[EBB Sightings] Saffron Finches Breeding at Lake Merritt?

I just got a note from a Texan birder who was visiting the area earlier 
this week. He and his wife spent 15 minutes in the demo garden at the 
Garden Center, watching a pair of Saffron Finches that seemed to be 
collecting nest material while blandly ignoring the people tending the 
garden plots. The female may be banded, though they didn't get a good 
enough look to be certain.

He adds, "The Saffron Finch male (I believe) took some thin bark or 
other type of mulch from the ground and flew up to the very strange 
looking tree which is just outside the fence on the south side (?) of 
the garden.  I don't know if that was the nesting location or if it just 
provided a convenient perch."

Has anyone seen these birds? I'm chasing a deadline here and can't run 
down to the lake, but would love to hear more about them.

bcc: The birder who wrote to me, whom I promised to keep posted on any 
info that surfaces.

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