RSF/DelMar/Cardiff Clay-colored, Palm, Ross's, and prairie Merlin

On Sunday, Michael Force and I are birding around del Mar and rancho Santa Fe and Cardiff and Fairbanks ranch. I am 'sad' to report that the farm field along Calzada del Bosque where the sandhill crane wintered about 10 years ago is in superb shape for fallow seed-eating birds, and there were undoubtedly great birds here in September October but the site undoubtedly went unchecked. Probably things like multiple bobolinks and dickcissels and rare buntings and sparrows…. One cannot enter the property but you can check it along its entire East side from the edge from along Calzada del Bosque. One walk of it this morning produced a clay-colored sparrow and a palm warbler and Lawrence's goldfinch and cattle egret. Lots of birds hiding in all the weeds and stalky stuff, but they do pish up. Early morning would be best given the lighting.

At the Fairbanks ranch horse pastures there is now a single Ross's goose and a single Snow goose together, as well as the four continuing Cackling geese, all associated with the subgroups of Canada geese totaling about 60 Birds. In Cardiff we had an adult male prairie Merlin, subspecies richardsoni, which are quite rare along the Coast, as well as yet another Coastal white-breasted nuthatch. Yesterday Michael had a male Eurasian wigeon at the lower entrance pond to San Dieguito County Park, but we missed it this morning, although those birds also feed on nearby golf courses and go out to San elijo lagoon. He also yesterday had a Pacific slope flycatcher just inside the park beyond those ponds, which may well be wintering given the late date.

Paul Lehman,. San Diego

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Source: SanDiegoRegionBirding Latest Reports