Like I said before, the rest of my big year would depend almost
completely on the birds I got during my Thanksgiving Break. On the 28th,
Friday, day after Thanksgiving, I went on an unofficial big day that
changed the course of my big year.
I started off with my dad at Hellyer County Park at 9:00 in the morning, looking for the Snow and Ross's Goose pair reported there. Both would be lifers and yearbirds, and they were being reported alongside each other, so going there could easily bring my yearlist up to 195. It was very cold that morning on the lake. Luckily, we met Eric Ongman, with whom we kept up a birding conversation while walking around the lake. It was great to meet someone with whom I could share my interest in birds, and we found a lot of stories to tell, but no geese. The best birds were Canvasbacks on Cottonwood Lake and a Townsend's Warbler in a pine tree.
Eric said he would head off to Ed Levin County Park to attempt to find the Red-naped Sapsucker being reported there. I had to choose between Ed Levin and Coyote Valley, and I picked the former - I really wanted to see that rarity, and I could go to Laguna Ave in Coyote Valley in the evening to try to find a Short-eared Owl.
We arrived there at around 10:45 and parked in the Spring Valley parking lot, near the pond. As we were walking toward the dirt parking lot with the pepper trees (where the sapsucker was being reported), we heard and saw a flock of twittering birds land in a sweetgum tree (one with those spiky balls). I immediately perked up: I knew Pine Siskins called something like that, and were being seen often this winter! A look through the binoculars confirmed my lifer and yearbird #194!
Upon arriving at the dirt parking lot, we met Eric, who told us he hadn't found the sapsucker yet. The first bird we saw was a surprise Loggerhead Shrike sitting on top of one of the trees. I hope that this bird is making a successful recovery in the county.
The three of us fanned out across the parking lot, looking for the elusive sapsucker. There were plenty of American Robins and Hermit Thrushes in the pepper trees. Eventually we did find a sapsucker-like bird flying from tree to tree, making its mewing call. We were sure that it was a rare one when we saw that its head wasn't completely red - only the cap and the throat. The photos we got weren't conclusive - in fact, it looked more like a Yellow-bellied. However, later photos from Eric and closer observation revealed it to be a code 5 Red-naped (because of the red spot on the nape, shown slightly by the last photo) - my yearbird #195! More importantly, it was my county life #200. Photo credits to my dad for the last two.
We said goodbye to Eric and, on our short walk back to our car, managed to see a Varied Thrush - I never get tired of seeing them! A check for Cackling Geese on the Spring Valley pond proved fruitless.
About two hours after I got back home, a message appeared on South-bay-birds (the Santa Clara County listserv): someone had seen both the Ross's and Snow Goose at Hellyer! Later, Eric sent me an email about how he went back to Hellyer County Park and also seen them. I didn't have much of a choice - the birds were too good to miss. Before going to Coyote Valley in the evening, we made our way to Hellyer.
This time, instead of an empty lawn, we were greeted by one with a huge goose flock on it. And from that mostly brown flock there stood out two white birds. A grin spread across my face as I walked towards my #196 and #197. I guess Snow Goose was #196 because I identified it first, even if I saw them at the same time.
I was close. So close. Only three left till the magic number. One more bird, and the fate of my big year would be almost surely sealed, in the positive direction. To cap off a nearly perfect day and get that bird - could I see a long sought-after Short-eared Owl at Coyote Valley?
We got to Laguna Ave at 4:15. The owls were being seen at around 5:10, so we still had an hour or so to walk up and down the street. It was really cold that evening, but that didn't deter us. The best birds included a flyover Ferruginous Hawk and a female Merlin. There were also many harriers (and a single White-tailed Kite) coursing the fields. No Tricolored Blackbirds!
When we got back to our car, Gena, Jeff, and Maya Zolotar were also there. Coincidentally, they had also decided to try their luck with the owl that night. Together, the five of us began scanning the field, trying to catch a glimpse of something that wasn't a harrier. A huge flock of American Pipts was foraging in the field. It began to darken quickly, and I put on my jacket from the car.
It was almost completely dark now, at 5:15. Suddenly, we all heard several bark calls echo across the fields. Gena noticed something else moving far away, very low over the grass. It was a lot smaller than a harrier, its wings were shorter, and its flight was different, so there wasn't much it could be but the Short-eared Owl! The owl gave a couple more short barks to confirm its identity.
I could barely believe my luck that day! #198 was checked off, and only two birds were left to what I'd aspired to achieving for more than a year now.
We were unsatisfied with the looks we got, so we walked on down the street, where we managed to catch several more quick glimpses of the owls gliding over the grass. However, my dad never managed to see the owl, though he heard it bark. I knew that we would definitely be out here next year - my dad doesn't rest until he sees what he wants to see!
As we said goodbye to the Zolotars and made our way back to our car, one last thing happened. Two owls, terribly lit, flew across the street in rapid succession. Judging by their short tails and huge heads, we concluded that they had to be Barn Owls - our second owl of the day!
In all, this was probably one of the greatest days of my big year. Five yearbirds, of which all five were lifers, that put me two away from my goal. In one day, the question of if I would get 200 almost became a question of when I would get 200. I knew, and I truly hoped, that the big moment would come soon. And I knew that I would remember the day when that moment came for a long time to come.
Summary:
Birds seen: 62
New birds: 5
Big year count: 198
Good birding,
Sergey Pavlov
I started off with my dad at Hellyer County Park at 9:00 in the morning, looking for the Snow and Ross's Goose pair reported there. Both would be lifers and yearbirds, and they were being reported alongside each other, so going there could easily bring my yearlist up to 195. It was very cold that morning on the lake. Luckily, we met Eric Ongman, with whom we kept up a birding conversation while walking around the lake. It was great to meet someone with whom I could share my interest in birds, and we found a lot of stories to tell, but no geese. The best birds were Canvasbacks on Cottonwood Lake and a Townsend's Warbler in a pine tree.
Eric said he would head off to Ed Levin County Park to attempt to find the Red-naped Sapsucker being reported there. I had to choose between Ed Levin and Coyote Valley, and I picked the former - I really wanted to see that rarity, and I could go to Laguna Ave in Coyote Valley in the evening to try to find a Short-eared Owl.
We arrived there at around 10:45 and parked in the Spring Valley parking lot, near the pond. As we were walking toward the dirt parking lot with the pepper trees (where the sapsucker was being reported), we heard and saw a flock of twittering birds land in a sweetgum tree (one with those spiky balls). I immediately perked up: I knew Pine Siskins called something like that, and were being seen often this winter! A look through the binoculars confirmed my lifer and yearbird #194!
Upon arriving at the dirt parking lot, we met Eric, who told us he hadn't found the sapsucker yet. The first bird we saw was a surprise Loggerhead Shrike sitting on top of one of the trees. I hope that this bird is making a successful recovery in the county.
The three of us fanned out across the parking lot, looking for the elusive sapsucker. There were plenty of American Robins and Hermit Thrushes in the pepper trees. Eventually we did find a sapsucker-like bird flying from tree to tree, making its mewing call. We were sure that it was a rare one when we saw that its head wasn't completely red - only the cap and the throat. The photos we got weren't conclusive - in fact, it looked more like a Yellow-bellied. However, later photos from Eric and closer observation revealed it to be a code 5 Red-naped (because of the red spot on the nape, shown slightly by the last photo) - my yearbird #195! More importantly, it was my county life #200. Photo credits to my dad for the last two.
We said goodbye to Eric and, on our short walk back to our car, managed to see a Varied Thrush - I never get tired of seeing them! A check for Cackling Geese on the Spring Valley pond proved fruitless.
About two hours after I got back home, a message appeared on South-bay-birds (the Santa Clara County listserv): someone had seen both the Ross's and Snow Goose at Hellyer! Later, Eric sent me an email about how he went back to Hellyer County Park and also seen them. I didn't have much of a choice - the birds were too good to miss. Before going to Coyote Valley in the evening, we made our way to Hellyer.
This time, instead of an empty lawn, we were greeted by one with a huge goose flock on it. And from that mostly brown flock there stood out two white birds. A grin spread across my face as I walked towards my #196 and #197. I guess Snow Goose was #196 because I identified it first, even if I saw them at the same time.
I was close. So close. Only three left till the magic number. One more bird, and the fate of my big year would be almost surely sealed, in the positive direction. To cap off a nearly perfect day and get that bird - could I see a long sought-after Short-eared Owl at Coyote Valley?
We got to Laguna Ave at 4:15. The owls were being seen at around 5:10, so we still had an hour or so to walk up and down the street. It was really cold that evening, but that didn't deter us. The best birds included a flyover Ferruginous Hawk and a female Merlin. There were also many harriers (and a single White-tailed Kite) coursing the fields. No Tricolored Blackbirds!
When we got back to our car, Gena, Jeff, and Maya Zolotar were also there. Coincidentally, they had also decided to try their luck with the owl that night. Together, the five of us began scanning the field, trying to catch a glimpse of something that wasn't a harrier. A huge flock of American Pipts was foraging in the field. It began to darken quickly, and I put on my jacket from the car.
It was almost completely dark now, at 5:15. Suddenly, we all heard several bark calls echo across the fields. Gena noticed something else moving far away, very low over the grass. It was a lot smaller than a harrier, its wings were shorter, and its flight was different, so there wasn't much it could be but the Short-eared Owl! The owl gave a couple more short barks to confirm its identity.
I could barely believe my luck that day! #198 was checked off, and only two birds were left to what I'd aspired to achieving for more than a year now.
We were unsatisfied with the looks we got, so we walked on down the street, where we managed to catch several more quick glimpses of the owls gliding over the grass. However, my dad never managed to see the owl, though he heard it bark. I knew that we would definitely be out here next year - my dad doesn't rest until he sees what he wants to see!
As we said goodbye to the Zolotars and made our way back to our car, one last thing happened. Two owls, terribly lit, flew across the street in rapid succession. Judging by their short tails and huge heads, we concluded that they had to be Barn Owls - our second owl of the day!
In all, this was probably one of the greatest days of my big year. Five yearbirds, of which all five were lifers, that put me two away from my goal. In one day, the question of if I would get 200 almost became a question of when I would get 200. I knew, and I truly hoped, that the big moment would come soon. And I knew that I would remember the day when that moment came for a long time to come.
Summary:
Birds seen: 62
New birds: 5
Big year count: 198
Good birding,
Sergey Pavlov
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