results of today's 14 jan 2019 san elijo monthly bird count

Thanks to 12 participants for braving the rain and conducting the 14 January 2019 San Elijo Lagoon monthly bird count: Maryanne Bache (beach), Steve Brad (West Basin, nature center site); Elizabeth Venrick, Emma Havstad (Pole Rd); Steve Perry, Don Johnson (CBS= Rios to freeway); Kathy Aldern, Kevin & Ginnie Brooks (EBS = La Orilla to Sta Inez); Patti Koger, Gjon Hazard (EBE = Stonebridge Mesa); Robert Patton (EBNW = dike; EBNE = Escondido Cr; Cardiff Cove, I-5 fill).

112 species were reported.  Species of interest included continuing male Eurasian wigeon south of the intersection of Manchester Ave & Ocean Cove, 2 hooded mergansers off the WSW edge of the eastern mesa, a jaeger sp. offshore, an adult mew gull near the lagoon mouth, 10 barn swallows along the beach and 4 over the east mesa; and uncommon at this site, three ring-necked ducks near the El Camino Real trailhead, a loggerhead shrike to the NW of the overlook NW of Santa Carina, and three rufous-crowned sparrows photographed along the trail east of Rios Ave.

Species included:

Pacific loon, red-throated loon, pied-billed grebe, western grebe, black-vented shearwater, brown pelican, double-crested cormorant, Brandt’s cormorant, great blue heron, great egret, snowy egret, green-winged teal, mallard, northern pintail, cinnamon teal, northern shoveler, gadwall, Eurasian wigeon, American wigeon, ring-necked duck, lesser scaup, surf scoter, bufflehead, hooded merganser, red-breasted merganser, ruddy duck, osprey, white-tailed kite, northern harrier, Cooper’s hawk, red-shouldered hawk, red-tailed hawk, American kestrel, merlin, peregrine falcon, California quail, Virginia rail, sora, American coot, black-bellied plover, snowy plover, semipalmated plover, killdeer, black-necked stilt, greater yellowlegs, willet, whimbrel, long-billed curlew, marbled godwit, black turnstone, sanderling, western sandpiper, least sandpiper, dowitcher sp., jaeger sp., Heermann’s gull, mew gull, ring-billed gull, California gull, herring gull, western gull, royal tern, Forster’s tern, rock pigeon, Eurasian collared-dove, mourning dove, Anna’s hummingbird, Allen’s hummingbird, Allen’s/rufous hummingbird sp., belted kingfisher, Nuttall’s woodpecker, downy woodpecker, northern flicker, black phoebe, Say’s phoebe, Cassin’s kingbird, tree swallow, barn swallow, California scrub jay, American crow, common raven, bushtit, Bewick’s wren, house wren, marsh wren, ruby-crowned kinglet, blue-gray gnatcatcher, California gnatcatcher, hermit thrush, wrentit, northern mockingbird, California thrasher, American pipit, cedar waxwing, loggerhead shrike, European starling, orange-crowned warbler, yellow-rumped warbler, common yellowthroat, spotted towhee, California towhee, rufous-crowned sparrow, Belding’s savannah sparrow, migrant savannah sparrow, song sparrow,  Lincoln’s sparrow, golden-crowned sparrow, white-crowned sparrow, red-winged blackbird, western meadowlark, great-tailed grackle, house finch, lesser goldfinch, house sparrow.

The next San Elijo monthly bird count will be Monday 11 February.  Counts are conducted by volunteers on the second Monday of each month, rain or shine.  Please spread the word or join us if you can (no RSVP required).  Meet at 7:30 am at the north end of Rios Ave in Solana Beach (north from Lomas Santa Fe Dr, west of I-5) to divide into groups to cover different subareas.  A compilation generally follows around noon at the nature center on Manchester Ave (bring your own lunch).

R. Patton
San Diego, CA

Source: SanDiegoRegionBirding Latest Reports