August Bird Count

The bird count is becoming tricky, mostly because I am getting lazy and forgetting to keep good records of new bird species spotted. Turns out, I'm not the biggest fan of this whole "keeping a list" thing. For me, my avian encounters are less about all the different species I'm seeing and more about having meaningful, memorable, educational encounters. Nonetheless, I did make a commitment to myself to keep this up for a full year, so here are the new additions for August.

8/7/13- Los Gallenas Nature Preserve
Long-time GGRO ally Steve took the interns on a birding trip to the Los Gallenas ponds about 20 minutes north of Sausalito. Our focus was on raptors (we specifically saw turkey vultures, cooper's hawks, and osprey) and using not just field marks, but behavior to make correct identifications. We saw more than just raptors though, including:
144. Black Phoebe (L)
145. Rough-winged Swallow
146. Cliff Swallow
147. American Coot (L)
148. Black-crowned Night Heron (L)

This is a juvenile hiding behind some grasses. The juvenile night heron's look quite different from their adult counterparts.

8/10/13-
During a lazy Saturday afternoon, I headed up to Hawk Hill, as it was one of those rare days where there isn't fog. The same Steve was up there and he helped further my education in identifying raptors based on behavior. While on the hill, we also noticed the first of two exciting migratory birds, including what Steve deemed the first migrating raptor of the season, a female American kestrel (which I surprisingly identified correctly).
149. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (L)
150. American Kestrel

And then, of course, here's the beautiful and, I'll admit it, kind of cute kestrel we banded a couple days later.

8/14/13-
Since getting our quick glimpse of a prairie falcon at Slacker Blind, two prairie falcons have been banded and two more spotted by the hawkwatch team.
151. Prairie Falcon (L)

8/16/13-
To celebrate our final Friday before migration season, Lynn, Anna, and I joined Bob, another long-time GGRO hawkwatch volunteer for a birding trip in Davis, CA, a hot-spot for Swainson's Hawks. We saw 26 of them over the course of the day, as well as a host of other awesome birds, including:
152. White-faced Ibis (L)
153. Swainson's Hawk (L)

(Photo credit: Anna Stunkel)

154. Barn Owl (L)
155. Brewer's Blackbird
156. Cattle Egret

(Photo credit: Anna Stunkel)

157. Western Kingbird (L)
158. Killdeer
159. Loggerhead Shrike
160. Burrowing Owl (L)

I was pretty excited to add not one, but TWO owl species to my life list during this trip.

Both of these owls were perched on a fence on either side of a gravel road. We stopped and enjoyed them in all of their awesomeness for a good ten to fifteen minutes. I could've stayed all day.

8/20/13-
My first official day on Hawkwatch got fogged out. As we waited in vain for the fog to clear, we birded at the annex, a lower point on the hill and I was occupied by watching a group of Western bluebirds.
161. Western Bluebird
I've seen these birds in huge flocks in wetlands on the side of the road while driving to and from the city, but had been unable to identify the until we stopped and stared for awhile.
162. Black-necked Stilt (L)

8/29/13
Migratory birds have begun to appear in the Marin Headlands, many of which hang out in Rodeo Lagoon, just outside of the GGRO office.
163. Red-necked Phalarope