Laguna – Baby vireo and Yellow-rump warblers!

Dan Jehl, Russ and I made a trip to Desert View Road today. It was a very different day than last week when there were singing birds everywhere. Today was quieter, and while it was birdy, there was less action. In particular, the vireos were far quieter than usual. There were two vireo spots noted today, both of which were spots I had photographed Plumbeous Vireos in the past weeks.

At Spot 1 (32°51'17" N 116°25'14" W) we found 2 vireos, one singing, one occasionally joining in. Separation of the two birds was 3 or 4 yards at most, so presumably a pair. Both of these birds appear to be Plumbeous. In this location I believed there was an active nest last week, but we saw no sign of young here.

At Spot2 (which is some distance away) (32°51'6" N 116°25'13" W) we found an adult Plumbeous which fed a fledgling. Soooo… this confirms nesting of this species in San Diego County. My photos of the adult are pretty bad, but enough to show no yellow on the bird. We did NOT see a second adult, so it is possible it is a mixed pair. No singing at this location. The birds were first located by a short scold call made by the adult. I recognized it (having recorded it last week), found the bird, and then Dan spotted the baby just in time for us to see the feeding. Baby and adult moved off into deeper brush and we could not follow for more looks.

We did not find any Dusky Flycatchers today. We did not find ANY Cassin’s vireos today, but had at least 3 spots where we heard vireos briefly, but did not see them. I speculate that as the babies leave the nest, the adults become quieter to avoid attracting attention to the area.

Then we went to Morris Ranch Road. In the parking area we found a singing male Yellow-rumped Warbler. There was also a female feeding fledglings. This is the first nesting of this species in the county that I have seen. A small group of Red Crossbills was present.

Checklists with some photos:

Desert View Road https://ebird.org/checklist/S70851379

Morris Ranch Road  https://ebird.org/checklist/S70850754

Nancy Christensen

Ramona