Re: Question about Berkeley parrots
Tue, 01
Oct 2002 12:19:18 -0700
From: David Couch
I am not yet familiar with these e-mail lists, but I have a message in response to: "Fwd: Question about Berkeley parrots" (Tuesday 24 Sep 2002).
You asked "where do they nest?" Since the fall of 2000, we have lived in northwest Berkeley on 7th St between Jones St and Page St. I think the parrots may roost around 7th & Page, possibly in the palm tree on the corner. For the past two years at least, they have been spending an awful lot of time in that tree and several other very large trees around there, especially in the evenings.
There were only 3 of them in 2000 and 2001, but this summer we have been seeing 5 or 6 at a time, and I think I counted 7 recently. They zoom overhead, screeching, and are a great improvement over the "blue angels" we used to have screeching overhead periodically when we lived in San Francisco!
David Couch, Berkeley
Original Message Subject Index
Solitary Sandpiper in Castro Valley
Tue, 01
Oct 2002 20:17:17 -0700
From: Dennis & Patricia Braddy
EastBayBirders,
At 6:30 PM we refound the Solitary Sandpiper reported to the BirdBox earlier today at the Don Castro Regional Recreation Area in Castro Valley. It was bobbing and feeding at the top of the reservoir spillway. We observed the Solitary at close range, albeit through a chain-link fence from the road over the spillway. The spotting scope was overkill, but we used it anyway. On one occasion the bird took flight revealing its characteristic tail pattern and dark underwing. It soon returned and we watched as its dark brown back took on a tarnished copper cast in the fading light.
Dennis and Patricia Braddy
San Ramon
October 1 in the Pinole area
Wed, 2 Oct 2002
23:08:02 PDT
From: Steve Glover
Hi all,
On October 1 I spent the morning birding around Pinole Shores Parkway and at Point Pinole Regional Shoreline and had some interesting local-interest stuff. Pinole Shores Pkwy is reached from San Pablo Ave in Pinole. There is a small East Bay Regional Park District lot at the end where I would advise hiding valuables though the area has lots of walkers and appears safe during daylight hours. From the trailhead you can make a short walk to either the left or right to bird some pretty intriguing willow/weed clumps. I think the large one to the right is probably going to prove better with more birding and that is where the birds were. A combination of large willows, lots of weedy areas and some exotic plantings right along the bayshore should produce some kind of rarities with enough checking.
Anyway, I had (in no particular order) 2 House Wrens, 1 Red-breasted Sapsucker, 7 Yellow Warblers, 2 Orange-crowned Warblers and a nice influx of sparrows including several Fox Sparrows. Of interest to me the past few trips were a pair of Hutton's Vireos and several Oak Titmice. These birds seem to be extremely scarce in west Contra Costa County but perhaps a tiny population has been able to persist here.
From there I could see that there were raptors in the air over Point Pinole so I decided to head over there. Highlights there amongst the landbirds were a Winter Wren, a Chipping Sparrow (my first in west county?), 2 Say's Phoebes, 6+ Lincoln's Sparrows and at least 10 Northern Flickers. Some of the flickers seemed in the process of migrating.
Amongst the raptors I had flying by between 11:30 AM and 12:15 PM were 5 Red-tailed Hawks (plus 2 locals), 2 immature Red-shouldered Hawks (plus a local), a Broad-winged Hawk, a Northern Harrier, 12 Turkey Vultures, 2 young Sharp-shinned Hawks and a Cooper's Hawk. 15 Violet-green Swallows and 75 Vaux's Swifts also passed by. I saw all of these birds from the small burned area just beyond the picnic area.
Good luck,
Steve Glover
Dublin
Inspiration Point
Wed, 2 Oct 2002 23:18:35
PDT
From: Steve Glover
Hello all,
This morning I went up to Inspiration Point in Tilden Regional Park (Berkeley Hills) hoping the northeast winds were moving some interesting birds about. Unfortunately the trails in the park were closed due to fire danger so I couldn't walk to Wildcat Peak and had to settle for birding from the parking lot. Lots of passerines were blowing by, though most weren't identifiable. Exceptions were a Varied Thrush and 2 Lewis' Woodpeckers, one flying by at 9:30 AM and the other 10:19 AM. Between 9:30 AM and 12:40 PM I had 35 Turkey Vultures, 35 Red-tailed Hawks, 1 young Red-shouldered Hawk, 7 unidentified buteos, 1 migrant Osprey, 1 migrant Golden Eagle (plus 2 locals), a single Sharp-shinned Hawk and a single Cooper's Hawk. Eighty-two birds in 3 hours is a decent showing for the East Bay and if I could have gotten to Wildcat Peak I think I would have had twice as many as the birds pass much closer to that area. From the lot I tend to only get distant birds and an occasional flyover.
Steve Glover
Dublin