Lone ranger and the hermit

  

A couple of neighborhood birds in Cotati today (8 February 2025).

 Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum), above, and Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus), below.

 

 

Avian miscellany

 

 

I didn't have much time to focus on bird photos during our Iceland trip, but here are a few incidental sightings.  Above, a White Wagtail (Motacilla alba).

 

 

Northern Wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe)

 

 

 

  Redwing (Turdus iliacus)

 

 

  Eurasian Oystercatcher (Haematopus ostralegus)

 

 

 

  Whooper Swans (Cygnus cygnus)

 

 

 

 Tufted Duck (Aythya fuligula)

Rainy day visitor

  

Pretty steady rain and drizzle here throughout the day today (19 March 2023).  Nice to see a Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus) in our yard.  The buds are swelling on the trees — and the equinox is tomorrow (on March 20th)!  Happy Spring!

Under the cypress

  

In the shade, but it was nice to see this Varied Thrush (Ixoreus naevius) on Bodega Head a couple of days ago.  

P.S.  I've written about Varied Thrushes in the past -- for more info, check out these posts:

"Eating berries in the shadows" on 11 February 2013

"Shiver me thrushes" on 5 December 2013

"Irruption" on 28 December 2014

December hermit

 

A wonderful Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus) stopped by for a bath in our backyard on 21 December 2021.

Rain thrush

 

Whew, it's been a busy couple of days, but here's a nice view of a Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus) during a hike near Sonoma Mountain on 14 February 2021.  It was just starting to rain.

Looking back

  

It was a cloudy and wet day in Cotati today (2 January 2021).  Rain often brings many birds to our backyard birdbath.  This Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus) came by several times, but I'll never get tired of her visits!

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!

Blue on blue

  

 Western Bluebird (Sialia mexicana), Bodega Head, 2 December 2020

Simultaneously

 

Western Bluebird (Sialia mexicana) among grasses and lichen-covered rocks.  Somehow the bluebird seemed to both blend in and stand out.

Winter berries

A couple of days ago, a large flock of robins and waxwings found a tree full of berries in our yard: 

 

Male American Robin (Turdus migratorius) — note the dark feathers on the head, and compare them to the female's paler head feathers (below):

 

 

Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum) — I liked how the yellow band at the tip of the tail blended in with the leaves. 

The activity also attracted another visitor that was interested in the berries:

 

Female Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) — females lack a red stripe on the face (while males have a red stripe).

All in the family

Eric called to say that he was seeing some young birds outside of his office.  Luckily, they were still in view by the time I got there.  Here's my first photo:

 

And then I captured two in one view:

 

This was my first close look at juvenile Western Bluebirds (Sialia mexicana).

Eric had noticed that these juveniles were being fed.  So I kept watching, and sure enough we saw the juveniles begging.  Here is one example:

 

And then another example (below).  This time the bird on the right is bringing food (just barely visible in its bill).

 

I was a little confused when we were watching this behavior.  The juveniles were begging and receiving food from birds that didn't look like adults.

I kept watching, and then saw this bird (on the left) come in to feed one of the juveniles:

 

The birds were moving quickly, but the blue on the neck and rusty color on the breast looked more like an adult...but then again, not quite right.  When I downloaded the photos I could see yellow at the gape (the base of the bill).  The bird on the left was not an adult — it was also a juvenile, although an older individual.  The younger juveniles were being fed by older juveniles!

So then I had to look up information about cooperative breeding in bluebirds.  In turns out that it's very rare in Eastern Bluebirds, but a bit more common in Western Bluebirds.  [For example, in one study, 7.4% of Western Bluebird pairs at the Hastings Reservation (in Carmel, California) had helpers.]

The "helpers" can be either adults or juveniles.  In this case, they were juveniles.  When this happens, the older juveniles are most often helping their parents feed a later brood.  (Western Bluebirds can have up to three broods in one season.)

P.S.  To see pictures of adult Western Bluebirds, see the post from 12 December 2013.

P.P.S.  If you'd like to learn more about cooperative breeding in Western Bluebirds, check out this paper:

Dickinson, J.L., W.D. Koenig, and F.A. Pitelka.  1996.  Fitness consequences of helping behavior in the western bluebird.  Behavioral Ecology 7: 168-177.

Irruption

 

Large numbers of Varied Thrushes (Ixoreus naevius) have been reported in California this year.  They're known for having "irruption years" when more individuals than expected move to areas beyond their normal wintering range.  Irruptions occur in irregular cycles (i.e., not every year) and are unpredictable.  Although I've probably missed them in the past, this is the first time I can recall seeing Varied Thrushes on Bodega Head since moving here in 2005.

[Varied Thrushes normally winter from Alaska to southern California (Ventura County).  But during irruption years, larger numbers are seen in California, and some may appear in areas where they're not typically found, including further south.  Some individuals may stray quite far from their normal range, e.g., to the Midwest or to the East Coast.]

There were at least four birds under the cypress trees across from Gaffney Point on 25 December 2014.  The male below had soil on its bill, making me wonder what the thrushes had been eating.  The Birds of North America account says that along with fruits and berries, Varied Thrushes will eat litter-dwelling arthropods.

 

Rich Stallcup wrote an article about Varied Thrush invasions for the Point Reyes Bird Observatory newsletter during the winter of 1994-1995.  Interestingly, he mentions that "...Varied Thrush invasions to California are followed here by record-making rains in winter."  We'll see if it holds true this year.

I happened to take a quick photo of two Varied Thrushes in flight over Owl Canyon on 12 October 2014 — perhaps at the onset of this irruption.  Although it could be better, it's a valuable photo to learn from, as Varied Thrushes have an unusual appearance in flight.  Look for the short tail and two wing bars:

 

 

If you'd like to read Rich's article about Varied Thrush irruptions (or invasions), click here. 

And click here to read a BirdCast article demonstrating how eBird (an online bird checklist program) data can be used to document an irruption, using Varied Thrushes in 2014 as an example.

This is a good year to keep an eye out for these beautiful thrushes!

Streaming by

For at least the last week, as I've been getting ready to leave for work, I've noticed very large flocks of birds streaming by overhead.  These pictures don't really do them justice, but look for the small dark specks against the blue sky and gray and white clouds.

 

By the time I found my camera this morning, the largest flocks had gone by already.  But here are a few more images to document this phenomenon.  Today many of the birds were so high that it was difficult to see them at first.  (You can click on the pictures to enlarge them slightly.)

 

 

All told, there were thousands of birds.  Although it will be a challenge, if they're flying by tomorrow, I'll have to try to count.

Do you have any guesses yet about which species this might be?  I'll show two more photos of flocks high in the sky...and then two closer shots that may help you identify the species involved.

 

 

 

 

I know they're not great shots, but it's the best I could do this morning.

These are American Robins (Turdus migratorius), the largest North American thrush.

There are lots of questions surrounding these morning flights of robins.  Is there a communal roost somewhere to the west?  If so, how many birds are using it?  Is there a food source somewhere to the east?  (All of the birds were flying west to east.)  Did the cold temperatures cause large numbers of robins to gather in this area?  Have I missed seeing morning flights of robins here before?

It's impressive to see such large numbers of birds flying by.  Fun fact: In the early 1900s, an American Robin roost of 250,000 birds was documented in Arkansas.  Wow!

 

Shiver me thrushes

It was 25°F when I drove to work along Coleman Valley Road this morning.  I stopped briefly for a few frost photos.

On a wooden fence post:

 

On oak leaves:

 

 

I wasn't the only one surveying (and puffed up in) the chilly morning scene:

 

Varied Thrush (Ixoreus naevius).  This species often blends in with its surroundings, but in this light it was notable how the oranges and blues stood out against the grays and greens.

 

Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus).  It landed in a tree right above me and peered down with its large eye.  A magical view!

Singing from the willows

I haven't been able to share any sounds from Bodega Head recently, so here's an audio recording from Campbell Cove this past weekend.  [Remember, if you're reading this in an e-mail, click on the title of the post above to go to the website to access the audio files.  You might need to turn up your volume.]

I never saw this bird, but it was singing from just inside the edge of the willows.

swth song1 by nhbh


The Birds of North America account for Swainson's Thrush (Catharus ustulatus) starts this way: "This secretive denizen of forests and woodlands across the northern portion of the continent is perhaps best known by its flutelike, upwardly spiraling song that lingers well into the fading summer twilight."  Here's another example of its song:

swth song4 by nhbh


And now that you've heard the thrush's song a couple of times, below is a third recording with a variety of other species singing nearby.  Especially noticeable is a Wilson's Warbler calling and singing towards the end of the recording (there's a single warbler call note at 19 seconds and a song at 24 seconds).
  swth song2 by nhbh


Just before I left the area, the Swainson's Thrush started giving a loud, down-slurred call note.  I scrambled to get the recorder out again and was lucky to capture a few notes (next file).  Listen for four call notes, and then the thrush starts to sing again. 
  swth calls by nhbh


In general, bird songs are usually longer and more complex and used to advertise territories or attract mates; calls are shorter and simpler and used to maintain contact or express alarm (or sometimes the function is unknown).

Although even more common in forested areas further inland, it's nice that a few Swainson's Thrushes sing from some of the shady, wooded sites on Bodega Head.
 

Eating berries in the shadows

During the past couple of months, this has been my nemesis bird.  Driving to work along Coleman Valley Road, I often flush them or see them in trees and shrubs along the side of the road.  But they seem to be incredibly wary and shy, and often stay hidden deep in the shadows of the forest.  I still haven't been able to get a good photograph.  Granted, I'm on my way to work, so I haven't had a lot of time.  Some day I'll do better, but because I'm so enamored with this species, here are a few images.

First, one showing how well they blend in with the forest setting:

 

A closer view, but still in the shade:

 

With a little more light, highlighting the steel-blue and tawny-orange coloration:

 

Varied Thrush (Ixoreus naevius) 

Varied Thrushes winter along the coast from Alaska to southern California (Ventura County).  Food may include fruits, berries, nuts, acorns, and arthropods.  One study reported the following foods during migration: blueberries, huckleberries, madrone, salmonberry, and thimbleberry.  Sounds pretty good to me!

Along with getting better pictures, some day I also hope to record their distinctive song.  There's nothing quite like it — individual quavering notes, each one at a different pitch.  They occasionally sing in winter, so listen for their whistled vreee notes, each lasting about 1.5-2 seconds.

P.S.  The scientific name is intriguing.  "naevius" means spotted or varied, which is easy to interpret.  "Ixoreus" apparently refers to mistletoe and mountains...a little harder to see the connection here.  In The Dictionary of American Bird Names, Choate and Paynter (1985) explain: "Although the American bird is not partial to a diet of mistletoe, the plant has been associated from the time of Aristotle with a European thrush which breeds in mountains."

Blue!

 

Western Bluebird (Sialia mexicana)

photographed in the Bodega Dunes, 5 February 2013

Although I didn't get a picture of it, one of the fun things about seeing Western Bluebirds at this time of year is that they often occur in flocks with Yellow-rumped Warblers — just like Eastern Bluebirds (Sialia sialis) do on the East Coast!

Forest spirit

 

Walking through the parking lot at work yesterday, I heard a loud "chuck" note and turned to see a Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus) perched on a shrub.

Hermit Thrushes are found throughout much of the U.S. and Canada and are uncommon migrants and winter residents on Bodega Head.  They're often associated with forests or shrubby areas.  

A few things to look for: overall warm brown coloration with a contrasting rufous tail and rump (see next photo); pale buffy eye-ring; and prominent triangular spots on the breast.

 

In the photo below, you can also see the dark malar (or moustache) stripes extending from the bill along the sides of the throat.

 

Hermit Thrushes often wing-flick when perched.  In the following image, look for the relatively short wings and the red tail.

 

Although we don't get to hear Hermit Thrushes sing on Bodega Head (they breed in Sonoma County, but not on Bodega Head), this sighting provides an opportunity to share one of my favorite Rachel Carson quotes.  She's writing about listening to Hermit Thrushes in Maine:

"It was during those early evening hours that the sense of mystery that invested the island drew somehow closer about it, so that I wished even more to know what lay beyond the wall of dark spruces.  Was there somewhere within it an open glade that held the sunlight?  Or was there only solid forest from shore to shore?  Perhaps it was all forest, for the island voice that came to us most clearly and beautifully each evening was the voice of a forest spirit, the hermit thrush.  At the hour of the evening's beginning its broken, silvery cadences drifted with infinite deliberation across the water.  Its phrases were filled with a beauty and a meaning that were not wholly of the present, as though the thrush were singing of other sunsets, extending far back beyond his personal memory, through eons of time when his forebears had known this place, and from spruce trees long since returned to earth had sung the beauty of the evening."

Although it's much nicer to hear them in person, if you'd like to listen to a recording, there are quite a few available online.  Here's one from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Macaulay Library.

P.S.  The Rachel Carson quote came from The House of Life: Rachel Carson at Work (With Selections from Her Writings, Published and Unpublished) by Paul Brooks (1972).