Palo Alto Baylands, San Francisco, November 2013

A full day in San Francisco was mine to exploit as I saw fit. My first reaction was to look at hiring a car but, recalling how expensive it is to park a car in the city and how vigilant the parking attendants are, I fell back on old posts to remind me of the possibilities that were mine through the medium of public transport.

CalTrains leave from San Francisco Station at the bottom of Fourth Street (Google Earth ref; 37 46 35.96N 122 23 41.54W), just a few blocks from the hotel and with an 8-hour body-clock head start, the 06.11 was a breeze. I had hired a bike the night before and strapped it into the bike compartment for the hour or so ride to California Avenue (Google Earth ref; 37 25 44.22N 122 8 29.23W). From here, it is about 4-5kms to the Palo Alto Duck Pond and The Lucy Evan’s Baylands Interpretative Center. 

American Robins, California Towhees, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Anna’s Hummingbirds, Yellow-rumped Warblers and Cedar Waxwings enlivened the ride until I arrived at just before 08.00. The top of the tide was 07.50, so there were plenty of birds pushed up onto the roosting areas.

One of these spots was immediately beneath the approach path for the local airport and a small prop plane came into land and put a fun-sized mixed flock of American Avocet, Willet and Marbled Godwit to flight.

I wanted to move quickly on to the boardwalk to see if any rails had been pushed up out of the marsh by the high tide. It was predicted to reach 2.3m this morning, but as it turned out, 2.3m is not quite enough. The tide tables show that it does get higher than this with 2.9 and 3m tides due over the following week. I guess that would inundate most of the marsh and the rails would be up on the boardwalk. Timing.

The surge had forced a few Least Sandpipers up onto the edge of the marsh and they were very cooperative, gleaning and bathing very close to the platform at the end of the boardwalk. A small mixed flock of Dunlin and Western Sandpiper joined them and they all looked anxious to get back to the mud as soon as the water receded.

This would likely be a while, so I returned to the slough and the duck pond to watch large numbers of Northern Shovelers and Canvasback.

On the western side of the pond was an unlikely pair of branch-fellows. A White-tailed Kite perched slightly above a Cooper’s Hawk.

The duck pond held more shovelers (actually if I mention any bird associated with the water, even if my writing tone sounds a little moist, make a mental note that there were lots of shovelers in view at the same time. That will save a lot of repetition), Mallard and a few Ring-billed Gulls. The Boneparte Gulls were seen on the slough but were reluctant to come onto the (fresh water?) of the duck pond.

The water should have receded a bit by now and a few birds were flying out from the roosts to make first tracks in the fresh mud.

Rail Alley, a wide ditch in the marsh that passes beneath the boardwalk already had some very rail evoking prints, but the bird was not to be seen. Out on the bay, the water was fantastically still and a Brown Pelican nearly stalled as it flew over and suddenly spotted something near the surface.

Clarke’s Grebes kept a respectable distance from the platform, but the Least Sandpipers were content to feed near the margins and leave the tide-chasing to the other species. A Song Sparrow sat in the good light a waited for me to trip over my tripod before firing off a couple of shots.

As I returned to fetch my bicycle to continue on towards Mayfield and Charleston Slough, I happened to turn back and notice a Northern Harrier making a perfect flypast of the platform and boardwalk. Timing.

Birds seen; 57

Canada Goose 35, Gadwall 4, Mallard 25, Cinnamon Teal 2, Northern Shoveler 800, Northern Pintail 30, Green-winged Teal 55, Canvasback 60, Lesser Scaup 2, Ruddy Duck 4, Pied-billed Grebe 1, Clark’s Grebe 4, Double-crested Cormorant 12, Brown Pelican 2, Great Egret 1, Snowy Egret 4, Turkey Vulture 1, White-tailed Kite 2, Northern Harrier 1, Cooper’s Hawk 2, Peregrine Falcon 2, American Coot 65, Black-bellied Plover 2, Black-necked Stilt 35, Greater Yellowlegs 2, Willet 25, Long-billed Curlew 3, Marbled Godwit 35, Western Sandpiper 3, Least Sandpiper 25, Dunlin 3, Short-billed Dowitcher 25, Boneparte’s Gull 8, Ring-billed Gull 15, Western Gull 1, Glaucous-winged Gull 1, Mourning Dove 2, Anna’s Hummingbird 2, Black Phoebe 3, American Crow 12, Common Raven 2, Bushtit 4, Bewick’s Wren 1, Ruby-crowned Kinglet 2, American Robin 25, Northern Mockingbird 1, Cedar Waxwing 30, European Starling 6, Yellow-rumped Warbler 1, California Towhee 2, Song Sparrow 5, White-crowned Sparrow 2, Golden-crowned Sparrow 6, Dark-eyed Junco 1, Red-winged Blackbird 2, Brewer’s Blackbird 3, House Finch 5.

 From here, I had to move quickly to return my bicycle. I took the route out past Mayfield and Charleston Slough.

From Terminal Blvd at Google Earth ref; 37 26 0.61N 122 6 0.17W, San Antonio Road runs south for 3kms, crossing the Highway 101 to the San Antonio Caltrain Station at San Antonio and Alma (Google Earth ref; 37 24 26.94N 122 6 26.93W). A day-ticket on Caltrains cost US$ 14 AS AT December 2013.

For more posts from Palo Alto, use the links below;

http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/02/palo-alto-baylands-san-fancisco.html

http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/11/palo-alto-baylands-san-francisco.html

http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/11/shoreline-at-mountain-view-palo-alto.html

http://redgannet.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/charleston-slough-at-terminal-boulevard.html

http://redgannet.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/palo-alto-baylands-on-foot-san.html

http://redgannet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/baylands-preserve-palo-alto-san_9.html

http://redgannet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/mayfield-and-charleston-slough-palo.html

Visit the dedicated USA and Canada Page for more posts from San Francisco, including; Golden Gate Park and the Nudist Beach

Khalij Pheasant at Charleston Slough, San Francisco

There has been some interest in the Khalij Pheasant that I saw at Charleston Slough, San Francisco.
EBird will mark the sighting as invalid on account of its probable status as introduced or escaped, but it has caused a sudden traffic spike on that post, so I have found a couple of extra pictures.

Apologies for the quality. I came upon the bird suddenly and we were both a little surprised.

The pheasant was nervous and moved quickly into cover. Perhaps this would indicate a feral bird rather than a recent escapee. I did not follow it, but allowed it to move down the slope and melt into the treeline that runs alongside the creek flowing out from Charleston Slough.
The pictures are available in higher definition to anyone who has an interest. Write to redgannet@gmail.com and I will gladly send them.

Palo Alto Baylands on foot, San Francisco, June 2012.

I wanted to see if it was possible to visit the Palo Alto Baylands by public transport and found that it was, providing that you wear comfortable shoes and are prepared to walk the miles. Caltrain leaves from SanFrancisco station on 4th St. and takes an hour to reach California Avenue station (Google Earth ref; 37 25 45N 122 08 31W ). Walk east through the leafy suburbs along North California Ave, turn right onto Embarcadero and 45 minutes later you will be in sight of the Lucy Evans Nature Center (Google Earth ref; 37 27 35N 122 06 23W ). A dozen or so birds along the way included Chestnut-backed Chickadee, California Towhee, Western Scrub Jay, Western Bluebird and Brown-headed Cowbird.

I took the path from the duckpond around the northern slough to take advantage of the light. Black-necked Stilts and American Avocets were very obvious here and fed from the large expanses of mud at low tide. www.easytide.org predicted a high tide at 10.30, but I was beginning to doubt this as the tide was so low at 07.30.

Out on the boardwalk, the water was still flowing out towards the bay. I caught a fleeting glimpse of a Clapper Rail in ‘Rail Alley’ as it darted up a side ditch. I wondered if my sudden appearance had startled it and hoped that if I sat quietly, it might come back out into the main ditch. After a while, it looked as if the rail had moved on, so I took a quick stroll to the far end of the boardwalk where a platform looks out over the bay. When I returned, it was to find tracks leading back out from the side ditch and unhurried Clapper Rail footprints on the raised island of mud in the middle of the ditch. It would have passed, in perfect light, within 8 feet, offering a fantasy photo opportunity to anyone with enough patience just to sit still for a few more minutes.

The thought haunted me for the rest of the day until I returned to the hotel and saw the results of my photographic efforts for this trip. I would probably have bollixed up the rail pictures and that would have been even more frustrating than missing it altogether. My camera and lens are in for repair this week and I can’t imagine how I ever coped without image stabilisation before.

Song Sparrows were very common in the salt marsh and their distinctive song proved to be the soundtrack for the day.

As well as the avocets and stilts, there were a few other waders such as Willet, Marbled Godwit and Long-billed Curlew, but all the peeps and the dowitchers were gone in this second week of June.

The tide did actually come in as predicted and quickly began to fill the channels inland, but strangely, one of the ditches was still draining towards the bay. Rays had come in on the tide and were feeding in the channel close to Bixby Park.
I had planned to cross the park towards Charleston Slough, but the way was blocked by the earth moving contractors, so I had to retrace my steps back out onto East Bayshore Drive.

The first bird that I saw on entering the approach path to Charleston Slough came as quite a shock. A red-wattled face with a blonde crest and a spangled body brought to mind a plate from my India and Southeast Asia fieldguide that illustrates Pheasants and Tragopans. Once home, consultation of said fieldguide gave me Khalij Pheasant, more commonly seen in the Himalayas. I was looking forward to entering this one onto ebird, but my initial shock at finding the bird was compounded when I found that it was listed on my software for California. That rather spoiled my fun with eBird, I do so look forward to hearing from them.

eBird has passed the details on to the local yahoo group which has caused some interest, so a few extra pictures have been posted here.

I swapped news of my Tragopan/Khalij Pheasant, with Irene, who in turn pointed out a juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron. It was being mobbed by Barn Swallows that did not want it near their young. Suddenly, it darted out its bill and plucked a young swallow from the air, killed it and gulped it down. I was nearly as shocked as the young swallow who was wondering where his sibling had gone.

A pair of American Avocets were behaving like first time parents in trying to protect their tiny chicks who were feeding out in the open. Every time that a gull flew over, one or both of the parents would take to the air and chase it away. Having sited their nest so close to a coastal gull roost, I wondered how long they would be able to keep it up.

Forster’s Terns, Snowy Egrets and a Surf Scoter were feeding on the leisure lake and the Black Skimmers seemed to prefer the island here to the one on which I usually see them in Charleston Slough.

I had walked as far as Shoreline at Mountain View in the hope of finding Burrowing Owls, but had had no luck in this respect. Instead I watched a Red-tailed Hawk gliding across the steep slope, then suddenly diving down to catch a Mallard from the shoreline. The catch was possibly too heavy for the hawk and it only flew a very short distance before landing. The duck was obviously very keen to escape and fought bravely, almost dragging the hawk into the water in the struggle, but finally she went quiet. The hawk seemed satisfied that the duck was dead and changed its grip in order to start feeding, but the duck had fooled it and with a last massive effort escaped back onto the water, leaving the hawk frustrated.

The duck received a round of applause from me for her cleverness, but we were both shocked a moment later when the red-tail rose into the air on the brisk breeze and dropped onto her ducklings which were cowering by the shore. The hawk grabbed one in each set of talons and flew off with the much softer option.

The route home took me along North Shoreline Boulevard towards Mountain View Caltrain Station. In a stroke of pure luck, I stopped beneath a palm tree to repack all my stuff before the hike back to the train line. I noticed pellets and a skull scattered around the base of the tree and looked up to find a Barn Owl looking down.

Bird seen; 59

Canada Goose 80, Gadwall 6, Mallard 200, Cinnamon Teal 2, Surf Scoter 2, Ruddy Duck 3, Khalij Pheasant 1, Double-crested Cormorant 20, American White Pelican 20, Brown Pelican 2, Great Blue Heron 1, Great Egret 2, Snowy Egret 8, Black-crowned Night Heron 3, Red-tailed Hawk 5, Clapper Rail 1, Common Gallinule 2, American Coot 4, Killdeer 3, Black-necked Stilt 20, American Avocet 70, Willet 6, Long-billed Curlew 9, Marbled Godwit 180, Ring-billed Gull 8, California Gull 250, Herring Gull 15, Forster’s Tern 80, Black Skimmer 2, Mourning Dove 4, Barn Owl 1, Anna’s Hummingbird 2, Black Phoebe 10, Say’s Phoebe 1, Western Scrub-jay 2, American Crow 15, Common Raven 2, Northern Rough-winged Swallow 8, Tree Swallow 6, Barn Swallow 100, Cliff Swallow 150, Chest-nut-backed Chickadee 4, Bushtit 5, Bewick’s Wren 5, Marsh Wren 3, Western Bluebird 1, American Robin 4, Northern Mockingbird 8, European Starling 25, California Towhee 12, Savannah Sparrow 2, Song Sparrow 40, Dark-eyed Junco 6, Red-winged Blackbird 10, Brown-headed Cowbird 35, House Finch 35, Lesser Goldfinch 2, American Goldfinch 6, House Sparrow 5.

From California Avenue Caltrain Station to Lucy Evans Nature Centre  is a 3 mile walk. To return, the walk from Shoreline at Mountain View, to Mountain View Caltrain Station is about 2.25 miles. Wandering about generally, added up to a total of about 14 miles today.  

Other posts for Palo Alto Baylands can be found at the links below;

http://redgannet.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/charleston-slough-at-terminal-boulevard.html

http://redgannet.blogspot.co.uk/2010/02/palo-alto-baylands-san-fancisco.html

http://redgannet.blogspot.co.uk/2010/11/palo-alto-baylands-san-francisco.html

http://redgannet.blogspot.co.uk/2010/11/shoreline-at-mountain-view-palo-alto.html

Visit the dedicated USA and Canada Page for more posts from the area including, Mountain Roads and Golden Gate Park.

Palo Alto Baylands, San Francisco, California, USA SFO

First light caught me pulling in at the Lucy Evans Baylands Nature Interpretive Center. The highlight here is the boardwalk that protects the salt marsh from trampling feet and takes visitors out to the edge of the lower lobe of San Francisco Bay (Google Earth ref; 37° 27’ 34”N, 122° 06’ 21”W).

 American Avocets roosted at high water, waiting for the levels to start dropping again and expose feeding opportunities in the fresh mud. 

My reason for coming here this morning is that I am convinced that one day, Lady Luck will smile on me and a Black Crake a California Clapper Rail and maybe even a Sora will pop into view None of them did any such thing, but you never know until you try. Song Sparrows aplenty and a Black Phoebe caught my eye, but no rallids. At the viewing platform at the end of the boardwalk, a few Least Sandpipers approached closely and even sat up out of the early morning shadows. 

There is a trail that leads around the back of the duck pond which leaves the morning light over your right shoulder when walking it in an anti-clockwise direction. A single Dunlin flew in and nearly landed at my feet. It stood tall and I became very excited, hoping for a moment that it might be a Stilt Sandpiper. I am far more used to seeing dumpy Dunlins hunched over, feeding in large flocks and it took a while to convince myself about this tall, slim singleton.

Northern Shovelers, Green-winged Teal, American Wigeon and plenty more avocets were in the water on the right of the trail. On the left, a Red-tailed Hawk perched watchfully in a tree over-hanging the path. I talked gently to it as I passed under the branch that it was on and it ignored me until I was beyond it and had the light in my favour.

I find that talking to the birds has a two-fold benefit. It reassures the birds that I am not trying to creep up on them, so they don’t perceive me as a threat and don’t feel the need to maintain a prudent flight distance, while people who see me talking to birds do perceive me as a threat and feel the need to keep a prudent flight distance.

Although the hawk was looking out over the slough, none of the waterfowl appeared worried. Can they tell, for instance, that the redtail prefers rodents or perhaps that it had already eaten? Do ducks have a built-in field guide to enable them to identify threats? Neither this Ruddy Duck, nor the Canvasback paid the hawk very little attention. Perhaps they knew that they were safe from the hawk out on the water?

By the pond, pigeons and gulls waited for scraps from the duck feeders.

Western Gulls, Ring-billed Gulls and a Glaucous-winged Gull 3rd yr (with a big bill that might indicate some western influences) sat patiently on posts waiting for the children that they knew would come.  

Some Herring Gull look-a-likes had no markings on their heads and were more likely to be pale-eyed westerns. 

Across the road, a Cooper’s Hawk waited quietly. The slough was draining and exposing lots of mud behind the hawk. Marbled Godwits, Grey (Black-bellied) Plover, Kildeer, and a few Long-billed Curlews probed here. There were plenty of dowitchers feeding on the newly exposed mud. The ones closer to me seemed to be chuckling as they fed, so I am assuming them to be Long-billed Dowitchers. I was not able to identify the rest of them with any real confidence.

A loon was hauled up onto a mudbank and belly-slid back into the water when it saw me. Here again I had a crisis of confidence. The diver, which I assumed to be a Common Loon, showed no neck markings. I had a fairly good look and at no point could I see any indentation that would have assured me of its provenance. The bill seemed robust enough, with the suggestion of an angle on the lower mandible, to allow me to overcome most of my doubts, but I was still niggled about the neck markings. Are they a constant feature in all plumages and forms? G is favouring Pacific. After trolling Flickr for Common Loons, I have to agree with G and concede that it is "slight". He is tactfully pushing me towards Pacific and I will agree with him. Thanks G.

I withdrew to a nearby restaurant for an early lunch. It had been a confusing morning and I wanted to consider the loon, gulls, dowitchers and Dunlin. I was greeted eagerly by the Spanish owner who clapped his hands and called excitedly to the kitchen staff, “ ‘El Gordo’, esta aqui y tiene hambre!”

Bird species; 42

Pacific Loon 1, Pied-billed Grebe 3, Clark’s Grebe 2, Brown Pelican 2, Double-crested Cormorant 6, Snowy Egret 3, American Wigeon 1, Gadwall 2, Green-winged Teal 25, Mallard 45, Northern Shoveler 80, Canvasback 5, Ruddy Duck 8, White-tailed Kite 1, Cooper’s Hawk 1, Red-tailed Hawk 1, American Coot 12, Black-necked Stilt 8, American Avocet 160, Grey (Black-bellied) Plover 4, Semi-palmated Plover 2, Killdeer 15, Long-billed Dowitcher 25, Marbled Godwit 35, Long-billed Curlew 4, Greater Yellowlegs 1, Willet 3, Western Sandpiper 25, Least Sandpiper 8, Dunlin 1, Ring-billed Gull 3, Glaucous-winged Gull 1, Western Gull 15 , Mourning Dove 8, Anna’s Hummingbird 1, Northern Flicker 1, Black Phoebe 2, Bushtit 15, American Crow 6, Yellow-rumped Warbler 6, Song Sparrow 8, White-crowned Sparrow 35.

Palo Alto Baylands is about 20 -25 miles south on Highway 101 from San Francisco International Airport (SFO). There are a few access points from the 101 at Embarcadero Road, Terminal Boulevard and Shoreline Boulevard. The boardwalk and Interpretive Centre are at the end of Embarcadero Rd.
I had arranged to pick up a car from the airport which has a 24hr rental plaza. Catch the BART (San Francisco's Subway system. $8.20 one way from Powell St. Station. First trains from 04.30ish.) to the airport SFO and transfer onto the Airtrain which is the closed circuit airport transport system. Allow one hour from the hotel to the rental desk.

Other posts from San Francisco can be found at the links below;
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/02/palo-alto-baylands-san-fancisco.html

There are more Californian and American posts on the dedicated page.
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/p/posts-from-usa-and-canada.html

Palo Alto Baylands, San Francisco, California, USA SFO

Palo Alto Baylands, San Fancisco

Birding in San Francisco throws up a few options and today’s post features the Palo Alto Baylands. The area is noted for Burrowing Owls and Clapper Rail, but don’t get your hopes up as I didn’t find either of those. Anna's Hummingbirds were plentiful though.
35 miles down the bayside from San Francisco City, the salt marshes were shrouded in fog this morning. I skipped back and forth between sites trying to make the best of a late start and a midday tide. There are 3 favoured sites in Palo Alto. Turning off from Freeway 101, take Embarcadero for Lucy Evans Interpretative Centre and boardwalk.
San Antonio is the off-ramp for Charleston Slough (rhymes with blue). Finally, turn off at Shoreline Blvd for Mountain View tidal marsh.
I wanted to be at the boardwalk 2 hours before high tide so visited Mountain View first to look for Burrowing Owls. It was the furthest of the three sites.
At the end of Shoreline Blvd. is plenty of parking with a lake and a golf course on the inland side and a tidal marsh and protected area on the bayside. Cycle and jogging trails double as birder paths and give dry, flat access and views of the sloughs. The protected area is set aside for the Burrowing Owls who like to take vacant possession of California Ground Squirrel’s holes. The owls are shy and drop back into the burrows if approached. This was a Saturday morning on the first day for weeks without rain. Even by 08.30 it was busy and I suspect the owls were laying low.
I visited here twice during the day but shall amalgamate the two visits seamlessly as if one.
A juvenile Red-tailed Hawk was very approachable and allowed me to get close enough to see what he had had for breakfast. An Anna’s Hummingbird was performing display flights, rising 20m into the air and power-diving, pulling up to form a clearly defined J-shape, then rising again to repeat the display three or four times. A still photo can’t convey the drama. I keep considering video but how much can I actually carry? In case you are wondering, this is not a picture from during the display. That was beyond me.
Out on the water were Ruddy Duck, Shoveler, and Greater Scaup. On the distant sloughs were more Shoveler and some Brown Pelicans. There were a few Great and Snowy Egret on the edge of the water and Golden-crowned and White-crowned Sparrows in the scrub.
Canada Geese were grazing on the protected area where I was scanning for the owls. A Northern Harrier sailed into my vision but I thought a goose was possibly a big target for her. Instead she landed just ahead and took a drink from a puddle. Anticipating that she might give me a fly-by, I switched my lens stabiliser to panning mode and the camera to Servo AF to keep a moving object in focus. I was pleased with the result.
A small mixed flock of House Finches, Western Bluebird and Yellow-rumped Warbler greeted me back at the car park.

The fog was still fairly thick when I arrived at the Lucy Evans Interpretative Centre at the end of Embarcadero and I saw a fogbow for the first time. It is a similar principle to a rainbow I suppose, but you dry out more quickly afterwards.
A pond there was hosting some Ring-billed Gulls with approximately 200 Bonaparte’s Gulls on the slough across the road.
An area by the centre has it’s tidal flow restricted in both directions thus giving high and low tides about two hours later than the slough beside it. A dyke-like, raised path runs between the managed slough and the pickleweed marsh. In a scene reminiscent of one I had witnessed a few weeks ago, all the wading birds took off as an ibis flew over. I thought it was a Glossy Ibis until a fellow camera-toting birder advised me to be on the lookout for a White-faced Ibis. The mistake was understandable I am sure you will agree. It was the red eye that swung it.

From some reeds nearby, the strident song of a Marsh Wren rang out, I recorded it singing and played it back resulting in the bird showing itself at the top of the reeds.
Beyond the Interpretative Centre is a boardwalk that pushes out into the tidal marsh for about 400m or so. This is the favoured rail area and it has produced Virginia and Clapper Rail for this blogger in the past. The end of the boardwalk was obscured by fog until I tried to take an artistic photo, when the mist miraculously lifted. My theory was that the high tide would flood the marsh and push the rails up into view. For future reference the tide needs to be higher than today’s 2.5m to achieve that. There were plenty of Song Sparrows though.
The managed slough was busy. American Avocets were starting to attain their summer plumage. Short-billed Dowitchers were taking advantage of the delayed tide with a single Long-billed Curlew.
The natural slough was the most prolific spot at this site. Teal and Shoveler were present as well as other ducks, waders, egrets and that flock of gulls. At the far end of the car park is a boat ramp. A great Egret was preening.
The day was warming up now and the fog had lifted.
In between the two sites already mentioned, at the end of San Antonio Rd, is Charleston Slough. Right beside the parking area is the Coast Casey Forebay. This was a popular roosting place for American Avocets, about 2oo of which were waiting out the high tide. Also here were Greater Yellowlegs, Black-necked Stilts, American Coots and a small selection of duck. I took the path which led out between the slough and Adobe Creek. On the left was a viewing platform for the creek. Cinnamon Teal, a Double-crested Cormorant and a few Black-crowned Night-herons were all roosting among the tall reeds. On the other side, another platform looked up the length of Charleston Slough. A small island in front of it was providing roosting space for 3 Black Skimmers among the gulls, Marbled Godwits and the Willet. There were dowitchers too, but I couldn’t tell which one from that distance.
The trail reaches nearly two miles out into the bay. Further on, the creek opened out into sandbanks and shallow water. Clustered around any bits of debris on the sandbanks were mixed flocks of Western and Least Sandpipers. Small flocks of 50 or so huddled around sticks and logs, preening and resting. The least seemed to be the most here.
Among the other bird were ducks, egrets, coots and Common Moorhen. Out in the deeper Charleston Slough were even more Shoveler. Good numbers of Canvasback, Ruddy Duck and scaup were present too.
A lake close to the parking lot held Surf Scoters, Common Goldeneye and a high concentration of Pied-billed Grebes. Snowy Egrets were winkling mussels from the beds on the edge of the lake.
By now the warmth had gone from the air. The sun was dipping towards the horizon and the tide was reaching it’s lowest point. I pulled in to the boardwalk on the way home to watch the sun go down over the curlew. A large flock of tiny peeps that I assumed to be Western Sandpipers flashed in the sun’s last rays of the evening.

My plan to set off early in the morning was thwarted. I had mistaken a past favour for standard practice at Reliable rentals. If you wish to set out early, you can rent a car from Reliable and take advantage of their free parking. Rent the night before and set out from their garage when you wish. Returning the car after 17.00 will incur a second day charge.
This works perfectly if you are renting for more than one day, but becomes expensive for just one day.
Alternatively, Budget next door are open from 06.00 – 21.00 7 days a week.

Bird species; 54

Pied-billed Grebe 14, Western Grebe 3, Clarke’s Grebe 1, Brown Pelican 9, Double-crested Cormorant 30, Great Blue Heron 1, Great Egret 12, Snowy egret 18, Black-crowned Night Heron 14, White-faced Ibis 2, Canada Goose 120, American Wigeon 40, Gadwall 15, Green-winged Teal 80, Mallard 60, Cinnamon Teal 4, Northern Shoveler 1600, Canvasback 140, Greater Scaup 30, Surf Scoter 4, Common Goldeneye 2, Ruddy Duck 600, Turkey Vulture 4, White-tailed Kite 2, American Harrier 6, Red-tailed Hawk 6, Common Moorhen 3, American Coot 100, Black-necked Stilt 30, American Avocet 1000, Short-billed Dowitcher 20, Marbled Godwit 70, Long-billed Curlew 1, Willet 80, Western Sandpiper 1000, Least Sandpiper 250, Ring-billed Gull 200, Herring Gull 20, Bonaparte’s Gull 200, Black Skimmer 3, Mourning Dove 6, Anna’s Hummingbird 15, Marsh Wren 1, Bewick’s Wren 2, Northern Mockingbird 2, Western Bluebird 7, American Crow 25, House Finch 15, Yellow-rumped Warbler 3, Savannah Sparrow 1, Song Sparrow 20, White-crowned Sparrow 14, Golden-crowned Sparrow 22, Brewer’s Blackbird 50.