Rancho Laguna Park area, Moraga
Fri, 10 May 2002 09:46:21 -0700
From: Don Lewis
Most birders going to Moraga head for Valle Vista Staging Area, with good reason. However, at the end of nearby Camino Pablo, there is Rancho Laguna Park, a smallish but nice park through which one gains access to three East Bay Municipal Utility District trails (EBMUD trail permit required). I check it out as the access point to one of my Contra Costa County Breeding Bird Atlas blocks. The Alameda County line is not far south of the park, so the CoCoCo part does not include the upper end of the King Canyon arm of Upper San Leandro Reservoir. Much of the trails area is grassy hillside but there are nice riparian areas along several small creeks.
Thursday morning I saw/heard 47 species in the area and there undoubtedly would have been more had I walked the short distance to the reservoir (Wood Ducks, coots, grebes, herons, etc., would be expected there). New for me for the area were Osprey, Cassin's Vireo, and Red-breasted Nuthatch. However, the main things of interest were lots (two dozen or so) Lazuli Buntings, busily singing and mating. I had never seen more than a couple or three there before. Are we having a big Lazuli Bunting year?
A bizarre sight was a Common Raven battling his reflection in a window of a big new house under construction above the park. That's a big bird to fight itself, with lots of flapping noise. He then picked up a rag and tried to fly off with it but it got caught on scaffolding, which created a problem he wasn't able to overcome after some entertaining trying. Never know what you'll see!
Don Lewis
Lafayette, CA
Mount Diablo yesterday
Fri, 10 May 2002 13:13:45 -0700
From: Mike Ezekiel
Inspired by the thought of rarish sparrows, I checked out the pullout just below the entrance station on the South Entrance (via Danville) that was noted yesterday for Black-chinned Sparrows but didn't arrive until the pullout and most of the area was in shade about 5:30 PM. Not much moving except a Band-tailed Pigeon, a vireo, Oak Titmouse and so on. Went up to Rock City, where there were mainly Blue-gray Gnatcatchers - harassing a Western Scrub-Jay - and Turkey Vultures. Drove up a little higher to the Curry Point Overlook fire road and trail where a very nice Lincoln Sparrow popped up just when I returned to my car after a short and relatively birdless walk - although there were some goldfinches, and another Band-tailed Pigeon. On the drive out, some sparrows demanded that I stop - at the second turnout past the entrance station - and they were very handsome indeed Rufous-crowned Sparrows.
Mike Ezekiel
Oakland
Tilden Nature Area
Fri, 10 May 2002 15:20:13 -0700
From: Tom Condit
I got to Tilden Regional Park Nature Area (Berkeley Hills) later than the birdwalk Larry was on, and didn't see nearly as many birds, although there sure was a lot of noise all around me. On a walk around Jewel Lake and the Packrat Trail (both parts), I saw:
Violet-Green Swallow and a flock of what appeared to be goldfinches flying over the picnic/parking area.
Mallards
California Towhee
Spotted Towhee
Dark-eyed Juncos
Chestnut-backed Chickadees
Bushtits
American Robins
Wrentit (one seen, several heard)
Orange-crowned Warbler (heard only)
Black-headed Grosbeaks
Steller's Jay
The latter treated me to yet another in their vast repertory of calls.
Tilden Regional Park near Lake Anza
Fri, 10 May 2002 21:06:24 -0700
From: Mark Rauzon
I found a sweet spot at Tilden Regional Park (Berkeley Hills) Friday afternoon on Mineral Springs Trail, above Lake Anza. In a meadow bordered by blooming eucalyptus and Monterey pines, there were very many Cedar Waxwings, flycatching the myriad insects attracted to the blooms. Also several Western Tanagers were also flycatching. The Olive-sided Flycatcher was not to be outdone as it called. Lazuli Buntings and Black-headed Grosbeaks were in the area, Violet-green Swallows and Barn Swallows cutting through the air. Sharp-shinned Hawk female with prey passed by, Red-tailed Hawk and Red-shouldered Hawk in vicinity, a Great Blue Heron and Mallards fly overs. All this at 1 to 3 PM but as I looped around, the flock seems to have moved on but some will come back to the biomass bonanza.
Mark Rauzon