01-29-00

At Adobe Creek, a male Eurasian Wigeon could be viewed from the Charleston Slough Trail. The bird was in a large pond north of the trail in the Flood Control Basin. Eight Black Skimmers remain on their island at the base of the Slough. A single Loggerhead Shrike seems to be a pretty dependable bird in this same area. In the nearby Mountain View Forebay, a Green Heron was foraging in the storm water drain. On Shoreline Lake there were many Horned, Eared and Western Grebes as well as Common Goldeneye, one Barrow's Goldeneye and close to 20 Surf Scoters.

01-15-00

In the Redwood Shores area there were 7 Hooded Mergansers at the corner of Redwood Shores and Radio Way. At the large pond in front of the pollution control facility there were two more Hooded Mergansers and two male Eurasian Wigeons and a third bird which appeared to be a hybrid American x Eurasian Wigeon.

At the large pond in Foster City there were three Barrow's Goldeneyes.

01-14-00

Today at the Palo Alto Yacht Club mudflats, across from the Duck Pond, there was an immature Peregrine Falcon foraging among the shorebirds. It was joined a few minutes later by an adult that appeared to want it out of the area. The two duelled over the flocks of frightened shorebirds for a while before I lost them over the Dump. A couple of hundred Bonepart's Gulls were among the species agitated by the falcons.

I was in the area to scout out our trip on January 22nd. At the Pond and in the adjoining waterways there were many species of duck such as Mallard, Gadwall, Northern Shoveler, Northern Pintail, American Wigeon, Cinnamon Teal, Green-winged Teal, Ruddy Duck, Greater Scaup, Lesser Scaup, Bufflehead and Canvasback. Elsewhere, there were 5 male Blue-winged Teals in the Palo Alto Flood Control Basin along Fronage Road south of Embarcadero.

Among other swimming birds we may expect to see on the trip are American Coot, Double-crested Cormorant, Pied-billed Grebe, Western Grebe, Clark's Grebe, Eared Grebe and Horned Grebe.

01-09-00

In San Jose today, along the Guadalupe River north of the Trimble Road overpass there was a White-thoated Sparrow near the large green water tank. In the same area the Harlan's Red-tailed Hawk continues. This very dark form of the hawk is distinctive in having almost no red on its tail, but rather white with a dark brown terminal band.