Today I am sharing some birds we find foraging around the shore of our lakes, ponds, rivers, and sloughs. Some of these birds can be found here in the Sacramento region year-round but most are much more prevalent from late autumn to early spring.
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The wildlife refuges in Northern California are one of the wintering over spots for our two varieties of wild white geese: The Snow Goose (Chen caerulescens) and the Ross’s Goose (Chen rossii). They are 2 species that look almost alike and hang around together. In fact they do inter-breed so hybridized geese can be found. There is also a darker morph of both species which can sometimes be found in the flock. The darker or “blue morph” of the Snow Goose is sometimes called a Blue Goose. The head of the Ross’s Goose is smaller and more rounded than the that of the Snow Goose. The Ross’s Goose has a gray patch at the base of its bill. The Snow Goose has dark smile lines on the side of its bill that, I think, look like teeth.
It is amazing site to see these birds lift into the air. Entire fields full of geese will take off at one time making it look like a blizzard of white. On the day we observed them we were treated to an air show by many flocks. Thousands of birds were flying in large “V” formations as far as you could see in all directions. It was amazing!
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Last week we made the first of our pilgrimages to a spot where Sandhill Cranes winter over. It is still early in the migration and there seemed to be fewer there this year. I caught these images just as the last rays of the sun were setting over Mt Diablo.
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Living along the Pacific Flyway provides a treat; many birds pass through or winter over around here. Our most well known and popular of the winter visitors is the Sandhill Crane. But, in this post, I am going to present another visitor, one less known, the Cackling Goose (Branta hutchinsii).
The Cackling Goose and the Canada Goose look nearly identical and they are related. Until recently they were considered 2 subspecies of a single species. The Cackling Goose is smaller and makes a distinctive cackle instead of the Canada Goose’s honk. One of the field marks I use to identify them is a white band at the base of the black neck; its not a perfect identifier but it is very good.
While the Canada Goose is ubiquitous year around, I have only seen the Cackling Geese, reliably, in a limited area and only in Late October and November. One birder told me that we get the Aleutian Subspecies; there are several other subspecies.
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On our last trip to the Eastern Sierra, we explored Big Pine – Death Valley Road. Twenty-five miles from Big Pine, CA, the pavement ends, and you enter Death Valley National Park. The route took us through Eureaka Valley, over the Last Chance Mountains to Crankshaft Crossing where we made a right to continue on Death Valley Road. That led us to Ubehebe Road then to Scotty’s Castle Road and further to Stovepipe Wells. It was a fun trip through beautiful desert despite the tire shredding rocks and washboard grating on the road. If you ever take this route be careful. Have really good tires and plan your timing; there are many washes that cross the road. They were all in good repair when we took the trip in early autumn. But, they could be bad in other times of the year.
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The Phainopepla (Phainopepla nitens), is a bird we see in the Sacramento area, but my experience is that it is not seen often. In fact, “Checklist of the Birds of the Sacramento Area” says they are hard to find in the summer but are a little bit more prevalent the rest of the year. Their range is generally the Southwestern US and Mexico as well as California’s Central Valley.
According to All About Birds from Cornell Labs, they are a silky flycatcher, not related to other North American Flycatchers. They eat insects and berries, especially the berry of the desert Mistletoe. Though they have their own call, they sometimes imitate the calls of other birds.
The name Phainopepla, comes from the Greek: Phain Pepla, meaning shining robe, likely referencing the shiny black feathers of the male. They have red eyes but I have noticed while photographing them the color varies to black and yellow depending upon the angle and strength of the light.
The Alabama Hill in Lone Pine, Ca, is a geologically unique rock field from the same period as but separate from the Sierra Nevada mountains. It is formed by large rock formations that have eroded into rounded shapes and arches. The trip on the Arches Loop Trail is magnificent. These hills are set below Mt Whitney and sunrises there are beautiful.
This rugged terrain has been used as a set for many movies, particularly westerns from the 1920’s through 1960’s. It was even used in a Star Trek film. As you drive or hike through the hills you can envision the bad guys “holed up” in the rocks shooting down on the good guys.
According to Wikipedia, the hills were named for the CSS Alabama, a Confederate warship. Confederate sympathizers named their mines in the area after the ship and the hills derived its name from the mines.
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Earthwatcher 