Monthly Archives: April 2026

Just past the second bridge. Found with a group of willets sleeping on near bank. 

Well, I guess nothing’s easy. While sending out my previous message about the Ruff continuing At around 7:00 a.m., it disappeared while I wasn’t looking and now over an hour later I still can’t refind it. Plenty of birds in that channel on the south side of the bike trail at and past the second bridge to the east of 13th Street. Including now 250 red knots and several ruddy turnstones looking nice. Lesser yellowlegs total is 15 or 16 (mostly next to the little island on Pond 20). Vaux’s Swift flying around with the Cliff Swallows. And on the island in the middle of pond 22 is the Pacific Golden-Plover– Not it’s typical spot.

Forgot to add the MacGillivray’s Warblers. Not as many so far as some years; but they are around 

Hi,  The Gray Catbird that Nancy C found at Agua Caliente County Park on April 6th was still here as of yesterday evening. Some of us found it in a round planter area inside the fence of the outdoor pool a little before 6 p.m. yesterday. Viewed from the upper road. There are at least 2 Green-tailed Towhees. One on the Marsh Trail and one in the camground near site 115 (I think, could be 11

—
Lisa Ruby
Sabre Springs

At 6:55 a.m. on Tuesday, the Ruff found yesterday by Nathan French bordering the saltworks continues, currently in the channel on the south side of the bike trail adjacent to the second bridge east of 13th Street. But of course stuff moves around. Also an “inland” Red-throated Loon in the channel and 175 Red Knots, many of them looking very spiffy. Plus the usual 14+ Lesser Yellowlegs scattered around.

I want to amend an omission and give credit to Dean Budd for finding and photographing the bird the day before, 4/11, and for giving me some helpful information on its location. Thank you Dean! 

Ruff is currently visible (barely) looking east from here with scope. 

Just had a Ruff south of the Salt Works from the bike path approximately here: 

For those interested in finding Crissal Thrasher, the following may be helpful. Margaret Brown and I heard and saw Crissal Thrasher at the Water Treatment Ponds in Borrego yesterday morning, 4/12. Generally, the bird (or birds, may be more than one) preferred the mesquite just north of the northern settlement pond and displayed a pattern of silence, interrupted by brief, unprompted singing. More specifically, we arrived shortly after 7 am and did not see or hear the bird for the first hour; there were two out of town birders also present. At 8:15-20 the thrasher began singing unprompted. Margaret and I heard it but could not find the bird as it was hidden by the mesquite.  It sang for maybe two minutes then stopped. One of the out of town birders who had seen the bird from their vantage point came over and pointed the general area where they had seen the bird in the mesquite NE of the settling ponds. About 5 minutes later and in that same location, the thrasher popped up to the top of the mesquite and began singing very briefly and just as suddenly as it popped up, it stopped and dropped back down. It then sang unprompted about every 15-20 minutes and while we could hear it we could not find it. I walked to the NW portion of the mesquite and clearly heard a Crissal singing there and also thought I heard a brief response from the NE area. Margaret and I then walked to dirt road or path on the west side of the settling ponds. From that location, at about 9:30 am, we heard and saw the Crissal singing from the top of somewhat distant mesquite WNW of the ponds. One other detail, when perched up and singing, the Crissal seemed to favor mesquite with mistletoe.