| Location: ML King Shoreline, Oakland, CA (Garretson Pt., Arrowhead Marsh, Doolittle Pond, Harbor Bay Isle) |
Date: Sat. Nov. 21, 2009 |
| Habitats: shoreline, marsh, grasslands | Time: 3:30-5:00pm |
| Weather: chilly, sunny | Wind: slight (5-10mph) |
| Tide: high | Observers: TP, GI |
| Birds Observed: |
| Cormorants, (DC) | Horned Grebes | Scaups, Greater |
| Grebes, Western | Gulls, Cal. | Ruddies |
| Gulls, Ring-billed | Coots (A) | Bufflehead |
| Mallards (A) | Warbler, Yel-rump | Willets (A) |
| Phoebe, Bk. | Scoter, Surf (C) | Bushtits |
| Blackbirds, RW (1-fem) | Crows (C) | Sparrows, WC |
| TVs | Shovelers (C) | Rock Doves |
| Pintails (sev) | Grn-wing Teal | Bk. Cn. Night Herons |
| Cinnamon Teal (F) | Robin | Brn. Towhee |
| West. Meadowlarks | Starlings | Snowy Egrets |
| Widgeon (sev) | Goldeneye (fem: sp?) | Marb. Godwits |
| Dowitchers, sp? (A) | Avocets - (sev) | Blk. Stilts (sev) |
| Clapper Rails (4) | Blk.-bellied Plover (sev) | Less. Yellowlegs |
| Mourning Doves | Cooper's Hawk | N. Mockingbird |
Symbols: A: abundant. H: hear. sev: several. C: common. F: flying. sp: species.
Comments: First time I've been to Arrowhead this fall, Grant keeps telling me it's very good, with all sorts of birds around. This proved it! He was there this morning looking around too, and he saw more than we did in the afternoon. It was a gloriously sunny fall afternoon, but chilly, with a slight wind off the water. Not too bad, but you could feel it. It felt like high 40's or low 50's. We went to several locations -- Garretson Pt., Arrowhead Marsh, Doolittle Pond down by the landfill (next to the bridge), and then we went over to Harbor Bay Isle for some dinner. Grant was hoping that the little 'pond' at the point would have all three teal, but nothing was there! In the bay, however, there were thousands of birds, big rafts of scaups, and big collections of shorebirds bunched up on the edges of marshes. Birds everywhere. We were walking back to the car and I thought I saw a crow in a distant tree, but it flew off and I realized that it was an accipiter. From its size it must have been a Cooper's, an adult. It was gone after a few swerves among the trees -- vanished. No other raptors except TVs, however, not many songbirds, and no sign of the Burrowing owls (did not make a real search for the owls). Just about everything else was there, and even the rails were very visible. Some walked right under us, maybe 20-25 feet away (two walked under the walkway we were on). You could hear them at times, too, loud high-pitched cackling would roll through the marsh and then die down. I can't remember seeing that many at one time (ie, 4), I don't think. Relatively few Green-wing Teal, and only one pair of Cinnamon (in flight). Grant says he regularly sees the Blue-wing there. I know where most of them are - not here, but in Texas! When we go there, they're everywhere, big numbers of them. Groups of Surf Scoter fairly close to shore, calmly paddling along, great views. They are so weirdly colored around the head, always a sight to see. We went over to the boardwalk at the marsh and there were quite a few ducks and shorebirds. Godwits, willets and what appeared to be dowitchers along the shore (no scope to see details). At the end of the boardwalk we saw some Green wings, Shovelers and Pintail. No blue heron in the marsh this time, like there usually is - no Great Whites around either, for that matter. Nothing in the big field we could see -- there's usually killdeer or Canada Geese. We checked out the mounds next to the road on the way out, but nothing there. Not enough rain yet to make a pond in the middle either. We went down Doolittle Drive to the pond by the landfill, saw lots of scaups, ruddies, Bufflehead, a few grebes in the water. Getting dark by then. We then went over past the golf course to Harbor Bay Isle, the little shopping center. There is apparently a heron rookery there (I've never been there before), but we saw several Black Crown Night Herons in the trees (BCNHs) next to the quaint wooden bridge, and four Snowies flew by also. That would seem to be grounds for presuming a rookery, more or less. The water was very pretty as the sun set. Had a nice dinner and discussed our sightings. Made plans for Morro Bay, too. Not a bad day!
