McNabney Marsh and Finnley Road, Contra Costa County,
17 June
Sun, 18 Jun 2000 08:20:25 -0700
From: Mike Feighner
East Bay Birders:
Yesterday on a return trip to Davis Wetlands in Yolo County, stopped of at the north end of McNabney Marsh near Martinez. There was no sign of the Great-tailed Grackles, although I found them easily on the past two visits. At the south end accessed via Arthur Road I found one Wilson's Phalarope. No sign of the Blue-winged Teal.
The last half mile at the upper end of Finley Road (reached via Tassajara Road, east of Blackhawk / Danville) has no parking. So, we have to hike an extra half mile before reaching the trail head. I have heard this is the best place in Contra Costa County for Canyon Wren. I expected they would be hanging out around the rocks at both sides of the canyon at the start of the trail. Well, I'll have to return maybe at an earlier hour as I could track down none.
However, along the trail just past the abandoned house I found a single Chipping Sparrow collecting nesting material. I could hear two more singing further down the trail: one west the the next junction, and a second one left of the next trail junction after that.
Mike Feighner, Livermore, CA
Re: Pileated Woodpecker in Oakland
Sun, 18 Jun 2000 16:28:26 -0700
From: Mike Feighner
East Bay Birders:
Didn't have time until now to check on Sylvia Sikora's reported Pileated Woodpecker. This afternoon I hiked around the neighborhood near Skyline and Castle in Oakland. The bleeding Deora Cedar must have been at the back of the house. So, I could not detect any "bleeding" from the street. Nor did I hear any Pileated call. I walked for some distance in each direction along Skyline but found no "Moon Gate".
Has anyone tried to pin down this Pileated Woodpecker? This area is quite birdy (and a very short distance from the Contra Costa County line): Red-breasted Nuthatch, Pygmy Nuthatch (only place in the county where I have seen this species), Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Steller's Jay, Western Scrub-Jay, Western Wood-Pewee, Purple Finch, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, American Goldinch, etc.
Just last week-end I found Pileated Woodpeckers in both Colusa and Calaveras Counties. Their call is unmistakable but difficult to describe. I would have recognized the Pileated's call if I had heard it.
I didn't have time to follow up on Martha Lowe's week-old Pileated Woodpecker report.
The only other report in Alameda County besides John Luther's yard-list Pileated Woodpecker was one reported in Hayward at Dry Creek Regional Park prior to 30 March 1991. I struck out on that one too.
Mike Feighner, Livermore, CA
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Hayward Shoreline
Sun, 18 Jun 2000 17:44:44 PDT
From: Bob Richmond
The following was seen today at the shoreline -
Black Skimmer - 3, no nesting observed.
Arctic Tern - on a 2-egg nest, sharing incubation duties with a Forster's.Arctic x Forster's Tern hybrid from last year. This is the first it has been seen this year. It was on the long island inside the fenced off area. While it would be visible from the public trail, it would be very hard to identify. On one leg a yellow color band is above the "knee" with a USFWS band below the knee. This was seen but the colors on the other one were not. It is either red above green or green above red. It has always been hard to see. The nape is much grayer than any first year Forster's I have seen, especially the lower part. The Primary tips looked black on the folded wing. The bill, leg length, and tail are like on a Forster's Tern. While the underwings appear to be more like a Arctic, but it was only briefly seen in flight.
Eared Grebe - the young are independant of the adults now.
Blue-winged Teal - 5 adult males, 1 adult female with 6 chicks (the male may be either Blue-winged or Cinnamon).
Good birding
Bob
Pileated Woodpecker & Ross' Goose
Tue, 20 Jun 2000 00:27:05 PDT
From: Kathy Robertson
Mike Feighner wrote:
Didn't have time until now to check on Sylvia Sikora's reported Pileated Woodpecker. This afternoon I hiked around the neighborhood near Skyline and Castle in Oakland. ... I walked for some distance in each direction along Skyline but found no "Moon Gate"....Has anyone tried to pin down this Pileated Woodpecker? This area is quite birdy ... ...Pygmy Nuthatch (only place in the county where I have seen this species)
I have been trying to pin down that (those?) Pileated for a while now. I've been to that area twice, with no luck either. (Moon Gate is a rather nondescript entrance to Redwood Regional Park, just a bit north of the Skyline/Castle intersection. There is no gate, nor, as far as I remember, any sign designating it as Moon Gate. Just a place at the side of the road with space for a few cars to park. West Ridge Trail runs in both directions from there.)
I have also been checking for Pileated Woodpeckers at a nearby area of Joaquin Miller Park where one was seen several weeks ago (as reported by Martha Lowe) on the Big Trees Trail uphill from its intersection with the Sequoia-Bayview Trail. This area of Big Trees Trail can more easily be accessed from Skyline Blvd roughly halfway between the entrance to Robert's Park and the entrance to the Sequoia Arena. There's a pullout with room for quite a few cars on the west side of Skyline. Today I crossed over to the east side of Skyline and followed a trail beyond a metal gate that goes northeast up to a group camp area. Still no sighting or calls, but I found evidence that Pileated's had been there. According to my old Audubon field guide, "Its staple food consists of carpenter ants living in...stumps. The woodpecker excavates thumb-sized rectangular cavities, then uses its...tongue to reach the ant burrows." That is exactly what I saw today in many of the carpenter ant-infested tree stumps in the camp area, although the cavities were actually more oval than rectangular. It was also evident that many of these excavations were very recent.
I also saw many Pygmy Nuthatches at both Moon Gate (a flock of at least 10) and today at the group camp area (at least 5). Also had a pair of Olive-sided Flycatchers at Moon Gate area.
The other interesting bird I have to report on is an adult-plumaged Ross' Goose that has taken up residence at Lake Chabot. It has been at the marina area for at least three weeks, spending its time with a mixed flock of domestic (white and Chinese) geese. Isn't this bird supposed to be long gone?
Kathy Robertson
Hayward
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Feral chickens?
Thu, 22 Jun 2000 09:34:54 PDT
From: Doug Greenberg
I just dropped off my son at his day camp in Redwood Regional Park in Oakland. As I drove back down Skyline Boulevard toward Joaquin Miller Road, I spotted a family group of what from all appearances were feral chickens. There was a "mama chicken" with a group of a half-dozen young birds trailing behind her. Strange, indeed. Has anyone else run across these birds or others like them?
Doug Greenberg
Black Oystercatchers
Thu, 22 Jun 2000 13:25:12 -0700
From: Emilie Strauss
3 Black Oystercatchers on the breakwater at the Berkeley Marina this morning at low tide. The breakwater is about 100 yards north of Skates Restaurant. Also present were a number of fuzzy half-grown Western Gull chicks (they nest here every year) that are fun to look at.