Despite the heat, August is one of the best months to experience migration. As it turned out, this August was really active in terms of rare and uncommon birds. Shorebirds continued in excellent numbers from July, and by the end of the month songbird migrants were showing in good numbers and diversity. A Yellow-billed Cuckoo at Rossmoor Bar along the American River Parkway (ARP) on 8/28 was quite a surprise. This species has declined precipitously in recent decades, so any local observation is a real treat.

Uncommon shorebirds vied with songbirds to get top billing this month. There were so many excellent reports of both, we'll call it a draw. Snowy Plovers are very rare in our area, but are typically found each year. One was at the Woodland WTP on 8/1-7, and another was at the Sacramento Regional WTP (SRWTP) on 8/29-31 (eBird Checklist S117873672). More unexpected was a Ruddy Turnstone at the Woodland WTP on 8/4-7 (eBird Checklist S116511780). SRWTP hosted a Ruff from 8/17-30 (eBird Checklist S117234735 and eBird Checklist S117501313). There are perhaps five records for Sacramento County, and this was just the second for the property, and the first in over 20 years. The first few Baird's Sandpipers started showing up on 8/24, and the first Pectoral Sandpiper was found on 8/30. A Solitary Sandpiper was seen by several observers at Cosumnes River Preserve from 8/27-29, and one was found at the Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area on 8/27.

Lewis's Woodpeckers are rare on the flats of the Valley and also rare this early in the season, so a few seen toward the end of the month were notable. A Brewer's Sparrow at the Russell Ranch, along Putah Creek between Davis and Winters, on 8/22 was a nice find. Northern Waterthrushes are not found in our area every year, so it was a real surprise to have one along Babel Slough from 8/27-29, and another at Sacramento Bar (ARP) on 8/30. Tennessee Warblers are equally rare around Sacramento, so one at Reichmuth Park from 8/28-8/30 was another excellent find. Also nice was a Blackpoll Warbler at Bridgeway Island Pond near West Sacramento on 8/30 (eBird Checklist S117831838), as was a Summer Tanager along the Humbug Creek Trail in Folsom on 8/31.

The Sacramento Area is roughly defined as lying between Hwy 20 to the north, Hwy 12 to the south, and the 1000-foot contour to the east and west, plus all of Sacramento and Yolo Counties. Many reports first appeared on the Central Valley Bird Club listserv (groups.io/g/centralvalleybirds) and in eBird (ebird.org). It is impossible to list everyone, but we thank the following for their reports: Max Brodie, Aidan Brubaker, Lyann Comrack, Todd Easterla, Gil Ewing, Robert Furrow, Cliff Hawley, Jim Holmes, Scott Hoppe, Jeri Langham, Andrew Lee, Mark Martucci, Michele McCormick, Dana Miller-Blair, Nora Papian, Michael Perrone, Zane Pickus, Mark Sawyer, Steve Scott, and Tom Uslan. Thanks to everyone for their reports--without them, this column would not be possible.