Audubon Overlook

Audubon Overlook.  The day was tranquil - no one in sight; the melodious chatter of several hundred Black Brant Goose welcomed me.  The tide was at a perfect level for viewing shorebirds, wading birds, and a variety of water fowl.

To the right was a flock of about 40 Long-billed Dowitcher, I think.  When their bill is deep into the mud, up to and passed their nostrils sometimes, and they are at a distance, it is rather difficult to tell the difference between a Long-billed Dowitcher and a Short-billed Dowitcher; especially when the male Long-billed Dowitcher’s bill is the same length as the Short-billed Dowitcher’s bill.  (photo taken near the Baywood Pier)

 Taking advantage of whatever foods were abundant, four Green-winged Teal and a pair of Cinnamon Teal were feeding in shallow water along the shoreline. (male below)

 Along the edge of the bay Willet, Godwit and one Black-bellied Plover; as the tide receded American Avocet and Northern Pintail appeared.  In Morro Bay Pintail often feed by dabbling.  They will also feed in fields eating rice, wheat, corn, and barley.  Bottoms up!

Across the bay many Snowy and Great Egret accompanied by a few Great Blue Heron.  Overhead low flying Forster’s Tern looked for small fish.  They hover for a few moments before plunging into the water.

All of a sudden I noticed that the water was gone and so had the birds.   As I experienced the magic of nature, I was unaware that time had passed.  

WINDY WEATHER

Fall winds were churning up the bay this morning.  At the Audubon Overlook was a assortment of shorebirds.  Most notable was a Black-necked Stilt (photo taken on Parkfield Road in SLO County).  The Stilt was a beauty; her graceful long legs were very pink.  She was among a mixed flock of Greater Yellowlegs, Long-billed Dowitcher (photo), Western Sandpiper, and two Black-bellied Plovers.

The wind was such, that as the graceful Stilt attempted to move and feed in the shallow water, the wind blew her sideways.  The other birds, not having the height of the stilt were not blown about.  Black-necked Stilts have the second-longest legs in proportion to their body of any bird, exceeded only by Flamingos.

 Working my way through the Los Osos sewer construction, managed to get to Cuesta Inlet and Pecho Willows.  Although quite windy on the west facing side of the bay, it did nothing to hamper a feeding frenzy that had just begun.  The first to arrive were the Terns, next Double-crested Cormorant, and finally Brown Pelican.

I find the intense noise of the sewer construction extremely distracting on my limited birding skills.  Tomorrow morning; no later that 8:00, I am promising myself, that I will bird in peace and quiet, Islay Creek mouth, and the campground at Montana de Oro St. Park.

SAN SIMEON CREEK

So happy to be out and about. Weather overcast, no wind - a perfect Central Coast morning. San Simeon Creek flows by the campground, under Hwy One and ends in a small rocky lagoon on San Simeon State Beach. A berm of sand prevents the creek from flowing into the sea. I was looking for a Semipalmated Sandpiper - nearly identical to a Western Sandpiper. It had been seen among a small flock of Western Sandpipers. I am not very adept at finding a needle in a haystack. The area the peeps were feeding in had moist ground, small round rocks, and bits and pieces of kelp (see photo). Yikes!!
First I saw the obvious - Handsome Semipalmated Plovers in breeding plumage, Killdeer, 2 Short-billed Dowitcher, Caspian and Elegant Tern, 4 Snowy Plovers (always a treat), Grackle, Western Sandpiper. Finally spotted the Seimpalmated Sandpiper. Its bill is a little shorter, straighter and thicker than the Western. Anyway I think I saw it. Below is a link to a photo by Roger Zachery that shows the difference between the two sandpipers. The Semipalmated is upper right.
Western Sandpipers and Semipalmated Sandpiper | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Stopped at a few spots to check for Turnstones and Tattlers. Did see a couple of Oystercatchers and numerous Long Billed Curlew and one Whimbrel and many Heermann's Gull on Cayucos State Beach. Unaccustomed to the fresh air, I was overcome with a yearning for a Starbucks. Thus my first real day of birding, in nearly a month, came to a most pleasant end.