My Birding World

I opened my eyes to a familiar pounding in my head. Migraine. Damn, there goes my Sunday. I quickly popped various medications, drank some caffeine, and settled in for the unavoidable deep sleep. After a while, I groggily pulled myself together for a little outing for fresh air. Migraine or not, I needed my bird fix for the day.

I’ve been studying gull IDs, so we headed over to Alameda to watch the tame gulls at Crown Memorial State Beach. Right away we were greeted with a batch of gulls in the parking lot. Some were standing around waiting for park visitors to drop a tasty morsel. Others were sitting comfortably and seemed to be melting into the asphalt. I cheerily identified as adult California Gulls and Ring-billed Gulls. So far so good on the IDs!

I reluctantly strapped on my binoculars and heavy camera setup. I was still drowsy a bit wobbly from the meds. But within minutes of crawling onto the sand, I was mesmerized by the birds and forgot about my weariness. As long as I didn’t spin around too fast tracking bird action, I would be OK. I love how birds can lift your spirits even when you’re feeling cruddy.

The next two-and-a-half hours were spent studying tons of gulls and peeps, trying to discern the various waterfowl out in the bay partaking in a feeding frenzy, and patiently continuing my learning of camera settings. We only walked 0.8 miles away from the car, but it was a peaceful stroll along the beach and the birding was fantastic.