February 2023
While there were breaks in the storms, high water, rain, and winds limited birding activity for good chunks of the month. The expected winter raptors and water birds were in their usual spots, though waterfowl moved a lot, exploiting newly-flooded areas. Early signs of spring came in the form of all the regular swallows (except for Purple Martin, not expected until mid-to-late March) reported before month's end. The Greater Roadrunner found along Rd 81 in the Capay Valley on 1/22 continued through February. Mountain Plovers along Hwy 45 in Yolo County, just south of the Colusa County line, continued with up to 30 reported through mid-month. The report of 25 north of Flannery Rd, just west of Hwy 113, was a nice surprise. This appears to be the only report this winter in the vicinity of their old stronghold. A first-cycle Glaucous Gull was reported at the Kiefer Landfill on 2/20, while at least one was found throughout the month along Yolo County Rd 104 west of the Yolo County (Davis) Landfill. Up to two Northern Pygmy-Owls were seen and beautifully photographed (eBird Checklist S127776294) along Rayhouse Rd early in the month. The Long-eared Owl wintering in the Wildhorse neighborhood of Davis continued into March, and at least eight were found on a semi-regular roost in a normally closed portion of Cosumnes River Preserve (CRP) on 2/25.
Lewis's Woodpeckers continued in excellent numbers, and the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker found on 12/26 near the Elkhorn Volunteer Fire Dept (close to the Elkhorn boat ramp) continued into late February. Another was photographed (eBird Checklist S129799760) near Guinda in the Capay Valley on 2/27. A Hammond's Flycatcher (eBird Checklist S127904536) was a nice find at Streng Park in Woodland on 2/8 and 2/27. Two different Cassin's Vireos were reported in Davis and a Plumbeous Vireo (eBird Checklist S128181760) was found on the UC Davis campus on 2/7-2/12. The Townsend's Solitaire at Sacramento City College continued into March, while the bird at the Sacramento City Cemetery continued from December to at least 2/22 (access had been limited because of downed trees), and another was near the UC Davis Med Center on 2/14.
There were scattered reports of Evening Grosbeaks in the region, but most remarkable was a regular flock of up to 25 or more (eBird Checklist S129743490) in a Gold River neighborhood south of the American River between Sunrise and Hazel Blvds. They were first reported on 2/23 and were consistent through at least mid-March. This species is almost never found consistently on the Valley floor, but occasionally as transient, calling flybys. Up to three Cassin's Finches (eBird Checklist S130319394) were found throughout the month in a Sacramento yard, and up to five Lawrence's Goldfinches were found regularly at Phoenix Field. A Swamp Sparrow was seen and photographed at Bridgeway Island Pond (eBird Checklist S127608135) from 2/4-2/19, and another was at North Pond in Davis (eBird Checklist S129328592) from 2/18-2/21. The Bullock's Oriole found in Woodland on 1/25 was seen again on 2/23, and the Nashville Warbler at CRP, first detected on 1/19, appears to be spending the winter at a site without regular public access.
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: Dan Airola, Max Brodie, Aidan Brubaker, Brent Campos, Calvin Carroll, Lyann Comrack, Konshau Duman, Leo Edson, Andy Engilis, Gil Ewing, Lief Gallagher, Maureen Geiger, Joshua Greenfield, Cliff Hawley, Leia Hewitt, Jeri Langham, Andrew Lee, Stephanie Levins, Mark Martucci, Daniel Murphy, Roger Muskat, Chris Ortega, Nora Papian, Michael Perrone, Eric Pilotte, Mark Sawyer, Steve Scott, Alex Single, Cindra Smith, Sean Smith, Kirk Swenson, Cameron Tescher, Kevin Thomas, John Trochet, and Lynette Williams. Thanks to everyone for their reports--without them, this column would not be possible.