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Birds and Chocolate

Editor’s Note: We wanted to share one more trip reflection before Birdathon comes to a close. If you want to join Birdathon’s closing celebration you can register here.

Text and photos by Marjorie Powell

We gathered slowing at one of the two platforms at the Elsie Roemer Preserve at the edge of the Bay and later wandered down the path to the second platform. Between the two platforms, we spent two hours looking at birds as the receding water exposed the mud of the shallow shoreline, providing more and more feeding space for those birds that poke in the mud. In that time, members of the group saw 28 different species of birds (I missed 3 of those 28), with more than 100 of some species (Western Sandpiper, Dunlin) and only a few of other species (Caspian Terns, Avocets, Anna’s Hummingbirds). Our leaders, Sharol Nelson- Embry and Joyce Mercado, helped us identify birds, described field markings, and looked up birds in their field guides to help newer birders identify differences between similar birds. Some of the Black- bellied Plovers were molting into their breeding plumage, making it easier to understand their name. The Avocets, also, showed the start of their breeding plumage – Sharol reminded us that they breed in the Bay area, unlike other birds we were seeing which migrate north to their breeding areas.

Because Sharol was entering our list into ebird, we discussed estimates of how many of the more abundant species we were seeing. Some were easy, like counting the Double-crested Cormorants on the breakwater; others were harder, like the estimate of how many Western Sandpipers we had seen at both platforms, or how many Dunlins. We all marveled at the patterns as the Sandpipers flew up and swirled over the water, back and forth, then slowly landed after the Hawk that spooked them had disappeared – they flashed dark and then light as they turned away from, and then toward, us.

After a full morning, we walked up the block to the beach where we found a make-shift table on which we ate our lunches and shared stories of places we liked to see shorebirds.

After lunch, we went inside for the promised chocolate tasting. An initial set of questions kept us occupied while people slowly settled in – when did chocolate come to San Francisco? Can you name an early San Francisco chocolate manufacturer? Who in the group has eaten chocolate in a foreign country and what country?…

Birdathon Pinnacles

Editor’s Note: If you want to hear more Birdathon stories like this one, please come to our Birdathon 2019 Garden Party and Celebration on May 19. Learn more here.

by Ryan Gilpin and Melissa Orozco

Golden Gate Bird Alliance organized a birdathadon trip in Pinnacles National Park with a goal of seeing the elusive California Condor. The condor is one of those birds that probably we’ve seen before, but we could never be certain because they were so far away. Fortunately for us, Rusty Scalf quickly and effectively led us on a great hike with amazing views of condors.

A beautiful day in Pinnacles National Park

A small group of birders met at 9 AM on the east side of the park at the Visitor’s Center. The weather was mostly sunny and warm with temperatures in the upper 60s. We scanned through the Turkey Vultures soaring above while Acorn Woodpeckers called and flew back and forth between the oaks in the parking lot. As the group gathered up we had good views of a Bullock’s Oriole, Western Kingbirds and Western Bluebirds with Golden-crowned Sparrows and Spotted Towhee calling around us.

Bush poppies (Dendromecon rigida)

We consolidated in cars, drove up to Bear Gulch and started up the Condor Gulch Trail. The dense blue oak (Quercus douglasii) and gray pine (Pinus sabiniana) forest made for an easy hike up the ravine. Orange-crowned Warblers and Anna’s Hummingbird were calling and zipping back and forth. The first part of the walk was easily more about the wild flowers and plants than the birds. Rusty pointed out many great plants throughout the hike such as the big berry manzanita (Arctostaphylos glauca), California poppies (Eschscholzia californica), bush poppies (Dendromecon rigida), streambank springbeauty (Claytonia parviflora) and pipestem clematis (Clematis lasiantha). The wild flowers were great; it wasn’t a super bloom, but the wildflowers were reason enough for the walk.

Streambank springbeauty (Claytonia parviflora)

As the trail started getting steeper and the vegetation cleared, we had great views of the distinctive rhyolite cliff faces. Suddenly, “Condor!” and a bunch of pointing around us. Three birds flew over our heads, one went to the right where we lost track of it, while the other two flew to the cliffs. We got the scope on the rounded rock where they landed and found a fleshy face visible just over the top of the rock. …

Hummingbird Saga

Text and photos by Chlem

Spring 2019. San Francisco. Garden. Pear tree. The Anna’s Hummingbird is back. She first appeared in 2017, building her nest all by herself, using whatever she could find. She used spider web to tie it. Some lichen to decorate for camouflage and because it is an antiseptic. This phenomenal bird is tiny but mighty. The more I learn about hummingbirds, the more I believe this to be true. This year she built her new nest in the same tree. It is very stable, with a lot of small branches all over, making it tricky for any other bird to trespass.

She had 2 eggs, which is the norm. White, the shape and size of jelly beans.

Then, she sat.

She has to leave to feed herself frequently. Hummingbirds eat every 15 minutes as they have a high metabolism, the highest among animals. She and her babies will eat a mixture of nectar and insects. The incubation is about 16 days (12-22). Two years ago, the eggs developed stains. The mother left and the nest fell to the ground. This time, all went well, and one baby, a nestling, came out. Two days later, the second one.

When she is not sitting on the nest, she flies or perches as she cannot walk or hop. She moves on the branch left and right. In the air, she goes up, down, right, left, forward, backward and upside down! Her regular speed is from 50 miles/hour to 90 miles/ hour.

She likes any plant with bright fiery hues of red, orange or yellow. She has tiny hairs on her tongue to lap nectar. She can hear better than humans but cannot smell. She sees in ultraviolet light and can see further than humans. She can visit about 1,000 to 1,500 flowers and will remember each of them and how long it will take for the flower to refill with nectar.

Hummingbirds belong to the family of the smallest birds on the planet and there are more than 325 species. Some hummingbirds migrate up to 500 miles. Anna’s Hummingbirds do not migrate and you can see them year round in the Bay Area. In extreme cold they will go into torpor. They live about 3-4 years, weigh less than a nickel and can eat their size in a day. They can stick their tongue out 13 times/second. The female is mainly green and grey with some iridescence on her throat.…

Cathedral Birds in Stitches

Text and photos by Michael Lampen

Editor’s Note: The choir-stall needlepoint at Grace Cathedral is just one example of how artists have been connecting birdsong and human-song for centuries. For further exploration, and an opportunity to hear bird inspired music, please join GGBA for a fundraising concert in Berkeley, Flights of Fancy: A Musical Celebration of Birds. Go here for more information.

Hiding in plain sight on the choir-stall seat cushions of San Francisco’s Grace Cathedral is a cornucopia of Northern California fauna. Some seventy seat cushions display needlepoint images of 34 mammal species, 16 fish species, 37 insects and invertebrates, and 94 bird species. Another 18 bird species are in the wall stalls. Associated plant species and natural settings are also included. Designed by artist Eula Getty Capron (“Eugenia”) of Sausalito, the series was crafted by 122 faithful Episcopalian stitchers from many diocesan parishes. Installation in 2000 honored the 150th anniversary of the Episcopal Church in California, and the beloved saint and lover of nature for whom San Francisco was named.

Sets of stall cushions focus on specific bioregions; the Coast Ranges/Point Reyes, San Francisco Bay, the Farallon Islands, the Sierra Nevada, Monterey Bay and the Deep Sea/Pacific Ocean. The Monterey Bay set is devoted almost entirely to sea otters. Clergy stalls also have California fauna relating to clerical roles such as the golden eagle for the cathedral or bishop’s stall. Individual wall stalls include several additional mammals and birds. In the Franciscan spirit, all stall kneeler cushions display in needlepoint the full text of Hymn 400, “All Creatures of Our God and King.”

Some of my favorite needlepoint renderings show birds in motion such as the flock of sandhill cranes, the dancing” egrets, and the mountain quail covey running from unseen danger past a startled marmot. Other personal favorites are the black oystercatcher, scoter duck, and colorful puffins. As a cathedral choir alumnus I also have a soft spot for the “chorister” cushion. A wall stall cushion close to the organ console, it shows 12 songbirds and honors the choristers whose voices fill the cathedral with song at Sunday services and weekly evensong. As singing goes, perhaps the most deserving bird depicted in the cushion is the western meadowlark, and the least deserving the western bluebird. Choristers, like birds, also cover a range of vocal ability. I was, I suppose, a Wilson’s Warbler at best. (A full list of species and their choir-stall locations can be found here.)…

Sierra Valley Photography: An Abundance of Raptors

Text and photos by John Ehrenfeld

Editor’s Note: You can have the opportunity to join John on our bonus Birdathon trip Field Photography with the Napa Ospreys. Find out more here.

If you are interested in learning more about the Birds of the Sierra, there are still spots available in our upcoming class. Go to goldengatebirdalliance.org/education/classes/ for more information.

At the end of February I was fortunate enough to lead a GGBA Photo Workshop to California’s beautiful Sierra Valley. It was a little different than some GGBA trips as the focus was on photography as well as birding. Raptors was the name of the game this time of the year.

The Sierra Valley is located north of I-80 and west of Lake Tahoe; a beautiful agricultural Valley surrounded by the Sierra mountains near the small town of Sierraville. With the possibility of bad winter weather and hazardous driving conditions in February, we were careful to keep an eye on the weather and were pleased that it looked good enough to go. We were able to book reasonably priced rooms for all six of us, at the Canyon Ranch Resort, a quaint group of rustic cabins on a picturesque stream in the woods. It was perfect.

Day One: We met in the hotel living room Saturday morning. We got to know everyone and had an hour to chat informally about photography and answer some questions both creative and technical. Good group dynamics are always important and are directly proportionate to the trip’s success and we had a great group. A couple of excellent birders, a medical researcher, a filmmaker and a teacher.

Off we went, car pooling to make the trip and stopping along the way manageable. At the end of town behind a feed store was a large group of birds feeding so we stopped and got our feet wet shooting them. Highlights were perched and flying Black-billed Magpies, Cassin’s Finches, Dark-eyed Juncos, a Red-tailed Hawk perched high in a pine tree and various Sparrows. It was fun and we all got to adjust our camera settings and get the feel of the light and snowy backgrounds we would deal with all day.

Our target area was about twenty miles away, a series of farm roads and agricultural fields covered in snow that are known for an abundance of raptors. On the way we saw a pair of Bald Eagles, one perched and one in flight, which is always a thrill.…