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Tag: American Crows

Fall is Here!

Fall is Here!

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Golden-Crowned Sparrow

Golden-Crowned Sparrow

After a scorching summer with record-breaking heat and long days of choking smoke, fall is finally peeking through. The sun is casting its light from a different angle, colors are more saturated outside, and the days are getting shorter and cooler. These all signal the beginning of my favorite season of the year.

White-Crowned Sparrow

Singing White-Crowned Sparrow

Fall migration has largely settled down, so now can I switch into a more relaxed pace of enjoying our winter friends and their behaviors. The days of the White-crowned Sparrow finally kicked off and I hear their cheerful song from my window in the morning. Sometimes I catch the solemn song of Golden-crowned Sparrow mixed in with the morning chorus. Crows are starting to merge into large gatherings to roost in their communities. More and more peeps (sandpipers) are showing up to winter in the Bay Area.

Least Sandpiper

Least Sandpiper

Now is a great time to brush up on waterfowl, gull, sandpiper, and sparrow IDs. Fall becomes more of a visual birding experience rather than a listening exercise, as many birds fall quiet and resort to whispered calls and chirps. I look for rustling leaves and try to figure out if it’s the wind or a bird hiding in a bush.

Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher

Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher

A group of smaller birds suddenly flying away may indicate a raptor nearby.

Northern Harrier

Northern Harrier

And while you’re looking up for a raptor, you may spot a flock of American White Pelicans floating against a clear blue sky.

American White Pelicans

American White Pelicans

Enjoy the fall, stay safe, and stay healthy. Birding is a magnificent way to relieve the stress of these times.

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Window Bird Watching

Window Bird Watching

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The clock tower tolls its reminder that it’s time to eat. I heat up my lunch and sit down for the first time in hours. I’m too tired to go out for my usual lunchtime stroll around the campus. Through dirty windows, I stare out over Memorial Glade and watch bright-eyed students walk to their classes. The view of the bay is hazy, but I can still make out the blue waters and the San Francisco skyline. A cool breeze gently escapes the outdoors into my office as I munch down my meal.

View from my office. American Crows like the green field while sparrows like the mulch pile. I can see birds fly across the sky from here.

I made a new eBird personal location: Office Window Watching. From this vantage point high up in my building, it would be difficult to make out the little birds bouncing through the grass and trees, but I do gain a wider perspective of the activity. In the past, I’ve seen pigeons flap by, Canada Geese honking in formation, and crows dancing in the sky. I heard my first-of-season Brown-headed Cowbird while working in my office, and also the screams of the Peregrine Falcon families. So why not make a new location and enjoy window birding?

I found out how much mental presence you need when watching birds from an office building, especially if you don’t have a pair of binoculars handy. I had to zone in on the screechy calls of the California Scrub-Jays over the chimes of the clock tower. What I thought was a sparrow on top of a tree ended up being one of the jays. Two silhouetted birds flapped from the top of one building to another, and I had to rely on shape and flying pattern to identify them as pigeons. All my senses were put into action and despite sitting in my office, my mind was far away from work and into the world of birding. I saw eight species just from my window. What a lovely way to disconnect from the busyness of the day, relax, and tune into nature in an urban setting.