American Oystercatcher, La Jolla Cove/Children’s Pool
American Oystercatcher, La Jolla Cove/Children’s Pool
By {authorlink} – 11:53 am
The SDAS Cove walk today found an American[-type] Oystercatcher at Children’s Pool [10:20-10:40am]. Later [10:50] seen flying with 2 Black Oystercatchers towards the Goldfish Point area.
Final identification later today will wait upon analyzing the many photographs taken at the time, but this bird appears far cleaner than the hybrid seen here months ago, or even the American Oystercatcher photographed at the Cove by Gary Nunn last August. My in-the-field/quick-and-dirty analysis gave it a 35–36 on the Jehl scale.
Mild winds and overcast light made for poor seawatching conditions. 3 Rhinoceros Auklets were the only unusual birds. Everything else was faaaaaarrrrrrr offshore.
Parking was impossible by 10:00 am.
Stan Walens, San Diego
February 12, 2023; 11:45 am