Belly full of fish

 

Wishing you good health, happiness, and a belly full of fish in the New Year (or whatever you'd like to wish for!).

Blue and gray, with a little black and white

  

Here's another photo from the Western Sonoma County Christmas Bird Count — a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (Polioptila caerulea) on 27 December 2020.

Timing is everything

Eric caught a glimpse of these River Otters (Lontra canadensis) today, but if he had been a minute earlier or later, he probably would have missed them.  (Luckily, I wasn't too far away and he alerted me to them!)

I love when the otters roll on their backs:

 

 

 

And I'm always impressed with their fish-catching abilities.  Perhaps someone can help identify the fish in the photo below?

 

 

 

 

Morning paddle

 

 

I helped out with the Western Sonoma County Christmas Bird Count today (27 December 2020).  Here's a quick shot from the morning — a nice group of Green-winged Teal (Anas carolinensis) and Northern Pintail (Anas acuta).  [Five teal and three pintails, the lower left bird is a female pintail.]

 

Not your typical shell...

  

We went for a short walk on the outer beach at Point Reyes today (26 December 2020).  I'm not sure I've ever seen so many Corolla spectabilis pseudoconchs washed ashore.  Here's the flip-side:

 

 

I've written about this interesting pelagic snail in several previous blog posts.  For  an introduction, check out "Gelatinous thimble" on 11 August 2012.  If you go to the NHBH website (to do so if you're reading this message in an e-mail, click on the title of the post), you can also enter "corolla" in the search box at the very top left of the web page to see all of the earlier posts that discuss this intriguing member of the plankton.

Curlew up-close

  

Long-billed Curlew (Numenius americanus), 24 December 2020

Stream tones

  

Last night I introduced you to an American Dipper (Cinclus mexicanus).  I spent quite a bit of time watching and trying to learn more about this unusual songbird, and struggling with somewhat challenging conditions for photography (very dark lighting).  

A description I read in the Birds of the World account online mentioned that the dipper's plumage has "earth tones," but I might adjust that slightly to say that it has "stream tones."  The dipper's brown and gray and blue coloration were a perfect match for the colors and reflections in the water.  Sometimes the dipper looked like water, other times like leaves, or rocks, or shadows.  Here are a few more photos from yesterday's visit.  [You can click on them for larger versions.]

 

 

 

The dipper had no trouble standing on slippery rocks in fast-flowing water:

 

 

 

The plumage is amazingly waterproof.  Note the smooth water flow over and around the dipper as it submerged its head and actively searched for prey:

 

 

 

I'm still processing a couple of audio files of the dipper singing, but I'll try to share those soon, too.

A dip in the creek?

  

I'll reveal more of the story soon, but I couldn't help sharing this photo of an American Dipper (Cinclus mexicanus) from Lagunitas Creek today (22 December 2020).  A fun birthday gift!  :)

The Great Conjunction of 2020

  

You might need to look closely, but yes, that's Jupiter on the left (to the south) and Saturn (with rings!) on the right (to the north).  Photographed from Bodega Head on 21 December 2020.  There was some cloud cover around sunset, but the clouds shifted to the south and east just in time, revealing a wonderful view of the "Great Conjunction of 2020."

P.S.  Happy Winter Solstice!

A little greenery?

  

This morning (20 December 2020) a large flock of Pine Siskins (Spinus pinus) was feeding on sweet gum seed pods in our front yard.  I'd estimate there were ~30 individuals, so it was a good opportunity to look at color variation.  

Because so many siskins have been coming to our bird bath this fall, I'd been noticing that there's quite a range in how much yellow there is on each bird — some are primarily brown with barely any yellow visible, while others have bright yellow in the wings which is apparent from a distance.  I had been wondering about this variability (e.g., does color vary with age, or whether the birds are male or female?), when I read that there is also a "green morph" — although rare, some siskins show much more yellow/green coloration.

Today I was taking advantage of being able to look at a lot of siskins up close.  I was taking photos of different birds from different angles.  There was a variable amount of yellow in the wings (some were more buffy than yellow), but most had brown backs:

 

 

 

 

 

And then I noticed this bird:

 

 

 

 

The base color of the back feathers was noticeably yellow/green rather than brown.  The yellow in the wings was extensive and bright:

 

 

 

 

 

The brown streaking on the underparts wasn't as prominent, and the yellow appeared along the sides and on the undertail coverts, too:

 

 

 

 

Based on what I've read, this individual probably matches the description of a "green morph" Pine Siskin.  It's not known whether this color variation is based on genetics or environmental factors (e.g., diet when the birds are molting).  If you're seeing siskins in your neighborhood this winter, it might be fun to watch for greenish individuals:

 

 

 

 

Crescent and conjunction

  

 Crescent moon from 17 December 2020 

P.S.  Remember to watch for the conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn on 21 December!

Late afternoon swim

  

Len wrote wondering whether the goldeneye I showed in last night's post might show some characteristics of a hybrid — Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula) x Barrow's Goldeneye (Bucephala islandica).  So I paused in the area again today and looked around a bit.  I only saw individuals that looked like Common Goldeneyes, but the ducks were a little closer to shore, so here's a better photo of a Common Goldeneye.  [That's a Ruddy Duck (Oxyura jamaicensis) in the background.]

Morning swim

  

Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula), Bodega Harbor, 14 December 2020

Driveway moment?

 

 

Frost pattern on our car yesterday (14 December 2020).  

[You can click on the image for a larger version.]

Connections

  

Yes, this is a small embroidered whale on the sleeve of a sweatshirt.  I know this photo is a little different than the ones I usually post, but there’s a marine mammal, as you can see, so there is a natural history connection.  :)

Last night one of my college friends that I hadn’t talked with in many years submitted a comment to the NHBH…such a nice surprise!  Kathy and I rowed together on the UNH crew team, so when I heard from her I thought of my UNH crew sweatshirt with this little whale sewn into the sleeve.  At one point, someone on the team came up with the idea to personalize each team member’s sweatshirt with something that represents them.  I was interested in marine biology, and believe it or not, I’ve treasured this little whale friend on my sleeve for over 30 years!  (Champion made the best sweatshirts back then.)

Life has been a bit circuitous since I first met this little whale, and I’m so glad that it has worked out for me to live and work near the ocean.  But hearing from Kathy made me think about my former teammates and how their support of my marine biology interest stayed with me.  Not only were they amazing athletes, but they helped me believe in myself and my ability to pursue a path, no matter how difficult.  I love seeing connections, so here’s one that you (or I) might not have thought of before — in part, the Natural History of Bodega Head comes to you from my UNH crew teammates!  I’m so thankful to them, and I hope you, too, can trace the many connections from different parts of your life that have provided support over the years and helped you pursue your interests.

 

 

Blue Whale (Balaenoptera musculus) near Cordell Bank in October 2018.

Eye-catching

While doing field work yesterday (12 December 2020), we spotted some bright blue isopods in the intertidal zone.  Although quite small (only ~2-3 mm long), their bright coloration really made them stand out against the reddish-brown rocks:

 

 

 

We didn't have a lot of time, but we took a few photos for the record:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We think this is Dynamenella sheareri, but we are keen to learn more about them, so let us know if you've seen blue isopods like this in your area!

My, what long toes!

 

 

A quick shot of a Fox Sparrow (Passerella iliaca) at our backyard bird bath.  I was struck by the length of its toes!

 

Wave energy

I'm working on a project tonight, but here are a few more recent wave shots.  [Click on them for larger versions.]  Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Liftoff

The swell was even larger this morning (the offshore buoy was reading ~17 feet at 19 seconds).  A few more photos for the record.  [You can click on the them for larger versions.]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And I continue to be fascinated by the colors in spindrift:

 

 

 

 

Fire and light?

 

 

 

I had to make a run out to the coast today (7 December 2020).  The waves were pretty big (the swell was ~13 feet in the late afternoon) and there was an offshore breeze, making for some nice spindrift conditions.  It's always hard for me to choose which wave images to show, but this didn't seem like a bad place to start.

 

 

 

 

Smooth operator

 

 

 

Two views of a Loggerhead Shrike (Lanius ludovicianus)

Golden light

Recently I enjoyed spending some time watching several Short-eared Owls (Asio flammeus) hunting in the late afternoon/early evening:

 

 

At certain angles the December sun really lit up their underwings:

 

 

 

 

I also appreciated seeing the owls within the surrounding landscape:

 

 

 

 

 

 

I just kept thinking how grateful I am that the owls have a such a beautiful space for hunting and resting.

Bluest of blue

 

 

On 30 November 2020, Ron reported that he had found a small group of Mountain Bluebirds (Sialia currucoides) at Tolay Lake Regional Park, so I left work a bit early today (3 December 2020) and headed over to see if they were still around.

 

Luckily, they were!  I haven't seen Mountain Bluebirds in a long time, and I had forgotten just how blue they are!  The adult males (above) are especially striking.  The females (below) are more subtle, but you can still see that bright cerulean (or cobalt) blue on the wings, rump, and tail:

 

 

 

 

Note that Mountain Bluebirds lack the rufous or chestnut tones of Western Bluebirds.

 

Mountain Bluebirds are rare in Sonoma County.  They nest at high elevations in western North America.  It looks like there are ~12 records for this species in Sonoma County.

 

Many thanks to Ron for getting the word out about these beautiful birds!