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Pileated Woodpecker, Occidental Road

10/29/2015

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Heard a lot of whooping sounds, and discovered this pileated woodpecker on this tree - then to my astonishment, it jumped onto a nearby grapevine for a grape snack.
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Pileated woodpecker in the grapevine
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The grape eater
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In the same area near Occidental road, a varied thrush
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The red-breasted sapsucker
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Another view, the red-breasted sapsucker, near Occidental road
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Townsend warbler, near Occidental rd
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Brown creeper, also near Occidental rd
PictureNorthern Flicker, Ragle Ranch Park



A walk with the camera through Ragle Ranch Regional Park in Sebastopol


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Bushtit, Ragle Ranch Park
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Still a fair amount of blackberries in the park, which the small birds were eating
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Song sparrow, Ragle Ranch Park
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Red-shouldered hawk in the park
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Female Nuttall's woodpecker, Ragle Ranch Park
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Female Western Bluebird, near the main entrance to the park
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Also near the main entrance, an acorn woodpecker storage tree, getting heavy use right now.
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Front yard birds

10/23/2015

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PictureChestnut-backed chickadee, Camp Meeker
Chickadees show up at my front yard feeders and water bowls, bringing other small birds with them.

The chickadees always travel in groups, & other small birds often join them for security in numbers.


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Ruby-crowned kinglet coming down out of forest canopy to feeders, front yard, Camp Meeker (you can see tiniest hint of red feathering on his head)
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Ruby-crowned kinglet, camp meeker
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Out of focus shot, Townsend Warbler. front yard - a few times this warbler has been with the chickadees when they visit.




A few small groups of Pygmy Nuthatches showing up a couple of different times a day, always when the chickadees are also there.
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Pygmy nuthatch cautiously approaching the feeders
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Partly shaded Pygmy Nuthatch, Camp Meeker - hopefully better photos to come!
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Chestnut-backed chickadee at the hanging water bowl, front yard
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Female Anna's hummer, front yard
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Another view, female Anna's hummingbird
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The sparrows have been in the yard, once the bird bath happened. Here is a fox sparrow, drinking with the Buddha. Robins also use the bird bath in the mornings.
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Fox sparrow - a large ground foraging bird
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Stellar Jay on the fence, they were the first to appear of all the birds, along with the scrub jays
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Also, the dark-eyed juncos have to be the most numerous. This is a male on the porch.
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Hermit Thrush
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And the very handsome golden-crowned sparrow, camp meeker
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Juvenile White-tailed kites at the Laguna

10/20/2015

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Several juvenile white-tailed kites perching and grooming at the Laguna, until one took off to do some hunting.
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Juvenile white-tailed kite grooming
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Juveniles have amber eyes and buffy coloring
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Grooming
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Juvenile white-tailed kite in flight, the Laguna
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Juvenile white-tailed kite on the hunt in the Laguna
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Male Western Bluebird, also hunting, at the Laguna
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Female Western Bluebird in nearby tree
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Photogenic white-crowned sparrows still in evidence in the park
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Two hot air balloons drifting in the skies over the Laguna
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More yellow-rumped warblers showing up at the Laguna
Quick trip to Bodega Bay
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Two American coots, Hole in the Head, Bodega
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Small kinglet, owl canyon, Bodega Bay
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Female Downy woodpecker, owl canyon, Bodega Bay
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Adobe Creek, and Schollenberger Park, Petaluma

10/15/2015

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PictureFemale Downy woodpecker, Adobe Creek

While checking out Schollenberger Park in Petaluma, I discovered a small wooded environment adjacent to the park, squeezed between the industrial parks in the area, known as Adobe Creek.

At the time I was there, a few small woodpeckers were vying for territory on the best trees.


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Same female Downy checking out a tree opening
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Woodpeckers often put their heads close to tree, to hear insect activity?
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Shy black phoebe, Adobe Creek
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Also, the male Downy, with his small red cap made a brief appearance
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Male Nuttalls' woodpecker, Adobe Creek
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Male Nuttalls' woodpecker
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The Schollenberger side of the park, this white-crowned sparrow
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An adult white-tailed kite sat on a man-made perch in the park
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Goldfinch collecting seeds from the dry grasses
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California Towhee on a woodpile, Schollenberger Park, Petaluma
Back at Camp Meeker, a hermit thrush checks out the bird friendly area near the front deck
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Hermit thrush in nearby redwood tree, camp meeker
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Marbeled Murrelet, Bodega Bay

10/9/2015

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My first sighting of this small sea bird, but known to all as a species endangered by the loss of old growth forest (like the spotted owl), and adversely impacted by logging.
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Marbeled murrelet, Bodega Bay
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Same bird, different view - the marbeled murrelet nests in old growth forests.
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Many terns were diving in the bay, along with pelicans. 
I believe these are common terns.


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Possibly juvenile common tern, going in for a dive, Bodega Bay
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Splash, and a fish!
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Common Loon nearby, surfaced with a small sea snake
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Clark's grebe, Bodega Bay
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Brown Pelicans also getting in on some fishing action
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Brown Pelican, Bodega Bay
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On the shore, the white-crowned sparrow, Bodega Bay
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And the everywhere present Savannah sparrow
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Female Kestrel gives me the "back off" look, as I get too close with the camera, Bodega Bay
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Snowy Egret, Bodega Bay
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Not to be missed, the marbeled godwits, Bodega Bay
Some inland areas around Bodega Bay are known in the birding world as "vagrant traps," meaning unusual species are often seen there.  It can get rather crazed with whole troops of birders descending on the area at certain times, so I don't frequent it too often.  But the other day, it was quiet and no one else was there, so I braved a venture up the well-traveled and trampled path that is known as Owl Canyon.
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Chestnut-sided warbler, vagrant to the Bodega Bay area
 Chestnut-sided warbler, either a female or first year male, at Owl canyon, Bodega
(the male is very colorful, with the alluded to chestnut coloring.)

See Colin Talcroft's local birding website:

http://www.colintalcroft.com/Sonoma_County_Bird_Watching_Spots/SCBWS_front_page.html

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Black Phoebe, Hole in the Head, Bodega
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Some yellow-rumped warblers showing up
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Family of white-tailed kites, Tolay Lake Regional Park

10/4/2015

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PictureWhite-tailed kite, Tolay Lake Regional Park
   I counted six white-tailed kites, all perched close to each other in one of the small wooded areas of the park.  Some of them are juveniles, probably from this year.

They seemed to be a darker variety from the ones at the Laguna.


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Adult white-tailed kite, Tolay Lake
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Juvenile white-tailed kite
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Buffy streaks on breast feathers indicates a juvenile white-tailed kite.
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Juvenile spooked by my approach
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White-tailed kite, juvenile, struggling for a perch
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Fluffed up adult white-tailed kite at Tolay Lake Regional Park
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At the beginning of my walk, a house wren near one of the barns, with the bright fall sun behind it.
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The park was full of Savannah sparrows
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Savannah sparrow, Tolay Lake Regional Park
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Also, the extremely shy Meadow Lark
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Same meadow lark, different view
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While talking with some fellow hikers in the park, this Northern Harrier flew over
PictureShort-eared owl? Tolay Lake


Also, in the thick branches, this owl.  Since I had seen a great horned owl in this same location last year, I thought it was the same bird.
However, since there are no ear tufts, it might be a short-eared owl.


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White-crowned sparrow in full song, Tolay Lake
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On the way out of the park, near a private pond, this worried looking kildeer
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Return of the golden-crowned sparrow

10/1/2015

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I've been hearing this bird's beautiful lilting whistle call in the parks, and finally started seeing them, this one checking out my front yard bird bath and feeder. A largish migratory sparrow, it arrives in late summer and leaves by late spring.
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Golden-crowned sparrow, camp meeker
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Male dark-eyed junco, also on front yard fence
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Female (pale eyes) Bushtit in the Laguna.
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Male bushtit, dark eyes
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Cedar waxwings in this area of the Laguna due to the wild grapes
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Cedar waxwing
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Cedar waxwing
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Juvenile cedar waxwing, the Laguna
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Female Anna's hummer, the Laguna
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Wild rose hips
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Among the bird flurries in the Laguna, were gray squirrels
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In the reeds surrounding the Laguna pond, the red-winged blackbird
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Adult black-crowned night heron
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An adult (left) and a junvenile black-crowned night heron at the Laguna pond
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Small group of male mallards
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Northern shoveler, eclipse plumage, the Laguna pond
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Overcast day, the white-tailed kite, hunting again in the Laguna
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Ready to pounce, the white-tailed kite
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Moulting western bluebird? On one of the trail signs, in the Laguna
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Another migratory sparrow, the white-crowned sparrow, also in the park
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Looking much like the black phoebe, this is the Say's phoebe, hunting in the dry grasses for insects
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Another view, Say's Phoebe
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The Say's phoebe hovers like the white tailed kite, only close to the ground, watching the grasses for insects.

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Say's phoebe, hunting
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Beautiful Great Blue Heron drinking water in the Laguna pond
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Male lesser goldfinch, eating seeds in the park
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Male lesser goldfinch
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Female lesser goldfinch, exhibiting almost perfect camouflage among the grasses
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    Author

    Walking through
    California coastal parks and redwoods, and sometimes beyond, with a Nikon DSLR & telephoto lens (completely amateur)



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