On Saturday, April 12, I visited the Putah Creek Riparian Reserve.  Least expected was a heard-only lazuli bunting, which was about as early on the calendar as they get.  I found only one fox and one Lincoln’s sparrow, so most of them have left already.  New for me was to witness a pair of river otters mating in Putah Creek.

On Sunday afternoon from 4 to 5:30, I watched overhead migration from my home near Slide Hill Park.  Of the birds I could identify, there were about 100 rough-winged, 70 barn, 60 tree, and 60 cliff swallows; 13 white-throated and one Vaux’s swift; and nine Swainson’s hawks, all northbound.  Lots of birds were in the air when I started to watch at 4 PM.  I quit at 5:30 because the birds quit.

Michael Perrone

Department of Water Resources

Division of Environmental Services

3500 Industrial Blvd

West Sacramento CA 95691

(916) 376-9788

Dear Birders,

As mentioned previously on this site, the April Tall Forest bird survey at the Cosumnes River Preserve will go depart through the Farm Center gate, corner of Bruceville and Desmond Roads, next Saturday morning promptly at 05:45.  Folks considering participating should know a few things.

First and foremost, the lower preserve has recently been colonized by feral pigs.  This promises nothing good.  The sightings so far do not include the Tall Forest, but all the other dense forest blocks below Highway 99 have had observations.  I honestly don’t know their story in California, but in the swamps of the southeastern U.S. they can be a menace to human safety.  I’ve never been attacked, but I have been frightened by big boars and sows with piglets several times.  Be advised that, in addition to all the other risks one takes in the Tall Forest (e.g., poison oak, falling/tripping and getting injured, West Nile Virus exposure, rabid skunks, encounters with marijuana growers, etc.), there is now the possibility of run-ins with pigs.

Second, do not forget insect repellent.  Even loaded with DEET today, I was assaulted by hordes of mosquitoes, especially after the sun broke through late morning.

Lastly, you will need rubber knee boots for the walk out to the Accidental Forest.  The rest of the route is dry, and you will be able to change out of your boots, if you like, when we come back to the Equipment Pad.

Best,

John Trochet

Sacramento

Dear Birders,

Today I visited the Tall Forest and vicinity for some scouting and trail recovery in advance of next Saturday’s survey.  The overcast morning in the trees was very birdy, with lots of migrants/arriving breeders.  These included one Hammond’s flycatcher, two Pacific-slope flycatchers, 14 ash-throated flycatchers, six western kingbirds, 15 orange-crowned warblers, two Nashville warblers, one yellow warbler, one black-throated gray warbler, two Townsend’s warblers, 11 Wilson’s warblers (also had common yellowthroat, Audubon’s and myrtle warblers), and 10 black-headed grosbeaks.  Someone reported on the white board at the VC that there was a Cassin’s vireo along the River Walk this morning.

The highlight for me was two unexpected songsters, both in the lower part of Warbler Woods.  First was a varied thrush in lovely, extended song, surprising to me after the middling wintering numbers and early departure this spring.  The second was a white-throated sparrow.  Compared to last weekend, the numbers of Bullock’s orioles, about 20 today, were about half.  Both hermit thrush and Lincoln’s sparrows were down more than that.  But golden-crowned sparrows are way up from recent weeks.  I missed fox sparrow at the Tall Forest for the first time since early last fall.  Of three spotted towhee nests, two still had eggs and one had about 3-4 day old chicks, three being the operative number in each case.  No cowbirds in the lot.

There are a few ponds that may survive to next weekend for shorebirds and waterfowl.  I found 10 shorebird species present, the better ones being two black-bellied plovers, three lesser yellowlegs, three whimbrels, and my first western sandpipers this spring (four only- some years they’re suddenly present and in the hundreds).

Best,

John Trochet

Sacramento

April Meeting – Thursday, April 17, 2014, 7pm at Effie Yeaw Nature Center.

Link to directions:  http://www.sacramentoaudubon.org/societyinfo/meetings.html

Susan Myers – Birds of Borneo

Susan has always had an eye for the world around her and a desire to explore it - both visually and physically. This desire led Susan to her current profession as a Nature Guide throughout Asia. When Susan isn't lurking behind a tree in a forest in some remote corner of the globe, she usually has a camera in her hand and an eye on the people and places which surround her. 

After completing studies in biological sciences, she moved to Japan for several years, where she became fluent in the language and studied the natural history and culture. She's had many careers including being a nurse (which didn't last long!), a biologist, a scuba instructor and a Japanese translator/interpreter.  For more than 15 years Susan has led tours throughout Asia, including countless trips to the Malay Peninsula, Borneo and Indonesia,  over twenty tours to Vietnam, and many tours of India, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Japan, Thailand, China, Cambodia, Burma and the Philippines, as well as Madagascar, West Papua, the Pacific islands and, of course, Australia, where she resides.  She has published many papers and articles on ornithology and general ecology in a variety of respected magazines, scientific journals and books. She is the author of a recent field guide, “The Birds of Borneo”, published in 2009.

There is no charge for the program or parking, and no park-entry fee.

Linda Pittman

Wilton, CA