Tag Archives: rare bird

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Karen Wilkinson had a rare sighting. Experts confirmed she had photographed a Sage Thrasher, a rare bird sighting here. She wrote, “It was a delightful but windy morning on the bluff and this sighting had me puzzling over an ID.  As I watched it for a while, its posture, behavior, and field marks sort of reminded me of three different birds (hermit thrush, mockingbird, rock wren), but none were right in the moment. I was stumped. After coming home and reviewing photos I'm fairly confident that I was looking at a Sage Thrasher - but I would really appreciate confirmation on this one, since I've certainly never seen one here on the coast.”

I sent Karen’s photos to Peter Pyle and Robert Keiffer who agreed with Karen’s ID. Robert wrote, “Yes, Sage Thrasher!  One of my nemesis species for Mendocino County, so the records are few and far-between for the county.  You cannot see the white wingbars, but the profile, mandible shape, light yellow eye, white tail tips evident, streaked breast, grayish-brown overall are all fitting characteristics. Do you enter your records on eBird?  You definitely should for this observation. Great find!” Karen’s sighting was in Sonoma County, where Diane Hichwa tells me there have been very few recorded sightings over the years. And Karen did post her sighting.

To hear the complex song of a male Sage Thrasher, here is a link to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Sage_Thrasher/sounds

I read on their website that one male was recorded singing for 22 minutes straight!

Thanks to Karen for allowing me to share her photos with you here.

Fog over the ocean kept the immediate coast cool, but it heated up just a little ways away. Low 80's at Rick's and my place in Anchor Bay today!

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A rare bird was seen the week after the Christmas Bird Count in January. Diane Hichwa wrote, “Last Wednesday Bill and Paget Lenarz, who had come up to help with the Bird Count, were still watching for birds. They noticed at Pebble Beach a very light gull on the sand below. Not wanting to disturb it, they stayed on the bluff trail. They called me, and I phoned Craig Tooley to get photos. This was just what was needed to document the bird!”

Diane sent Craig’s photos to Dan Nelson, a Sonoma County expert on gulls, and he confirmed the sighting. He wrote, “A classic first winter Glaucous Gull. Nice!!” The Audubon Guide describes this gull as “a big, pale, ghostly gull of the far north.”

It's easy to take gulls for granted, but they can travel great distances, and have a story to tell. Glaucous Gulls are the second-largest gulls in the world! You can hear their calls at this link to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Glaucous_Gull/sounds

Thanks to Craig for allowing me to share his photos with you here. To see much more of Craig's nature photography, here is the link to his website: www.ruffimage.com

The wind arrived during the night. Today the ocean is whipped up into a froth and it's sunny, but chilly.

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A rare visitor to the Mendonoma Coast, a Pacific Golden-Plover was spotted by Richard Kuehn.

Pacific Golden-Plover by Richard Kuehn

This bird gets its name from the gold color etched on its wings.

To hear the call of this shorebird, here's a link to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology: http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Pacific_Golden-Plover/sounds

Thanks to Rich for allowing me to share his photo with you here.

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Perhaps it was one of the recent storms that blew this rare visitor to Point Arena. Leslie Dahlhoff wrote, “How exciting! Eric, the non-birder, actually spotted it in our backyard and told me I should check it out. There I saw the sunniest, yellowest bird seriously chowing down on aphids in the artichoke.”

A rare visitor - a male Prothonotary Warbler by Leslie Dahlhoff male Prothonotary Warbler by Leslie Dahlhoff

This songbird is usually found in wooded swamps in the southeast. Wow, is this bird off course! To hear its call, here is a link to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology: http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Prothonotary_Warbler/sounds

Thanks to Leslie for allowing me to share her photos with you here.

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Richard Kuehn often looks at the birds and the sea mammals that occupy Gualala Point Island. He was surprised to see something new among the usual suspects - a juvenile Brown Booby. Craig Tooley came out and took these photos. Doesn't it look like the Cormorants are surprised to see it?

A juvenile Brown Booby takes flight by Craig Tooley Brandt's Cormorants eyeing a Brown Booby by Craig Tooley

These birds are normally found in the tropics, so what it is doing here is a mystery.
Thanks to Rich for the sighting and to Craig for allowing me to share his photos with you here. To see much more of Craig's nature photography, here is his website: www.ruffimage.com