Easy Birding The Central Coast

Cathy from Palm Springs was visiting.  We were heading north to have a day of Easy Birding on the Central Coast.  Cathy was hoping for the coolness of fog while I was hoping for a warming sun.  What Mother Nature bestowed upon us was an ideal medium, sun, and wisps of fog with a gentle breeze. What more could one ask for?  Well, maybe a few birds.

First Stop - Estero Bluffs - Blooming female Coyote Brush lined the slightly damp trail.  After a few minutes of walking the brush opened giving us a grand view of Estero Bay.

    

Our first sighting was a female Northern Harrier silently flying, more like gliding, over the brush.  She had a wide search pattern but eventually flew out of sight. Northern Harriers can be fairly easy to identify.  The female is larger than the male.  She is a darkish brown, while he is grey with black wingtips. They both have an obvious white rump.        

On the rocky shoreline was about 30 Sanderlings.  They follow the ebb and flow of the waves, probing the wet sand as they race back and forth.  

Sanderlings breed in High Arctic tundra and fly down to the Central Coast for the winter.  A group of Sanderlings are known as a "grain."  Other birds were Black Turnstones, Black Phoebe, and two Yellow-rumped Warbler.    Next stop Cambria.

Santa Rosa Creek Lagoon - Cambria - We were in birding paradise.  Pied-billed Grebe, Eared Grebe aka, Fluffy Butt, Ruddy Duck, Bufflehead, Mallard, Black Turnstone, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Great Egret, a flock of Ring-billed Gull, and a ""whirligig" of Red-necked Phalarope.   What a treat!  photo by Mike Baird

It is impossible for me to bird the rocky coast without noticing the rocks.  The impressive Cambria Slab Greywacke Sandstone is prevalent from Cambria to San Simeon.  The Tafoni, the holes, in the sandstone are from physical and chemical weathering.  

                                         

Perched on the ancient sandstone - Double-crested Cormorant, Pelagic Cormorant, Brandt's Cormorant, plus juvenile Brandt's and juvenile Double-crested.  (below photo)  I am quite certain the Cormorants are not into geology and had no idea the rocks they were perched on are well over 100 million years old. 

On the light colored rock, were four Black Oystercatcher and one juvenile (below photo).  It was a thrill to see the juvenile, as the Black Oystercatcher's reproductive rate along the Central Coast was tragically poor this year. 

Our last stop was the Sea Pines Golf Course located near Shark Inlet (yes there are sharks in Morro Bay).  If you are not a golfer, the only view of the pond is through wire fencing. 

Feeding on the grass was a gaggle of Canada Goose and a small gaggle of Greater White-fronted Goose.  (The photo was taken through the wire fence.)   The White-fronted Goose has one of the largest ranges of any species of goose in the world.  Now, in comparison, the Canada Goose just travels from golf course to golf course. 

Our last bird of the day was a doozy.  Cathy had just gotten her binoculars focused through the wire fence when she spotted this adorable female Hooded Merganser.  I've heard that many ducks are envious of the female Hooded's stylish hairdo.  There are three species of Merganser in North America.  Hooded is the smallest, about the size of a coot.  Seeing this little beauty was a gift, as only a few winter on the Central Coast.  Needless to say Cathy and I had a fabulous day of birding.

Birding Around the Bay and Beyond

Morro Creek - Cannot think of a better way to celebrate the first Monday in October than to go birding.  The weather was warmish and crystal clear.  In other words a perfect beach day.  Due to human and dog activity birds were scarce in Morro creek.

Up Morro Creek a tad, were six Red-necked Phalarope (below), a lone female Northern Shoveler, and a "daggle" of Mallards.  On occasion a male Mallard will mate with Shovelers, Teal, Wigeon and Gadwal, but not all at once.  Seeing a Mallard hybrid can be mighty confusing.  When a male Mallard is in the mood for mating, keep your distance.

Morro Bay Marina - The marina was peaceful.  The only migratory water birds were five Pied-billed Grebe.

I was hoping to get a view of one of the two visiting Yellow-crowned Night Heron that have been seen recently perched on the back of boats, but they were a no show.

Fortune shined when a Caspian Tern, looking for a fish, flew into the marina.  It hovered a couple of times but never dove.  Due to its bulky size, its very red bill, and its impressive wing span, 50-55 inches, the Caspian is often easy to identify.  It also flies higher than Elegant, Royal and Forster's Tern.

Montaña de Oro Bluff Trail -  I was south of Quarry Cove, about midway along the trail, looking for Black Oystercatchers (Bloys), when I spotted seven of them perched on a shale formation that jutted into the sea.  As the weather flows from summer into fall/winter, the Mdo Oystercatchers often hang out together.  I see these gatherings as a means for the young adults to find a mate.  And more than likely they also talk about the two legged monsters that invade their territory when they are nesting and trying to raise their young.  Photo of four of the seven taken by Gary O'Neil.

Afterthought - Last week stopped by Laguna Lake.  The blue green algae looked about the same.  Across the lake were 30 or more White Pelican and a very large flock of Canada Goose.  Before I got out of the car I saw a tiny bird in a willow tree.  I had not seen a scaly-breasted munia, commonly known as Nutmeg Mannikin for at least 20 years.  They are native to tropical Asia and were popular with the pet trade.  I would classify them as cute.

                                                                          

Keep your binoculars handy because one of those little seed eaters, that we frequently take for granted, may be a Nutmeg Mannikin. 

Memorable Sightings

 
 Turri Road Ponds at the junction of So. Bay Blvd and Turri Road.
 Memorable sighting No. 3 -  I was anticipating seeing Greater and Lesser Yellowleg, but upon arrival what we did see was a delightful surprise - six Red-necked Phalarope plus a Logger-headed Shrike that sped by at eye level.

Phalarope are fun to watch as they are active feeders, spinning in circles as they feed on tiny insects.  Below is a photo I somehow managed to get, when for a brief moment, a Phalarope stopped spinning.

    Memorable sighting No. 4 -  Third Street Coastal Access 

A mixed flock of rather adorable, Semipalmated Plover, Marbled Godwit and Willet were feeding along the edge of the water - a very peaceful scene.  I mentioned to Mike that we should see a Black-bellied Plover, as one or two are often found in a mixed flock of shorebirds.  We found one by itself on a little sandbar.  It's beautiful black and white breeding plumage had already transitioned to quiet winter colors.  Photo of Black-bellied Plover in Winter Plumage.

    Memorable Sighting No. 2 -  Morro Bay State Park Marina

I was confident we would find a Spotted Sandpiper.  We were barely a few feet along the path when the tiny sandpiper appeared bopping along the edge of the water.  Translation of "bopping along" - Spotted Sandpiper teeter as they walk.  Chicks teeter as soon as they hatch.  The function of the teetering motion is yet to be determined.  Soon we discovered there were two Spotted Sandpipers, an adult and a juvenile.  The adult still had a few spot on its belly.  A great treat seeing these two little beauties.  If you squint, the belly spots can be seen.

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    Memorable Sighting No. 1 -  Morro Bay Marina Boardwalk

The primary reason for going to the marina was to see, at the least, one of the four or five Reddish Egrets that had been seen in the area of Morro Bay for about a week or so.  The Reddish Egret is one of the rarest egrets in North America.  It's easily distinguished from other Egrets and Herons by its shaggy appearance, reddish head and neck during breeding season, very active feeding behavior, and pink-and-black bill.  It is a resident breeder in Central America, the Bahamas, the Caribbean, the Gulf Coast of the U.S, and Mexico, and has slowly been making its way up our coast.

We were standing on the boardwalk with binoculars focused across the vast pickleweed to the edge of the receding tide.  A scope would have been helpful.  While looking for the Egrets three women, one with binoculars and a humongous camera, sat down on a nearby bench.  The woman with the camera asked if we had seen the Reddish Egret. "No," we answered.  She points into the hazy west. "They're out there, four of them."  By expanding the photo (click or touch) you can see two of the four Egrets, far left and right center.

 At this time of year they are without their roguish reddish head and neck.  What distinguished them to us was their athletic feeding behavior.  We observed them dash about, zig-zag, and leap with wings flapping, but they did have their quiet moments, strolling along the edge of the water with the shorebirds.  Certainly would be delightful to have the Reddish Egret as a regular winter visitor.  For your viewing please have included a 1.14 minute YouTube video on the feeding strategy of the Reddish Egret.
https://youtu.be/oPt70L1lAoM

On July 17 at San Simeon creek mouth local photographer Roger Zachary captured this excellent image of a Reddish Egret.

ADVENTURE ON THE CENTRAL COAST

The most exciting event of the week were Whales lunge feeding at Pismo. Photo by Mike Baird. I am also including a link to Mike's slide show on the Humpback Whales feeding at Pismo.

There are thousands of birds feeding at the same time as the whales. Pelicans are diving into the water as the whales lunge up. Unfortunately, many a Brown Pelican has gone down the gaping maw of a voracious Whale. I viewed the feeding phenomena from the Pismo Pier a few days a go.
http://www.flickr.com//photos/mikebaird/sets/72157631200845758/show/

Today, from Morro Rock, observed more of this fascinating feeding behavior. The whales and birds were feeding on bait balls, which are huge masses of bait fish packed into a globular mass. I do believe there were trillions of birds, Cormorant, Pelican, Sooty Shearwater, Gull, feeding along with three whales. The action was taking place on the Montana de Oro side of the breakwater, but was able to get an excellent view with binoculars.

Back to birding - Red-necked Phalarope has returned to the Turri Rd. ponds. There were about 40 or so spinning so fast it nearly made me dizzy. Churning up the water brings their microscopic food to the surface.
Tide was just right to see a variety of birds at the Audubon Overlook - Virginia Rail, 6 Greater Yellowleg, Dowitcher, and a very difficult bird for me to identify, Baird's Sandpiper; there were three, two immature and an adult. I spent at least an hour identifying them as they look so much like Western Sandpiper. Nearly forgot about the Spotted Sandpiper at the Morro Bay Marina. Every year one adorable Spotted Sandpiper takes up residence at the marina - was delighted to see it had returned.

WENSDAY'S EASY BIRDING

Destination this morning was the Old Creek Lagoon on Cayucos Beach. Stopped at the Turri Road Ponds en route. Spinning around to churn up itty-bitty insects were two Wilson's Phalarope (first sighting of the Wilson's this season), and 18 Red-necked Phalarope (photo). Click on the link for a short video on Phalarope feeding behavior.

Red-necked Phalarope (Phalaropus lobatus) | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Very foggy when I arrived at the Old Creek Lagoon. Many Long-billed Curlew and Whimbrel, a couple of Killdeer, 4 Red-necked Phalarope, one Semipalmated Sandpiper, and over a ways was a cluster of gulls with Royal and Elegant Terns. When Royal and Elegant are together I can usually tell the difference as the Royal are larger than the Elegant, but their bill similarity continues to drive me to distraction. I will persist!