I ventured to Don Nottoli Park here in Elk Grove midday today to see how many species I could tally. This relatively urban park is 1.5 miles south-southeast of where I live and although it doesn't have a ton of habitat, it's fun to visit and fantasize about finding something really goofy.
It was a nice day (temps near 80 degrees) so I was hopeful there were birds to see and pictures to take.
This park continues to be a good place to check out and study up on the variations of NORTHERN FLICKERS.
First up is a female "RED-SHAFTED":
A nearby flock of flickers had this male "RED-SHAFTED" mixed in as well:
Was I not going to find an intergrade on this visit? I mean, I almost always find one of those dirty things. Annnnd, wait, here's one. Yet again, a (the?) male intergrade:
This COOPER'S HAWK was soaring around overhead. Nothing special, just your standard accipiter:
Although it's feeling a lot like spring (ok, maybe it is here?), we'll continue to have GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROWS until sometime in May. Here's one of many:
Only recently have we noted multiple DESERT COTTONTAILS around as well. Apparently this is the only species of cottontail we have here in the Central Valley. Seems pretty weird to have a species running around with "desert" in the name. Oh well.
You know what, for being a pretty common species around here, I find that I rarely take pictures of COMMON GALLINULES. This species used to be called "Common Moorhen", just so you know. However, do yourself a favor and remember that it was switched!
Check out the checklist to see how many species I ended up with. Think I topped 40? 50?
So yeah, stay tuned to the blog. It won't be long before I venture to Arizona, Texas, and beyond...
