Feeding Frenzy and Bait Balls

Seawater temperatures have reached record levels this year.  For many years the average sea temperature on the Central Coast has been in the mid 50s.  Today the water temperature ranges somewhere between 62° - 65°.  The warmer water attracts small bait fish such as anchovies, sardines, and smelt.  When the fish are threatened they form into a tightly packed spherical formation, the bait ball. 

For the last few weeks, feeding frenzies have become a frequent occurrence on the Central Coast.  Elegant and Royal Tern, Cormorant, Brown Pelican, Shearwaters by the thousands, Gulls, and the 40 - 50 ft. Humpback Whale are the feeders in the frenzy. 

Pelicans and terns dive from above.  The Pelicans scoop up a mouthful; Terns take only one fish.  Cormorant's and Shearwater's dive for fish. Humpback's with their huge mouths open lunge through the bait ball to the surface, gathering thousands of fish and sometimes a careless pelican into their giant maw.  Meanwhile, Gulls are after the leftovers and what ever they can steal out of the mouths of Pelicans.     (Photos by Mike Baird)

 A word of caution - Getting too close may be hazardous to your health.   Humpbacks weigh about 70,000 lbs. 

Birding Cayucos

Cayucos - Weather warm, humid, semi-cloudy (photo of Morro Rock taken from Cayucos Beach).  The morning could not have been more perfect.  Feeding along the edge of the sea were Whimbrel, Long-billed Curlew (center photo), and Willet.  Off the beach were Surf Scoter, Western Grebe and a sprinkling of Eared Grebe in breeding plumage.

Next stop was at the northern end of Cayucos, a narrow little residential street with an overlook that looks down on a pocket beach with rock formations.  Somewhere in the rocks is a Oystercatcher nest that is easily viewed from the overlook.  Every other birder in town has seen it.  Could I find it?  No!  I tried various angles, walked down a private driveway hoping to get a view of the rocks, but no luck.  I really wasn't disappointed as I have seen them several times in MdO.

What I did observe was a feeding frenzy with Brown Pelican, 3 species of Cormorant, 3 species of Tern, gulls, and 2 Sea Lions; the chaos was marvelous.

Next stop, the Cayucos Pier, an historic landmark built in 1872 by Captain James Cass, the founder of Cayucos.  It was built out of Cambria Pines Logs for a cost of about $15,000.  The pier closed in 2013 due to damaged pilings; rebuilding is scheduled for next month.  In the meantime the precious old pier is being enjoyed by a variety of birds, mainly the very vocal and elegant, Elegant Tern, plus a few Forster's Tern and the big daddy of Terns, the Caspian.  Gulls, Western and Herrmann's are here and there and a few Brown Pelicans (photos were shot through chain link fencing).

In the foreground of the long shot are several immature Elegant Tern.  At the end of the pier the Brown Pelican perch.  I do hope the birds are not too traumatized when rebuilding begins.

Final stop of the morning was at the Turri Road Ponds.  Last week 12 Wilson's Phalarope had been seen.  Great fun to watch them spin as they feed, but the only birds feeding this morning were 6 Greater Yellowlegs.  As I turned away from the ponds I noticed a large bird feeding on the dry hillside, a female Wild Turkey;  first one I have seen in this area, snapped a few photos.  I was about to get in my car when the Turkey swooped over my head and into a dense stand of weeds near the ponds - the treat of the day.  A swooping Wild Turkey is a sight to behold - the perfect end to a perfect morning of birding the Central Coast.

BIRDING THERE AND HERE

Passed through Pacific Grove on the way home from a visit with relatives. (The photo is much to blue. I was experimenting with a new photo App. ) Birds were few and far between.  Although, along the road, feeding in the muck of a golf course pond sprouting numerous golf balls, was a small cluster of shorebirds - one Whimbrel, 4 least Sandpiper, and a bird I had not seen for several years, a Dunlin; it has a slightly thicker, down turned bill, and is a little larger than a Least Sandpiper.

Meandered down fog shrouded Hwy 1 -  Pulled off at Piedras Blancas.  No view of lighthouse due to dense fog.  On the beach, Godwit, Willet and a large flock of Heermann's Gull - nothing to write home about.

This morning checked out the low tide at Morro Strand North Point.  Low tide is the perfect time to see the Oyster Catchers, Turnstones and Surf Birds feeding on the rocks, but to my amazement, there were no rocks, as they had been completely covered by sand, which goes to prove the adage, "nothing stays the same."  I was enjoying the scampering of Semipalmated Plovers when a woman with a unleashed dog appeared. Obviously she missed the "No Dogs Allowed on the Beach" sign.

Oh well, I'll check out my home turf.  Along the Baywood boardwalk grows a couple stands of blooming Fennel.  Feeding in them were four Yellow Warblers.  Now that was a major treat.

Not far out from the pier, a feeding frenzy was in full progress.  Elegant, Royal, and Forster's Tern, along with Brown Pelican were diving for the little fish.  There were scads of Double-crested Cormorant, Harbor Seals, and gulls, looking for leftovers.  Sound of Feeding Frenzy http://youtu.be/j2alkP3MCLo

 If I had to rate the last few days of birding, foggy Baywood would be numero uno.  

FEASTING ON INSECTS

To the rear of the Spooner Ranch House is an old Buckeye shrub, grown into a tree. The tree may look scraggly, but there is always bird activity in and around it, regardless the time of year. The dense twigs provide little birds such as Warblers and Wrens a save haven, and many places to perch.
This morning tiny flying insects had hatched along the edge of the road beside the tree. As I approached, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Townsend's Warbler (photo), and Bewick's Wren were feasting on the insects. From a perch in the Buckeye they would dart out to catch insects in the air or on the ground and then fly back to a perch. Within a few minutes, a pair of Western Bluebirds and a couple of White-crowned Sparrow joined in on the feast. I could hear their teensy beaks clack as they snatched the insects out of the air. (I do love that sound) For several minutes I was in the midst of a these adorable birds. A Townsend's brushed right over my head and back the same way. They were landing inches from my feet (unfortunately too close for a photo). Needless to say, I was a happy camper.