.org ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Tahoe Black-backed From: Richard Carlson <rccarl AT pacbell.net> Date: Tue, 4 Oct 2011 15:08:23 -0700 (PDT) A Black-backed Woodpecker has taken up residence on the trail that leads west from Grand ave (off hwy 89 S of Tahoe City & Blackwood Cyn) The bird is in the burned area about 200 yards in from the trail-head . His extensive diggings are evident on the blackened trunks. To find him, listen carefully for his tapping. RCC Richard Carlson Full-time Birder, Biker and Rotarian Part-time Economist Tucson, AZ, Lake Tahoe, CA, & Kirkland, WA rccarl AT pacbell.net Tucson 520-760-4935 Tahoe 530-581-0624 Kirkland 425-828-3819 Cell 650-280-2965 [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Turkey Vultures (PLA) From: "rossierran" <derenross AT sbcglobal.net> Date: Mon, 03 Oct 2011 20:32:17 -0000 Hello Birders, Within the last half hour,approximately 70 Turkey Vultures were observed migrating south through foothills of western Placer. Deren Ross Sunset WTP Rocklin ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: vultures From: Lisa <lister39 AT yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 25 Sep 2011 00:34:50 -0700 This past evening we had a small group of vultures but then several groups of Swainson Hawks went flying over our house towards the south. Lisa Lister Minden, NV Sent from my iPod On Sep 24, 2011, at 10:42 AM, "marinbirder" wrote: > Hello, > > The last two days I've had groups of 10 and 11 migrating vultures. I know these are small numbers but I wonder if anyone else has been seeing groups of vultures? > > Also had a late Western Tanager yesterday. At 3000ft just outside of Yosemite this isn't entirely unexpected, but it's probably at the tail end of their season here. > > Finally, there's been a major uptick in owl activity lately and I don't know enough about the life history of owls to explain why they might be so vocal at this time of year. For example, two nights ago I had very vocal Spotted, Screech, and Pygmy owls all going off on the same night. Does anyone have any insights into why owls would be vocalizing at the end of summer? > > David Lukas > Groveland > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Tahoe Pileated etc From: rccarl AT pacbell.net Date: Sat, 24 Sep 2011 19:50:08 -0700 (PDT) We randomly see Pileateds here on Tahoe's NW corner and we have had one again for the last two days.  Had a good sight of him today at the top end of Tahoe Park Heights Drive above Sunnyside.  (Take Pine off 89 and goup the hill.)  Otherwise birding is prety dull.  Fox Sparrows either silent or gone, hardly a single warbler chip.  Woodpeckers, Nuthathes and Jays are pretty much it where I've been hiking.  Had more butterflies than birds today incuding many Mormon Fritillaries, Purplish Copper, CA Hairstreak & Milbert's Tortoiseshell. Richard Carlson Full-time Birder, Biker and Rotarian Part-time Economist Tucson, AZ, Lake Tahoe, CA, & Kirkland, WA rccarl AT pacbell.net Tucson 520-760-4935 Tahoe 530-581-0624 Kirkland 425-828-3819 Cell 650-280-2965 [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: vultures From: "marinbirder" <david AT sierranaturalist.com> Date: Sat, 24 Sep 2011 17:42:22 -0000 Hello, The last two days I've had groups of 10 and 11 migrating vultures. I know these are small numbers but I wonder if anyone else has been seeing groups of vultures? Also had a late Western Tanager yesterday. At 3000ft just outside of Yosemite this isn't entirely unexpected, but it's probably at the tail end of their season here. Finally, there's been a major uptick in owl activity lately and I don't know enough about the life history of owls to explain why they might be so vocal at this time of year. For example, two nights ago I had very vocal Spotted, Screech, and Pygmy owls all going off on the same night. Does anyone have any insights into why owls would be vocalizing at the end of summer? David Lukas Groveland ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Pine Grosbeak near Barney Lake From: "Bob Hislop" <rhislop AT astound.net> Date: Thu, 15 Sep 2011 09:34:44 -0700 On a back-packing trip from Twin Lakes to Virginia Lakes (via Robinson Creek and Matterhorn Canyon) last weekend, I got close enough to snap a picture of a Pine Grosbeak near Barney Lake, Sept 10, 2011. (Also got a little too close to a foraging Black Bear!) Sorry for the late report. http://twitpic.com/6la603 or http://twitter.com/#!/rgh2756/media/slideshow?url=http%3A%2F%2Ftwitpic.com%2F6la603 Bob Hislop Walnut Creek [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Tahoe - recent and not so recent From: Will Richardson <t.will.richardson AT gmail.com> Date: Fri, 9 Sep 2011 11:47:51 -0700 Hey folks, I've been so danged busy this summer that I have been a bit remiss in posting some of my locally interesting observations. Let's start with the recent - I've been bird-banding in Blackwood Canyon the last two weeks, and it's been BUSY!! Yesterday I was utterly overwhelmed, catching 97 birds in 5 hours. I actually had to let a few go at the net, unbanded, which is not something I ever do. But, when you're solo, and it's really cranking, sometimes that's the safest thing - I never want to get so far behind that I show up to a net full of dead birds! Anyway, the highlight yesterday, besides sheer numbers and diversity, were all the PURPLE FINCHES. There were probably 20-30 birds hanging around all morning, calling and even occasionally singing, all around the main meadow. Over the course of the day, four managed to hit my net. I've never seen anything like it, so if you want to pick up Purple Finch for your Tahoe list, now's the time. Might even be a decent weekend to look for them on the NV side of the lake (where they're a NBRC review species), but this may just be an isolated flock. Other fun birds yesterday included my first Cedar Waxwings of the fall, the first Gambel's White-crowned Sparrows, and several Anna's Hummingbirds (which have been absolutely THICK at my feeder in Truckee for the last few weeks), Speaking of hummingbirds, since my last post about Rufous Hummingbirds displaying, I've subsequently seen several more displays, including a few at Blackwood last week (on consecutive days). I don't know whether I've truly never observed this or simply forgot that I had, but either way, I've seen it a fair bit this year! Always immature males. Somewhat tangentially, I've had a young White-headed Woodpecker visiting my hummingbird feeder all summer. I suppose they're adapted to hang on Jeffrey Pine cones, but this is pretty clever behavior that I'd never seen before. Reproduction seemed to have suffered horribly from the late, late spring we had. Many species seemed to be able to shift their phenologies to a much later start, and I've been seeing lots of families of the larger flycatchers (Western Wood-Pewees and Olive- sided Flycatchers) and juncos, still hanging around together in the last couple of weeks. I haven't seen a junco with a stumpy tail in about a week, but it IS September. Other birds clearly shifted their efforts to lower elevations. We had Mountain White-crowned Sparrows breeding at Lake level. This isn't unprecedented, but the numbers of them at Lake level were, and they were also breeding at places like Cove East, which I'd never seen before. What was unprecedented, at least in my experience, was Lincoln's Sparrows with territories at Lake level. Mostly, however, I think a lot birds just didn't bother breeding. Crazy year. A few more bits and bobs: The lake is still ridiculously high, and it's bumming me out: there's very little habitat for shorebirds or gulls/terns/jaegers or waterbirds in general in all the usual hotspots, and I haven't been able to initiate our fall banding at Cove East due to flooding. Shorebirds have been a total bust this year, at least for me. My organization has been leading free nature outings out of High Camp at Squaw Valley. I think I already posted about our Gray-crowned Rosy- Finch hike on 10 July, but I've also had rosy-finches on a couple of subsequent trips up there, including seeing a recent fledgling being fed on 7 August. This bird was on the cliffs above the top of the Gold Coast chairlift. We also had a few flyovers in the same general area on 21 August. Back in mid-August (8/11) I was impressed to note several Gray Flycatchers in the high meadows around and above Galena Falls (on the trail up to Mt. Rose). I wonder if upslope movement is typical. I'm sure I'm forgetting some other stuff, but that's it for now. Will Richardson Truckee, CA ____________________ T. Will Richardson, Ph.D. Co-Executive Director, Tahoe Institute for Natural Science 530.412.2792 www.tinsweb.org ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Late summer birds From: "marinbirder" <david AT sierranaturalist.com> Date: Wed, 07 Sep 2011 19:44:43 -0000 Hello, I wanted to note a typical late summer pattern with a few recent sightings from the central Sierra foothills at 3000ft. It's easy to overlook birds in the foothills during the drowsy dusty days between summer and fall, but there is always an exciting little blip of activity around this time and it seems to be happening right now. On Sept. 5 I had a Cassin's Vireo singing and a Black-throated Gray Warbler foraging among live oaks and ponderosa pines, and today I had a male Yellow Warbler, Western Tanager, and another singing Cassin's Vireo in quick succession. It's probably been a month and a half since I've seen any of these birds at this elevation so these birds have clearly just returned after spending the summer at higher elevations or are moving through from the north. David Lukas Groveland ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: ID question From: Will Richardson <t.will.richardson AT gmail.com> Date: Fri, 2 Sep 2011 07:07:25 -0700 In short, yes. Goldens are seen in Desolation fairly regularly, but I don't think the area exactly gets a lot of birder coverage. They tried to nest on Angora Peak 2-3 years ago, and did nest at Lover's Leap before the Peregrine's took over their spot a number of years ago. I'm sure there's a pair or two that's well established in the heart of the area. Further south but somewhat similar, I saw Golden Eagles several times this winter in the Carson Pass/Steven's/Red Lake Peak/Little Round Top Area. Will Richardson Truckee, CA ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: ID question From: "schmiechenkid" <schmiechenkid AT yahoo.com> Date: Thu, 01 Sep 2011 15:44:35 -0000 Yesterday we were hiking from Wrights Lake to Rockbound Pass in Desolation Wilderness. Less than a mile from the pass at about 8000 feet, we were surrounded by granite peaks in the 9000 foot range, and we were hiking through a mostly dry area cut by a small creeklet and a shallow lake (Maude) and the occasional tarn. It was windy. From a distance, we saw a large dark bird wheel and turn, then soar just below the ridgeline. In its wake, a large flock of small birds and a hawk scattered and dispersed. The large dark bird looked significantly bigger than the hawk-like bird, which had some rusty elements but they were both too far to ID and we weren't carrying binocs. At first we thought the large dark bird caused the commotion of the smaller ones; but I think it just happened to pass over a hawk disturbing the small birds. As the dark bird glided away, it was steady and not teetering like a TV. There was a glimpse of other color to it, in the head and underwings, but i can't say exactly what, only that it was predominantly dark but not uniformly so. Could this have been a golden eagle? Thanks for your insights. Kathie Schmiechen Auburn ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Tulare Co.: 31 Aug 2011 Black-backed Woodpeckers From: Bob Barnes <bbarnes AT lightspeed.net> Date: Wed, 31 Aug 2011 19:33:07 -0700 Hi, Wednesday, 31 August 2011 David Kennedy, an active birder from Arlington Heights, Illinois, bided the length of Sherman Pass Road today stopping several times to search for a life Williamson's Sapsucker. Although he missed the sapsucker he did come upon two BLACK-BACKED WOODPECKERS together at 11:30am in a burn area which resulted in his second ever observation of this species ... a very nice consolation. And, one of likely interest to biders in/to Tulare County. David told me these birds readily came back in to recorded vocalizations and responded with matching vocalizations in kind. Although David could not describe the exact location, he did take a GPS reading... N 36 degrees 1.390', W 118 degrees 17.649' This area is at the currently known southern limits of Black-backed Woodpecker range in California. On his Kern Plateau transect via Sherman Pass Rd he also came across a variety of species including Western Wood-Pewee, Pinyon Jay ("a big flock"), Steller's Jay, Mountain Chickadee, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Mountain Bluebird, Townsend's Solitaire, Orange-crowned Warbler, MacGillivray's Warbler, Black-throated Gray Warbler, Brewer's Sparrow, Sage Sparrow, Western Tanager, Black-headed Grosbeak, Continued Happy & Productive Birding, Bob Barnes, Ridgecrest, Kern County, California [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: RFI - Tahoe City area birding From: Will Richardson <t.will.richardson AT gmail.com> Date: Wed, 31 Aug 2011 19:29:10 -0700 I'd add that since the lake is sooooo high, Lake Forest isn't really worth a visit right now. The meadows in Blackwood Canyon have had pretty good roving flocks of migrants the last two days. Take Barker Pass Rd. off of 89 (just a couple miles south of Tahoe City), and get out and bird wherever looks enticing. Following the road up the hill usually produces Pine Grosbeaks and other goodies this time of year, but don't forget to pull over, get out of your car, and listen. Pomin Park will probably be good, but I'm sure the campground will be full of people. The Village Green/Third Creek/Incline Creek area over in Incline should be pretty birdy right now, as well. Will Richardson Truckee, CA ------------------------------------ to post a message to the group, email to sierra-nevadabirds AT yahoogroups.com