Birding Bob Jone Trail and Beyond

 Sunday - Avila Beach, Ca. - Bob Jones Trail - Mike Baird and I were standing on the foot, bike and golf cart bridge that crosses San Luis Creek hoping to see the Common Goldeneye, a sea-duck, native to the lakes and rivers of Canada, the northern U.S., Scandinavia, and Russia. (female on left)  About three minutes after we arrived on the bridge the fog lifted.  The Goldeneye were close and we got great views.  They are a large duck and very beautiful.  The male's eye is a bright orange; the female's eye is a soft golden color.

 On either side of the bridge is the Avila Beach Golf Course where hundreds of Canada Goose, one Cackling Goose and multitudes of Coots were feeding on the grass.  As we progressed up the trail, actually it is a road/trail for about a mile, we came upon an unusual sighting.  A family of Western Bluebird were taking turns drinking from little pools of water that had accumulated on the yellow seats of a maintenance vehicle.  (trail is above the maintenance yard)  Two other birds of note, an Acorn Woodpecker perched atop a tall Red Cypress and a Great Blue Heron looking for edibles on a dry hillside.   

Miscellaneous Sightings in the Great Beyond of Morro Bay 

 In a Eucalyptus tree a Turkey Vulture was doing her pre-flight warming exercise.  At night the body temperature decreases.  To fly they have to increase the body temperature.  By spreading their wings, they increase the area the sun will be warming.  The spread wing stance is called the "Horaltic Pose."  Not only does the Pose dry the wings and warm the body, it also bakes off bacteria that forms on the legs from feeding inside a carcass.

Lately I have been fascinated by the movement of Ruddy Ducks.  A couple thousand spend the winter on Morro Bay.  They are always accompanied by a scattering of Greater Scaup.  They are usually in a large spread out flock, appearing to be resting, but in motion.  By expanding the photo you will notice the perky tail of the Ruddy and the bright white cheek of the male; upper left is a Bufflehead; the Scaup is the darker duck with the larger head. 

Below is a Google Map that shows the location of the Avila bird sightings, from left to right -  1) X is where the Goose were located.  2) bridge over creek, Goldeneye, 3) Bluebirds, Woodpecker, 4) Great Blue Heron.    

Birding South to North

This morning's bird-a-thon began at the Baywood Pier.  A great Egret was checking the Blue-winged and Cinnamon Teal, two Greater Yellowleg were in attendance.  Nearby were 16 Brant Goose.  A few days ago a Brant count was taken, a total of 163, a drastic decline from the typical numbers of 2,000 - 3,000.

Sweet Springs 32 species.  Favorites were - Wigeon, Black-bellied plover, and a noisy Kingfisher.

Continued my bird quest south a mile or so to the ponds at the Sea Pines Golf Course.  At the larger pond were two female Common Goldeneye, an A+ sighting; the smaller pond held 5 species, Mallard, Shoveler, Bufflehead, Ruddy Duck, and Pied Billed Grebe.  On the grass were several hundred coots or more. The local eagle has a taste for Coots.

Next stop,  El Chorro Park, 5 miles south/east of Morro Bay.  The numerous pepper trees were loaded with plump red berries.  America Robin, some with very deep red/orange breasts, were indulging in a berry frenzy; counted 50 Robins in and under this one pepper tree (photo).   Among the Robins were, Golden and White-crowned Sparrow, Hermit Thrush and several pair of Western Bluebird.   

 A few days ago birded Estero Bluffs with Harry and Norma Catchpole.   Our feathered friends were abundant -   Pelican, Cormorant, Turnstone, Surf Scoter, Western Grebe, Whimbrel,  etc.  At Villa Creek, the northern end of Estero Bluffs we experienced a lengthy sighting of a Pectoral Sandpiper, a first for the Catchpoles.  It was concentrating on eating flies and was not alarmed by our presence.  The best sighting of the day, and probably of the month was a male Peregrine Falcon diving on a poor little Forster's Tern; the Tern managed to elude the Peregrine (yeah for the little guy).   Happy Birding!


 

BOB JONES TRAIL - AVILA

Entered the Bob Jones hiking, biking trail near Avila Sewer Plant. I was hoping for Hooded Merganser. From the bridge that crosses the creek saw 4 female and 2 male Hooded Merganser. They were in diving mode. Every time they went under they came up with a small fish.

About half a mile up the creek were 3 Common Goldeneye. The golf course is between the trail and the creek, but once past the golf course, the creek is easy to view. In many areas along the creek the reeds and brush overhanging the creek provide habitat for the Green Heron. I was watching a Goldeneye dive when I saw movement across the creek - a Green Heron was darting around a pile of rocks. Nearby, watching the action, was a female Kingfisher perched on a half submerged tire.

Other birds of note Steller's Jay, Oak Titmouse, and Black-crowned Night-Heron. The Night Heron was perched at the very top of a tall Sycamore (photo). I think she wanted to get away from the busy trail. 2012 is going to be a great year for birding.

BIRDING THE BOB JONES TRAIL

The morning was sunny, slightly cool and gorgeous. We entered the Bob Jones Bike/Walking Trail at San Luis Bay Drive. We walked to the bridge that crosses over the San Luis Creek, about a 2 mile round trip. At the beginning of our walk there was much bird activity. Juncos, Chickadees, and very talkative Oak Titmouse were abundant. Acorn Woodpeckers were squawking and hiding acorns (photo - 2 Acorn Woodpeckers in gnarled Sycamore tree). It was birding heaven.

The section of the trail we were on follows the San Luis Creek as it meanders to the sea. At this time of year the Willows and Sycamores have lost most of their leaves which makes viewing the birds a pleasure. The most fun we had was trying to figure out the species of a large plump bird, scrunched down, sleeping with its back to us, and its head tucked in. At first I was mostly convinced it was an owl. Then we saw two more of them. We were still unsure. Several people stopped by to help us ponder the situation. We had moved on a few yards but decided to have one last look. My friend Sylvia said, "It's head is up." It took only a few moments for us to realize that our owl was an immature Black-crowned Night Heron. I really wanted it to be an owl.

At the bridge we saw one of our winter migrants,a female Common Goldeneye, and I believe I had a glimpse of the male further up the creek. Our total count for the morning was 25 species. I highly recommend the Bob Jones Trail.