Possible California Spotted Owl in Rossmoor
Mon, 16 Jun 2003 09:46:05 -0700 (PDT)
From: Diane Perry
On Sunday I was at a friend's place in Rossmoor (Walnut Creek retirement community), way out at the end of Tice Creek Dr. Her condo overlooks a creek (spring-fed, as it "babbles" all year long). As we were eating lunch out on her balcony, I sensed a flapping/floating form off to the left of my vision, and immediately turned to look and saw a large owl flapping through the trees that line the creekbed. The smaller birds in the area saw him, too, and started up a ruckus. The owl then flew down to the creek (which has cut its way into the earth and is in a sort of gully), and at that point the owl was out of our sight. The smaller birds kept up their harrassment, so we knew just where the owl was (this was about 40 to 50 yards away from where we were sitting). Then the owl flew up from the creekbed (and most obligingly back into our sight!), where it landed upon a fallen tree trunk and sat and preened itself for a few minutes.
All this time, the owl was being harrassed (even dive bombed!) by some of the smaller birds in the area. I guess he got tired of this, and he flew further down the creek bed and we could no longer see him, but I could still hear the smaller birds giving him a hard time. (Poor guy ... makes one wonder how he manages to get any sleep in the middle of the day!).
Although this owl was at a distance of maybe 40 to 50 yards away from us, I feel quite sure that what we saw was a California Spotted Owl. Round head, just about a foot tall (maybe even a wee bit taller), brown with barred wings and I "think" I could even see the tell-tale pale "X" between the eyes). The owl looked like the twin brother of this owl, that appears in the top left hand corner of this link:
http://sacramento.fws.gov/es/animal_spp_acct/ca_spotted_owl.htm
Now, can someone here tell me if California Spotted Owls are commonly seen around the Mt Diablo foothills area? I know these owls are more common to other mountainous areas in California, from what I've been able to find out on the web.
Diane Perry
Walnut Creek, CA
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Willets return to Arrowhead Marsh, Oakland
Mon, 16 Jun 2003 12:32:46 -0700
From: Courtenay Peddle
Hello folks,
A flock of 17 Willets was foraging on the mud flats at Arrowhead Marsh (Martin Luther King Jr Regional Shoreline) in Oakland this morning.
The first returning migrants of the season.
Good birding!
Courtenay Peddle
Western Grebes at Lake Merritt, Oakland
Mon,
16 Jun 2003 13:15:26 -0700
From: Bruce Mast
I was able to stroll past Lake Merritt on my way to work this morning and noted 2 Western Grebes on the lake between El Embarcadero and the Rotary Nature Center. Also saw a Gadwall feeding with the Mallards in the duck feeding area.
Bruce Mast
Oakland
Re: Possible California Spotted Owl in Rossmoor
Mon, 16 Jun 2003 17:46:02 -0700
From: Ellis & Mimi Myers
With reference to Diane Perry's possible sighting of a Spotted Owl at Rossmoor, we would like to ask if she had considered that this might have been instead a Short-eared Owl. Neither of these species is regularly seen in this area, but we had a very good look at a Short-eared Owl in our back yard in Moraga on June 1, 2001. We are only a very short flying distance from Rossmoor (less than three miles).
Ellis and Mimi Myers
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Orinda Connector Trail
Tue, 17 Jun 2003 17:35:59
-0700
From: John Poole
I took a leisurely walk along the Orinda Connector Trail off Bear Valley Rd this morning around 8:00. Lots of birds.
Great Blue Heron, Turkey Vulture, Cooper's Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, Mourning Dove, Allen's Hummingbird, Acorn Woodpecker, Hairy Woodpecker, Nutall's Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, Brown Creeper, Bewick's Wren, Western Bluebird, American Robin, Wrentit, Black Phoebe, Pacific-slope Flycatcher, Cliff Swallow, Steller's Jay, Western Scrub-Jay, Common Raven, Bushtit, Red-breasted Nuthatch, White-breasted Nuthatch, European Starling, Warbling Vireo, Orange-crowned Warbler, Wilson's Warbler, Black-headed Grosbeak, Spotted Towhee, California Towhee, Song Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, Purple Finch, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch.
Good Birding!
John Poole
Name a yard bird for a novice?
Tue, 17 Jun
2003 18:43:03 -0700
From: Cynthia Hamilton
Hi there - this little guy was in my yard today chowing down dead grass and weeds and I'm not sure what it is.
http://www.alamedahosting.net/Img_4808.jpgAny ideas? There's no tail, and it's about 6 inches long. I have more pictures if this isn't good enough to identify.
Thanks
Cynthia Hamilton
Alameda, CA
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Re: Name a yard bird for a novice?
Tue, 17
Jun 2003 20:03:04 -0700
From: Rusty Scalf
Looks like a Coturnix.
Go to www.images.google.com and then do a picture search for Coturnix.
Rusty Scalf
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Re: Name a yard bird for a novice?
Tue, 17
Jun 2003 21:24:10 -0700
From: Kitty O'Neil
As a yard bird, that wins!
Kitty
Kitty O'Neil
Orinda, CA
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Re: Name a yard bird for a novice?
Tue, 17
Jun 2003 21:44:20 -0700
From: Cynthia Hamilton
And the winner is ... Coturnix Quail (probably an escapee), courtesy of Rusty Scalf.
Thanks everyone. Any ideas on whether this bird needs rescue? There are an awful lot of cats in the neighborhood, and if it's an escapee, it might not last long out there.
Thanks,
Cynthia
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