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August Migration

August Migration

Sanderling and Western Sandpipers

Sanderlings and Western Sandpipers, 2020

This article was originally published in the San Joaquin Audubon Society’s The Hoot Owl newsletter, August 1, 2025 edition.

We’re nearing the end of another sizzling summer in the Central Valley. Many of us have been dragging through the summer doldrums – a period of dampened bird activity – while daydreaming about the upcoming migration that promises to inject excitement back into our birding lives. Peak fall migration in the lower 48 states is generally September through October, but did you know that August is when shorebirds are on the move?

These next several weeks are the perfect time to be scanning water sources to welcome back familiar friends from their breeding adventures. Shorebird rarities or short-term visitors will be popping up throughout the county. Look out for phalaropes spinning around in dizzying circles as they swirl up their food in the resulting vortex. Grab your scope and scan the groups of peeps (small sandpipers) to see if a Baird’s or Semipalmated Sandpiper can be plucked out of a flock. Take an extra moment to review Spotted Sandpipers in case the similar Solitary Sandpiper is actually the one bobbing along the water’s edge looking for food.

A useful tool to help predict upcoming bird migrants is eBird’s bar chart feature. Available for hotspots, counties, and even your own personal location, bar charts collect eBird data and display bird frequencies for your selected location. Use this link for the San Joaquin County bar charts (keep in mind that rarities are captured in the bar charts and do not necessarily represent expected species for the area). You can also review a nocturnal migration dashboard on BirdCast, which provides live and historical data during the spring and fall migration periods. Check out these resources, brush up on your shorebird ID, and brave the last heat of the summer as the final migration of 2025 gets underway!

Checklist-A-Day Challenge

Checklist-A-Day Challenge

On January 1, 2018, I embarked on a lofty goal: to submit an eBird checklist every single day that year. This was inspired by a checklist-a-day challenge, sponsored by eBird, for a chance to win a pair of binoculars. Most days I easily fulfilled my goal with at least one bird outing each day, even if it was as simple as watching birds from my window or as I walked to work. On other days, I had to peel myself away from whatever was occupying my time to sneak in an uninspired bird count. But by December 31, 2018, I had done it: 365 consecutive days of eBird lists.

What started as a fun annual goal became a multi-year obsession.

Daily birding became such a happy habit that I continued it through 2019. I kept going in 2020, where it was especially useful to keep me grounded through the pandemic. 2021 was another nutty year, but I documented the birds in eBird every single day. Then in 2022, in spite of a move and a hellishly hot summer, I managed to log in my birds.

It’s a couple weeks into 2023 and I see no signs of stopping this practice. It’s relaxing and meditative, while connecting me with nature for a little bit every single day. In my new area, curious (or perhaps suspicious) neighbors stop to ask me why I’m wearing binoculars in the neighborhood, and it’s been a great opportunity to raise a little awareness of local birds. Perhaps it will plant a seed of interest for a future conservationist, or at least someone who will appreciate and care for the birds.

After five years, I haven’t won a pair of binoculars from the eBird challenge, but I’ve gained so much more by inviting a rich birding experience that threads through each day of the year.

New Adventures

New Adventures

Several months ago, I bid farewell to the Bay Area. I said goodbye to my neighborhood chickadees, juncos and nuthatches, and did some final visits to the bay waters and peeps. I was sad to leave these special birds that have melted my heart for so many years.

But I knew that new adventures were ahead. I eagerly reviewed eBird lists to see what new birds I might see regularly in my new town. Swainson’s Hawks! Yellow-billed Magpies! Sandhill Cranes! It seems like the Central Valley is filled with goodies and exciting new opportunities to explore. In fact, on the day we moved, we were greeted by a friendly neighborhood Black-chinned Hummingbird. This is a good sign.

Except we moved in June. And during a year with record-breaking heat waves. My Bay Area 80-degrees-is-too-hot mentality was quickly shattered by countless triple digits days. Who the heck can bird in that heat? I resorted to brief early morning walks around the local neighborhood park. That was the only birding I snuck in for months.

During these walks, I became familiar with the local scene. Black-chinned and Anna’s Hummingbirds fiercely battled each other for the right to sit atop a certain tree (while ignoring all the other available trees). Barn Swallows nested in a certain house and loved to dive around the field after the city mowers kicked up bugs. Northern Mockingbirds loved to sing. Loudly. In the middle of the night. Eurasian Collared-Doves mobbed every street lamp, scooting starlings out of their way. What a scene.

Fast forward to mid-September, which brought cooler temperatures. And by “cooler” I mean mid-90s. Migration should start soon. What would that look like in this little neighborhood park?

I found a Say’s Phoebe, which was previously unreported in this spot. I had to submit details to confirm a correct ID. Without a camera, it was a great opportunity to really take in its features. I took this bird for granted in the Bay Area. Now, it’s a treat that one is calling this little park it’s home for the time being.

The first day of fall was marked with nice weather and a clear sky that wasn’t pierced by the blazing summer sun. The Say’s Phoebe was joined by a second one and they called to each other while bouncing from sand pile to treetops. I heard geese in the sky, probably the Canada Geese I’ve seen a few times. Except, these geese sounded weird. My foggy summer bird brain sluggishly flipped through its media library. What the heck sounds like a rattle?

CRANES!

I whipped up the binoculars just as a “V” of Sandhill Cranes flew overhead. Yes! I can see cranes migrating from my little neighborhood park!

In the days after, I had quick visits from a couple of Yellow Warblers and an Orange-crowned Warbler. A Western Tanager made a brief appearance. White-crowned Sparrows have shyly started to emerge singing their familiar tunes. The notorious Yellow-rumped Warblers are also now here, announcing their presence with a solid “CHIP” note. They all like to hang out along one side of the park. How fascinating to see the birds carve out their niches as they arrive.

I look forward to new birding adventures in my new county.

Mistakes Were Made

Mistakes Were Made

Savannah Sparrow

Sparrows are notoriously difficult to ID. Savannah Sparrow

Each morning my inbox is full of rare bird alerts from eBird. Before deciding to pursue a rare bird, I carefully review the unconfirmed reports to determine whether I think the ID is reliable. It’s so easy to make mistakes – identifying birds can be super hard!

It always makes my heart sink when I receive an email informing me that I’ve misidentified a rare bird. The local eBird admin reaches out for clarification or to request a correction in the list. After all, eBird is used by researchers and conservationists, and they need a reliable data set, especially when it comes to a bird that is out of its range.

Although it’s difficult to realize that your public rare bird posting was in error, I (eventually) see mistakes as a good teaching moment. It builds our knowledge about particular species, and we can apply this information in the future.

I now know that Red-breasted Sapsuckers in the winter may have worn feathers that affects the amount of red in the head and breast, which tricked me into thinking it was a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. Immature Ferruginous Hawks can have stripes on their tails, which I did not find in any of my field guides (I did find a couple examples in the Macauley Library media). A young European Starling venturing out for the first time looks super weird and does not resemble the adult unless you focus in on its structure and not its plumage. These were lessons learned either from an eBird admin or through posting pictures to online Facebook birding groups, and this information is now burned into my brain for future use.

If you’re new to birding and use eBird to report sightings, you may find that a bird you see is rare for your area or for that time of year. If so, try to get a picture or record its vocalizations on your phone, but at the very least spend time thoroughly examining its features. Work your way from bill to tail. Note the size and color of the bill, the eyes and facial features, patterning and colors in its wings/back/breast, and markings in the tail. Online apps such as Merlin ID and iNaturalist are great starting points, but a rare bird sighting typically requires more documentation such as media or your own detailed description of the bird in question.

Most of all, enjoy the rare bird you spot. They are far away from home and may be visiting you for only a short moment.

Birding with Codes

Birding with Codes

Snowy Egret

Snowy Egret: SNEG

I’ve been a user of eBird for several years now. It’s a database of bird observations, and the data collected is used for research purposes. I find it cool that a simple effort on my part is contributing to science and bird conservation efforts. (To find out more, check out ebird.org. There’s also a free online course on the Cornell Lab Bird Academy website that explains how to use it.)

I prefer to use eBird on my smartphone, as it’s super convenient to use. To quickly find birds in a list, I type in the standard four-letter bird codes – a shorthand for recording bird observations. This is widely used in the birding community and is featured in eBird as an option for inputting a bird’s name.

Black-Crowned Night Heron

Black-crowned Night Heron: BCNH

I’ll admit, the codes are daunting! However, the more I use them the more I realize that there’s a clear pattern that emerges making it easy to figure out codes on the fly. It did take some practice, and I started off with practicing the codes for just the birds at my feeder.

Below are my observations about the codes – but use whatever shorthand that works for you! I use the Institute for Bird Populations for reference, using the PDF that organizes it by English name.

Boat-Tailed Grackle

Boat-tailed Grackle: BTGR

Bird Names with One Word

For birds whose name entails only one word, such as Bufflehead or Killdeer, all you have to do is take the first four letters of its name to come up with the code.

Bufflehead = BUFF
Killdeer = KILL

Bird Names with Two Words

For two words, you typically take the first two letters of each word, then combine them to create the four-letter code. There are exceptions, but overall this is the general pattern.

Anna’s Hummingbird = AN + HU = ANHU
Black Phoebe = BL + PH = BLPH
Lesser Goldfinch = LE + GO = LEGO
Snowy Egret = SN + EG = SNEG

There are exceptions, for example the California Towhee is CALT instead of CATO.

Bird Names with Four Words

I’m going to temporarily skip the three-worded names because it’s more complex. This category is much easier as there’s not as many birds with four words in a name.

For this category, you simply take the first letter of each word to create the code. There’s no concern about whether or not the words are hyphenated. There are some exceptions to this pattern, of course.

Black-crowned Night Heron = B + C + N + H = BCNH

Exceptions:
There are two in particular I’m aware of, but there’s probably more: Black-throated Gray Warbler and Black-throated Green Warbler. The problem with these two birds is that they would both end up as BTGW! So instead, the codes reflect the last letter of the third word.

Black-throated Gray Warbler = BTYW
Black-throated Green Warbler = BTNW

Bird Names with Three Words

And finally, working with bird names with three words. I find this category the most difficult. It seems to depend on whether there is a hyphen present and where. I don’t always remember where hyphens are in names, so that can present a problem.

For no hyphens, the general pattern is to take the first letter of the first two words, and the first two letters from the third word. For example:

American Tree Sparrow = A + T + SP = ATSP

When there is a hyphen, the rule I’ve observed is that the two hyphenated words offer only one letter to the code, regardless of their position.

Examples where the first two words are hyphenated:

Black-headed Grosbeak = B + H (hyphenated) + GR (no hyphen) = BHGR
Golden-crowned Sparrow = G + C (hyphenated) + SP (no hyphen) = GCSP

Examples where the last two words are hyphenated:

Western Screech-Owl = WE (no hyphen) + S + O (hyphenated) = WESO
Northern Pygmy-Owl = NO (no hyphen) + P + O (hyphenated) = NOPO

New Year’s Resolution

New Year’s Resolution

Western Bluebird

Western Bluebird, 2019

I enjoy making goals and checking them off my “To Do” list. It’s gratifying and I feel accomplished. The ultimate feat is to stick with a New Year’s resolution and master it for an entire year. What an accomplishment!

Except, it doesn’t always work out.

We strive to eat healthier, exercise, stop swearing, lay off the sweets, and so on. Yet, we are often back to our usual routine after a month, a week, or a few days. I remember one year I resolved to regularly exercise on my own. That resolution lasted one day. I did some isometric exercises on January 1 and then quit.

Over the past several years, I’ve largely stopped with the New Year’s resolutions knowing that it can be super difficult to maintain all year. However, I recently revisited the idea of making resolutions but with a new spin – birding! In 2018, I decided that I would try to submit a birding checklist to eBird every single day. It was amazing! I learned so much from that experience. I now know that Oak Titmice are here in the Bay Area all year, it’s just that they go quiet during certain times of the year when I thought they had left. Cedar Waxwings stick around much longer than I thought. I found birds in unlikely places, like random gas stations in the middle of nowhere on a road trip, which I birded in a panic having forgotten to do my bird list for the day during the long drive.

Accomplishing this goal wasn’t easy. Some days I really had to force myself to do a list. Weather, emotions, and rushing around all presented barriers, but it was worth carving out the 10 or 15 minutes to tune into the birds. By the end of the year, I had accomplished my goal.

For 2019, I decided to continue the daily birding since it felt weird not submit a checklist for each day. I also added a resolution to participate in all the monthly eBird challenges. This ranged from submitting recordings of birds, submitting multiple checklists in a single day, or tracking my birding route on a mobile device. I also did long-term challenges that included submitting over 90 checklists with sound recordings over a period of several months. I keep hoping that I’ll win a pair of binoculars for participating in the challenges, but so far, no luck. Earlier this month, I completed the final eBird challenge for December – another resolution met!

What will it be for 2020? Create a carbon-free lifer list? Patch birding? Photo Big Year? I haven’t decided. What are your birding goals?

October Big Day

October Big Day

Acorn Woodpecker

Acorn Woodpecker, Del Valle RP, 2019

Ever heard of the popular “Big Year” event where birders record as many birds possible within one calendar year? It can be limited to the United States, your home state, town, or even backyard.

“October Big Day” is a worldwide event encouraging birders to submit their observations within a 24-hour period. This year the event will take place on Saturday, October 19. Make an eBird account to prepare and have fun on Saturday! Where will YOU bird?

Window Bird Watching

Window Bird Watching

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 my office windows, I stare out over the 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.

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.

Bird Sound Recordings

Bird Sound Recordings

Savannah Sparrow

Savannah Sparrow, Bolsa Chica, 2018

I bird a lot by ear. It’s challenging and yet highly rewarding. It opens up a new world allowing me to discover the birds of the day, which is especially useful if I don’t have my binoculars with me. I’m still learning so much as there are countless songs, calls, and chip notes to memorize. Even birds that I’m quite familiar with will surprise me with “new” material.

Tree Swallow

Tree Swallow, Coyote Hills RP, 2017

Imagine my delight when eBird and the Macaulay Library released two sound challenges. The April eBird challenge is to submit 20 checklists with a recording and/or photo. Macaulay Library has an even loftier goal of asking birders to submit 90 recordings through the end of October.

Excited, I tried my first recording on my Samsung Galaxy smartphone using Voice Record Pro. I downloaded Audacity to process my recordings. I watched tutorials on how to process and submit recordings according to Macaulay Library standards. There was a bit of a learning curve but I got the hang of it.

As I recorded more, I started to realize how much background noise is picked up. The hum of distant traffic, a bike or car racing by, conversations by hikers, and the ever-present ambulance and police sirens. I began to realize how much I tune out these sound bites constantly. I was frustrated with my noisy recordings. They weren’t clean and clear – why would they want to utilize these?

Mottled Duck

Mottled Duck, Texas, 2018

It dawned on me that this is my birding world. I bird in the buzz of an urban environment. The birds are still here. They are competing with the noise. Capturing my experience for researchers will hopefully contribute to efforts to understand the urban bird experience. So, I will continue to submit my noisy pieces and be more thankful for those rare moments of complete silence surrounding me when the opportunity arises.

Hutton's Vireo

Hutton’s Vireo, William R Mason RP, 2019

Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge

Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge

Happy New Year!

For the past several years, my husband and I have visited the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) on New Year’s Day. It’s a refreshing way to begin the new year. It also guarantees a substantial list of birds for anyone starting a new annual list.

Snow Geese

Snow Geese, 2018

Located about two hours north of the Bay Area, this water refuge is a part of a complex of several national wildlife refuges. It features a six-mile auto tour. You basically slowly drive around in a car blasting the heater on your legs (in the winter) while you poke your head out of the open car window into the freezing winter air. Visitors are permitted to stretch their legs at specified locations. These are great spots to set up a scope and take a look around.

Various Geese

Take Off! 2018

The main attraction in the winter is the thousands upon thousands of geese. Snow Geese, Ross’s Geese, and Greater White-fronted Geese easily add up to more than 10,000 on location. When they get spooked and take up flight, it is a miraculous spectacle of birds lifting into the air. The subsequent noise with a mixture of calls and beating wings is quite memorable.

Bald Eagle and Common Raven

Immature Bald Eagle and Common Raven, 2017

Bald Eagles are another fun bird to observe. I’ve seen immature and adult eagles fly around and interact with the other birds. They are magnificent creatures to behold as they soar across the skies. In 2017, I was delighted to watch a Common Raven attempt to steal a partially-consumed American Coot from an eagle. The raven was boldly jumping around, and nearly on, the eagle in an attempt to snatch an easy meal.

Northern Shrike

Northern Shrike, a rarity for the area, 2018

Other fun birds are present, such as all kinds of waterfowl, sparrows, pheasants, hawks, and more. We usually take at least two hours to drive through the six miles. I’ve heard that others will ride through multiple times. If you get a chance to visit, the sheer volume of birds present will leave you with a memorable experience.