Perfectly appropriate for Thanksgiving Day, Post #14 in Jim Gain’s “Learn 100 Common Valley Birds” series is the Wild Turkey. We’re proud to post Jim’s fine work, and urge you to visit his Reflections of the Natural World for more of his fine work and spectacular images. Introduction The Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) is the heaviest upland ground bird native to North America. It is the ancestor to the domestic […]
Western Meadowlark: #13 in Learn 100 Valley Birds
We’re proud to post #13 in Jim Gain’s Learn 100 Common Valley Birds series. The Western Meadowlark is actually species #18 in the series; some posts feature more than one species. Introduction The buoyant, flutelike melody of the Western Meadowlark ringing out across a field can brighten anyone’s day. The Western Meadowlark is a Common Year-round Resident throughout the open country of the San Joaquin Valley. The Western Meadowlark is […]
Learn 100 Valley Birds #12: Wintering “White” Geese – Part II
In Part I of the Our Wintering “White” Geese post, we learned about the larger “white Goose with the Grinning Patch”, the Snow Goose. In this post, the star of the show is the smaller Ross’s Goose. Introduction The Ross’s Goose is a Fairly Common Winter Visitor found almost exclusively in winter in the Central Valley. Similar to the Snow Goose, its preferred habitats are fresh emergent wetlands, adjacent waters […]
Learn 100 Valley Birds #11: White Geese Part I, Snow Goose
“Your first indication of their presence is the distant sound of baying hounds. As you look up, you see the sky flecked with tiny white moving shapes, which appear like snowflakes drifting lazily across the azure sky.” naturalist J. B. Grinnell There are two species of “white” geese in the Valley. The Snow Goose — Anser caerulescens — is the larger and more widespread species compared to its cousin, the […]
Learn 100 Valley Birds #10: Wood Duck
The Wood Duck (Aix sponsa) is arguably the most spectacularly beautiful duck in the Central Valley. It is a Fairly Common Year-round Resident throughout the wetlands and waterways of the valley. Similar to other dabbling ducks, the Wood Duck is an omnivore with a broad diet of seeds, fruits, and aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates. Appearance Wood Ducks have a unique shape among ducks — a boxy, crested head, a thin […]
Learn 100 Valley Birds #9: Killdeer
The Killdeer (Charadrius vociferous) is a Common Resident in the San Joaquin Valley. Killdeer belong to the plover family Charadriidae, with 68 species worldwide. As their Latin specific name indicates, they are quite noisy (vociferous). Description Killdeers’ upperparts are mostly brown with white underparts. Their upper chest is interrupted by 2 black bands. The sexes are monomorphic (alike) and plumages are essentially identical throughout year. Distribution Killdeer can be found from Canada, […]
Learn 100 Valley Birds #8: Northern Flicker
We’re always excited to post another in Jim Gain’s “Learn 100 Valley Birds” series. See more of Jim’s excursions into nature at Reflections of the Natural World. Number 8 in our series, and number 13 overall, the Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) is a medium-sized bird of the woodpecker family. It is native to most of North America, parts of Central America, Cuba, and the Cayman Islands, and is one of […]
Learn 100 Valley Birds #7: Valley Goldfinches
This is a three-fer post featuring the three species of Goldfinch that occur in the Valley. The first two, American Goldfinch and Lesser Goldfinch are Common Year-round Residents of the valley, while the third species, Lawrence’s Goldfinch, is a bonus species Rare Year-round Resident here. American Goldfinch – Spinus tristis Introduction The American Goldfinch is a Common Year-round Resident. It is one of our smallest bird species and the only […]
Learn 100 Valley Birds #6: Loggerhead Shrike
The Loggerhead Shrike is a Fairly Common Resident in the San Joaquin Valley and can be found in grasslands, freshwater wetlands and chaparral habitats. There are two species of shrike regularly found in the US, the Loggerhead Shrike and the Northern Shrike. However, the Northern Shrike is a very rare vagrant to the Central Valley. Status Loggerhead Shrikes are currently considered a California Bird Species of Special Concern (breeding), priority […]
Learn 100 Valley Birds #5: Dark-eyed Junco
Among the many joys of birding, the arrival of winter visitors is an ongoing thrill. With September looming, birders and nature lovers will be looking forward to the arrivals of White- and Golden-crowned Sparrows as well as the distinctive “little birds with the hoods.” Here, Jim Gain gives us his usual spectacular images and the proper name of our distinctive winter visitors, those, “little birds with the hoods.” They should […]