Kick Ass Birding

Pelicans and Surf Scoters

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 18:57:56 -0800

Frank and Mary, good friends, bought a ski boat so it was off to Quinn’s Lighthouse for lunch. On the way we got some great shots of a Brown Pelican sitting on a piling and then taking flight. They are still one of my favorites.

After a great lunch, time for a little exploring and we get the above shot of a Mature Brown Pelican on the Oakland Estuary. Having a small boat sure allows you to get up close and personal with some of the natives. At the end of the estuary there are hundreds of waterfowl that we have never seen in the area before. They are VERY skittish and won’t let us get very close. Every time we approach they take flight putting on quite a show as they “run” across the water to get up speed. Good fun trying to get that perfect shot, err photograph.

Back on my boat I get out my trusty “birder guy book” (yah, I’m trying to be one of them) and discover that our elusive water fowl are in fact Surf Scoters. Seems they spend their summers in Alaska and the far north migrating south through Canada for their winters in the Bay Area.

The ocean and its bays and estuaries never cease to amaze me. Always something new if you just go out and look around a bit. All of todays photos are posted in the Pelican and Waterfowl albums. Kick Ass and enjoy.

Turkey Vultures

Fri, 9 Oct 2009 09:02:32 -0700

Took a ride along the Sacramento River checking out the California Delta and came across a couple of Turkey Vultures (aka Buzzards) that were feeding on a road kill rabbit. They were VERY possessive of their prize which allowed me to get some pretty good in flight shots as they kept trying to return for their dinner.

Pretty ugly looking guys on the ground but they do serve a useful purpose. They are one of natures recyclers keeping carrion cleaned up. NASTY, but I guess someone has to do it. However, when they take flight, they are as beautiful and graceful as any fellow aviator could be. As they soared, circling waiting for me to leave, I could see them tweaking their wing tips to control flight. I wonder if Wilbur and Orville got their idea of warping a wing to control flight from these guys? In any case, they have it down pat, effortlessly soaring for hours on end.

Without a doubt these guys prove -- beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Kick Ass.

Egret Rookery

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 23:09:58 -0700

I found this Egret rookery several days ago and couldn’t wait to take good friend and “birder” Larry Shushan to see it. There are two very large pine trees next to a lagoon in a residential area and both Snowy and Great Egrets have taken up residence there. Neighbors told me they arrived three years ago and never left.

Larry and I arrived about six in the evening with plenty of daylight left but also lots of shadowed areas which will make getting that “great” shot a little more difficult. We could hear them long before we got to the trees -- guttural, croaking sound that definitely does not go with this graceful and elegant bird. When we got to the trees Larry couldn’t believe it -- at least fifty birds were there and more arriving. For a birder this is awesome; for others it is certainly a beautiful sight worth a visit.

The larger of the two trees must have at least a dozen Great Egret nests and probably an equal number of Snowy Egret ones. The Great Egret nest is fairly large with substantial building material while the Snowy Egret nests are fairly small, for the size of the bird, and made of much smaller materials. Many
had chicks in them, all the way from downy little fluff balls to ones that looked like they were about ready to fly. It is very difficult to get good pictures of the chicks as the nests are fairly high up and pretty well concealed from view but we did manage a few decent shots.

As I was watching a Snowy female guarding her nest a male arrived and put on a fantastic courtship display for me. Well not exactly for me as he was really trying to impress her but I did get to watch and got some great pictures. I hope things turned out as well for him as it did for me. There is so much activity around these two trees it is hard to concentrate on one area. Everywhere you look there is a great photo op. This is really a Kick Ass place.
Larry found a Great Egret in a nearby tree that was actually breaking green branches out of the tree and then carrying them back to the nest. I guess I always assumed they picked up dead branches off the ground but this guy is harvesting his own building materials right at the source. This has been a great learning experience for me; watching the courtship displays, feeding of the young, their communal behavior and thier trips to “Home Depot”. Larry and I both agree we want to come back and spend more time here. “Birding” is really a good excuse to get out and enjoy nature and good friends. The world around us is truly a Kick Ass place if you take the time to look.

Pictures, through the eyes of the Jerryatric, are posted in the Herons/Egrets Album Enjoy.

email: jerry@kickasscruising.com

Great Blue Herons

Sun, 14 Jun 2009 08:03:57 -0700

Standing almost 4’ the Great Blue Heron is one of the larger birds here in Northern California and is certainly one of my favorites. The day is perfect for Birding so I put the dinghy in the water and set out along the shore of the Oakland Estuary. Across from Jack London Square there are 10 Double-Crested Cormorants setting on an old rusting dock, some drying with wings spread wide. A perfect photo op -- but -- my camera is back on the boat! ALWAYS take the camera cause you never know when there will be that perfect shot allowing you to share the memory.

Back to the boat, get the camera, and back out on the water. Slowly cruising along the shoreline I came across TWO herons basking in the sun. A Great Blue and a Black-Crowned Night Heron standing side by side. They don’t seem to mind the dinghy and the fact that I’m fully armed now, with my camera, and they pose for their pictures. Seeing them side by side gives you a better idea of their relative size.
The Night Heron is short and squat and you rarely see the neck extended. It is a short-legged, thick-billed Heron. In contrast, the Great Blue is long-legged with a dagger like bill, lean and almost “gangly”. The blue-gray color sets this bird apart from others. They did finally fly but the Great Blue only went a couple of hundred yards down the shore so maybe there will be an opportunity for more pictures.

When I did catch up with him, or her (I don’t think you can tell the difference), again he/she posed for more pictures. When I downloaded the pictures I noticed something very unusual. This bird had a tattoo of a bird on it’s shoulder! Yep, that’s not Photo Shop it’s just the way he was standing that presented the stunning image.

When he did finally take off I was able to get the entire “take off and departure” sequence, a couple of which will surely make it to my “Favorites” album. The pictures are posted in the “Herons/Egrets” album as well as a couple in “FAVORITES”. Another great day of “Birding”. Kick Ass and Enjoy. email: jerry@kickasscruising.com

Marin Headland

Wed, 10 Jun 2009 13:56:50 -0700

Cold. Overcast. Windy. Just need to get off the boat for a day. After a short drive I’m headed to Pt. Bonita, Marin Headlands, and look back to see the above “Window To The Bay”. No there isn’t a bird in it but I thought it was cool. At the next overlook there was a Raven enjoying the view of the Gate with me. If you look close you can see the cables, center span, of the bridge. It’s a clear day as far as visibility but dreary, overcast and dull light for photography. And did I mention WINDY. No coat, bad mistake any day in the Bay Area, so don’t know how much walking I’ll get done. At Pt. Bonita the wind is howling creating updrafts along the cliffs that are great for soaring and there are dozens of Brown Pelicans enjoying the free ride. I took a hundred pictures trying to capture their grace and beauty but the weather was really against me. Toward sunset I did manage to get a couple of keepers. Not what I was looking for but kept the trip from being a total bust.
As the wind blows in off the ocean and meets the coastal cliffs it produces a band of rising air that is perfect for soaring. As a glider pilot I have soared the desert thermals but never enjoyed the ability to soar great lengths of constantly rising air. I can only dream as I watch two Red-Tailed Hawks enjoying effortless soaring south of Rodeo Beach. While the pictures aren’t the best, there is no mistaking the Buteos (buzzard hawks) outline and my expert Harry Fuller (www.towhee.net) assures me they are Red-Tailed Hawks. Pretty Kick Ass when you think about how they do it.
It’s only an hour and a half until sundown and the clouds appear right for a dramatic show so I decide to wait out the wind and cold for that “incredible” shot you’re always waiting for. A Pelican soars past and it’s out of the warm car, did I mention I forgot my coat (CRS disease), for a quick shot, repeated 100 times. All I got for the effort was COLD. And when the sunset did come?? Not the dramatic scene I had pictured in my mind at all. Oh well, this is a Kick Ass place and I’ll be back

Did accomplish three things -- Now have Red-Tailed Hawks and a Raven in my photo albums as well as a cold. This birding thing is definitely a good excuse to get out and about.

Kick Ass and Enjoy.

email: jerry@kickasscruising.com