Shrike shrieking

I've been back home in California for about a week now and it didn't take long for that to sink in.  Perhaps it was the temperatures in the mid-80s.  This season really is a pleasant time to be in the Central Valley though; the trees have leafed out and newly arrived migrants can be found at your local birding patches.

However, I'd be remiss if I didn't start out with some rarity talk.  While I was in NY, a Code 4 BROWN SHRIKE was found and reported back here in California.  It has stuck around for several weeks which is really not surprisingly considering it probably has spent the past winter there despite being found only recently.  When I returned from NY, Ashley and I ventured up to have a look:

The more interesting aspect with this bird is now the identity is in limbo.  Although it was reported as a BROWN SHRIKE, there are many birders that believe this is actually a RED-BACKED SHRIKE which would be a first record for North America.  Needless to say, the identity isn't clear-cut at this point and as the bird continues to molt its tail, hopefully it'll morph into something we can ID with certainty.

As we watched the shrike from across the ravine, people weren't too interested to see THIS shrike right in front of us.  I assume it's a second BROWN SHRIKE... I mean, it's brown and has a slightly hooked-bill.  That's all you need to know, right?  SCORE.  I'm such a good birder.

Back around home where finding rarities apparently isn't a worry I need to dwell on, I've instead focused on birding a local patch and have been trying to enjoy the common things... like this WESTERN SCRUB-JAY that was rummaging around at close range:

The local RED-WINGED BLACKBIRDS are ubiquitous as ever:

This is the season for BLACK-BELLIED PLOVERS to be on the move; I've seen a flock fly over the house as well as this flock down at Cosumnes River Preserve:

Sometimes you find birds that you're certain are in the process of migrating.  For example, I was walking along a levee trail near home when I found this MARSH WREN on the edge of a grazed pasture.  It eventually hopped up and flew across the trail to a fence line bordering urban apartments.  This isn't even close to the habitat that these guys are looking for.  Regardless, I hope it righted itself the following night when it probably took flight, gained elevation, and migrated north some more.

I found these CACKLING GEESE mixed in with the normal GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE flock at a local patch.  Surprisingly, this is only the second record of this species at this particular hotspot:

Some birds are already in the thick of chick-rearing; the local ANNA'S HUMMINGBIRDS in my neighborhood have already fledged a brood (and it's not uncommon to see 6 different hummingbirds at my feeders in a given day).  In fact, the family rolls in and does a good job at draining my hummingbird feeder in short order.  The local geese and ducks have hatched chicks as well such as this "mostly" MALLARD:

I'll end with another update to my county map.  (As an aside, I recently reached a milestone in terms of county listing, I reached 500 counties/parishes/census areas/etc).  Anyway, if you look at the shading in western New York, you can see where I did some county listing on my recent trip:

NY: That's a wrap

This month has been one of my worst ever for blog posts... at least in the number that I've pumped out.  I'll attribute that to the fact that I was away from home for 3 weeks.

I left off last time while I was still in western NY catching up with family and doing a little bit of exploring in nearby counties.  Although I limited myself to counties I could get to in 2 hours or less, I ended up seeing a good chunk of western NY.

One such day took me up to Lake Ontario.  After not having much to scope elsewhere, it felt great to have a big body of water to scan for a while.  Here's a panoramic view of the piers in the town of Wilson:

One of the most obvious and abundant species at this spot was LONG-TAILED DUCK; they were calling nonstop which put me in the mood for Alaska all over again.  Here's a dapper male:

Another species that was abundant here is the WHITE-WINGED SCOTER:

It was while I was scoping that I saw a distant city rising from the lake to the NW... it's Toronto from about 50 miles away:

Back in Allegany County, though, birding remained slow (at least by the species diversity point of view).  I had a NORTHERN HARRIER down the road one day... turns out it was the first for the county that year, mostly likely a newly arrived migrant:

Although they're not uncommon in those parts, I was surprised to see this female PILEATED WOODPECKER at the suet feeder.  After looking at things like nuthatches and little Downy Woodpeckers, you can imagine looking out and seeing a crow-sized woodpecker instead!

I didn't look ONLY at birds on my visit, truth be told.  For example, I was happy to see this AMERICAN MINK along the Genesee River in Wellsville:

Anyway, after two weeks in western NY, it was time for me to fly back home to California (I drove to NY but will leave my car there for the summer).  Shortly after take off from Buffalo I was looking down at ice and urban development... instead of looking at it at eye level:

A bit farther on, you could say I reluctantly birded at Point Pelee... but at 40,000 feet elevation and at about 500 mph, I can't say I saw much.  You can see it here in the distance, the second peninsula pointing to the left (behind the first point which is Rondeau Provincial Park):

But it wasn't long before everything clouded over and the ride became a lot less interesting to someone who is fascinating by maps:

... but hey, can I complain, especially after landing a seat with no seat in front of me?!  Talk about leg room!

And now I'm back in Sacramento enjoying temps in the 80s, palms trees, hummingbirds.... and not having a car to go birding.  :-(

Birds that find YOU

Here in Wellsville, there doesn't seem to be a lot that attracts out-of-town birders this time of year.  That's not to say that there aren't a few resident birders here, but compared to most other counties in New York, coverage here seems quite minimal.

To be honest, I don't mind that; I hope this dearth of coverage makes my menial checklists more valuable in filling some data gaps.  And as anyone who knows me knows, I find it pretty rewarding to have visualization of birding effort.  So yeah, I've been all about birding Allegany County for the last 1-2 weeks to see where it would take me.

Because I don't know this county like I should (considering I was born here), I've only been slowly feeling my way around, exploring roads here and there and repeatedly hitting some spots that seem productive.  But sometimes birds find you.

I was chugging down Highway 417 to the east of town when I passed an owl-shaped bump on a sign.  My first gut reaction was "Ok, who put a plastic owl decoy on a sign all the way out here?" but a split second later I realized it was a REAL owl, a BARRED OWL:

Woah, right?  I thought I had found something good for the county until... well... 10 minutes later I saw ANOTHER one somewhere else.  Ok, so maybe they're pretty thick around here.  Moving on.

Another spot I've checked several times is the Genesee River right in the middle of town (in the parking lot of a Tops grocery store, in fact).  One recent visit yielded 2 RED-BREASTED MERGANSERS which was flagged in eBird as rare.  Because of that fact, I snapped a picture so that whoever the eBird reviewer is would have some proof:

They're not rare around here but because I tire of seeing ROPI and EUST, I took a picture of this young BALD EAGLE along the river as well.  Of course, a gust of wind was blowing the neck feathers around AND the thing wouldn't look at me:

I've driven some of the hilltops around here hoping for more Snow Buntings but because we've gone into quite a thaw lately, more and more land is exposed and I think that's making the buntings harder to find.  In their place, however, were several HORNED LARKS.  Like the eagle, this one did a crummy job at posing:

Even with the recent thaw, bigger bodies of water around here aren't thawing quickly enough to get me excited.  This is a panoramic photo of a place we called Alma Pond (or Beaver Lake) which is a few miles to the SW of Wellsville:

Slap a filter on it via Instragram and one can make it look a lot more moody:

I did venture out on a county-listing endeavor yesterday though.  You see, although I spent many years growing up around here, I lack detailed (and reliable) records that I could enter into eBird.  And so in looking at my county map which I've posted lately, it's obvious that I had some work to do.  My goal yesterday was simply to make a checklist or two in as many counties as I could reasonably get to from home.  I ventured east, north, and then back west and south.  I ended up touching at least 10 counties yesterday which I thought was a good start.  Here's a map of only my NY counties:

You can see that I have 4 easy ones to visit up north and west of here; perhaps I'll attack those Thursday.

In any case, I ended visiting a hotspot or two yesterday in places I've hardly ever cared to look at birds.  One such public park in Chemung County had an area where families sponsored trees, benches, etc.  I was completely down with these folks sponsoring a bird-feeding station.  Even better, there was a little sign that said "Please fill the feeders".  Seeing that they were indeed empty and that the containers for seed below them were fully stocked, I was all about filling these bad boys.  I did just that and took a picture of of handy work:

Another hotspot I ventured to was calm, rather scenic, but completely lacking in terms of birds.  I'm sure this state forest will liven up when the breeding warbs return in a month or two:

One spot that had no shortage of birds was the Seneca Harbor Park in Watkins Glen.  In addition to species like RED-NECKED GREBE and GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULLS, the rafts of Aythya in the harbor proved to be entertaining for a while:

The CANVASBACKS were looking dapper.  This species is so-named because early Europeans thought that their backs was a canvas-like color.  In other languages, though, it basically translates to "white-backed duck".  Here's a male:

This species, like many ducks, dives completely underwater to find food.  The trick is to photograph them as they dive; here's one shortly after dunking its head:

Much more numerous than the Canvasbacks though were the REDHEADS.  Although they're somewhat similar-looking, note the gray back and bill differences on the Redhead.  This was an awesome place to get close looks at this sharp species:

In the end, it was one of my more enjoyable quick stops on my driving tour.  You can see the checklist here.

X-Country (summer to winter)

This first update in two weeks is written with a heavy heart... actually, a cold heart... a cold everything, actually.  You see, I left the warmth and summer-like conditions in California, drove across the continent, and emerged in New York State where it certainly doesn't feel like spring.  Not to me, at least.

My epic 4-day drive took me through 12 states, put me in the front passenger seat of a police car in Illinois, and of course, a lot of county listing.  I'm not sure if it's the lack of other things to do as one drives across the country or my fascination with coloring in counties on my county map, but I kept track of birds I saw in essentially every county as I drove east.  All of that work was essentially for this map that I updated just now:

You'll see I missed one county in Illinois; that was due to poor planning on my behalf (I only ventured into this county under the shroud of darkness; and yes, I tried to find a HOSP in the dark when I got gas).  Other than that, you can see my route to western NY.

I didn't do a ton of birding along the way though; I was focused more on making good time.  I did snap a picture of this faded CHUKAR though; it's a shame, it looks like they've gone extinct at this particular location:

As I zoomed my way east through Nevada, pretty soon the Ruby Mountains became visible on the horizon.  I wouldn't stop for snowcock on this trip though; I was lucky to see them in 2013 and I'll be trying for them later on this spring:

I did make one detour in Nebraska though.  I found that I could pick up 2 new counties by just driving south from the interstate for 5 miles.  I figured I needed a break and found myself looking over grasslands (and HOLA, LALO, and EUCD) in Colorado:

Another stop in North Platte one morning yielded a slew of "Richardson's" CACKLING GEESE:

In fact, that stop yielded a lot of things that reminded me that I wasn't in the Central Valley anymore.  Here's the quick checklist.

I eventually found my way to Allegany County, New York, which is where I was born (and still have family).  Winter was waiting for me:

Speaking of winter though, the above landscape yielded a singing WINTER WREN which was mind-bogglingly pleasant sound.

Most of the rivers and bigger bodies of water though were still iced up.  In the few small patches I could find, COMMON MERGANSERS seemed to be a common theme.  Here's a blurry shot of one flying off... I suppose I was just shaking too much:

There have been signs of spring though.  The NORTHERN CARDINALS are in full song, some migrants have returned such as COMMON GRACKLES, RED-WINGED BLACKBIRDS, and this KILLDEER (which probably wasn't too keen on foraging opportunities):

Using eBird, I looked around at what's been seen in this (dramatically under-birded) county.  I followed up on a tip and found this SNOW BUNTING on a nearby hilltop:

I had a pleasant surprise today when I heard the all-too-familiar honking of TUNDRA SWANS somewhere.  I glanced up and imagine that, 46 swans heading west.  I whipped out my stellar zoom lens (iPhone = no lens) and took this amazing,  publishable quality photo:

Yesterday I found myself in the next county west of us, Cattaraugus.  This county is lucky in that it holds Allegany State Park.  It's not a small park, mind you, it's about 65,000 acres.  The mix of coniferous and deciduous trees, which surely have nesting NSWOs somewhere, looked nice to my California-jaded eyes:

Equally as nice-looking were 5 RUFFED GROUSE I found while driving some backroads.  Here's one leaning down and nipping a bud off this tree:

And yes, buds/twigs of birch, aspen, and willows are a main part of the diet of this species during the harsh winter months.

Interestingly, the popularity of this species as a game bird led to some of the earliest game management practices in the US.  For example, New York had a closed season on Ruffed Grouse in 1708!  I'll leave you with one more photo showing how this highly-intelligent bird used its renowned camouflage:

Redhead & an early Barn

It's again been pleasant these last few days of February.  I wasn't the only one who thought so, this male ANNA's HUMMINGBIRD at a local patch of mine chatted up a storm to me about the weather.  Or maybe he just wanted me to go away.  Whatever.

An eBird report came in of a pair of REDHEADS at Cosumnes River Preserve.  You might not think it but this is a pretty rare species for Sacramento County (I had seen only one before).  I took the bait and headed down the next morning.  Gadzooks, there WAS a pair of REDHEADS.  Here's the male:

(I returned again that evening with Ash and they were still present.  A county bird for her and a year bird for both of us.  Good deal.)

I spent a good chunk of time at CRP that morning though and ended up with a decent 80+ species in about 3 hours (checklist seen here).  This WHITE-THROATED SPARROW, an uncommon species around here, has been present around the visitor center all winter and I chanced into it as I strolled by:

The sun was out and with temps around 70, the insects started flying.  Here's a CABBAGE WHITE:

I was more happy to see this PACIFIC FORKTAIL, my second damselfly of the year:

Just today we visited several hotspots here in Sacramento County to try to find some still-needed year birds.  Our first stop was East Lawn Cemetery; our target was TOWNSEND'S WARBLER which Ash still needed.  Fittingly, she spotted it after only 5 minutes of walking around.  Here's our checklist.

We then visited a park in Folsom where we had Violet-green Swallows last spring but it looked like they hadn't arrived yet.  Here's the quick checklist.

Our next stop was Michigan Bar Road, a favorite of ours, to see if many there were any swallows there.  Sadly, there weren't.  But who can complain with many LEWIS'S WOODPECKERS and even a flagged STELLER'S JAY?  Not to mention that Ashley picked up her year BHCO as well.  Here's our list.

Lastly, we swung into Meiss Road to scope the Meiss pond and to look for Mountain Bluebirds.  I was scoping through ducks and things when I instead started to focus on swallows that were flycatching above the pond.   Woah, a BARN SWALLOW was mixed in!  It's flagged in eBird because it's on the early side and, as luck would have it, it gained elevation and got closer to us, barely in range for my camera:

So that's what's been going on around here the last couple of days.  eBird has my Sacramento County year list at 176 species after only 2 months.  I compared this to my year list in 2014 and I am more than a month ahead of that pace!

See you in March.