Craig Tooley recently trained his long lens on a fledgling White-crowned Sparrow. As he watched a parent flew in with a nice bug. It looks like the baby isn't all that thrilled with snack and the parent in turn looks like its glaring. Here's a fun picture for you to enjoy today. Thank you, Craig!
To see more of Craig's photos, check out his web site:http://web.me.com/theruffians1
Harbor Seals come to a safe cove on The Sea Ranch and other secluded places on the Mendonoma Coast in the spring. They are very endearing, which makes for some wonderful photos. Craig Tooley sent me this sweet photo showing the interaction and love between a pup and its mom.
To see more of Craig's photos, go to: http://web.me.com/theruffians1
It will be easy to spot the two adult Black Oystercatchers but not so easy to see their three off-spring. Hint: they look like rocks and are on the lower right side. Thanks to Craig Tooley for allowing me to share this photo!
To see more of Craig's photos, go to: http://web.me.com/theruffians1
Gualala Point Island is a large, rocky island sitting off the northernmost end of The Sea Ranch. It is a haven for many birds and pinnipeds and many of us enjoy watching them from the bluffs. But on the far side, where we landlubbers cannot see, there is a large colony of Brandt's Cormorants currently nesting.
TSR are Stewards of the rocks and islands off their stretch of the coast, which are part of the California Coastal National Monument. They have formed a Task Force to monitor the seabirds. Recently their aerial photographer Craig Tooley went up with pilot Tom Osborne as part of their 5th year of monitoring and captured this photo. There are also some Common Murres in the photo, a cause for excitement. There is hope they may be prospecting for nests. And one lone Gull at the top, hoping for a free meal.
This is the big reason why fireworks over the 4th of July weekend in Gualala are a bad idea. We are fortunate to have nesting seabirds here. Don't feel sorry for us! We have fireworks in Point Arena 11 miles to the north.
Once again Craig Tooley has the magic. He recently photographed a pair of Pelagic Cormorants on their cliff-side nest. I thought these birds were black with a white patch on their flank when breeding but Craig's photo shows a multitude of colors.
Do you wonder how they get their nest to stay on that precarious spot? I wondered too. They use their own guano to help cement it to the ledge. Amazing! The nest always faces the sea. Pelagics, also called Baird's Cormorants, feed on fish. They dive from the surface and chase their prey underwater. Another example of some of the wonderful creatures sharing our beautiful Mendonoma Coast.
