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Deformed beak
Cal Walters
This house finch showed up at my feeder this AM - or atlas I think it is, as it showed up with a flock of the same. Its lower mandible has grown into an extended scoop shape. At first I thought it had pulled twig out of the seed mix. It seemed quite active and was able to get to the seed in the feeder, so it was not starving. A picture is here
http://calwalters.zenfolio.com/p34872986/h6233a554#h6233a554 Good (Strange) Birding! Cal Walters Piedmont |
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Western Tanager and White-throated Sparrow in Oakley
Denise Wight
Hi E.B.Birders, This afternoon Christopher Thayer and I went to the north end of Piper Lane in Oakley. No luck re-finding the Swamp Sparrow, (a black and white cat was now exactly where I had seen the SWSP last Wednesday), but there was a Western Tanager and White-throated Sparrow in the same general area to the east. The reddish streaked Song Sparrow was still there, but I had trouble getting a good photo of it. Photos and complete eBird list: All the Best Birding, Denise Wight Moraga, CA |
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Re: Juvenile Coopers Hawk
ann callaway
It looks like a Coopers to me, with the clear white breast and tear-drop streaking. I was just reading about ID-ing Coopers and Sharp shinned in the latest issue of Birdwatching magazine. Your photo looks very much like the immature Coopers they showed in the article. Ann On Jan 3, 2016, at 4:22 PM, Fallingwater@... [EBB_Sightings] <EBB_Sightings-noreply@...> wrote:
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Re: Lakeshore Park, Newark (1/3/2016) - Red Crossbills, Pacific Loon
Hi Bob, Thanks for the compliments and Happy New Year. As far as I know the PALO has been seen since 01/01/2016. I went back this afternoon and saw it hanging around the heron island on the southeast corner of the lake. Best, Jerry
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Re: Lakeshore Park, Newark (1/3/2016) - Red Crossbills, Pacific Loon
Bob Power <rcpower@...>
Thanks for the report Jerry. Nice pics, as always. Your report says "The Pacific Loon continued seen..." Makes it sound like this bird has been reported before? I looked at the last week's worth of EBB reports and don't see it. Has it been there a long time? Reported on some other list? Many thanks for any info. Bob |
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Northern waterthrush
Bruce Mast
Serving as the messenger. Bruce Mast ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: "Colin Flaherty" <flahertc1@...> Date: Jan 3, 2016 3:29 PM Subject: Northern waterthrush To: <observe@...> Cc: Spotted at Oyster Bay near the Oakland airport today on the trail bordering the ocean, in some scrub where the rocks meet the trail. I thought it was a hermit thrush at first but the yellow wash and yellow stripe over the eye plus white underparts were the key identifiers. - Colin Flaherty |
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Juvenile Coopers Hawk
Greg Wilson
Hey EBB'ers
Since New Years Eve we have what I think looks like a Juvenile Coopers hawk stopping into a persimmon tree in our yard stalking the feeders. and of course we also have squirrels that come to the yard as well, which do not like having the raptor in what they feel is their yard ... so they both have actually confronted it just feet away with their paws out in battle from both sides which chases off the Coop. Yes, we have very tough squirrels here in our neighborhood. Though I have yet to get a photo of the confrontation! I have added links to two photos of the raptor.
Oh, since a juvenile Sharpie and Coop look so similar do I actually have the correct ID, at times the tail looks rounded or blunt.
Greg
Richmond View
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Lakeshore Park, Newark (1/3/2016) - Red Crossbills, Pacific Loon
I spent 2 hours this (1/3/2016) morning birded Lakeshore Park in Newark. The best bird are 2 Red Crossbill seen in the tree in the middle of the northwest side of the trail (37.554736, -122.038275 near the Ramsgate Dr/Cheviot Cr intersection). Here is a shot of one of the bird: https://flic.kr/p/CNvxDe The Pacific Loon continued seen along the east/northeast side of the lake: https://flic.kr/p/CCXv3h Other highlights include: Mew Gull (3) - 1 adult and 2 2nd cycle birds seen near the Channel Dr bridge Common Merganser (36) - same location as above Belted Kingfisher (2) Red-breasted Sapsucker (1) Happy Birding. Jerry Ting Fremont
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Coyote Hills RP local interest, Saturday, 1-2-16
Bruce Mast
Hey folks, I took my Dad birding at Coyote Hills Regional Park yesterday. Nothing terribly unexpected but we enjoyed eye-popping looks at a particularly tame young Red-tailed Hawk that chose perches next to the trail, first on a pine snag and then later on a rock. We also got serendipitous looks at a Great-horned Owl roosting at, wait for it, Hoot Hollow. |
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Swamp Sparrow in Lafayette
Kai Mills
I quickly got over to the Lafayette Reservoir for half hour before sunset (415-445) and quickly found the continuing SWAMP SPARROW in the same area as it was found earlier by Jeff Acuff and Paul Schorr. I found it first in the reeds along the edge of the water (foraging?), best seen on the boat dock in front of the Visitor's Center. It would also feed on the path between the tower info sign and the Visitor's Center and would fly up into the leaning tree when people passed by. It was also cool hearing it chip back and forth a little with a nearby Black Phoebe. Didn't look for the Redhead. Good Birding, Kai |
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Hayward Shoreline
Bob Richmond
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Redhead and Swamp Sparrow at Lafayette Reservoir - Jan. 2
Paul Schorr <pkschorr@...>
After finding the Swamp Sparrow that Jeff Acuff reported this morning, at about 1:30 we located a Redhead at the east end of the dam. It was feeding very close to the base of the dam and was associating with Gadwalls, Common Goldeneyes, Ruddy Ducks, scaup, and Buffleheads. Thanks to Jeff for reporting the Redhead sighting for me earlier.
Good birding in 2016. Paul and Nancy Schorr Antioch |
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Lafayette reservoir redhead
Jeff Acuff
I am trying to pass along a message from Paul Shorr that he found a redhead among other ducks near the dam at the Lafayette Reservoir today. Paul also saw the swamp sparrow.
Jeffrey Acuff sent from my iPhone |
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Lafayette Reservoir Sparrows
Jeff Acuff
This morning I found a SWAMP SPARROW in front of the Visitor's Center at the Lafayette Reservoir. The bird was in a mixed sparrow flock in the reeds along the edge of the pavement where the fishing dock is now closed. This is the same location where Kai Mills found a swamp sparrow a couple of years ago and where a swamp sparrow has been seen over two recent winters. Other birds foraging there included mostly white-crowned sparrows, but also golden-crowns, song sparrows, spotted towhees, a Bewick's wren, sooty fox sparrows and one RED FOX SPARROW. Good Birding, Jeff Acuff Lafayette |
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Fremont geese
John Cant 793-5216
On the 31st on the sports fields, Central Park, along with about 350 Canada geese I found 26 ALEUTIAN CACKLING GEESE and 3 GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE.
Some photos are in my ebird report http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S26569838
Fremont .
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Kinglet duel
judisierra
Some interesting bird behavior unfolded yesterday while sitting in my backyard. 2-3 yellow rumped Warblers have been hanging out the wax myrtle for weeks now, eating berries and fly catching. While I've noticed chasing behavior going on all along between warblers, it became clear that an adult male wasn't letting any bird near the two very large trees. This included chickadees trying to access the feeder adjacent to the trees and a ruby-crowned kinglet. The kinglet tried many times with a couple of successes to grab a berry. After about 1/2 hour of this another kinglet appeared on the scene and perhaps tired of being bullied the first one turned on the other and a fight ensued at the side of the yard the likes of which put male house sparrows to shame. There was much vocal noise, rolling around on the ground literally at my feet, a couple of pin downs, mid air clashes and the largest crowns showing I've ever seen. I thought one was surely going to get killed especially with the pinnings. I had to put the very interested dog in the house as they weren't paying attention to anything else. During a short break one broke out in spring time song. The fight continued for several minutes until they went high into a tree (non wax myrtle) and out of sight. I'm surprised the resident Anna's didn't come over to look as it seems to be always sticking it's nose into any activity.
Judi Sierra- Oakland |
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GGAS First Friday Bird Walk, Tilden Nature Area 01.01.2016
Alan Kaplan <lnkpln@...>
Friends!
Tilden Nature Area, Contra Costa, California, US Jan 1, 2016 8:30 AM - 11:00 AM Golden Gate Audubon Society First Friday Bird Walk, January 1, 2016. MoB (Many oBservers) (41) showed up for this first-of-the-year weekday/holiday bird walk, several newcomers to the Meet-up group among them. Judith K. says BayNature will soon be publishing an article on White-crowned Sparrows, their songs and dialects, elaborating on Dr. Luis Baptista’s research. Many birders suggested future themes for walks: Bill shapes, molting, toes, flight patterns, crows and ravens, colors, vision, smell, nests, birding without binoculars. Biographies of birders and the birds they studied or that are named for them is another topic I am interested in, so Nuttall, Wilson, Audubon, Nice, Swainson, Peterson, etc. will get talked about in 2016. Birds O' the Day were several: Song Sparrow ICE SKATING (!) on Jewel Lake, Sharp-shinned Hawk scaring the kinglets, etc. at the Lake (this may be the same bird we saw here on the Wren Day walk, December 26), and a deceased Ruby-crowned Kinglet from the Women's Room of the Jewel Lake restroom (it was the correct gender, too)! We got to see the elusive yellow feet quite well (unfortunately). Here are the 32 species seen or heard today: Bufflehead Turkey Vulture makes the walk official Sharp-shinned Hawk Band-tailed Pigeon Anna's Hummingbird Acorn Woodpecker Nuttall's Woodpecker Northern Flicker Black Phoebe Hutton's Vireo Steller's Jay Western Scrub-Jay American Crow Common Raven Corvid grand-slam! Chestnut-backed Chickadee Oak Titmouse Bushtit Red-breasted Nuthatch Brown Creeper Bewick's Wren Ruby-crowned Kinglet Hermit Thrush American Robin Varied Thrush Yellow-rumped Warbler Townsend's Warbler Fox Sparrow Dark-eyed Junco Golden-crowned Sparrow Song Sparrow California Towhee Spotted Towhee Happy New Year, 2016 and Best of Boids all year long! Alan Kaplan |
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Heather Farm Park, Walnut Creek
fgsafier
In Hugh Harvey's absence, a short report from yesterday and today. Dec 31: 110 Buffleheads, 90 Ring-necked Ducks, and the Redhead male (reported by David Kent) were on the main pond, as well as coots and 4 Pied-billed Grebes. I could not find the Common Goldeneye pair that had been on the concrete pond for a few days. Four Heron species: Great Blue to the right (E) of the boat ramp, Black-crowned in the willows at the N end, Great Egret high in a big oak, and brief glimpse of the Green flying at the N end. eBird Checklist: http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S26560728 Jan 1: The Buffleheads were still there, very agitated -- flying from one end to the other again and again. Only 10 or so Ring-necked Ducks were visible, and no Redhead. No herons at all. A Red-breasted Sapsucker was working on the biggest Eucalyptus on the S side of the pond. A Lincoln's Sparrow was perched on some weeds just at the entrance to the boat ramp. Most exciting, however: 4 RED CROSSBILLS. I had thought I had seen 2 earlier in the week, but wasn't sure, so didn't report them. Today they were obvious, as I reported to eBird: 4 Brick-red finches together, perched on a snag on the island, then they flew to another small tree. Brick-red overall on a background of some brown, no perceptible streaking, and, clincher -- clearly crossed bills. I heard a thin piping sort of call from them at one point, but am totally unable to distinguish among the types. eBird Checklist:http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S26585557 Fred Safier |
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Sandhill Cranes
mckpop@...
Approximately 8:45 am New Year's Day some 30 Sandhill Cranes flying west over Alamo. I'm a birder from Butte County visiting my parents, and my mother says this is somewhat unusual for her area.
Carter Moore |
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Red Fox Sparrow, Hairy Woodpecker
Alan Krakauer
Some belated sightings from the Wednseday rain- One and a half new yard birds for our house near Wildcat Canyon Park. First was a Hairy Woodpecker (seen along with Nuttall's and Downy). Second was a beautiful "Red" Fox Sparrow (who has visited yesterday and today as well).
Happy New Year everyone! Alan Krakauer Richmond, CA |
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