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EdBannister

Mountain climber

13,000 feet

Jan 16, 2012 - 08:55pm PT

Reilly

Mountain climber

The Other Monrovia- CA

Jan 16, 2012 - 08:58pm PT

You ever get the feeling you're being watched?

BLD

climber

Jan 16, 2012 - 09:26pm PT

Hi Ed!

Nice shot

Tony

Trad climber

Pt. Richmond, CA

Jan 16, 2012 - 09:42pm PT

Slater,
I think you are right - Hermit Thrush.

BLD,
Cool shot. It's hard to see all the field marks, but judging from the surroundings, I'd say Marsh Wren.

Reilly,
At least they usually make their presence known by their raucousness.

Crimpergirl

Sport climber

Boulder, Colorado!

Jan 16, 2012 - 09:53pm PT

The Wren is adorable. Makes me feels it's a youngster calling out to a parent for some food.

Reilly

Mountain climber

The Other Monrovia- CA

Jan 16, 2012 - 09:58pm PT

Tony,
Au contraire, these guys just sat there silently staring - creepy!

Tony

Trad climber

Pt. Richmond, CA

Jan 16, 2012 - 10:13pm PT

Reilly, that does seem uncharacteristic. They must have been up to something.

By the way, is the ST birding outing to SE Arizona still in the cards? I just figured out my schedule in May and I have the third and fourth week in May open. I hope this works for others. I'm very anxious to return there. If not, everybody have a great time and I will be there in spirit.

BLD

climber

Jan 16, 2012 - 10:45pm PT

Thanks Crimper..Here is another shot from the same area as the Marsh Wren. This Swainsons hawk???..... knows how to get dinner. I watched as it flew from its high spot in a tree and nailed this coot????

BLD

climber

Jan 16, 2012 - 10:47pm PT

Yuck.........

cyndiebransford

climber

31 years in Joshua Tree, now Alaska

Jan 17, 2012 - 12:34am PT

Saguaro National Park West, Tucson, Arizona

Bob D'A

Trad climber

Taos, NM

Jan 17, 2012 - 12:38am PT

Tony...count me in...should be fun.

BLD

climber

Jan 17, 2012 - 12:51am PT

Here is more from that area.....(Vic Fazio wildlife area) Sacramento, CA.

I use to walk out there a lot and find peace with the birds.

Tony

Trad climber

Pt. Richmond, CA

Jan 17, 2012 - 01:21am PT

BLD,

That is definitely a great place. I plan to go there with some visitors next week. Have you been there in the summer for the bat flyout? It is quite a spectacle. Here is some video I shot: Yolo Bat Flyout Sorry for the background chatter. I need to reupload it without sound. Too bad there wasn't a silent background. You could hear the bats "chirping".

By the way, I think that is a juvenile Red-tailed Hawk, although there is a small population of Swainson's that overwinters in the Central Valley.

BLD

climber

Jan 17, 2012 - 01:33am PT

Tony,

Yes, I have seen the bats and I will look for some photos to post up.

That place is great!

Thanks for the ID help.

B

Tony

Trad climber

Pt. Richmond, CA

Jan 17, 2012 - 03:25am PT

Here are a few bat photos from the Yolo Bypass. It's amazing that they can avoid colliding as they fly out.

Sorry, not quite birds.

scuffy b

climber

heading slowly NNW

Jan 17, 2012 - 12:26pm PT

Regarding the Coot, sure, the Red-Tail is more versatile, more a
generalist than just about any raptor, while a Swainson's has a reputation
as a grasshopper specialist.
So what do these unusual overwintering Swainson's Hawks eat in the
Sacramento Valley? Do they become mousers?

Tony

Trad climber

Pt. Richmond, CA

Jan 17, 2012 - 02:27pm PT

scuffy,

This from Birds of North America:

The breeding-season diet of the Swainson’s Hawk is similar to that of other temperate-zone buteos; young are fed rodents, rabbits, and reptiles. When not breeding, however, this hawk is atypical because it is almost exclusively insectivorous, eating grasshoppers (Acrididae) in particular. Only by concentrating on abundant insects can large concentrations of Swainson’s Hawks be sustained.

I think this mainly refers to the birds that winter in South America. Perhaps the birds overwintering in the Central Valley can continue to feed on rodents, etc, since they are not in large assemblages. Maybe Willoughby could weigh in.

scuffy b

climber

heading slowly NNW

Jan 17, 2012 - 05:27pm PT

Thanks, Tony.
Interesting, the changing diet going along with the changing habit.
Amy Jo and i were at Arrowhead Marsh the other day (I hope that's right,
across from the old Oakland Airport, Dalton Slough), spoke of you, had a
kick ass sighting of Virginia Rail and some other cool items.