Hey guys, they have changed the look of the blog format since I last posted. So I hope this comes out alright.

As you can see it has been some time since I posted on the blog. The reason is I have been working graveyard hours and that made it difficult to get out and see things. I refuse to say it is because of age, it was the hours. At any rate I was able to land a new job that is daytime hours like normal people. So now I work Mon-Fri, 9-5, (more or less), like normal people. This is amazing. I sleep normal hours without foil on my windows! The hours I used to get up and start my day, I now have completed my day and am ready to slow down. The real blessing with this life-change is that I can go on weekends to places and bird! We are even talking about taking a vacation in the fall to Cape May New Jersey for the Hawkwatch. I can't wait. This is one of those perfect vacations as it is a wonderful birding experience, my wife has a friend that lives in New Jersey as well as Atlantic City is close by. Something for everyone!

So, I wanted to catch up on some of the activities we have been able to do since I turned my life around to the diurnal lifestyle. My 'old' boss at the casino, George Palomares was terrific both as a boss and when I gave notice. He allowed me to take a full week off as part of my two week notice to recover and get ready to start my new job as Program Manager for the Criminal Justice Program at the University of Phoenix. I have been there two weeks now and love it. The hours are better as discussed above, and no one has started a fight or been obnoxiously drunk since I started. It is truly a new experience for me.

During that week off I kept hearing a hawk crying loudly outside my front door. I went out to investigate, (cop term), and found not one but two Red Shouldered Hawks (Buteo lineatus), circling the golf course across the street from my house. I was able to return to my house, retrieve my camera and snap a few photos before they finally floated off into the great blue yonder. I was hoping they would nest here, but it doesn't appear that has happened.



 I was able to re-connect to my birding buddy, Nancy Carr, as well. We were able to take a morning and drive to nearby Indio, and see Linda York at the Coachella Valley Wildbird Center. Linda and her husband have been instrumental in building a nice wetland area in the heart of the industrial area of Indio, California. They partnered with the water district that is literally next door to them and together they have built ponds with islands and cattails and all the right stuff for a terrific habitat for waterfowl and more. On walks past we have found a bobcat wandering through the nearby fields. Representatives from the local Jr. College, College of the Desert, hold nature walks there on the first Saturday of each month, except during the summer, (it is too darn hot!). On our walk we found a lot of Marsh Wrens (Cistothorus palustris). We both saw and heard these little loud mouths. We also saw the common Coot, (Fulica americana), Moorhen, (Gallinula chloropus), Eared Grebe, (Podiceps nigricous), Cinnamon Teal, (Anas cyanoptera) and Shovelers, (Anas clypeata). We got to talk to Linda in the center for a few minutes as she fielded calls on bird identifications, proper feeding and handling of baby birds, and care of injured animals in general. Punctuating her busy discussions was a Barn Owl flying around from post to post. One poor fellow was startled pretty good when he approached too closely to the owl and it took flight. He thought it was a stuffed animal and was quite surprised to see it leap off the table. 

Yesterday Nancy and I were able to get away for the morning to Little Morongo/Covington Park for a little birding. We set out from the parking lot, picked a trail and meandered along. I was confidently carrying my camera over my shoulder with my binoculars on my shoulder harness. Chic stuff for the birding world, by the way. We met Wayne and Karen who had driven out from Orange County to bird Little Morongo. We talked a bit about what to expect and where to find it. They were nice folks and seemed excited to get on their own personal adventure. We let them and began again our short journey, catching up on the local gossip as we went.

As we turned a corner on the trail I saw a large bird on a relatively low branch up ahead. I caught Nancy's shoulder and we walked carefully around the bend. I was able to get a couple of very good photos before I realized my battery was dead in the camera. The rest of the hike I was carrying a weight for a workout, not a camera. I was able to get a couple photos as you will see, but not as many as I would have liked.

 I love old dead snags and snarled and twisted trees, particularly when they are framed in a beautiful background. I was able to snap a shot of this burned tree that was surrounded by all the new growth and capped by a brilliant blue sky. This resonated with me as the essence of hope. No matter what happens, life goes on and as long as we keep striving for the blue sky it can't all be bad. (Ok, so much for my right brained side, I will get back to the facts now). We finished to perimeter trail and went back toward the activity room to try to find some Orioles, but instead found Dee Zeller, camp host, working on a watering problem. We said hi to him and returned to the entrance. There we sat down and looked up the birds we saw on our hike and watched the birds working their feeders. We saw Anna's and Costa's Hummingbirds, American Goldfinches, a Hooded Oriole, (Icterus cucullatus), a Black Headed Grosbeak (Pheucticus melanocephalus), as well as the House Finches and Sparrows and Starlings. All in all life is really good now.

There have been so many blessings, not the least of which has been the opportunities to go birding and share with friends and family the things found while out there. I look forward to sharing more trips, both short half day trips and more vacation-esque like the Cape May trip planned for the fall. You can bet I will make sure my battery is charged on future outings, though.


 Now, you might be a bird nerd if... you get up early on your weekend and put on your wide-brimmed floppy hat to go look for birds!

 See you out there!!

A visit with our son

It has been a while and I am happy to be able to put something on the blog. First, I should explain why it has been so long. I got a new job as Manager of Security at one of our local casinos, the Agua Caliente Resort and Casino. I work the graveyard shift. I know, I am 55 years old and working graveyard. I lose track of days and don't have the energy I used to.
At any rate, I am starting to get acclimated and hope to get some more outings in. One of our "weekends", (I am off Sunday and Mondays now), we went to Bolsa Chica wetlands area. We chose this garden spot because my son, Austin, is their newest Restoration Director there. He has moved into a condo with a couple roommates nearby and can literally jog to work.

We were able to spend a couple of days with him at his work while he showed us around. He was able to take to Rabbit Island, a place that is restricted in access for humans, and limited access to coyotes, raccoons, and other creatures that eat eggs and such. It is only accessible on very low tide days.

Austin used the company truck to drive us out to the island access point, after putting a wooden "bridge" in the bed. At the location, Austin tied a rope to one end and laid the bridge across a small inlet so we could cross onto the island. It was a little unstable but did the trick. Mom wasn't too excited about the bridge but she made it across.

(Austin in his office)

(Austin showing Mom how to use the bridge)

Austin showed us the majority of his work he has planned for the next couple months is the eradication of invasive non-native plants such as the ice plant that is pervasive along the coast. It looks like a very large job. He has plans to work with volunteers and the California Conservation Corps to accomplish this goal.

He also has several types of native plants growing in specially made plant boxes behind their main office. Once they are viable, and the invasive species are removed, he can use these to restore the natural plant balance to the area. Another long term and rather tedious process, but highly worthwhile.

(plants growing protected in large boxes behind the main office at Bolsa Chica Wetland Area)

While we were wandering around with Austin explaining all the biology and his goals, we saw several birds of interest. There was an Osprey that gave us some good looks. Buffleheads, Great Blue Herons, Whimbrels, Curlews, Willets and many other peeps were plentiful. We briefly saw a Reddish Egret in one of the ponds as well. We also saw a Kestrel or two and possibly a Merlin on a wire. I was able to snap a shot of a White Tailed Kite perched low to the ground in the marsh as well.

(Bufflehead)

(Our cooperative Osprey)

(White Tailed Kite)

(Great Blue Heron)

On the second day we went up to Long Beach and visited our oldest son, Taylor, and he took us to one of his sites he is working to restore. Near this site is a place where warm water is released from a power plant. This warm water has attracted large sea turtles in some numbers. It is very exciting to see them rise to the surface for air, then slowly disappear into the green water. Some are four to five feet across their shells.

(Turtle head out of the water, taking a breath)

It was a great two day adventure with our sons. Taylor was also able to make it down to Huntington Beach (Austin's place), for dinner on both nights so it was a good family time. It is these kinds of weekends that make it all worthwhile.

(Taylor and Andi talking while I was taking pictures of turtles. I was told I had just a few minutes more then we had to leave. Aaaah, isn't that cute.)

Vacation Birding II

To continue with our adventures "back east", I forgot to tell you about something else my lovely wife did for me. While we were talking to Tim Griffith in his Wild Birds Unlimited store, he showed us the new Crossley ID Guide for Eastern Birds. They haven't distributed the Western Guide yet, but as Tim says, about 40% of the birds in the Eastern Guide are found in the west as well. Tim actually used the Crossley Guide on our birding trip the following day. The cool thing about the Crossely Guide is that the pictures are photographs, like the Audubon guides, but have several different angles, in flight, male and female. So when you look on a page for a particular bird, you see that bird in a flock, on a wire, in flight, on the water as well as posing nice and big for the camera with it's family. This proved very helpful on several occasions as we got a glimpse of a bird flying into a tree line, or trying to hide in reeds and grasses. When we looked there was a picture that looked very similar to what we were trying to figure out what it was.

When I got home from the birding trip with Tim, talking like a schoolboy about our adventures, lying on the table was the Crossley ID guide, with a note on the inside cover and signed by Tim Griffith. See why we have been together 30 years?

Anyway, from Indiana, we drove our "new" car south to Georgia where more family live. There again, I can't tell you how nice these people were. They made it a point to show me places to go looking for birds. We rode bicycles through large wooded parks where I was able to get the Red-headed Woodpecker, a lifer for me and got me excited. My nephew-in-law(?), who was riding with me said, "Shoot, if that's all you want I can show you where there are lots of them near the house. They're everywhere." He was right, they were rather common for Georgia, but not so much for California. Same thing for the Pileated Woodpecker, Eastern Bluebirds, Eastern Meadowlarks, and more. Indigo Buntings were a target bird of mine, and they were literally everywhere. For them it wasn't very exciting, seeing their normal birds, but for me even the ubiquitous Northern Cardinals were worth a stop and look.

Georgia was also pretty humid and warm, but not quite like we experienced in Indiana. We were taken out on a boat for part of the day one day, and floated and talked lazily in the warm water. I was surprised to see a few Canada Geese still hanging out on the lake. I was able to see Turkey Vultures and Black Vultures soaring along the shoreline while we enjoyed the sun and water.

They pointed me to a trailhead and soon I was hiking along the Chattahoochie River where people were floating on all sorts of devices, including kayaks, canoes, inner tubes, air mattresses and more. Some were fishing while the current took them downriver, while others dozed. I hiked along the shore and found myself in a thick forest with deer moving in the shadows, birds on the branches and peoples voices in the distance. It was beautiful.

(The view from the trail along the Chattahoochie River)

(The trail along the Chattahoochie River)

After our visit we decided to drive along the Gulf Coast toward home. My wife looked on the map, (yes a paper, real map), and looked for anyplace that had NWR (National Wildlife Refuge) after the name. We discussed our time constraints, distances, money and more and agreed to stop at certain places where we may have the best chance to see some of my target birds. I wanted to see Swallow Tail Kites, Aninga, Roseate Spoonbills, and more.

On our way I read a little about the area and it explained the difference between a swamp and marsh. Basically, a swamp is a wet forest, where a marsh is more of an ever changing wetland. Huh.

I think I saw a Mississippi Kite while we were traveling along the freeway, as the bird I saw looked a lot like the Kite in my new Crossley Guide. However, I didn't trust my 70 mph identification and didn't count it on my list of 30 lifers.

We were trying to find one of the NWR's and driving through farmland when I did see something flare off to the right. I asked my wife to stop and I jumped out with the bino's. Yep, off in one of the open fields was a small flock of Black Bellied and Fulvous Whistling Ducks. I saw some more later, but always in singles or pairs, not the eight or ten I saw on the farm. Off we went again.

I found out something on this trip that I knew in my head, but it didn't really sink in until I experienced it for myself. Birding is dangerous in the south.

In the desert, the terrain is open and you can see for miles. Landmarks are large trees, boulders, or mountains. In the south, once you are in the forest, swamp, etc, many times you are engulfed in thick forest and grassy undergrowth. Beautiful but hard to keep your bearings. Also, in the desert there are things that bite. In the south, there are things that will eat you. I found alligators in Alabama, Louisiana, and got up close and personal with one in Texas. In one pond I counted 28 in Aransas, Texas.

I was hiking along the coast trail in Aransas looking for Roseate Spoonbills, when the trail got grassy and brushy, then overgrown with trees. I came around a blind corner naively trying to look over the growth the see the beach and hopefully the Spoonbills, and met an eight to nine foot alligator resting just off the trail. I didn't try to measure him accurately, it is an estimate. Big should suffice. That got the adrenaline going, but I did take a couple pics with our little pocket camera.

(Big ol'gator in Aransas, Texas. I didn't get a picture of the pig.)

While I was edging around this fella, I heard a grunting noise in the brush behind me. That got my adrenaline free-flowing. Having nothing to use as a weapon, except for my small bino's attached to a harness on my chest, and a camera the size of a credit card, I turned and shouted at the wild pig making its way through the brush. That was enough for him, and I heard him go through the brush away from me grunting and snapping twigs as he moved on. Now I noticed the sun was setting, and the trail ahead was going deeper into overgrowth. I just knew that I would find the other dangerous animals they had been warning us about during the whole trip, water moccasins. I moved rather rapidly along the trail, eyes glued to the ground looking for any irregularity in the leaf litter. I finally made it to a wooden plank trail and was able to see the beach, but no Spoonbills. I finally showed up at the car as the sun was dropping behind the horizon, much to my relief and calming my wife's imagination. Like swimming in the ocean, it is a good idea until you are out there and remember there are sharks there too, this was a good idea until we remembered we were miles from anywhere and just about the only people in the park. I did get a good pic of an alligator, though.
The experience did raise my respect for you birders in the south, though. Give me a rattlesnake any day.

You might be a birdnerd if...you forget you are in alligator country and don't to look down until it is too late.

Vacation Birding

Hey guys! It took a while to get to the new post because we took a short vacation. My wife and I flew to her sister's in Indiana for a visit, and to buy their car. They had just purchased a newer car, and we bought the old one from them.

My sister-in-law is a relatively new birder, having put up bird feeders in her back yard and becoming aware of the species coming to visit. We have talked on the phone and exchanged emails about what kinds of birds she should expect to see, what to look for in the way of identification and more. So, I thought I would do two things to help fan the flame if you will. I brought her my copy of the Sibley guide to birds, and my old spotting scope that I rarely use anymore. As it turns out she can sit on her patio and look over a couple acres of open grassland that is bordered by tall trees on two sides. It is very comfortable to sit on her patio and scan the flocks of Red-Wing Blackbirds, Sparrows, Cardinals, and Dickcissels.

While we visited I picked up a couple lifers just watching her back yard feeders. One was a Brown Thrasher(Toxostoma rufum), who was a regular visitor each morning I was there.

My in-laws were so very gracious and hospitable, they made sure there were birding locations nearby that we went to nearly every day we were there. They live near the "Tri-State" area of Indiana, so they literally can be in Kentucky, Indiana, or Illinois within an hour. So we hiked and birded John James Audubon Park in Kentucky, Weselman Park in Indiana and Hovely Lake. I added the Indigo Bunting(Passerina cyanea), and Carolina Chickadee(Poecile carolinensis) at the Audubon park. My wife picked up a Kentucky Woods Bourbon Barrel Cake, which satisfied our sweet tooth.

My sister-in-law buys her feed from Tim and Margi Griffith who are owner/operators of the Wildbirds Unlimited Nature Shop in Evansville, Indiana, (email; wbuevansville@gmail.com or website of www.wbu.com/evansville). She really wanted me to meet Tim as he is knowledgeable about birds in the area. One day we drove to the store and found Tim. We talked for a little while about birds, birding locations, and he wrote down a couple locations for us to visit. Then he asked us to wait a minute, went to the back of the store and returned a short time later. He asked me what I was doing at 5:30 the next morning. When I answered in my very articulate, "Uhhh..." He said if I would meet him in the parking lot at 5:30 the next morning he would take me to a place to see the Blue Grosbeak, and other potential "lifers".

I cannot say enough about this as I am a born and bred California boy, who wouldn't take a complete stranger out in the woods to do anything, much less "bird". However, he offered, I accepted, and by golly we were somewhere deep in the corner of Indiana where there were open farmlands, riparian areas along a riverbank, marshland. It took a little work, but we did find the Blue Grosbeak,(Passerina coerulea), several egrets, Blue Herons, and many Dickcissels. We saw a couple coyotes as well that seemed very healthy. People were driving up and down the dirt roads and to my amazement several stopped to talk to us. It was as if I was in my home city where I met several people I knew and caught up on what they are doing, only these were complete strangers. An odd experience for me.

It was along one of these dirt roads that I saw one my most exciting lifers, the Prothonatory Warbler (Protonotaria citrea). A beautiful little bird with a yellow body, and gray-blue wings. There were Wood ducks, Black Terns, Eastern Kingbirds, Eastern Meadowlarks, Henslow's Sparrow(which I would not have gotten without Tim's help)and more at this magical place. I wish I could tell you where it was, but we drove on dirt farm roads without markings for so long I can't hazard a guess. So I would suggest that if you find yourself in or near Evansville, Indiana, you contact Tim or Margi Griffith at the above websites or at (812)476-BIRD, and they will help you out.

(Tim birding early in the morning.)

(This was where we saw the Prothonotary Warbler. Tough to find in this stuff.)

As we were leaving, we flushed a Northern Bobwhite to run along the road for a good look. We had heard them all morning calling their name, "Bob White!" but hadn't seen one until we were leaving.

Tim was telling me how much trouble he gets into when he is birding and is late for opening the store as we returned to the parking lot. We weren't too late, and he immediately set about the opening process as the car barely came to a stop. He took time to shake hands and wish me luck, then off to work he went. I hope Margi and the others working in the store went easy on him as he performed a work of kindness to a fellow birder. I was so surprised by his offer, and appreciative of his knowledge and enthusiasm. Saying Thank you is not enough.

Weselman Park and John James Audubon Parks are old growth forest that has been protected for many years. As such they are beautiful, and full of life. At the Audubon Park my sister-in-law and I hiked a couple of the trails, and found toads, turtles, skinks as well as Chickadees and Blue Jays and more.

(Marcie, my sister-in-law hiking in John James Audubon Park, Kentucky. Note the Grapevine and Poison Ivy growing on the tree.)

This is where I learned Eastern Birders have many more challenges than Western Birders. Western Birders have heat and dust to contend with, and sometimes wind, but Eastern Birders had the oppressive heat and humidity combination that sucks the breath from you by 8:00 or 9:00 in the morning. We hiked several places in deep forest with a thick canopy of trees overhead that did nothing but hold in the thick humidity. I was dripping sweat and fogging my glasses. Add the most annoying millions of mosquitoes and ticks and there are a lot of distractions for the average birder in that part of the country.

Also, the old growth forest houses a ton of great wildlife, but makes the birding very difficult as it affords a lot of places for birds to hide. There were several times that I could see leaves moving, catch glimpses of a bird in the branches, but they were so hidden I couldn't make the id. This is why birders from these parts are so good at birding by ear. You can't see to make an id!

This brings up an old story that I love. A birder friend of mine was brushing up on bird calls by using a CD in his car stereo while driving along a long stretch of road in Utah. He was stopped by the local gendarme because apparently he was weaving over the broken white line. When the officer asked if he had been drinking, he answered no he hadn't. When he asked if he were tired, the birder said no, he was listening to bird calls on his stereo and got distracted. He turned up the stereo so the officer could hear. The officer laughed, "That's a first for me, you can go. Have a nice day!" He walked all the way back to his car laughing.

You might be a birdnerd if...you use bird calls to get out of a ticket.

Checking with the Kids

Well, the kids are almost grown now. We have empty nest syndrome for our Hummingbirds as both the babies have fledged.
I was able to grab some photos of the little guys before they left and include them here. We are so proud.

(This is a couple weeks prior with both little ones still in the nest)

(This is the last one just before flying away)

Also, the geese are nearly as big as their parents and getting their adult plumage. I haven't seen them attempting to fly yet, but have some pics of them grazing with their mom and dad.


We may have lost a baby mallard or two but there are still a few following the parents around the pond. They are in adult plumage by now as well, but still hanging as a family unit.


Speaking of kids, my sons came home for a little R&R and discovered a couple things for me. They went out to the golf course as the sun went down, and my oldest (a naturalist that manages the Los Cerritos Wetlands near Long Beach), came into the house and told me I had to come see the bats over the pond. I went out and there were easily 60-80 Mexican Freetail bats, as well as 7-10 Nighthawks, as well as several Tree Swallows in a veritable feeding frenzy over the pond. This was fascinating for a few reasons, one of which was this event was virtually invisible from our house. The animals were unimpressed by us standing and staring at them, oohing and ahhing as if watching a fireworks show. They flew within a few feet, diving and turning abruptly to snag the little bugs rising from the brackish pond.





I have been out several times since and it is always a thrilling sight.

One other thing my boys introduced me to was a new place to explore, called the Thousand Palms Wildlife Refuge. My son bought a book by James Cornett, a local biologist, that described the location and others. It is a preserve mainly for the Fringe-toed Lizard, but also for the Desert Pupfish, and the series of oases that the palm trees grow around. Mr. Cornett wrote in his book that he counted only 700 palms in the area, we didn't count on this trip. We were impressed by the area and the things we saw.

We wandered along the well marked trails starting about 7:00AM to avoid the high heat. As we rounded a corner into a palm grove surrounding a good sized pond, we heard first then saw two Kestrels that were focused on something high in the trees. Soon a Barn Owl floated from one of the trees and immediately the Kestrels were on it. The Owl flew to a tree and dove into it. The Kestrels continued their noisy haranguing until the Owl again flew to another perch, which they immediately dive-bombed him as he flew. This continued for three or four more times as we ran around the trails to get better looks, until the Owl decided another area was more suitable.

As I moved along the trail I noticed little House Finches were also putting up a racket and staying close to one area. I then saw some movement on the ground. I noticed a baby bird moving in the detritus on the ground until it found a hiding place under an old palm frond. There the little guy sat and stared out at me, confident he was invisible.


We continued wandering along the trail to the end near a large sand dune that was the Fringe-Toed Lizard habitat. As we worked our way down the loop we saw several lizards, and finally one good-sized Desert Iguana. This guy was about 1 to 1 1/2 feet long and not to concerned with our presence.

(My boys leading the way down the trail)

(The Desert Iguana, notice the ridge down his back)

It was a terrific hike, and beautiful for all the different animals, the water, the different geology we could see from the vista point, sand dunes and more. This is definitely another place I will have to explore more. We met Ginnie Short and Don who manage the preserve. Today they were harvesting crayfish out of the ponds in order to make it more hospitable for the Desert Pupfish they expect to re-populate the ponds. They were very kind and took time from their efforts to talk with us and share information. The visitor center is a quaint little place that at least looks like an old log cabin in the middle of a stand of palm trees, and is closed during the summer months. However, they do check voicemails left at the phone number regularly.

We almost outsmarted the heat, but not quite. By the time we were back to the car, we were out of water and pretty tired. We then drove back to Palm Springs for a smoothie at another new discovery for me, a vegetarian restaurant at 611 S. Palm Canyon, called the Palm Greens Cafe. It was cool inside and they had the March of the Penguins playing inside which made it cooler still. The smoothies were good, the hike was fun, and it was good to share these things with my sons. A good day all way round.

You might be a birdnerd if...you feel a bit of loss when a bird fledges its nest in your yard. Will they return? Will they write? or call? Will they bring their family to introduce you to them?

We have new babies!!

No, not in our house, but on the golf course. Let me explain myself.

I was curious as to why a pair of Canada Geese (Branta canadensis) had not left with the rest of the flock. I watched and last week saw three babies accompanying the parents around a pond on the golf course. Ahhh, mystery solved.

Then, today, I saw two separate families of Canada Geese, one with three new goslings, and one with two. Now the babies are about half the size of their parents and following them around. It was fun to watch the little ones mimicking their parents. When the adults dipped their bills into the pond, so would the babies. I will keep an eye on the new arrivals and keep track of their progress.



I also noticed something while taking the family photos. One of the adults, the female I think, has a narrow white ring around the base of the neck and was somewhat smaller than the other. I thought it was an Aleutian, but the bill seems too long and the ring on my bird was too narrow according the picture in Sibley's guide. I thought it might possibly be a Cackling Goose, but the head was not round and the bill too long on my bird, although the neck ring is narrow and more subtle on the Sibley guide picture like my bird. I am wondering if it is just a variation of the more Common Canada Goose, with a necklace, or a hybrid Aleutian and Common subspecies? I am open to any suggestions, please email me at philparker02@gmail.com.

Note the subtle ring around the base of the neck of this bird. It is hard to show here, but this is somewhat smaller than its' partner.

This is the partner and clearly a Common Canada Goose, (Branta canadensis), for comparison.


While following and watching the geese, I saw a family of Mallards, (Anas platryhnchos), swimming in the pond. It was great watching the little squadron moving in a controlled manner around the edge of the pond.


I also saw what I believe to be a Spotted Sandpiper, (Actitis macularia) working its way around the edge of the pond. This one had the particular bobbing behavior I read about. This means the bird probed the mud along the waters edge, then looked like it was going to sit down, then changed it's mind and stood up, then sit, then stand, bobbing up and down three or four times. It would then walk along probing the mud, then bob up and down three or four times again.


I saw this bird while photographing the geese, and when I walked toward it saw it disappear on the near bank of the pond. I walked to where I saw it vanish, and couldn't find it. Then, within a foot of my, well...foot, the bird flushed and flew to the far bank and went about it's business as if nothing had happened.

I saw a couple other birds while wandering around the golf course, one was an American Widgeon, (Anas americana), sitting with a pair of Mallards. I don't know why this one did not leave with the flock of several hundred that come each year and leave in April sometime. Any ideas?


Also, skimming the top of the pond for bugs was a Kingbird, (Tyrannus verticals).


You might be a birdnerd if...you spend a beautiful Sunday morning walking the golf course taking family photos of the birds who have taken residence there.

Last Birdwalk at CV Wildbird Center for the year

Awww! Today was the last birdwalk of the season for the Coachella Valley Wildbird Center. Sandy Swan led the group, fighting through a case of laryngitis to do so. Elizabeth and her fiance helped spot birds, calling out from time to time. He was amazing at spotting birds without using binoculars. Well done, sir!

It was an amiable group of about 13 people who braved the rising temperatures to wander around the wetlands searching for birds. Or perhaps in order to earn the cinnamon rolls Linda York was baking back at the main house. Either way, it was fun.

We started out on the ponds, but today the only thing we saw on the closest pond was a "No Swimming" sign. It was a good thing there was this warning, too, as it would have been very difficult to swim there safely. At one point a Canada Goose with two adopted goslings walked across this pond to sit lazily in the shade behind the main house.


We walked, talked, and called out birds we saw as we chattered away walking from the ponds, to the large Cottonwood trees at the east end of the property. We then wandered along the fence toward the ponds and had a Killdeer, (Charadrius vociferus), very upset at us for getting too close to her nest. The vociferus portion of this bird's name is very apt. During our walk there were several Killdeer being very vociferous. We never found a nest, but the birds made every effort to gain our attention and take it away from the nest. They called loudly, ran in front of us, flew in circles close by trying to draw us into a chase away from the area. The only thing we didn't see was the injured wing act, in which the Killdeer drops one wing down and drags it as it limps away in order to make the predator believe it is injured and vulnerable, only to fly away when the attacker tries for the easy meal. As Sandy said, we walked past in order to keep the Killdeer from getting a heart attack they were so alarmed.

We saw a small flock of Yellowheaded Blackbirds that disappeared before I could get a picture. At the ponds we saw male and female Cinnamon Teal, (Anas cyanopthera), Redhead, (Aythya americana) as well as Shovelers and Mallards, Coots and Moorhens.

Sandy was able to help some of us tell the difference between the Canvasback (Aythya valisineria) and the Redhead. The Redhead, which we had at the ponds, has the blue bill with the black tip and the darker gray body. The body is gray as the Canvasback, but the Redhead is a little darker, which is a good secondary feature to look for, but the bill color is a clincher as the Canvasback is black.

(A Redhead between two Eared Grebes)

Don, one of the leaders of the birdwalks at The Living Desert, called out Eared Grebes(Podiceps nigricollis) on the first pond, but no one else saw them. They turned out to be on the second and third ponds, in full breeding plumage. Someone called him the Nostradamus of birdwatchers, seeing birds in the future.

(A pair of Eared Grebes that Don predicted would appear)

(A Ruddy Duck in full breeding plumage)

Later, Elizabeth found a Western Grebe, (Aechmorphorus occidentals), in the last pond we strolled around. This was after she retrieved a used Marsh Wren nest and proudly displayed it as she walked back to the group.

Speaking of Marsh Wrens, (Cistothorus palustris), there were many in the reeds around all of the ponds. One of the wrens was building a nest near the tower. I was able to get closer and got a couple pics of the little fellow industriously weaving his nest. It was fun to note that he used wet pieces of reed that had fallen into the water as material to weave together as a nest. I always marvel at their skill in nestbuilding, without the use of hands. I can't build furniture from IKEA with directions and a helpline, as well as hands and opposable thumbs, so using feet and a beak is amazing to me.


After wandering the ponds and seeing Caspian Terns, White-Faced Ibis flying overhead, a Red-Tail Hawk landing in a large Cottonwood tree near the entrance, we went back to the main house where the cinnamon rolls were ready. Coffee, cinnamon rolls and a couple bird guides were on the table as the count of the day was tallied. Linda's baby ducks, Burrowing Owl, Kestrel, and other patients were witness to the last day of the season. I am sure they were, like us, looking forward to October when the birdwalks will start up again.

(Elizabeth and Sandy on the left working on the count of the day)

You might be a birdnerd if... you hike for hours for cinnamon rolls.