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On Thursday 2/24, I had a fairly interesting day birding in the Lincoln grasslands. The highlights were Bald Eagle, Lewis's Woodpecker and Great Horned Owl. Subhash
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As Max Brodie points out below, the picture I included in my email was an Eurasian Green-winged Teal, also known as Common Teal. Its been several years since I've seen that, so I apologize for the error. On the other hand, I also saw the American Green-winged Teal, so it was a 4 Teal day. Thanks for catching that, Max. Subhash American Green-winged Teal Eurasian Common Teal -----Original Message----- From: M. Brodie <Brodiemaxa@...> To: [email protected] Cc: sacsubcoho@...; thetaillesswonder@... Sent: Sun, Feb 20, 2022 7:15 am Subject: Re: [sacramento-birds] 3 Teal Day Subhash, Beautiful set of teal photos! You may not realize that the Green-winged Teal you photographed is the Eurasian subspecies (considered a full species, Common Teal, in Europe). The horizontal white stripe and bold white outline to the facial pattern separate it from American Green-winged Teal. This is an excellent find, as they are fairly rare. Bird on, Max Brodie On Feb 19, 2022, at 1:20 PM, Subhash Chand via groups.io <SubhashC@...> wrote: ? On Feb 15, I went to Las Gallinas Sanitation District in Marin County and got to see 3 kinds of Teals: <Teal, Green-winged LasGallinas2022-2-15_1749.JPG> Green-winged Teal <Teal, Cinnamon LasGallinas2022-2-15_1811.JPG> Cinnamon Teal <Teal, Blue-winged LasGallinas2022-2-15_1766.JPG> Blue-winged Teal Other pictures from that trip are at: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?on=2022-02-15&place_id=any&user_id=subhashc&verifiable=any Subhash <Teal, Green-winged LasGallinas2022-2-15_1749.JPG> <Teal, Cinnamon LasGallinas2022-2-15_1811.JPG> <Teal, Blue-winged LasGallinas2022-2-15_1766.JPG>
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On Feb 15, I went to Las Gallinas Sanitation District in Marin County and got to see 3 kinds of Teals: Green-winged Teal Cinnamon Teal Blue-winged Teal Other pictures from that trip are at: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?on=2022-02-15&place_id=any&user_id=subhashc&verifiable=any Subhash
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I went to Lake Solano/ Putah Creek yesterday and enjoyed seeing Barrows Goldeneyes and Hooded Mergansers (photos below). Other photos from the trip are at: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?on=2022-02-03&place_id=any&user_id=subhashc&verifiable=any Subhash
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Magpies! South Land Park
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Over the past week, I have seen a few yellow-billed magpies in my backyard trees. This is so exciting because I haven¡¯t seen ANY since West Nile Virus started. It¡¯s been years. Catherine Hanson South Land Park, Sacramento
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For the past 5 days, this Ruby-crowned Kinglet has been going up and down my window, several times a day. His feet touch the glass and make an unusual sound. At first I thought he was finding spiders or insects there but on closer examination I saw no sign of insects or cobwebs on the window, and he still comes and does the same move. Any ideas on why he is doing this? Subhash
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Thanks for saying this, Kathy--I, too, very rarely post photos or comments, but greatly appreciate and learn from everyone's contributions. Long live birds and their passionate observers--happy bird-watching December, everyone! On Thursday, December 2, 2021, 6:27:36 AM PST, Kathy Adcock <jaylily4664@...> wrote: Want to let all members know how much I appreciate all their posts even if I don't comment. I find them educational like today. Never heard of a long tail. I'm one of those people for whom a duck is just a duck until I'm informed otherwise. Or awe inspiring like the flocks of swans from the other day. Or delightful when small birds are going about their busy day. Or heart warming when pictures of babies are taken. I enjoy and appreciate them all even if I don't say anything. Season Greetings to all....? On Wed, Dec 1, 2021 at 3:42 PM Troy Edson-Smith <troyes@...> wrote: Female Long-tailed Duck with male Common Goldeneye at Nimbus fish hatchery today just east of the bridge. The Long-tail is pretty rare for here. Has been there for some days. Troy
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Female Long-tailed Duck with male Common Goldeneye at Nimbus fish hatchery today just east of the bridge. The Long-tail is pretty rare for here. Has been there for some days. Troy
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Snow Geese
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On Nov 23, I went to Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge which is known for the waterfowl that come there for the winter. There are hundreds of thousands of Snow Geese and no words can describe the scene they create. There are two videos at the following link - one is 15 sec long but taken with a telephoto lens, the second is about a minute long taken with an iPhone. We witnessed this scene for much longer, perhaps 15 minutes, but even the 1 minute video gives you a good idea. https://photos.app.goo.gl/KjSB64LSh1B1kpTb9 Pictures of other birds from Sac NWR are at: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?on=2021-11-23&place_id=any&user_id=subhashc&verifiable=any Subhash
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Consumnes River Preserve
Went to Staten Island and Consumnes River Preserve on Thurs 11/18 - had a great day of birding despite overcast skies. 1. Over a hundred Sandhill Cranes 2. Over a hundred Tundra Swans 3. Hundreds of White-fronted Geese 4. Hundreds of Small and Aleutian Cackling Geese 5. 5 types of raptors - Red-tailed Hawk, American Kestrel, Northern Harrier, White-tailed Kite and Merlin 6. Many ducks - Shovelers, Pintails, Teals (Cinnamon & Green-winged), Canvasbacks Some pictures are at: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?on=2021-11-18&place_id=any&user_id=subhashc&verifiable=any Subhash
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Today on Green Valley Road near Rescue School. Pretty rare here in the foothills. Troy
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I haven't seen the Pine Siskin for quite a while, so it was fun to have them on the feeder yesterday. Subhash Fair Oaks
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One street in our neighborhood has several Chinese Pistache trees that have tons of red and green berries right now and are attracting several kinds of birds. This morning there were flocks of Yellow-rumped Warblers, Western Bluebirds, European Starlings, Wild Turkeys and a lone Northern Flicker. Pics below. Subhash Fair Oaks
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Feeling not too energetic this morning, I decided to bird on my back deck and what a good decision. In addition to the normal birds (Anna's Hummer, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Mourning Dove, Scrub Jay), several other species showed up - Oak Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, American Goldfinch, Golden and White-crowned Sparrow, and Bewick's Wren. The most unusual was the Hermit Thrush. Some pics are attached. Subhash
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Finally!
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Hi, All! Normally, I'd refrain from doing what so many others do; however, since it only took close to a dozen years, I just wanted to say that one of most colorful birds I've ever seen, finally came to feast on my rear deck...a Spotted Towhee!!! He's been here on at least 6-7 occasions over the past few weeks and on one, the guy spent almost 15 minutes here. Oh, and after being at this location (Citrus Heights), I was finally visited by Black Capped Chickadees. Ray
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This Blue-gray Gnatcatcher is only the second time I've seen one on my hill in 20 years. The prior sighting was 2010. In defense of the photo quality, below is the original straight out of camera.
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Enjoyed this guy's repertoire with a cup of coffee this morning. California Thrashers are in my yard year-round. I think they give the Mockingbirds a run for their money in their mimicking ability. Regards, Troy
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This was the first hawk we had ever seen on our fountain. Merlin identified it as a Cooper¡¯s Hawk and said they sometimes frequent backyard feeders to prey on the smaller birds. So as much as we enjoyed observing him, we hope he was just passing through and doesn¡¯t come back!
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In my 440 AQI backyard this morning, there was the first appearance of a pair of Lawrence's Goldfinches in this season. Every early fall half a dozen or so come with a flock of up to 50 Lesser's to feed on the seeds of the buckbrush on my hill. Not seen as much as the other finches, so thought I'd post them. Regards, Troy in Rescue,CA
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Went to Lake Solano Park on Monday and saw several birds not seen for the past few months. There were a lot of yellow birds but the vast majority turned out to be Western Tanager females or juveniles. It is a little harder id'ing birds when they are molting or there are a lot of juveniles. But here are some pictures. Subhash American White Pelican Ash-throated Flycatcher Black-throated Gray Warbler Downey Woodpecker Nutall's Woodpecker Orange-crowned Warbler Phainopepla Western Tanager Western Wood Pewee Willow Flycatcher Wood Duck
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Sat 8:39am
Sat 8:39am