Tricolored Blackbirds Breeding again at Rangeland Road, Water District Pond, 24 May 2020
Went out to Ramona to check on the Tricolored Blackbird colony I had noted there on 22 March 2020 (checklist https://ebird.org/checklist/S66109602). They have apparently bred and nested in the Water District South Pond, where bulrushes have now grown back. Around this pond, and carrying food from the pasture east of the road, there were predominantly adult females and recently fledged young (many with yellow-orange gapes), so I wondered where all the males were. As I drove north along the road a bit, closer to the large, northern pond where cattle were grazing, I saw a few flocks of males streaming further west shuttling to and from the south pond area, that had been out of view from my previous vantage point. Final estimate, tho an undercount, is 180 females, 50 fledglings, 100 males=330. Today's checklist https://ebird.org/checklist/S69569365 . Most activity occured earlier in the morning.
Susan Smith
Seiurus Biological Consulting
Del Mar, CA
seiurus@…
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Susan Smith
Seiurus Biological Consulting
Del Mar, CA
Source: SanDiegoRegionBirding Latest Reports