Field Notes
by Stan Harris
22 August - 20 September, 2006
It was a “typical” early fall north coast weather means overcast, foggy, cool mornings, clearing with NW winds in the afternoon on the coast, hot inland, with only one feeble shower period. A pelagic trip to 20 miles W of Eel River early in September for the HSU Ornithology Class was hampered by fog and calm seas and recorded only the usual suspects. Perhaps the most outstanding observation was 50+ (my estimate) to 150+ (GL’s estimate) Harbor Porpoises seen just outside Humboldt Bay, the most either of us had ever seen on one trip. Abbreviations used: AB = Arcata Bottoms; AMP = Arcata Marsh Project; AOP = Arcata Oxidation Ponds; BSE = Butcher Slough Estuary; CRI = Cock Robin Island; HSUPT = Humboldt State University pelagic trip, 9 Sep (fide GL, SH, LG, et al.); ID = insufficient details; KS = King Salmon; MER = mouth of Elk River; MJC = mouth of Jacoby Creek; MLR = mouth of Little River; mo = many observers; MRC = mouth of Redwood Creek; MRCP = Mad River County Park; MRE = Mad River Estuary; MRFH = Mad River Fish Hatchery; MWC = mouth of Willow Creek; NC = not confirmed; NB = North Humboldt Bay; ND = no details; SRB = Smith River Bottoms.
Critters - Rails
Critter highlights: White-sided Dolphins: 2, HSUPT. White-fronted Goose: 25, Eureka Channel, 26 Aug (BA). Blue-winged Teal: 1 female, Allen Marsh, 5 Sep (SH); 1 male, Eureka Sewage Pond, 11 Sep (TL). Ducks: Substantial numbers of fall arrivals were recorded at AMP/AOP and elsewhere by: 4 Sep (American Wigeon, 30 [up to 70 by 12 Sep and 300 by 19 Sep]; Gadwall: 12 [up to 40 by 12 Sep], both SH); 29 Aug (Shoveler, 190;Cinnamon Teal, 67, both SH), 28 Aug (Green-winged Teal, 22 [up to 200 by 4 Sep, SH], AL). Redhead: 1, AOP, 3-4 Sep (SH, AC, AL). Harlequin: up to 8, Virgin Creek Beach, 1-22 Aug (DT). Long-tailed Duck: 1 male (holdover), 10-Mile River, 1-22 Aug (DT). Hooded Merganser: 3, MRC, 20 Sep (KI). Red-breasted Merganser: The female summering over at Klopp Lake was last reported 8 Sep (SH). Sooty Grouse: 2, Mail Ridge, 10 Sep (JGa). Wild Turkey: 1 female with 10-12 young at Hwy 299 x Brown Creek, near Weaverville, 20 Aug (MK). Red-throated Loon: 1 (reported as juvenile), Trinidad, 30 Aug (MeH). Black-footed Albatross: Perhaps up to 15-20 all day (no more than 5 at any single bait station), HSUPT. Northern Fulmar: 25-30, HSUPT. Pink-footed Shearwater: 35-40, HSUPT. Sooty Shearwater: 75-100, HSUPT. Buller’s Shearwater: 7 (only), HSUPT. Ashy Storm-Petrel: 25-30, HSUPT. Brown Pelican: Massive numbers in and near Humboldt Bay, mostly immatures, continued throughout the period with 750 in NB, 19 Sep (AL). American Bittern: 1, AOP, 3 Sep (AL); 1, Loleta pond, 3 Sep (SMcA). Little Blue Heron: 1, adult plumage (first one ever in this plumage for the north coast), Smith River, 27 Aug through at least 15 Sep (DCo, AB, JGt, et al.). Green Heron: 1, MRC, 9 Sep (AL); 1, BSLP, 11, 13 Sep (SH, MA). White-tailed Kite: 2 on Mail Ridge were at a seldom-reported location, 10 Sep (JGa). Bald Eagle: 1 adult, MWC, 23 Aug (TL). Cooper’s Hawk: 1, Waterdog Lake, 31 Aug (TL). Merlin: Singles reported at Lake Earl and MRC, 9 Sep (AL), and Mail Ridge, 10 Sep (JGa) included 2 reported as “very dark.” Peregrine: Juvenile chasing an adult, Trinidad Head, early-late Jul (MeH); plus singles reported at AMP/AOP and AB, 3, 19 Sep (BA, SC, AL ). Virginia Rail: The usual summer daily number of detections of 1-2 increased suddenly to >10-12 at AMP/AOP, 28 Aug, 5 Sep (AL, SH). Sora: After a lean summer, singles began to be heard/seen at Pound Road, AOP, AMP, 4, 5, 12, 13, 14 Sep (TL, AL, SH). Coot: Numbers at AOP increased from 10 on 8 Sep to 125 on 13 Sep (SH).
Charadriiformes
Pacific Golden Plover: 2 adult Virgin Creek Beach, 12-20 Aug (DT); 1 molting adult, W end Samoa Bridge, 6 Sep (SMcA). Snowy Plover: 2, CRI, 30 Aug (SC). Semipalmated Plover: 40, MJC, 25 Aug (DF); 30, CRI, 30 Aug (SC). Black-necked Stilt: 1, V St. Loop and Klopp Lake, 21-26 Aug (AL, DCo, GZ, EE). Avocet: New migrants included 1, MRCP, 1 Sep (AL); 5, Teal Point, Lake Earl, 4 Sep (AB, JGt), 2, Eel River Bottoms, 9 Sep (SMcA), and gradually increasing numbers at BSE from 3 (3 Sep, AL) to 27 (18 Sep, SH). Lesser Yellowlegs: 1, MRE, 30 Aug (AL); 3, W flat at foot of I St., Arcata, 19 Sep (SH). Bar-tailed Godwit: 1 juvenile reported at Virgin Creek Beach with a Marbled Godwit, 6-16 Aug, good description, photo said to exist (MaMa, DT, et al.). Ruddy Turnstone: 3 reports of 1-2 at CRI, MJC, Klopp Lake, 19-29 Aug (AL, DF, SC). Red Knot: 1, Eureka Channel, 26 Aug (BA); 5, MJC, 28 Aug (DF); 6, CRI, 29 Aug (SC): Baird’s Sandpiper: 15 reports of 1-12 from AMP, MRCP, CRI, V St. Loop, 10-Mile Beach, Lake Tolowa, Teal Point, 13 Aug-10 Sep (mo). Pectoral Sandpiper: 9 reports of 1-5 from Indian Beach, CRI, MRCP, Loleta Pond, MLR, Lake Tolowa, 22 Aug-19 Sep (mo). Stilt Sandpiper: 1, V St. Loop, 3 Sep (SC); 1 juvenile, Lake Tolowa, 8 Sep (Lucas); 1, Gobel Lane, 9 Sep (SMcA). Buff-breasted Sandpiper: 1, Big Lagoon spit, 30 Aug (AT, MF); 2 juveniles, W side of Lake Tolowa, 4 Sep (AB, JGt). Ruff: 1 juvie, MRCP, 28 Aug-5 Sep (RF, DCo, SFB, AL, KR); 1, Teal Point, 4 Sep (AB, JGt); 1, Loleta Pond, 3, 9 Sep (SMcA). Red-necked Phalarope: Many onshore reports included up to 300-600 at AOP, 19 Aug-4 Sep, down to 100 by 19 Sep (mo), but only 40-50 at sea, HSUPT. Red Phalarope: 1, MRCP, 3 Sep (DCo, AW); 1, AOP, 3, 5 Sep (AL, SH, AC); 3 (only) at sea, HSUPT. South Polar Skua (NC, ID): 1 reported without details or confirmation at Humboldt Bay Jetty Channel, a startling location, 16 Sep (ABr, KR). Pomarine Jaeger: 2, KS, 6 Sep (MW); 1, HSUPT. Parasitic Jaeger: 5 reports of 1-5 from NJ, CRI, KS, HSUPT, 23 Aug-9 Sep (DF, SC, MW, SH, GL, et al.). Long-tailed Jaeger: 1, HSUPT. Sabine’s Gull: 2, HSUPT. Elegant Tern: 150, Eureka Channel, HSUPT. Common Tern: 2 immatures, MJC, 8 Sep (DF). Forster’s Tern: 4 flyby, 10-Mile Beach, 22 Aug (DT); 4, AOP, 3 Sep (AL); 1, Klopp Lake, 8 Sep (SH). Black Tern: 1 very actively foraging, AOP, 2-4 Sep (JK, et al.). Marbled Murrelet: 67 off Luffenholtz Beach, 4 Sep (SC); 22, between Scotty Point and Elk Head, 10 Sep (MiM). Cassin’s Auklet: 4 (only), HSUPT. Rhinoceros Auklet: 1, KS, 29 Aug (SC); 10-20, HSUPT.
Doves - Pipits
Eurasian Collared Dove: 4 reports of “several” to 8, Smith River, 29 Aug-15 Sep (AB, EC, SL, JGt, OA). Yellow-shafted Flicker: 1, Trinidad, 11 Aug (MeH); “hybrid” flickers (ND) said to have fledged near Trinidad this summer (MeH). Olive-sided Flycatcher: 1, Shay Park, 27 Aug (SC); x, Grogan Hole, 14 Sep (TL). Western Wood-Pewee: Singles at Mad River x Hwy 299, Bayshore Mall, Mad River Road, 13 Aug-10 Sep (SH, RF, TL, SC). Willow Flycatcher: 11 reports of 1-3 from Arcata, MWC, Orleans, Hawkins Bar, MRCP, MRFH, Orick Dump, 23 Aug-20 Sep (mo). Hammond’s Flycatcher (how ID’d?): MRCP, 28 Aug (RF). Pacific-slope Flycatcher: 1, AMP, 28 Aug (AL); 1 (type), Shay Park, 6 Sep (DF). Say’s Phoebe: 1, Kneeland, 6 Sep (BB, DVZ). Ash-throated Flycatcher: 1, AMP, 3-19 Sep (DCo, EE, SC, JW, SH, AL). Western Kingbird: 1, Shelter Cove, 2 Sep (BA). Eastern Kingbird: 2 together, Shelter Cove, 2-4 Sep (BA [photos], LS). Cassin’s Vireo: Singing singles at Lake Cleone, Shay Park, Bayshore Mall, Orleans, 22 Aug-7 Sep (DF, DT, TL). Blue-headed Vireo: 1 singing (ND, NC), MRCP, 9 Sep (DC, AW); 1 (ND, NC), Redwood National Park Visitor Center, 11 Sep (KI). Hutton’s Vireo: 1, Shay Park, 6 Sep (DF). Warbling Vireo: ~20, Shay Park, 6 Sep (DF). Philadelphia Vireo: 1 Mad River Road, 5, 10 Sep (KI, DCo, SC); 1 (ND, NC), Redwood Natl. Park Visitor Center, 8 Sep (KI). Red-eyed Vireo (ND, NC): 1, Orick dump, 6-8 Sep; 1, Crannell, 10 Sep, 1, MRCP, 19 Sep (all KI). Gray Jay: 1 pair reported to have fledged 7 young at Trinidad in Jul/Aug (MeH); 3, Sunny Brae, 11, 13 Sep (MiMo). Clark’s Nutcracker: 1 heard on ridgetop above East Boulder Lake, Scott Mountains (“I hear/see them every time I hike up there in late summer/fall”), 12 Sep (DK). Ruby-crowned Kinglet: 1, Kneeland, 31 Aug (BB, DVZ); 1, Blue Lake riparian, 12 Sep (PL, fide GL). Blue-gray Gnatcatcher: 1, Redwood Natl. Park HQ, 8 Sep (KI). American Pipit: New arrivals, “several locations,” Eel River Bottoms, 9 Sep (SMcA).
Warblers
Nashville Warbler: Migrants at Capetown, 22 Aug (DF), and Arcata, 23 Aug (RF). Northern Parula: 1, Orick dump, 13, 15 Sep (KI, AL). Yellow Warbler: The usual September wave of migrants is passing through the coastal riparian cover as this is written, with flocks of up to 10+ seen in a single location many days, 27 Aug-19 Sep (mo). Chestnut-sided Warbler: 1, Russ Park, 30 Aug (Lisa, fide KM); 1, Fairhaven, 12-13 Sep (KI, SC); 1, Arcata, 15 Sep (GB). Magnolia Warbler: 1, MER, 6-7 Sep (TL, BA). Cape May Warbler (NC, ND): 1, Endert’s Beach, 18 Sep (OA). Myrtle Warbler: 4, AMP, 19 Sep (SH, MA). Audubon’s Warbler: 1, Bayshore Mall, 6 Sep (TL). Black-throated Gray Warbler: 1-2 migrants at Arcata, MRCP, Bayshore Mall, HBNWR, 23 Aug-11 Sep (mo). Townsend’s Warbler: 6 reports of 1-2 from MRCP, Arcata, Eureka, 28 Aug-15 Sep (mo). Hermit Warbler: 1 Shay Park, 6, 12 Sep (DF, AL); x, Bayshore Mall, 6 Sep (TL). Bay-breasted Warbler (ND, NC): 1, Orick dump, 6 Sep (KI). Blackpoll Warbler: 1, Shay Park, 12 Sep (BA); 1, Orick dump, 20 Sep (KI). American Redstart: 1 female, Trinidad, 24 Aug (anon, from Marsh Interpretive Center board); 1 male, MRCP, 29 Aug (AL, RF, DCo); 1 female, MRCP, 3 Sep (DCo, AW); 1, Orick dump, 8 Sep (KI); 1, HBNWR, 9 Sep (SMcA). Northern Waterthrush: 1 AOP, 3 Sep (SH, AC); 1, Shay Park, 11-12 Sep (BA); 1, Fairhaven, 12 Sep (SMcA, AL). Connecticut Warbler (A Gee Whiz Bird): 1, Shay Park, 15-16 Sep (KR, DCo, et al. [photo by SMcA]). MacGillivray’s Warbler: Single migrants at MRFH, MRCP, Vigo St. Marsh, 22 Aug-5 Sep (AL, SC, TL). Common Yellowthroat: The usual September migratory wave, AMP, AOP, MWC, Orleans, Bayshore Mall, 23 Aug-19 Sep (mo). Wilson’s Warbler: Usual migrants with up to 15 in coastal riparian cover, 27 Aug-15 Sep (SC, DF, TL, GB). Yellow-breasted Chat: 1, Arcata, 22 Aug (RF); 2, MRFH, 22 Aug (AL); 1, MWC, 7 Sep (TL).
Sparrows - Finches
Green-tailed Towhee: x, Waterdog Lakes, 31 Aug (TL). California Towhee: 2, Dunn Creek, Del Norte Co., 12 Sep (OA, fide AB). Brewer’s Sparrow: 1, Klopp Lake Dike, 4-6 Sep (SH, et al. [photo by KR]). Lark Sparrow: 1, AB, 1 Sep (AL). Lark Bunting: 1, V St. Loop, 3-9 Sep (SC et al. [photos]). Savannah Sparrow: Sudden increase from 0-1 to 10+ at MJC, 25 Aug (DF). Sooty Fox Sparrow: Newly arrived, 2, Fairhaven, 10 Sep (BA); x, AMP, 17 Sep (MA). Lincoln’s Sparrow: 1, AMP, 3, 19 Sep (SH); 1, Grogan Hole, 4 Sep (TL). White-crowned Sparrow: 4-5, AMP, 18-19 Sep (SH). Golden-crowned Sparrow: 1, Azalea Hill, 13 Sep (GL); 1, Grogan Hole, 14 Sep; 2, AMP, 18 Sep (SH). Lapland Longspur (ND , NC): 1, Lake Tolowa, 4 Sep (Lucas). Rose-breasted Grosbeak: 1, MRCP, 10 Sep (BA). Dickcissel: 1, Crannell Road, 10 Sep (KI). Bobolink: 1, Teal Point, Lake Earl, 13 Sep (OA). Red-winged Blackbird: The usual fall foraging flocks of 300-500 have been present on AMP/AOP salt marshes throughout the period (SH). Yellow-headed Blackbird: 3, Alexandre Dairy, 11 Sep (OA). Red Crossbill: 22, Trinidad (15 were juveniles), 29 Aug (MeH); 4, Cummings Road, Eureka, 29 Aug (TL).
Contributors
Many thanks to the following who shared reports with us this month. Please accept my apologies for not having space to include all of the interesting reports turned in. Brian Acord, Marge Adams, Onik Arian, Stephen F. Bailey, Art Barab, Alan Barron, Gary & Jane Bloomfield, Adam Brown, Heather Brown, Barbara Burek, Scott Carey, Daryl Coldren, Eileen Cooper, Dick Cromberg, Alexandra Curry, Elias Elias, David Fix, Michele Forage, Rob Fowler, John Gaffin, Joe Gartland, Luke George, Melody Hamilton, Stan Harris, Ken Irwin, Jhermie Kellermann, Dale & Marge Kuhn, Alexandra Lamb, Tom Leskiw, Gary Lester, Lisa, Sky Lloyd, Paul Lohse, Lucas, Matthew Matthiessen, Sean McAllister, Kathy Michaels, Michael Morris, Mark Morrissette, Mildred Mossman, Kerry Ross, Larry Silva, Dorothy Tobkin, Amber Transou, Dan Van Zile, Matt Wachs, Adam Waehtel, Jim Welsh, Gretchen Ziegler. Please call future reports to the Arcata Bird Box (707) 822-5666, to me at (707) 822-3802, send them to me at 1595 Charles Ct., Arcata, 95521, or write them on the observation board at the Arcata Marsh Interpretive Center.
Help! Because of family commitments, I will be unable to participate in any local Christmas Count this year and am looking for some volunteer to coordinate and compile the Centerville Count this one year: please call me soon at 822-3802 if interested. The count date is 31 December.