Red Phalarope - Phalaropus fulicaria

It's not often that we get a chance to a Red Phalarope, a species that spends 11 months of the year well out to sea foraging on zooplankton, and we're not big fans of boat trips. They breed in tundra regions around the north pole (holarctic), mostly north of where the Red-necked Phalaropes breed, then head south to winter on both oceans, with only rare appearances along the coast and inland, usually driven there by storms. In alternate plumage the yellow bill and extensive rufous coloration of neck and underparts of the Red Phalarope easily distinguish it from the other 2 phalarope species (Wilson's and Red-necked). Here's a shot from the Hayward shore in May some years back, showing a female Red Phalarope molting into breeding plumage before continuing north to the tundra. Bird not close, so no detail, but still quite a sight to see at the time.

In winter all 3 species are studies in gray and white, so harder to distinguish. This Red Phalarope was seen at Abbott's Lagoon recently, in Point Reyes National Seashore. Note the plain gray back and stout bill:

The Red Phalarope has a black eye patch like the Red-necked, but the black bill is noticeably thicker and broader, and perhaps a tad longer than Red-necked. Here the bill is seen well from above:

 The Red-necked is streaky on the back, and the thin bill is not very long. The juvenile Red-necked is more colorful than the drab adult: 

Here's the adult Red-necked in alternate (breeding) plumage:

And the adult Red-necked in basic (winter) plumage:

Wilson's has a long thin bill, plain gray back, and lacks the black eye patch. Bottom line for all phalaropes is that the bill is a key field mark. This juvenile Wilson's was seen at Shollenberger Park in Petaluma some years ago:

Back to Abbott's, the lone Red Phalarope was foraging in shallow water along the lagoon's west shore we saw it pluck a juicy looking prey item from the water. At first it looked like a mollusk of some sort, but the bird chewed on it for a bit and got it to uncoil before quickly ingesting it (see close-up).

The phalaropes are famous for reversed sexual dimorphism, where is the female is more brightly colored and after choosing a mate and laying an egg she will move on to find another partner and leave the first male to brood and raise the young.

Great Egret with prey - Ardea alba

The Great Egret is a proficient hunter, catching a variety of prey with patient stalking, then striking with remarkable speed and efficiency. Here we watched a Great Egret along the Tiburon shoreline, having just caught a common bottom fish known as a sculpin. This particular sculpin is probably the "Bullhead", Leptocottus armatus.

Another shot, with less pleasing background, showing the fish better oriented for swallowing:

On a previous outing at Las Gallinas I spotted a Great Egret in high breeding plumage, stalking and catching a field mouse. The lores don't get any greener than this:

Lastly, from a hike years ago in Tennessee Valley, the Great Egret with a Garter Snake:

Surf Scoter - Melanitta perspicillata

Surf Scoters may have declined as much as 50% since 1950, probably from multiple factors.They breed across Alaska and Northern Canada, and in winter while here they forage on mussels, clams and herring roe. The male Surf Scoter is easily identified by his outrageously colored bill and white forehead patch. Here we can also appreciate the pearly color of his eye:

There is an even larger white patch on the back of the male's head.

Note the forward location of the nostril and how the black feathering extends well over the top of the bill, and the swollen profile of the bill's top.

The female is more subdued, a study in browns, relieved only by two white patches on the side of the head. She lacks the pearly white pupil as well.

Side view shows how the bill shape differs from that of the male's.

And one last view of this cooperative scoter, nice enough to pause after each dive.

Long-billed Curlew - Numenius americanus

Our largest shorebird is the Long-billed Curlew, Numenius americanus. 

They're easy to observe because of their large size and relatively confiding nature, as they probe for invertebrates in mudflats or forage in dry upland areas in the Central Valley. These were seen recently at Shorbird Marsh in Corte Madera, which is close to the highway and just north of the Village Shopping Center. Often the birds there quite close to the roadside walking path and the viewing area with the small parking lot. People sensitive to noise may want to use earplugs to cut down the din from the highway.

These shots are almost full-frame, and sometimes the birds were so close I could only frame a portion, such as the head or tail. Have never seen so much color in the tail, matching the orange of the underparts and underwing. Handsome bird, for sure. The female is a bit larger, as with most shorebirds and many raptors, and she has a longer bill. There were more than 25 LB Curlews there that day, which is not unusual.

The back view shows more feather detail, and orange in the tail.

Red-tailed Hawk - Buteo jamaicensis

During the recent TLCBirding weekend trip to the refuges in the Central Valley we tallied 100+ Red-tailed Hawks, usually seen on telephone pole crossbars as we drove. At the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge most viewing is done from the car, but we did spend about an hour at the excellent viewing platform. Right alongside the ramp leading to the platform, on a low spot in the grass sat a young Red-tailed Hawk, staring balefully at the hordes of birders coming and going up the ramp.

We wondered if the bird was sick or injured, as it showed no inclination to move. A closer inspection showed that it had apparently been feeding on prey recently and perhaps was guarding the remains. After about 15 minutes the hawk took flight, leaving behind whatever it might have had for lunch. Too close for me to get a nicely composed photo, so I settled for some portrait shots.

Sac Nat Wildlife refuge is along route 5, south of Willows: SNWR

Tundra Swan - Cygnus columbianus

Last weekend we joined Terry Colborn and friends on a trip to refuges in the Central Valley (north on route I-5). One of the highlights of trip were the many flocks of Tundra Swans, seen overhead and foraging in flooded rice fields. Impressive groups were seen west of Williams, and east of Willows off of SR 162 (roads Y, Z).

The Tundra Swans are wary, always foraging a bit away from the roadways, so viewing is best with a scope. The flocks of 50-100 birds travel and forage together, made up of family groups. The adults mate for life, and the young of the year accompany the parents to the wintering grounds. Here we see a pair of adults swimming with a hatch year youngster with its gray neck. The yellow staining of these birds, especially on the neck, is probably caused by iron in the water.

As we watched the larger group it was apparent, even at a distance, that some of the adults had a variable amount of yellow at the base of the bill, in the area in front of the eyes known as the "lores". Some thought they saw one swan with a lot of yellow, indicating it might be a Bewick's Swan. I don't think I saw that individual, so I focused on this family group which did show a good bit of yellow. Distance was about 250', so detail is lacking. Note the gray neck on the young swan in the second photo, and the variation of the yellow on the bill in the adults. A closer view of the adults shows the yellow better:

Easy to get your mind around the world's swans, as there are only about 7 or 8 species. In California we see mainly the Tundra Swan and the increasingly common introduced species, the Mute Swan, with a occasional appearance of Trumpeter Swans, and the very rare sighting of the Whooper Swans.

So what is a Bewick's Swan? In the past authorities such as P. Johnsgard (Ducks, Geese and Swans of the World) recognized Bewick's Swan as a distinct species, Cygnus bewickii, distinguished by the large amount of yellow on the bill. Most authorities now consider the Bewick's Swan to be a subspecies of the Tundra Swan, i.e. Cygnus columbianus  bewickii. The nominate Tundra Swan, C. c. columbianus is sometime referred to by its older common name of Whistling Swan. To further complicate matters it appears that intergrades of the 2 subspecies are known to exist, i.e Whistling Swan x Bewick's Swan.

I guess the lesson for me was that the amount of yellow on the bill of the Tundra Swan is quite variable, so caution should be observed in calling any given individual a Bewick's Swan. Not that it matters to most of us who just enjoy watching these awesome swans and listening to their musical honking as they fly. 

Ruddy Duck - Oxyura jamaicensis

At the Las Gallinas Ponds redently the high water level seems to have displaced many of the dabblers, but good number of "female" Ruddy Ducks were noted, along with a scattering of males. Ruddies are active divers, but this one paused for a few photos. Note how the dark line on the face extending back from the bill is somewhat indistinct.

The presence of what seemed to be a disproportionate number of female ducks got me to wondering. Similar situation with the Buffleheads, where female type birds often outnumber the males. I think it's best explained by the fact that in many bird species the young birds of both sexes bear a strong resemblance to the adult female in non-breeding plumage. Thus, in viewing a flock of fall Ruddy Ducks we are likely seeing a mix of adult male and female Ruddy Ducks, along with the hatch year birds of both sexes that look a lot like mom. Here's another shot of the same adult female:

If you look at field guides you'll see relatively few drawings of juvenile ducks, so it's hard to hard to learn the subtle clues to tell the young birds from the drab adult female. With the Ruddy Duck the males are easy to pick out, as they have a white cheek patch year-round. This one from a while back, taken in December:

And here's a spring male in full breeding color, just in case you were wondering where the "ruddy" comes into play. Note also the cocked-up tail, a hallmark of the "Stiff-tailed Ducks":

The cheek of the female Ruddy Duck is also white, but is interrupted by a dark line, faint or blurred in the non-breeding female as in the first 2 photos, and well-defined as she enters alternate plumage in late winter/spring (drawing below).

Ralph Palmer, in Handbook of North American Birds (vol. 3, Waterfowl), describes the rather complicated molt cycle of the Ruddy Duck, but in a telegraphic ponderous manner that is difficult to absorb. Fortunately he included drawings by Robert Mengel, which I attempted to capture in the attached shot. Text labels were added by me, following the author's explanation. 

Mengel was a highly regarded multi-talented naturalist/artist. Good bio piece at:

 

Robert M. Mengel - Biography

 

Bonaparte's Gull - Larus philadelphia

Bonaparte's Gulls have been foraging at the Las Gallinas ponds for several weeks. On November 16th we saw 3 first winter birds picking items form the surface of pond #3, flying and feeding much like a tern. The young birds are rather attractive, with some brown feathers that form a distinctive wing stripe or "bar" in flight. Other features shown in these distant cropped shots are white eye arcs, a black smudge behind the eye, a slender black bill and a wide sub-terminal black band on the tail. Sibley notes that Bonaparte's typically does not mix with other gull species.

Bonaparte's is one of 5 tern-like "Masked Gulls", but the only one seen here. The most similar gulls you might rarely see here are Laughing Gull and Franklin's Gull, both described as "Hooded Gulls". Detailed accounts of these birds can be found in Howell & Dunn's Gulls of the Americas.

A few years back we had some spectacular views of many Bonaparte's Gulls foraging in the crashing surf at Drake's Beach (PRNS), in the company of many Red-necked Phalaropes. It was a most unusual and exciting feeding frenzy. Note the dark carpal bar and black tail band, again marking them as First Winter birds.

Phainopepla - Phainopepla nitens

Lake Solano Park is one one of the best spots in the Bay Area to find the splendid Phainopepla, a bird that has no common name other than that of the genus. "Phainopepla" is said to mean "shining cloak", for the green iridescence of the adult male, as this in this shot from a prevous visit:

Here's the male on a high perch, scanning for insect:

The female Phainopeple shares the red iris and long crest, but is cloaked in muted gray:

Taxonomy: Phainopepla is one of only 4 species in the family "Silky-Flycatchers" (Ptilogonatidae) and the only species in the genus Phainopepla. There is no accepted common name, but "Southwest Silky" would have been nice, as it is seen mainly in California, Arizona and a bit of New Mexico, as well as in Mexico. The other 3 Silk-flycatchers are the Gray Silky (highlands of Mexico), the Black-and-yellow Silky-flycatcher (Costa Rica mountains), and the Long-tailed Silky-flycatcher (mts. of Costa Rica and Panama). And that's the whole family!

Phainopleplas eat berries (especially Mistletoe), and insects caught in mid-air. They breed in spring in the dessert, but summer in the oak woodlands in our valleys. It's uncertain whether this represents 2 different populations, or whether the same population might breed twice in one year, first in the desert and then again further north when food supplies are exhausted in the deserts and the birds move north. Or perhaps the "failed breeders" from the desert get a second change when they move north. Good discussion by Chu and Walsberg in Birds of North America #415."

And from the Wiki Account:

DIET: 

Berries, any small insects, fruits, vegetables. Phainopepla have a specialized mechanism in their gizzard that shucks berry skins off the fruit and packs the skins separately from the rest of the fruit into the intestines for more efficient digestion. So far this is the only known bird able to do this. They appear to relish the fruit of Phoradendron californicum, the desert mistletoe.

SONG:

Phainopeplas have been found to imitate the calls of twelve other species, such as the red-tailed hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) and the northern flicker (Colaptes auratus).

Lewis's Woodpecker - Melanerpes lewis

At Lake Solano Park, near the end of Pleasants Valley Road, 10-15 Lewis's Woodpeckers were busy sallying out from the tops of the trees to catch flying insects. Others carrying acorns, some so large the bird would lose it in flight.

Birds at the tops of trees are a challenge for the photographer, and the Lewis's rarely stayed for any length of time before launching for another insect:

The above photo shows the adult Lewis's WP, with red face, gray chest and collar, rose belly and green back. Note the bill, shape, which is rather broad at the gape to facilitate capture of flying prey. The bill is less sturdy than that of many woodpeckers, so Lewis's has to find a dead tree to excavate a nest hole, often choosing a burned Ponderosa Pine forest in the foothills, or further north.

Turns out that Lewis's Woodpeckers cache food much like their Acorn Woodpecker cousins, using a tree as a granary to sustain them when other food sources are diminished during the winter. Rather than using carefully constructed holes to hold each morsel, the Lewis's will break the acorns and stash the mast in nooks and crannies of tree bark, or in a cavity. The cache is aggressively defended, as there is a lot of poaching by Acorns Woodpeckers, and vice versa.

We saw a number of Lewis's there that were darker and more monochromatic, indicating a juvenile bird, and some like in the second photo that were just replacing their juvenal plumage with adult type feathers, with red in the face, green sheen on the back and rose underparts. No problem confusing this species with any other woodpecker, for sure.

Lewis's Woodpecker is an bird of western U.S., with a breeding range that includes southern Canada and a wintering range that includes Baja California. Their numbers have declined, and they are rarely seen in large numbers at any location. Some of them don't migrate at all, or form small flocks to search for productive foraging areas. Such nomadic behavior makes finding them unpredictable, kind of like looking for a roving flock of Pinyon Jays. In some years Lake Solano park becomes a destination for the winter, as there is a good supply of acorns, flying insects, and one of their favorite berries, that of the Oak Mistletoe. Which brings us to another great reason to visit Lake Solano Park, as the mistletoe attracts a small population of Phainopepla each year. Other goodies there includes a good selection of river ducks and dabblers, along with Wood Ducks. Best go on a weekday if possible, as it is a popular area for picnics, fishing, etc.

Here's an older shot of an adult Lewis's Woodpecker, from a trip to the Central Valley:

Merlin - Falco columbarius

On today's "First Thursday" walk at Las Gallinas (San Rafael, CA) we ventured out to find the Tropical Kingbird, which has been flycatching from the snags at the end of the open field, just before the path swings left to go north. No Kingbird today, as the same snag was adopted by a Merlin,Falco columbarius. If I were that Kingbird I wouldn't be returning any time soon, as the Merlin is a fearsome predator of birds.

Note the streaks on the chest, and the very weak mustachial stripe.

The shot above shows the white superciliary line better.

Merlins are fast powerful predators. At about 12" they are a bit larger than the American Kestrel, but as we read in Hawks in Flight (Dunne, Sibley, Sutton): "A Merlin is to a Kestrel as a Harley Davidson  motorcycle is to a scooter."

Western Scrub Jay - Aphelacoma californica

A recent Marin Audubon outing at Bodega Bay with Peter Colasanti produced a good variety of birds, including Western Scrub-Jays along the west side. At Owl Canyon a cluster of sparrows were feeding actively at the base of a tree near the road and this Western Scrub Jay came in to check out what had attracted them. Scrub-Jays eat a variety of foods, including acorns and pine nuts, and just about anything else. It puts some people off because the "anything else" can include eggs and nestlings of smaller songbirds. Nevertheless, everyone's gotta make a living, so we might as well admire the Scrub-Jay for its adaptability and cleverness, not to mention its rather striking blue plumage. The black bandit's mask is perhaps a fitting field mark. The bill is more robust than the interior race.

Check out the long tail, and the aggressive "attitude".

Another shot after it hopped up to the tree nearby:

Western Scrub Jays were once part of a larger complex complex, which was split to elevate the Island Scrub Jay (Santa Cruz Is.) and the Florida Scrub-Jay to full species status. Currently under consideration are further splits within the genus Aphelocoma, with the Western Scrub Jay split into 3 separate species. The shy interior (inland) race, A. c. woodhouseii, would become Woodhouse's Jay, and a race in southern Mexico, A. c. sumicrasti, would be known as Sumichrast's Jay.

For dedicated taxonomy fans, check out:

Genus Aphelocoma

Western Scrub Jay complex

Hybrid Dabbling Ducks

During the past week a lot of ducks have been passing through the bay area. At fresh water sites the dabblers have been well represented, although many seem to just stop for a while to refuel before heading further south or to the central valley. Today at the Las Gallinas water treatment ponds (San Rafael, CA) we spotted an unusual Cinnamon Teal along the shore, partly obscured by the cattails.

The shot above shows the typical blue wing patch of the Cinnamon Teal, as well as the dark spatulate bill and orange feet, but the gray-blue ptch above and behind the eye, as well as the  black spots on the breast and flanks seemed to indicate the presence of other dabbling duck DNA. One possible explanation would be a hybrid bird, Cinnamon Teal x Blue-winged Teal, which are said to be common, and I have seen a few internet photos of such a hybrid that resemble this bird.

Above we get a different view of the gray patch on the head, partially outlined by a white white line as we sometimes see on Green-winged Teal, especially on the Eurasian Green-winged. The color of the iris seemed to be a deep brownish red.

Shot above better highlights the similarity of the head strip on the hybrid Cinnamon drake, with that of the male Green-wined Teal sleeping nearby. Similar shot below, with a probable female Cinnamon Teal on the left. I'm favoring Cinnamon Teal x Green-wined Teal as the ID for this bird, but of course that is speculative.

Last week at Corte Madera's "Shorebird Marsh" I spotted a hybrid Northern Pintail, with a pretty buffy patch on his cheek. Distance precluded a sharp shot, but the green iridescence on the side of the head suggested some Green-winged Teal DNA at work. The scapulars and tertials strongly suggested Pintail, as did the bill.

Here's another shot, showing the buffy cheek and bill somewhat better:

And lastly: