Teal Bend Golf Course, (1/14)

Leader Richard Barbieri reported: The day started off with a promising warming sun with 7 people joining my walk. We were first entertained by a pair of kites and their flight displays and callings but as the day wore on it became cold and overcast which led to a bit of a slowdown in activity. However, the day produced 57 species with a few highlights including 2 Brown Creepers, 2 Golden-crowned Kinglets, a Bald Eagle fly over carrying a kill, and a Varied Thrush.

Cosumnes River Preserve, (1/20)

Leader Paul Miller reported: Trip was canceled due to rainy weather.

Michigan Bar, (1/20)

Leader Chris Conard reported: We lucked out with a break in a rainy period and nine of us had an enjoyable outing to Michigan Bar Rd in eastern Sacramento County. Windy conditions kept songbird activity low, but we had excellent waterbirds and raptors. The Cosumnes River produced Wood Ducks, Common Goldeneye, Hooded and Common Mergansers, a Belted Kingfisher, and about eight Wilson's Snipe that were finally detected after careful scrutiny of the rocks below Michigan Bar Bridge.

At least five Bald Eagles of various age classes, a briefly-seen Golden Eagle, and a Ferruginous Hawk were highlights. The trip seemed over as the wind got up to 20 mph, but most decided to drive Meiss Rd anyway. New species for the day included Canvasback, Prairie Falcon, Burrowing Owl at a mini-cliff on a hillside, a Loggerhead Shrike, and a Vesper Sparrow photographed by one member of the group. Considering that everyone had debated staying home because of the forecast, the day turned out far birdier than expected.

Effie Yeaw Family Walk, (1/20)

Sandra Steurer, co-leader with Lynne Tweten, reported: We had 16 people join us, with EYNC docent Hannah Steurer. It was overcast with rain starting to come down just after we finished the walk. We had 23 species of birds.

Lincoln WTP, (1/25)

Leader Sonja Sorbo reported: The weather cooperated and gave us a lovely winter birding day, with no wind and scattered clouds. Our group of ten birders had barely begun to drive towards the east pond levee when we spotted several raptors perched in oak trees. We tallied two Red-tailed Hawks, a Merlin, two Harriers, and a Kestrel. While scoping these beauties, we noted a group of brightly-colored male House Finches and a host of Western Meadowlarks whose bright yellow bellies almost glowed in the morning sunlight. We were amused by a pair of Canada Geese perched on the roofline of a barn, standing out like sore thumbs. Upon arrival at the levee, we noted that the east pond was populated exclusively by Bufflehead. Feeding along the shore were over a dozen Least Sandpipers, a Black-necked Stilt, and a pair of Greater Yellowlegs. Scope views of a small pond east of the water treatment plant revealed several dozen ducks, including Northern Shoveler, Gadwall, Mallard, and Green-winged Teal.

Ring-necked Pheasant, *Image by Daniel Lee Brown*

A Pied-billed Grebe and a pair of Coots wove in and out of the ducks while a Great Blue Heron watched the goings-on from the bank. A Ring-necked Pheasant came out of nowhere, skimmed over the pond, and dropped into some reeds. A lovely surprise came in the form of a flock of Horned Larks, numbering at least one hundred. They were courteous enough to land in the short grass next to a nearby shallow puddle, giving everyone great looks through scopes and binoculars. Moving over to the west ponds, we were rewarded with good views of several additional species of ducks, including Canvasback, Lesser Scaup, and Common Goldeneye. Four Double-crested Cormorants lounged around on the levee, accompanied by a Snowy Egret and Canada Geese. Our final sighting was two Bald Eagles on a distant tree, keeping watchful eyes on their territory. Total species for the morning was 48.

Staten Island, (1/27)

Hundreds of Cackling Goose were at Staten Island. *Image by Craig Swolgaard*

Betty Cooper, co-leader with Rich Howard, reported: With the assistance of fellow birder Bob Jensen, we led the group of 13 after meeting at 3:00 at the north end of Staten Island Road. The group was greeted by a large flock of Cackling Geese as we consolidated to 4 vehicles for ease of roadside parking. As we started the slow roll down the road there were hundreds more Cackling Geese as well as Sandhill Cranes. A stop for scoping gave us good views of the cranes and a few Snow Geese scattered in among the Cackling Geese. Also present in the trees near a farmhouse were House Finches, Phoebes and Yellow-rumped Warblers. Further along we found large groups of waterfowl and shorebirds primarily consisting of Long-billed Dowitchers. Also present were Tundra Swans and the afternoon ended with flying swans and large flocks of Snow Geese. A total of 30 species were observed as we ended the day with beautiful views of the sun setting behind Mt. Diablo.

William Pond Park, Beginners' Walk, (1/28)

Northern Shoveler, *Image by Dana J. Miller-Blair*

Larry Hickey, co-leader with Rich Howard and Heather White, reported: Our January beginning birder field trip had to be postponed due to the weather, so our group ended up being smaller than originally planned. However, six of us had perfect weather for the rescheduled field trip on a day that felt more like spring than winter. Yellow-billed Magpies were very noisy and active and we were able to watch as they refurbished nests. Red-shouldered Hawks were also active and one flew in and occupied a nest. We ended up with over 40 species including large numbers of American Coots, Bufflehead, Common Goldeneye and Wood Ducks on the open water. Highlights included a pair of Northern Shovelers, good scope views of Snowy Egret and Great Blue Heron and a pair of Chipping Sparrows foraging in the grass.

Gibson Ranch, (1/28)

A lifer for one birder—a pair of Red-Breasted Sapsucker were seen. *Image by Kevin Thomas.*

Leader Kevin Thomas reported: We arrived at 7 am to a light fog across the landscape knowing that the day was predicted to be unseasonably warm for this time of year. It turned out to be just that as it was already into the low 60's by the time we finished at 10:15. We had a great group of 11 people which provided for some great conversation and bird spotting. We started the morning with a good bunch of raptors with several White-tailed Kites, a few Red-shouldered and Red-tailed Hawks, and a Bald Eagle. The pond was rather quiet as it can be on warm winter days, a few Common Goldeneye were the highlights. As we made our way around the pond we were treated to a large flock of Long-billed Curlews that circled around for a bit before settling somewhere to the west in some grasslands, only the second occurrence at Gibson Ranch in the Ebird database. We stopped at the flowering eucalyptus trees to watch the dozens of Yellow-rumped Warblers feeding and the Anna's Hummingbirds buzzing around. We made our way over to the Dry Creek trail where the largest stands of oak woodlands remain. We were treated to a pair of Red-breasted Sapsuckers, a lifer for one in the group! We finished the morning looping back around to the parking lot with one final look at the pond. There were a few gulls around but the non-resident waterfowl were absent. It was a great morning with great folks.

Bodega Bay, (2/3)

Leader Dan Williams reported: Our intrepid group of 18 ventured out between storms and Bodega Bay did NOT disappoint! We started as we usually do at Doran Regional Park where there was little activity on the beach, but we followed the flying flocks of Brant from the ocean side across the entrance road to the tideflats, where we enjoyed multitudes of Marbled Godwits, Willets, Dunlins, Sanderlings, and Greater Scaup. We managed to find one Snowy Plover running and pausing amid the chaos. It was then that we ran into the great Peter Pyle who graciously informed us that he had just seen something up the road that we were going to need to divert to immediately! We jumped back in our cars, departed Doran, and drove 5 minutes north to Smith Brothers Road. After about 10 minutes of checking multiple Commons and at least one Red-throated, there it was...a beautiful first winter YELLOW-BILLED LOON! A life bird for many of us, and for myself only the 2nd in 30 years of birding! We circled back to Doran Park and spent some time birding the harbor mouth and jetty where we were able to locate multiple Red-necked Grebes, Red-breasted Mergansers, Surf Scoters, Black Oystercatchers, and Black Turnstones as well as Western, Glaucous-winged, Short-billed, and (one) Bonaparte's Gull.

Bonaparte’s Gull, non-breeding plumage. *Image by Daniel Lee Brown*

Next, we stopped by The Tides Wharf, which was entertaining as always. Below the back deck was a goofy pile of lounging California Sea Lions, and some Harbor Seals also swam by for good comparisons. We picked up some provisions there, then continued on to Porto Bodega for lunch and to see if we could locate another reported rarity there. Sure enough, it didn't take but 2 minutes before the first winter male LONG-TAILED DUCK appeared among the Buffleheads and Surf Scoters near the marina. He was VERY actively dive-foraging, but eventually observations were made by all and photos taken by some. Next, we headed to Campbell Cove and Hole-in-the-Head where a Pied-billed Grebe, a Sharp-shinned Hawk, several "Myrtle" Yellow-rumped Warblers, and a Fox Sparrow were added to the trip list. Then just as we were getting in the cars, a White-winged Scoter appeared in the channel below back down by the jetty. Up on the Head the winds were light, and conditions were good to spot birds on the open ocean. The sea stacks had multiple Pelagic and one Brandt's Cormorant and a few more Black Oystercatchers. Out past the breakers, we spotted a first-winter Pacific Loon which completed our FOUR LOON DAY and one of the most epic editions of this long-standing annual trip.

Robinson Rd., Solano County, (2/4)

Leader Maureen Geiger reported: Trip was canceled due to stormy weather.

Napa Sonoma Marshes, (2/8)

Nancy Gronert, co-leader with Amy McDonald, reported: Five birders showed up for a fabulously sunny, windless day at the Huichica Creek Unit of the Napa-Sonoma marsh area. The pond water levels were quite high after recent rains with not much mudflat area close and lots of sunning birds on the far sides. Participants noticed skeins of hundreds of Cackling Geese landing somewhere in the valley. In the pretty full ponds we enjoyed Bufflehead, Ruddy Ducks, and some Northern Shovelers as well as the longer legged Greater Yellowlegs, American Avocets, Willets, and Black-Necked Stilts . A Great Horned Owl flew over the group and we tallied a White-tailed Kite, swooping Northern Harriers, and Red-tailed Hawks along with Tree Swallows and a Barn Swallow. As usual we heard the calls of Sora and Virginia Rail but didn’t get looks. There was a nice selection of Eared Grebes, Pied-billed Grebes, a couple of Horned Grebes, and a Western Grebe. A troop of Forster’s Terns entertained with their dives and pruning on posts. Least Sandpipers and Black-bellied Plovers sunned themselves on the levee, with many more shorebirds and gulls too distant to identify. Song Sparrows and Savannah Sparrows were out and about singing in the sun.

Cosumnes River Preserve, (2/10)

Leader Paul Miller reported: Five people joined me on an accessible birding trip to Cosumnes River Preserve. The trip was set for the afternoon to catch the Sandhill Crane fly-in. Unfortunately only a small flock arrived but well after the participants had left. However we did get to see two large Snow Goose flocks getting airborne simultaneously not far from the Boardwalk. Highlights of the day included a Sora, Cinnamon Teal, Marsh Wren, and a large flotilla of Ring-necked Ducks.

William Pond Park, Beginners' Walk, (2/11)

Yellow-billed Magpie, *Image by Mary Forrestal*

Larry Hickey, co-leader with Jane Van Kessel and Nancy Kapellas, reported: Eleven enthusiastic and sharp-eyed beginning birders joined our February beginning birder field trip at the William Pond part of the parkway. The morning started out clear and cold but warmed up quickly. Right away, before we left the parking lot, we were treated to close views of Red-shouldered Hawks carrying nesting materials. One was being harassed aggressively by a small group of noisy Yellow-billed Magpies as it tried to carry sticks. Large numbers of American Coots continued to occupy the open water part of the park, and we had nice scope views of a Green Heron, Snowy Egrets in their breeding plumage, a Great Egret and about 30 Great Blue Herons on and around their nests.

William Pond Park, (2/14)

Leader Mark Martucci reported: Four birders detected 55 species of birds on an overcast morning along the American River Parkway. Highlights included Wood Duck, Osprey, Bald Eagle, Red-breasted Sapsucker, White-tailed Kite and Purple Finch.

Field Trip Findings: January 14 to February 14