Back In The (Silver) Saddle

This is my FOY WEWP! Western Wood-Pewee is not often thought of as a beautiful bird...but now that you have seen my crush, I believe you think otherwise.

Ah, the desert. The desert means different things to different people. To average people, "the desert" screams boredom and dusty wastes. To climbers and hikers, the desert means adventure...dusty adrenaline mixed a unique flavor of peace and quiet. To birders, there are those who think of the desert birds...the thrashers, the sparrows, Verdins, Cactus Wrens and the like...and then there are those who think of migrants. California's deserts, from Death Valley to the Colorado River, offer excellent birding during migration, if you know where to look. Thousands of migrant songbirds pass through these areas and spring and fall, and where there is greenery, there will be birds. You show me a lawn and trees, and I will show you some goddamn vagrants....eventually. That's how this works.

Way back before I was the Number 7 birder in the nation, I used to go out to the Kern desert and scour the place for vagrants...I have many fond memories of Butterbredt Springs (Bay-breasted Warbler, Prairie Warbler, Hooded Warbler, etc.), California City (Golden-winged Warbler, Black-throated Blue Warblers, Gray Catbirds, Dickcissel, etc.) and Galileo Hill (Virginia's Warbler, Lark Bunting, Least Bittern, etc.). I lost track years ago of the number of lifers I stacked up out there as a young birder...but sadly, I have not been able to return to these sacred migrant traps since the good old days.

What's that? You want me to crush this helpless pewee even harder??? Cool, here you go.

Seriously guys, I think I'm almost beyond crushing here. I don't know if this bird can take being documented so well. And what's with the contrasting brown auricular patch? I don't understand it, but I like it.

When I accepted this job on Santa Cruz Island, one of the instant perks that I thought of was being within striking distance of the Kern County hotspots during spring migration. Aside from being rarity-magnets, these sites pull in so many birds that you actually get a sense that a major movement of songbirds is happening...nothing unusual for those on the eastern half of the continent, but for west coast birders this is a really big deal. And when you are deprived of such migratory goodness for much of the year...you crave it.

And so I waited until early May, when I made my triumphant return to Galileo Hill and Kern County. I swear, when getting out of the car at Galileo Hill, I felt like MacArthur coming back to the Phillippines. Although Galileo failed to provide any birds with eastern flavors, the numbers of migrants were unlike anything I'd seen in California in years. Today's succulent content covers a few of the birds and unnervingly realistic dinosaurs of Galileo Hill.

Male Costa's Hummingbird is one of the coolest SoCal birds, I reckon. The head of a male morphs into a blob of indescribable brilliance in just the right light, and they have a long, weird and whimsical song that makes them easy to identify by ear.

Female Costa's Hummingbird, on the other hand, is a pretty tough ID, especially for those of you who don't get to see this bird very often. Without a good look, they can easily be mistaken for a female Black-chinned. But surely you own a field guide, and the likes of Jon Dunn and David Sibley can break down the ID process better than I.

This is Midnight the cat, who apparently lives there. Midnight took an instant liking to us when we arrived...Bird Police Officer Searcy and I were, of course, super stoked when it started following us around while we birded, meowing loudly. Nothing attracts rare birds like a large, black, noisy cat. So we had to call in the local cat control.

Help came in the form of a random Jack Russell terrier, who didn't seem attached to any human. He is stationed there to keep Midnight away from birders, according to Officer Searcy. After watching the dog and the cat try to kill each other for several minutes, we took advantage of the distraction to sneak off and go birding without small predators in tow.

Catharus thrushes were plentiful this day. Many of the Hermit Thrushes we came across had very gray upperparts, very different than the individuals that winter across the state.

Perhaps this is auduboni, or a very similar subspecies. Nice to this flavor of Hermit Thrush again, at any rate.

Swainson's Thrushes typically outnumber Hermits considerably during the spring months at many migrant traps in eastern California. Although Hermit Thrushes can vary in the amount of contrast they show between the tail and the rest of their upperparts, Swainson's always sport the same colors from the top of their heads to the tips of their tails.

Galileo Hill, where all of these photos were taken, also goes by Silver Saddle Ranch. It is private property, and you must sign in at the office if you wish to bird there. If you do anything stupid to threaten the access birders get to this unique site, the entire California birding community will hunt you down and make your life a living hell. The Bird Police will sit idly by and watch as you are bludgeoned with binoculars, tripods, and unimaginably large lenses...they are a corrupt and vengeful bunch.

It's probably best that I don't explain this...be sure to show it to your kids before they go to bed though.

BB&B Plans a Birdcation

A late male Rufous Hummingbird defends his favorite creosote of the day. This creosote has been documented and is continuing at its current location; eCreosote.org will soon serve as a repository for all creosote sightings, and will most likely leave eBird in the cyberdust as far as fashionable citizen science is concerned (botanists, rejoice!). Galileo Hill, Kern County, CA.

After a very successful nonbirding trip (yes, I take those) to the bay area, I came back to Santa Cruz Island to find everything falling apart. Our running water did not run, our 1973 Land Cruiser can no longer cruise land, and most importantly for you....our internet did not internet. That said, everything seems to be coming back to life, so you will get a quick post out of me before I return to being thrown around by burly wind gusts on the crumbly cliff tops.

I did manage one solid day of quality birding last week...I got to bird some desert sites with Officer Searcy, a Bird Policeman, and the indefatigable Dipper Dan...we cruised to 115 species without much effort, and keep in mind this is without an ocean or any montane sites. Not bad! Posts to come in the near future.

Of course, the big news is that I am going on BIRDCATION next August. It will be a short one, and the lifers will not number in the double digits (unless I find a newborn to sacrifice to the bird gods), but it is something that must be done, at least once, by any serious U.S. birder...that's right, Number 7 will be doing pelagic trips off Hatteras, North Carolina! This will surly help fill the gaping hole in my life list where Atlantic seabirds should be. Stoked! I drool at the thought of exotic tubenosedry, and tremble at the images of Bridled Terns winging though my daydreams.

Well, I see the weekend is upon us. Go forth and rage, be it in the bar or the vagrant trap...Monday will be at your throat before you know it.

Digital Planetoids of the Birdosphere

This young Yellow-crowned Night-Heron has no idea that the Birdosphere even exists...are you in the same boat? Visit some of the crucial linkage below. Bahia Honda State Park, FL.

Shocking admission: I've spent the past several days hundreds of miles away from my binoculars, spotting scope, camera and bird books...you see, a bachelor's party requires none of these things, just a liver that has come in good shape, and a special kind of stamina. But I'll be back on the island in the very near future, so this tremendous streak of going (gasp) five days in a row without birding will be short-lived.

Just wanted to throw out a few other blogs worth looking at. I come across bird blogs I like relatively infrequently, so just wanted to get the word out on some of the places I check out on the reg. If you have a blog (yours or otherwise) that you think BB&B should know about, feel free to leave a link in the comments.

Right. Birding For Humans is a newish blog steered by Josh Chapman, a SoCal birder. Josh not only comes across as a feverish nerd, but is one of the few members of the Birdosphere who can write about birding at length and with wit. Check it out if you haven't already, I think it will be going places.

Wings Above The World is mastered by Nora Olema, a fellow Santa Cruz Islander who is doing work with Island Scrub-Jays. If you want to get a different (and arguably superior) take on Santa Cruz, I recommend you give it a look.

If you have any interest in birding Costa Rica whatsoever, you must check in on Pat O'Donnell's Costa Rica Living and Birding. Pat is a part-time guide and full-time hardcore birder who lives in the country, and has a wealth of knowledge on birding in the country...I cannot not overstate what an excellent resource this is for someone planning their first (or fifteenth) Costa Rica trip.

Bruce Mactavish's blog on birding Newfoundland is fun to read, and he provides frequent droolworthy photos of a number of birds many of us just don't get to see very often, from a part of the continent coveted by birders but rarely visited by outsiders. Oh, and if you think you're a hot shit birder, try taking his insidious gull quiz.

Snowy Plover. I am at a loss to explain why this photo appears in the context of this post, but there it is and here we are. Tijuana River Mouth, Imperial Beach, CA.

There is no shortage of photocentric bird blogs, this we know. Keep an eye out for BIRDCRUSHER, the much-hyped blog from Dipper Dan, which will be taking this a step further. You might remember this frequently-harassed birder from the TPAD days. Birdcrusher is in construction as we speak.

Mia MacPherson's On The Wing Photography is a well-established, standout site. Aside from constant, unbelievable crushes, Mia also is one of the few outspoken proponents of ethical bird photography. She offers lots of coverage from Utah, Montana and Florida. Oh, and she's a Nikon user, so that will always get props from me.

I've posted the link before, but Vermphoto seems to be the bird photographer/blogger (photoblogger?) out there who turns out both epic photos and some damn funny writing. Check it!

Skilled camera trappers frequently get better Bobcat photos than I ever do. Photographed at Pt. Reyes, CA.

In the extremely unlikely event that you are into wildlife other than birds (wha?), there are blogs out there that can suit your needs too. Camera Trap Codger gave me my first exposure to the fascinating world of camera trapping, and RandomTruth's Nature of a Man is one of the leading blogs in the Traposhpere, although to be fair he delves into other spheres as well. Check out his last post, featuring a kingsnake vs. racer battle.

That will do it for now, hopefully I'll be back with another unforgettable, indelible post in the near future. Until then...bird constantly my friends.

Geri Birding At It's Best: More From La Cinchona

This Emerald Toucanet gave point-blank, facemelting views at La Cinchona...after this day, things have never been the same.

Geriatric birding first really came to light some years ago in Southeast Arizona. As birders who have visited may know, the area is ridden with people who willingly invite birders into their yards and property to watch the birds attracted to their feeders. In fact, these generous folks often provide the best places to see certain species in the entire country, i.e. White-eared Hummingbird and Berylline Hummingbird in Miller Canyon, Lucifer Hummingbird in Ash Canyon, etc. The birding at these sites is practically effortless; you just plop down in a chair and watch the bird show unfold at the feeders in front of you.

For reasons that I probably do not need to explain to you, many denizens of these publicly-accessible feeding stations are quite elderly, and thus the phrase "gereatric birding" was born. It was immediately abbreviated to "geri birding"...I'm not sure who coined the term originally, probably the one they call "Stilt". Or maybe it was the "Cassowary"?

I have strong feelings for this bird. What an amazing bill/face pattern.

As Red Phalarope Man has mentioned in the past, a study has already demonstrated Emerald Toucanet to actually consist of multiple species. One day, the AOU will likely accept the splits, and this Costa Rica bird will be (universally) known as Blue-throated Toucanet.

Geri birding is, of course, awesome. You just sit there and wrack up the birds, and are often provided with fantastic opportunities to crush them. While the geri birding scene in southeast AZ may be very good, Costa Rican geri birding is downright insane. Costa Rican geri birding spots are often just places with simple fruit feeders or a set of hummingbird feeders, but the La Cinchona Mirador (northeast of Volcan Poas) provides both. The original La Cinchona was destroyed by an earthquake several years ago, but this smaller-scale, newer version did not fail to completely melt my face off. The birding was incredible...our group of nerds all wracked up multiple lifer hummingbirds, including the mesmerizing Green Thorntail, which I failed to get a picture of. I highly recommend stopping by if you are in the area, the food is good too!

In case you missed it, here is the first post from La Cinchona.

Next up from Costa Rica...Volcan Poas!

Prong-billed Barbet was another great bird that came in to the fruit feeders. They seemed to move around rather slowly, and with great deliberation, unlike the one Red-headed Barbet I saw on the trip that was ravaging primary rainforest as part of a massive mixed flock.

As you can see, Prong-billed Barbets (and, allegedly, Red-headed) are partial to fruit feeders. What I won't tell you is how long I was watching this bird for, thinking it was an entirely different (and unrelated) species.

Green-crowned Brilliant really left its mark on me. Not only a large hummingbird, but one that looks stretched out as well...look how long its neck is!

This species lives up to its name. The iridescence the male can put off was previously unfathomable to me...if I found out the bird was radioactive, I would not be surprised. That's a female on the right side of the feeder.

Check out this male Coppery-headed Emerald...what a bird. I dig the dark teardrop around its eye.

This is one of those birds that, when seen at close range and in the right light, just completely resets your brain. For just a moment, the rest of the world does not exist. All of reality is comprised of a hummingbird.

White-bellied Mountain-Gem. Not the most glamorous species, but I like how this image came out. If you ever want to test your patience, try photographing hummingbirds mid-flight without a feeder anywhere in the frame. Not easy!

Rufous-tailed Hummingbird is familiar to anyone who has spent more than 5 minutes birding in most of Costa Rica. With the exception of high elevation sites, they are the commonest hummingbird almost everywhere you go.

Violet Sabrewing. A hulking beast of a hummingbird, a monument to facemelt. The awesome mass this bird possesses makes me wonder how the laws of physics allow this bird to still function in the form of a hummingbird...no doubt, it was a gruesome and bloody accident that led to this bird being dubbed "sabrewing".

And The Correct Answer Is...

Last week I gave you a ruthless bird quiz. Everyone correctly identified the bird as a raptor, but with soft focus and the bird being at the perfect angle to not make out anything about wing shape or tail length, people were having a rough time.

The guesses were:

Northern Harrier (3)
Red-shouldered Hawk (2)
Swainson's Hawk (1)
Gray Hawk (2)
Peregrine Falcon (2)
Merlin (1)

and of course the outlier, Red Milan (1)...which at first I assumed was some sort of wine.

I am truly surprised no one guessed any Accipiters! The bird would be a close match for an immature of any of the three species, especially with the tail bands and pale undertail coverts coming up the sides of the rump. Personally, I thought immature Gray Hawk was a great guess, considering California's very first that wintered in Carpinteria, not far from here. Of course, the completely brilliant (or bullshit) part of this quiz was that the tail blended in perfectly with one of the borderline shapeless wings, making it extremely difficult to gauge length or width, thus the relatively large spread in the sorts of guesses we got.

So, how do we get to the correct answer? The pale area on the sides of the rump clearly does not pass over the top of the rump, which is brown, eliminating Northern Harrier. Buteos and other hawks all often (but certainly not always) look a bit more front heavy/big-chested in powered flight, as this bird was in...you may have been able to deduce this by the shape of the flight feathers on the left wing. A soaring bird would generally not have its primaries angled upward at such a strange angle.

As Mr. Fish pointed out, the other clue one can use in the photo is the tail pattern....4 light, relatively narrow tail bands. The tail pattern and overall shape combined make the field of potential candidates much smaller. So perhaps we are looking at a brownish falcon with tail bands? Well, by now you've seen the picture below...the Merlin is out of the bag.

Bam. Yup, it's a Merlin, a female/immature. And probably not what I would have guessed for this quiz either, and I am Number 7.

Judging by its pale cheeks and how pale it is, its actually a "Prairie Merlin", aka richardsonii, which are very uncommon in this part of the country.

This bird, and possibly another "Prairie" individual, has been out here on the west end of Santa Cruz Island for the past several weeks. Merlins can linger/pass through southern California regularly into late April, although I have not seen a richardsonii here this late into spring.

Thanks for guessing everyone! The illustrious David Rankin gets props for the sole correct answer. Maybe I'll do this more often...but don't worry, not too often.

HBP Presents: "I Would Be A Human Landfill": The Sad Confessions of the Off-Season Guller

The days of the Slaty-backed Gull have evaporated along with the snowflakes of last winter. What will the gull fiends do now? Miller-Knox Regional Shoreline, Richmond, CA.

Larophiles. You know what that means, in fact I've told you all about them right here on BB&B. So you are probably wondering, "why are you bringing them up now, in the beginning of May?" There are warblers to ogle, flycatchers to frown at, vireos to veer toward...who in their right mind is looking for gulls right now?

That is precisely the question. One thing I've always wondered is what these gull fiends actually do for half the year. Most gulls are migratory, and the numbers and diversity of species of the winter months simply don't exist in most of North America during spring and summer. Do larophiles just forget gulls exist and revert to being normal birders (whatever that means) for a while?

The Human Birdwatcher Project ("Birders are people too!") recently reached in to the slimy nether-regions of the gulling community to find the answers. One brave soul was willing to step forward and dish out the truth; his name will be kept safely anonymous.

Human Birdwatcher Project: Thanks for talking with us today. Please tell us a bit about yourself, and your thoughts on spring birding in general.

Guller: Hi, I am a Larophile. Gulls stimulate me...there's no point in lying about it.

I live in the northeast, and am known in the birding community. I'm not trying to brag, but I have been at it for years. My niche? Gulls. Not very surprising I guess. Anyways, knowing about gulls is pretty much the only social stature I get in my entire life. When birders have a gull question, they come to me...you don't know the pride, the sense of power that this instills in me. I know that's kind of sad, but at least I'm honest with myself...it beats staying at home and staring at a bird feeder all day....well, at least by a little bit.

I like other birds, but they don't make me the feel emotions I do when I am looking at gulls, or even just thinking about them. I do get a bit jealous of the attention they get this time of year. I can admit it. No one really talks about gulls in May, other than the occasional migrant Franklin's. My services are no longer needed.

Even the lowly Ring-billed Gull needs to take a break after a long winter of trying to outwit beginning birders. San Leandro Marina, San Leandro, CA.

I like gulls myself, but I like other birds too...so why do you just stick to gulls? Most other birders are more than happy to take a break from them.

I do like other birds...but I'm not very good at identifying them. With gulls, you need to know a lot of mundane and tedious details to make an ID, and you only need to know 20, maybe 25 species max to have your shit together in the gull scene. Frankly, I just don't have the time or energy to learn 700 other birds. My brain is filled with gull details, and I'll be damned if I have to start paying attention to calls and songs of things that don't even remotely resemble gulls. Speaking frankly, no one truly enjoys gulls, not the big ones anyway, people only like them if they are rare or are in an interesting plumage. Gullers like identifying them, and that's about it. People get lots of other kinds of enjoyment out of other birds...I don't really know how to do that.

Gull season in the U.S. is late fall to early spring. That leaves about half the year open to other birding opportunities. Do you really not even look at birds the rest of the year?

Let's just say that when my name stops popping up in gull forums and listservs, it's not because I'm posting someplace else.

So your whole identity is based around gulling, isn't it? You must hate spring migration.

I hate it with all of my small and shriveled heart, yes. Warblers are horseshit.

Don't live on the west coast? Care to find a Glaucous-winged Gull at your local gull patch? Well there's no point in hurrying out there now, if it is gulls you want, it may be best to enter a state of incredibly nerdy hibernation until winter comes again. Photographed at Miller-Knox Regional Shoreline.

Have you been birding at all lately?

No! Don't you get it? I'll still wistfully check the parking lots once in a while and find an excuse to go to the dump, but it's just not the same. There's always a couple weird sun-bleached gulls that show up every season, but it is just not enough to sustain me. There ares not even hybrids around! Where do they go? One of these years I'm just going to up and follow them, I swear.

But next year I might fly up to Alaska to see some Slaty-backed and Vega Gulls in their spring finery...Saint Lawrence Island should have them both.

I don't think I've ever heard "gulls" and "spring finery" in the same sentence.

Well whose fault is that? Not the gullers, that's for sure. I'm telling you, its all these wimpy birders obsessed with their goddamn warblers and orioles and shit that give us a bad name.

The hooded gulls are pretty striking in spring. They are loaded with spring finery.

Yeah, but gullers don't like talking about them. Our birds are supposed to be scummy and ugly and tough. The small gulls are all dainty and graceful, have aesthetic appeal...it conflicts with the image of our ideal gull. We also don't like them because they are too easy to identify and don't readily hybridize.




California Gull is highly sought-after by eastern birders. However, the fact that they avoid interbreeding may, in fact, make them less sought-after by larophiles. Lake Merrit, Oakland, CA.

What is your take on the Kumlien's debate?

Oh man, I love me a Kumlien's, even just talking about them makes me happy. Everyone seems like a Kumlien's expert...and that's not a bad thing, although I do think its funny. Especially when it is right on the cusp of looking like a Thayer's, everyone has their own opinion. The first-cycle Kumlien's that are more Glaucous-like in size and structure are a bit harder for me to wrap my head around.

Something any guller would love to do this time of year is go up to the Canadian Arctic and see what the Kumlien's mating scene is like. Is it a big Icelandic orgy, with white-winged birds mixed with dark-winged birds? Are there Thayer's around? Glaucoides? Or do they stick to their own kind?

Their own kind....not sure what that means. Some people poo-poo Kumlien's as nothing but hybrids, but listen....I am a guller. That makes me a bullshit artist of the highest caliber, and boy do I know bullshit when I hear it. I'm not saying these hybrid and full species theories are right or wrong, but the people who espouse them certainly don't have any more proof than you or me, I can tell you that much. If someone really cared then they would spend a few bucks and get some genetic work done, you know? There's so many of these damn things stuffed in museum drawers around the country it would be a cinch to get all the material to work with. It's not a high price to pay to be Right, and that's all any birder wants in the world, whether its about a gull or some stupid fuckoff warbler.

Personally, I could care less if it was definitely proven to be a hybrid or not. Unlike other birders, larophiles actually like hybrids...

Do you have a favorite gull?

I like the Herrings. There are so many types...a rainbow of subtlety. Vega is big right now in the gull scene...well, they were until spring anyway. Everyone in the U.S. reports them as "probable" and "apparent" Vega Gulls, so it's like you can't go wrong! Every guller I know has reported a putative Vega in the last couple winters, photos or no photos.

Of course, if I do that Alaska trip I mentioned, they would really be Vegas. This excites me...although a Vega X Slaty-back would absolutely rock my small, narrowly-viewed world.



A first-cycle Kumlien's Iceland Gull shows off its wonderful frosty bits. Sausalito, CA.

Thanks for keeping it real with us. Any parting words?

Yes. Are you familar with St. Johns, Newfoundland? It has always been my fantasy to visit in January, my favorite month of the year. I would take off all my clothes and paddle out into the harbor. I would be covered in fish guts, animal remains, and various bits of garbage. And then...the Kumlien's horde would descend upon me. They would feed voraciously. It would feel fantastic...I would be a human landfill, getting to see, feel, hear and smell a huge flock of the most confusing gull on the continent. That's my paradise. My Gulltopia. But hell, I'll admit it: if any Ivory Gulls were reported in the area, I would just cover myself in steaks instead.

Weird, that's what I've always dreamed of as well. Thanks for talking to us, we hope the winter comes soon for you.

Don't judge me asshole.

Seagull Steve is actually being paid to observe Western Gulls this year, which he finds both humorous and unusual. Photographed at Lake Merritt.

Quiz Bird!!!

All too often I find myself keeping absolute garbage photos because the little hoarder in my head says, "come on, this will make a great quiz photo." So I finally listened, and here you are. You want hints? Fine. Southern California. Late April. That's all you get.

Who is not afraid of being embarrassed in public? Leave a comment below with your guess. I'll post the answer in the not distant future, after I get a big Human Birdwatcher Project post up.

Birds For Bullshit Artists, A Pipit of Excellent Posture, and More

American Pipits have captured the hearts of birders almost solely on personality alone, although no one can deny their excellent posture. Maybe that is why vagrant Red-throated Pipits always hang out with them in fall...the assertive strut of the American inspires nothing but confidence in the disoriented Russians...er, Red-throateds. San Leandro Marina, San Leandro, CA.

As some of you know, I am in the midst of what biologists call "the field season", when we are constantly working out of doors for long hours, being stressed out, exhausted, occasionally risking extreme bodily harm...and have the lame ability to go to sleep before 9 PM. So my apologies for not keeping up my rigorous BB&B posting schedule of the gone (but not forgotten) Perpetual Weekend. In honor of said seven month long weekend, here are a few birds from the end of winter that never made it onto BB&B.

I hope you all are getting a stronger dose of spring migration than I am. I did get my FOS Olive-sided Flycatcher here on Santa Cruz  Island the other day, although it wasn't a year bird (thank you Costa Rica).

Somewhere...somehow...a Black Turnstone is watching you. North Jetty of Humboldt Bay, CA.

This the Purple Finch's first visit to BB&B...although not rare by any means, I just don't see them too frequently in California. I always thought the huge hole in their range in the Lower 48 was strange...I'm sure Cassin's Finches fill their niche in many mountain ranges, but you can find them side by side in some places in California. Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, CA.

A homely Hooded Merganser hen nibbles a stickleback. Mergansers eat a lot of sticklebacks in this little pond at Golden Gate Park, and they always nibble the shit out of the fish before actually swallowing them...perhaps they just need to get the fish into the perfect position to swallow, or else they will get stickled. Stickled? Stuckled? Stuck.

American Wigeon. The abundance and variety of subtle patterns found in waterfowl feathers blows me away. Golden Gate Park.

Great-tailed Grackle. I think that brownish wash in the iris is leftover color from being a young bird...adult males have bright yellow eyes. Lake Merced, San Francisco, CA.

Although I am writing this at the height of spring migration, I know some of you sick bastards secretly are really missing gull season. Here is a weird worn and whitish Herring Gull...this was taken almost 2 months ago, so it's probably doing a good Glaucous Gull impression somewhere by now. Golden Gate Park.

Although superficially resembling a Thayer's Gull (ok...not superficially, it really does), check out the size of the bill on this bird. Not exactly cute, is it? What we have here is a Glaucous-winged X Herring Gull, not a rare bird in northern California but always worth a good study. Lake Merritt, Oakland, CA.

Compare the above bird with this little bird. Look how cute and neat it looks! Look at that little-bitty bill! This is a first cycle Thayer's Gull. Many in late winter have extensive pink in the bill, as this bird does. Lake Merritt.

Enough of gulls already. Gulls are essentially bullshit, just fodder for birding bullshit artists. Forster's Terns are not. San Leandro Marina.

After missing them entirely in 2012, I finally ran into some Red Crossbills at Redwood National Park, in Humboldt County, CA. The (red) woods were teeming with them, in fact. Check out the length of the primaries of the bird on the right! These birds were literally built to be nomads.

Some photogs would have just thrown this picture out, but I think this fleeing Red-tailed Hawk (which I did NOT flush, thanks) has its own merits. This picture is a poor imitation of what Walter Kitundu can do...he is a bay area photographer who gets some amazing perspectives. Photographed at Golden Gate Park.