Bright Sparks at Lake Merritt

Bright Sparks at Lake Merritt

By Hilary Powers
Note: this blog first appeared in the May 2018 edition of The Tidings 

A few participants in the April 4th-Wednesday Golden Gate Bird Alliance walk – not including me, alas – got to see one of the finest sights springtime has to offer: a pair of Eared Grebes in full copper and steel and gold breeding plumage rise up and run side by side across the water. By the time others whirled to look, the two were swimming sedately. Still a treat, every move and turn perfectly matched, but with no sign that surface speed was any part of their lives.

It was a quiet day – at 32 species, tied for the lowest count in several Aprils – but well filled with brilliant moments: the fledgling Double- crested Cormorant spreading its new wings on the edge of an island, the would-be papa cormorant circling the islands to build the height needed to deliver a heavy branch to a nest for the second wave of breeding, the lone Horned Grebe in a group of Eared Grebes.

Photo of Horned Grebe by Bob Gunderson

Across the street behind the bird paddock, Cedar Waxwings filled a tall snag over the garden. (I’d have missed them entirely as it never occurred to me to search in that direction, but that’s one of the big advantages of birding in a group: the more eyes on watch – within reason – the more birds everyone gets to see.) A pair of Western Bluebirds shared the Necklace of Lights with brown Northern Rough-winged Swallows, while a crowd of English Sparrows sorted through the lawn below them. You’d think English Sparrows would be too common to mention, but lately they’ve been rare at the lake: this was their first appearance this year. We saw them only three times last year and four the year before; they haven’t shown up in April since 2015.

Human encounters had charms of their own. We got a scope focused on an active Black Phoebe nest, and a young mother lifted her daughter from a stroller so she could look too. The child beamed happily and told us of seeing wild Keas in New Zealand: a good start to a life with birds.

Photo of Black Phoebe by Bob Gunderson

Later, a six-foot-tall woman stopped us to demand, “Can you answer a bird question? I keep seeing Kookaburras in the trees, but I thought Kookaburras live in Australia?!”

…
Jay Yard Bird Stories

Jay Yard Bird Stories

by Jim Chiropolos

I have often wondered which of these species is more assertive and my yard is proving to be a great location to watch the two species interact. Next to the house is a gully frequented by Steller’s Jays. The other side is more open with houses and favored by Scrub Jays, so the yard is a border used by both species. 

When I hung a suet feeder, I was fascinated by the interaction. Both species used the suet feeder, but the Scrub Jays quickly asserted dominance and early on one caught a raiding Steller’s Jay and pinned its head against a tree branch with its talons. I was worried that was the end of the Steller’s Jay (it escaped). Since that time the Stellar’s Jays still raid the feeder but very quietly, fly in low, and use all the available cover. It’s interesting, the favorite Scrub Jay perches are all carefully situated with sight lines to the suet feeder and if a Steller’s Jay is seen, they quickly drive them away, squawking loudly. Based on this, I thought Scrub Jays were dominant over Steller’s Jays. 

Photo of Steller’s Jay by Doug Mosher

Three weeks ago, I noticed the Steller’s Jays start building a next in the wisteria, only 20 feet away from the suet feeder above the gully. Basically, the scene of their defeat by the Scrub Jays. Now completed, the nest is amazing, 5 feet up, and almost completely concealed. At one angle, I can barely see the Steller’s Jay’s crest poking out when incubating. The Scrub Jays know the nest is there too. Sunday opened to a noisy confrontation between the pairs of Scrub and Steller’s Jays, a loud squawking face-off on the driveway just below the nest. The Steller’s Jays were not yielding, and kept hopping towards the Scrub Jay pair 2 feet away. The Scrub Jays slowly retreated, followed by the Steller’s Jays. In the shrub next to the nest, I watched a Steller’s Jay do a Woodpecker imitation, demolish a small branch, with a Scrub Jay four feet away. That was the end of this round, a win for the nesting Steller’s Jays! 

But why would a Steller Jay build a nest near hostile Scrub Jays? If they are not diligent, the Scrub Jays will raid their nest. Is a concealed nest more important compared to the near presence of an egg predator?…

Richmond honors its feathered citizens

Richmond honors its feathered citizens

By Blake Edgar

Dozens of big colorful birds alighted on the concrete in front of Richmond’s City Hall Wednesday morning. More than 30 local artists, both young and old, turned out to “Chalk it Up for Richmond’s Birds and the Year of the Bird,” an event organized by the City of Richmond and Golden Gate Bird Alliance. The society’s fourth annual art celebration, this was the first one held in Richmond, which Golden Gate Bird Alliance Executive Director Cindy Margulis called “a city that totally celebrates the arts as well as birds.”

Recorded calls and songs reverberated across Civic Center Plaza while the artists rapidly rendered birds in sidewalk chalk, from Acorn Woodpecker to Brown Pelican. The artists included both professionals and amateurs, Nature Joural Club members, Urban Sketchers, and a wonderful group from Richmond’s NIAD Art Center. A few feet from the front doors of City Hall, GGBA’s Eco-Education Manager Clayton Anderson completed his huge rendering of local celebrity Osprey “Richmond,” with wings outstretched and talons clutching a purple banner that proclaimed “Celebrate Richmond Birds.” Rebeca Garcia-González also picked one of Richmond’s Ospreys, showing the bird landing on its nest atop the historic Whirley Crane.

Hillary Powers works on her Clark’s Grebes / Photo by Cindy Margulis

In the first of several public remarks, Richmond City Manager, Bill Lindsay identified himself as a fan of the nest camera that documents the daily life of “Richmond” and his mate “Rosie.” Lindsay recently discovered that Richmond, Virginia has its own Osprey nest cam. “I’m not saying it’s a competition or anything,” he added, “but their birds already have three eggs.”

Moments later, Richmond Mayor Tom Butt informed the crowd that “Rosie” had lain her second egg of the season on Tuesday night. Then the mayor received cheers and applause by announcing, “I’m moving forward to declare the Osprey as the official bird of the City of Richmond.” He’ll present a resolution to this effect at the City Council meeting on April 17. POSTSCRIPT: Yes, indeed, Richmond made the Osprey its official city bird on April 17, 2018.

“We’re ecstatic that the city is going to make the Osprey the official bird,” said Margulis. “In a fabulous community like Richmond that’s so diverse, birds are one of the ways to bring everybody together. Everybody can get excited about the beauty of birds.”

Richmond Chalk it Up Artists / Photo by Eleanor Briccetti Parade of Brown Pelicans by Laurie Wigham / Photo by Cindy Margulis Susan Ford’s Cedar Waxwings / Photo by Cindy Margulis

Beyond appreciating avian aesthetics, the event strove to bring attention to the centennial of congressional passage of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, one of the nation’s most important and impactful conservation laws.…

Gardening for the birds

By Kathy Kramer

2018 is Year of the Bird.  Noreen Weeden, Volunteer Director at Golden Gate Bird Alliance said “A positive action you can take is to learn more about the connection between native plants and native birds.An even bigger step is to plant native plants in your yard, patio or balcony or join Golden Gate Bird Alliance in lending a hand in active habitat restoration at a local park.”

In The Chickadee’s Guide to Gardening, a charming New York Times Op Ed article, Douglas Tellamy wrote, “Chances are, you have never thought of your garden… as a wildlife preserve that represents the last chance we have for sustaining plants and animals that were once common throughout the U.S. But that is exactly the role our suburban landscapes are now playing and will play even more in the near future.

“What will it take to give our local animals what they need to survive and reproduce on our properties? NATIVE PLANTS, and lots of them.”

In fact, it takes 350 to 570 caterpillars every day for sixteen days for a pair of chickadees to raise a family, according to Tellemy! And it’s native plants that provide this kind of food source, while most non-natives do not.

Here in the Bay Area, we have an outstanding resource for people who want to create bird-friendly gardens—the annual Bringing Back the Natives Garden Tour.

Coming up on Sunday, May 6th, the tour will showcase a number of  East Bay gardens that have excelled at attracting birds. This award-winning, self-guided tour features 37 beautiful Alameda and Contra Costa County gardens that are pesticide-free, water-conserving, provide habitat for wildlife, and contain sixty percent or more native plants.

Below are descriptions of some of the gardens that have been particularly successful at attracting birds, along with a tip from each host for attracting our winged friends.

Delia and John Taylor’s garden, Berkeley

Tip: Include a diversity of plant heights, from trees to shrubs, groundcovers, and vines.

Cedar Waxwing by Rick Lewis

The coast live oaks, bays, and big leaf maple that were on-site and native to this area set the stage for the beautiful mostly-local native plant garden that Delia and John designed around them.

 The local native plants in this garden attract numerous types of birds, including Western bluebirds, lesser and American goldfinches, golden- and white-crowned sparrows, dark-eyed juncos, Townsend’s, yellow-rumped, and orange-crowned warblers, cedar waxwings, hermit thrushes, ruby-crowned kinglets, wrentits, Bewick’s wrens, chestnut-backed chickadees, oak titmice, black phoebes, Anna’s and Allen’s hummingbirds, and Cooper’s hawks.…

Treasure hunting

By Eric James Schroeder

As I drove into the Maxwell Cemetery, I was doubtful. As birding habitat goes, this small country cemetery in the middle of California’s Central Valley didn’t look very promising. Grass, a few scattered shrubs and trees, and many weathered upright grave markers. I parked my car on a narrow gravel road in the center of the small cemetery and got out. Perched on a tall headstone about 25 feet away from me was a bright red bird that was about 350 miles north of its extended range—a Vermilion Flycatcher.

Vermillion Flycatcher by Miya Lucas

This was Day Two of the GGBA weekend field trip for the Migrant Treasure Hunt class, and we were exploring California’s Central Valley. The field trip had begun the day before in the northeast corner of the California Delta at Staten Island on a cold, clear morning. The fields around us were packed with Tundra Swans, Snow Geese, Ross’s Geese and some Canada Geese. Looking south towards Mt. Diablo we could see a spectacular sight—thousands of birds flying in long chains in the early morning light. After a couple of hours, though, 16 birders plus leader Juan-Carlos Solis were all glad to get back in our cars to warm up.

A short drive took us to Consumnes River Preserve, where big numbers of geese again greeted us, with the majority being Greater White-Fronted Geese. Joining them on the ground was a small number of Sandhill Cranes with lots more overhead. The ponds were full of ducks—good numbers of Northern Shovelers, Gadwalls, Northern Pintails, Green-winged Teal, joined by some Cinnamon Teal, American Wigeons, Canvasbacks, Ring-necked Ducks, Buffleheads, and a single Common Goldeneye and a single Eurasian Wigeon. Consumnes is also great for woodland birds, and even though we did not walk any of the woodland trails, we saw a number of them from the porch of the Visitor’s Center where we stopped to eat lunch. Juan-Carlos’s count for Consumnes was 66 bird species in 2 hours.

Ross’s Goose by Miya Lucas

After lunch we drove Riley Road southeast of Sacramento, looking for large flocks of cranes (they were seemingly intent on avoiding us) and raptors (these we found—White-tailed Kites, Red-tailed and Red-shouldered Hawks, Northern Harriers, American Kestrels, and a single Turkey Vulture). Then another wetlands stop—this time at the Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area for more ducks and geese. In addition to these, there were a few species of waders, notably Black-bellied Plovers, Dunlin, and Least Sandpipers.…