SoCal – My Birding World

SoCal Birding

September 15, 2019 Elizabeth Olin Comments 0 Comment

Red-Necked Phalarope, Orange County, 2019

I was in SoCal last weekend to visit family and hop around to familiar birding sights. It was a super hot weekend, so many of our birding trips were spent sitting under the shade and watching the birds from a single spot.

My brother-in-law gave me a replacement lens for my camera, so I was back to shooting again (yay!). After reviewing the images, I noticed things about the bird subjects that I wished I would have noticed in person.

This White-faced Ibis (non-breeding/immature plumage) has a stunning array of feather colors. From the white and brown tones in its face, with the chocolate dripping down its neck into the splatter of cinnamon feathers, and replaced with metallic tan and shiny green. It also has a bold red eye, and almost seems to be smirking in this picture.

Anna’s Hummingbird, Orange County 2019

I did get pictures of this Anna’s Hummingbird’s face, but I enjoyed this picture in particular because it highlighted the individual shiny green feathers down its back. Also evident is a fluff of white downy feathers that I typically don’t notice in hummers. The spiky bill made this hummer look like it was holding a weapon!

Black-Crowned Night Heron, Orange County 2019

As the sun was setting, the birds were flying about to their roosting locations. This Black-crowned Night Heron took brief refuge in a tree. It glowed golden in the fading sun. The red eye captured my attention, as well as the way its feet wrapped awkwardly around the thin branch.

Reddish Egret, Orange County 2019

A big treat this trip was seeing not one, not two, but THREE Reddish Egrets. They are a joy to watch as they frantically dance about as part of their goofy foraging technique. I typically see them from afar, but this particular individual was kind enough to remain posed for a closer portrait. The reddish/purplish head and neck contrasts with the grey blue back, but it was the yellowish eye that caught my attention.

It was a fun trip, and I’m happy to have a working lens again.

March SoCal Trip

March 31, 2019 Elizabeth Olin Comments 0 Comment

Western Bluebird, Huntington Central Park, 2019

Last weekend I visited my family in Southern California. We hit up as many birding hotspots as we could squeeze in a three-day trip. Spring was definitely in the air as we watched Japanese White-Eyes gathering nesting material, House Wren chasing away squirrels, and songs erupting everywhere.

Mandarin Ducks, Irvine Regional Park, 2019

The most exciting part of the trip was finding two rarities. One was a Gray Flycatcher – a lifer for us – catching bugs at Irvine Regional Park. It was a joy to watch as it hawked insects at dusk.

The other rarity was found at a little neighborhood community trail in Murrieta. A shadowy walk under trees that would eventually lead to a nearby park yielded a Plumbeous Vireo, who made an extremely brief visit with just enough time to snap an identifiable picture before it flew off into the neighborhood never to be seen again that day.

Common Raven, Irvine Regional Park, 2019

Rare birds are fun to see, but I also enjoy visiting the SoCal birds. Western Bluebirds were a brilliant blue, Common Ravens were busy croaking, and Red-crowned Parrots were noisily announcing their presence – which also made me laugh every time they squawked. Happy Spring!

Red-Crowned Parrot, Irvine Regional Park, 2019

Non-Native Birds of SoCal

October 19, 2018 Elizabeth Olin Comments 0 Comment

I grew up in Orange County but didn’t get into birding until after I moved to the Bay Area, so I always enjoy our visits with OC family. In the last several years I’ve witnessed new birds flocking to SoCal. Many of these species look quite exotic with brightly-colored bills, unique feather patterns, or long tails. They can be found in various parks and neighborhoods.

My sister and I began our birding adventures many years ago and we enjoy swapping stories, as she lives in Orange County and I in the Bay Area. I recall one day receiving a text from my sister when she was in LA. The message read something like this: “OMG what the **** is THIS?!?!?” Moments later, I received a picture of a strange robin-sized bird with a dark back, white front, and very distinctive facial coloring. But what stood out the most was the sharply-pointed crest on its head. Not being well-versed in bird anatomy at the time, I searched for “bird with pointed feathers on head” on Google. After sifting through countless images, I found it: the red-whiskered bulbul. At the time we figured it was an escapee from a zoo. Little did I know that this Asian species was slowly establishing itself in LA.

Scaly-Breasted Munia, Orange County, 2018

One of the first non-native species I personally saw in Orange County was the scaly-breasted munia. Also known as the nutmeg mannikin, these tiny birds made their way over here from Asia. I was in SoCal this weekend and watched these little creatures dance in the grass and fly across the field with long sticks of wispy plants to another location presumably to build a nest.

Alongside the scaly-breasted munia were bronze mannikins. Similar in size to the munias, these little ones hail from Africa. These birds have a distinctively dark head, brown back, and bright white breast/underparts. Apparently both these birds are captured for the pet trade.

Other non-native species in Orange County include the Japanese white eye with its heavy bold white eye ring, the pin-tailed whydah with its orange beak and long black tail, and the Egyptian goose with deeply pink legs and chocolate melting around its eye.

While non-native species certainly catch the eye, I always take time to appreciate and admire our local birds. More on that in another post.

My Birding World

A Bird Blog by Elizabeth Olin

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