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Willoughby
Social climber
Truckee, CA
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Red-tail and I'd lean towards Cooper's too. I wouldn't bet my life on it, 'cause none of the features looks like a slam dunk, but they all seem to lean in that direction. The flat-topped head, capped look, thick-enough-looking legs, and rounded-looking tail all point towards sharpie.
EDIT - der, yeah I meant ... point towards Cooper's. Head looks small and the eye looks big though. Whole thing seems kinda svelte. Eye color is NOT indicative of any Accipiter, although Coop's tend towards the orange at full maturity. But they can be blood red just like the other two species as well.
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Slater
Trad climber
Central Coast
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The flat-topped head, capped look, thick-enough-looking legs, and rounded-looking tail all point towards sharpie. I think you mean Coopers. Man you guys are confusing ha ha.
red eye = Coopers characteristic too
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BrassNuts
Trad climber
Save your a_s, reach for the brass...
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CG and I finally got out of town for a fun weekend visiting old friends in Palos Verdes CA and chased a few birds while we were there...
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Gary
climber
"My god - it's full of stars!"
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Terrific, BrassNuts.
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Crimpergirl
Sport climber
Boulder, Colorado!
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Sorry about the confusion! I thought Coopers failing to realize I was not agreeing with you. However, I'd never hold myself up to solidly IDing a Coopers versus a Sharp Shinned! Heck, I had one LAND on me once and still wasn't sure. (Might have been the shock I was in).
BN is holding out. We have lots of cool photos from our last trip. Such fun!
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Dr F, it's an Allens that didn't like BN's portraiture, although I do.
But, oh, BN, for a bit more DOF, eh? Still a great shot.
You are certainly right about the Gnatcatchers in the Back Bay. I got a
Vermilion Flycatcher on the bike path just above the Back Bay.
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Crimpergirl
Sport climber
Boulder, Colorado!
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Definitely an Allen's. A VERY green back!
We actually didn't see single Rufous on the entire trip (they only migrate through that area and I guess we missed them).
When BN gets home, I'll nag, uh, ask him to post some more!
Oh and Riley - we saw a lot of the California Gnatcatchers which was really cool (on the property of the Trump Golf Course). The one pictured there was busy building a nest! He had a mate and we watched them both toil away. He certainly did more of the work it seemed. Adorable watching the shaping of it. They built if FAST. I wonder if by now there are eggs in it. We showed the nest to some local birders so they can keep tabs on it. I hope they raise many healthy happy babies!
edit: Dr. F, from what I understand, the first thing to look at to discern an Allen's from a Rufous is the back. Allen's = Green; Rufous = rufous. However, some Rufous show a green back so my guide suggested letting geography help. Open to other opinions, but I know that this bird (and the many others we saw) had a green green green back.
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BrassNuts
Trad climber
Save your a_s, reach for the brass...
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Reilly, ah yes, more DOF, always a trade off between reach, aperture and DOF...
Dr. F, yes, many CA Gnat-catchers in the area we visited, but difficult for me to get a clear shot, fun to watch regardless :-)
Now, a few more springtime birds of So Cal...
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Slater
Trad climber
Central Coast
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stahlbro... a little late on the response but classic video! The one just after that has the motor model was pretty sweet too!
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Tony
Trad climber
Pt. Richmond, CA
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BN,
Beautiful photos as usual. The CA Gnatcatcher has been elusive for me. Every time I think I might have found one, it turns out to be a Blue-gray. I'll have to make a point of hitting Newport Back Bay when I am down there in August. American Coot feet, I think.
Edit: A Harris's HAwk, wow!
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Crimpergirl
Sport climber
Boulder, Colorado!
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Got the feet Tony! They are mighty wacky aren't they??
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Tony
Trad climber
Pt. Richmond, CA
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Yes, I handled some of these guys in rehab and they can do some damage.
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Willoughby
Social climber
Truckee, CA
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Gorgeous photos BrassNuts. Really good stuff!!
Regarding Allen's vs. Rufous, it is true that lots of adult male Rufous can have a varying amount of green on their backs, and a small percentage (1-2 %) actually have completely green backs - just like an Allen's. Rufous are moving northward right now, so they're overlapping in distribution. Also, Rufous can be exceedingly territorial during migration, so behavioral clues go right out the window. Unfortunately, the only way to know with certainty right now, short of bloodwork and DNA analysis, is by the width and shape of the rectirces (tail feathers). All that said, if it was looking like a pure adult male Allen's, right on the coast of Palos Verde, it probably was an Allen's.
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Crimpergirl
Sport climber
Boulder, Colorado!
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Thanks Willoughby...you post --> I learn. Love it.
Cool also about the Coot's feet. I hadn't thought about them being a bit dangerous. It makes sense though. I've always thought of them as swamp birds since I see so many at Brazos Bend State Park in the Houston area (alligators!!!). But in Palos Verdes - they were gold course birds. Fun.
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Crimpergirl
Sport climber
Boulder, Colorado!
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My understanding is that when the golf course was established (pre-Trump) the city (or county or some bureaucratic agency) required they provide public parking and access to the beach. In addition, they cooperated to not only maintain, but enhance the natural terrain because the CA Gnatcatchers were happy and reproducing there.
When Trump bought from the previous owners (bankrupt), they made them honor that deal.
Thank goodness since the little guys are still there. I don't want to make it sound like there were "Carolina Parakeet" amounts - but we saw several. And several is better than none. Hope you can make it out there!
related links (and yes, they are doing better, but still endangered): http://www.isteve.com/Golf_Course_30_Years.htm
http://trumpnationallosangeles.com/html/newsroom_0905c.asp
http://www.caopenspace.org/oceantr.html
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Darwin
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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BrassNuts
Trad climber
Save your a_s, reach for the brass...
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Darwin - nice Hummer on the nest shot, very cool.
Tony - hope you get to hear and see some CA Gnat-catchers soon, very cool little birds, fun to hear them squeak around in the brush, challenging to photograph (at least for me, perhaps you'll have better luck :-)
Riley - my aging eyes can't get a clue on your mystery bird but I'm sure one of the way honed bird masters on this thread will score...
All - keep the fun photos and stories coming - best non climbing thread on the Taco!
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TGT
Social climber
So Cal
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The black Phoebe's are fun. I've had a pair living in my back yard continuously for about ten years now.
i have about 18" high PVC pipe stakes to support the hot wire that separates the dog's lawn from the Obamagarden. That's a convenient height perch for them for repeated feeding forays across the lawn. The male always shows up several weeks before the female. Never have figured out where the nest is. They will even follow me when I mow the lawn and swoop down behind me after bugs I've bolted to flight.
I know of one not to be disclosed location in the OC with at least a dozen and possibly several dozen CA Gnat Catchers. I've seen a half dozen feeding all at the same time in one small location.
If you saw the hummer in Calif it's probably an Annas, in Arizona probably a Rufus.
I've seen Rufus chase crows and jays. they can be spectacularly aggressive for their size.
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Crimpergirl
Sport climber
Boulder, Colorado!
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Like this Ron?
If I understand you, I think you are describing a juvenile White Crowned Sparrow.
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Tony
Trad climber
Pt. Richmond, CA
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BN,
I'll make a better effort for CA Gnatcatchers next time I'm down in SoCal. You managed to capture a good shot that showed the field marks well. The undertail pattern and that cool partial eyering.
The coastal access is pretty extensive due the existence of the CA Coastal Commission set up as a result of a proposition passed in 1972. It is still sort of an uphill battle to get enforced, particularly where there are exclusive coastal developments. Still, it seems a lot less coastline is inaccessible than would be otherwise.
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