Sometimes you need to be ready to
guide someone at a moment’s notice, and seeing as this was “Rob and Vicky’s”
first time to the Valley, I initially thought of taking them to one of the
local parks for Valley specialties, but then got to thinking that the advantage
of having a guide is that they can take you on these back roads that a
non-local might be reticent to explore, so when I suggested Old Port Isabel
Road for a crack at the Aplomado Falcon, they readily agreed!
The bird had recently been seen at
the hacking platform close to the south end of the road, so shortly after
reaching the dirt portion, we first stepped out to listen and log some of the
common things, primary of which were whistling Eastern Meadowlarks. Loma Alta Lake had lots of coots and other
things we couldn’t quite pick out because of the angle of the sun, and past the
railroad tracks we found the platform in the distance, but it looked like something
Osprey-size was sitting on it. We passed
the irrigation channel (with more coots) and maneuvered ourselves to try and
get a better view of the platform. This
time we hit pay dirt as an Aplomado was sitting down behind the “bars” with his
back to us, but then decided to hop up on top, giving great views!
View of the hacking platform with a blow-up of the Aplomado Falcon on the right.
With the pressure off, we crawled
along looking for other open country birds.
A White-tailed Kite put on a nice show by hovering several time right
outside the car, and a Cassin’s Sparrow did perch briefly on a wire fence, but
not long enough for Rob and Vickie to get a view. A pair of Curve-billed Thrashers was more
cooperative, however, along with a Bewick’s Wren singing his little heart
out! There were several Long-billed
Curlews calling and flying about, and at a couple of small ponds we had Least
Grebes and a good variety of ducks, including a pair of Buffleheads! I was disappointed in that neither whistling
duck showed up (the duck show in general was rather sparse), but that’s how it
goes… Within sight of the SR 100
billboards we were turned back by the same muddy mess that turned us back last
time, so we scooted south, but not before witnessing a dogfight between a
harrier and a White-tailed Hawk!
Hovering White-tailed Kite
What makes Old Port Isabel Road so notorious...
My guests had birded their way down
the coast already, and Vickie mentioned that Rob had seen an oystercatcher that
she missed, so we headed up to the Highway 48 Boat Ramp in hopes of bagging at
least one of the pair that hangs out there.
Again, I was disappointed (and surprised) at the lack of birds there, as usually the place is inundated with
stuff! Thankfully we spotted the
oystercatchers on a spit out in the bay, but a gull caught my attention that
was hanging with three much larger Herring Gulls: being from San Diego, the first thing that
struck me was the long, pink, black-tipped bill and smaller size that screamed
“California Gull” to me, but that would be highly unusual (although not unheard
of) here! In fact, I’m still waiting for
some feedback on this interesting guy!
Just before we left a huge
wave of Black Skimmers wheeled in and gave us a show!
Part of the large Black Skimmer flock
The gull on the right reminded me of a California Gull, with its smaller size (next to the Herring Gulls on the left) and long, pink, black-tipped bill.
Two more shots; the jury is still out, apparently...
We had to get started back by that
time, but despite the wind, we had 61 species for the day (not counting the possible California Gull...)! Bird List:
Gadwall
Blue-winged Teal
Northern Shoveler
Northern Pintail
Ring-necked Duck
Lesser Scaup
Bufflehead
Ruddy Duck
Northern Bobwhite
Least Grebe
Pied-billed Grebe
Neotropic Cormorant
Double-crested Cormorant
American White Pelican
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
White Ibis
White-faced Ibis
Turkey Vulture
White-tailed Kite
Northern Harrier
Harris's Hawk
White-tailed Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
American Coot
Black-necked Stilt
American Oystercatcher
Killdeer
Greater Yellowlegs
Willet
Long-billed Curlew
Laughing Gull
Herring Gull
Caspian Tern
Black Skimmer
Rock Pigeon
Belted Kingfisher
Golden-fronted Woodpecker
Crested Caracara
American Kestrel
Aplomado Falcon
Peregrine Falcon
Great Kiskadee
Loggerhead Shrike
White-eyed Vireo
Tree Swallow
Verdin
Bewick's Wren
Curve-billed Thrasher
Northern Mockingbird
Orange-crowned Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Cassin's Sparrow
Savannah Sparrow
Lincoln's Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Great-tailed Grackle
61 SPECIES
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