Black-headed Grosbeak in the Oakland Hills
Thu, 1 Apr 2004 14:00:25 -0800
From: Johan Langewis
A singing Black-headed Grosbeak appeared in my yard this morning, the earliest arrival in the 12 years I have lived here in the Oakland hills. See this page for a complete yard description. Now, where's that Olive-sided Flycatcher?
Johan Langewis
Oakland
Prairie Falcon in Chabot Regional Park, Oakland Hills
Thu, 01 Apr 2004 19:05:48 -0800
From: Kay Loughman
Birders:
Today I was hiking in Anthony Chabot Regional Park. Near the Bort Meadows Staging Area [not far south of Redwood Regional Park] I saw a Prairie Falcon energetically challenging a Common Raven. Does anyone know if Prairie Falcon is regular in that area?
Kay Loughman
Berkeley
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Nimitz Way, Tilden Regional Park, Berkeley Hills
Thu, 01 Apr 2004 21:33:32 -0800
From: Larry Tunstall
We had a nice walk out Nimitz Way from Inspiration Point this morning on Alan Kaplan's East Bay Regional Parks birdwalk in Tilden Regional Park (Berkeley Hills). Highlight was at least one MacGillivray's Warbler singing, first in the bushes on the east side of the trail at the low spot about a quarter-mile from Inspiration Point. A little later a bird (presumably the same one) was singing from high in the trees on the opposite side of the trail. At that point some people got good looks at it - Alan got quite excited because it was a life bird for him (he'd heard it singing but never seen it before).
A number of Pygmy Nuthatches were working the trees near the trail between this spot and Inspiration Point. There were a lot of birdsongs, and a number of Tree Swallows and Violet-Green Swallows north of the forested area, so it definitely seemed like spring.
Here is what I caught of the composite observations of the group.
34 species
Larry Tunstall
El Cerrito CA
Re: Prairie Falcon in Chabot Regional Park
Fri, 2 Apr 2004 11:45:05 -0800 (GMT-08:00)
From: Rusty Scalf
Kay Loughman wrote:
Does anyone know if Prairie Falcon is regular in that area [Bort Meadow Staging Area, Chabot Regional Park, Oakland Hills]?
I have heard that there are Prairie Falcon nests on Mt Diablo; not so far away if you're a Prairie Falcon.
Rusty Scalf
Berkeley
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Re: Prairie Falcon in Chabot Regional Park
Fri, 2 Apr 2004 12:30:52 -0800
From: Debbie Viess
Interesting. Last weekend, while I was birding my backyard, a large falcon, in really bad light, flew over my house. I assumed that it was a Peregrine Falcon, but perhaps it was your Prairie Falcon. I live in Sheffield Village [Oakland], just one hillock over from southern Chabot Regional Park.
Debbie Viess
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Re: Prairie Falcon in Chabot Regional Park
Fri, 2 Apr 2004 18:10:14 PST
From: Phil Gordon
Notice: EBB'ers, this is a delayed message, having already gone to Kay Loughman, et al; now to EBB.
Greetings Kay,
To my knowledge, Prairie Falcon is quite uncommon along the northern portions of the Hayward - Oakland - Berkeley hills. They historically have nested east and south (eastern Contra Costa County and southern Alameda County into Santa Clara County) Our Christmas Bird Count circle ends just short of the south edge of Lake Chabot and extends through the Hayward Hills to Morrison Canyon Rd, just south of Niles Canyon. There are among our CBC records a few that are along the Hayward - Fremont Bayshore. As an indication of the occurrence the Prairie Falcon records (throughout the circle - centered at Hwy 880 & Whipple Rd), I've looked at the last 22 years of the Hayward-Fremont CBC for Prairie Falcon records and found the following:
Seventeen years of no sightings showed up and this included the 3 years of Golden Gate and Ohlone Audubon Societies monitoring the Prairie Falcon nest at Flag Hill in Sunol Regional Wilderness where 7 offspring fledged the first year (1972?) free of "predation" by several years of falconers taking the eyesses. We are outside (west) of the major concentration of the species (it is said to have a range very similar to Ferruginous Hawk), centered along and east of the Rockies (central Canada to central Mexican highlands), e.g. highest density in United States is in Colorado.
Always a delight to find and observe them.
Happy Birding,
Phil Gordon
Hayward, Alameda County
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Re: Prairie Falcon at Chabot Regional Park
Fri, 2 Apr 2004 18:19:29 PST
From: Phil Gordon
Notice: EBB'ers, this message has already gone to Rusty Scalf; now to EBB.
Rusty Scalf wrote:
I have heard that there are Prairie Falcon nests on Mt Diablo; not so far away if you're a Prairie Falcon.
Greetings Rusty,
I've heard that Prairie Falcons nest somewhere on Mt Diablo too, but I wonder how far they are from the former Prairie Falcon nest in the Castle Rocks Regional Park, now taken over by the current nesting pair of Peregrine Falcons. Steve Glover most likely has this data from the Contra Costa County Breeding Bird Atlas. Perhaps they are now closer (in the East) to Los Vaqueros Reservoir. The former Prairie Falcon nest on Flag Hill in Sunol Regional Wilderness, that I mentioned to Kay, is also (at least when I visited the area last year) a Peregrine Falcon eyrie; but, that's what it was originally before Charles Sibley shot the pair (about 1955) for a museum collection (San Jose State?), to then be taken over by Turkey Vultures, and later nested in by the last Prairie Falcons.
Regards,
Phil Gordon,
Hayward, Alameda County
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Caspian Terns at Arrowhead Marsh, Oakland
Fri, 2 Apr 2004 19:58:23 -0800 (PST)
From: Bob Power
Hi all:
You know how it is when you unexpectedly bump into an old friend in a park. Someone you haven't seen for about 6 months?!
I was looking for the Burrowing Owl at Arrowhead Marsh in Martin Luther King Jr Regional Shoreline. I bumped into 10 Caspian Terns. When you come in the entrance way and there's the main pond on the right (east), there's a secondary pond beyond it to the east. The terns were resting there. It was like, "Oh, hey, how you guys been, anyway?"
Been away, Haven't seen you in awhile, how you been?
--Dave Mason, 1978
It was low tide. Highlights were: Loads of breeding-plumaged American Avocets; likewise, Black-bellied Plover; likewise, Ruddy Ducks.
Still a few Cinnamon Teal, a couple of Northern Shovelers, a couple of Greater Scaup. One tuck-headed duck that I haven't researched yet, that I think was a Common Merganser. One Whimbrel, one breeding-plumaged Eared Grebe. One very bleached Glaucous-winged Gull that got my heart rate up momentarily until he/she raised their bill. and one very funky, poor, Ring-billed Gull whose upper mandible is broken at the point where the ring would surround it, giving it the appearance of a long-billed something, when in fact the appearance is caused by a broken bill.
Good birding,
Bob Power