The Natural History of Bodega Head

    I'll write more about this soon, but for now I'm sharing a photo of a Surfbird ( Calidris virgata ) eating a By-the-wind Sailor ...

    Surfbird ( Calidris virgata) probing Pyropia (the seaweed draped over the rocks) to find prey on 11 March 2023.

      Surfbird ( Calidris virgata ) starting to acquire breeding plumage (e.g., the black feathers with white edges, some with rust-colored ...

    Watchful Surfbird ( Calidris virgata ), 8 January 2022    [You can click on the image for a larger version.]

    Surfbirds ( Calidris virgata ), Bodega Head, 10 November 2021  

   Surfbird ( Calidris virgata ), Bodega Head, 8 January 2021 

Yesterday (20 January 2020), I spent a little time watching Surfbirds ( Calidris virgata , formerly Aphriza virgata ) along the rocky outer ...

Wow, was it windy today (20 April 2019)!  Northwest winds were blowing about 25-30 mph (20-25 knots) with gusts up to 40-45 mph (35-40 knots...

Well, I finally found a few minutes to look for the Rock Sandpiper ( Calidris ptilocnemis ) that's been seen near the southern end of Bo...

  A nice flock of Surfbirds ( Calidris virgata, formerly Aphriza virgata ) flew in and landed nearby while we were doing field work...

Lots of chores today, so here are two more images of the Rock Sandpiper on Bodega Head during the winter of 2012-2013.  That year, the Rock ...

  Just a few quick photos of Surfbirds ( Calidris virgata , formerly Aphriza virgata ), feeding on the beach near Pinnacle Gulch. Alt...

  Surfbird (Aphriza virgata) , Bodega Bay, 16 March 2015 I wrote about molting Surfbirds a couple of years ago, but I can't hel...

Yesterday I spent a little time watching a nice mixed flock of shorebirds on the outer coast of Bodega Head.  The photo below is mostly S...

After seeing the Surfbird photos last night, Peter Connors kindly sent a few images of rocks he collected from Surfbird nesting habitat in...

Just a few pictures from 24 March 2013 highlighting Surfbirds (Aphriza virgata) molting into breeding plumage.  Look for their new scapular...

Here's a fun little quiz.  How many species of sandpipers can you find in this photo?  And how many individuals of each species?  (Which...

Last January I wrote about Surfbird behavior in high pools along the rocky shore.  In that case, two Surfbirds were facing off, both expres...