Crested duck at Lake Merritt
Wed, 13 Dec 2000 23:02:29 -0800
From: Judy
After Larry's educational posting and photo of a crested duck, the one I was speaking of at the beach at Lake Merritt, Oakland, is a probably a buff-crested hybrid. Yes the crest is at the back of the head, not as large as the one in the Metger farm photo.
The goose I used to see at the beach which used to eat with the domestic rag tag group had a "black eye ring" and I thought that was an Egyptian Goose, but it was white, black and green.
Original Message Subject Index
Berkeley Aquatic Park
Fri, 15 Dec 2000 18:00:26 PST
From: Roy Carlson
Spent a couple of hours at Berkeley's Aquatic Park this morning. The female Hooded Merganser previously reported November 30 was there - near the east bank in the southern third of the lake. Several Red-breasted Mergansers were on the water as well. Among many Common Goldeneyes, there was at least one pair of Barrow's Goldeneyes about halfway down the lake. There were a few Brown Pelicans loafing there, and several Black-crowned Night-Herons around the edges.
Looked for the female Hooded Merganser reported earlier in the month at Jewel Lake in Tilden Park, but only a female goldeneye and a pair of Mallards were present on the muddy lake.
Roy Carlson
San Carlos, California
Egret in my back yard
Sat, 16 Dec 2000 12:24:28 PST
From: George McRae
Howdy!
A large egret has taken up residence in my back yard. We live in El Cerrito on Barrett Ave, about half a mile up from San Pablo Ave. Looks like he/she has been pillaging fish from my neighbors garden pond (they've all disappeared). Baxter Creek is behind my house and I have seen him there poking about. As yet he has left my garden pond alone. It is wired with electric fencing to discourage racoons and may hopefully dissuade him from fishing. he is beautiful, large, and I haven't gotten a close enough look to positively identify his species. We're also getting bunches of Steller's Jays, Mourning Doves, and scads of hummingbirds (five feeders). The Anna's have taken up year long residence. We have a pyracantha which gets "robined" and "waxwinged" about this time of year. The waxwings are especially wonderful as the tree is right next to a bedroom window. Usually a two-day affair to strip the tree. But it provides endless entertainment to us and the cats. Watching them go upside down like gymnasts trying to get the berries.
All for now
George McRae
Re: Egret in my back yard
Sat, 16 Dec 2000 13:23:15 -0800
From: Lisa Viani
Hi George and everyone,
I think I have seen this same egret (it is a Great Egret). I live just down the hill from George (maybe 8 or 9 blocks), and this bird has been landing on the roofs of my neighbors' houses lately, just hanging out and preening for maybe 30 minutes at a time (then takes off). It's a little odd!
Lisa Viani
Original Message Subject Index
American Redstart
Sun, 17 Dec 2000 15:44:27 -0800
From: Rusty Scalf
The American Redstart is back to precisely the same location on Bay Farm Island in Alameda, only now the bird sports adult male plumage. He's a real beauty.
Location is in the Monterey Pines along the tennis court parking lot. The tennis court being in the park next to the big shopping center.
Rusty
Berkeley Aquatic Park & Point Emery
Sun, 17 Dec 2000 21:51:05 -0800
From: Larry Tunstall
This morning at Berkeley Aquatic Park, there weren't large numbers of water birds in the big lagoon because the boating club folks were rowing their shells up and down. However, there was quite a nice assortment of birds around the edges and in the small ponds. In addition to the usual species, there were a few Northern Pintail in the small ponds, but I didn't see any mergansers. The Green Heron was in its usual spot just north of the water gate (connecting under the freeway) near the island in the big lagoon, and a female Belted Kingfisher was on the island. I didn't find any Bonaparte's Gulls.
Across the freeway at Point Emery, there were Black Turnstones and Sanderlings. A small group of Redheads were napping within binocular range north of Point Emery. The Christmas Bird Count folks arrived just as I was departing.
There were a few Brown Pelicans soaring around from Aquatic Park to the Berkeley Marina.
Good birding, Larry
Larry Tunstall
El Cerrito CA
Long-tailed Ducks
Sun, 17 Dec 2000 22:41:07 -0800
From: Don Lewis
Sunday morning, while doing a Christmas Bird Count from a boat north of the Bay Bridge, we saw two Long-tailed Ducks [formerly known as Oldsquaw], either females or first winter males. They were in the area between the Berkeley marina breakwater and the Berkeley pier. They would have been visible by looking north from the pier or west from the nearby part of the marina.
Not having attended the Oakland Count dinner, I don't know whether the CBC team doing the shoreline spotted them.
Don Lewis
Lafayette, CA
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