Oftentimes when they encounter grebes in the San Joaquin Valley birders are presented with an identification problem. In all, six species of grebe can be found, depending on the time of the year. Year-round residents include Clark’s and Western Grebes and the diminutive Pied-billed Grebe. Of the three, the Pied-billed Grebe is by far the easiest to identify. In addition to its small size, the bi-colored black and white bill […]
Nature
Reeve Rolls 300—Birds
When Harold Reeve moved to Modesto in 1983, one of the first things he decided to do was keep a list of all the bird species he saw in Stanislaus County. “County birding is the coming thing,” he told a friend. “I want us to have a good list.” To Reeve, “good” means several things, but it especially means “accurate” and “thorough.” Like many birders, Reeve is more than a […]
Target Bird: Bushtit
Little brown birds (lbbs) are often impediments to beginning birders’ ascent up the learning curve of bird identification. Many lbbs are sparrows, and too many sparrows look alike, especially in immature plumages. Other lbbs are simply non-descript, as much gray as brown, and difficult to identify chiefly because they lack distinguishing marks or bold colors. Those who learn to recognize these inconspicuous little creatures are rewarded by the opportunity to enjoy […]
Target Bird: Red-shouldered Hawk
In “How to Really Learn the Birds,” we suggested using the “target method” as a quick way of learning the common birds around you. To use the target method, simply study a bird before going out and searching for it. The key is to study birds you can expect to find in a given season. We’ve got more about common local birds in “How to Really Learn the Birds.” […]
What Happened to the Birds?
Last Saturday, the Stanislaus Audubon Society conducted its annual LaGrange/Waterford Christmas bird count. The count has been an annual event for well over thirty years, and usually tallies over 130 species and tens of thousands of individual birds. This year was different. Count compiler Jim Gain’s preliminary estimate of 112 species was the lowest total in over twenty years, and the total number of individual birds was also way […]
Stanislaus County Has a New Bird
It was only fitting that Stanislaus Audubon President Sal Salerno and Board member Ralph Baker were along when Harold Reeve added another bird to the Stanislaus County list. Reeve has been counting birds in Stanislaus County for over thirty years. He’s kept meticulous records of species, high and low counts, and rare occurrences. Periodically, the Stanislaus Audubon Society publishes an updated list of Reeve’s additions to the county bird list, […]
What’s that Bird in My Yard?
[meteor_slideshow slideshow=”harris-yard-1″] In 2001, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimated there were over 46 million birdwatchers in the United States—almost one in every five persons. A very large percentage of these people put out bird feeders and watch birds in their yards. Many delight in keeping a yard list that registers the different species that visit over the years. That’s certainly the case with John and Lisa Harris. The […]
Keiller Kyle and the Last Great Colonial Nesting Birds
No one alive today has seen two of north America’s three species of colonial nesting song birds. Both the Carolina Parakeet and the Passenger Pigeon went extinct in the wild over a hundred years ago. Today, the loss of these magnificent birds is lamented by nature lovers around the world. Unbeknown to most Valley residents, the last of our great colonial nesters is making a stand for survival right here […]
Rare Visitors Brighten Audubon Christmas Count
Most people wouldn’t give the shallow pond out near the San Joaquin River west of Modesto a second glance. But from a bird’s eye view, it’s like a table set with a holiday feast. That’s why there were Black-necked Stilts, Greater Yellowlegs, and Long-billed Dowitchers feeding along its margins on December 30, when two participants in Stanislaus Audubon Society’s annual Caswell-Westley Christmas bird count came upon the site in […]
Target Bird: Bald Eagle
Despite Ben Franklin’s preference for the turkey, most U.S. citizens share our forefathers’ enthusiasm for the Bald Eagle as a stirring symbol of many of the nation’s most enduring virtues. Free, strong, and proud, the Bald Eagle represents a people fiercely devoted to preservation of the values upon which the country was founded. Today’s Bald Eagle also symbolizes much of the paradox of our nation’s history. Once on the […]