RE: [sbcobirding] Cuyama Valley
Subject: RE: [sbcobirding] Cuyama Valley
From: Lethaby, Nick
Date: Sun, Mar 22, 2009, 11:12 PM
Noah:
Cactus Wren is unrecorded in the county, so there is no chance of that. Bell's Vireo is pretty difficult now as they seem to have gone from the upper Santa Ynez river valley. I would also say N. Saw-whet is tricky (although apparently easier on Santa Cruz Island). There should be many species easier than these three to get to 300. Barn Owl is a pretty common bird in Santa Barbara itself to my knowledge.
Nick
________________________________
From: (email address filtered) [mailto:(email address filtered)] On Behalf Of Noah Gaines
Sent: Sunday, March 22, 2009 9:07 PM
To: (email address filtered)
Subject: [sbcobirding] Cuyama Valley
3/22/08
This weekend, Keely Watson and I birded the Cuyama Valley. This gorgeous valley and the surrounding foothills are in the northwest corner of Santa Barbara County and the purpose of this trip was to find some county birds for me and life birds for my girlfriend.
We left Santa Barbara after work on Friday, 3/20/09. A COOPER'S HAWK flew over while I was pumping gas on the corner of Islay and State. We then drove up the coast and camped at Bates Canyon Campground which was deserted. A GREAT HORNED OWL called during the night.
On the morning of 3/21/09, we awoke to a calling NORTHERN PYGMY OWL and MOUNTAIN QUAL. The owl was easily located and showed amazingly well despite the heavy fog. The quail were deep in the chaparral and were not sighted. On the way back to 166, we had our first view of the valley and the mountain ranges surrounding it. The lush greens and vibrant blues, purples, yellows, pink, and gold of the wild flowers and fruit trees were breathtaking. 2 YELLOW-BILLED MAGPIES were spotted along Cottonwood Canyon Rd. The gas station in New Cuyama is easily located near Perkins and although the gas was expensive, I was glad to have it. Perkins road had the first of many TRICOLORED BLACKBIRDS and COMMON RAVENS. A pair of RAVENS was nesting on a utility pole crossbeam. We then took Bell to Foothill, a RED-TAILED HAWK was nesting were the road takes a little jog close to 166. Raptors were scarce throughout which was likely due to the poor weather conditions and slightly late date. Also notable were the lack of bluebirds. WESTERN KINGBIRDS, however, were abundant in the valley. The Cuyama Dairy proved to be the best location for TRICOLORED BLACKBIRDS with hundreds present. The fog finally started to lift as we headed for Santa Barbara Canyon rd, and bird activity picked up considerably. This canyon is spectacular, reminding me of Red Rock County in Sedona AZ. A HOODED ORIOLE was seen at the last house before the road and a small flock of LAWRENCE's GOLDFINCHES were around MP 2. Ballinger canyon was very slow, but I was able to locate a singing SAGE SPARROW of the Bell's subsepecies and watched him forage with his mate at close range. This was near the house with the many solar panels. We stayed till dusk and walked the road, adding ~3 COMMON POORWILLs (heard only) to the list. We then drove to Aliso Canyon Campground where it rained all night.
On 3/22/09, we awoke to two very soaked WILD TURKEYS foraging in the campgorund. The drive back into the canyon was even more amazing then the previous day. Storm clouds whipped across the blue sky. A dusting of snow was on the mountains. We drove back to Ballinger Canyon but the only new bird was a gorgeous imm. GOLDEN EAGLE that Keely found. The bird dwarfed the RTHA that it was soaring near. The wind was cold and strong and kept everything down so after another loop of the valley, we drove back to Santa Barbara.
I tallied 3 county birds on the trip (Common Poorwill, Sage Sparrow, and Lawrence's Goldfinch). Only 8 more till 300! My targets are: Scott's Oriole, Yellow-headed Blackbird, Black-throated Sparrow, Black-chinned Sparrow, Rufous-crowned Sparrow, Cactus Wren, Northern Saw-whet Owl, Long-eared Owl, Barn Owl, Lesser Nighthawk, Greater Roadrunner, Bell's Vireo, Common Ground-Dove, and Prairie Falcon. If anyone has any specific info on reliable sites, dates, and/or strategies for locating these birds in Santa Barbara County, please contact me off list.
Noah Gaines
Santa Barbara, CA
Species List:
Turkey Vulture 15
Golden Eagle 1
Cooper's Hawk 1
Red-tailed Hawk 7
American Kestrel 2
Mountain Quail ~5 H
California Quail 12
Wild Turkey 2
Rock Pigeon x
Mourning Dove 15
Eurasian Collared-Dove x
Great Horned Owl 1 H
Northern Pygmy-Owl 1
Common Poorwill 3 H
Acorn Woodpecker 12
Nuttall's Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 1
Hairy Woodpecker 1
Pacific-slope Flycatcher 1
Western Kingbird 1
Loggerhead Shrike 6
Western Scrub-Jay 15
Yellow-billed Magpie 2
American Crow 5
Common Raven 50
Horned Lark 10
No Rough-winged Swallow 30
Bushtit 25
Bewick's Wren 15
House Wren 3 H
Wrentit 3 H
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 1 H
Western Bluebird 2
Northern Mockingbird 2
California Thrasher 2
Phainopepla 1
European Starling x
Yellow-rumped Warbler 30
Spotted Towhee 7
California Towhee 15
Sage Sparrow 2
Savannah Sparrow 20
Song Sparrow 1 H
Dark-eyed Junco 5
White-crowned Sparrow 40
Hooded Oriole 1
Western Meadowlark 50
Red-winged Blackbird 50
Tricolored Blackbird 300
Brewer's Blackbird 50
Brown-headed Cowbird 5
House Finch 20
Lesser Goldfinch 5
Lawrence's Goldfinch 7
House Sparrow x
N
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
\r
