scoters, miscellanea, early winter trends so far

On Weds the 7th, thousands of Surf Scoters continue right off the beach between Camp Surf and just north of the north end of Silver Strand State Beach. Today massed in generally four huge clumps, totaling approx. 6000 birds. In the southernmost large flock just north of Camp Surf there were 2 female Black Scoters. And in one of the flocks off Silver Strand State Beach there was 1 male Black Scoter. But I probably barely saw half the birds well enough to pick out a rare scoter, as good numbers were also in marginal lighting and too far away, e.g., off the Navy Seals training facility.

In the “Miscellanea” department, a female American Redstart today in Coronado is probably a returning bird. Yesterday, there was a Western Tanager and B-t Gray Warbler at Old Town State Park, and on Monday there was a new Summer Tanager at the extreme southeast corner of Balboa Park, where also a scare-in-the-park Lark Sparrow in a flock of Chippies.

My impression of numbers of some of our scarce wintering species so far during late November and early December, county-wide, is that Bullock’s Oriole and Nashville, Yellow -B-t Gray, and Wilson’s Warblers are all in below average numbers. Most of our November Plumbeous Vireos are now AWOL. In contrast, White-throated Sparrows and Summer Tanagers are clearly in above-average numbers. And Wood Thrush is also clearly in significantly above-average numbers!!

Paul Lehman, San Diego