Fall Trip Report (Continued) - Page 2
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There were so many productive areas that it's hard to say that I preferred on over the other. On many of my early morning jaunts I would start at the beach and then work by way inland. The estuaries and tidal mud flats were always productive as long as you got there early enough but the same could be said for the local lakes as well. Great problem to have I guess, in any event, as stated earlier, the whole goal this fall was to "catch up" on the local scene since most of my trips and exploring over the past few years have been out of state and out of country.
Early morning usually found herons and egrets around the lakes such as the following:
Juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron from Santee Lakes.
Another juv. Black-crowned Night Heron that I caught napping, this one from Lindo Lake, Lakeside.
And and adult version from the same general area.
Black-necked Stilts are one of my favorites to photograph, they always seem to be in some scenic location or pose. These shots are from Imperial beach near the 7th Street access to the estuary there.
My wife (Lynn) often went with me on local trips, she got this great shot of a Brown Pelican soaring next to the Imperial Beach pier. Portions of the San Diego skyline in the background.
This Brown Pelican is starting to get into it's breeding plumage, it's bill will get much redder, they actually get quite spectacular when fully decked out. This one is near the mouth of the San Diego river in the flood control channel.
Feeding frenzy!
Small schools of anchovies cruise through this estuary. I have no idea why because I am sure that none of them ever leave... This was actually a small window into a much larger picture. I estimated there to be at least 100 egrets (mix of Great and Snowy) and several hundred Cormorants not to mention the Pelicans, Terns, Skimmers and Gulls all attaching this school of Anchovies with great vigor. They followed it around the bay never letting up for a moment.
Blue Grosbeak from Mission Trails Regional Park
Female Blue Grosbeak from same general area as the male above.
Female Black-headed Grosbeak from Grossmont College area. There was a small flock of 5, all female's feeding on this tree.
Male Black-headed Grosbeak from Mission Trails Regional Park. This photo won "Photo of the Month" from San Diego Audubon Society for September.
California Thrasher, at dawn from very far away... Near Grossmont College in Mission Trails regional park.
California Thrashers like these two photos above (very hard to approach and at least for me nearly impossible to get a good shot of!) are one of the champions of beautiful bird songs. There is little to compare to the sound of a Thrasher singing from it's perch at dawn in the California chaparral.
Another year-round resident of the coastal chaparral is the California Towhee, also a regular visit to my back yard.
This Spotted Towhee was in seen behind Grossmont College within the boundaries of Mission Trails Regional Park.
Forster's Tern taking a brief rest in Imperial Beach near 7th Street.
This Ring-billed Gull obviously found something of interest below the water in Imperial Beach...
Another Ring-billed Gull, from Ocean Beach, Ca.
Caspian, Elegant and Royal Terns are all readily seen along the coast, often in mixed flocks as this one near the US/Mexico border.
Young Common Moorhen strutting it's stuff...
Coopers Hawks were quite numerous just about everywhere I went around San Diego County this fall.
Cooper's Hawk at Bird and Butterfly Garden in the Tijuana River Valley.
More Cooper's...
And More Cooper's...
A bit of a humorous story around the now famous Crested Caracara that is still occasionally seen in the Tijuana River Valley... I drug my wife out of bed on a Sunday morning in September (September 10th to be exact) to do some early morning photography in the Tijuana River Valley. As we got to the South Bay area she insisted on finding a Starbucks to get some coffee before we headed to the beach. I of course obliged but somehow got turned around as I got off the freeway to find the closest Starbucks (they are everywhere until you want to find one of course!) As I searched for one and couldn't find it I ended up right at the US/Mexico border, several miles off course from where I had intended to go to start the day. I spotted a mall and said to her that I was sure there would be a Starbucks there and of course there was! Now, I wasn't even remotely thinking about birding at this point, just trying to get the coffee so I could get to where I wanted to go while the light was still good and as I pull into the parking lot at the mall and drive toward the Starbucks I notice to my left a small army of folks walking around in the parking lot with a few million dollars worth of camera equipment. This of course peaked my interest and as I pulled into a parking stall and gave my wife a twenty to get her coffee I started trying to figure out why all these folks were there, there were at least thirty if not fifty people and they were all looking up at the trees and light standards. I remember thinking to myself, "that's interesting, they almost look like a bunch of birders but what would they be doing in a shopping mall parking lot?" It was about that time that the above bird literally flew over the top of my truck and landed 10 feet from where I was sitting. I watched as the infantry quickly approached my position... Not to be outdone I quickly whipped out my 400mm lens and beat them all to the punch! I honestly had not the faintest and foggiest idea that there was a Caracara in the area and it was total, moronic, blind luck that I happened to get lost and turn into the parking lot in a mall where half of the serious birders in San Diego county seemed to have gathered that morning to take a look at this young falcon...
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Double-breasted Cormorant from Santee Lakes. These birds are for the most part, found anywhere there is water and fish in San Diego county. This would include my back yard where I used to have a fish pond (long ago replaced with landscaping and bird feeders...). I also had a regular visitor in the form of a Great Blue Heron. They would seemingly take turns raiding my fishpond for the largest goldfish and Koi they could grab... I finally gave up after the Heron more or less moved in however I think the sight of seeing a Cormorant perched on a tree in my back yard staring down at an 8 foot long fish pond was a bit comical... in particular with Lake Murray probably no more than a 2 minute flight away.
Double-breasted Cormorant from Monterey Bay, Ca.
A small group of Brandt's Cormorants from Los Lobos State Park just north of Monterey, California.
Elegant Tern, presumably agitated about something! From Border Fields State Park.
Forster's Tern spotting dinner...
Great Blue Herons are another rather ubiquitous and highly photogenic species, probably even easier to photograph than the White Egrets as you don't have the same problems in terms of the white balance and washing out/over-exposing the images. I always seem to find another interesting pose to capture. This Great Blue is from Santee Lakes.
Another Great Blue Heron, seemingly covering itself up to protect himself from an early morning, cold gale! Taken at 7th Street in Imperial Beach.
This reddish egret was found with two others including a juvenile individual at the 7th Street estuary in Imperial Beach.
Tri-colored Heron from San Diego River Flood Control Channel.
Great Egrets tend to be very photogenic, as is evident by the hundreds of pictures I have accumulated over time. Always seem to get another one that I can't throw away...
Another one of my favorites are the Snowy Egrets, in particular when they have their plumage fluffed up and a bit shaggy. This subject was stalking some prey in the Tijuana Slough.
I hate to keep using the word favorite but... This is yet another great subject for photography. Black Skimmers, like this one foraging along 7th Street in Imperial Beach are amazing to watch. They fly right over the top of the water "skimming" as the one pictured here. More often than not you will see an anchovy or two in their mouth at the end of a run if you look close enough.
Unlike the Ruddy Turnstone, the Black Turnstone pictured here is found almost exclusively in rocky areas. This one happened to be in the right place at the right time at the Point Loma tide pools.
This Common Murre was seen for several days near the Imperial Beach pier. The couple of times I tried to photograph him he was quite far from the pier (50+ yards) and the light was not good either time however I was able to at least capture a reasonable shot of this migrating visitor.
Dunlin are another commonly encountered species.
The Little Blue Heron pictured here is really giving these Snowy Egrets a run for their money. There was about 10 or so Snowy Egrets lined up along the edge of the 7th Street estuary in Imperial Beach when this Little Blue Heron flew in. Even though he is quite a bit smaller than his white-plumed cousins he certainly was a bully! He systematically and aggressively moved the Snowy Egrets out of his way as he walked along the shallows. Here you see a Snowy Egret that had just been given a strong peck on the rear by the Little Blue Heron.
Greater Yellowlegs... I wonder how they got that name?
Heermann's Gulls have been quite common just about everywhere I have been up and down the coast this fall. They also seem to be quite willing to pause and pose for photographs. Note the Elegant Terns looking on in the background in this shot from Border Fields State Park near the US/Mexico border.
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