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Believe it or not, fall migration lasts for almost half a year! The first southbound migrants are usually female Wilson’s Phalaropes who return by mid June after laying the eggs in a nest and placing responsibilities on the males. This year the ladies were spinning around at Tinemaha Reservoir on 11 June, right on time. Concurrently some species, e.g. Yellow-billed Cuckoo and Common Nighthawk, are still winging their way north to breed.
This Fall, like all others, brought with it surprises such as early arriving birds, late departing birds, vagrants from the east, and sightings in locations or habitats that they wouldn’t be found dead in the rest of the year! Some of the most surprising observations follow, but first thanks must be given to those who work very hard at gathering and substantiating county records that contribute to the valuable science that citizens can conduct following rigid standards. We want to acknowledge these important contributors: Paul Clark, Chris Conard, Jon Dunn, River Gates, John & Ros Gorham, Carolyn Honer, Chris Howard & Rosie Beach, Andrew & Vern Howe, Bob Hudson, Andrew & Leah Kirk, Sandy Koonce, Amy Lauterback, Kelli Levinson, Cathy McFadden, Jim & Debby Parker, Mike Prather, Bob & Susan Steele, Derrick & Mary Vocelka, Todd Vogel, Jim Weigard, Judy Wickman, James & Kay Wilson, Jim Yurchenko, and Jerry Zatorski.
Pacific Loons are often unreported but this year at least five were found between 30 Oct & 25 Nov. A Red-Necked Grebe, only the third one found in the county, was at Tinemaha Reservoir 16-19 November. Great Egrets are regular in small numbers but an amazing 59, the most ever recorded in Inyo, were at Tinemaha Reservoir 7 Oct. Wood Ducks had a successful breeding season based on the 31 seen at Tinemaha Reservoir 26 Aug. Single Surf Scoters, rarely reported, were at Klondike Lake 16 & 30 Oct. A pair of Barrow’s Goldeneyes, 11th county record, were at Death Valley Junction 16 Nov. A casual (not seen every year) White-Tailed Kite was in Bishop 7 Nov. Another casual species, Common Moorhen, was at Owens Lake 8 Oct.
A very late Spotted Sandpiper was at Tinemaha Reservoir 9 Dec. Red Knot, a casual shorebird, was at Owens Lake 20 Sep, and 11 Sanderlings, the high county count, were there 21 Sep. Two rare Semipalmated Sandpipers were found, one at Tinemaha Reservoir 24 Aug and the other at Klondike Lake 12 Sep. Two juvenile Stilt Sandpipers at Tinemaha Reservoir 21 Aug were the 6th county record. The seven Herring Gulls seen between 25 Oct & 9 Dec were the most ever recorded in fall. Five Sabine’s Gulls were more than normally reported and one seen at Owens Lake 2 Nov was the latest ever.
Two Eurasian Collared-Doves, recent colonizers in the county, were seen with one being the first found away from Bishop when found in Independence. Some observers mistake the captive reared and very similar Ringed Turtle-Dove for this species. Flocks of free-flying Ringed Turtle-Dove have been photographed in Bishop. A White-Winged Dove was at Owens Lake 5 Oct while 15 Inca Doves and 3 Ruddy Ground-Doves continue exciting observers at Furnace Creek Ranch.
The two latest ever goatsuckers were interesting with a Lesser Nighthawk near Trona 11 Nov and a Common Poorwill near Fish Springs 2 Dec. Anna’s Hummingbirds continue their new winter expansion visiting various feeders in the Owens Valley. Thirty Lewis’s Woodpeckers are wintering in the date palms at Furnace Creek Ranch. Acorn Woodpeckers continue their expansion in the county with 3 reported from DVNP and 1 on top of Mt. Barnard (13,990’) on 11 Sep setting a new high elevation record and suggesting that this species may not see the Sierra as much of a barrier as thought.
A Least Flycatcher, 10th county record, was at Birchim Canyon 10 Nov and a record setting late Pacific-Slope Flycatcher was there much of Nov and into Dec. Steller’s Jays, Western Scrub-Jays and Mountain Chickadees are reported from the lowlands this fall as are Brown Creepers and Golden-Crowned Kinglets. An elevation record was set when a Mountain Chickadee was found on top of Mt. Tyndall (14,018). Lost Gray Catbirds were at Furnace Creek Ranch 20 Sep and Deep Springs 19 Oct. A Sprague’s Pipit, 3rd county record, was found at Furnace Creek Ranch 19 Oct. Warblers made their colorful appearance with a Magnolia in Big Pine 30 Sep, a stunning male Black-Throated Blue at Panamint Springs 18 Oct, a Blackpoll at
Surprise Canyon 11 Oct, American Redstarts at Birchim Canyon 12 Sep and Panamint Springs 18 Oct, and a Prothonotary at Deep Springs 28 Oct.
The latest ever Yellow-Breasted Chat was at Stovepipe Wells 13 Oct and a Summer Tanager
persisted at Rovana until 19 Nov.
Rose-Breasted Grosbeaks were at Independence 8 & 27 Nov and a male Indigo Bunting was at Big Pine 26 Aug. Three Painted Buntings were seen, Big Pine 18 Aug, Deep Springs 7 Sep, and Furnace Creek Ranch 20 Sep. A Common Grackle was at Independence 13 Nov and a Lawrence’s Goldfinch was there 16 Nov.
In summation, this was another interesting and sometimes spectacular fall thanks to all who helped find these feathered wonders and document them for posterity. The birds, too, are grateful, believe it or not!
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Many visitors arrive in the eastern Sierra
from southern California and are thrilled to see the flashy Black-billed Magpie
(Pica hudsonia) as it crosses the road in front of them or flies alongside their
car as if in welcome. They are not used to seeing this large, black-and-white
member of the crow family, since the southern limit of its range in California
is right here in Inyo County. The magpie occurs widely throughout the western
United States, east of the Sierra Cascade axis, and north to Alaska.
There is an interesting mystery concerning the magpie's distribution in Inyo
County. In the late 19th century, Dr. A. K. Fisher headed an expedition to
conduct bird surveys in southern California, southern Nevada, southern Utah, and
parts of Arizona. Many of the most prominent names in ornithology at the time
helped in this comprehensive work. C. Hart Merriam, Vernon Bailey, Edward. W.
Nelson, Theodore S. Palmer, and Frank Stephens plus a few lesser-known
ornithologists took part in various areas of the survey. Some spent only a few
months in Inyo while others spent most of a year here. The expedition covered
not only all of what is now Death Valley National Park but all of the mountain
ranges in Inyo, the east slope of the Sierra north to the headwaters of the
Owens River, and the Owens Valley. They recorded most of the species we see
today with many records from the vicinity of Little Owens Lake (Little Lake),
Haiwee Meadows (Haiwee Reservoir), Olancha, Owens Lake, Long Pine, Independence,
Big Pine and Bishop.
Imagine our surprise back in the 1970s when we read the expedition report for
the first time and saw that "The Black-billed Magpie was not seen by the
expedition but is known to be a common resident in the neighborhood of Carson in
western Nevada." Wow! We assumed that they had "always" been in
the Owens Valley.
Enid Larsen, a chipmunk scientist, teacher, and dear friend, who had spent
most of her life in the Owens Valley gave a one word retort when we told her
that magpies were not here in 1890-1891, "Hogwash!" We told her about
the expedition and highly respected ornithologists who conducted the surveys but
she would not believe it. She remembered them as a little girl in southern
Bishop as she played in the sage.
The next morning, just past dawn, there was a rap on our door?it was Enid.
She was brimming with news to tell. It seemed that we were not the first ones
she visited that morning. However, we will let her tell her story. "Well, I
worried all night that I would die before I solved the Black-billed Magpie
problem. If I had died and Saint Peter asked me to explain the distribution of
the magpie in Inyo County, I would not have been able to answer and that would
have killed me!" (She paused to let us enjoy her joke). "This morning
I talked with my Native American friend who is much older than I" (another
pause) "and I asked her if there were magpies in the valley when she was
young. After thinking about it for some time, she told me that when she was a
very little girl there were no magpies in the valley. Therefore, it is true! Now
I have the answer for Saint Peter!" Happily, she did not need it for
another couple of decades.
Whether her friend remembered correctly after all those years is hard to say
but we can state with certainty that this hard-to-overlook bird was not found by
extremely competent observers in the late 19th century.
Today the species is fairly common throughout the Owens Valley although as
one travels south they become fewer in number. Small numbers are reported south
to Haiwee Reservoir. The earliest record for the county, so far, is an egg set
collected near Laws 22 Apr 1916 that resides at the Museum of Vertebrate
Zoology, Berkeley. If anyone has further information regarding the early days
and the arrival of the Black-billed Magpie in Inyo County, we would love to hear
from them.
Another major mystery involves this species but that will have to wait for
another time!
Until 1997, the Solitary Vireo in
the United States consisted of four subspecies. Since then, based on additional
research, the Solitary Vireo has been split into three full species. The eastern
and northern races were merged as the Blue-headed Vireo, the Pacific coast birds
became the Cassin's Vireo, and the Rocky Mountain form the Plumbeous Vireo.
All three species have been
documented in Inyo County. Only the Plumbeous Vireo is known as a breeder and
regular summer resident in the pinyon-juniper habitats throughout the county.
The Pacific coast Cassin's Vireo is a spring and fall migrant through the county
and is more common in spring than in fall. The Blue-headed Vireo is a vagrant to
our area with but two records, both from Death Valley National Park. One was at
Panamint Springs 3 Oct 1989 (Jon Dunn, AB 44:164) and the other at Furnace Creek
Ranch 23 September 1991 (Jon Dunn, AB 46:151).
All field guides make
identification seem rather straightforward in separating these three taxa, and
often it is. However, there are pitfalls that are underappreciated and lead to
misidentifications. Vireos are brightest in early fall immediately after molt
when their new feathers are unworn and colors are not faded by UV rays and wear.
They are most drab and dull in summer just before fall molt. Many are fairly
dull in spring with females always tending to less color than males. Thus, a
young female in spring or summer when one year old may be particularly
dull.
The biggest challenge for Inyo
birders is trying to separate a dull Cassin's from Plumbeous. We regularly
receive reports of Plumbeous Vireo in April and even late March that undoubtedly
are very dull, probably young female, Cassin's Vireos. Cassin's have been
recorded as migrants throughout the state during April and a few earlier in late
March with peak numbers in May. Plumbeous move later. The misconception is that
if there is no yellow on the flanks then it must be a Plumbeous...or Gray, which
is another article.
Think about the habitat in which
Plumbeous breed, pinyon-juniper, and then what it is like in April at
7000-9000'. It is still winter-like and these conditions may prevail well into
May preventing the insect activity that is necessary for the vireos' food
supply. Plumbeous Vireos winter, for the most part, in Mexico, although a few
are known to winter along coastal California. The recently published Birds of
the Salton Sea (Patten et al. 2003) lists two spring migrants sightings from
late April and mid May as tentative only and state that "there are
virtually no physically documented records at that season." Considering the
number of highly qualified birders working this popular birding destination, if
Plumbeous were coming through in March and April there would be unequivocal
records.
Any suspected Plumbeous Vireos in
Inyo County prior to mid May should be meticulously documented with particular
attention given to head and back color and contrast, flank color, and the color
of the edges of the secondaries and tertials.
As if that isn't enough, another
problem involves separating very bright and freshly molted fall Cassin's from
Blue-headed Vireo! The Blue-headed has strongly contrasting gray to blue-gray
head and green back, pure white throat cut off sharply with gray cheeks, and
white in the tail. With only two accepted records great detail is required and
as this is a reviewable bird by the California Bird Records Committee one must
submit the documentation to the Committee for peer review.
Competent observers have reported
Cassin's Vireos that they thought were breeding in the Sierra based on singing
birds that seemed to be territorial. Subsequent searches revealed that they were
just late migrants. Both sexes of vireos are known to sing and reportedly
throughout the year. Two excellent sources for detailed information and
photographs on the identification of these three species are: 1) Heindel, M.T.
1996. Birding 28: p. 459 and 2) Zimmer, K. 2000. Birding the American West, p.
242.
The complexity and difficulty in
separating some individuals in the Solitary Vireo complex rivals the infamous
Empidonax flycatchers challenge. When in doubt claim a "Solitary
Vireo" and you will ensure accuracy ...unless it is a Gray Vireo!
On May 8th thirty-five participants joined the international celebration of
migratory birds and scoured hills and dales, valleys and mountains, lakes,
streams, and the Owens River from Round Valley south to Little Lake, east to
China Ranch, and north to Deep Springs, Wyman Canyon and the White Mountains.
Last year Inyo County received national recognition as the Inland County with
the second most bird species found in one day - 219. Because this year’s count
was so early - it is always the second Saturday in May - the expectations were
not high that the group would come even close to last year’s record. But what
a magnificent excuse to arise early, tramp long, and celebrate the return of our
visitors who winter south of us from Mexico to southern South America!
While there were five fewer observers than last year, they put in over 331
hours of birding in one day! That is like one person birding non-stop for 13.8
days! In order for 35 people to gain as much coverage as possible in the
state’s second largest county (many other counties have nearly 100 people
covering much smaller areas), the group was divided into 19 parties with 7
parties made up of one person, 10 parties of two people, and 2 parties of four.
Two parties even hog-tied visiting relatives into spending Saturday in
celebration of birds!
The weather was delightful, the energy was high, and the birds were
incredibly cooperative as 13,124 let the celebrants find them! Six new species
were added to the IMBD count: Mike and Nancy Prather found a very late Marbled
Godwit at Owens Lake, Larry Nahm and Carolyn Gann saw a very late Common
Goldeneye at Black Rock Fish Hatchery, Chris and Rosie Howard were shocked to
see a Lesser Yellowlegs in Wyman Canyon, Bob Mauer, Jr. located a Bendire’s
Thrasher at Lee Flat, Debby Parker and her mom and Vicki and Gerry Wolfe spied
Eurasian Collared-Doves in Bishop and Death Valley, and Kay Wilson and Jo
Heindel stumbled upon a totally unexpected Hooded Warbler, a vagrant from the
East.
The final tally was 213 species, far more than expected and second only to
last year’s record. Forty-seven of those species were seen by only one party,
indicating that "One" can make the difference! Wood Duck, Northern
Shoveler, Bonaparte’s Gull, Forster’s Tern, Barn Owl, Red-breasted Nuthatch,
Golden-crowned Kinglet, American Dipper, & Sage Thrasher were seen by Jim
& Debby Parker, Sandy Scofield & Andy Zdon. Swainson’s Hawk,
Gambel’s Quail, Brown-crested Flycatcher, Bell’s Vireo, Black-tailed
Gnatcatcher, Crissal Thrasher, Lucy’s Warbler, & Hooded Oriole were found
by Tom Heindel. Semipalmated Plover, Willet, Long-billed Curlew, Franklin’s
Gull, Marbled Godwit, & American Pipit were located by Mike & Nancy
Prather and Common Moorhen, Short-billed Dowitcher, White-winged Dove, &
Plumbeous Vireo were noted by Vickie & Gerry Wolfe. American Wigeon, Lesser
Yellowlegs, Vaux’s Swift, & Broad-tailed Hummingbird showed off to Chris,
Rosie, Barry & Bonnie Howard. Western & Clark’s Grebes, &
California Thrasher were pulled out by Kelli Levinson and Least Bittern, Acorn
Woodpecker, & Le Conte’s Thrasher were observed by Andrew & Leah Kirk.
Calliope Hummingbird, Willow Flycatcher, & Hooded Warbler were sighted by
Kay Wilson & Jo Heindel while Cooper’s Hawk & Common Goldeneye were
spotted by Larry Nahm & Carolyn Gann. Bendire’s Thrasher &
Golden-crowned Sparrow were examined by Bob Mauer, Jr. and the lone Wrentit was
ferreted out by Judy Wickman & Bob Hudson. One Ring-billed Gull was
identified by John Williams and a Hermit Warbler was discovered by Debbie House.
Others who added numbers and were often only the second party to find a certain
species were Kathy Duvall, John & Ros Gorham, Steve Holland, Phill Kiddoo,
Paul McFarland, Bill Mitchel, Todd Vogel, James Wilson, and Jerry Zatorski.
The hundreds of hours of birding resulted in Inyo County receiving National
Recognition again! And again, as the second birdiest inland county but this time
second to our neighbor to the south…Kern County! Just think what the
possibilities would be if the lower Owens River was flowing and we had a few
dozen more indefatigable birders!
This past summer has been a banner year for finding Brown Pelicans in the
interior of the southwest U.S. Unlike American White Pelican, a common migrant
through Inyo in spring and fall, the Brown Pelican prefers the coast and is very
rare inland except at the Salton Sea where it is found regularly in summer and
fall. This year a very successful Brown Pelican breeding season combined with a
significant crash of the food supply, primarily anchovies, resulted in immature
birds desperate for food dispersing inland. Rare Bird Alerts lit up with reports
of birds in Arizona, New Mexico, and Mono and Inyo Counties!
There have been previous reports of Brown Pelican from Inyo County but none were
photographed or documented in writing so they do not qualify as County records.
In centuries past, a new species was added to the bird list of an area after it
had been collected and placed in a museum. There was physical proof of the
occurrence so that anyone, anytime, could examine the specimen and agree or
disagree with the record. Times have changed, fortunately, and now photographs,
audiotapes, videos, drawings, and/or written documentation can be submitted in
lieu of a specimen and preferably by multiple observers. If the evidence is
unequivocal, it becomes a scientific record. This is especially valuable when
birds occur outside their known geographic or temporal range.
Credit for finding and reporting the first Inyo County Brown Pelican goes to
Brad Schram who supported his observation with written documentation. Brad is an
excellent and experienced birder, author of A Birder's Guide to Southern
California, and an all around good guy. On 1 July, he was driving south on Hwy
395 and as he passed Owens Lake he observed an immature Brown Pelican flying
north. He lives on the coast, sees Brown Pelicans all the time and knew that
they are not expected inland. He posted the sighting on Calbird, a birding
bulletin board, which helped spread the word.
Because we were out of the area, we were gnashing our teeth until we could
return on 6 July. The next day a visit to Tinemaha Reservoir turned up an
immature Brown Pelican! Phone calls and a posting to the Eastern Sierra Birds
website helped alert local birders, some of whom dropped what they were doing to
drive to the reservoir to see our newest neighbor. Photographs and documentation
were submitted by almost everyone who saw the bird, insuring that the
"Doubting Thomases" of the future would not have any room for doubts!
To complicate the issue, Steve Holland reported an immature Brown Pelican at
June Lake on 3 July. Were all three sightings of one bird? Did the Owens Lake
bird go north to June Lake and then return south to Tinemaha? Or, was each a
different individual? Because it is such a rare species in the Eastern Sierra
one should conservatively claim only one. However, there were dozens at
reservoirs in Arizona so it is not impossible that there were three birds. A
similar situation occurred on 6 July 1998. A Magnificent Frigatebird was seen at
Tinemaha Reservoir at the exact same minute that one was seen over Mono Lake. A
few hours later one was seen at Diaz Lake. Obviously there were at least two
birds but there might have been three. Again, there were frigatebirds reported
outside their normal range during the same time in many parts of the state.
The sad ending to this story is that on 10 July Susan Steele found the Tinemaha
Reservoir bird floating dead. Unlike its cousin, the American White Pelican who
feeds by scooping fish as it swims, the Brown Pelican feeds primarily by plunge
diving. This is not a good idea in shallow water reservoirs like Tinemaha. In
all probability it died of starvation, but a record of its occurrence was
validated by the many photographs and documentation by observers who turned an
exciting personal sighting into a scientific record that will easily pass the
test of time.
Copyright Eastern Sierra Audubon Society. All Rights Reserved.
P.O. Box 624, Bishop, CA 93515
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