[EBB Sightings] Skittish Burrowing owls

Hi, all.
  Speaking of the Berkeley Marina (Cesar Chavez Park)
burrowing owl(s), I was out both Sunday and yesterday
and the usual perch was empty. The place was crawling
with ground squirrels, however. They wouldn't have
driven the owls away, would they? They are certainly
big enough to intimidate birds of that size. Has
anyone else seen the marina bird(s) lately?
  There was, of course, plenty of other avian life out
there. Uncounted redwing blackbirds proclaiming
territory and chasing each other and some sparrows and
house finches in their claimed areas (there were tons
of the finches, too). Lots of scaups scattered around
the marina peninsula--all or mostly greater--a ruddy
duck or two, a couple of Clark's grebes.
  There was also a raptor spotted both days right over
the turnaround--flying quite low at times. I haven't
been able to positively it yet, but I suspect its a
light-morph juvenile redtail. There was more than one
on Sunday afternoon and one had a twig or something
trailing from its talons, which of course makes me
suspect a nest near by. I checked the trees all around
the Olympic Circle Sailing Club, which seemed the
likely location, but found nothing.
  Over near the marina offices I spotted some
warblers, but was a bit confused by them. I really
don't think they were yellow-rumped, but I don't know
what else they might have been. (I should have known
to take notes.) Quite pretty with their bright yellow
patches, whatever they were.
  No loon was in evidence either Sunday or Monday.
  I was a bit surprised to discover a dozen American
wigeons grazing the rocks just below the bike trail
between Berkeley and Emeryville marinas. As it was low
tide, there were lots of shorebirds out there in the
mudflats--a long-billed curlew or two, a few marbled
godwits, a large group of small peeps--almost
indistinguishable from the light-mottled mudflats, and
a host of others I still have a terrible time
distinguishing. South of Emeryville there was quite a
large raft of scaups just off the mudflats.
  I was also surprised by a Cooper's (I'm pretty
sure--I just got glimpses) hawk swooping low and
landing on a wall right by the road at the red
workshop buildings along the northeast end of Berkeley
aquatic park. It may have been avoiding nearby crows.
There was  also one avocet in the southmost pond.
Cheers,
Alan Howe
North Oakland


		
__________________________________ 
Yahoo! Messenger 
Show us what our next emoticon should look like. Join the fun. 
http://www.advision.webevents.yahoo.com/emoticontest